Blog du Wren

Bellingham to Vancouver BC Via Public Transit

I've been wanting to check out cross-border public transportation for a long time. Over the years, I've planned out the route at least a few times, never really satisfied that it was do-able*. On our recent trip up to the Olympics, Ma and I decided to give it a try. Here's what we did.

Route	From	To	Cost	Notes
WTA 70X	Downtown Bellingham Station	Blaine High School (11th St. and H Ave.)	$1.00	This express bus only runs a few times in the morning and evening. If you need a midday connection, you could use WTA 55 and transfer to WTA 331
Walk 3 miles	Blaine High School	King George Hwy and 8th Ave.	Free(!)	When crossing the border, be sure to check in. Also, much of this route doesn't offer sidewalks, so walking can be a little dicey.
Translink 375	King George Hwy and 8th Ave.	White Rock Center	$5.00 CDN (save your transfer)	Supposedly the 321 also makes this route. We just showed up at the bus stop and asked the driver what the best option was.
Translink 351	White Rock Center	Bridgeport Station		There is also an alternative to this portion. If you stay on the 375, you can transfer instead to the 501/502 and make your way in differently. Again, we just deferred to what the driver suggested.
Canada Line	Bridgeport Station	Downtown Vancouver		I like trains.

Overall, the trip took maybe 3.5 to 4 hours, which isn't bad at all considering the walk, checking in at customs, and figuring it all out as we went. We hit all our transfers perfectly, which helped shine a positive light on the experience. It isn't exactly easy and I wouldn't go recommending it to public transit newbies, but it was nice to prove that it can be done. Hopefully in the near future, that 3 mile walk will be cut down a good chunk and this trip will be as painless* as Bellingham to Seattle.

Monday February 22 2010

File under: transportation

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Minor Media Mention - AP Edition

I post this in the same thread as my "Minor Media Coverage" series (previously covered here and here). (To those who might construe posting about media coverage, no matter how minor, a bit vain or whatever, I will point out that this blog is as much a scrapbook for myself in 40 years as it is a way to keep in touch with you, my loyal readers*.)

Roaming around down by the Olympic Cauldron the other day, this fellow from the AP snapped a shot of me and got all my info, etc. I got a thought that wouldn't it be cool if the photo showed up in some random newspaper in Alabama or wherever and happened to be noticed by a long lost friend that I've lost touch with? On a whim, I googled myself today and ran across this. Who knows; maybe it isn't a big deal to get a picture of yourself posted on the AP website. But I thought it was kind of neat. So there. *

(Oh, and for posterity, here is a screenshot for when that site goes down, which I imagine won't be too far in the future, and here is the actual image.)

Saturday February 20 2010

File under: misc

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FC 97 - What Is Art

Sorry for the tardiness on this one (if anyone noticed). All that Olypmic hubbub from when I went to the Olympics kept me from comicking it up. Then I had to make the Olympics post and it wouldn't be fair to the Olympics to not let the Olympics post have a little time in the spotlight.*

A few notes about this comic (besides its lateness). I drew part of it while on the bus. It turns out that doesn't do great things for a borderline motion sick person. The rest was drawn using only the finicky touchpad on my EEE (while in a library, so I even tried to keep the clicking to a minimum for quietness's sake). My appreciation for optical mouse is renewed.

Anyway, while I wasn't convinced that the comic was going to turn out (either artistically or conceptually), the policeman's mustache made it all okay. How many times have mustaches saved the day? Answer: a lot.

Friday February 19 2010

File under: comic

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My Trip to the Olympic Games

This was the only picture I got of the GREAT Vancouver Olympics logo and it was on the not super scoreboard. Still, kind of a neat picture

Yesterday, Ma and I trekked north to Vancouver to check out the Olympics and all the surrounding hubbub. In a word, it was awesome. While the city wasn't totally overtaken with the excitement as I thought it might be, there were pockets of Olympic . Initially, the city wide general excitement was what I was all stoked for. What I walked away with as a highlight and with most pleasant memories of was the actual event: .

All I know about curling has come from last week's Simpsons episode and the spectacular* Canadian movie Men With Brooms^IMDB. Luckily, an avid curler was

sitting next to us in the stands, so we learned all about the hammer, house, ends, sheets, peeling, strategy, rules, and so much more. By the end of the 3 hour match, we felt like pros.

There isn't much to report results-wise. This was one of 9 qualifying matches, so a win or a loss doesn't mean too much by itself. The U.S.A., however, ended up losing a super close match to Switzerland.

They went into extra innings and had to bring out the measuring device 3 times (while none of the concurrent 3 games had either of those things happen). That excitement just added to the overall appreciation of the experience.

So while the were pricey* and getting up there proved interesting*, it was exactly what I hoped it would be: a once in a lifetime experience. Besides, now I can say and have the to prove it.

