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Critique me please

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Critique me please

Yah I know, this thread belongs in the Show And Tell... but I really only frequent the Cafe. Anyhow, I just finished this piece... took me about 3 weeks to design and animate. I'd love to hear your comments, Thanks!

http://www.grab.com/fun/toons/f/50481

5 stars!
Did you do the music too?

"Side effects may include [...] loss of appetite, increased appetite" after it's finished lol

How can anyone not like a Flash animation with Gallagher...

Thanks!

We have a fulltime musician/songwriter/sound effects guru.

That was cool! Nice song too.

That was awesome! When you say 3 weeks, were you working full time on it or was it a spare time project?

I'm going to tell my friends about it! You took a pretty good concept that would have been easy to get wrong, and really hit the nail on the head. The music was great and the animation worked extremely well with it (mimicking at times and doing its own thing at others). Basically, I dug it.

Now you have a problem... I WANT MORE! :D

Producing solidily ok animation since 2001.
www.galaxy12.com

Now with more doodling!
www.galaxy12.com/latenight

Thanks for your comments!

I worked on it 3 weeks fulltime.

If I could make one nitpick, the spacing on the "Aha!" finger accent could be snappier. But that's only if you honestly wanted a constructive criticism =) I love how fun and silly-happy the concentric circles of dancing pills are.

There's a few instances where it looks like it slips out of synch. But I imagine that's as much a Flash, Linux, Mozilla, I've got Maya open, computers are a pain problem as anything.

I'd love to see it as a Quicktime or AVI where it can hold its synch better.

Producing solidily ok animation since 2001.
www.galaxy12.com

Now with more doodling!
www.galaxy12.com/latenight

Yah that "aha" gesture was really buggin me... feels like it kind of sticks sometimes.

Speaking of "sticking"... I'm sure all you Flashers have noticed when a sound effect will make the image stick for a moment. I've played with moving the audio clip away from any tweens but I was wondering if there is any other method to avoiding that.

The one shot that REALLY bugs me is when the daughter chugs the slimfast can... the angle of her arm is off... I ran out of time and had to use a side shot of her arm while her torso is posed at a 3/4 angle...

Yah that "aha" gesture was really buggin me... feels like it kind of sticks sometimes.

Speaking of "sticking"... I'm sure all you Flashers have noticed when a sound effect will make the image stick for a moment. I've played with moving the audio clip away from any tweens but I was wondering if there is any other method to avoiding that.

The one shot that REALLY bugs me is when the daughter chugs the slimfast can... the angle of her arm is off... I ran out of time and had to use a side shot of her arm while her torso is posed at a 3/4 angle...

It definitely happens, although Ibis and I have had words over that. It really all depends on how many windows folks have open, and how powerful a computer they have, and how many system resources are currently being used. I am sure that's why everyone is going to WMA, or Mov formats. But they are so huge. Hey, I accept an occassional burp just for the increased speed it allows me on dialup.

Pat Hacker, Visit Scooter's World.

The music and concept are fantastic, as good or better than anything the JibJab brothers have done in my opinion.

I have one small criticism, how about rounding off Grandpa's head and a couple of the noses are pretty squarish, but hey maybe that's your style. I can live with it.

Pat Hacker, Visit Scooter's World.

LOL that's a pretty good call on Gramps' head! He originally didn't have hair... well he had a few bent strands. Anyhow, the Rogaine hair poof was a gag not in the boards so we just stuck his fro behind him. Typically I'd have bangs overlap his forehead. Nice catch Eagle Eye Phacker! :)

Very good!

As I watched it, a smile started creeping onto my face...it's really good. I like the pace, it's fun, the song is well written and well sung, it's well timed with the animation. I really liked it.

Alright, but you want some critiques here...so I'll make an effort, and I mean effort to pick at it a little. I might even have to make up a few things for you for the sake of argument.

