Posted by
Anny Chih on March 28, 2010 at 3:50 pm.
Caution: This may be the only thing worth buying at the VANOC Assets Sale ($6)
Ang, Morten and I woke up early to get to VANOC’s Assets Sale. We got there at 8:30am today (a half hour before they opened) and spent a good three hours waiting outside with our feet in puddles and huddled under our umbrella in a futile attempt to avoid the heavy rain. What a waste of time!
If someone had told us it would take this long to get in, I wouldn’t have bothered. They would line us up in one section and when we got through thinking we were going in, they’d herd us into another line which moved an average of 20 people per half hour even though there were more people exiting than entering.
By the time we got in, my jeans felt like they weighed an extra two pounds from the rain. And we didn’t buy a thing! There were only 40 laptops, 40 computers, and 40 of each monitor and television up for sale, and they were sold out to the crazies who started lining up at 4am. Not only was there very little to browse, but the stuff that was left over wasn’t all priced to clear. Here’s an inventory: extension cords ($5 — $10), easels ($15 — $25), lamps ($25), disgusting coffee makers ($13), hole punchers ($10), binders ($1), leftover clothes and backpacks ($15+), clothes hangers ($5), batteries ($5 for a bag of of ~6 AA), tables ($20+ depending on damage), couches (unknown price), miscellaneous office supplies ($1+), orange flags ($5), used hard hats ($10+), ladders (unknown price), microwaves ($25+ depending on condition), and some other junk that I can’t remember off the top of my head.
We considered getting Caution tape just for the sake of getting something (it’s a possible Lady Gaga Halloween costume), but the line-up to the cash register was also ridiculously slow so we ditched the rolls of tape and dragged our sorry butts to IHOP.
Tips for Wannabe Sale Suckers:
- If you absolutely must get one of those Acer computers, monitors, or TVs, get ready to line-up at 4am (doors open at 9am).
- The workers at the warehouse are still unloading stuff from the trucks, which is why they’re only selling 40 of each television and computer each day for at least one week. This can be good news for you if you really want to get one but missed your chance on the weekend. There may be days when they’ll offload up to 150 computers and TVs.
- Don’t bother going if it’s past 10am. By 11am today they were turning people away.
- You can’t see it from the first or beginning of the second line-ups, but there is a food stand at the entrance to the warehouse. You can get coffee ($2), fries ($3.50) and hotdogs ($3). Why weren’t they telling this to the drenched and cold people in the line-ups? I have no clue.
Posted by
Anny Chih on March 21, 2010 at 10:09 pm.
Bad MEC Pots: Before & After One Use
Ladies and gents, *this* is what a bad product looks like.
I bought a set of cheap camping pots at MEC. The one on the left hasn’t been used. I used the one on the right to boil water on my camping trip over the weekend. That’s what happened to it after just one use.
Posted by
Anny Chih on February 22, 2010 at 12:08 pm.
So I was talking to my friend last night and he noted that I haven’t posted anything good lately. Though he liked the picture of Cheburashka, he thought the writing sucked. He suggested that I post a picture every day just to keep him entertained. This one’s just for you HP:
Because I know now how much you love fishing
If you want your own picture with a big fish, check out the Saskatchwan Pavilion.
Posted by
Anny Chih on February 17, 2010 at 10:06 pm.
Posing with Cheburashka in front of Sochi House (he’s really short)
I decided to scope out the Sochi Olympic House (aka Russki Dom / Russia House) store for their red and white sweaters tonight (btw, totally out of my price range at a whopping $200!). And guess what? Cheburashka was there!! <3
But Oh dear Cheburashka! What did they do to your fur!?! Why are you blue? It’s really not that cold in Vancouver.
I had seen red and white Cheburashka stuffed animals in Russia, but I didn’t know they were going to make the mascot blue too… It’s like a hair colouring gone bad.
Poor Cheburashka… 
Posted by
Anny Chih on January 11, 2010 at 11:01 pm.
Ladders
Each day on my way to work, I walk under these two ladders. When I noticed this, I wondered “Is it still unlucky to walk under ladders if they’re lying horizontally above you?” And “Does walking under two counter the unluckiness of walking under one? Or does it double the unluckiness?”
