There and Back Again

Well, it has been some time now since I took off and returned from my first masters course. I just haven't felt all that inspired to write, but I'll put up a brief account here, at any rate, while I procrastinate from further apartment cleaning.

I left Saskatoon early on Sunday, Sept. 17 (plane flew out at 6:00 a.m.) for Sudbury, with a brief stopover in Toronto. I arrived in Sudbury early afternoon, and got a shuttle bus to the bed & breakfast I was staying at. The Sudbury airport is really far away from the city, it was something like a 40 minute drive from the airport to where I was staying, which is quite a bit for a city of 130,000 or so.

The bed & breakfast, Sudbury South Suites, is just breathtaking. It's run by a husband and wife, and they're both very friendly and helpful. I originally planned on staying there for a week, but then I found out that most of that week I would actually be in Quebec, so it ended up just being two nights. They were very understanding about the changes, and I've already booked a room for December (although I may end up having a place to stay with one of the other students, in which case I'll regrettably have to cancel again).



The B&B has five rooms available, I stayed in the Kimono Room. It is possibly the nicest room I'm stayed in.



After I got settled in at the B&B, I figured I'd walk down to the university to get the lay of the land. I've since learned there is a shorter route to get there, but I took the simplest one given my unfamiliarity with Sudbury, and it ended up being about a 75 minute walk each way. Note to self: hiking boots are excellent for walking over rough terrain. They suck for walking over pavement. My heels were sure feeling it the next day.

The next morning, I managed to get myself and my luggage to the university via the bus system. We had a lecture for a few hours, going over some of the things we would be seeing in the course, and then left for Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec around 3:00 p.m.

We arrived in Rouyn-Noranda that evening, and stayed in a hotel which the instructor, Harold, has been staying at during his visits for the last twenty years or more. Not a bad place, but the restaurant was slow and a little pricey, and there is very little around for other options. If I were to go there again, I certainly would pick a different hotel.

I think I'm going to have to split this up into a few posts. I'll continue with adventures in Quebec later.

Black and White

Yesterday, my dad suggested I give a listen to the Raconteurs, a fairly new band, and so-called supergroup which includes the likes of Jack White. Now, in the past, I've been somewhat prejudiced against Jack White. I remember seeing the video for Seven Nation Army, one of the songs which really shot the White Stripes into popularity, and being rather unimpressed. Admittedly, it is a fairly catchy song, but not overly complex musically. All of the fuss made over the controversy of his relationship with Meg White, and his other eccentricities concerning colours and numbers, combined with this song did not leave me favourably inclined to Jack.

Since then, I've heard many good things about Jack White, which made me think that perhaps I had misjudged him, at least to some degree. Oh, I've no doubt that he's a little wacko (but aren't we all?), but musically, at least, I've been converted.

The Raconteurs are actually really good. All the writing is done by Jack White and Brandon Benson, a solo artist who has enjoyed some success, and who is now a member of the Raconteurs. Listening to the album they have come out with, Broken Boy Soldiers, at least two tracks on it sound like they could have come off of a Beatles album, and another seems to have some definite Black Sabbath influences. Much of the other stuff has a unique sound all their own. The remaining members of the band are Jack Lawrence (rivaling White for the coveted "creepiest looking member of the band" award) and Patrick Keeler, both members of the Greenhornes.

Another musician I find somewhat fascinating (in the much the same way as a car wreck), is Jack Black. One of the duo Tenacious D, as well as a successful actor, he certainly seems hard to avoid in recent years. I genuinely think he has an amazing singing voice (as showcased in High Fidelity, among others), and is a talented musician, but it's just a shame that so much of his energies are directed to fairly objectionable humour. I know many people feel his acting ability is somewhat lacking (many similar characters), and one has to wonder whether the character of 'Jack Black' is simply one lengthy role spanning multiple projects.

What I really think needs to happen is a duel between Black and White. I don't really care about the format of said duel, fisticuffs, dueling fiddles, whip-cream pies at ten paces, but I think a showdown is necessary (and potentially hilarious). Who's with me?