Thursday February 18 2010

File under: misc

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Progressively Sketchier

Granted this isn't nearly as cool as that progressive shaving video but I just wasn't feeling as inspired. Plus I was planning on leaving that right hand column style for a while. Well, I'm 5 days in and I'm digging it more and more everyday. That might, however, explain why I didn't have a date for Valentine's Day*. But for you beard/mustache nay-sayers out there, you'll be pleased to know that it will have to be gone by Wednesday when I will be heading up to the Olympic Games in Canada. Something tells me I might have any easier border crossing clean[-ish]shaven.

Monday February 15 2010

File under: beard

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Roses Are Red 2010


	It's been a whole year now I've got Rose poem withdrawl So write up some good ones At which I can guffaw	Roses are red Violets are blue I just wrote a poem And so should you!
	I won't get no roses But that ain't so bad 'Cause I've got the internet Oh wait, that is so sad	Roses are pricey What's a guy to do? Try your hand at Writing a poem or two

It's that time of year again: time for the annual Rose are Red poetry slam here on BdW. This is a chance to let your poetic juices flow! The rules are easy: the poem must follow the standard ABCB "Roses are red" rhyme/stress pattern and it must make reference to either "red" or "roses"*. Topics can be anything you want – it doesn't have to be Valentine's Day related. Feel free to submit under pseudonyms or anonymously, and as often as you like.

For inspiration (or at least a couple of good laughs), take a look at previous years' showings: 2007, 2008, and 2009.

Friday February 12 2010

File under: poetry

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FC 96 - Take Bennifer For Example

I was going to do something clever like have a newspaper with stories of celebrity break-ups or something like that to demonstrate flawed "introductions", but then I didn't. True story.

Another true story: wings are hard to draw, at least for me. The butt, however, came pretty easily. Hmmm...

Since this cartoon is kind of Valentine's Day themed, I don't feel it is out of place to remind you all that the annual Roses Are Red Poetry Slam is coming up quickly. (There will be an official post soon.) So start composing your poems now!

Thursday February 11 2010

File under: comic

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Scrapbalking

At one point in my life, I aspired to become a scrapbooker. I had seen some really great scrapbooks (remember?), so I started saving all the necessary scraps of paper, ticket stubs, maps, pictures, etc. I put them all in a nice pile to be dealt with later*.

Well, since now piles are needing to be dealt with, I thought I would make a scrap-scan and call that as close I'll get. Besides, there will be more ticket stubs, scraps of paper, maps, pictures, etc. The real fun, for me, is in obtaining said scraps anyway.

(Most of these scraps are from my SE Asia trip and various trips east in 2008)

Wednesday February 10 2010

File under: travel, misc

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The Outback Is Now Spider Free

I've been away from home quite a bit recently. According to my Sleeping Around calendar, I've only slept at home 9 nights since Nov. 15th*. Well, has taken advantage of that time to tackle the Outback as her latest retirement-induced project.

(For those of you who don't know, the Outback is the garage/my room*. Concrete floors, lack of heat, plywood walls, and less than precise "finish carpentry" all add to the place's charm.)

With the help of the neighbor, Ma tore up the old carpet*, painted the concrete floors, and relocated all my spider friends. The place looks spic and span now (although IMHO less welcoming.*) One product of this epic cleaning is that my many piles of artifacts-of-my-life have now become fewer yet larger piles that demand to be gone through. Going through the piles is fun, but seeing them be weeded out is kind of sad. I guess that's how it goes.

The upside of pile reduction is the few blog posts that I hope it will produce. Scanned in personal crap that I at one time felt strongly enough to put in a pile under the bed instead of the garbage? What's not to look forward to?

(Oh, and it should be said that while I wasn't (and am still not really) a fan of this cleaning/reorganizing/etc. project, the ladies did a great job making the place look presentable. They say it smells much nicer too. I can't confirm that one.)

Sunday February 7 2010

File under: misc

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Handwriting Decipher Help Requested

I've recently had the [opportunity/coaxing] to go through a number of years of accumulated stuff.* Every piece of paper I pick up reminds me of something: a receipt for scooter work done while on the road to/from Vegas, a map of Chongqing China, crossword puzzles from all sorts of places, and lists galore (shopping, todo, comic ideas, addresses, work chores, etc.)

There is one thing I've come across that I can't quite figure out. I'm having trouble reading the handwriting and thought I might call on ya'll to see if you could decipher it. Highlighted in this picture is a signature. Does anyone have any ideas?

Over the next week or two, I hope to work up a few more Hey-Look-At-This-Neat-Crap-I-Saved-And-Want-To-Post-About-Before-I-Throw-Away posts. But don't worry; none of them will call for the same audience participation that this one does.

Friday February 5 2010

File under: misc

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