If these movies were real, I'd probably go watch them in theatres

Throughout the years, many popular television programs and even movies have featured fake movies or television programs. The first one that comes to mind would be the Itchy & Scratchy series within The Simpsons, a series where a mouse injures a cat to the loud laughter of many children in Springfield, including Bart and Lisa Simpson.

Now, I’m going to highlight some fake movies or television series that I wish were real. I’d probably put in the effort to watch the movies in a theatre if they existed.

Fake Purse Ninjas from Bowfinger (1999)
Starring Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy, famous for playing multiple characters within the same movie, this movie is about a desperate movie producer who fails to get a major star for his questionable movie and secretly shoots the film around him.

The result is great hilarity, but the true masterpiece of that movie within a movie is Fake Purse Ninjas, and the trailer for the movie is quite entertaining.



The Scorcher series of movies from Tropic Thunder (2008)
This movie stars a whole lot of A-list actors, including Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black, Tom Cruise, Jay Baruchel and Brandon T. Jackson as the main characters.

Through a series of freak occurrences, a group of actors shooting a big-budget war movie are forced to become the soldiers they are portraying. However, one of the actors is a washed-up actor trying to re-establish himself as a credible actor, Tugg Speedman (Stiller) is famous for some fake movies, such as Simple Jack. However, he’s really famous for a series of movies called Scorcher, which probably has too many, similar to the Police Academy franchise.

The trailer starts off with “In 2013 when the Earth’s rotation came to a halt,” and it makes me laugh every time I see it. Behold, Scorcher VI: Global Meltdown.


Rochelle, Rochelle from Seinfeld
Seinfeld is a fictional show based on the stand-up comedy of comedian Jerry Seinfeld and is still featured on television screens to this day. In Canada, it airs on MUCH (formerly MuchMusic).

Over the years, this show has featured many fake films watched by Geroge Costanza, Jerry Seinfeld, Elaine Benes and others.

However, out of all of the movies that are often featured, the one that gets mentioned the most is Rochelle, Rochelle, described as "a young girl's strange, erotic journey from Milan to Minsk." And, George Costanza seemed enamoured by this movie because of all the nudity, as pointed out by his late fiancée Susan Ross.


Every McBain movie from The Simpsons
On The Simpsons, all the Springfield children tend to enjoy watching The Itchy & Scratchy Show, a show within The Krusty the Clown Show.

But within that show that’s in its 34th season and was recently renewed yet again, there’s a series of movies played by actor Rainier Wolfcastle: McBain.

While we only get to see clips of each movie being mentioned throughout the entire series, it’s definitely a series of movies I’d go watch if it were real. Hopefully, it won’t be as stale as the Police Academy series after the first four movies.

For now, we’re stuck with YouTube clips from the show put together to resemble a full movie.


The Wedding Bride on How I Met Your Mother
Throughout the series How I Met Your Mother, Ted Mosby is a lovelorn young architect who is in search of his one true love.

However, the woman he almost marries, Stella Zinman, runs off with her previous boyfriend (Tony Grafanello) and the father of her own daughter, leaving Mr. Mosby devastated.

It's later revealed that Tony Grafanello eventually begins writing movies, and the biggest hit is The Wedding Bride, which incorrectly retells the story of Ted and Stella, but with all of the characters' names changed. Of course, to Barney Stinson (played by Neil Patrick Harris), the story is completely correct (even the part with the nunchucks, apparently).

Behold, The Wedding Bride...


Apparently, there's a sequel as well...

General Life Update - June 28, 2020

Hello everyone!

I know it has been a long time since I've updated this website. Well, I did update certain aspects of this website, but I didn't post any general updates. As you can see, I've kept my list of Toyota dealers that have serviced my 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid updated, as well as my list of Real Canadian Superstore locations I have visited.

Here is a short recap of things that have happened since January 30, 2019:

• I left Regina, Saskatchewan and returned to Saskatoon, SK in May of 2019.
• My close friends Adam and Celeste got married in May of 2019.
• The summer of 2019 was largely uneventful and I spent that summer in Saskatoon, where my house is.
• I returned to Calgary in September of 2019.
• After much of Canada was shut down, Canada's economy is slowly reopening as of now thanks to the COVID-19 outbreak. Things changed dramatically, so quickly.
  During this COVID-19 situation, a wedding I was really looking forward to attending in Saskatoon was largely cancelled and the ceremony was replaced with a short ceremony. In addition to this, two of my friends here in Calgary were married as of June 27, 2020.
• I visited Vancouver in February of 2020, and I promise pictures will come... someday.
• I put a deposit towards a 2020 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid XLE at Charlesglen Toyota: Alberta's Celebration Destination, but cancelled the acquisition.

I promise to post more stuff, such as my own opinions, soon.

Thank you for dropping by.

General Life Update - January 20, 2019

Hello everyone! It's been more than a year since I've updated this blog, hasn't it? I'm just as shocked as my readers, which probably ranges anywhere from four to five people.

It's been more than a year, I know. A lot of things have happened since that time.

When I last updated this blog, I was still living in Saskatoon, a city I've come to occasionally miss. But in 2017, I left the city because it reminded me of many unfortunate things that have happened in the past. It culminated in me leaving Saskatoon in an attempt to find myself, as well as other things. I worked, and that's all you need to know. Where did I go? I returned to the city I missed and also once called home: Calgary. When did I leave? Well, I left on October 29, 2017, to be exact. When I arrived, I quickly became homesick and paid a visit to Saskatoon again on November 10, 2017, but quickly returned to Calgary.

Eventually, work took up the bulk of my time. However, what I felt in Calgary while living there was a strange sense of freedom that I never believed I would feel if I continued living in Saskatoon (or Saskatchewan, for that matter). When I lived in Saskatoon, I felt stuck almost everywhere I went. This feeling was compounded with almost everybody I talked to. With others moving forward in other aspects of their lives, such as friends pursuing a Master's degree and/or having children, I felt stuck. I had to do something, but I wasn't sure what to do. I began looking at other cities, including Regina. Then, I looked at Calgary, and everything seemed perfect. Things worked out, despite the downturn there and I moved there!

