Lets get the facts straight shall we.

I was a bicycle courier in Vancouver for three years, after which I became a car courier for health reasons (I fucked up my back). Back then I had to take a licensing TEST before I could be a bicycle courier. Yes, that’s right, so I knew what the rules of the road were. The problem with that is other people on bikes didn’t have a clue. Nor did most drivers in vehicles. Based on the ranting going on in here, they still don’t.

The LAW states bikes are not NOT allowed to ride on the sidewalk. End of fucking story.

This now sends them into the streets and roadways (where they belong) but most don’t have a clue how they’re supposed to conduct themselves. The fact of the matter is you are now on the road like a car, obligated to abide by the same rules as a car. If you have a drivers license to drive a car you have no excuse for being a moron on a bicycle. If you’ve never owned a car and don’t have a clue, read this: http://www.bikesense.bc.ca/appendices.htm#law before going anywhere!

Back in my courier days when the crunch came down and time was not on my side I did some crazy shit. I also got nailed for it. Got a “running a red light” ticket and fine just the same as if I had been in a car.

What part of the problem is, is the fact that people on bikes seem to be either from group(a) or group(b). Group A. are the ones that are scared shitless when on the road with traffic around them. These are usually the idiots on the sidewalk. These people should either get some balls, learn their rights and get moving, or leave the bike at home.
Group B., well they’re the holier than thou bunch of assholes that think because they’re “being green” the rest of us are scum and have no rights. This attitude is usually backed by complete ignorance of the traffic rules. When it comes to bikes on the road, a lot of drivers suffer from this as well, I’ll get to that.

Then there are a few of us in Group C. We are the ones that know the traffic rules, know how traffic works/flows and have the confidence and acute where-with-all to get ourselves from point A to B without running down some old lady on the sidewalk, getting killed or pissing off people in cars. You know what the secret to this is? Ride on the road (like the law states). Be completely aware of your surroundings at all times, with 60 percent of your attention on what’s in front of you, 20 percent on what’s going on to your left and 20 percent to what’s going on to the right. What about “behind you” you ask? Fuck behind you. If you’re actually riding your bike and not taking it for a walk you should be moving with the flow of traffic to the point where anything that’s going on behind you is of minimal concern. Your attention should be on what is happening or may happen in front of you.

If you’re on the road you use lanes like you would in a car. If there is a right turn lane coming up on the right, don’t stay to the right, move over into the through lane like you would in a car. Use the left turn lanes like you would in a car. It’s people that get freaked out about being on the road that piss drivers off. If you’re coming up to a light and there are cars in front of you all waiting, stay in your lane in the order you would had you been driving a car. Don’t scoot along the curb so that you’re first in line when the light turns green. This WILL and does justifiably piss drivers off because if they just took the care and attention to correctly go around you, they don’t want to do it again. Think of yourself as a slow moving vehicle, end of story.

If some asshole in a car IS riding your ass in traffic trying to make you move. Hold your ground, continue moving forward and give him the finger. You’re in the right, he’s just a dick.

Now, some brush up bitch slapping for the people in cars.

A PERSON ON A BICYCLE HAS EVERY RIGHT TO TAKE UP SPACE IN A LANE JUST AS A CAR, BUS, TRUCK OR MOTORCYCLE. GET USED TO IT.

If you don’t like how “slow” they are, lift your little finger, put on that signal light, change lanes and go around them just like you would granny in a Cadillac. It’s the fucking law.

Basically what it comes down to, Bicyclists need to be 100% educated on the rules of the road and not be chicken shit scared little pussies while riding. Cars need to cut them some slack and also learn to treat them simply as slower moving vehicles and not some annoyance to intimidate.

I’ll tell you one thing, if every one rode like a “responsible” bike courier does, there would only be a few pissed off drivers, the really ignorant dumb ones. The kind that back in the day, were the ones that would get mirror polo’ed at the next light.

Have a nice day, be kind and ride safe.

I was out for beers with my friend Mark tonight and we were talking about the fact that to succeed in certain (or most) endeavors that we take in our lives we must at some point succumb to “the game” and play it to get to where we want to be and get what we want out of our time here.

If we look at our lives like the NHL this is what I see. There are the few elite (using the term loosely) who own the teams, they have control over almost any aspect of us regardless (IE: government) weather we like it or not. Then there are the managers and the coaches all there to make things happen the way they see fit based on what the “man” wants. Then there are the players, guys who have fought tooth and nail to make it to where they are. If they’re lucky they have a good run on a good team and make a shit load of money and perhaps eventually get a shot at coaching or managing a team later on in life. These are the guys that deserve success. Not just in a direct hockey context but in a general life context. Those of us who fight to do something different with our lives, our time and our energy deserve, in the bigger picture some sort of pay-off.

