Free At Last!

My latest one-month Facebook ban expires today. Woot! Trying to celebrate by paying mocking homage (mockage?) to our new Twitter overlord, and maybe getting banned there, as well:

So, what was I banned for this time?  Well, this post…

Did I appeal?  Of course.  The AI that banned me also denied by appeal. So that… works.

My last ban, you might recall, was because I dared quote J.R.R. Tolkien who, in turn, dared to dislike Adolf Hitler:

Interestingly, that ban only lasted a few days. But then I was banned again for….. talking about the ban:

It’s turtles, all the way down.

I use my Facebook account to post nonsense.  Here’s an example:

Even though I’ve actually enjoyed my forced absence these past weeks, the nonsense has accumulated with no where to ejaculate it. So in this post, I will try to catch everyone up. Let’s begin with this lovely poem about moi from Twitter friend Dr Jonathan Douglas. It’s not so much a poem, but a theme song. I need to record it on sitar or ukulele:

I also want to thank this random Reddit commenter for being an astute judge of character:

And Mikey D. for creating the photo that I expect to be on display at my funeral:

Oh, did I mention I was actually a *wrong answer* on The Ottawa Citizen’s news quiz?  The question is, of course, how do I add this to my CV?

On to other news….

First, my old friend MK found this old photobooth reel of her, me, and another friend (NL) that MK had been using as a bookmark for years. I believe these photos are 20-30 years old. I miss them, photobooths, and, frankly, reading.

Congratulations to local physician Dr Nili Kaplan-Myrth for winning a local election as trustee of Zone 9 in Ottawa. I want to especially thank Nili for being a staunch advocate for public health, and also for having given my son both of his COVID jabs. Here’s a pic of us at jab #1:

And here’s a pic of my little one with me after his 2nd jab. That’s a child-sized t-shirt Nili provided for him (and other kids). But, um, it fits me. I’ve been wearing it. No lie. I’m proud of my childlike girlish physique.

No, that’s not my child’s real face. Or maybe it is. You don’t know.

See? It fits my girlish figure:

Speaking of local celebrities I’ve had a chance to meet in real life lately, I finally got the shake the hand of a COVID epidemiology hero, the mighty David Fisman, who spoke at a conference I co-organized a couple of weeks ago. A Twitter friend made the following:

FYI, David is *very tall*. And I am….. not. So I’m on my tippy-toes here, and he is crouching. Just so you know.

The last thing I want to catch up on is a recent event that I’m pretty proud of. This past September, I attended my first indoor social event in almost three years. It was a banquet at the University of Western Ontario, held to honour this year’s recipients of the Western Alumni Awards.

I did my PhD in Epidemiology & Biostatistics at Western *cough* years ago, Back then, I designed the department’s logo and t-shirt:

I’m pretty sure NO ONE ever bought a t-shirt, and that that logo was never used ever again.

I also created the department’s first website, which remained in use for many years. It was a different time, kids. Back then, there were no web designers or comms teams overseeing all aspects of a university’s public face. No one took websites seriously. So a self-taught schmuck like me could go ahead and just make one.

Anyway, Western was kind enough to give me the Professional Achievement Award this year, alongside some other deserving recipients:

 

I was one of only two masked people at the banquet. But I took my CO2 monitor with me to monitor ventilation status at all times. The air quality was excellent throughout the event. So I felt confident in removing my mask to eat, and to give my speech and to take this selfie…

See? It’s possible to have a functioning social life in the midst of pandemic, if we use the tools available.

That is all. See ya.

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