When I lived in Saskatoon, I continually ran into people that I didn't want to see, including women I dated in the past in which relationships did not work out. On another note, I made it clear in the past that I have a 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid that I love to drive. While I love to drive, driving in Saskatchewan can get old quickly, particularly with some "known" bad habits of fellow drivers in the province's biggest city, Saskatoon (there's even a Facebook group dedicated to it). For as long as I've been able to drive, I have always believed that Saskatoon was way too small, particularly its population. For some, the city's size is ideal as it has most services you'd be used to seeing in bigger cities, with a few notable exceptions. However, as someone who drives a hybrid car and also loves to drive, period, Saskatoon was tiny. Despite this, many fellow residents that I knew thought that the idea of me driving to the Real Canadian Superstore located at 2901 8th Street East was absurd, especially since I lived a lot closer to Canada's first Real Canadian Superstore located at 411 Confederation Drive in the same city. When anyone said that anything was "too far" in Saskatoon, I often rolled my eyes and ridiculed them. Sometimes, I would even smugly say "This is Saskatoon, nothing's far," sometimes followed by "Stop complaining. You live in Saskatoon," without further explaining my rationale for such a comment.

In addition to the woes of Saskatoon, I was also diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes--something that cannot be prevented, unlike Type 2 diabetes. As a diabetic, I inject insulin into my body twice a day. At first, it took time to get used to... but it's now a part of my daily routine. And in Alberta, health cards are still printed on paper, unlike every other province in Canada.

With this in mind, I instantly fell in love with Calgary's commutes and most of the time, I had no beef and/or concerns with driving on Deerfoot Trail during rush hour. The way the city was built, the traffic signals, the roads, the commutes, I loved everything about the city and began picturing myself living there long term. There were only two aspects of my life that felt empty: my family (particularly my mom) was in Saskatoon and I had no significant other. At the same time, I was thinking about someone that had ended any potential romance with me earlier in the year. Aside from that, I had no beef driving 20-45 minutes (it could easily be longer if there were accidents on Deerfoot Trail, it snowed or during rush hour) to wherever I wanted to go within city limits. I enjoyed it as I always felt there should be a "buffer zone." Of course, when people in Saskatchewan continued to gasp when I told them I drove 25 minutes each way to get to work, I laughed it off.

When 2018 rolled around, I decided to think about my future and what I might want to do with it. Considering a career change since late 2016, I finally began the process of narrowing down my choices of what I might want to study. At one point, I considered becoming an automotive technician, but that idea went out the window when I visited a Kal Tire location near my house to have a flat tire fixed and asked to use the washroom. It was located at the Marlborough Mall and used to be a Sears Canada department when it installed/maintained tires on vehicles. Eventually, Sears Canada stopped offering the service and the aforementioned space became Kal Tire. As a result, the Kal Tire did not have any public washrooms, as they used to rely on sending customers to the public washrooms inside the Sears store. Unfortunately, that Sears store closed in 2017 before all other stores across Canada closed in early 2018 because the company could find a buyer to continue its operations. As a result, the staff allowed me to use the staff washroom. As I walked through the shop, the smell made me realize that I would not survive a single day working in such a place. That was out.

Weeks later, an opportunity arose and I decided to seize it. However, I won't go into much detail (at the risk of revealing too many things). Let's just say the opportunity to return to school arose, financially. After careful consideration, I decided to become an I.T. professional. This meant that becoming a network engineer/technician/analyst was appealing. Thus, a months-long process began applying to schools. As I often went on Facebook, I saw ads for CDI College and other similar schools. However, I decided that I wanted my education to be from a school that's a member of Polytechnics Canada, given the choice. Liking the idea of living in Calgary, I first applied to become a student of the Network Technician program at SAIT. As a backup, I had applied to become a student at Saskatchewan Polytechnic's Computer Network Technician program at their Regina campus, but they put me on a waitlist. I also had to submit my resumé and a form that asked detailed questions. That form also indicated the way that I filled it out (handwritten submissions were not accepted) would be part of the final admissions process.

Once I had submitted the required information, I was asked to come in and meet with the program coordinator, who basically led me through a presentation. It also felt like a job interview. But on May 11, 2018, I received an email from her in my University of Saskatchewan alumni email inbox that stated that I had been conditionally accepted into the program and was advised to wait for an official admissions letter in the mail. The condition was that I must complete an introductory networking class online before August 31, 2018, which was more than enough time. However, what stuck out for me was that she told me to go home and go through my finances and make sure that I "really want to go into this program" because it's hard to "just drop $14,000" for tuition.

I received an official admissions letter later that week, which stated that I needed to pay a non-refundable $750 deposit by June 9, 2018. I waited until June 3, 2018, and checked my messages through the fancy inbox software they have at Saskatchewan Polytechnic and found that my status at that school changed from "Waitlisted" to "Accepted." With this in mind, I had another decision to make: Calgary or Regina? After much deliberation, I decided that I would move again. This time, I was moving to Regina. There, I'd at least know one friend. However, the tuition in Saskatchewan was about half of what SAIT was charging. Regardless of which city I lived in, I wouldn't be living in my own home. This did give me the advantage of being closer to home, which I had missed, even if Saskatoon no longer felt like home to me. By the end of May, I had paid my $500 deposit to Saskatchewan Polytechnic for them to hold my seat, and I officially started my first day of class in Regina on September 4, 2018.