Now we look at the arenas and the people that clean the stands, mop the floors, serve the spectators popcorn, hot dogs and over-priced beer etc. Those, as with a lot of the spectators are 80 percent of the rest of the population. The working stiff with mere hopes and dreams that most will never see the light of day due to the paths we’ve chosen, debt, kids, life etc. Is this the end? Are we all destined to be mere hot dog vendors in the larger game of life? I don’t think so.

I have plans in the works to at least throw my hat in the ring and give the game a shot. Definitely not in the hockey sense because anyone that knows me knows that would just result in a wheezing pile of nerd on the ice. I think we should all, in our time, give our dreams and our goals a chance in whatever form they may be. But like in Hockey, you can’t score if you’re not playing the game.

Well apparently things have changed extensively since I was a kid or maybe I just worked for a really good car dealership.

While growing up I worked at a Toyota dealership in Chilliwack, B.C. I started as a lot boy, later on to be a detailer/undercoat applicator. In my time there I learned a lot about customer service. I learned that when some spends thousands of dollars on a new or used car it’s usually a big step, a large purchase and these people are to be treated with respect and given the best service possible. When someone brought their new purchase in for anything after the initial purchase, when the work was done the mechanics would drive it into my wash bay and I’d give it a quick wash and once over before taking it out to the customer.

Well, recently I bought a used 2007 Nissan Xterra from Morrey Nissan Burnaby. I needed something for remote road trips and to carry my drums around in. Other than that I don’t drive much. As part of the sales pitch I was shown the “Certified Nissan Checklist” that is apparently done on all used cars at Nissan dealerships. So with a little more confidence in the vehicle I was looking at I went further and eventually bought it. Part of my “deal” was them throwing in a retractable cargo cover for the back so I can cover my photo gear when traveling. I was told by my salesman Brian Tull that they had to order it and he’d call me when it arrived. As I picked up the car he then notified me that there was only one key and that he’d order a new one. We agreed as I left that when both items where in he’d call me.

I leave the dealership and start traveling to a friend’s place for dinner. On the way I notice that there is a warning light for the tire pressure. I pull into the next gas station, look in the manual to find out exactly what this meant and continued to check the tire pressure as advised. I Checked and topped up all the tires and continued on my way,…the light didn’t go off, nothing had changed.

The next day I was looking through the truck and noticed a couple small things that were missing, a small rubber stopper on the hatch door, and a broken latch hook on the shallow back cargo area. I called Brian and notified him of these things that need to be fixed. We agreed that when the key, key fob, and cargo cover where in I’d make an appointment and come in for everything.

I then proceeded to send Brian an email so he had a point form list of everything we had talked about. Then,…I waited.

In the meantime my good friends Miguel and Tanya went to the same dealership and bought their Xterra from a salesman named Carlos (apparently one there that gives a shit). Two days later they got their spare key and the cargo cover they decided to also purchase. Me, well I continued to wait for Brian to call me about mine. I gave it a couple of days and called. Brian was not in that day so I left a message. Two more days and I had heard nothing.

I call again, get a hold of Brian and he lets me know that everything is there so I make my appointment for 3 pm a couple days later. I also ask about the fact that my keyless key fob quit working and he says to go to London Drugs and get a new watch type battery that goes inside it.

Two days later I get there right at 3, I take my keys to the service manager and he walks me through what they have in the work order. Check the tire pressure warning light, new second key and key fob, and retractable cargo cover. I also let him know about the latch on the other cargo lid and he puts it in the work order.

I was told my truck would be ready around 4:30. At 4:45 I went to the service office again and was told there was an issue with the cargo cover and it will be about 15 more minutes. I went back to the showroom and sat down. While waiting I over heard some of a conversation where my name was brought up. I later found out that the cargo “latch” repair was not cleared by the boss and he had an issue with it. So on my time they worked it out between the two of them. I was soon also told that the tire pressure warning light was on because there were two sensors that were failing and they have to order them in. At 5:20 pm, twenty minutes after I was to pick-up my date for the evening I got my dirty truck back and told that when the sensors come in I’ll get a call for a re-booking to replace the faulty ones. The faulty ones that should have been fucking replaced during the “Certified Nissan Check” before the fucking truck was put on the lot.

So over almost two and half hours I got a new key and key fob, a rubber stopper, a new cargo door and they popped the retractable cargo cover into place. My dead key fob was also given back to me, still dead. According to my salesman Nissan doesn’t carry batteries for their key fobs.

Late for my date I got into my dirty truck and made my way back home, the 40 minute drive I’ll have to make twice more when they get my tire sensors in. Good thing I don’t have to wiat for a phone call from Brian for these as the service guy is calling me,…or supposedly is.

It’s a good thing I haven’t gone to London Drugs yet to get the new battery for my first keyfob as it seems the second one is already dead too.

