According to an email that has been floating around, Easter is coming particularly early this year, and won’t be this early again for another 220 years.

Do you realize how early Easter is this year? As you may know, Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20). This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify passover, which is why it moves around on our Roman calendar.

Found out a couple of things you might be interested in! Based on the above, Easter can actually be one day earlier (March 22) but that is pretty rare.

Here ’s the interesting info. This year is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see the rest of our lives! And only the most elderly of our population have ever seen it this early (95 years old or above!). And none of us have ever, or will ever, see it a day earlier! Here’s the facts:

1) The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2228 (220 years from now). The last time it was this early was 1913 (so if you’re 95 or older, you are the only ones that were around for that!).

2) The next time it will be a day earlier, March 22, will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22 was 1818. So, no one alive today has or will ever see it any earlier than this year!

I took a look at the dates Easter has fallen on over the last few years:

• Sunday 23rd April 2000
• Sunday 15th April 2001
• Sunday 31st March 2002
• Sunday 20th April 2003
• Sunday 11th April 2004
• Sunday 27th March 2005
• Sunday 16th April 2006
• Sunday 8th April 2007

So, it’s not insanely early, just a week or so than the earliest Easters we are accustomed.

Remember, even though the holiday is early, there is still time to buy your chocolates, eat them and get more in time for Easter. Happy hunting.

(Via)

The first day of the year 2008 and so far, no complaints.

It’s back to work tomorrow—I’ve been keeping busy whipping up some web sites but that doesn’t mean I’m not looking for some more projects (ie. give me a shout if you’d like me to create something for you).

I’m very pleased with the new SB-800 flash I got for Christmas from my brother. (Not to mention the 50mm f1.8 lens I picked up for myself a week before Christmas) Keep your eyes peeled for some big improvements in my photography now.

I’m also extremely excited about the new acoustic guitar that has my finger tips in a constant state of numbness. It really killed me for the first couple of days, but now I seem to be able to play as long as I like. I love it!

This month also marks three years since my work with Relic on the video game “The Outfit”. I don’t suppose there is much to say about that, except that three years means that I’m legally allowed to talk about it, and because I couldn’t for so long, I guess there is just a built up urge to share.

Life is good; no new resolutions for the start of the new year. I’ve found it’s more effective to just start them when I need them and not wait for arbitrary days like January 1st.

Have a great year!

Despite repeated emails and Christmas cards that continually expound the details, I can’t seem to regurgitate my parents’ plans for Christmas except in the most general terms. I’m expected in Medicine Hat on Sunday? Food will be eaten? Religious differences will be tolerated? The important details just don’t stick in my mind.

However, ask me which questions I couldn’t answer on my 4th grade aptitude test to see if I qualified for AIM, and boy, do I have a list for you!

For the record, I didn’t answer “Christopher Columbus” because my fellow test taker, Christine, who finished it the day previous, told me, “contrary to popular belief it was Captain James Cook that discovered America.”

Why WOULDN’T I believe her? And to be honest, I don’t even know if Columbus is the answer they were looking for—what about the Vikings? And while we’re at it, do the “natives” count for anything?

Don’t lose any sleep over it. I got into AIM anyway.

In case you’re curious, AIM was this once-a-week afternoon program they had for students who were high achievers. While my peers at George Davidson were learning about the Native American Indians and the settlement of Western Canada, I was busy across town learning advanced science, math, and computer skills.

In AIM they taught us about negative numbers, statistics, and among other things how to use a word processor—this was a pretty big deal considering that in 1988 most people hadn’t even heard of word processors. I still remember typing away in front of those state of the art monochrome green monitors. Our teacher Mr. Freeman insisted typing would be a useful skill later in life. Who knew he’s be so right?

And even though this might sound pretty cool, I hated AIM.

One of my complaints was that I wasn’t interested in learning how to type. Computers were for games! and as any 9 year old of that time will testify, learning about home row is significantly less entertaining than Lode Runner.