As I continued to feel lonely, I also thought of a woman that I went on a number of dates with. I met her in Edmonton one day after attending my cousin's wedding in Edmonton in June of 2016. She worked for TELUS while I worked for Shaw Communications Inc. At the time, she also worked at a restaurant that can be found inside the West Edmonton Mall, one of the world's largest malls. On my receipt, she included a nice message... and a phone number. Thinking that it only happened in the movies, I believed the number could have been fake. I then searched the first six digits of her phone number on Local Calling Guide, which provides much useful information when it comes to phone numbers, such as who technically owns the prefix and its local area. I then found that the number was originally a Rogers mobile phone number based in Edmonton. Since she worked for TELUS, it was probably safe to assume that she ported the number over to TELUS from Rogers, given that you've been able to do that since 2007. At the time, I still had a home phone and decided that it would be fun to call her from my home phone and pretend it was the 1990s when only wealthy people and businessmen had cellular phones. She laughed when I said that, and it was quite a memorable laugh.

Communication between myself and her continued for a while, and she came to Saskatoon a few times to visit. I also visited Edmonton a number of times. The most memorable thing that happened was when she showed up at my home unannounced on the day of my birthday in 2017 to surprise me. Clearly surprised, I then took her to visit the University of Saskatchewan campus and gave her a tour of the campus (from a nonsensical point of view). I also offered to take her to dinner at some of my favourite places around town, such as Pink Cadillacs (which has since opened a second diner) or a chain that only had one location in Canada at the time: Fuddruckers (a location in Regina would open a few weeks later). I then said, "We can also go to MR MIKES SteakhouseCasual as they call it because I have a free meal reward or something like that." She said, "Let's do it!" Since Saskatoon only has one location, I decided that we should leave town... so I took her to nearby Martensville for dinner, where I had the most expensive ribeye steak... for free. If we had been in Calgary, I would have had to take her to Airdrie (though there's now a location on Symons Valley Road in that city) for dinner.

In 2017, she ended things with me, citing distance as the primary factor behind her decision. Unless one of us was willing to move to the other person's city, she couldn't see a potential romance working in anyone's favour. At this time, I started to think about Calgary more and more, since she decided she would attend the University of Calgary for graduate school. At one point, she did consider the University of Saskatchewan, but that didn't work out. Despite how much it hurt, I agreed to continue being friends with her. I thought I was fine with this until September of 2017 rolled around and one of my friends got married. By that time, I thought about her so much that it killed me, and I decided to end my friendship with her. I stated that I cared about her greatly and it was difficult for me to just remain friends with her.

I would move there later on in 2017 and reconnect with her in April of 2018. Unfortunately, this reunion would not last long, as she passed away on May 7, 2018. If I could wish for anything right now, I would wish for the extra seven months I could have talked to her, or just be there for her in general.

A lot of things happened in 2018, and I'm glad it's over. For starters, a friend of mine that I never thought would ever be single again, became single again (after nearly six years of dating). Not long after that, a considerable number of other women suddenly became single (and technically available).

It's now 2019 and I've been living in Regina since early September 2018.

As an adult, the return to student life has been more difficult than I had pictured. Due to some situations, I will likely be staying in Regina longer than I had originally planned. For now, I look forward to a potential new career, whenever that occurs. With this in mind, I will say that Cisco's CCNA curriculum can be quite intimidating and has kicked me in the rear academically too many times to count.

Why I Decided to Buy a Toyota Camry Hybrid and How I Prepare for the Camry Hybrid's Oil Change(s), Both Locally and Out of Town

Before I was a "broke" University of Saskatchewan student, I had dreamed of someday buying a Toyota Highlander Hybrid. This was in 2008 when I decided that I would someday want a hybrid car. At the time, gas prices were much higher than they have been since the prices crashed over the past couple years, and those who were in the oil business in Alberta were still living the good life, to an extent. Today, I own a Toyota Camry Hybrid and never did buy that Toyota Highlander Hybrid.

At the time, I was driving a 2001 Toyota Camry that my mom previously owned. It was tiny to me, and the new XV40 (2007–2011) generation had been redesigned... and its defining feature to me was that it took up more space than previous generations. What I liked most about that generation at the time was that it was bigger, and there was more space between the top of my head and the roof/ceiling. The other cool thing about the generation was that Toyota had introduced a hybrid version of the Camry, and simply called it a Toyota Camry Hybrid. The only problem with that generation was that the Camry and Camry Hybrid were both... ugly.

At the time, I decided that I would one day acquire a Toyota Highlander Hybrid once I graduated from the University of Saskatchewan, whenever that may be. As I progressed through my university career, the Highlander Hybrid became more and more unappealing for a number of reasons. Here are some of those reasons:

• The design was getting dated. As it turns out, the 2014 model was redesigned and would look way cooler.
• The price was quite high, and was one that I could not justify.
• While the idea of having a hybrid SUV with 4x4 capabilities sounded nice, I couldn't figure out what I would do with such a vehicle besides driving it around. I don't like camping or the outdoors, and lugging large things around would be rare, at best.

After some soul searching, 2011 rolled around and I had stumbled upon this video of Toyota Motor Corporation's President Akio Toyoda teasing the new 2012 Toyota Camry:

Sure, all you could see was one of the headlights of this new Camry, but I liked what I saw. I then eagerly waited for the new 2012 Camry to be unveiled.

Shortly thereafter, the 2012 Toyota Camry and Camry Hybrid models were unveiled, and I loved what I saw. Eventually, the company said that Camry models sold in North America would be built exclusively in the United States. Prior to the 2012 model, the Toyota Camry was built in the United States (mainly in Georgetown, Kentucky). Should they not be able to keep up with demand, some Camry units would be exported from Japan to the United States. The decision to stop importing vehicles from Japan into North America, however, was a decision based on money, as described by USA Today: "Rather, it comes as the company is trying to boost production in the places it sells cars in order not to get caught in a bind due to exchange rates. The weak U.S. dollar makes American manufacturing a lot more important to maximize profits."

