Devauld.ca

This week's Photo Friday challenge is: Self Portrait 2010. I immediately thought of the gangster shot we did when we made our visit to Dorothy at the beginning of the year. By no means did I do this shot alone, but I was a big part of the creative setup of the shot.

The pseudo shotgun in my hand is from a Hallowe'en costume some years ago. The coat and hat are regular attire. We're set up on the bridge in Dorothy with a generator, and two White-Lightnings. The first is behind me, at full power, aimed straight at my back to separate me from the darkness. The second is on camera right with a super tight grid where I was thinking of a 'caught in the headlights' look. The photograph is only cropped, as I didn't even have the desire to edit out the extension cable you can see running across the ground.

Over the winter I, while I was shovelling non-trivial amounts of money into Alberta Energy Savings I decided to check into some other options. I had been with AES L.P. for about as long as I've lived in this house. I never really questioned the bills, they came to the door and I payed them. I figured that living in Alberta, the energy capital of Canada, that rates would have to be competitive else the company would just sink to the bottom of the business pool and drown.

Boy, was I ever wrong.

Electrical rates were on par, but Natural Gas was a whole new ball game.  On my last bill with AES, I paid an average of $9.11 per GJ, my first bill with Enmax I paid under $5.50.  You don't need a calculator to figure out I was getting hornswaggled.  Thanks for locking in those 'Savings' Alberta Energy.

The real kicker was getting off the hook and getting my services transfered.  It turns out that in order to cancel my account, if I was not moving, I was required to give sufficient notice or pay a penalty.  The phone was crushed in my hand as my position came to light.  The barrier holding back the beast just about fell to rage when the person on the other end of the phone muttered: "We reserve the right to..."

Then, things got a little shady.  After I though the AES boat had sailed, and now nothing lay ahead but clear skies and full sails, I got ANOTHER bill from AES.  I looked at the statement date and it read: February 16th 2010.  The month of February has a little made up holiday in the middle of it, so it is very easy to categorize things into "Before" and "After" Hallmark Day.  Whereas the date on the statement was very much after that date, my memories had me paying the bill before that date.

I first checked with the Bank, and sure enough I had made a payment on the twelfth of the month.  I called the 1-800-No-Help number, and waited until I could speak with an agent.  The agent said that I did not in fact owe anything on the account, and that the payment must have been made after the statement was printed.  I asked when they did get the payment and I was told that it was on February 12th.  I was going to start asking what the hell the 'Statement Date' was on this hopefully final bill, and decided that I probably wouldn't like any answer that was given to me and just let it go.

Now, I feel my only obligation regarding AES L.P. is to share this story.

A shot of the sun setting over Lac le Jeune.

Yesterday marked the kickoff of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.  I would imagine that our countrymen will be able to shake off the snow problems, and be amazing hosts to the world's best amateur athletes.

Other obligations meant that I could watch the opening cerimonies live, although the magic of a personal video recorder meant I could take it in this morning.  The scale of the opening show was not even close to the scale the Chinese pulled out two years ago for their opening.  Nevertheless, the show had a lot of class and imaginative components, and I can not deny that the pride for my country overwhelmed me while watching the taped event.

No Canadian has won an Olympic Gold medal on Canadian soil, despite hosting two other games.  I would imagine there is a lot of excitement amongst the Canadian athletes over who is going to be first.  Furthermore, Vancouver isn't the tamest of cities; I'm sure the place is turning itself inside-out with the influx of like minded competitors and fun seeking visitors.

Go Canada! Go!

Another year, another revolution around the sun.  I added another click on my chronometer; doing so with a few close friends.  We collected at the Bermuda casa, and began merriment, electronic entertainment while enjoying a layout of deep fried foods.

I think it is a matter of safety that I limit these indulgences to no more than one per year.  As delicious as the food tasted, I'm sure the spread of corn dogs, tacos, cheese balls, hush-puppies, chips and frieds that all spent some time in a vat of oil did not do too much for me in the longevity department.  Mike has some photos on flickr, if you'd like to see our wares.

The remainder of the 3-6-9 festivities resulted in a trip to Ducky's Pub.  Ducky's does not fall into the 'high end' category, and is more often associated with a 'dive'.  It is a good deal of fun, and I definitely enjoyed the evening, although I did not enjoy the next morning.