odd bits

i left late yesterday evening, but the universe was still playing nice and even the previous metro was delayed just long enough that i'd make it downtown on time. i arrived at gd's work - she's a stylist - and meeting her co-workers was pleasant and amusing and could have been very embarrassing had i been at all self-conscious :P

we went to p.m. for a delicious dinner, and went back to her place having both eaten far too much.

...

i didn't sleep too well, something about my limbs was uncomfortable the whole night. not in an rls way, i suspect it was something like exhausted relief after the whole pinched-nerve ordeal.

the morning was super-slow, and when i eventually got home i contacted the recruiter that army brat had referred me to. it was super-awkward getting through to her and her not having a clue who i was talking about, i was convinced that army brat had been using an alias or something :P

i finally went to get laundry coins from the supermarket, which took forever because the girl miscounted and i had to wait for a particularly slow customer before i could get my last 25c. *sigh*
at least i wasn't in any hurry.

---i'm amused: a lady at starbucks gave me a lecture about how risky it is to leave my jacket unattended. she then proceeded to question me on my accent, and after making sure that i'd had places to go for passover she and her husband are now making inquiries through their networks to see if they can help me find employment.

oh, canada.

---i've got a couple of hours to be productive before gd comes over and we go to the gym together (she does kickboxing in another one, so she's checking us out). before that, there've been links accumulating and a short family rant brewing. i'll begin with the latter:

i have an aunt and uncle who live with their family in los angeles. i haven't been in contact with them in many years, and to be honest i'm not particularly driven to be so but that's neither here nor there. a few years ago my uncle had a stroke and his quality of life obviously hasn't been the same since, but he was kind of okay and that's cool. recently, though, he fell very ill (i don't recall what specifically happened) and he's now in a situation wherein his family is keeping him on life support and they've just inserted a feeding tube because he's no longer with us.

there is nothing, absolutely nothing good that can come of this. they're keeping him alive for the most selfish of reasons, and it's totally inhumane and cruel. even if he does wake up, he's not going to be able to enjoy the rest of his life. pull the damned plug. life support without a good chance of a meaningful return to health is cruelty.

---the idea of vat-grown vaginas may sound weird, but i find it unbelievably cool tech and it's awesome that these guys are doing such a good job. i'm also impressed that they managed to keep their mouths shut until they had real results to present!

between lifehacker explaining why all our passwords suck and hearing about the possibility that the nsa knew about heartbleed, i'm left feeling deeply uncomfortable about the state of our privacy and security.

i saw "the hebrew mamita" ages ago, even a couple of times, but watching her again yesterday made me emotional. i don't know why.

montreal's getting a vegan grocery store? awesome :)

the first instagram from space is a selfie by an astronaut wearing a firefly shirt. that's frikkin' excellent :D