As a Toyota owner, the company's decision to stop importing vehicles from Japan to North America also benefitted me down the road. When I drove a 2001 Toyota Camry, Toyota was still importing a number of Camry units from Japan to North America in addition to their American production. As a result, I drove a rare model that was assembled in Japan. While a Toyota Camry built in Japan and one built in the United States largely looked identical, there were some differences inside. For example, the wiring and the way components were connected to each other were not exactly identical. In some situations, my local Toyota Dealer, Ens Toyota, had to ask me if I had a Japanese model or an American model. Right off the bat, the fact that Toyota decided to stop importing the Camry from Japan eliminated the need to worry about production differences in the future.

In February 2012, I stopped by Ens Toyota and test drove a 2012 Toyota Camry LE (not a hybrid, unfortunately). I instantly fell in love with the interior and the way it felt. At that point, I knew that I wanted a new Toyota Camry. Eventually, I started doing some more research on Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive system and learned even more than what I already knew, especially in comparison to Honda's hybrid system. There was a lot of technical jargon, but what I learned at the time was that Toyota's hybrid system could allow your vehicle to move without consuming gasoline under certain conditions (the engine shuts off), while Honda's hybrid system only shuts off the engine when you're stopped and would start up again the moment you move.

After that initial research, I was sold on the Toyota Camry Hybrid. My next step: picking a colour and trim. After months of research, I decided that the lowest trim available in Canada would be best: the Toyota Camry Hybrid LE. My next step would be figuring out which colour I preferred. However, since I wasn't anywhere close to being ready to acquire such a vehicle, that step was moved to a later date.

I would later test drive a 2013 Toyota Camry Hybrid during the summer of 2013, and once again fell in love with it. I even paired my phone with the vehicle's entertainment system. Sadly, the first person that I would call was my mom, as I had no girlfriend at the time. That would be the first test drive out of five test drives. Between that time and January 2014, I had test-driven the Camry Hybrid a total of five times over various seasons, as I wanted to see how the vehicle would perform in the winter. In order to get a good feel of the vehicles, I took the vehicle(s) on routes I'd usually travel, whether it was going to work, or going home. As a result, I took all of the different vehicles I test drove back to my home and parked it on my "driveway." During one of those test drives, I even stood on my "driveway" and stared at the Camry Hybrid and daydreamed of one day having one... and I stood there for about four minutes. At this point, there was no question that I wanted my next vehicle to be a Toyota Camry Hybrid.

Now that I have explained to you why I went from wanting a Toyota Highlander Hybrid to buying a Toyota Camry Hybrid, I can now explain why I go on out-of-town trips to get my vehicle's oil changed. Please be warned that none of it makes any sense.

I ordered a 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid LE in Cosmic Grey Mica on February 1, 2014, at Ens Toyota. Before ordering the vehicle, I used my excellent Paint skills to determine how ridiculous I might look in the car with my favourite orange sunglasses...

As you can see in the above picture, my hands are sliced by the steering wheel somehow.

On August 12, 2014, I took my 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid to the new Ens Toyota in Saskatoon, which had just relocated from a much smaller facility about a month earlier. It was a beautiful new facility located at 627 Brand Court, and I was excited about the fact that Toyota Express Service was something that was available at this location. Previously known as Toyota Express Lube, Ens Toyota no longer provided that option at their old location and all oil changes required appointments, which would have been more difficult for me to participate in a nonsensical scheme I came up with later that day.

On that day, my vehicle's odometer approached 7,990 km. From what I could remember, it would be approximately 10 kilometres to travel from my home to the new dealership. As such, I made the journey from my home to Ens Toyota after work. When I arrived at the dealership, the odometer reading was 7,999 km. After thinking that it would be fun to arrive with an odometer reading of exactly 8,000 km, I decided to drive down Brand Court and return.

When I arrived at the dealership, I was practically greeted like royalty. What was new at the time was that the new dealership had a sophisticated computerized device that checked on your vehicle's tire tread depth and would also inflate/deflate your tires to an optimum range, among other things. I then left the dealership with an Ens Auto package of swag. I also didn't pay a cent to have the oil change completed, as I paid for the Platinum Plan with the company's Extra Care Protection.

When I got home later that day and realized that Club Toyota (no longer a thing) would eventually list my entire service history, including which dealer I visited, a nonsensical idea came to my head. That idea would be to visit every Toyota dealer in Saskatchewan for an oil change, having already visited Taylor Toyota in Regina and Moose Jaw Toyota (not for oil changes though). After all, if I visited a dealer for just an oil change, I would hypothetically be able to drive in, wait for the oil change and drive away without paying anything. At this point, I began looking through the maintenance menu on the company's website.

What I realized was that if one failed to follow the maintenance schedule, one could risk voiding the manufacturer's warranty (and even the Extra Care Protection in some situations). I also decided that if I were to visit these dealerships across Saskatchewan, it should strictly be for oil changes only. As a result, I was looking for situations where not much work would be required. If something like "Maintenance Service" and/or "Brake Service" was scheduled, I'd do it locally in whichever city I happened to be in. With this nonsensical criterion in place, I set myself the following "foreign dealerships" schedule:

• 16,000 km
  Oil & Filter Service - Synthetic 0W20
  Rainbow Toyota (North Battleford)
• 24,000 km
  Oil & Filter Service - Synthetic 0W20
  Yorkton Toyota
• 40,000 km
  Oil & Filter Service - Synthetic 0W20
  Frank Dunn Toyota (Prince Albert)
• 56,000 km
  Oil & Filter Service - Synthetic 0W20
  Taylor Toyota (Regina)
• 72,000 km
  Oil & Filter Service - Synthetic 0W20
  Moose Jaw Toyota

Rainbow Toyota (16,000): Failed
With a successful first oil change behind me, I planned my next oil change that would occur at approximately 16,000 km. At the time, I was working shifts and had agreed to switch shifts with a co-worker, giving me a three day weekend. With this in play, I called Rainbow Toyota and scheduled an appointment for an 11:00 am appointment on December 15, 2014. My friends also said I should try to arrive at the dealership with an exact odometer reading. I tried (not really hard) and failed miserably in this regard. At the time, I valued my dating and social life much more. However, I did look up Rainbow Toyota on Google Maps, which indicated that the distance from my home to that dealership would be approximately 144 kilometres. As a precaution, I added two kilometres to the mix, telling myself that I'd stop driving the car and leave it at home once the odometer reached 15,854 kilometres. On December 14, 2014, however, a friend (let's just say she was a pretty female) called me up and asked if I wanted to hang out. Not wanting to waste such an opportunity, I decided to go shopping with her, and we went to Costco Wholesale. As a result of this lack of discipline, I arrived at Rainbow Toyota for my appointment with an odometer reading of 16,029 km. However, the person who greeted me wrote down the incorrect reading, and Toyota Canada has it recorded as 11,629 km, which would suggest I waited way too long for my first oil change.

