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Maybe not a full-blown, but does a constant pout count? I can’t help it - winter really needs to go away. The only thing that makes me smile these days is Monchichi, my silly friends, Scrabble, reading, mail. Oh, and I went sno-boarding for the first time last weekend. Whee! I didn’t break anything, so I plan on going back soon.

I would NOT have the patience for anything like passport offices right about now. I do, however, feel like getting up and clapping flamenco-style - I’m listening to Broken Social Scene on my headphones right now as I type. Sean Paul’s “Get Busy” also always makes me want to stand up and flamenco-clap. Sean Paul makes me dance. Other good listens during the past 24 hours: Ladytron, Peaches, Johnny Marr and the Healers. (Ooh, side note: interviewed Johnny Marr a few days ago for an upcoming NewMusic and it was even better than the last time I interviewed him - one of my very favourite interviews to date.)

Recent activities: shopping online, reading online diaries. Just finished Nick Hornby’s “How To Be Good” and starting “Fast Food Nation” as well as a re-read of “The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz.” I can’t wait until summer when I can throw my books in the air, run around outside, get stupid and wander the streets smiling for a few hot months.

Until then, youppie - it’s le weekend! Tonight, I’m going to a part-ay. Last time I went to one of these, it was pretty sedate until a man decided to get nekkid and pour his beer over himself. It was very performance art. Ha ha, just joking.

Bye bye.

This morning I went to pick up my passport from the passport office (duh) and it was quick and a completely painless experience.

How different from when I went to drop off my passport renewal application last week! Everyone was crazed. The wait was over an hour just to submit the application and while I understood and empathized with the impatience (I too was bored, frustrated and annoyed) - it struck me as funny how a few impatient grown-ups can so easily turn into tantrum-throwing children.

One woman threw her winter coat on the ground in a huff as she stomped up to the counter and another passport applicant loudly complained to the entire waiting room how unfair it was that she was asked to take her drink outside as no food or beverages were permitted in the waiting room.

I also thought it was silly that she couldn’t finish her coffee but what were we to do? All of us (im)patiently waiting for our turn at the counter…would we rise up at the injustice she had suffered and collectively revolt against the passport office’s oppression of our freedom to enjoy a hot drink while enduring their service queue? Instead, the seemingly nice man beside me commiserated with her in soft, dulcet tones while the clerks woodenly stared out at us from their perches.

Grown ups throwing hissyfits always unsettles me. If you feel you’ve been wronged, shouldn’t you by now have graduated from kindergarten behaviour and be able to handle your problems with a little more aplomb?

Or maybe the government office is exactly where you can let loose and regress to infantile antics!

That must be what the guy in the elevator thought. Just when I felt I had finally escaped the Passport office, I happened to catch the elevator with yet another disgruntled passport applicant who yelled “F***! F***ing government!” all the way to the ground floor. Yikes!

But most importantly…I have a valid passport again! And why do I need one? ‘Cause I’m off to LA tomorrow on a press junket for the movie Daredevil! I’m excited, I think it will be loads of fun and, mmmmmmm Colin Farrell. Check out InsideMuch later next week to find out more about my trip.

Hey Hannah - thrown a grown up tantrum lately?

Hey… where did you ever find those pics of me!?!?

Being that today is a mild day… I will use my blog time to talk about something pretty serious and important. As many of you know last night president George W. Bush made the 214th annual State Of The Union address, a speech used by the commander in chief to make their intentions for the forthcoming year known to both congress, senate and the people of the US. And with the world being in the current state that it is I thought it was very important to watch and see first hand what the presidents stated intentions were in regards to the world. Now I won’t bore you with my own political analysis (instead I encourage you to read the transcript and form your own opinion), but I will say that if the president comes through on one particular issue that was addressed in the speech - stating that he wants to invest $1.2 Billion to “promote energy independence for our country, while dramatically improving the environment” - this is a very important step in insuring that the world YOU live in will be there for YOUR future generations to enjoy. And with auto manufacturers such as Honda, Daimler-Chrysler and Toyota researching and releasing hydrogen powered vehicles in the near future, the day we see nothing but warm air and pure water coming from the exhaust of vehicles is no longer a thing of science fiction.

Of course there were many other key issues touched upon during the 60 minute address, but I will leave it’s interpretation for each reader to decide.

And now, changing gears… prepare to smash it up Soph!

I’m all girly and giddy over Banff as well Kell. I was snowboarding on Saturday, and was so excited at the thought of boarding on an actual mountain instead of riding Ontario’s best bunny hills.

Too cold to leave your crib? Stop c-c-complaining, and catch tomorrow’s MuchOnDemand! Rick and I took a polar bear dip dare. Brrrrrragging rights for the rest of this winter!

Ry - puke your mind out, it’s your turn to spew.

If I had any Bubble wrap, I’d wrap it around my body. Seriously, who said it was okay for the weather to be this cold? I spent the weekend hiding indoors trying to stay warm. While bunkered down, I spent a lot of time in front of the tube (I hate sitting in front of the TV all day, because it feels so unproductive…but damn, it was COLD!) I rented all of the episodes of season 3 of Sex In The City. I used to be sortof against this show because I thought it seemed like a total ‘girly‘ thing to watch (I’m not big on the girly girl junk). I thought it was all about chicks whining about boys..but boy was I wrong.

