The last time I used my dishwasher at home was sometime in June when I got all new dishware, utensils, and glassware for my new apartment. It was a lot of items to have to wash, so it made sense to load up the dishwasher and let modern technology do the work for me.
Since then though, I never really found any justification to use my dishwasher. As I live alone and don't have a wife and a brood with me, the number of dishes, cups, glasses, pots, pans, and utensils I use in a day is very limited. While I could use my dishwasher to clean four plates, two forks, three knives, and two glasses after one day of use, is that the best way? By washing by hand, I save water, energy, soap, and the environment. I suppose I could just wait until my sink just piled up with enough dishes that using the dishwasher would be the better way to go but I think that's kinda gross. At the rate, I use things, it would take a good five to seven days to get to that point. I really don't like letting my dishes sit any more than two days. Any leftover food starts to get funky at that point.
I am concerned, however, that not using dishwasher for long periods of time is not good for it. It contains many mechanical parts, some of the complex variety. Much like a car, I believe it's good just to run it once in a while just to keep things in good working order. I wonder though how many of you are like me who own a dishwasher but don't use it. Do you run yours once in a while?
Thanks for reading this entire post, which essentially described me wondering if I should use my dishwasher.
On Monday, Jay Leno returned to The Tonight Show desk, after displacing Conan O'Brien in a move that cemented his reputation as a late night weasel.
Leno re-took his spot as host of The Tonight Show after his spectacular failure in prime time. His failure was of such magnitude it cost NBC millions upon millions of dollars in revenue because of his low ratings. NBC affiliates were screaming at NBC executives to do something about Leno. In a move that only TV executives could make, they rewarded Leno for his failure, installing him back on The Tonight Show. This would be akin to me gambling away people's retirement money then being rewarded for doing so with a truckload of money.
Sadly, middle America, with its bland sense of humour embraced Leno once again because they couldn't get enough of his underwhelming monologues. They clambered for his crutch, the Jay-walking segments, where the apparent source of humour is asking questions to people who are ironically, just a few IQ points lower than the people watching. Leno's ratings were good enough to beat David Letterman but we'll see what happens once the weeks go on and things settle down. I'm afraid that middle America will continue to reward Leno for playing it safe night in and night out. They wouldn't know real, genuine humour even if it hit them like a Ford Taurus SHO going at full speed.
I will always remain a fan of David Letterman and eagerly await Conan O'Brien's return to television. On Monday, Dave gave me a reminder of why he's still one of the best in my books, as evidenced in the video above.
It's amazing how quick the biggest party that Vancouver has ever seen can end. On Monday, it was almost as if the Olympics were never here. How odd it was to not see huge crowds in downtown Vancouver anymore. Didn't we always party on Monday nights?
I bet there are more than just a few people going through Olympics withdrawal right now.
According to reports, 80% of Canadians watched some part of the men's ice hockey gold medal game on Sunday. That's over 26 million people who tuned into watched one of the greatest hockey games the sport has ever put on.
As with such legendary games, people will remember for years to come where they were when Sidney Crosby scored the gold medal winning goal in overtime. For many people across Canada, that place was a packed bar. People got up early on Sunday morning, hours before bars even opened to line up to ensure a good seat once the game started. Some watched at LiveCity Downtown and LiveCity Yaletown, standing throughout most of the game, packed shoulder to shoulder with their Canadian brethren. Others made Robson Square their place to watch, again close to other Canadians.
I watched the game alone at my home, which surprisingly I found out later that a lot of other people did the same. The night before I had been downtown until quite late. I didn't get to bed until 4am and the thought of getting around 9am to go line up in front of a bar did not appeal to me.
I woke up at noon. Though I was still slightly groggy, the sheer importance of the game made me nervous from the minute I opened my eyes. I immediately turned on the TV. As the players warmed-up, I brushed my teeth and washed my face.
There I sat in my PJs on my couch until the end of the first period. I only made some breakfast during the first intermission. I quickly scrambled three eggs so as to not miss any of the action. I was on edge the entire game. It felt like I was writing a university final exam again.
When the US tied it up at the end of regulation, I was disappointed but not deeply so. Of course, I only became more nervous though. I've watched enough hockey to know that OT goals can be scored in the most surprising and seemingly harmless ways. It could end badly on the most innocent of plays.
As it stood, Crosby ended the game in such quick fashion that I did not even comprehend what I was seeing at first. Usually, the sight of a puck entering the net tells me a goal has been scored. This time around, it was the sight of thousands of red clad fans jumping to their feet that signaled to me Crosby had scored.
As the players from Team Canada piled around each other, I instantly became thankful I was alone at this moment as I shed the first of several tears. There would be more tears over the next few minutes, especially during the playing of our national anthem. Who knew I loved hockey and my country so much?
Over the last day or so, I've discovered where others watched the game. Some watched in bars. Some were like me, who watched at home. No matter where anyone watched though, for that one golden moment we cheered together. I wish we could have measured the elation of the entire country at that moment.
I'm too tired to post anything coherent tonight as it's been a long and emotional day (plus I went to a party tonight). I will, however, congratulate all the athletes, officials, coaches, VANOC, the volunteers, the people of Vancouver, the people of Canada for doing their part in making these Olympics the best Winter Games ever.
It will take days, months, possibly years to understand what the last two weeks will mean to Canada. I'm hoping it will be good things.