Yorkton Toyota (24,000): Success
My next trip was for the 24,000 km interval. For that trip, I decided that it would be Yorkton Toyota. It would also be the farthest I'd ever travel for an oil change. At the time, I had agreed with two friends that we'd go see a concert in Edmonton in July of 2015. The trip took place on April 25, 2015 and both of them came along. One of them was from Comox, British Columbia and wanted to see more of Saskatchewan... and had never been to Yorkton. The other was from Saskatoon and wanted to see how painful road trips with me could potentially be. Determined to be successful in this nonsensical road trip venture, I decided to keep track of each kilometre that the vehicle travelled. This meant that infamous spreadsheet that I still use today became a thing...


My goal in this situation was to arrive with an odometer reading of 24,000 km. My goal was also to make it possible to make up for " lost kilometres" should I arrive with an odometer reading that hadn't reached 24,000. This was ensured by adding a "buffer zone." I used Google Maps to determine the approximate distance between my home and Yorkton Toyota. I then modified the route to include a Starbucks visit that I had pre-planned as well as including my friend who wanted to see what road trips with me were like. I then added six kilometres to what Google Maps told me the distance would be, which meant that I would need to leave my house with an odometer reading of 23,660 km. Prior to taking off for a nonsensical visit, I had determined that an appointment was not necessary, which meant that I was in no hurry to get to Yorkton and could take my sweet time.

The road trip was fine, but there were also some struggles. As it turned out, the buffer zone I added was way too many kilometres. When I arrived at the dealership, the odometer reading was 23,988 km. To make up for it, I took what my friends called "unnecessary tour of Yorkton." I reset the "Trip B" odometer and drove around it reached 6.0 km before returning the same, but the opposite route to the dealer. When I returned, the odometer reading was still 23,999 km. Again, I went on another trip. I then declared that another nonsensical tour would be necessary. I was ready to drive down the road to the nearby Walmart Supercentre, but the odometer reading reached 24,000 km as I was leaving the dealership's parking lot... and I returned to the dealership feeling triumphant.

At the end of the day, I was happy for more than one reason.

Of course, being in Yorkton, I also accomplished two things in addition to the oil change: I was able to say that I had visited every Real Canadian Superstore location in Saskatchewan, as well as set foot into each Toyota dealer in Saskatchewan. Since that time, a new Real Canadian Superstore has opened in Regina on Albert Street, but I've already visited that store.

When I returned to Saskatoon, it was snowing after all or most of the snow has already melted... and my car got stuck in a friend's driveway after visiting them.

However, both of my friends may have told their mothers that they were kidnapped... so that was kind of rude.

Frank Dunn Toyota (40,000 km): Success with Many Risks
Hoping to avoid the fact that I was off by 12 kilometres during my last out-of-town oil change trip, I decided that the trip for 40,000 km would be different. In this situation, I looked up the distance between my home and Frank Dunn Toyota, located 3601 4th Avenue East in Prince Albert. The distance, according to Google Maps, was 142 km. I then added a "buffer zone" of two kilometres to make it 144 kilometres. This meant that I had to leave my house and drive to Frank Dunn Toyota using a predefined route when the odometer reading read 39,856 km. This plan was going well until my mom called me and said she needed a ride somewhere the day before my nonsensical trip that was scheduled for December 29, 2015. When I returned home on December 28, 2015, the odometer reading was 39,859 km.

On the morning of December 29, 2015, I drove to Frank Dunn Toyota worried that I would arrive at the dealership with an odometer reading of 40,001 km or something like that. As it turns out, the two-kilometre-buffer-zone would make more sense, but it was still off. When I arrived at Frank Dunn Toyota, the odometer reading was actually 39,998 km. As a result, I decided to head north on 4th Avenue East, east on South Industrial Drive back to Marquis Road, then west on Marquis Road and made a left returning to the dealership. By then, I was still off by a single kilometre. I then reset the "Trip B" odometer to zero, and headed south on 4th Avenue East until it read 0.5 km before making a U-turn and returning to the dealer.

When I pulled into the parking lot and found a single parking spot, I moved into that spot. When I did, the odometer reading finally read 40,000 km.

While my nonsensical oil change scheme was more successful in Prince Albert, it was a "close one."

After this trip, it was time to "relax," as another trip like this wouldn't occur until September of 2016.

Taylor Toyota (56,000): All That Work, But No Recognition
On September 19, 2016, I called Taylor Toyota in Regina and asked if they had an express service where no appointment would be required. They informed me that it would be not be the case. Instead, they made appointments in intervals of 15 minutes. At that point, it was determined that I would bring my vehicle into the dealership at 11:00 am on September 24, 2016.

At the time, my friend, Patrick, who constantly changes his name on Facebook, wanted to try some of that delicious Mary Brown's Famous Chicken & Taters. As a result, I recruited him to come along. This time, I no longer remember how much of a "buffer zone" I gave myself... but I ultimately arrived at Taylor Toyota with an odometer reading 55,993 kilometres. With seven kilometres to drive, we headed approximately 3.5 km south on Broad Street and no longer remember where I decided to turn back. When I arrived at the dealership again, the odometer reading was still 55,999 km. As a result, I headed east on 1st Avenue for a bit before returning when the odometer finally reached 56,000 km.

