I became an HDTV junkie after subscribing to Bell ExpressVU satellite service just over a year ago. It is not, however, without its problems.

I have been considering updating to a new TV and discovered that the HDMI output on the Bell PVR did not work. After many attempts to call and email their customer service, I finally got an acknowledgment that, indeed, there is a problem with the HDMI output. I have spent more than two months of frustration trying to get an answer as to when this will be fixed. After writing a snail mail letter to the executive offices, I have had calls from them. They claim that they will have a software solution in "two to four weeks". We will see.

I have become a High Definition Television (HDTV) junkie. Now that I have seen HDTV on a regular basis I don't like to watch anything else.

Although I have a collection of over 200 DVD's, I have been anxious to get into Blu-ray or HD DVD but reluctant to make the commitment because of the dual format situation. Now that seems to have been settled and Blu-ray is declared the winner.

Why is it, however, that the choice of movies on Blu-ray makes no sense at all? I recently browsed the more than 600 titles available on Amazon and found very few that I want to buy. They have very few classics and few really good movies. The new releases make sense but the choice of older movies includes mostly drek.

Today would have been my father's 100th birthday.

He was a remarkable man - a small town family physician who made house calls. I remember him telling me that sometimes he would receive a phone call in the middle of the night from a patient who was a known hypochondriac. He would suggest they take an aspirin and get some rest. Then he would try to go back to sleep. But it bothered him. He couldn't sleep because he thought, "Maybe this time there really is something wrong". He would get up to go to see the patient.

How many people today get that kind of caring from their doctor?

Happy birthday Father.

I have competed in triathlons since 1987 but always the shorter ones. In 2005 I signed up to do Ironman Canada in Penticton, BC for the first time. On August 27, 2007 I managed to complete it. Here are some pictures.

Another myth about smoking is that pipes and cigars are OK because you don't inhale. Let's get real folks. You are in the same room with the smoke and you are breathing. You are inhaling whether you like it or not.

Cigars and pipes produce a much stronger odor than cigarettes which probably means that the smoke is more concentrated and therefore even worse for you than cigarettes.

Cigars, in fact, are one of the most obnoxious of man's creations. They emit a horrible, acrid smell that is highly objectionable.

Smoking myths:

Smokers often argue that it was not until recently that we knew the harm that smoking does. That is nonsense. In the 1950's, children were warned not to smoke because it would "stunt your growth". We knew then that it was harmful. It also makes common sense that putting a burning stick in your mouth and inhaling the smoke is not good for you. This is just one of several of the phony excuses that smokers use for not being able to quit.

Another myth that you don't hear much anymore is that smoking is OK if you don't inhale. This was particularly argued for pipe and cigar smoking. The point is that if you are breathing there is no way to avoid inhaling the poison if you are in the same room or space with it.