Fear is a Factor for NBC

Fear Factor, topping my list of favourite shows on television, is being cancelled! The Apprentice: Martha Stewart is taking its place, but word is Joe Rogan will be back with a vengeance come the 2006 season.

Belinda Belinda Belinda

Magna queen Belinda Stronach switched sides today. This after she allegedly called the Liberal government "tired and old" last year. Why didn't she just go dutch? Cuz Don Pauli made her his new human resources minister. I happen to like the blond bombshell - the blond bombshell who's being called a whore nowadays. Honestly people. How low can you go? And poor, heartbroken Peter MacKay! Oy.

Amber Alert

Sammy's safe and sound. After his father apparently killed his mother, questions regarding the two-year-old boy's whereabouts prompted an Amber Alert. Sammy was found at his grandfather's apartment, and Daddy, who was in a Toronto court today, wasn't the one who dropped him off there. So as it turns out, the child was in no danger. But I suppose he could have been.

And that's what the Amber Alert's for. Named after Amber Hagerman, a nine-year-old girl who was abducted in Texas in 1996, the Amber Alert has since become an acronym for America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response. When a child under 18 years old is reported missing, radio and television stations are alerted immediately. The next five hours see information about the child, the abductor, and suspect vehicles blink across highway signs, lottery terminals, and even cellphones. Ontario launched Amber Alerts in March 2002, and saw them fall short with Holly Jones and Cecilia Zhang in 2003.

Why do these things happen? It makes me sick.

OOOOOOH CANADA

I haven't watched a hockey game from start to finish since the Leafs lost in the playoffs last year. But Czech's 3-0 win over Team Canada was worse. Nash, Heatley, Brodeur - nothin, nothin, nothin. It's a miracle we won the silver. Congrats boys! Next time.

Tiger Tiger Woods Y'all

"It's never a relief when you miss a cut. I've missed two of them so far in my career, and neither of them feel very good, especially when you bogey the last hole on both of them." After making 142 consecutive cuts, Tiger missed the cut at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship yesterday. Aww Tiger baby.

Artsy Fartsy

The AGO's goin crazy. Eight artists are paint-balling the main entrance tonight - to music! The performance starts at 9:15, and since journalists will be reporting from the scene, the live webcast starts at 9. The finished masterpiece will stay on the wall until construction starts in early June. I'm so pissed I have to work tonight!

Chapters = Winners?

My favourite Chapters, on Bloor between Avenue Road and Bay, is turning into a Winners next weekend. Awww. Worst spot ever. And it's not the best business decision either. I think I'll be the only one in my neighbourhood to dare step foot in that place.

Gonzo

I was reading "Fear and Loathing in the Bunker" last night, a January 1, 1974 New York Times article (reprinted in The Great Shark Hunt) where Hunter S. Thompson writes:

This is the horror of American politics today - not that Richard Nixon and his fixers have been crippled, convicted, indicted, disgraced and even jailed - but that the only available alternatives are not much better; the same dim collection of burned-out hacks who have been fouling our air with their gibberish for the last twenty years.

I couldn't help but notice that his words still ring true three decades after he penned them. Bush cheated his way into office, but survives as leader of the free world. The liberals cheated Canadian taxpayers out of billions of dollars, but remain ahead in the polls. The alternatives? A wishy-washy Democrat and a dorky Conservative. The old adage is true - history does indeed repeat itself.

Stones Baby

Pleased to meet you - hope you guessed my name! Ooh ooh. Oh ya. Ooh ooh. The Stones are coming to the T dot on September 26 baby. Tickets for the Rogers Centre show go on sale on May 27 at Ticketmaster. But for $60 to $400 a pop, I think I'll be staying home that night. I've seen the Mickster strut his stuff too many times to count. They'll be in Ottawa August 28, Moncton September 3, and Calgary October 28. I hope I'm still shakin that ass when I'm in my 60s.

The Fox

A new report found some problems with my favourite browser - Mozilla Firefox. Apparently, a security company exposed two critical security holes that allow hackers to take control over your PC and steal your cookie information. Download new security patches and updates from the site. I know I am.

MMM

Went to the Global Million Marijuana March this weekend. About 3,000 potheads showed up at Queen's Park to celebrate freedom, support legalization, and bathe in the sunshine. Tattoed bikers in weed bandanas. Dreadlocked couples sucking on multi-coloured popsicles. Teenage girls in kilts, furry ears, tails, and wings. Babies in tie dye t-shirts hanging onto white balloons plastered in green weed leaves. Even the puppies draped weed leis around their necks. Everyone was smokin' the green stuff. No arrests. Good times.

MVP

Steve Nash is the man. The mini six foot three point guard from Victoria is the first Canadian to ever win the NBA's Most Valuable Player award. Beating out Shaq by just 34 points, Nash was amazed. "It's an incredible oddity in many ways," he said. "It's very difficult for me to really get a handle on being mentioned with those tremendous athletes and their accomplishments." Other b-ball stars on the best of the best list include my boy MJ and Larry Bird. Just hours after the ceremony, Nash led the Suns to a 127-102 victory over Dallas, his former team. Game two of the second round playoff series will be in Phoenix Wednesday at 7:30, and Nash will host his first charity All Star game in Toronto this summer.

Zion

Just got back from the Toronto Jewish Film Festival's screening of Awake Zion, Monica Haim's documentary on the connection between Rastafarians and Jews. Both trace their roots to the Jewish bible. Both lay claim to King David and his son Solomon. Both recite David's psalms as gospel. Both display the six pointed star around their necks. Dreadlocks, earlocks, what's the difference? Matisyahu is closing the gap by adding reggae to the mix. One love baby. Zion.