Salmon and Surfers

I ended up in West Vancouver again this afternoon. It was a beautiful sunny day today. There is a creek in West Van that is a spot where the salmon run. You could see a few of them making their way upstream to spawn. There were quite a number of them dead on the bottom of the stream.
There was also an unusually high surf today in West Van. A bunch of the local surfers took advantage. They weren't all that good but it was fun to watch them. At one point a guy was sitting resting on his board and a seal popped up about 2 metres from him. They looked at each other for a moment then the seal went under again.

Funny Ad

Winter Rains

It is a very, very wet day here today. There's rain and then there's Vancouver rain. It goes on like this all winter. The benefits of living in a rain forest. Ski season's just around the corner.

peace

I work a job on weekends as well. I just got word that last Saturday evening the guy who hired me killed himself. We gathered as a group for a few hours last Thursday evening. At that point he had almost exactly fourty-eight hours left in this life. May he be free.

Cheap Date

I wonder...

I wonder what would happen if you started to exchange e-mails with someone inside North Korea?

http://www.kcna.co.jp/index-e.htm

End up like one of those 'Manchurian Candidate' soldiers?... wandering around confused, going, 'down with freedom, down with food, hooray for the Apocalypse Now type situation the world has allowed for 60 years in North Korea, Dear Leader found my g-spot...'.

When I went to the DMZ there were still loud speakers set up on the North side of the line. Over the wind on a cold winter's day you could hear the voice of a North Korean propogandist suggesting to anyone who would listen that they come over and join the communist utopia taking place on his side of the fence.

More Exploring

Checked out a little fishing village called Steveston on Saturday. Really interesting little spot. Watched the fishing boats leave the harbour to head out to sea. Some boats were set up at the shoreline with the people selling their shrimp, salmon etc. fresh from the ocean.
Spent today out at Capilano suspension bridge. Another very interesting place to spend a day. One of the people I was with today has done some surfing. She informs me that Tofino, BC is where I want to check out if I want to see people attempting that sport in this area, or want to try it myself.

Surf Fantasy

I have had a surfing fantasy for a number of years now. Just watched a neat film called Bondi Tsunami http://www.bonditsunami.com.au/ Some gorgeous Japanese younguns wander Australia drinking, smoking and surfing. The voice over in the film is absolutely perfect for the sort of surreal music video feel of the whole thing. Nothing really to it but it kept me interested.
I plan to head to one of the surf spots on Canada's west coast and see what they get up to.
In the not too distant future I will break down and buy a car. My Jack Kerouac days would seem to be officially over.

More of My Recent Vancouver Photos

Weird One

A woman in Vietnam who was sentenced to death for smuggling drugs has become pregnant while in prison. She is scheduled to be shot by the police shortly but has asked for a pardon so she can give birth to her unborn child. Vietnamese authorities are considering the situation.

More Made in Canada

Niagara Falls, Roberta Bondar, Mordechai Richler, Gilles and Jacques Villeneuve, The Group of Seven, Mark Tewksbury, Timothy Findley, Okanagan Wines, Stompin Tom Connors, Ballard Power Systems (invented it), Sarah Mclaughlin, Dinosaur Provincial Park Alberta. Forget about it. Can't beat this country.

I almost forgot socialist health care. Free for all.

I AM CANADIAN

Tim Horton's (founded), Whistler, Banff/ Jasper/ Lake Louise resorts, Pierre Trudeau, Wayne Gretzky before America ate him, Margaret Atwood, Pamela Anderson, Montreal Dunn's smoked meat during the day, Crescent Street at night, JTF 2, Calgary Stampede, a Newfie with 9 beers in him, Chateau Frontenac in the fall, seeing a wild moose in downtown Ottawa, skating on the Rideau Canal, Quebec women, Edmonton/ Calgary playoff hockey, Canadarm, Molson beer...
I don't have a clue what is causing this sudden surge in nationalism in me. Maybe because I spent so long abroad and know how lucky I am to be Canadian. Yet at the same time 800, 000 Canadians use a food bank each month.

Looking For Alexis

A honky tonk song came to me as I was waiting on a bus this evening. 'Looking For Alexis'.


Aint been sober
Since last October

Go from beer to wine
And I'll be fine

Bought my Daddy
A brand new Caddy

We drove across Texas
Lookin' for Alexis

Still she'll linger
On my wedding finger

Try to imagine it sung with a country drawl. So, we have the country music sentiments of alcoholism, lost love, large cars, and a broken marriage. I need to throw in something about running over a deer or a pickup truck stuck in third gear or something. There it is...

Ran over a deer
Shifting into third gear

Nope. Last lines don't really work. I'll keep at it.

More Discovery

I am discovering more and more of this region of the world as time goes on. There is a lot to see in this area.
On Thanksgiving Sunday the Outdoor Life Network ran the entire series of Ewan McGregor and his friend Charley riding motorcycles across a huge swath of the planet. The adventure is called Long Way Round, http://longwayround.com/intro.htm . McGregor is an absolutely hilarious person. You see him in extremely trying circumstances with his friend and he can still crack people up around him. Really funny at times. The rural areas of Kazakhstan and Mongolia were some extremely rough going for them. Russia's 'Road of Bones' was the worst. That part of the world is starting to fascinate me. You get Asia that hasn't been tarnished by Western consumer nonsense, nomadic tribes the wild horses and the whole bit. Mongolians are I think the toughest people on this planet. I have had limited contact with them a few times in real life and you can just sense it off them. No self pity in that culture.
So North Korea is a nuclear power. I don't know why I find that hilarious. It might be my sentiments towards the current regime in America causing this reaction. It may not end up being too comical in that part of the world in the months to come. The region of Korea along the east coast right at the DMZ is some of the most beautiful in Asia. It'll be a shame if they blow the shit out of it all.

Happy Chuseok Festival

It's the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving this weekend. They do all kinds of things for this festival including giving thanks the way we in Canada do this weekend. They also say prayers and or make wishes to the full moon. There are large festivals around Vancouver this weekend regarding this holiday. I'm a little Asia'ed out. I limit it to a few veggie dumplings if I'm in Chinatown and that's about it lately. Those things make me melt.
There are also two South Korean naval destroyers in port in Vancouver right now. I wonder how worried they can be about the impending North Korean nuclear test if they have two of their naval vessels in Canadian waters.

IV