- You have a good commercial animation here. It's a personal statement, but something that the public can grab too as well. Because this isn't only geared towards yourself, and you want to send a public message, then I'd be careful with poo-poo caca humor. Even though it gets a laugh out of your audience, it's not sellable as a result, and takes away from the quality of your work. Too much swollen nuts, diarrhea that you can actually see projecting out of your grandmother's butt, crosses that fine-line. The power of suggestion can be a powerful tool, without having to offend everyone. George Carlin's a good example. That man is completely out of his mind and insults every living and breathing organism on earth, but he never crosses the line into poor taste, unless it serves a specific purpose, and it's properly balanced so everyone gets the joke, and noone's flatly offended. I'm not saying "keep it clean" and boring...but be careful, and use more suggestion than actual grotesque visuals. Sure it's in cartoon line and it's stylized, but you want as many people as possible to want to look at your work and get the message. People are critical to the ends of the earth, and the moment they go..."ah, this is stupid", you've lost your audience.

-Color balance. If the entire film piece is the same value and saturation of pastel, washed out colors, again without a specific purpose, the audience will get tired of looking at it. For a piece that's a few minutes long, that's a long time to have to maintain interest and keep your audience watching closely.
And remember that color plays a big role in mood and tone. A good example would be how Tim Burton plays with color. A perfect example would be "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". if you haven't seen it..then by all means, go see it.
Every color, whether it be desaturated greys, blues, greens, to give a cold, industrial feeling, or rich saturated reds, pinks, yellows, oranges, purples to excite your eyes, to soft pinks, baby blues, mint greens, duvet yellows, to make you feel loving, tender and soft...it's all for a purpose. And he'll make sure to balance those carefully from one scene to the next, so your eyes never get tired of seeing the same thing all the time, and you keep watching for 2 and half hours without getting tired of it. In 2 minutes, you can blow people away with heavy content...hey, why do you think music videos are such a hit.

Aside from that, I'm heading to the store with my lady friend, so i'll see if there's any more I can harass you with when I get back..

But NICE frigging work....I loved it.

Adam

It's funny you say that Adam... color design is the most challenging aspect for me. I should really take another color theory class... it's been too long!

Regarding the toilet humor, that has long been a debate over here as we are increasingly developing more toons with advertisers in mind. How to find that balance of giving the audience what they want (farts) and simutaneously creating adver-friendly content.

Thanks so much for everyone's comments!

Anyone else care to critique?

lmfao!

I don't think I've ever experienced a more appropriate fart in my life. That's bloody poetry my friend.

Well here's a quick few things to consider regarding color. You don't necessarily have to be a color guru to do a few powerful things with color. Alot of it is intuitive, as most art is.

Consider your primaries and secondaries, then move on a little to the psychology of how colors affect us emotionally.

-Pigment primaries (as opposed to light primaries), are Red, Yellow and Blue.
Secondary colors are Orange, Purple and Green. Simple enough right? Well, what that means visually is straight forward enough, but what that means psychologically is more important.

Color psychology:

- What does color mean to our culture, or the culture that you're approaching with your work. In many cases, these colors can symbolize these types of things..

- BLUES: Cool and calming. Blues are more often considered neutral colors, meaning, it's apparent almost everywhere, and doesn't often clash or interfere with other colors. This is why jeans are blue. Lighter blues more often lean towards parental feelings. Neutral, calm and unthreatening. Baby blue for instance. Blues which lean more towards navy blues, lower values (Value meaning how light or dark, just incase you didn't know), are often used to represent authority in our culture...such as police uniforms and in some cases, nobility. Anyone who'se there to protect the peace. The blue is calming and neutral, but the low value is slightly imposing and shows strength.

