IIDD, October 3rd

Gentlemen:

6:30 start Saturday

Scotch will be set out so that you can do comparison tasting of your choice.
a) Highland vs Lowland vs Islay vs Speyside
b) Vintage a 10 vs 12 vs 16 vs 21yr
c) Peat vs Smoke

Menu:
veggie plate
meatballs, chicken fingers, beef chunks
cheddar cheese and crackers and bread

If there is any willingness to add to the fare, do so but not required. Rip

Hi Riptide!

Just a quick note to thank you for such a glorious evening! Told Whirlygig that he and his Evil Twin, The Jackal, missed out on a stupendous gathering. Lovely, lovely time. More than a wonderful array of food! Superb maltage line-up, in spite of harsh homework assignment! Great to see The Cookenheimer and meet Enzo Stuarti and Senator Joseph McCarthy! In all seriousness, it was quite an eye-opener to listen to John's account of the privatization process at YVR. Stewart's entrepreneurial endeavours, with respect to intellectual property and the marketing thereof, was fascinating. Where was he when I needed to promote Team II? Quite enjoyed the political perspective through the lens of Attila the Hun and John's bemoaning the fact that the Communists will probably win the next election! Of course, I know that the business experience and acumen of the Gang of Four allow a highly realistic assessment of what makes much of the world go around. Although I might disagree with some or even many of the right-wing pronouncements, I understand that your collective understanding and insights are not to be discounted, by any means. I found the conversation enjoyable, enlightening and stimulating, everything from from fraternities to bike lanes to indexed pensions and beyond!

Again, Ripster, thank you for including me and for providing the forum with all the wonderful social lubricants, both stellar potables and scrumptious edibles, beyond plentiful! Camaraderie par excellence! 

Cheers, Il Conduttore! 
P,

Thanks for the ride lasterday -- let me know when you are intending to get
out again.

You gave no detail on the shift -- what did you do?

As I blurted out when we parted, I would be interested in attending some
films with you -- impromptu & daytime -- when you get the inside scoop.

W

P,

Thanks for the film reviews. Sounds like you have seen some amazing films.

Let me know how you are travelling to the film this morning -- I will join
you or meet you there.

As to the ride later I would of course love to but I may not be able to join
you this afternoon. We will see how that shakes out -- Kerry has taken the
day off and the MT is home sick...

Call when it is convenient.

W

Pat,

    Tests went well thanks.

    I'm glad you are out there planning new routes. Quite a ride is 120 + K. I can see the influence Writers' Week is having on you with the 'shimmering mirrored surface' etc. Hope you and Corinne are having a very successful week with the various activities you are both involved in.

    I'm hoping to ride to Steveston Saturday morning. I think I remember you saying you weren't available this Saturday morning - probably Writers' Festival involvement. If so, perhaps we can get together on Monday.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Ray

Pat,
Monday morning is good for me, weather permitting. I'll be in touch.

Ray 

Hi Boithday Boychik!

I'm delighted that you enjoyed the Coopers Choice. In fact, this company is not the distiller, as you may well have already gathered. Coopers, along with a number of other companies, re-bottle malts from various distilleries. The gift bottle, in question, was distilled at Knockdhu. I thought it was doubly appropriate as now you can say, to the Lexus People, "Knockdhu" instead of "Fuck You"! Only the Cogniscentii will understand. Akin to the Masonic, secret handshake!

Missed you and the Jackal at Riptide's gathering. Lovely, lovely evening. Needed you, if only to help with the wonderful array of food! Only five people, in toto, with Peter Cookenheimer, Stewart MacFarlane and John Watson making up contingent. John has served with Peter on a number of boards and it was quite an eye-opener to listen to John's account of the privatization f YVR. Stewart is an entrepreneur and it was interesting to talk about intellectual property and the marketing thereof to sports teams . The political bias was with Attila the Hun and John bemoaned the fact that the Communists would probably win the next election! Nevertheless, these boys have been around and their insights are not to be discounted by any means. I know you would have enjoyed the conversation, ranging from bike lanes to indexed pensions and beyond!

