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Showing posts from 2012

Do, try not

Create for the sake of creating. And don't lose sight of that. Plants grow. Birds fly. Beings breathe. Creators craft. Don't let the buzz of it all cloud your view. Sometimes, it just has to be done, if for no other reason than it's not yet been done.

In Remembrance

" In Flanders fields the poppies blow       Between the crosses, row on row, ." When I was eight years old, I carried the Canadian flag in the Remembrance Day parade for our Brownie unit. I can't really remember when I realized the importance of November 11 but I can only imagine that somewhere between learning about that day at school and taking part in a very solemn ceremony that it must have been ingrained in my head to always mark this day.    "That mark our place; and in the sky    The larks, still bravely singing, fly" I remember growing up, the assemblies at school, always with a older veterans, in those days many from both World Wars, would attend. When I got to high school, I remember not being able to fathom how these decorated men and women, had once been my age, had once stood up and fought, and had made these decisions during the same years I would try to decide which route to take from English to Science just to maybe catch a glimpse of

Determination

I have rearranged my Google Reader so that I have appropriate feeds to keep myself reading and not scrolling endlessly through social media streams. Don't get me wrong: social media has a place and a purpose. I am just trying to get back to my creative space and write more. Reading more is a great step towards that. And so, every little bit can only help.

Day trippin'

We headed out into the BC wilderness on Saturday and ended up lounging poolside by Blackcomb mountain on Sunday. This weekend is a great example of why I love D and I why I feel so grateful for moments of spontaneity. We headed to Alice Lake for a day hike, in our hiking gear, with enough water to last a few hours. After surviving without stumbling upon a bear, we got back to the car and decided hey, do we wanna head home? Nah, let's head to Whistler, stay at the Fairmont & pamper ourselves for 24 hours. We had been there before and knew what to expect. All we needed was the right $$ answer from the lovely Crystal on the reservation line & we were set. A quick trip to Marks & we had underwear, outfits for dinner & gear for the spa & pools with views. I'm lucky & privileged that I can just pick up & go whenever I want. Cliche as it sounds, you only get one ride on this roller coaster. I'm so glad, even with my feet firmly planted, that the

Creative juices.

I'm dressed. I showered. I even put on make up. And it's only 8am. What's happening, you say? Why is this working-from-home pj-wearing woman out on the streets this early? Vancouver Creative Mornings https://www.eventbrite.com/event/4056460984?nomo=1 It's my first one so going in with excitement & interest. Plus, FREE BRAKFAST! More to follow...

Common ground

It's amazing how powerful and incredibly re-energizing to connect with like-minded people. My trip away from Vancouver has been inspiring & reflective in so many ways. It was great to get a chance to connect with a fellow Sang-seng-nim & creative mind on the weekend. Here's to the beginning of many wine Skype dates :) Alex on the Loose http://chooseyouradventure25.blogspot.ca/

End of Summer

The last weekend of the unofficial summer has begun. I'm so ready for all the new percolating ideas I've had over the last month to come to fruition. Bringing travel & exploration back into my life & on this blog. Hope you enjoy the ride with me.

Ten years on

Standing in Waterstones on Piccadilly Circus, stumbled upon this and realized probably 10 years ago at this time, I was purchasing this guide, gearing up for our first set of travels. What a different person I was then. What a lucky explorer I am today

Reasons the UK is Awesome

Tea kettle and proper tea in every hotel room. Pints in pubs. The number of times you can say "cheers" in one verbal exchange. Breakfast. Ordering at the bar. The adoration of queueing and the organization that follows. Slim tonic. Jacket potatoes. Proper cheese trays, ready-made from the shop. Plethora of French wine in grocery stores. Great craic.

Whadaboucha

2 days. 2 long nights. Incredible reconnecting with some of my favourite people. My love affair with Belfast continues...

Oxford Wandering

Magical day wandering the streets of an incredible academic hub.