-REDS: Reds are considered the most agressive colors in our color spectrum. Why? Because red in particular travels along light the fastest...We see it the fastest. If you're in a room full of many different colors, then red is the color which your eye will register first. Of course, the more saturated the red is, the faster it'll travel to your eye. Reds are more often used to show power, authority and agression. Often, reds are also used to symbolize passion. Hence, passion and agression are strongly related. You know when you're in the throws of passion with someone, the more agressive you become with eachother. This of course, all depends on the lover, but I digress...Reds used to be considered royalty, and still do in many cases, but it's funny to see how dark blues are used more in this case nowadays...Leaders no longer want to be regarded as tyrants...more as peacekeepers, more blues..

- YELLOWS: Yellows more often then not, represent happiness and joy. Yellow is the color of our sun, at least, that's what it's represented as. The more yellow in a composition, usually the more jovial it becomes. A strong saturated yellow is more often used to represent celebration and festivities, whereas a softer pastel yellow leans more towards parental and loving feelings. Pastel yellow is a common color for children's clothing, because it's soft, warm and happy at the same time.

Now for the secondary colors...which also include "complimentaries".
-Remember, the complimentary of Red is Green, Yellow is Purple, and Blue is Orange.

- PURPLES: Purple is the combination of red and blue. Passion and control simultaneously. It shares aggresivity and calmness at the same time, which can be a dangerous combination. Why do you think purple is a popular color in Goth fashion. There's alot of anger, but at the same time, it's not aggressive. You often here goths complain, but you rarely hear them fight. Funny enough, many kings and queen's robes in medieval times were purple, what does that tell you about leadership back then?

- ORANGES: Oranges are the complimentary of the blues. Remember, complimentary = Opposite. Orange is the combination of red and yellow. Aggression and Happiness. Party and Fierceness. Why do you think Orange is such a common decorative color for parties? It makes us happy, and at the same time lets us loose, like animals. You get a large enough crowd, and enough orange in the decor, and watch out! Orange is also a very common color to represent food and appetite. Hunger is a painful feeling, and satisfying that hunger is a primitive act of aggression...which is laced with happiness. Remember that we didn't always eat at McDonald's, and that instinct still exists in us. 90% or food advertising is smeared with oranges and yellows and browns.

- GREENS: Greens are considered neutrals in most cases in our culture, and in most others as well. It's apparent in the trees, in the grass, everywhere, and our eyes have grown very accustomed to it. It's non-threatening, and doesn't interfere with the rest of the world. Green clothes are very common, and very popular.

***SIMULTANEOUS CONTRAST***

This is a term representing how the eye sees colors, shades and values. What "simultaneous contrast" means, is how one color will affect another. Now one value will affect another. And it's an important thing to know, because our eyes and mind adore this effect psychologically.
Complimentary colors is a perfect example. Complimentary colors have their greatest impact on the human eye when "juxtaposed" next to eachother (This means "placed side by side"). Hence....Reds will be their reddest, when juxtaposed next to greens. Oranges will be their orangiest when juxtaposed next to Blues. And of course, the same applies to Yellows and purples.
This also applies to that particular color's value (How dark or light it is). If you want a red to look darker and richer, then you place that red next to a lighter value green. If you want a blue to look lighter and softer, then you place it next to a darker red...remember, whichever color you want to dominate will have to be more present than the color that it's juxtaposed against. If you want your landscape to be a soft and pale blue, then somewhere in that image, you might want to add a little touch of rich orange. Maybe an orange light coming from a forest cabin or something.

Where you take those colors, how you consider them and how you use them is all up to you in the end. It's how you see those colors, and what you think your image needs in order to be enhanced. Consider the psychological effect of those colors, and how you can combine them to produce a certain psychological effect. Remember, a green meadow is pleasant and inviting. A green brick of cheese however isn't. A blue ocean is pleasant, a blue face isn't. Context is very important as well, so don't forget about that.