I was in and out of the dealership in approximately 20 minutes. However, the Service Advisor I spoke to said that the technician wrote down an odometer reading of 56,000 km, which seemed unbelievable to him. While he was friendly, it seemed like he dismissed all my hard work.

Moose Jaw Toyota (72,000 km) - August 17, 2017
Tomorrow, I will be heading down to Moose Jaw for various reasons. One of them will be to obtain an oil change, as seen in the maintenance schedule of a 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid at Moose Jaw Toyota:

While I'm in the Moose Jaw area, I am hoping to see the "Passage to Fortune" tour at the Tunnels of Moose Jaw. At this point, I'd like to have lunch at the Dèja Vu Café as well, which was featured on an episode of You Gotta Eat Here!

Of course, I'll also be visiting the Real Canadian Superstore and Starbucks in town (it just seems obligatory). While I'd like to visit the Western Development Museum in Moose Jaw, time may not permit me to do so.

After three years, I am pleased, but a bit saddened to complete my nonsensical challenge of having my Toyota Camry Hybrid's oil changed at every Toyota dealer in Saskatchewan. While the vehicle is sitting on my driveway, there is no doubt that I will be successful in completing this oil change tomorrow at the exact 72,000 km interval.

In addition to this nonsensical challenge, here are some other fun facts:

• I have been to every single Real Canadian Superstore in Saskatchewan as of April 2015. Another store in Regina opened at 3806 Albert Street on April 28, 2017. As a result, I paid a visit to that store to maintain this "fun fact."
• I have been to every single Toyota dealership in Saskatchewan. However, having my oil changed at every dealership has yet to occur. By the end of August 17, 2017, I will have visited every dealership in Saskatchewan twice (or more).
• The Saskatchewan Information and Library Services Consortium is a network of most public libraries across Saskatchewan. If you borrowed something in Saskatoon, you can return the same item in an entirely different city and library system, like the Regina Public Library. Basically, your library card at one system gives you access to all library systems across the province. I can honestly say I've visited at least one branch out of every single library system in Saskatchewan as well as every branch of the Saskatoon Public Library. As for the Regina Public Library, I've been to three branches with the George Bothwell Branch being my favourite thus far. One of my friends, Amanda, who will soon be moving to Regina, has indicated that she will likely visit every branch of the Regina Public Library, thus allowing her to say she's been to every branch of the two municipal libraries in Saskatchewan. With this in mind, I feel like I should try to do that before she does!

What will my next nonsensical challenge be? Because my mind works in mysterious ways, it's a mystery. However, the idea of visiting all four locations of the Western Development Museum sounds really intriguing, as I have only been to the Saskatoon location. The other three are in North Battleford, Moose Jaw and Yorkton... and I have no interest in returning to Yorkton or North Battleford at the moment.

While I'll agree that is may be "crazy," this nonsensical challenge has given me at least one somewhat-valid excuse to visit regions of Saskatchewan I would otherwise never have visited in the first place.

As for my 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid, it has been a wonderful vehicle for me. It is difficult for me to even imagine parting ways with it, and I will continue to service the vehicle at a Toyota dealer... though not to the extent I have been doing so in the past three years. Sure, I'll follow the maintenance schedule... but I won't be leaving town for those trips anymore. Instead, I'll visit my local dealership wherever I am. For the time being, my local (and only one in Saskatoon) dealer will be Ens Toyota for the foreseeable future. As you can tell, I love this vehicle.

"Rejuvenation! Rebirth! All That Crap!"

Hello!

It has been at least two years since I have posted anything new! I have redesigned this website and started a blog from scratch. All previous "articles" I wrote that were from my old website have now been merged with this new blog. As for my old blog, I used the same blog for 11+ years as a personal blog... and decided it was time to start "fresh," or as fresh as could be.

With this in mind, I am hoping to use this blog. While I would like to say I will blog more often in 2017, I am not sure I will keep that promise. I am committed to discussing all sorts of cool stuff in the future though, including politics. After all, we are living in interesting times... and some (okay, only one person) people have asked for my opinions on the new Trump administration down south.

Thank you for your concerns.

Wondering where that phrase came from? It's actually a shorter version of what George Costanza once said:

Accessing That Old List of Classmates in Your Course(s) at the University of Saskatchewan Through PAWS

Effective June 27, 2013, the University of Saskatchewan has made an update to Blackboard Learn. The update also comes with a decision to make a change in privacy restrictions. Students will be able to see the names and emails of other students within Course Tools (Blackboard Learn). However, students will be able to prevent their name from being displayed. This effectively makes this guide useless... to an extent. Furthermore, the user interface of PAWS has changed dramatically as of August 2013, but some of these steps remain relevant.

Before every new semester/term of classes begin at the University of Saskatchewan, students at the Saskatoon-based school often like to log into PAWS (Personalized Access to Web Services) approximately one month before classes begin.

Then, they like to click on the "Academics" tab before clicking on "Course Tools." Oh yeah... you can now access Course Tools by clicking on the shortcut icon to Course Tools near the top right-hand corner of your screen when logged into PAWS, as pictured below...


But more than often, the first thing they like to do when checking out each individual course page is by clicking on "Members," as pictured below, so they can find out which other suckers are taking the same class as them...

There are a variety of reasons for this, which include, but are not limited to the following:

• Do they know someone in the class?
• Is there someone in there that they despise enough to drop the class?
• Perhaps they'd like to scope out the class list for people with funny names.
• Maybe they like to see if their friends are on the list so they can send their friends text messages in this manner: "OMG! I HAVE A CLASS WITH YOU! YAY!"

But whatever the reason, that possibility is gone as of Term 1 of the 2011-2012 school year... or so I thought.

This past summer, the University of Saskatchewan switched from the older PAWS Course Tools software to something new: Blackboard Learn, which offers a new slate of features that I don't really care for, as I haven't used a single new feature (except downloading documents from class pages). However, what appears to be missing from Blackboard Learn is the ability to see a list of your fellow classmates within the specific class that you are taking.

