Meandering through life beyond the pavement.
What is the perfect gift for the new or aspiring hiker in your life? Before we dive into gift ideas, let me describe a bit of gift giving (and receiving) ethos. I'm a huge fan of gifts that achieve three key functions: (1) the gift is something I probably wouldn't get for myself, (2) the … Continue reading Holiday Gifts for the Aspiring or New Hiker
Sandwiched between exhibiting at the gargantuan Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas, and participating an a corporate retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona, I enjoyed a glorious and exonerative 48 hours of solitude in north-central Arizona.
Sometimes life speeds up way too fast, and it can be really hard to slow down. During the second half of last year, life hit 'fast forward', quicker than ever before and work completely consumed my life. Needless to say, my humble blog did not get the attention it deserved. Between September and December I: … Continue reading Chasing Winter Sun on California’s Route 395
Over the Easter holiday (a four-day weekend, here in Canada), my partner and I headed up to Quadra Island, one of the Discovery Islands wedged between central Vancouver Island and the mainland. Quadra Island is my favourite of the Gulf and Discovery Islands: it embodies the true west coast island style, with funky hippie houses … Continue reading Easter Weekend Rock Climbing on Quadra Island
36 hours is not a lot of time to decompress between two long, intense weeks of business trips; one must be focused and intent on having some serious R & R. Being left in Houston, Texas with a car and a credit card, I took myself on a road trip, hitting Natural Bridge Caverns (Part … Continue reading Going Rogue: Texas Edition, Part 3
I was left unattended for 36 hours in Houston, Texas, with a car, a credit card, and a mandate to relax and decompress between two intense, week-long training sessions. So I took myself on a road trip, hitting Natural Bridge Caverns (Part 1), Pedernales Falls State Park (Part 2), and Austin, Texas (Part 3). Part 2 … Continue reading Going Rogue: Texas Edition, Part 2
I recently had 36 unattended hours in Texas. My only constraints were to drop my colleagues off at the Houston airport at 0500 Saturday morning, and be on a flight at 1700 Sunday evening. It was glorious. I had been in Houston for five days, completely occupied with boardroom meetings and wrangling maritime captains and … Continue reading Going Rogue: Texas Edition, Part 1
I travel a lot. My job demands extensive travel so I spend a lot of time on airplanes, at hotels and Airbnbs, and in boardrooms. Recently I have repeatedly found myself in the American south east which, coming from an island on the Canadian west coast predominately populated by wealthy hippies, is more alien than … Continue reading Finding Vegetables in Houston
"Pardon me thou bleeding piece of earth that I am meek and gentle with these butchers" - William Shakespeare I grew up on Vancouver Island during the early 1990s, as the environmental movement was just gaining momentum. The environmental activists in Carmanah Valley, Walbran Valley, and Clayquot Sound were heroes protecting ancient forests from irreparable … Continue reading Bearing Witness to Changing Landscapes
I admit it: I'm the mythical 'morning person' who is cheerful and bubbly before their first cup of coffee. I reliably wake up perky and enthusiastic, I love meeting friends for coffee before work, and on weekends I am often home and showered from a decent hike by 11 am. Granted, my enthusiasm for morning … Continue reading Early Morning Habits
Barefoot in the Backwoods 