And finally, remember that people's eyes strain when seeing too much of a certain color...or, they just get bored of looking at it. There's a reason why surgeons wear light green uniforms. That's because the dark, rich red of blood is hard on the eyes and threatening...the green calms the patient's and the doctor's eyes...and ultimately, their mind's as well.
In the case of your film, you can deliberately discomfort your audience with too many cool blues and greens, or you can threaten them with too many oranges and reds...to symbolize the aggresive and overpowering pharmaceutical industry...but remind your audience of the peace of mind they can have in a clean, undrugged and light green environment...like a living room, or a country resort. You can have the vendors of these drugs in purples, to give off a feeling of camouflaged ill intent and agression, but the good guys in your film would be in soft yellows, to symbolize happiness and innocence.

And you can combine those colors any way you want as well...You want your villains to be political figures...to make a negative statement towards the government, and their role in all of it? Then have your pharmacists wear navy blues, but give their skin a tint of violet. Have them wear dark purple uniforms, but give them all navy blue shirts. Remember, it's all in our subconscious...at least to the audience, but to you, it's a powerful tool...one that you can keep all to yourself.

That's about it...in writing this to you, I think I've developed a minor case of tendinitis. I think that's nature's way of telling me to shut up.

Adam

Wow thanks for the great tips guys! Adam, I'll be printing your color lesson out! Thanks so much

Wade I do understand your comment regarding "snap", I think. LOL You wouldn't happen to have (or know of) a visual sample?

Woah, Adam, that was a great lecture on color theory. I'm going to have to save that one as well.

I'm going to have to agree with Adam on the vulgar stuff. While there's tons of it on the web and South Park would have you believe that it's necessary to be funny, you'll get a lot more play out of it by removing it. And you won't loose too big section of the high school locker room audience if it's still funny (and I think this definitely is).

Personally, I'd cut most of that out. But if you still feel it needs it for the joke try implying it instead of actually showing it. Instead of rocket diarhea, you could imply it by having him run to an out house, holding his pants, slam the door and then a beat later have the house shake or having his eyes bug out, his face turn bright red, than a crazy look of relief. Like Jeff Daniels in Dumb and Dumber, still vulgar but the implication is probably funnier than seeing shit happen. Let the audience fill in the joke for you.

Producing solidily ok animation since 2001.
www.galaxy12.com

Now with more doodling!
www.galaxy12.com/latenight

It's very true what Wade said....And it's something that I keep seeing more and more of. The style of short is a perfect example of snappy tempo. That kind of tempo plays as a kind of mental roller coaster...Keeping it quick and energetic to keep the audience stunned. And you can roll jokes and gags at people getting them into a laughing craze.

I remember a comedian talking about a comedy technique. Only the first joke has to be slam funny. That's how you get the ball rolling. The first gag is hilarious, which gets the crowd laughing, then you nail em with 10 more slightly more average jokes, but because the audience is already laughing, those other jokes serve as a fuel to make the flame grow....before you know it, the audience is falling off their chairs. I can easily see how that type of machine gun visuals can play with a powerful comic gag....you'll knock em dead.

Never let em breathe!, as soon as they're winded, land them with 5 more right hooks, and floor em!

Adam

PS....and you're welcome...

I remember when I studied Art History and Color Psychology. When I enrolled in the class, I assumed it would be painful and long and difficult, like high school history...damn that bored me to wood.
But when I took the class, I found myself at the edge of my seat sucking in all these amazing facts and theories. Stuff that I found in the end, was one of my most inspiring classes.

And it's easily difficult not to go off on a tangent talking about it either. The real trip about color psychology is that one simple lesson like the one I'd mentioned to you, completely changes the way you see the world, and everything it entails. Even the cold and unwelcoming things you see become fascinating, because in your head, you can see how that particular use of color could produce a powerful work of art.

Here's another cool thing I learned...this one was in Art History.

-One thing that defined the Impressionist period, was their belief in color. Their color spectrum wasn't yet the one we have today. They believed that the darker something was, the closer towards BLUE it would become. In the same respect, they believed that the closer something leaned towards light, the more that color would be saturated with YELLOW. Today, we understand that it's a color's saturation with black or white that determines its value (darkness or lightness).
It's not surprising that impressionists often painted the sunny outdoors. When you're outside on a sunny day, shadows truly are shades of blues and purples and greens, and anywhere the light hits can be enterpreted as shades of yellows and oranges.