This past summer, on a hunch, I tried something, and it turned out to work, even if it required a bit of work on my part.

Today, I would like to share that idea with you. At least a few others know about this already (probably because they think the same way as I do), but I thought it'd be important to publish this useless article.

When you access your list of classes, classes you took prior to Term 1 of the 2011-2012 school year link to a web address similar to this, and contains important information, as described in the diagram below:

With that in mind, here are the steps you need to go through in order to access the list of classmates, old school style...

1. Log into Blackboard Learn at http://bblearn.usask.ca.
2. Once you've logged into Blackboard Learn, take a look at your U of S Course List, as pictured below.
   
   Once you've logged in, make note of the numbers in brackets/parentheses, as it'll become important.
3. Make a note of this old, but still-important web address... you'll need it: http://paws.usask.ca/jsp/grouptools/group/GroupRedirect.jsp?courseID=
4. Log into PAWS (http://paws.usask.ca) in a different tab or browser window.
5. Once you've logged in, go back to your U of S Course List in Blackboard Learn.
6. Make a note of the class you'd like to check out (the one where you want to see the list of classmates) and copy the odd numbers in brackets, then add that to the end of the "old, but still-important" address above.
   
   So, for example, I want to find out which fellow suckers are in my POLS 306 (01) class (29153.201201).
   
   I would copy the above "old, but still-important" address and paste into a word processor or similar application, such as Notepad on Windows. Then, I would add 29153.201201 to the end of that address, which would make the newly-generated web address look something like this:
   
   http://paws.usask.ca/jsp/grouptools/group/GroupRedirect.jsp?courseID=29153.201201
7. Once you've completed step #6, go back to the tab or window in which you are logged into PAWS.
8. Take the newly-generated-by-you web address and paste it into the address bar, like so...
   
   Once you've pasted that web address, hit the Enter or Return button (depending on whether you use a PC or Mac). Please note that value you added will change, as well as the address of the page it takes you to.
9. Once you've hit "Enter" or "Return," you will see something similar to this:
   
10. Then, if you'd like to see who else is in your class, click on "Members," as circled in the above image. Once you've clicked on "Members," you will be taken to a page that I'm sure us older students are familiar with...
    

To check out the list of classmates in your other numerous classes, you'll unfortunately have to repeat the steps I've typed up.

I hope this makes my fellow University of Saskatchewan students a little happier with having to use Blackboard Learn, as there is a way back. However, just to let you know... this article is only useful for the purpose of finding out who else is in your class. All attachments or files that professors may post that are related to your course(s) are only visible through Blackboard Learn.

Earn Some Pocket Cash by Taking Surveys!

Are you a university student? Usually, university students are assumed to be broke, unless their parents are paying for their tuition. I, on the other hand, have been fortunate enough to receive some free money, but not from my parents.

So, the annoying thing about universities is that there are terms in which you will find yourself with a few hours where you have nothing to do, and more than often, you can't really squeeze much studying into that timeframe. So, you find yourself wanting to go downtown for lunch or something, but there's not much time for that either. So, naturally, you may decide to find a friend, or hang out at the library, use your laptop or find a computer lab and surf the Internets.

Well, why not use that time to make some money? Yes, take surveys.

By taking surveys, you'll be shaping how the world turns out, by voicing your opinion on political issues, new products, etc. Plus, you can earn points for... gift certificates, or "cold hard cash."

Why not start today? I've made a good amount of money taking surveys with my spare time, even if it seemed like forever to get any money. Of course, not all websites offer money. Some will offer Air Miles or Aeroplan miles!

Here is a list of research panels that I am a part of. You should join too.

• Synovate Global Opinion Panels
• Web Perspectives
• Air Miles Opinions
• MySurvey.ca
• Angus Reid Forum
• OpinionWorld
• CanadaTalkNow
• Planet Opinions
• GlobalTestMarket
• AskingCanadians.com
• testspin.com
• Insightrix Research SaskWatch Panel
• Lightspeed Research Panel
• MindField Online
• Opinion Outpost
• PanelCloud
• Toluna
• Ipsos i-Say
• Public Opinions

So, join the websites listed above and start earning some "mad cheddar!"

A Terrible Guide to Finding Exclusive Group Deals in Your Local City

This article was originally written by a late friend of mine named Larry Chen, but published to my website when it was more of a group project. I have decided to keep this. The words below are his, and not mine at all. Thank you for your concerns.

I used to live in Calgary, but now live in Saskatoon, and I wouldn't mind living here for the long-term. It's a great city, and the businesses are interesting.

But, moving on... I like cheap stuff as much as any other person.

Recently, this website's webmaster and founder discovered group buying deal websites, but I decided to look into them further.

Basically, these websites allow you an awesome deal that ranges from 50% to as much as 90% off any regular deals. However, there is a catch. On a regular (likely daily) basis, group deal websites tend to post a deal, as long as enough people "buy the deal," meaning enough people actually have to be interested and commit to it.

Let's take a look at this screenshot below:

This screenshot was taken from mysaskdeals.com, advertising a great deal that is essentially 50% off of a professional snowboard waxing at 2nd Nature Sports & Apparel on 2nd Avenue North in Saskatoon. Under the part that says "it's a deal," it says "Tipped at 22:13:58 with 10 bought."

So, basically, in order for you to be eligible for this deal, you must commit to buying it. Upon doing so, you must provide your billing and credit card information. Once the required number of people (in the case above, ten) does what you just did, the deal becomes active, and you will receive an email regarding its confirmation. Usually, you will need to print off a coupon or certificate, while some websites offer a smartphone app that allows you to use as a way of presenting it to the business rather than using up paper.

In the picture above, the deal was active because ten or more people committed to buying it, so the number of people who bought it will have their credit cards charged. Now, if the required number of people does not buy it, your credit card will not be charged. It's as simple as that.

So, now that you have a good idea of what these websites are for.