I also watched Hellraiser 2 (to make sure I still maintained my oh-so tuff exterior.) I’m trying to rent all of those scary movies that I was just too terrified to watch when I was little. Even the commercials for horror films used to freak me out, but now they’re just funny.

I’m getting sooooo hyped to head out to Banff for a little Flake N’ Bake . Every time I think about it, I want to jump up and down and squeal…but then I realize that doing that…might be…ahem…a little too girly.

It’s cold.

Winter-lovers hold your lecture. I know we live in Canada and that it’s winter and that it’s supposed to be cold. That’s not the cold I’m complaining about.

It’s cold in here! Where we work. Sitting beside a huge pane of glass that has a snowy frost-covered ledge - on the inside!

My fingers are numb and I can barely type. I’m wearing my winter coat right now. On top of a jean jacket. On top of a turtleneck.

I think I might need some sort of typing glove to carry on.

When I get home at night I think I over compensate by heating my apartment to sauna like temperatures. Thankfully, heat is included in my rent. I had a serious problem a few years back with an unhealthy addiction to an electric blanket. I can no longer plug in a blanket (4 years clean!), so the thermostat is now my winter vice. But when I’m toasty warm, I’m happy.

That is until the summer, when I’ll come to work and they’ll open the windows by our desk and I’ll be complaining that it’s too humid for me to type. Hmmm maybe I need some sort of personal temperature control…

Shelley, is it any warmer over there in the MOD corner?

Alright… so I didn’t make it to the BFB show. I decided that I would instead save my bread for the avalanche of rad shows that are forthcoming. Instead I will be attending the Division Of Laura Lee show on Wednesday which I’m hoping will be as high energy as there label mates The Hives show was oh so many months ago. I’m also quite amped about the upcoming Royksopp and Kid Koala shows as well.

And with that I must leave you with my new find of last week… FC Kahuna, Machine Says Yes. I heard the track “nothing is wrong” which made me perk up my ears and delve further into these guys. Once unwrapped and plugged in, I was pleased to find a smorgasboard of beats ranging from rad electro to ambient. Definitely worth a listen if you were at all interested in early Chemical Brothers and the likes from that scene.

Hey, Matty B…. you have any new finds you’d like to share with the class?

Dude , I never stop 2 steppin.

After a brief holiday hiatus of not seeing any shows, I’m excited to have my concert sched all filled up again. Tonight I’m heading out to see Warsawpack, a hip hop crew I don’t really know much about, but who are on the g7welcomingcommittee which I try to support when I can.

Other shows I have lined up for the next few weeks include: Cheerleader, Blood For Blood, DOLL, AFI and Sleater Kinney. In the words of Joan Jett(no kids, Britney wasn’t the first one to sing this one) ‘I love Rock and Roll.’

Hey Ry, are you ready to head to the BFB show? I’m so gonna jump you in the pit…and by that I mean I’m so gonna get my ass kicked.

…that’s Ladytron to you, Jarman…who hopefully I will get to see when they play Toronto on Feb. 24.

A month or so ago I went to see Maid In Manhattan. Say what you will, but there is some pure ironic enjoyment to be had when watching a romantic comedy. I mean, “Maid In Manhattan“…? That’s gold!

Among other things, this movie raises the following question for me: Do co-workers, in mininum wage jobs, often break the monotony of their day, or rally together in a crisis, by singing and dancing in montage format?

I’ve had many a low-paying job (cough, cough) and have yet to break out in song with my colleagues, as a means to brighten up my day. Matt Brett would never bust a move with me while we belted out “Work It.”

As soon as I saw the “maids” in J.Lo’s flick start singing and dancing it reminded me of a similar scene in Blue Crush. (Speaking of which, is out on DVD this week, and yes, I paid to see that movie too.) The three main surfer girls also worked as maids, and also broke out in song and dance while performing their cleaning duties!

I know, I know! This is an easy target and there are clearly a million questionable things in all movies of this genre…and well, the movies themselves are questionable.
But these specific music interludes have really been bothering me of late. If you, or someone you know, really practices the group musical performance during your day job, and aren’t professional dancers, singers or students at the Fame school - I wanna know. Email me at inside@muchmusic.com.

Kelly, do you 2-step when troubled, or to make light of dull work?

Go, go giant Jarman head! I hate that thing.

Well, the weekend is over and it’s back to the workplace! But, the last two days were full of GTFT! (That’s good times, fun times.)

I did a little bit of shopping and searched the city for a couch. This is the most impossible task in the world. Couch shopping isn’t even remotely fun. Everything is too big, too small, too wide, too hard… I feel like Goldilocks. My friend Greg tried to get me to buy some stuff at the store he works in… ummm, apparently he thinks I’m the next Joe Millionaire, only with real money. I think I’ll just pick up some 2X4s at Home Depot and put some pillows on that.

There was also a not fun part of my weekend, and that came up in the form of a big fattie zit on the end of my nose. Weren’t these things supposed to stop when I became a grown up? ha ha ha! Seriously, I’ve got a Mount Saint Pimple growing on my face and I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with it. If there was a white head on it, I’d be all about popping it. But it hasn’t yet reached that point, so for now, I just look like I could guide Santa’s sleigh. Lucky me.

I enjoy watching Regis and Kelly in the morning. It makes me wish that MuchMusic had a similar morning show. Of course, none of us would want to work on an early morning show, but hey, it’s an idea!

Hey, who’s that new girl in Team Digital with the short hair? OHMYGOD! It’s Sophia with her fancy new look! Over to you ladypants!