Dave's Monthly Web Address
January

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Pravda - "Address From the President"
| Sept. 16 | Sept. 30 | Oct. 15 | Oct. 28 | Nov. 11 | Dec. 2 |
| Jan. 20 | Feb. 3 | Feb. 17 | Mar. 10 | Mar. 24 |

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) [11-21-96]

Happy New Year, or ... as Eddie Murphy says in the classic movie Trading places, "Merry New Year!"

Okay, okay - don't bother looking for it ... there wasn't a December web page. I'm sorry if I disappointed some of you, but I was extremely busy at the start of December, and by the time I was ready to do it, everyone was knee deep in exams, and there didn't seem to be much point. I will have an April page though, and I'll make it a big goodbye page - a real tear jerker - I promise.

So the first week back we all get flooded with the dreaded question - "So how was your Christmas?" What do you say? My favourite has been "Santa was good to me" which is can be easily followed up by "Was he good to you to?" I'm not very good at these polite little conversations, but they are a necessary evil.

Santa was pretty good to me. Much to my surprise, My parents got me a VCR. It's a Samsung, but Sears has gone and stuck their name on it (who do they think they're kidding, anyway?) Inspired by my new VCR, I moved my little 14" television from my computer desk to beside my bed. Now, I can lie in bed all day long and watch movies. In fact, I spent a couple of days over the holidays doing just that. I felt very Brian Wilson. But I'm never at home, and so now I can program my VCR to my heart's content. In fact, while I'm writing this on a Sunday evening, I'm taping the Simpsons. (yes, I know there are better Simpsons pages, but that is the official one). Yes, I know what you are saying, thanks for sharing ...

So about 30 seconds ago, when I was deciding what to type next, I decided to come up with some New Year's Resolutions. I figured that if I put them on the web page I'd have a better chance of keeping them. So here I go... (in no particular order)

Work Related New Year's Resolutions:

• To get out and meet more students. Give them the opportunity to talk to me & vice-versa. I'm thinking of having "Bitch at the President" sessions or something like that.
• To get out to a wider variety of student activities.
• To have shorter and more structured board meetings.
• To do my filing and correspondence more frequently, and to stop letting it build up. (It's a killer)
• To boldly go where no President has gone before.

Personal New Year's Resolutions:

• To keep my beard neat and tidy.
• To exercise more often. I've got to get back to playing squash at least 3 times a week. I've been slipping a little lately.
• To eat better. I'm not saying I'm going to turn into Richard Simmons, but I think I can cut back a little.
• To keep in better touch with my friends - those still at Western, and those that have left, or have never been. I've been brutal lately, and I really feel guilty about it.
• To set aside time to stop and smell the roses every once in a while.

So there you go. January is starting, and everyone is looking to start the year of fresh. I hope that you can keep your resolutions, and I look forward to seeing you at the Charity Ball.

Current Projects
Special things I'm working on over the next month.

• Lots of Internet stuff. I am SO excited about my latest project: http://www.usc.uwo.ca/events. I hope this really takes off. I really want and need your feedback on this one.
• I'm also going to be doing a lot of stuff for the Elections home page. http://www.usc.uwo.ca/Vote97. I'm 90% sure we'll have on-line voting which will be a really exciting initiative. Each candidate will most likely be able to set up a page.
• In fact, elections in general are going to take up a lot of my time. Especially if we're going to have a bunch of referendums.
• I'll be getting ready for episode 2 of The Dave Show, being taped in the Atrium on February 6th. Be there!
• I'll be working on a Student Services Committee report, and a proposal for both council and the University on the Student Support fee. Stay tuned.
• Operation: Face-Lift is always going on.
• It looks like the Bus Pass issue will be decided at referendum next October, once and for all. But we have to do a lot of coordination and research now to prepare for it.
• The UWO Act has gone out of focus, and needs to kick into overdrive this month.
• And I'm really excited to gear up for the annual USC Budget. I really haven't gotten the opportunity to get my fingers in it yet, and I want to start rolling up the sleeves.