Awake

Not sure the last time I've seen this side of 5 am. After fighting to get back to sleep for 2 hours, I decided I might as well get up. My body seems to have it backwards... My internal system should be 8 hours behind, not ahead. But perhaps it has been the excitement of the last few days. Being back in the UK. Reconnecting with family. Being on actual holiday. There is something extremely precious about being awake when the sun is yawning up. When the birds start their daily cooing. When the world is still. So although I would like to be dreaming peacefully right now, I'll take this gift and savour it. The quiet start to a new day.

My speaking voice

I decided to try out this new voice feature and see if I can completely dictate a blog directly to my phone. The previous android voice recognition app wasn't stellar but this version I'm using on my HTC one is spectacular. A few minor changes and it's like I never needed that keyboarding class in grade 9. here's to more speaking and less typing.

Inspiring

Be Inspired Some of you may have noticed I'm trying to get myself in the groove again. Thank you Google Reader & HTC for putting posts like this in the palm of my hand.

Computer free

I thought I would get with the decade and attempt a blog from my new phone. (cant seem to get this linking to work...) http://www.htc.com/www/smartphones/htc-one-s/ Being slightly nomadic, I'm rarely excited about getting more stuff... Stuff = eventually pack and move it. But this new phone has a front camera, which made it possible to Skype with my mom from my bike ride yesterday. And now it's motivated me to get back to a bit of writing. Find me some Wi-Fi, and we'll see ya in England ...

Stop the following, start the reading!

Warning: geek speak alert to follow ... I feel like I have to point out to the lovely list of bloggers that used to appear in my "Blogs I'm Following" list that I have NOT stopped following you, I have just removed you from the Blogger portion of my Google Profile and added you to the Reader portion so that when I'm sifting through posts on my Android, you will now appear. For some reason, I couldn't get you to appear on the app without adding you directly to the Reader portion and I couldn't have you in both the Reader portion and the Blogs I'm Following portion. So, I now have access to your words directly from my phone, which is what I really wanted in the first place. Also, I've been on a social media summer vacation for two weeks and I can tell you it's been very eye opening. I've got a bit of my creative writing groove back and hope to get back to some more regular posting here. In the meantime, some teasers to look forward to inc

Back in time

In less than two weeks, I will be on UK soil. It will be a flashback and a new adventure all at the same time. Flashback because we have not been there in 4.5 years (!!) and it feels like yesterday we set off on our Asia excursion. It felt like home for so long; it's strange to think that I've been away that long. New adventure because for the first time, we'll be on vacation with D's family, abroad together in his parents' homeland, enjoying each others company while also doing it in such a picturesque place like the countryside of England. To top it off, we arrive on the day before the London  2012 Olympics close. Still reeling with pride from experiencing it live during Vancouver 2010, I can't wait to soak up a bit of that hometown pride that I'm sure is spilling out all over the country. I'm a lucky girl ... looking forward to feeling revived and re-energized by a trip down memory lane, filled with new memories.

Korea Flashback

My lovely friend from Korea, K, sent me this link and I basically strained every throat and stomach muscle laughing my arse off at all of these posts. It also made me miss the magical craziness of Korea. If you've lived there, you'll love this. If you haven't, here's another window into the wacky world of being a waegook. Thanks Kimmers. http://kikinitinkorea.tumblr.com/

Move along

I'm training for my 4th half marathon, my first international run in Myrtle Beach SC and the first one I will see my parents at the end of it. It's an early start, 6am I think and I'll be dealing with jet lag so possibly it will feel more like 3am but hey, try everything once right? 4 weeks today. And, as always tends to happen when I'm training, the panic and fear tends to set it right about now, the 'you can't do it' voices begin creeping in and the pj-all-day thoughts tempt me away from getting out on the road and getting my legs in gear. I'm training alone again for this one and have actually switched my music for podcasts. Actually makes for a more reflective run. And, maybe makes me feel a bit like I'm not running alone. When I trained for the Victoria half in October, I set out with the Running Room in Richmond. Lovely, motivating, run-obsessed people there but always coming in last certainly took it's toll on the mental portion of t