Thanks Brian and Morrey Nissan!! You guys do a real stand-up job.

Not sure what the hell is going on but my already scattered sleep pattern is actually getting worse. Granted, my unregulated coffee intake at any time, day or night doesn’t help but I’ve been doing that for years. Now, to my dismay even when I get to sleep I toss and turn and wake up in a panic thinking my fucking work Blackberry is going off.

For as long as I can remember I’ve had a hard time getting to sleep because as soon as I close my eyes my brain goes into gear. “Hey so what about this idea, what about this photo, what about this concept for a website?” On and on it goes til finally I simply get too tired to keep up or I actually get up and watch television. Or I go to bed, put on some music in my Ipod and crash with headphones on. Lately, THAT isn’t even working. I lay there in a semi conscious state ready to dial up the NEXT Radiohead album.

Perhaps I need to become an alcoholic, drinking myself into a coma every night…. that I think would be way too expensive both in rye and Advil.

Anyway, just thought I’d ramble about absolutely nothing, that’s what these fucking blogs are for right?

Oh, if you haven’t already be sure to watch the movie “Into The Wild” it’s pretty cool, makes me want to wander the world with my camera.

Okay, now things are about to heat up. I’ve had a domain with a website on it for over a decade. Dogwatersoup.com was my very first domain name purchase. I bought way back in early 98 before I knew how to code a single thing. I needed a guinea pig site to test things out at the time. Over the years it evolved from a huge mess of internet trash that like the shit we all get in our email boxes from relatives who suddenly get a computer and discover the internet. [See also every piece of crap being posted on those funwalls on Facebook].

As I learned more and more things got better. Better design, less crap, more simple rants etc. Now it’s basically become the online home of my alter ego. My therapy portal. See everyone who knows me pretty much knows me as a fairly mellow, “nice” guy. Well, that’s because I let the devil out, one form of this is my drumming, anyone who pays attention knows I show no mercy to those fucking drums and my cymbal bills are evidence of that. The other, is my rare burst of focused anger and directed obscenities towards an issue or general problem that brings my blood to a boil. Even at that I’ve been neglecting “The Soup” it in it’s newest version. Now though, knowing that anything I type in there will be fed to my Facebook in the form of a note is an exciting thought. I’ll warn you all now, the dark Wayne is not nice. I hold no punches and will no doubt get myself in some sort of trouble in the future.

Please place your trays and seat backs in the upright position and keep your seatbelt firmly fastened until the plane has come to a complete stop,…or the fire is put out, whichever comes first.

Giddy-Up!! I’m now going to the first show of the tour as well as the third show…and for those of you with tix to the 28th show, it’s not the first show anymore!

The Police are playing a “fan club” only show on May 27th at GM Place and I have my seats in section 118. I week of sheer music bliss?…I think so!!

GOT ‘EM!!

I was able to get through the fanclub presale bundle and landed myself two tix on the floor, row 28 for the second Police show here in Vancouver.

Twenty three years I’ve been waiting for this. This past week after not getting through for tix to the first show I’ve been going mental, tempted to pay through the nose for some tix from some scalping fuckwad on craigslist but I waited.

I used to play along to Police tunes when I was young and learning to play drums. Stewart Copeland has always been an influence and now, FINALLY I can see them live.

Today is a good day!!

So I’ve succumbed to yet another internet blackhole. I’ve been uploading my photos to the newest internet hotspot that is FLICKR. Yes, their ability to make it so fucking easy to upload and categorize photos and have them seen by many has lured me in and I can’t escape.

I’ve added a bunch of sets, some older shots and a bunch from my recent time in Las Vegas and the area. Come to FLICKR, check out my photos, join and leave comments. Do It!

As some of my close friends already know I’m back in a band, at least temporarily. They have me on waivers until I make my move to Las Vegas which if all goes well will happen summer 2008.

I’ve been rehearsing with The Capitals here in Vancouver for the past few weeks and we’re getting ready to do up some rock and roll shows. Even going to make a short trip back to Calgary,  my home of 7 years. Watch for us there early May.

Here are some dates, hope to see you all out!!

Apr 19 2007 - The Backstage Lounge, Vancouver, British Columbia
May 3 2007 - The Canmore Hotel, Canmore, Alberta
May 4 2007 - Tongue N Groove, Lethbridge, Alberta
May 5 2007 - The Marquee Room, Calgary, Alberta

This Sunday night I get on a jet plane for fabulous Las Vegas Nevada where I’ll be a temporary resident for around two months. I got a contract job redesigning a website or two for a company there and they’re flying me down to work with them. I’m looking forward to missing some of the forecast RAIN here in Vancouver while I take in the sites and sounds of Nevada on my days off. I’ll keep all my friends here on myspace posted and will most like have photos to share soon too. Over and Out.