Random Thoughts - January
Not much, really, but things I do think about.

• A special thanks to Joanne for taking the time to look up the New Kids on the Block question for me. Nobody else bothered to, and I was a tad disappointed. So, I'm sure you are dying to know ... before they were the NKOTB, there were NYNUK. Yes, I know ... NYNUK? What the hell is a NYNUK? So that is the secret password, and the joke that has gone on way to long is now over. The address of the new kids site is: http://www.nkotb.com/nynuk/
• So maybe you've heard of the Kevin Bacon Game, or maybe you haven't. There's a lot of misguided people out there and I want to do my best to point everyone to the official story, and the rules. I've heard people refer to as the 4 degrees of Kevin Bacon (It's six) , and a really good friend of mine tried to convince me that it's really the John Cusack game. Now that I've gone to great lengths to be anal and specific, I'm going to go ahead and break all the rules and calculate my Kevin Bacon [B] Factor:

JOHN BELUSHI was in ANIMAL HOUSE, with
KEVIN BACON! [B1]

• Ha, ha! I was only kidding. But seriously, my Principal and Grade 8 math teacher, Mr. Howard had a niece Lisa who has become an actress. so...

DAVE TOMPKINS was at ST. MARK'S ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, with
MR. HOWARD, whose niece is
LISA HOWARD, who was in 1918, with
MATTHEW BRODERICK, who was in SHE'S HAVING A BABY, with
KEVIN BACON! [B4]*

• where the * means that this is a completely bastardized B factor. But besides being a fun little distraction, my point is this: If you know me, then your Kevin Bacon factor is 5. Cool eh? In fact, your B factor could very well be better than mine. Perhaps you were in a movie and can calculate it legitimately.

• I don't know how many of you have MoviePix (I can't believe they don't have a web site - even Channel 13 has one), but on January 1st they played all FIVE (5) of The Planet of the Apes movies. It was fantastic. I had only seen bits and pieces of them channel surfing past CityTV's Late Great Movies or something, but to see them all back to back for the first time was just superb. I have read book trilogies like that - all in row without having to wait for the next one, but it's a rare treat with movies - especially five of them! What a great way to start off the new year!

Dave's Top 10 "Groovy" Web Sites - January
because they don't have to be great, just groovy.

10. I think that deep down, there is a bit of Al in all of us. (O.K. - I have beard envy)
9. Here's an important student site: OSAP On-Line.
8. An ongoing tradition - a joint Ménard / Tompkins pick: The 80's Page.
7. I thought The Movie Sounds Page was groovy, until I found the Earchive: Way Groovier!
6. In the good old days, when I had time for video games, I would have bought Diablo in a second. Ho Hum.
5. The Whole Wheat side of you should read The Smith Report.
4. But the frosted side of you just wants to have Fun.
3. People just don't believe me: Alanis was on You Can't Do That On Television.
2. It's amazing the cool stuff you can find by just searching on the word Two.
1. I CAN HARDLY WAIT... I AM SO EXCITED! http://www.starwars.com.

How do I get in Touch with Dave?
The various ways we can communicate and meet.

• I think e-mail is nifty.
• My "drop-in" hours are Tuesdays 1:00 - 2:00 and Fridays 1:00 - 2:00 in the USC office (Room 340 UCC)
• You can just show up at the USC office and hope I can see you.
• You can call me, at 661-3567 (or 661-3574) to book an appointment
• I want to play squash with you! Goodness knows that I need the exercise, and I want to play several times a week.

Other Miscellaneous Presidential Documents & Data

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
• My Campaign Literature
• a Cheezy Profile on me
• Letter from the Westernizer
• Letter to the Frosh
• Letter to the Sophs
• UWO Act Report: One Small Step
• Ad for the UWO Act

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