Paolo Gaspar

It’s the Victoria Day long weekend this weekend which unofficially kicks off the summer season here in Canada.  I’m super excited as I’ve got quite a bit on the table.

Tomorrow I’ll be going to Locarno beach with Meg for a bbq by the beach.  I’m planning on buying some tenderloin at T&T so we can have filet mignon.  I’ll need a new bbq though because the one I bought last year is a POS.  Ideally my ‘travel’ bbq would have the following features;

• cast iron
• grill grates that are 3-5mm thick
• uses charcoal
• has a cover w/ a vent
• preferably with a temp guage as well.

I can’t seem to find anything like this at the local stores (Canadian Tire, Home Depot, etc).  Maybe I’ll check out walmart later this evening if I have time.

Sunday evening will be with Tyler, Bryan, and Billy.  We’re all planning to go up to Blackcomb to spend the night partying (ok, drinking in out hotel room) and then riding all day monday to bid the 2007-2008 snowboarding season one last hurrah.  It’s sure to be lots of fun as trips to Whistler always have.

On a side note, today was exceptionally nice.  I walked to work and it was effing fantastic.  it’s also nice to have parking in the basement so as to keep my car nice and cool.  There was once a time when I would park at the P5 level here at Central City.  After a long hot day of basking in the sun, I would have to let my car airate for a few minutes before it was comfortable enough inside for me to stay in it the 4 minute trip home.  My seats are also leather so it would burn bad.  So yeah … I’m quite happy with what I’ve got now.  I can’t wait to give her a good wash so she’s nice and sparkly again!

I turned 24 around 6am this morning.  I’m glad not to be 22 or 23 any longer - I just like the way “24″ sounds.  I’m at work right now though, then I have school later where I’ll be quizzed on how to calculate taxable income.  My prof is really adamant about teaching us in a way that would make people think that we’re all going to go on to work for the CRA.  I’m sorry … I have no interest in working for the same people who will be taxing me as well.

Early Morning

I actually greeted my birthday while I was at Tim Horton’s.  Meg called me at about 5 minutes to midnight to say Happy Birthday.  I tried to do the same on her birthday back in December, but I fell asleep and called at like 12:30am.  I stayed there until about 2am when I went home to go to sleep.

I woke up this morning and went to work … late.  I got in at 8:30 when apparently I was supposed to have started at 8am.  Our schedule has been changed around quite a bit, making a usually predictable schedule a little unpredictable at time.  Now, whenever someone has a birthday at work, there’s the obligatory “All Branch Staff” email sent out to make everyone aware of who was turning how old.  That didn’t happen today, and I’m actually quite happy about it because those kinds of birthday wishes make me have to talk to people who I don’t want to talk to (ie. ever had to say ‘hi’ to a co-worker simply cuz you’re walking past him/her?  that’s the kind of feeling I wanted to avoid).

Hungy!

Lunch today was REALLY good.  Meg and I went to Pho Tam (which is an AWESOME little pho place by Surrey Central Station).  It’s a diner style restaurant with a focus on good food and a high turn over;

• The food is good and you get full fast
• There isn’t a whole lot of decor, so there isn’t a whole lot of reason to stick around
• It’s cheap so there’s always a high demand ($8.25 gets you a LARGE bowl of noodles and the best deep friend spring roll in the Lower Mainland)

Today I got a french coffee as well, which is basically coffee brewed using a Vietnamese filter and dripped directly into a cup with condensed milk.  The taste of coffee is strong, but is balanced with the sweet and creamy taste of the condensed milk.  Meg had her usual “small #3 with a spring roll and a coke”.  It’s a winning combination and we’re not likely to change that any time soon.Something funny happened in that we sat down a guy who looked like one of the Mandelbaum’s of Seinfeld fame.  haha.

Tax Sucks 

There wasn’t a whole lot that happened after lunch and by the time I got home, aside from getting thoroughly ROCKED by the tax quiz that I had to go through today.  I’d much rather go through a colonoscopy; at least that way, I’d be fast asleep while being violated.

Back Home

When I got home my family was there to greet me and wish me a Happy Birthday.  My dad forgot how old I was and that it was even my birthday:

Mom: It’s your birthday isn’t it?!
Me: Yup!
Dad: It’s the 19th already?!
Mom: ..!!
Me: Yup
Dad: So you’re 25 now, right?
Me: … umm … I’m 24

Hahaha … I think he was joking around … I’m not really sure, but it’s funny anyways

I Feel Special =) 

I got I came across my brother’s present for me: a bluetooth headset!  If you guys recall, Meg had given me a BlackBerry Curve as an early birthday present, so this headset complements it nicely!  

Aaron also gave me a t-shirt that he ironed The Shocker on to during the St. Patty’s party at his house on Friday where Meg also presented me with an ice cream cake with Dwight Schrute on it.  Rad!  While my birthdays are relatively quiet, they always end up being spectacular! =) 

Yeah, I’m still here.  I’ve been really busy lately with school and work so I’ve barely had any time for myself.  I’ve also been busily planning 1 year anniversary plans for my girlfriend, Meg, and me.  So far I’ve got reservations at the Hyatt Regency in Vancouver and dinner at Gotham.  We’ve never been to either place, so it should be nice!

My birthday is coming up soon too.  Meg got me a new wallet and a new phone which I absolutely love!  It’s nice to have a phone where I can actually see what’s on the screen.  The photos below show just how messed up my old phone was due to all the damage I caused to it.  Of course, I’m not going to be so careless with my new one :).