On a lighter note, Peter showed me his iPhone app for cycling. Purchased at a cost of $5, it is a virtual odometer/GPS device. One rides with one's smart phone and it gathers all the relevant data. Maps route. Max speed, eyc. Nifty. I wish I'd known about it before I bought an odometer for Robo Man! Of course, he never carries a cellulare! Perhaps I could get you to trade the Coopers for his odometre and since he doesn't drink, I could re-possess the malt. For your part, you always carry your phone so you could use the app, (downloaded at your own expense!), give me Ray's odometre and everyone is happy!

This morning I went to see Khodorkovsky at PCP. From the program:

"A damning portrayal of the dirty war between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and the oligarchs--in particular long-imprisoned oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky--Cyril Tuschi's documentary has made its way to the festival circuit despite much skulduggery on the part of those whom the film seeks to expose and embarrass. In the course of making the film, Tuschi and his crew were harassed and threatened, and the final cut of the film was stolen from Tuschi's Berlin office. We hope it arrives here safely!

Using a mix of wide-ranging interviews, archival footage and computer animation, Khodorkovsky tells the gripping story of its titular figure, who went from chemistry student to owner of Yukos, the massive Russian oil firm that was privatized in the hairy free-for-all of Boris Yeltsin's rule, making him one of the country's most powerful men before the age of 40. An open critic of Putin who put his money where his mouth was, Khodorkovsky funded human-rights groups, opposition political parties, and a charity called Open Russia while publicly questioning the leader about political corruption. Since 2003, he has been in a Siberian prison, on tax-evasion charges that David Remnick, editor of the New Yorker, called “absurdist acts of injustice no more respectable than the railroading of Josef Brodsky.”

A warts-and-all portrait, told with verve and humour, Khodorkovsky is a must-see for anyone interested in modern Russia, made all the more important because of those shadowy figures who don't want you to see it."

I am always amazed at how my preconceptions/opinions on a wide variety of topics/issues have been challenged by many of the films I have seen, to date. In this particular case, I simply "assumed" that the oligarchs were little more than robber barons, raping Mother Russia of her natural resources, formerly state owned/controlled. Of course, nothing is that simple and this documentary attempts to uncover some of the political truth behind Russia's move towards a capitalist economy. Painfully ironic, in so many ways, for me at least, given the horror and sheer callous indifference to suffering uncovered in Blood in the Mobile, a film I saw during one of my Saturday shifts. From the program:

"Over the past 15 years, more than five million people have perished in the Democratic Republic of Congo's bloody civil war. Perhaps even more alarmingly: many of them have died because of our cell phones. Journeying to the anarchic African nation, documentarian Frank Poulsen fearlessly confronts the ruthless militant groups battling for control of the mines supplying the “blood minerals” that power our mobile devices. Gruesome accounts of the intimidation tactics employed by these fiendish warlords (as well as a hellish foray into a perilous mine) will leave even the most hardened viewer rattled.

In turn, Poulsen's subsequent search for answers at Nokia's corporate headquarters will have audiences seething. As the increasingly agitated filmmaker is given the Kafka-esque run-around by the cold-blooded suits, a galling lack of accountability is laid bare. While everyone takes great pride in Nokia's gaudy profits, no one at the purportedly socially responsible corporation is willing to discuss the human cost of their success. Infuriatingly, the most anyone will say about the ethical quagmire that their dubious supply chain has embroiled them in is: “It's tricky...”

"A courageous piece of investigative reportage [and] a polemical, tightly constructed narrative that will make anyone with a strong social conscience feel guilty about using a cell phone."--Leslie Felperin, Variety"

I think you should see this film, without a doubt. Guess I'll have to re-evaluate the cell app for cycling! Speaking of which, I'm hoping to ride later in the day, Monday, praying that weather will clear in the afternoon. Not sure if that works for you or not. Give me a shout around 8:00am. I'm planning to take in another film, (Moving), at PCP at 10:45am before hand.

Cheers, Il Conduttore!