The first time I learned that, I stepped outside, and everything seemed so much more beautiful and colorful. I was no longer focusing on saturations of black and white, rather, blues, purples, yellows and violets. It was a hardcore trip, and something that influences the way I see the world to this day. If you didn't know that already, then make a point of looking for it. That'll open your eyes to colors in a way you never have.
A good practice is to look for the shadows cast by trees on a sunny day. With the weather we've had lately, it's perfect for this practice. Focus directly on the shadows cast by the trees, and in your periferal view, compare the blues of the shadows to the areas around it, lit by sunlight. You'll instantly start to absorb yellows and oranges. And the same works in the opposite...staring at the light, and allowing your periferal view take in the shadows. It's beautiful.
You can take that a step further, and compare the different shades of blue that you see in each shadow. Look for slight differences...some are greener blues, some are more violet and so on...the same for light...orangy yellow, greener yellow etc...

And here's something to show you the true physical effects that color has on our brain. Very interesting.

If you stare at a strong, saturated color...prefferably back lit, like a traffic light or something that's a backlit color. Let your eyes relax on it for a few minutes....then very quickly move your eyes over to a solid white surface. What you'll see is the same shape of the color you were looking at, but the complimentary color. If you were staring at a red light, you'll now see a green circle. The same applies to every other color. In our class, we had to stare at one screen, with 6 squares, all containing solid colors. When we moved our eyes over to the blank white screen, we saw all of the complimentaries of those colors simultaneously. So today's color theory is just as sound as the past theories, but we now have scientific proof.

Pretty neat huh?

Adam

Adam

Wow thats really interesting! Thanks again Adam. Time for me to start putting more thought into my color schemes.

Regarding the toilet humor that no one here really seems to be very fond of... including myself. Our audience can't get enough of it. They love innocent but somewhat mischievous humor... farts, butts, silly innuendos.

On another note, you guys should check out our homemade toon contest. You could win a 1000 clams! Most of the stuff isn't animated too well. Our first winner's animation wasn't anything amazing but the writing was really funny... that's how he won it. http://www.grab.com/fun/homemade/contest/1

Did you know that the brothers Hildebrandt when doing the illustrations for the Lord of the Rings calendars, never used black to tint their colors they used a very dark violet.

http://www.brothershildebrandt.com/

Pat Hacker, Visit Scooter's World.

Actually, it's interesting what Phacker mentioned...and of course, he's referenced a film that I absolutely adore artistically. I actually found it borderline humbling and depressing how beautiful the design and color was in that film.

And definitely...rarely if ever will you see a true black or white. At least not in its most basic form. You'll have different types of blacks and whites...blue blacks, green blacks, red blacks etc...It makes for a much more powerful image.

And regarding toilet humor...of course it can be hilarious. I'm a die-hard Ren n' Stimpy fan...but sneer snobbishly at copycats. What I find separated Spumco from their competition was the fact that there was a purpose to their gags and nastinesses. It wasn't to be nasty alone, rather to push the envelope on emotion and mood. How could he capture complete and utter starvation? How could he visually portray the epitome of ugliness in someone or something. How could he completely disgust you. But that same extreme went in both ways. There really wasn't much of a point of Ren n' Stimpy episodes rather than to make you stare with wide eyed awe at how completely off his chump John K was. But it was definitely talented and entertaining.
South park on the other hand, lacked a great deal, and didn't get the point I feel. They missed all that talent, and skipped straight to the dumb and vulgar jokes. There was no creative thought process...just offensive, for the sake of being offensive. I honestly never made it through the first 15 minutes of an episode without changing the channel...and believe you me, I gave it an honest thought. I tried several times and just shook my head and moved on.