They also demanded too much homework. Any “extra” homework, is too much. The weekly afternoon assignments at AIM more than doubled my load for the entire week. And to make matters worse, I was completely stressed out that I wouldn’t do a good job.

Homework wasn’t the worst part though.

The worst part was that none of my regular teachers had ever gotten around to teaching cursive handwriting. Mr. Freeman, liked to mix his chicken scratching with cursive shortcuts. Basically I was in a class of “geniuses” and I when it came time to read our homework off the board, for all intents and purposes, I was illiterate. Talk about HUMILIATING.

Mr. Freeman wasn’t exactly understanding either. There were a few of us in the same boat and he lipped us off saying that if we couldn’t read his writing, that was our problem. It was the next week that I began skipping. (How did you think I found out what everyone in my regular class was up to on Wednesday afternoons). Shortly after that I ended up dropping the program—but I’ve kept the guilt.

And in so many ways, I can’t help but feel like my performance in AIM has been a reflection of my life in general. If only my circumstances had been different… if only I had a half decent teacher, or someone to inspire me… and besides whatever it is I should be doing, it’s significantly less entertaining than any number of my daily distractions.

At least I can take a break from my worries with some holiday cheer. So, last time—I promise—what time is Christmas dinner, Mom?

These are some of the eggs that my sister and her oldest son made. Check out the fabulous Pysanky Pool on Flickr.

I’m a fan of scrubs, and if you are too, you might like this version of Charlie Brown’s Christmas performed by the Scrubs cast.

Hit play or view on Youtube.

Here is some backstory.

Halloween 2005

Originally uploaded by bcompetent.

Halloween pysanky by Becky! They’re a little scary looking, but I guess that’s the idea!

It’s the summer solstice today, the first day of summer, and the longest day of the year (for those of us living in Earth’s Northern Hemisphere). The actual solstice is the moment the Earth’s tilt faces directly toward or away from the Sun.

I used to really dig the idea that the druids, or whoever it was that built Stonehenge, did it in such a way that certain shadows hit certain places on specific times of the year. I also liked books that used the changing of the seasons as magical days where mysteries were revealed or secret doors could be opened.

I once went into a church on top of Mt. Taber in Israel that when the solstice sun’s light hit the stained glass, it would paint a gorgeous image of Jesus’s transfiguration across the chapel floor matching up with the mosaic tiling. Of course I wasn’t there to actually see it, but the stain glass itself was nice and it sounded interesting all the same.

There are a lot of superstitions around the solstice, but maybe if you feel something special in the air tonight, perhaps it’s the cosmos trying to communicate with you, perhaps there is some mysterious force that you are on the verge of channeling, or perhaps you’ve just gotten too much sun.

Yay for summer! It’s all down hill from here.

I had a fantastic weekend. The May long weekend is one of those fickle beasts where anticipation is rarely meted out with actual reward, but I have to say I never would have imagined mine would be so fun.

My kid sister and her husband Glen invited me out to Buck Lake for some fun and adventure with their family. Glen’s brother Jason even picked me up halfway in Calgary so we’d each have someone to chat with on the way up and of course to save a little gas. What a fantastic family. I’m guessing the invitation was due, in no small part, to the fact that I’ve seen better days. Though I might have a thousand people read this website, when it comes to the real world I have been a little bit of a recluse lately. So again, this weekend was a lifesaver.

First thing when we arrived on Saturday morning the boys immediately started to play. It was one game after another, tossing the baseball, a little catch with the football, and then the competitions started. I bet you I can knock over the lawn chair from here, next time make it Ryker’s minuscule plastic chair. Of course the chair was no match for the pig skin.

“Yeah, it was weird, the wind knocked it over and the leg just broke right off”. The grandparents are apparently used to the their sons breaking Ryker’s stuff as Grandma says with a smile, “Oh, sure it did”.

