Learn to Drive...

I was browsing through Winnipeg Free Press’s website (www.winnipegfreepress.com), and I came across this picture:

Whoops!

Maybe I’m a little cold hearted, but I found this picture to be hilarious. Seeming how I recently wound up having two accidents in 12 hours; I found comfort in this picture knowing at least I’m better off than someone.

A brief summary of my accidents… Some crazy guy sideswiped my truck as he for some reason decided that my truck didn’t exist. Luckily there was barely any damage.

The second one, I was headed to college early in the morning and the little hamster inside my head decided to take a snooze. More or less, I drove into the back of a mini-van stopped at a red light. Genius!

So one was my fault, the other wasn’t, but the fact that two accidents happened within 12Hrs is a little stressful. It also sucks that my truck’s bumper grinds against my tire when I make right turns.

But…back to the picture. I am guessing that the old lady in the picture is the proud driver behind this beautiful parking job at wonderful Wal-Mart. So, I decided to make a few comments based on what I saw in the picture:

-PROOF that drivers should get re-tested after 65.

-She’s hopping in to pull the van up a smidge more.

-Ford? Found-on-rock-dead?

-Wal-Mart’s parking lot was full so she decided to take the rockier path.

-Who says old timers don’t go off-roading?

-She was just heading to Wal-Mart to pick up some new All-Terrain tires.

-“Wait a second…this isn’t handicapped parking."

-Even elders from the country enjoy a good off-roading session.

Ah, I’m just joking around, but unfortunately the driver of this Ford mini-van slammed into the rock and got tipped over in The Outhouse.

Jets vs. Hurricanes

On Wednesday night, I had the luxury of attending the preseason match-up of the Winnipeg Jets against the Carolina Hurricanes. Right here in Winnipeg. It was probably the worst possibly timing for me to sneak away to catch a game, but it was impossible for me to turn away the opportunity.

So after rushing through helping my neighbor load a tanning bed into his garage, I darted into my truck and sped off to the game.

Due to the last-minute nature of the game I ended up having to park quite a distance away, over at the Winnipeg Convention Centre. I ran full tilt the entire way, and once I entered The MTS Centre I was struck by the intense hockey atmosphere.

When I compared the atmosphere in the building to several of the regular season and playoff games I saw the Moose play, it didn’t compare. The atmosphere here was amped up. Jets jerseys everywhere. Smiles on everyone’s faces. It was hockey time. And the kicker was that it was only a pre-season game.

Near the end of the national anthem the cheering and noise was so loud you couldn’t even hear the words.

The Jets may be lacking so called “superstars”, but they aren’t lacking any heart, grit, or skill.

The Jets bombarded Hurricanes goalie, Brian Boucher early on. After several solid rushes in the first, it appeared as though the Jets had the game wrapped up early.

However, Boucher’s goaltending was superb throughout the first two periods, keeping the Jets off the scoreboard and the Hurricanes up by one. The Jets had already thrown 25 shots towards Boucher by the end of the second and still hadn’t solved him. The Hurricanes had only mustered up 13 shots on Mason by the end of the second.

Even though the Jets hadn’t hit the scoreboard yet; the massive crowd at the MTS Centre roared with excitement.

The Jets continued their attack in the third and eventually it paid off when Evander Kane scored on a rush towards the net. Shortly after that, Blake Wheeler added another tally to the scoreboard, pushing the Jets into the lead. Kane added another goal into the empty net to put the icing on the cake.

One word to describe the level of noise in the third period is: Intense.

“Go Jets Go” echoed throughout the building. Fans were high-fiving and cheering, it was clear that the return of the Winnipeg Jets really impacted Winnipeg in a good way.

The experience at the game was great and it’s exciting to think that it was only a preseason game. The only downfall of the whole experience was the guy who drove into my truck after the game.

But anyways, the Winnipeg Jets checked their way through The Outhouse this week and have left me eager for the next game.

Quitting...Again?

Ditching the darts.

When it comes to something people struggle with, everyone has their vice. For some it's coffee, for others it's biting their nails, heck, sometimes it's even candy, but sadly for me, it's smoking.

I've tried quitting a million times, and I'm sure people have heard that excuse a million times, but if it was really that easy I would've quit already.

I've tried replacing the habit with Blow-Pops (suckers), chewing gum, Nicorette, and good old fashioned cold turkey. To be honest, Nicorette worked to a certain extent. The only problem is that Nicorette Gum nearly costs as much as the cigarettes.