In other news, I went snowboarding at Grouse a few days ago and it was fantastic.  There was a good 20cm of fresh powder in most areas and I honestly didn’t expect that considering it’s March now.  I’ll take it though!  The powder made it a little difficult to go through the Quiksilver Park with decent speed to hit the bigger jumps, but the small park was no problem as long as you carried momentum into the jump.  I really can’t wait ’till the spring weather really starts showing itself!  Then I’ll fully have the ability to speed up fast enough for the XL kickers in the big park.

Ok.  Well, I can’t really think of much else to say.  I get all these ideas about websites and stuff, but it’s difficult doing research on it.  I’ve barely had time to write in my own blog, let alone sit down for a few hours to do some research (who can say SWOT analysis?!).  haha. 

So I work for a bank (a credit union, actually).  I also work in their call centre.  When you call your bank and ask about transactions, balances, etc. then I’m the guy on the other end of the line.  It isn’t always easy here, so here are a few things that people need to understand, and maybe you’ll get some tips on how to get your bank to work harder for you next time;

1. Be prepared 
   There have been so many occasions where people will call in with a long list of requests but cannot, for the life of them, come up with an account number.  Your account number is what sets you apart from everyone else.  Look you up by name?  Do you know how many John Carters and Bal Sandhus we have?!  Sorry bud, get the account statement that we give you every month, or the debit card that we provided you with so you can buy stuff, then maybe we can help you better
    
2. Shut the fuck up
   Let us get a few words out there.  Explain your problem as clearly and as consicely as you can and then let us give you our input.  We cannot help you when you cut us off after every third word. 
    
3. We’re not your psychiatrists
   We don’t want to hear your life story.  We don’t need to know how you got on disability.  We don’t need to know how you made a killing in the real estate market.  We don’t need to know how you lost money on your retirement investments (though it’s mostly likely because you didn’t listen to us ten years ago).  We just need to know what the problem is now and what you want us to do about it.  Give us that, then we’ll go from there to solve your problems.
    
4. Do NOT swear at us
   How basic is this?  If your mouth is dirtier than Britney’s vagina, then you’re not going to stand much of a chance at getting any decent help.  The really bad ones will have their accounts closed.  Don’t make us put a bar of soap in your mouth.
    
5. Just because you’re rich, doesn’t mean you’re better
   We believe in equality … we really do!  I’m not impressed with your $500,000 savings account if you’re going to treat me like OJ treated Nicole Brown.  The guy with $500 in his account and knows how to use the words “please” and “thank you” will get results quicker than you will.
    
6. Use a pen and paper
   If you can’t remember what I’m telling you, it would be a good idea to jot it down.  Most people will need to write down a 10-digit phone number if they need to refer to it.  How on earth are you going to remember the amounts of 10 different transactions? 
    
7. Privacy Laws are still LAWS
   Canada has quite a lengthy Privacy Act which prevents us from disclosing personal information to anyone who is not authorized to receive the information.  What this means is that if you haven’t set up an agreement with your bank saying that you are, in fact, allowed to receive information about an account, then do not assume you can receive in the information.  That means you cannot ask us where your son or daughter spent their money if you’re not a signer on the account, which brings me to my next point;
    
8. Become a joint signer or a Power of Attorney if you need access to an account
   This is the only way we can allow you access to an account.  To further clarify the word “only” means ONLY, as in there are NO other ways to get around it.
    
9. People make mistakes
   We are human and are capable of mistakes.  If you found an error in your account, bring it up with us in a calm collected manner and we will do our best to help you out.  We are not so conceited that we won’t admit mistakes, and we LOVE helping people who are not constantly throwing bitch fits.  However, if your temper is set off quicker than tabloids can get a picture of Katie Holmes’ shaved privates, then kiss your chances of a quick resolution GOOD-BYE
    
10. The Golden Rule
    My final point is to treat us how you want to be treated.  Everyone gets the service they deserve.  Simple, yeah?

So that’s as much as I can think of right now.  I’m sure many other people out there feel the same way about their own jobs.  Ever had a really bad experience with customers before?  Let me know

I’m slowly going to try to move away from Facebook.  Here is the reason why:

By posting User Content to any part of the Site, you automatically grant, and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant, to the Company an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, fully paid, worldwide license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, publicly perform, publicly display, reformat, translate, excerpt (in whole or in part) and distribute such User Content for any purpose, commercial, advertising, or otherwise, on or in connection with the Site or the promotion thereof, to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into other works, such User Content, and to grant and authorize sublicenses of the foregoing. You may remove your User Content from the Site at any time. If you choose to remove your User Content, the license granted above will automatically expire, however you acknowledge that the Company may retain archived copies of your User Content. 

Translation: “We Own You”.  This excerpt can be found in their Terms of Use agreement and is current as of February 26, 2008.  Let me break down what I had just highlighted up there:

It says: “By posting User Content to any part of the Site, you automatically grant …”
It means: By joining, you already agree to everything that we’re going to say with respect to anything that you upload

It says:   ”… to the Company an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, fully paid, worldwide license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, publicly perform, publicly display, reformat, translate, excerpt (in whole or in part) and distribute such User Content for any purpose …”
It means:  We don’t need to pay you anything if we want to use the stuff you uploaded to us.  We already got your permission, so eat that.

It says: “… the Company may retain archived copies of your Use Content.” 
It means:  We don’t need to delete it just because you asked us to. 

So there you have it!  I think the transition will be more difficult than I think.  Facebook is so handy as far as staying in touch with people, but such restrictive terms of service are difficult for my to swallow.  Sure, the threat isn’t great that someone is going to use my video or photos, but I’m highly protective of that when it comes to someone I don’t know using them.