It rained that night as Chris (Glen’s oldest brother) and I finished up the Texas Hold ‘em Poker match. I had a pretty big lead, but it was getting late so we went all in blind on one deal and I ended up losing everything. Still that game is extremely fun, and we weren’t playing for money. Seeing the rain pouring down on my little tent—though I’m sure it wouldn’t have been bad once i got in it—I opted to sleep on the floor of the fifth wheel. The next day Jason, Jock, and I took the Quads out through the fresh mud and had a spectacular time. Part of the fun is trying to go through the most impossible rutted up mud traps to see if you can make it. If you can’t, well then that’s what the winch is for and with a little help from the other guys you can pull yourself out of anything. It’s great!

That night the Oilers beat the (not so) Mighty Ducks and afterwards we took the boat out wakeboarding. I have never been wakeboarding in such perfect conditions. The water was like glass and as the sun set it left pink and purple streaks that glided down into the reflection of the lake. I wish I would have had my camera out that night because except for swallowing a few bugs, the mood was absolutely perfect! I even landed a few big jumps across the wake.

I got to spend the next morning playing with the little man, my nephew Ryker, at the park and got a few pictures of him there. It’s so fun to watch what he finds entertaining.

Back in Calgary that evening I met up with one of my old friends from Medicine Hat and we went to dinner together.

Things are really starting to line up for her. We started talking about when we were younger going to church together. We talked about what everyone else in the same church age-group was doing with their lives. We talked a little bit about what our Sunday School lessons were like and how even as a kid she realized that I was the only one in class asking the hitting questions and she could see the pain in my eyes when the responses I got weren’t very satisfying.

She also helped me realize something that night which might very well change my life. She pointed out that I’ve had quite a hard time letting things go, whether it be a misunderstanding from junior high or a break-up or whatever. She claimed (ever so kind that she is) that she thinks I’m a genius and on that same note that sometimes my great mind refuses to just forget about things. Obviously I’ve been aware of this my whole life, but something about the conversation just stuck and I began to finally realize that holding onto anger for things whether they happened 20 years ago or just last year was pretty ridiculous. What was I trying to accomplish anyway? It’s high time I let things go; it’s high time I learn not to cling onto things so much; and it is such a burden off my shoulders.

So I’m back home, reclusing as usual, but I feel good. I’ve done all my household chores, the lawn is mowed, the DVD I have been meaning to burn for a friend is done, and it’s got me thinking, why shouldn’t I be happy anyway? After all, every day is a gift, and some days are extra special gifts—like the ones where you go quadding and wakeboarding in the same day. I’m a lucky guy.

Flickr’s gone catty for April Fools’ Day.

Happy New Year! I just got back from a great party with the folks from the International Centre and I wanted to wish all my readers the best of luck for the coming year.

One great thing about coming home for the holidays is meeting up with many of my old friends. Since I had been making a habit out of not coming to Medicine Hat for Christmas the last few years I’ve really lost touch with many of them. It has been great to catch-up and discover how people have changed and what has happened to them since high school.

This afternoon I went out with my friend Linnsie, and tonight I went out with Janie and her friends. I’ve had a great day—I ran into four different guys that I used to play basketball with in high school, one of them even treated us to lunch! What a great surprise. Happy Holidays indeed.

Wishing you all the best! I hope you have a Merry Christmas—or whatever holiday you celebrate in your part of the world.

Here is a photo of the “not-so-white” Christmas that we’re having in Southern Alberta.

I’m off to Medicine Hat for the next week enjoying time with my family over the Christmas holidays. Please feel free to share what you’re doing to celebrate the holidays in the comments. You don’t even need a Blogger account!

Check out this cool transformer costume that actually transforms. Not only does it transform, but it does so while it’s being worn! The only down-side is that the creator sells them for the extremely pricey amount of $4000 (USD).

Check out all the Transformer Costumes.

I didn’t have a lot of transformers as a kid, but I did have the model pictured here, “Starscream”.

(via BoingBoing)

A comedy short detailing where they get their most rare export. Not rated but would probably garner a pg-13 rating for blood and brief nudity.

Rare Exports Inc. (Has a link to 66 MB mov)

Smaller Version: Rare Exports Inc. (36 mb mov)