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| Well I'm switching over to a new account:
www.xanga.com/ericwong1387 | | |
| Ah, what would I ever do without good old Translink?
I met up with Chester at The Pit after school today to grab a bite and watch the Canucks game. It was quite frustrating seeing Curtis Sanford stone the 'Nucks over and over again. Eventually Chester had to go to badminton, and I was quickly losing interest in the game. Remembering some rather unpleasant past experiences with evening buses, I figured it was best to leave before the bus service starts to reduce for the evening. So I set out for the bus loop at the 2nd intermission.
And what a fateful decision it was...
It's not just because I had to miss the Canucks' dramatic last-second victory in overtime, no. It was also because my good friend Translink had a few unexpected surprises prepared for me on the commute home.
First, the 6:40 480 left just as I was approaching the loop, leaving me standing in the cold, debating whether or not I should go back into the warmth of The Pit or not. I decided I might as well wait, since the next bus should open its doors and start loading passengers within 20-25 minutes right?
Wrong...The 7:10 bus failed to show up, yet another in a long line of "Buses that Weren't There" (tm). So I was still standing there, in the cold, debating what to do next. Eventually, around 10-15 minutes later, I saw a 41 pull out, so I decided to go on it, seeing how it looked as though the 7:10 480 just wasn't going to happen today. I noticed a 480 pulling into the UBC bus loop just as my 41 left, but I figured that was probably the 7:40 bus anyways, so it's all fine and dandy right?
Wrong again, because just as we were approaching 41st and West Boulevard, I saw that same 480 overtake us. Seeing how the time wasn't even past 7:40 at that point, I concluded that it must be the 7:10 480, horribly late as it was. Luckily, the 480 took its time at the West Boulevard stop, allowing me to sprint off of the 41 and onto the sweet warmth of that Richmond-bound 480.
Smooth sailing from there you would assume now right? Well, while it certainly beats waiting in the cold yet again for a 98 B-line, "smooth" isn't exactly the word I would use. As we crossed the Oak Street Bridge, I saw the familiar landmarks pass by the side window: the Fraser River, the casino, Costco, the exit ramp....wait! The exit ramp!!!? Wasn't the bus supposed to BE on that exit ramp!!? A certain four-letter word starting with 's' coming from the driver confirmed the truth: he had missed the exit, and was starting to make his way down Highway 99.
Luckily, he had the presence of mind to take the No. 4 Road exit just after the bridge. But unfortunately, there was a passenger who had wanted to get off at the Park and Ride stop. So he had to make a little detour to get back to the Park and Ride via Cambie and Garden City to drop him off. Afterwards, as if to add some icing on the cake for this wonderfully "smooth" commute home, he had to make a U-turn IN the Park and Ride to get back on track to Richmond Center. That's right, a long articulated "B-line type" bus making a U-turn in a public parking lot. There were quite a few surprised faces among the passengers on the bus. Luckily there weren't too many cars there, so there was enough space for him to make the turn.
When we finally arrived at Richmond Center, we were probably at least half an hour behind schedule. Amazingly, the driver still had another run to make. I have no idea how he plans to make up for all that lost time, and I sure hope it didn't mean another batch of poor souls had to wait in the chilly night for "The Bus That Wasn't There" (tm). However, Translink did manage to redeem themselves slightly for the evening, as my 404 showed up not long after I arrived at Richmond Center and I was at last on my way home.
But man, do I ever wish I just stayed behind and caught the end of that Canucks game now.... | | |
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Brought to you by Translink  .
Took me a while to find a random photo of a person standing at an empty Vancouver bus stop but it's all good.
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| Eric's Classification System for UBC Professors - Version 1.1
Compiled from my experiences in the University of British Columbia.
Type I - The Charismatic Lecturer
This is the type of professor that universities can never have enough of. Never boring, always enthusiastic, has a good sense of humor, and able to communicate their knowledge effectively. Unfortunately they are a rare breed. If you happen to come across one, be grateful. You won't be seeing too many more of them.
Examples of Type I: Dr. Thachuk, Chem 121
Type II - The Competent Professor
Not as inspiring as a Type I, Type II professors nonetheless are very capable instructors. You might get bored once in a while in their lectures, but you'll rarely ever be confused about what they're trying to say.
Examples of Type II: Dr. Patrice Belleville, CS 121 and Mario Enriquez, CS 211
Type III-A and Type III-B - The Foreign Professor
Usually has a thick accent that may be quite a challenge to comprehend, although it is understandably difficult for someone to explain complex mathematical concepts using a 20-word English vocabulary. However not all hope is lost if your prof is a Type III, as some foreign professors actually do manage to work around their weaknesses in English by presenting excellent examples and providing clear and concise notes (Type III-A). But if your foreign prof does not fit that description, it's over (Type III-B).
Examples of Type III-A: Dr. Kang, Math 101 and Dr. Pffeifer, Physics 101
Examples of Type III-B: Traian Pirvu, Math 200
Type IV - The Old-Timer
Old-Timers are usually very nice and considerate people. They might even tell you some interesting stories from their younger days. Unfortunately, their best days in teaching may be behind them. You might get the feeling that they'll be better off basking in their porch with their loyal pet companions.
Examples of Type IV: Dr. Fournier, Math 221
Type V - The Unmotivated Floater
Ah yes, the Type V. These wonderful human beings are obviously too busy with their research to care about the class that they're so cruelly obligated to teach. As a result, they may have a tendency to float through lectures with little preparation or background knowledge, or as the common person would say, a tendency to BS through their lectures. Sometimes they may even be considerate enough to not show up on time for class, or in extreme cases, the final exam. Avoid at all costs if you value your GPA.
Examples of Type V: Dr. Vuong, CS 213
Type VI - The Drone
Drones, despite the rather negative connotation in their title, may actually be decent instructors, but then again they might not. Nonetheless, they are just not very interesting public speakers. Their lectures are often so impressively dull that you just might be inclined to catch up on that hour of sleep you missed last night while procrastinating on your studying.
Examples of Type VI: Dr. Burkholder, Phil 120/220
Type VII - The Vivacious Homosexual (contributed by Miche)
It's actually quite interesting to listen a Type VII. It may be due to the way he lectures/speaks - not monotone, graceful body gestures, has a peculiar accent and lisp - but it's most likely because of his side stories which are followed by a giggle. And while he's actually on topic, your mind will probably be wondering about what he did last night and whether this was a crime, then hope that he does or does not go to jail for it. You may or may not anticipate the hour of his lectures for what colour shirt he's wearing, but we do know for sure that his clothes, at least, have gone out from the closet.
Examples of Type VII: Elvin Wyly, Urban Studies
To be continued as more research is completed.
Contributions are welcome, of course. | | |
| so it's only monday and i feel tired already. ugh. work is starting to get a little too slow. spent most of today fixing an odd firewall problem and working on my dumb co-op work term report. i have an extreme dislike of papers, like most people i know, so i probably don't need to elaborate further.
my cell phone died over the weekend. the store had to ship it out for repairs. so i'm stuck with a replacement phone for the next three weeks. yay!
i also beat kotor finally. wow that was fun, especially at the end when my character became uber-powerful. i agree with chester, best star wars game yet.
in fact i'm re-installing kotor 2 right now. its worth another play-through just to get the whole story. though after playing 1 now, 2 does seem a bit disappointing in that it seems like it has nothing to do with 1 other than a few references. | | |
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