In the case of your film, I wouldn't say that the toilet humor is too much at all. Infact, aside from the diarrhea scene, the rest was pretty tame. Even the diarrhea was subdued with clean colors, so it was no big deal.

I think where I was aiming with that observation was that it makes you question what audience the film was directed towards. The message and the content of your film was mature...but that gag didn't fit into the same age category. That's something that a pre-teeager might get a big kick out of, but someone a little older might just be bothered by it...at least subtly, which can affect the overall popularity of the film.

You can have the person's ass completely blow up, plastering shit across the back end of the house, but something has to balance that properly, or the favor will go in the disgusting, and people will just be offended.

And on that note...innit completely disgusting out there? I don't know where you guys are from, but here in Montreal, it's presently 35 degrees with an added 10 degrees at least in humidity and absolutely NO breeze. Just dead heat. Apparently the heat wave that we've had here has been worst than New Orleans down south, for the last 2 months. BRUTAL!

Adam

Great link, thanks Phacker

...ah yes John K, damn genius he is.

I find it rather amusing that the diarrhea has sparked such conversation. I actually used a flame from a rocket I had animated for a different project. I was going for the grandpa launching off like a rocket. It didn't even occur to me that others might think it's literally feces! That's a much nastier visual than I was going for LOL!

If your work was crap, then noone would had cared what you did in it. But because everyone sees your work is a success, they want to help keep that flame burning.

And nope, hate to break it to you...it's poopoo....no doubt...at least from a viewers perspective.

Adam

Thanks man

I've accepted the fact that everyone see's it as poo and not fire LOL... It's always interesting to learn how other people see your work. I guess when you're the one creating, you have that whole different perspective.

Wow... Adam, old boy. You got some MAJOR time on your hands, mate. :D

Good to see how you receive criticism, motion... I will be happy to offer more if and when you need it.

Cheers

"Don't want to end up a cartoon in a cartoon graveyard" - Paul Simon

I didn't see it as poo, too me it was just blast off stuff. But then I am out of the loop.

Pat Hacker, Visit Scooter's World.

Regarding the toilet humor that no one here really seems to be very fond of... including myself. Our audience can't get enough of it. They love innocent but somewhat mischievous humor... farts, butts, silly innuendos.

I'd recommend not always giving them what they think they want. Most of the time they won't even miss it, especially in a piece that's as well written as this one.

Producing solidily ok animation since 2001.
www.galaxy12.com

Now with more doodling!
www.galaxy12.com/latenight

I love it!!!

Nice flash! Even better music!^^

Hi Motionmilitia.

I just had a peek at your film. Very nice work... However, you asked to be critiqued and that is what I will do, as just saying "great work" will not give you anything more than a bit of encouragement.

The timing could be snappier... It is very linear in timing as it is. There are few slow-ins and slow-outs, which, I find really help flash animation to shine. In Flash, I find animation works best with intelligently planned anticipations, a small favor, and then overshoot the end pose, to settle into it. If you are unsure what I am talking about (the term favor), let me know and I will explain further, but I do not want to insult your intelligence by explaining it if you know what it is already.

Secondly, the posing could be more dynamic. The posing could benefit from more solid lines of action, rather than a stiff upright pose. You should use more curves in the backs, etc. in order to achieve this.

Lastly, careful with the extreme downshots... That is a very difficult thing to nail, and I hate to say it, but you did not in the down shot on your main character. It is a common problem though... You really need to rough these poses out with balls (or squares, or whatever you like to use to give your character structure) first for the characters' structure, then add the details.

Anyways... That being said, it does really look great. Good on ya!

Cheers

"Don't want to end up a cartoon in a cartoon graveyard" - Paul Simon

I saw poop. It is really amusing to find how an audience will interperet your work. It's a delicate balance of pre-screening and trusting in your own judgement. It's usually a mistake to rely soley on one or the other. But in your case, the poop misunderstanding is a pretty minor problem. I wan't so much offened as much as it felt out of place compared to the rest of the piece.