With Reverend Huy Dang's results so far, I have found a few more websites. In total, here is what we both found that offer discounts in Saskatoon:

• LivingSocial - www.livingsocial.com
• Clip Deals - www.clipdeals.com
• Groupon - www.groupon.com
• WagJag - www.wagjag.com
• MySaskDeals - www.mysaskdeals.com
• DealFind - www.dealfind.com
• Deals in Space - www.dealsinspace.ca
• SaskDeals - www.saskdeals.com
• GroupDeal.ca - www.groupdeal.ca
• TeamBuy.ca - www.teambuy.ca
• Buytopia.ca - www.buytopia.ca
• SwarmJam - www.swarmjam.com
• RDeals.ca - www.rdeals.ca
• DealTicker - www.dealticker.com

For those of you who live in Calgary, I did find some similar websites.

Sites like Groupon and WagJat already include Calgary, but here are some that do include Calgary but not Saskatoon:

• Clip Deals - www.clipdeals.com
• TeamBuy.ca - www.teambuy.ca
• TownHog - www.townhog.com
• Deal of the Day (RedFlagDeals.com) - dealoftheday.redflagdeals.com
• DealFind - www.dealfind.com
• Deal.a.thons - www.dealathons.com
• WebPiggy - www.webpiggy.com
• Buytopia.ca - www.buytopia.ca
• Indulge Living - www.indulgeliving.com
• RDeals.ca - www.rdeals.ca
• Red Flag Deals Deal of the Day - dealoftheday.redflagdeals.com
• LivingSocial - www.livingsocial.com
• DealTicker - www.dealticker.com

And in case you didn't know, Future Shop did something similar to this not long ago, and it was a huge success for them, I bet. I bought myself a laptop, anti-virus software and USB headset for $299.99 before taxes and fees! For more information on that, click here.

Please note that this page/article will be updated on a regular basis, should more websites be discovered.

Why I Don't Always Stop at the Stop Lines

A while ago, someone asked me, "Huy, why don't you stop on the stop line when making left turns?" And, I had one simple explanation: look at what happens. But, since you have no idea why, I'll tell you in today's kick-ass guide to making left turns in Saskatoon.

Making a left turn can always be a bitch, especially during rush hour. You have to wait for the oncoming traffic, and risk getting hit when making your left turn on an amber light. But during rush hour, you often see one of these:


When you see one of those, it makes some people want to say, "Chika, chika, yeah!" Why? It's a form of relief, and people seem to believe that it moves traffic faster, which it does. But what happens when it's not rush hour? Well, usually, you only see this:


You'd really like to see that green left arrow again, don't you? I mean, that green light is boring, and you have to wait for the stupid oncoming traffic. Don't you wish you could just skip all that and just make that left turn without being in an accident, even though it's not rush hour? Well, it's possible, and I'm going to show you how!

So... when you travel around Saskatoon, you might notice that Saskatoon has traffic signals that look like this:


Well, there is a way to make the traffic signal display a flashing green arrow that points to the left. It's all based on this "square" on the road that's usually found in the left-turning bay of intersections with a cement median, or in the left lane of any intersection that has one of those signals. Here's what it looks like... I've marked with an "X:"


On most left-turn bays, you will see that "square," which detects the metal on cars. In the picture, it's pretty obvious where it was. And when a car stops on that area, the traffic signal displays a flashing green arrow, allowing those making left turns to make left turns without having to yield to oncoming traffic. Again, look at the picture, and you can see it within my black lines/drawing. Now, you're not always going to see it when you're driving, but it's there. If you don't see it, all you have to do this: imagine that there are three "invisible cars" in front of you. Once you've done that, make yourself the "forth," or even "fifth" person in line. Please note that this concept only works about 75% of the time. So, you're better off looking for that metal detector!

Please note that this doesn't work for all intersections as some intersections in Saskatoon that have those types of signals operate differently. Here are those exceptions:

• Southbound/northbound traffic at Confederation Drive and 22nd Street West. The lights appear when there are cars, period.
• Southbound/northbound traffic at Idylwyld Drive North/South and 22nd Street West/East. The lights appear when there are cars, period.
• Eastbound/westbound traffic at Idylwyld Drive North and 33rd Street West/East. The lights appear when there are cars, period.
• 20th Street West/East at Idylwyld Drive South. The lights appear when there are cars, period.
• Southbound/northbound traffic at Broadway Avenue and 8th Street East. The lights appear when there are cars, period.
• Southbound/northbound traffic along Lorne Avenue at 8th Street East. The lights appear when there are cars, period.
• Southbound/northbound traffic along Central Avenue at Attridge Drive. The lights appear when there are cars, period.

Oh yeah, here's a major exception:


So, there you go... I hope you see why I don't always stop at the stop lines when making left turns!

And for those of you who just thought of me as a moron or those who have seen me do this and have given me dirty looks: try it for yourself! Furthermore, if you are heading eastbound or westbound on Attridge Drive/Preston Avenue (near Preston Crossing) North through the overpass in an attempt to enter the freeway (Circle Drive), there is a way you can avoid waiting for oncoming traffic.

When you are making a left turn from the overpass to enter Circle Drive, you will see a traffic signal set-up that looks like this:


In the picture above, the overhead signal stays green at all times to instruct traffic to proceed through the area. As for the bottom traffic signal, the light will always stay green. However, when enough traffic activates a left-turn arrow, the left-turn arrow will begin to flash as traffic on the other side of the street (oncoming traffic) will be required to come to a stop for your benefit.

Below, you will find a diagram/picture of where you can stop in the area to activate a left-turn arrow...


In the picture above, you will find a panel where electrical wiring can be found underneath, which is embedded into the concrete median. This area has been circled above. If you would like to activate the left-turn arrow at the expense of oncoming traffic, you may do so by stopping ahead of the panel, which is approximately the spot where the fourth (4th) car would stop if the left-turn lane is full of vehicles. This area has been noted above in the area that has been "squared."