Oct 25, 2006, 9:15am

Something strange just happened.

For some reason, my cell phone, which I sync'ed a few days ago with long neglected (for good reason) Outlook, popped up a calendar item.

"Flight to Ottawa, 11:55"

It took me a second to realise what that was about. It was third last flight I took to Ottawa to see my Mom while she was still alive. Something screwed up, showing a reminder from 3 years ago.

That late fall visit - one that made me miss several coffee shows (something I didn't consider important then or now) was the one I made after spending some of the summer with my Mom. By this time, she was in a hospice, and was on a slow decline.

Watching someone fade away with terminal cancer is not a pretty thing. In fact, it's one of the most horrible experiences of my life. But you know what? During that time, I saw this amazing strength and resolve in my Mom. She had decided some time before to end chemo, and she had a relatively decent summer, because the ravages of radiation poisoning had ended... but the cancer had come back in full force. She had given up on chemo, and was resigned to what was in store for her. But she was the strongest of all of us - her sons, her husband, her family. I know she had her sad moments - I spent a lot of time with her before and after she went into the hospice and I saw the briefest moments of dispair - but almost all the time, I saw a defiant, "this is my fate, I'm accepting it, and I will make the most of my time" attitude within her. I saw the strongest person I had ever seen in that fall visit, 3 years ago.

I have lots of stumbles in life. I do my share of petty bickering. I have my weak moments. But I promised myself in the past that I'd remember my Mother from that fall season, 3 years ago - and the inner strength she had, and the absolutely selfless way she carried herself. I've forgotten that promise at times... but somehow, today, a glitch and a bug in my cell phone sync with my computer made me remember all over again.

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Mixelania

Photos from Algonquin Park
Photos from my trip to Algonquin Park this fall with my Mom and two brothers.

War Stories

Making Snow for the Fortress
One of the worst jobs I ever had... till I got out.

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iPod and iTunes Offline

iMark's iTunes and iPod isn't iPlaying anything right iNow.

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Fiddlers Green by The Tragically Hip

Around The Bend by Pearl Jam

Here With Me (Rollo's Chillin' With the Family Mix) by Dido

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truffle pigs by Matthew Good Band

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Burundi and Beyond - NY Times
Great article by Peter Meehan - provided some background.

St. Petersburg Times
Side mention in an article about good machines

AP Story on Espresso
Background and information provided

NY Times - Grinders Article
Especially proud of this one - got the reporter to focus on grinders

Globe and Mail
LOL - showing bad reporting, dude says I'm an American-based site!

The Olympian, WA
Talks about my love for the El Sal Siberia Pacamara

Seattle Times - Clover
Interviewed for comments on the Clover brewer

NY Times - How it Works
Background and information for various espresso machines

Time Mag Article
Just a brief mention, article about roasting beans.

NY Times
Front page article about consumers getting into specialty coffee.

Washington Monthly
Quoted reference to what I wrote in an article at CoffeeGeek.

USA Today - Barista Jam
Intereviewed for my thoughts on what the epitome of espresso is.

WSJ Article
The Wall Street Journal has interviewed me 3 times. This is the first time my name got in a story.

Reuters Interview
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CoffeeGeek
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CoffeeKid Website
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enGadget
Great gadget site run by the guy who used to do Gizmodo.

Google News
This is how I get my daily news fix.

DPReview Forums`
The most active forums for digital photography online today.

Daily Zen
Need my Daily Zen fix!

Jalopnik
A blog about car stuff. Vroom Vroom.

MoCo Loco
An industrial design blog. Very cool stuff.

Friends and Family Plan

Beata Blog
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Riddla on Flickr
Matt Riddle's flickr account, updated regularly

Irdy Photos
Irdy, my friend from Jakharta, on Flickr

Recent Acquisitions

Canon EF 24-105 f4 L Lens
The best lens I've ever owned. Super sharp and quick.

Canon 5D
A full frame dSLR, with luscious colour reproduction.

Alzo Digital Lights
Some amazing florescent cold lights for product photography

Canon Xsi dSLR
Amazing technology and image quality in a tiny package.

Canon 40D
Latest prosumer camera from Canon - a much better upgrade than the 30D

Fujitsu P1610
Great 2.2lb computer that does most of my travel / writing needs

28mm f1.8 Lens
A great lens for closeup work and full picture photography

Foodsaver Advanced
Finally got the right tools for freezing green coffee.

Canon 50mm 1.4
Most amazing lens I've ever owned. Produces stellar photos.

Canon 10-22mm
Super wide angle (full frame fisheye) zoom for my Canon 20D