And you may have to ask yourself who is your audience? The theme and topic is definitely aimed at the at least high school age, but I imagine older would get an even bigger kick out of it. It is, after all, entirely about drugs aimed primarily at baby boomers and the middle aged (and using a song that's nearly 20 years old for the frame work).

In any event. It's very funny. Very well executed and you are getting some pretty good feedback (I'm mostly talking about Adam's lectures on color ;)) you're taking our feedback very well, and I'm really looking forward to what you come up with next.

Producing solidily ok animation since 2001.
www.galaxy12.com

Now with more doodling!
www.galaxy12.com/latenight

Thanks guys, I'll be sure to post my next project. I really enjoy the feedback, I learn so much!

Just walked in from my vacation...5 gorgeous days at a beautiful cottage, lost in the clean, fresh woods, spring water lake, soft sand, a good bottle of red wine a night, starry skies, warm water, even at night, great music, fantastic food...

I walk in the door, open my email, and you guys are still going on about poopoo. BWAAAAHHHAHAHAAAA!

And you know what Wade? You're right...lookin back, I realize I DID have alot of time on my hands. But in all honesty, even in my transcendental state of inner balance and ritcheousness...I still get off on simplicities such as these. But I warn you Wade, don't get me started on the countryside I spent the last 5 days awing....

Ontario has some of the absolute most beautiful scenery, for all y'all country lovers out there.

Adam

I hear Oregon's got lovely forests. Apples or oranges?

Hopefully I'll have a chance to see Oregon, and I'm sure it's stunning...as for my trip, I spent 5 days in Ontario (myself being from Quebec), in a small town, that most people probably haven't heard of called Carnarvon. Very small town, along a chain of small towns north east of Toronto. I remember passing through towns like Minden and Haliburton on the way there.
I think the clearest confirmation that I was in a small town was when I asked someone where to I might be able to buy sandals for the beach. He responded, "Oh yeah, if you're going to find anything, it's in DOWNTOWN Haliburton. Downtown Haliburton is a road, about 3 blocks long, with a couple of stores and a small movie theater. Me, being the Montrealer city slicker I am, know "downtown" as being about 20 quare miles long, crammed with clubs, restaurants, shopping mall(s), you name it. It was just hilarious...and I absolutely loved it.
Another thing that I can say I noticed right away was how people greet you in Ontario, at least in the area that I was.
I was at an IGA, picking up something to eat, and two guys between 25 and 27 look at me with big smiles on their faces and say "HEY THERE, HOW'RE YOU DOING?!". My first thought was (either these guys know me, although I'm not from around here, or they're gay, and they're hitting on me). My response to him was "hi", with an inquisitive look on my face. I asked him if I knew him, and he responded "NOPE...JUST HERE IF YOU NEED MY HELP LOOKING FOR SOMETHING". At that point, I realized he worked there, and I smiled and nodded, and asked him if he could show me where the smoked almonds were.
And that happened everywhere I went..."HI THERE....HEY.....GOOD AFTERNOON SIR", always with a big happy smile. Coming from Montreal, I thought this to be obnoxious....what planet are these weirdos from?
When I arrived back in Montreal and stopped at a gas station to clean the bug splatter of my windshield, I walked in to the Tim Hortons, and approached the cashier..."Hi sir, I was wondering if...." To which he didn't look up or respond...just kept counting his cash....2 minutes later he looks up and say.."sigh...yeah?".
I realized I liked it better in Haliburton...

So my conclusion to this is....People who work in the service industry in Montreal SUCK!. Just thought I'd share that with everyone.

And I still have bug splatter on my windshield cause all the squeegies get stolen in Montreal gas stations.

Adam

Here's the big question -- where in the trip did the bug hit, and what did he say just before?

I grew up in Oregon... sooo green compared to my current residence (LA). If you ever end up goin, I suggest late summer/early fall... otherwise it's raing and gray!