Month: February 2010

naked chef wins $100k TED prize

On By Rick McIn food, health & fitnessLeave a comment

I’ve not been a fan of controversial British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.

I find him strident. And not all that amusing.

But I’m thrilled he won the prestigious TED prize for 2010.

At the heart of Oliver’s work is an assault on the obesity epidemic: The CDC states that one in four Americans are considered obese. It is estimated that 43 percent of Americans, or 103 million people, will be obese by 2018. The cost of this epidemic is anticipated to reach $344 billion per year. It currently accounts for almost 10 percent of the yearly US health care costs, and that rate will rise to 21 percent by 2018. WHO’s latest projections indicate that, globally in 2005, approximately 1.6 billion adults were overweight and projects that by 2015, that figure will rise to 2.3 billion.” …

2010 TED Prize goes to Jamie Oliver

God knows he’s passionate. If interested, click over to TED to watch his scary 18min presentation.

wife, kids, mortgage, Golden Retriever

On By Rick McIn friends, humour1 Comment

Every once in a while I ponder whether a more normal life would have been better.

Wife, kids, mortgage, Golden Retriever. That nonsense.

When it happens, I go live with my friends the Masons for some domestic bliss therapy.

… I soon find myself cured.

Thanks Brian. Thanks Jane. I really appreciate you housing the homeless.

overcoming inertia – Rick on the ROAD again

On By Rick McIn travel4 Comments


…I got a fast car
and I wanna a ticket to anywhere … ♬♬

Here’s my new-to-me 1996 Honda Civic hatchback. My first vehicle in 11yrs.

I asked an expert to test drive. Just to make sure it’s road worthy.

The Stig

Departing for Couer d’Alene, Idaho today.

Leave a comment if you want to speculate on how long I’ll last with a motor vehicle.

monthly phone bill $2.95

On By Rick McIn product endorsements1 Comment

I’ve given up my mobile phone completely. (Delete any listing you have for the ___-6735 number.)

Instead I can call you via Skype on an iTouch. That’s the iPhone without a phone.

It’s perfect. Perfect in that I can call you, but you can’t call me. I hate answering the phone.

Monthly bill $2.95 unlimited North America SkypeOut to any phone number. Skype to Skype is free, as always.

You could phone me if I had an online phone number. That service is called SkypeIn, but it’s not offered yet in Canada.

If I got a U.S. online phone number you’d be charged for a local call if ringing from the States. A long distance call to the States if phoning from anywhere else.

UPDATE: February 16th Verizon in the States is planning to announce Skype on two handsets. It’s inevitable that North American phone rates will be dropping drastically soon.

NBC – Terry Fox or Michael J Fox?

On By Rick McIn product complaints4 Comments

Dana is frustrated with NBC TV coverage of the Olympics.

One symbolic example of how they’re blundering through the money losing spectacle.

Terry Fox is a Canadian legend whose cross-Canada run, the Marathon of Hope, inspired Canadians while raising money for cancer research. Michael J. Fox is a Canadian actor who starred in the legendary “Back to the Future” trilogy and has become an advocate for Parkinson’s disease research. They’re pretty easy to confuse for each other. Right, NBC?

It’s understandable to misspeak the name during a live setting, so we can give Meredith Vieira a pass. But the graphics are a little harder to explain, especially considering the broadcast actually showed Terry Fox before switching to the “Family Ties” star. …

Yahoo Sports

ladies, disappointed with your man … ??

On By Rick McIn humourLeave a comment

Perhaps get him some OLD SPICE.

We’re not saying this body wash will make your man smell into a romantic millionaire jet fighter pilot, but we are insinuating it.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

my review – Avatar

On By Rick McIn movies, product endorsements1 Comment

Finally saw the 3D version.

Overall AWESOME.

A breakthrough in technology that just might save the movie theatre business.

Dialogue was good. Acting, overall quite good. Special effects simply brilliant, a big leap forward from anything else I’ve ever seen.

I’d heard the plot was crappy and laughable. But Avatar has the same plot as every other Hollywood blockbuster:


Boy meets Girl … Evil challenges Good … BIG fight with plenty of gore and explosions … Good triumphs … James Bond and Girl walk hand-in-hand into sunset.

Are you telling me every Hollywood blockbuster has a plot line crappy and laughable?