I hate to play the blame game, especially when it comes to smoking, but I'm pretty sure that working in the construction field didn't help the matter. Having jobs in renovations, landscaping, and flooring exposed me to bosses that lit up a dart, smoke, cancer stick, cig, or cigarette, every 20 minutes.

Still, that's no excuse, I'm the one who caved in and kept smoking. But now, for the millionth time, I'm quitting again. Maybe I'll be a jackass for a few days. Maybe I'll be highly aggravated. Or maybe I'll be stressed to the max, but if quitting is the end result then it was worth it.

So tonight, right after this is posted, I'm going to smoke my last Number Seven Red Regular. I guess you could call it my last smoke ever too.

How am I so sure that I'll quit?

Here are a few reasons:
1: Confidence - I'm feeling good about it. I've slowly been trying to cut down and it feels like the right time to quit.
2: Winnipeg has shitty weather - It doesn't hurt one bit that Old Man Winter is sneaking up on Winnipeg. Hopefully the cold will encourage me to grab a coffee instead of a cig.
3: A new vice - My new vice will be gum. Yeah, yeah, I know it's not the best to replace one vice for another, but at least my new vice won't contain arsenic and tar.
4: Hitting the gym -Now that I'm back in college and my gym membership is back, I'll be working out way more. Coughing up tar while running on the treadmill isn't in my itinerary.
5: Great support - I've got tons of friends and family that have been encouraging me to quit and hopefully they'll be supportive throughout my battle.

Tomorrow will be interesting, Day One... Really, it's nothing compared to days 2 through 29,876. I'm sure I'll be fine and won't tear any heads off. So I guess, I'm the one entering The Outhouse. Only time will tell if I can butt out the habit and make it through The Outhouse.

Butting it out.

Crow Duck tests The Outhouse

Fishing is, and always will be one of my favorite things to do over the weekend or anytime - Nothing like kickin’ back, casting out, and hauling in a big ol’ pike or walleye. 

This summer, I had more free time, which meant I had more time to hit the water. I fished in several lakes and rivers over the summer such as Buffalo Point, The Big Whiteshell, The Red River, Caddy Lake, and Crow Duck Lake. Buffalo Point and Crow Duck I visited a few times.

For my last two trips I went to Crow Duck Lake. The only difference between Crow Duck and the rest of the places I visited (besides the great fishing) is that you have to pay to fish at Crow Duck, unless you portage.

Crow Duck Lake is the biggest lake in the Whiteshell Provincial Park. If you don’t portage in, it’s a two-mile cruise across Big Whiteshell Lake and then you face a 2-mile trail where you’re driven by truck.

After the trek, you’re at Crow Duck Lake.

One of the first feelings that I felt when I saw the lake was a feeling of ease and comfort. Tranquility surrounds you at Crow Duck and the nature takes you away from the big lights of the city.

Once you unload all your gear, the staff there will set you up with a 16.5ft boat with a 25HP Honda on the back. There will be minnows for sale right at the dock, and the staff there was extremely helpful, I’m sure they would do their best to meet your every need.

The first time I went out, it poured rain – from 8AM until 6:30PM. So that’s why I never wrote a review after that experience, I didn’t feel that I would be able to write a proper review because the rain put a damper my fishing and fun.

The second time I went out, this past Sunday, the weather was still rather miserable, but at least there wasn’t a hurricane out on the water.

Instead of starting at 8AM, like on the first trip, the second trip got off to a 10AM start. The amount of time spent fishing suffered, but the amount of fish caught didn’t.

My boat of three journeyed off to the left of the docks, and we found ourselves in a nice and calm part of the lake. It was more like a creek but technically a bay. Within an hour we had all caught our first walleye of the day. Quickly my luck started to get better, as I was pulling in 20” walleye every 10-15 minutes. I found that my pink jig with a minnow worked best, however the only other thing I tried was a yellow jig with a worm.

After reeling in a steady stream of walleye in that spot, we decided to pack up and head to deeper water in search of some Northern Pike.

We didn’t have to travel too far in order to find them. Within a half hour of fishing in the deeper water I hooked onto a 30” Northern Pike. Usually, I only fish for walleye, but the walleye are stocked at Crow Duck so Northern Pike and Bass were the only fish I was interested in bringing back.

Overall, my boat of three caught 22 fish. I must have worn some lucky underwear or socks that day, because 14 of those were mine.

Crow Duck is a great place for a fisherman who has been “shutout” too many times. If you aren’t concerned with keeping your fish or just want to catch a bunch, then Crow Duck is ideal.