I Googled it and found out that this is actually a religious superstition and (hard-core Christians, stop reading now)… well it’s really stupid. Walking under ladders was first considered a terrible crime punishable by God because a ladder leaning against a wall forms a triangle which is representative of the Holy Trinity. By passing under a ladder, you would be passing through a sacred area and back in the day, you could be labelled a witch and / or a Satanist for it. –_–
Posted by
Anny Chih on January 10, 2010 at 7:02 pm.
Canadian Flag at Metrotown Mall
The streets, stores, billboards and malls of Vancouver were transformed this week in anticipation of the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics. But is there a Vancouverite out there that’s really excited about it?
Most of my friends associate the Olympics with impossible traffic, higher parking rates, a clogged transit system that’s already at capacity, and rising prices. In fact, the only good thing I can think of that’s a direct link to the Olympics is all the cultural centers that are going to be popping up — and that’s only because I expect there to be lots of great ethnic food at each one. I hope I’m not disappointed.
Go Canada Go! 
Posted by
Anny Chih on January 9, 2010 at 2:44 pm.
Evidence that I’m not a savvy shopper
Just before Christmas, Superstore was selling Christmas packages of two Liquorice Mini Allsorts for around $7 (single packs were $3-something) and I bought a package for my brother-in-law. After the holidays, I saw the same single packs for $1-something and bought another one for him thinking it was a really good deal and it would never get cheaper. Total spent: ~$9 for 3 packs (average $3 per pack).
Today I went to Superstore to get some nailpolish remover and came across one of the savviest shoppers around. She managed to find the same pack of Allsorts for 64 cents! She also found a boatload of pretty boxes of mintsticks for less than $1 each and all of her groceries together — probably enough for two days — came to only $31 and included the six little boxes of chocolates! When the cashier was ringing in the items I actually said “whoa” out loud ’cause I was so shocked she was able to find everything so cheaply. Apparently I’m not the savvy shopper I thought I was.
So how do you find great deals on everyday items?
Posted by
Anny Chih on January 8, 2010 at 11:04 pm.
Candles are always a nice touch
When you were born, your parents probably had a celebratory party where cake was served in your honour. On all other special occasions, you probably also have cake.
But what about when something bad happens? Why do so many of us fall into despair with a bucket of cheap ice cream or crap cookie dough? Why must we subject ourselves to sub-par fatteners, when we’re already feeling down? I think it should all end with cake. 
In the words of my friend @SimonLawry: “OHM NOM NOM“
Posted by
Anny Chih on January 7, 2010 at 8:56 pm.
The UQ Indian Student Society’s Garba Night 2009
During my last week in Brisbane, I met up with my pals from work one last time for lunch. Sara asked me what I was doing that night, and I told her I was going to Indian dancing lessons with my friend Sarah. She noted that I was always doing something fun and exciting while I was in Oz and said it was probably because I was travelling.
You know what? She was totally right.
When was the last time you said ‘no’ to something in your city (coffee / movie / whatever) when you could’ve said ‘yes’? I know I sound a little bit like I belong on the set of ‘Yes Man’ but whatever. The point is still good and valid!
If you’re living the role of a traveller, don’t you find yourself so much more receptive to new experiences than when you’re living your regular life at home? Don’t you ever wonder if that boredom you feel on your living room couch has something to do with that ‘I’ve seen everything there is to see and done everything there is to do in this town’ or ‘I’m too tired to go out’ mentality?
Well, if you want to shed that skin of negativity you might be pleasantly surprised. Go Indian dancing!
By the way, that last part was a metaphor — don’t ask me where they have Indian dancing lessons in Vancouver because I really don’t know. Today’s picture was taken at the University of Queensland campus where the Indian Student Society had their annual Garba night. We got to dance with sticks!
Posted by
Anny Chih on January 6, 2010 at 11:19 pm.
“Retirement” on the park bench
Have you ever wondered what happens to all those ugly Christmas sweaters after the holidays are over?
You can’t very well wear the same ugly Christmas sweater every year otherwise all your holiday pictures would be the same year after year.
I assume most of them get recycled through second-hand shops. But for the unfortunate of unfortunates like this one, they end up on a bench by the sea wall.