You can really tell that the people running Crow Duck know their stuff. There were only a few things I had a problem with, and really they weren’t very big deals. I thought it would’ve been nice if they ‘d had the option to rent a trolling motor and GPS. But, next time I’m just going to bring my own. The other thing was that the anchor for the rental boats was a little too light. If a heavy wind hit the lake, or you were in deeper water, the anchor wouldn’t do much.

Crow Duck Lake is really an outdoorsman’s paradise. Who could really complain about massive amounts of Walleye, great scenery, and an amazing lake. The staff really made me feel at home, both times. They even brought us a 6-pack of Budweiser when we were taking shelter from the torrential downpour that was bombarding us.

Sure, you might spend a little extra cash when going fishing. But really, for a little extra you’re getting a day that’s jam packed with action and a much needed break from the big city or everyday grind. Other fishermen that have fished in Crow Duck claim that they’ve caught over 100 fish in a day. Most of them aren’t lying either. Unfortunately for me, I haven’t reached that benchmark yet, but maybe next summer will have a wonderful walleye-filled experience. 

So, yes, Crow Duck Lake entered The Outhouse and made it through with ease and a stringer full of walleye. 

                                                                                         

Crow Duck offers 6 night stays in their cabins for $1185.00 or Day trips with boat rental for 2-3 people for $123.00.

A Sneak Peak at "Drive"

Tonight, I was fortunate enough to come across a pair of sneak peak tickets to see Ryan Gosling's new movie, Drive.

To start off, if you like your movies filled with metal shearing car crashes, heads being obliterated by shotguns, and awkward silences than this movie is for you.

Drive is about a stunt driver/wheel-man (Ryan Gosling) who becomes attached to his apartment complex neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan). He ends up finding himself wrapped up in a thrilling and gory adventure trying to protect Irene in a somewhat cliche storyline.

Gosling didn't have very many lines to memorize, as his character was the silent type, but I found that this added mystery to his character.

The action/killing scenes were rather realistic, depicting lots of blood, so if you get queasy easily than perhaps this movie isn't for you. But if exploding heads are your thing, than the movie is just right.

Carey Mulligan did a great job in the role of Irene, really making the viewer curious about what was going on inside her head.

This isn't your typical Transporter one though three, or five, or whatever it is. No, this wheel-man movie has the right mixture of action, plot twists, and romance to get your blood pumping.

The use of music throughout the movie was also interesting, and refreshing.

Overall, I'm glad I got to see a sneak peak of Drive, and it was a refreshing change from other Action/Dramas.

Drive made it through The Outhouse with no problems at all. I give Drive 8.5/10.

Drive comes to theaters this Friday.

Belak will be missed. Williams should be ashamed.

When you think of an Outhouse what usually comes to mind? Usually, dingy walls, putrid smells, and terrifying sights pop up.

This blog, The Outhouse, challenges people, places, things, groups, and anything else to see whether or not they make it through.

The Outhouse got tipped by a comedian who pushed a little too hard and wound up in hot water. Katt Williams, a comedian probably best known for his role in Friday After Next, shouted racist nonsense to a Mexican man in the audience at a stand-up show in Phoenix.

Williams' publicist released an apology on his behalf, but Williams' quickly shot it down. However, Williams claimed in an interview with CNN that he credited his successful career to Mexican people.
That's a strange comment seeming how he also stated that was just spitting out un-altered thoughts.

Comedy allows comedians to go where most people wouldn't dare. What would usually be harsh or repulsive turns into something hilarious or intriguing. But, to me, being a comedian doesn't give you a "free
racism pass." Sure, when Russel Peters makes jokes about his race it's funny, but that's because he's more or less poking fun at himself, or his relatives.

Singling out a man who appeared to be from Mexico and starting a "U.S.A, U.S.A" chant really speaks towards Mr. Williams' intelligence and character.
So because of that, Katt Williams ended up getting tipped over in a brutal accident in The Outhouse.

More can be found out on the story via CNN


This week, an extraordinary hockey player made it through. Wade Belak, 35, recently passed away in a Toronto condominium/hotel. Belak had a great career in the NHL as an enforcer, and was respected around the league.
Belak, a first round draft pick in 1994 (12th overall), played for Colorado, Calgary, Toronto, Florida, and Nashville.
Players around the league knew Belak as a stand-up, funny guy who was tough and gritty on the ice, but soft and gentle off-ice.
Belak was also a volunteer firefighter in Nashville, the last place he played.

So, rest in peace Wade, you had a great career, great charisma, a passion like no other, and for that you’ve made it through The Outhouse.

Here a few videos of Wade's goals and fights: