Maui

Hi Everyone..

So in case you haven't heard yet; i have made a sudden treck out of the country. It is somewhere i had hoped not to go quite yet, but here I am... In Maui.

I always said that i didn't want the USA as my first stamp in my passport, and i had hoped that they wouldn't stamp it... but they did.

But now that i am here, I don't really care.

so, long story short - Melissa and I had planned to go somewhere warm together this winter. We figured that we would take my Fairmont deals and her westjet deals and go somewhere and not have to spend a lot on the trip.

Turns out that Mels family decided to come to Maui for their vacation and because we had planned to go somewhere together she invited me along. I found out about this about a week before the trip. My next working day I requested the week and a half off! and it was granted to me (i don't know why!!!, like really - who would give me a week off with only a weeks notice?) but - I worked hard to pull it off and get 2 weeks work done in one.

I flew out at 7am from calgary on saturday and after a confusing trip through the vancouver airport, we managed to get on a flight bound for Maui. A measly 6 hour flight later and I was in +25 degree weather!

Now, i had talked about doing my scuba a little bit before and i decided to take advantage of being here in a tropical wonderland by getting that item scratched off my to-do list.

Walking into the dive shop on saturday, they laughed at me when i said i wanted to get it done before thursday! "it can't be done" well, someone how they managed to make it happen. It took a one day session with a guy named Kioni, and then 2 days with another lady named Rachel.

so, let me tell you about going under the water the first time.

See, i had put sunscreen on, and when i first put on my mask i tasted something well..., salty... I thought about my sunscreen and how i just got my face wet and thought that i was tasting my sunscreen... so - i started spitting!! but i could not get rid of the taste! it was gross... yukky.. goopy... but after all that spitting it was still there. I decided to just deal with it. I put my mask on and got ready for the decent under water.

I got myself "sorted" and decended under water. I couldn't do it - but i refused to go back up to the surface. I was trying to get on my knees on the bottom but i couldn't breath right! Kioni was looking at me wondering if i was going to get the hang of it. I knew all i had to do was calm down and take a nice breath and i'd be good. But... let's see you take it easy breathing out of some strange tube thing! really - it is not easy! well, it is... but it is quite the mental hurdle to get over!

Finally, after a few moments i managed to get my breathing under control and the rest was simple. Even clearing the mask was easy! well, not easy - but not nearly the challenge as getting myself to just breathe!

it's now been 3 days, and 5 dives and i'm feeling pretty comfortable under the water. Tomorrow I am going to Molokini, it's the remans of a volcano and it's just a cresent moon shaped island. Promises to be an interesting dive! I am pretty excited.

Oh, and i really hope to get the pics, but i saw a giant sea turtle today on my second dive... the turtle was a mere... 30cm from my face!!! ya... was about to high five it! but you aren't supposed to touch them! ($10,000 fine!)

hmm, what else... well, i'll tell you more when i see you this weekend! should be flying into Toronto friday afternoon around 5pm. (i know, traffic, but it's the earliest i can get there, and i'd rather wait in traffic then in the vancouver airport)

Cheerio!!

Michael

Oh.. that taste in my mouth... the "sunscreen"

i'll say these few words..

it tasted "salty"
this is "Maui" aka... Ocean...

ya... SMRT!!! :)

More on stanfields

Emily,

Yes I did know that stanfields was made in Nova Scotia, The bike tour actually took us past their factory and we peaked in as we biked by, but maybe a good tour would be fun if i can ever get out there for a visit!

So, In my last blog i mentioned that i was going out for halloween. I dressed up as Woody from toy story. I got really lucky with the value village i visited and found everything i needed for the outfit, save a good pair of cowboy boots and a vest at one store. I eventually found a vest, but ended up creating my own from an old white t-shirt. and Just before i headed to the pub i was looking up quotes for the "pull string" and realized that woody came with a guitar.... and guess what i had lurking in my closet... a $0.01 guitar i bought of e-bay! so i went to the pub and pulled off a 2nd place in the costume contest! i'll try to post some pics on facebook tomorrow so you can see!

I won dinner for 2 at the walliser Stube!!! Sweet!

oh, David. I wasn't home today - went to canmore to play volleyball.

ummm... let's see where this goes???

So i haven't been at a computer in a while, so this most likely will end up being another one of my long rants.

so, While you are all enjoying fall, taking pics of beautiful autumn colours; I am freezing my buns off in the cold. Well, not really... But winter has arrived in Lake louise and it's cold fingers have sunk their nail into the mountain... which mean ski season has arrived! if i was feeling energetic, which i may be feeling this afternoon. I could hike up to lake agnes and ski down. I just may do that today, or maybe up to saddleback pass. but that requires energy, which i am a little low on right now.

Last night I travelled into banff in a massive snow storm, joy. Is it weird that i enjoy driving in this horrible weather? it may be the car, emily, This car of yours is really good in snow - although, i am comparing it to the old dodge, which handled as well as a motorcycle in the snow.

anyway, as i was driving, and passing a line of cars, driving in that lane that isn't cleared because everyone is driving in one line making a track that doesn't really follow a lane so much as hopefully following the road... i was thinking about why i like driving in bad weather... Is it because it makes me think? Or is it because nothing will ever be quite as bad as that trip to Kingston in the Grand am with Dad going to a hockey game, in a white out when I could barely see the on coming trafic, let alone the lights of the transport truck that was right in front of me. And the only way i knew i was still on the road was that if i was still traveling at 8okm/h and i was sure that if i was in the ditch i wouldn't be traveling that fast! I also remember trying to slow down, but realized that as long as i could still see A taillight infront of me, i could assume i was still on the road. anyway, that day will always be worse than anything else i could face... except for that trip last year where i couldn't even see the side of the road until i was almost off the road, and i had no tail lights to follow. but that just reminded me of the previous story - so i kept going...

So, on the topic of winter and skiing, guess who is getting a free ski pass... well, hopefully... I have a pretty good idea that i will though! see, the ski hill has a number of event through the year that they need volunteer help with. Being the activities guy at the chateau means that i also communicate information like the above to the colleagues to help them get free passes, so in this process i was talking to a girl named Danielle about this and released the application form to the chateau colleagues, at the same time - Danielle made a surprise visit to my office on Friday to personally request my application! so, i think i should get a free pass! yaya ($800 saved!) I just have to help out with 8 events over the year! not too bad!

hmmm... on the topic of cold bums.

The underwear blog

(i've been planning this one for a while!heheh)

so, as a guy, we don't have much in the world of Underwear to choose from. We have Tighty whities, boxer breifs, boxers, and an assortment of interesting underwear the provides not much functional use, besides looking silly.

Each of these forms of under garments provides a different style of comfort and control, and non really excite me to purchase... I always dread purchasing underwear, it's always in a bag that looks like socks with this picture of a dude on the front, sporting said style of underwear. I am always embarrassed about the idea of purchasing such an item from a store, and having that awkward moment at the checkout when you drop the underwear on the conveyer belt thingy.

Well, as you can guess, i recently had an underwear purchasing experience. It had come time for me to purchase new under garments a few weeks back. (about the time i decided to write this blog) I seemed to have run low on garments of the under wear nature that didn't have holes in them or had enough material on them that they didn't look like a lace version of the underwear i had purchased.... about 2 years ago... (ya.. it's been that long).

I bit the bullet on a trip to calgary and stolled into Zellers looking for some underwear. there was some interesting items to choose from, but i couldn't find my size in the style i like, in the brand i like... so i ended up giving in and purchasing sume ugly blue coloured hanes undies. I wasn't really satisfied, so i only picked up a set of 3 to tide me over for a little longer 'til i could find the stanfields version. (they are made in Canada, i like to support things made in Canada, by Canadian Companies)

thank-fully, this store had that automatic check out stand! I didn't have to go to a check-out girl! yay (i was excited)

On this trip, I also stolled into Sears with a friend who was looking for boots or something. As we walked by the mens wear section, there they were! a whole rack of Stanfields Underwear, but odly, these were like twice the price of the Hanes? was it worth the $$ for these undies or was it just because we were in Sears??? I had to find out. So i picked up a bag of 2 (on sale too, so i was happy - i must be Dutch) and these undies didn't have that pic on the front!

I was content with this purchase, but little did i know that when i walked into Marks Work Wearhouse that I'd find another pair... by a brand that i had never seen make underwear before... I found out that dakota makes underwear, and these were twice the price of the sears pair! but check it out! these were made of that material that under armour uses! this both surprised me and excited me. I love my performance T's and now i could have non-cotton, performance oriented underwear! but, only 1 pair cost over $20!

Was it worth it... YES...

It is true, the more you spend, the better the gear. When i got home i had to try on these under garments and discover if i had made wise purchases or not.

the Hanes performed as expected - they covered me up...
the Stanfields, Oh the Fit! so nice, and I could feel that the matrial was much better than the Hanes...
the Dakota... well... Thankfully I live alone because i love wearing them!

so there you have it, and update on the world of underwear. Now you don't have to wonder what is out there for Men. there is choice!! and you don't have to go with underwear with a picture of a half naked guy on the front! and you can get excited to purchase cool, good quality underwear!!! hahaha...

ya.. i just needed to tell you that! Cause i wish someone told me about it.

well... what else to say...

Veggie Tales - Pirates who don't do anything is on TV right now... Not that i'm watching it.. but it's on...

Tonight is Halloween at the Pub. I am going as Woody from Toy Story! apparently i act like him??? I need to find cowboy boots.

oh.. no i don't have a phone yet... and i promise that this time i will start an address/phone book so the next time i lose my phone i can still call you and don't have to ask for your phone numbers!

Niblock!

I can still remember the first time i set eyes on lake louise, i thought it was so beautiful that i snapped a number of pictures in a failed attempt to get the full, panoramic view of the mountains. that day i was talking to a few guys on the bike tour, one of which had climbed Fairview and Temple. He inspired me to want to come back and make it to the top of these two mountains.

Temple and Fairview are the typical mountains that people go for, and after i have summited these two majestic peaks, my sights have turned to two more big and challenging mountains. One of these is Niblock, and i attacked it a few weeks ago.

Alright, So this story actually starts on teh Saturday that Ashley and I went Camping. The original plan was to go up Niblock on Saturday, and then go camping Saturday & Sunday nights. This is the tale of that fate full Saturday.

To Climb Niblock, one must first hike to Lake Agnes. From Lake Agnes the climb begins. first up the valley at the back of the lake (that i didn't know exsisted) and then up a cliff, and then.. well, more climbing.

this saturday, Ashley and I made it to Lake Agnes in record time.... record SLOW time that is. i don't know what we officially clocked in at, but it was a long trip to get what should take 45-50 min. See, About halfway up at mirror lake, Ashley started experienceing dizzy spells and wasn't feeling right, so we pushed ourselves to Lake Agnes before I made the decision that she just wasn't feeling good enough for the push up Niblock. we ended up chilling out on some rocks on teh shores of Lake Agnes.

It was a beautiful day, so it was nice to switch gears and just relax. It was probably a good thing that we didn't go for the peak of Niblock that day as it took us quite a while to get all the camping gear together, and had we gone for the peak we would never have left on time for camping (or maybe that would have been a good thing!)

so, plans had to be changed and we postponned our summit plans to the next week.

This time i made sure we were ready, i was ready to leave Ashley behind if I had to. I had been eyeing this peak for years and it was time for me to stand on top! So. the next Saturday we went for it again. This time we made it to lake agnes without incident and enjoyed the company of a ground squirrel at the back of lake agnes before going for the summit. Here are some pics of the... approach so to speak.

So it started... you can see the scree slope in the middle right above the green trees, with the shadow of Whyte on the left... at the top of this slope was a ridge that we had to navigate, it required some scrambling. But it wasn't too complicated. It was fun as we were climbing up beside a waterfall!

Once we were above this ridge, it was a slog to the next face, just over a whole load of big boulders that didn't require much skill, but a fair bit of determination. once we made it to the back of this i realized that I may have bitten off a bit more than i should be chewing. I was fairly comfortable with the obstacles that we were facing, but was Ashley?

The next obstacle was a steep steep! scree slope... this means that every step we took, we slid back 1/2 a step. Very Annoying, and it really slows down any progress! this is where Ashely started showing signs of being uncomfortable on this mountain. But we pushed on.

The next obstacle was the worst. We lost any sign of a defined trail and had to scramble straight up the side of this mountain. It was beyond steep, and with no trail - Ashley had doubts. It the guide books they said it was clearly marked - but this was NOT the case. I was alright with this section, but uncomfortable with the situation i was forcing ashley into. it's difficult knowing that i was putting her through something so uncomfortable.

eventually we made it to the Col between Whyte and Niblock. This is where things got really scary. See, the col between these two peaks is what they call a Knife edge... See, it's only about 2 metre's wide and it's a cliff on both sides. Somehow we had managed to climb up the cliff on the one side, but the other side looked all the more onimous! yikes.

From here we turned and went up what would have been the back side of Nibock. It was steep, and it was as if we were climbing a up this knife edge to the top. At some points the rock was less than 1 metre wide, and it was sheer cliff on either side. Ashley was not amused... (I was jovial!)

eventually we came to a point that Ashley dared not go farther, Sadly it was less than 25 m from the summit, but i commed her for pushing to this point. It wasn't easy, and she did not enjoy the heights. This really was the hardest climb i have done yet, and for her to push and make it this close to the peak, well, I was impressed.

Now, the worst part of the trip... I forgot to sign the ledger at the top of the mountain! see, there is always a pad of paper for people who summit to right a little something about making it to the peak... and I forgot about it until i was half way down! nuts!!!

so, now the way down.

Little do most people know, but the way down is always the worst! I will sum up this next 3 hours of my life very quickly. we had little water, little light, Ashley cried, but pushed on. I don't know why she still talks to me. We ran out of water - filled up camel back in the waterfall! Tasted great! made it to Lake Agnes as the sun went down! used a Camera LCD display to illumiated the path back to Lake Louise (approx 30 min of complete darkness) and we made it back to the front of the chateau ath 10pm, exhausted!

so ya... Now i can say i was up there! but i'm not sure if I'll ever go again!

crazy, unfortunate, untimely events involving bad camping decisions.

hmmm... So i've been away from the blogging world for a few weeks now... i guess it's been a month and as you can guess, i have a few stories to tell!

I guess i should start with why i haven't been able to blog for you! and possibly why you haven't been able to call me! heheh.. ya

so, lets go back to the weekend after my birthday.

it was a beautiful weekend. well, it started beautiful and i didn't check the forecast... mistake #1. I think i knew bad weather was coming in but may have refused to let it bother me or stop me from going on my first full weekend camping trip. It was all planned, Cheryl, Ashley and I were going to go to the saskatchewan crossing area and find a back country site for the weekend, and then Mark and Deb would join us on sunday.

it was a good plan, until Cheryl couldn't make it. So just ashley and I ventured off to find a campsite, but as it was the long weekend - all the prime sites were gone. but eventually we found one that offered us a nice view. but, we had to set up the tent on a sand bar. which wasn't so bad, camping on a beach sounds like fun right? ya... i think anyone with any camping experience knows where this is going.

the next day as we waited for mark and Deb to arrive (ha - bet you didn't see that one coming), Ashley and I went for a hike. As we were retuning from the hike we were crossing a river when a wind gust almost blew me right off the bridge. Now, I know you all are thinking that i'm pretty light and it isn't surprising that a wind gust might blow me off balance, but i was thinking - the tent!!! what is happening to the tent?

it was about 10 minutes later that we got back to the campsite to find...

yes. This would be the tent, snagged on something under the water, with the rushing water consuming the tent and ripping it to pieces. Inside this tent are 4 sleeping bags, 4 thermorest pads, a significant amount of clothing. and a blackberry.

and you can see my attempt to rescue it all. Actually, i think you can see my sleeping bag starting to get pulled out of the tent on the top of that picture...

anyway. it was an expensive weekend that ended in rain... but isn't it pretty?

now i just need to buy a new tent, blackberry and replace some clothing!

So, i always have more stories to tell than time to tell them, but hopefully i will get online soon to tell you all about climbing niblock, mountain biking and all the other exciting things going on in my life.

oh, and Hockey Starts tomorrow!!!!! yes... i am a little excited!

miss you all, i think matt's home phone line is 403-522-3682... or just call me at work at 403-522-1847, but not tomorrow, i'm going paragliding!

Softball

The regular season for softball came to a close today it has been a fun and exciting 2 months of ball. I've learned a lot during this time about everything that it takes to put together a winning team. There is soo much strategy! Who would have thought there was any strategy in softball?

So, to end the season we were up against a team that was 13 - 0, and if you looked back over the last few years they were probably 50+ - 0! In other words, they haven't lost in years. -k. Not sure exactly how many years, but it is at least 4, possibly 6.

So, we were expecting a big game! Now keep in mind that we were 13 - 0 as well. This game was the clash of the titans! The winner took sole possesion of 1st, the loser hopes for revenge in the finals.

It was actually a really short game. Most likely because of the stellar defence played by both teams. We started off right by keeping them to no scoring in the first inning, and scoring a few runs ourselves to get ahead.

It stayed close the entire game, noone would get many runs, and we always managed to stay in the lead... I think it irked them as we caysed them to suffer their first defeat in... 4+ years!

It was an exciting moment when I realized the game was over! One girl actually phoned home right after the game to tell her mother about it. It was great to be a part of this team and finally strike back at the #1 team for the last few years!

Now, let's hope we can push through the playoffs and beat them again in the finals! -kve been on a team that has won the league only to go go on to an early exit from the playoffs too many times out here!

Oh, and the best part about the night was that when I was talking to a girl from another team she said that we were the most fun team to play against. It's nice to hear that people still can enjoy playing ball and have fun with it, and still be the #1 team :)

Anyway, it's bedtime!

stories of my adventures.

Hmm, I don't know where I left off on my last blog, so I'll just start in july and talk about a few things that I've done.

1st, I went out and bought a motorcycle last month. Yes, I know. It's a little crazy, but I miss riding and had a good opportunity to pick one up cheap. A friend from church was selling his old bike, so I snapped it up. It is an '87 kawasaki 454ltd. It's a little small for me but runs well and gets me riding. When I picked it up she was running great and appeared to only requiere a few asthetic repairs. I have since realized that Chris didn't do much more than ride the bike. While he got the engine tuned, he didn't realize that the whole drive system needs replacing. Oh bother! It's just worn out a little - it will continue to run fine, but the splines on the drive out of the transmission or worn down and the bearing on the drive pully on the rear wheel is in need of a replacement - all in all, I thin it will be switched over to a chain drive from a belt drive. Other than that issue, I just need to do some painting. I hope to turn around and sell it again this fall - hopefully break even on it and buy something a little nicer next year.

But, I am going to enjoy this while I can, and thus I drove the bike to jasper this past weekend. Mark and I decided to go up for a weekend with some friends and be tourists and get away from banff. It was an enjoyable weekend we pretty much relaxed by the pool and saw a few of the sites. Nothing too exciting about it other than that I got to ride the bike :)

Hmm, I started writing as I waited for a friend to go for a cycling bike ride who has just arrived, so this will have to continue another time.

Cheerio!

camping trips :)

I've been begging to get out camping all year. I've gone out and made a few purchases to get me ready, and this weekend I finally got to put it to use.

Melissa called me up... Or should I say texted me asking if I wanted to camp on the shores of Abraham Lake, to which I hurriedly responded via text saying I was absolutely in.

We discussed possible locations, and I knew of a few un-serviced sites on the shore of the North Saskatchewan River where we could pitch a tent and have a fire. I figured that's all we needed for one night; I could servive with-out a toilet for that long but Mel could not and would not consider it... So alternate arrangements had to be made.

Mel searched high and low for an open campsite. One with all the necessities she demanded and finally found one. It was convienient and easy to get to, had a lake, the site was beside a babling brook, facilities were near-by and we could have a fire on the beach! I case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm speaking of the backyard at the farm!

I'm here now, keeping you all updated that we are attepting to camp in the yard. We managed to use the truck to carry all the equipment to our site... About 100m from the house! And we got all set up for a fire by the pond... Which I must got start.

But I must say that it rained - so we retreated to the house to make cookies! Just as good as smores right?

Anyway, hopefully the next camping trip will take me to a real campsite - but this is as good as any!

Waving at Pretty Girls...

This is a story I must put down, or else I may forget it, and some day I'd like to come back to read of this night, of most amusing occurances.

Mark, Jesse and I decided tonight we would go see the new transformers movie, so we gathered at Jesse's place in Banff before driving to the theatre.

When we left for the movie we debated over who would drive - in a stark contrast from high school, it was an argument over who had to drive instead of who got to drive. Mark lost the battle.

As we pulled into the parking lot, Mark spotted a space by the back. As he was pulling into the space, the vehicle to our right was backing out.

Mark made the mistake of looking over at the driver, who happened to be an attractive young blonde - whom he knew from one of the restaurants in town. She smilled and waved. Of course, Mark being the eternal ladies man, waved back. Totally distracted from the task at hand.

As he waved, his car - recently repaired, drove right up onto the curb!

Way to go Mark! Teach you to wave at girls!

Paget Peak

Mom says I need to blog more. I figured that the much more regular phone calls would be enough, but nay, I must get on my blogging horse!

This past weekend I challenged another peak in the area. One that I had been unable to summit in years past. (Due to time and members of the party I went with)

Saturday morning came early. I didn't enjoy hearing the alarm going off on a saturday at a time earlier than a regular week day. (I dare not say what time as you all would scoff at me! in my defense - I was out in banff bidding another friend farewell friday night which kept me out quite late!)

So, like I said, early to rise. It wasn't long before I was forcing my body to wake from its slumber as I trudged up a steep mountain trail. And not long after before I was really moving. In a short 50 min, Megan and I had caught up to a group of friends of ours at the old fire lookout, they had left 20 min prior to us!

We continued on from the lookout up an unmarked trail to the peak. This involved a little more work than just walking a steep trail. We had to find a route through the hill of loose rocks. It wasn't long before Megan and I had charged up the mountain. After a short section of true scambling we reached the peak.

We sat down on a ledge, let our feet dangle over the edge and enjoyed the view... All of 30 feet of visibility as a storm had rolled in and we were getting snowed on!

During this time our friend Kirby caught up to us. We took some pics, clebrating our triumph over the mountain and were planning to head back down when the clouds cleared for a second...

We weren't at the summit!

We had a few hundered more metres to go still! We pushed ourselves through the cold wind and snow and reached the true summit. Now we were freezing and made short work of the pictures before heading down the mountain as fast as possible.

Back at the fire lookout we were greeted with... You guessed it.

Sunny skies!

Not 20 min after we reached the summit, there wasn't a cloud in the sky! Gotta love the rockies!

On the way down, Megan and I decided to take a detour over to sherbrooke lake. It added a nice 3km to our trip, but it was great scenery and the weather was clear. If only it was a few degrees warmer and we may have decided to go swimming.

the swing

Remember the thrill? The excitement you got when you first got on a swing. When you felt the rushing wind blow past your face as you pumped your feet. Trying to get higher and higher - but yet you were never satisfied. You never reached a point high enoough to think "wow, this is a little too high"

What would you say if I found a swing that brought you to that place and beyond?

I first heard of this swing about a year ago. I heard it was built on the edge of a cliff! It was huge and thrilling! But, noone would tell me where it is.

Only two people I knew, knew where it was, and they decided they wouldn't tell anyone where it was... Well, only one person, and only when they were leaving. They said they wanted to keep it a secret!

Well, what they didn't realize is that my middle name is William, which is actually short for Sherlock Holmes! I paid close attention to what they said, kept an ear to the gound for any clues. But they were good - all I figured out was that it was on the old trans canada aka the 1A.

I used some deductive reasoning - people knew where it was, and had to drive to it = there must be a parking lot...

I knew that more than just the two of them knew about the swing = well trodden trail

I knew there were only so many trails, but it had to be close to a cliff, and parking lot, and there would be a trail.

I figured I'd start my search at Muleshoe.

Now I wasn't the only person who wanted to find this swing. My good friend Jesse (friend from high school) wanted to find it as well, and he has skills only the most experienced young adults have... He uses Facebook! These girls made a huge blunder, they posted pics. He first said you couldn't see anything - to which I told him there must be a mountain we can identify in a pic!

Well, there was. And he figured the trail must be at muleshoe.

So, logically, we were both thinking. Muleshoe - so we started at Muleshoe.

We located a trail, and started hiking. It took us up a steep, well trodden path. (But not a well built path)

Eventually we came to a split, Jesse took the high trail, me the low trail. This is where I looked up to the top of the ridge and saw a bear! Good time to realize I didn't have bear spray on me!

So we chose to walk the low trail. Not 50 metres later we found it!

A huge, massive, super fantstic swing!

I'm talking big, like 30'+ from seat to end of rope. The seat was 5' off the ground! But it wasn't built on the edge of a cliff, but on a really steep hill.

It is imossible to describe the fear that o was rooted in as I stepped up to the swing. Would it hold me? Will I fall? It would really hurt if I fell! That's a long way down! Will that old tree of a cross beam hold under my weight? Ok, so I'm only 165lbs, but still... What if it breaks? How long has it been there? Can I trust it?

Well, there was only one way to find out, a test run.

It took every nerve in my body to convince myself that it might hold, and every muscle in my body to actually let myself swing!

The feeling I went through defies anything I have ever done. At least sky diving I could trust that the guy knew what he was doing, but here, I didn't trust the swing to hold.

But it did, and it sen me way in the air! Probably 60'+ at the peak of the swing!

It was crazy! Nuts! But oh so much fun!

It took a lot of convincing to get cousin Mel to go, but she eventually released herself to it.

I have a few pics, maybe I'll get them up on facebook.

Now, I mentioned a fox and wolf.

So I brought maddy to the swing this past friday, it was our last time to spend together before she move home (actually, she left this morning). But on the way to the swing I saw a red fox not 20' from me, and a Wolf not 50 metres from me on the eay back to the parking lot... Both sightings were in the same spot I saw the bear on the first trip! How odd eh?

Anyway, it's well past me bedtime!

Goodnight!

a life of organized chaos

Wow! It's been over a month since my last posting! Where did the time go? Where do I start to tell you about the last month? What happened in the last month? Craziness!

I guess may started with the end of the ski season. What a fun time. Enjoying the sun, the soft snow, and skiing in a sweater! It was loads of fun, especially talking to friends about the exciting summer coming up.

I actually missed the last day of the ski season. Why would I do such a thing? Were 38 days on the hill in one year too much? Well, no. It was just that the person I was supposed to ski with bailed on me, and I was invited to go somewhere else... That place was Paintballing!

Oh ya!

What better way to kick off summer than by shooting all of the security department in some "friendly" war games! It was great!

I could talk about this much longer, but it's late and I'd like to get to bed soon, and typing on a blackberry doesn't go so fast!

So, on to the next big event!

May long weekend took me on a trip to sights unseen by me before. A small town known as Whistler! Apparently they plan to hold a large international sporting competition there next year?? Maybe it will be something like what brought me there. The annual fairmont western regional hockey tournament!

We totally rebuilt the hockey team for this event. We trimmed the fat, so to speak. We went with a sceleton team of 9 players (no goalie). We picked up a local goalie and took to the ice with what came to be known as "the dominators"

Well, not really.

We had a rough time with the first game - tied at half we pulled things together for the final stretch to win 6-1.

That night we cruised the downtown of whistler. It was interesting, I like the set-up, as it has a large pedestrian street where all the shops, restaraunts and bars are, but I like the feel of banff more. Less city folk. Anyway, we called it early (1am) as we had a game at 8am

That game was a total blow out. 11-1. We really took it to them! Then we wrapped up the final game of the round robin with a 3-3 tie. Actually, we almost lost as we were losing 3-1 with 10 min to go. I think we were just a little tired from the late night, early morning.

That night was supposed to be the party night... I went for the free food and then went to bed early.

The next day we were up early again, this time for golf! We got ourselves booked onto the #1 course in canada! We had enough time to play 10 holes before it was time to play hockey.

You might think how lucky I was to be there - but - I got sick that morning. I suspect it was food poisoning from that free food! I was in rough shape, but still played.

We changed the lines a little, and destroyed B pool 2nd place team 11-3 in this semi final game, setting us up for the finals against the winner of hotel van and banff springs ( we have a bit of a rivalry with banff as they play against us in the banff league )

We were hoping for banff, but they lost to hotel van (the team we tied 3-3 with in the round robin. The final was to be played the next morning at 9am.

So, I went back to the hotel hoping to finish my round of golf. That didn't happen. My stomach was not happy and I was in bed at 4pm, I got out at 8:30 to get some ginger ale, but got right back to bed and slept through the night. I was hurting!

But that didn't stop me from playing in the finals. Another line change and we were set to take hotel vancouver on! Oh, and one of our players dropped out so we were down to 8 skaters!

They took an early lead, but we tied it up and took a 3-1 lead, then they tied it up, so we took a 4-3 lead, just for them to tie it up again. So we took a 6-4 lead... Just for them to tie it up again... Finally we said enough was enough and we took a 9-6 lead. This time we held onto it and we won the game 9-7.

This marked the first year that lake louise won the tournament, the first year banff wasn't in the finals, and only the second time that banff hasn't won the tournament. (13 wins)

We were quite happy.

Some would even say exstatic!

We rejoiced in the streets... Ok, we didn't, but we held that trophy high!

Anyway, that is the end of that adventure, and it's time for bed, but soon I will update you with more stories. Tales from a youth camp retreat, softball, walking at the lake, meeting new friends, sneaking into abandoned mines, showering under waterfalls, swinging on a massive swing and spotting a bear, fox and wolf from the trail to said swing... But that all must wait until my fingers feel like typing again.

Miss you all back home!

The End of an Era.

it was november 2006 when I first arrived in Lake Louise. Shortly before I arrived, a girl named Madeleine arrived. I only came from Ontario, she came from Switzerland.

It wasn't long before I met her at bible studies. We didn't talk much at first, but soon after we were discovering more and more about each other. She's a great girl, and we've got a lot in common.

We've taken to spending Sunday's together. It's our chance to do what ever. Which normally means skiing through the day, and church at night. When I first skied with Maddy, I was severly out classed. She's got skills! And I had to work to keep up. Maddy introduced me to the almighty double blacks at lake louise. Formerly runs that were just too steep and crazy for me to attempt. (I did one double black in my entire first season! And I was very proud of it) But Maddy encouraged me and waited patiently as I struggled down these double blacks, these , the mightiest of the mighty steep runs!

It was very tough at first, but it wasn't long before the ultimate steeps became my passion! The thrill of turning my skies down the steepest hills around, and being comfortable with the crazy speeds, moguls and drops was something I had never experienced before. I can only describe it as being nuts! But I loved it! And more, I loved the company!

It's been about two full seasons that I've been skiing with Maddy, almost every Sunday during the 7 month season has been spent beside Maddy. Going down run after run, and talking on the chair lift on the way back up. It's been a wonderfull time, that has now come to an end.

Maddy will be moving home to switerland on June 4th. I will be very sad that day. There's no denying that I'll probably shed a tear at this girls departure. This time she's leaving for good.

With only one Sunday left in this ski season at lake louise, we've already had our last ski date. We may get lucky and move to some back country stuff, but we've already spent our last day on the hill.

It was a wonderfull day, we actually didn't ski too much. We cruised a few runs, went down whitehorn 1, a run that I never thought I could do! And found a few areas with some fresh powder. This time of year the snow is very icy. It's not too fun, but sometimes you can find a soft area. We found a few of those areas!

But we also found the volleyball court! And we made sure to play some v-ball on the snow against a few other mountain lovers. Ya, two on two in ski boots... Not that easy! But loads of fun.

We made it back on the hill to do some more skiing, and called it a day. Well, after skiing we headed into banff for dinner and church, but that's another story for another day...

For now, I will just say that I will miss my regular ski dates with Maddy, but I wish her the best as she moves back home. It's her time, just like we all reach our due date, she's reached hers.

Road Trip part#2

After a long week of work, the urge to hit the road was strong again in my soul. I was in need of a fix, and I knew exactly where I had to go.

Back in November I had attended the snow-show at the Banff Mountain Film Festival, where they had ballots to win a day pass for two at Fernie Mountain Resort. Three people won and I was one of them!

It's been 5 months and I had yet to use this pass that expires at the end of the 08-09 ski season. Did I mention that the end of the season is tuesday April 14th?

In other words, it was time for a second road trip.

The cast was different for this event. Barbie and Bikini Barbie were out, Mark and Random Aussie Karin were in.

But first, it was Easter in Calgary!

This Road trip began on Saturday night. The youth from church were having a hockey night in Canada party, including poutine, pizza, road hockey and the flames vs. Oilers game. They've heard of my love of hockey and asked if I'd like to attend. An invitation to which I joyfully accepted! The night was great, even as we played through the cold rain. My team took an early lead to start, but then they did the unthinkable... A goaltender change. The new kid was a superstar. Nothing worked on this kid! I tried deaks, shots through screens, pulling him to one side with a drop pass to a team mate for the open net... We couldn't beat him. We had to focus so much on offense that our defense fell apart.

We lost 10-8.

But that was just the start of the weekend road trip. Now I was off to Calgary. I made it to Jerry and Nancy's just in time to see the girls plucking their eyebrows...

I went straight for the hot tub.

The searing pain of 104 degree water! Perfect to relax my aching muscles after the arduous hockey match! Ahhhhh.

Easter Sunday Morning, Church. I was sad that I was missing Church in Banff as my pastor had been preaching through John for the last... Well, quite a while, and I was sure he'd have a great sermon prepared.

Instead I listened to a pastor talk about how we miss Jesus in our lives... His passage to base his sermon on was the resurection from Mathew, and how Mary Magdaleen went to the tomb and didn't find Jesus's body...

In ther words, I wasn't impressed with the sermon, I thought it wasn't even bassed in scripture and was a waste of time to listen to, as others in the congregation must have felt as well, as I looked and saw 6 men either sleeping or just resting their eyes!

David, I read your blog and here is one thought of mine: our generation is looking for a reason to believe the Bible is factual and truth, as we have been bombarded with political correctedness and acceptance of others and their religions. We have been taught to challenge authority and question why things are the way they are. We are in the y generation... Because we ask "why"

Now, I think many pastors out there are great speakers, but as this pastor did this past Easter, he talked about nothing from the bible, but from his own experience. Now, I don't doubt that he's been through some great adventures that I'd love to hear about, but I'm at church to hear God's word.

I think many Pastors need to get back to the word and open it up for the church. The Bible is so intricate and detailed that if you just take the time to reveal what is already writen, the sermon will write itself and our generation will understand why and what is in the bible. We don't need to argue theology, just dig into the word and see what is there.

Anyway, that's enough of a tangent when I'm supposed to writing about a road trip! (I also agree that there needs to be more relationships between young and old)

So, back to my story.

After church it was time for the Annual Easter Egg Hunt, which this year I was privilaged to be a part of! It was Boys against Girls in the ultimate battle of the sexes, challenging wit, endurance and stamina. We were given clues to locations around the property and we had to find our way around.

Now did I mention it was boys vs. Girls? And I live in lake louise, Dan lives in Red deer and Jesse, (Mels bf) well, he doesn't live at the farm either. So, we were at a serious disadvantage!

We went through the clues slowly, made sure we thought about them and worked our way from one clue to the next. Eventually we came to a clue saying "find me in the onace, no - not the ocean"

We couldn't solve it.

We starred blakly at each other. I thought it was the make of one of their tractors or some equipment... But wat is a uneco? Or an eco-na?

We decided to re-convene in the barn. In the barn is a whiteboard, so we started writting out all the 120 ways the 5 letters can be arranged...

Have you figured it out yet? Jesse gave up and started calling Nancy to see if he could get another clue. Just as he was calling, I figured it out: canoe...wow... Did I ever feel... "Slow"

Off to the pond we went to find the final clue, all while hearing the heckling from the girls. We finished the challenge a full two clues ahead of the girls! We celebrated by eating our chocolates on the deck watching the girls finish the hunt!

After dinner it was time to get on the road to fernie. I drove to the otherside of calgary to meet up with Mark and Karin and we aimed the car for fernie.

But we've got bad aim...

An hour later we were only at the south end of Calgary, still 4 hours from Fernie. As I write this in the car on our return trip, we just made the turn that we missed on the way to fernie. Like literally... As I typed... How ironic? I know that's the wrong word, but I'm short on vocabulary today.

But... With the handy google maps that comes with a blackberry, a tim hortons coffee and a number of mixed cd's, we managed to make it to fernie around 11:30pm. At this point we weren't even sure if the hill would beopen as we heard on the radio that it was Fernie's last day! We were a little nevous that we just did a 4 hour trip for the joy of eachothers company.

In the morning we rose early to venture out to see what Fernie has to offer. It was open!!! We discovered that it's a big hill, not nearly the vertical or size of Lake Louise, but spread wide with a lot of challenging terrain.

The days have been warm, and there was some really heavy, packy snow that had fallen overnight.

This possed some problems for my posse.

I managed to get through the day with-out falling. I had a few close calls, and lost a ski once... But that's nothing compared to Mark and Karin who managed to fall 3-4 times every run! One of marks last falls was simply spectacular!

We were cruising pretty quiickly down the hill on one of the last runs of the day. The conditions were the best we had all day. So we let lose and pointed the tips of our skiis at the bottom of the hill. It wasn't long before we were going, as some describe it, Mach 10!

That's when it happened. First I saw a ski left behind. How can mark stay up a this speed on one ski? Well, he couldn't.

Another ski left behind.

You might ask how can Mark survive with-out a ski at Mach 10, well, we don't know! All I can say is that I couldn't see mark in all the snow. It was a big plume of snow everywhere! When it settled back down, there were two skiis on the hill, and a completely white body far off down the hill, he was completely covered in snow, save the biggest smile I've ever seen on his face. Somehow he survived the crash, and he seemed to enjoy what happened!

We did one more run and called it a day. It was time to drive the 4 hours back home.

More coffee and music for the return trip, but this time we don't need the google maps!

Road Trip part #1b

I left off the last post as I was heading down from the roof-top hot tub to make breakfast.

I don't like to brag, but I made a pretty darn good breaky! Pancakes, bacon, eggs, fruit toppings, smoothies, whipping cream! The only thing missing was some of that good home made maple syrup that everyone has been making lately!

I must say, I really wish I was home to enjoy that fresh maple syrup!

But, we enjoyed breakfast on the balcony as I talked to dad about a new boat, and was heckled by mom about being in a hotel room with two girls and we didn't go to church on Sunday! To witch I tried to sneak out by saying I didn't know where the church was, but it took David a few seconds to find the local CRC and make sure I knew where to go!

After breakfast we checked out and went for another walk up the boardwalk, but in the opposite direction to the night before. We were able to see some sailboat races! And I had to mention that I'm the only person in the family who hasn't tipped the sailboat yet... To which you would say that I'm not trying hard enough... Either way, it's still safer with me!

Well, then it was time to hit the road and a few more timmies stops got us to Revelstoke. Bikini Barbie was getting annoyed at all the Tim's stops, so I was just getting out to check on the coolant levels. Louise had been running a little warmer than usual and I wanted to make sure she could get up rogers pass alright...but after a fluid check and both Barbie and Bikini Barbie going into Tim's, I followed in and

I locked the keys in the car.

It seems noone has metal hangers either.

A short walk into town ensued and we found some locals enjoying the sun who gave us one of their personal coat hangers.

Thankfully I have a bit of experience with this and shrtly after getting back to the car we had the door open and we were back on the road.

That coolant check...

Seems I checked the wrong thing. Louise was missing a beat once in a while during long climbs or heavy acceleration and not far past Revelstoke the "service engine soon" light came on... Oh bother!

But, she limped home and I made it in time for hockey.

We lost 4-0, hockey is now done for the season.

Road Trip part#1

Yes, for you naysayers, it has been I who have posted all of the last two blogs! All previous were not I, and I will miss they days when I could log on and find out that I have a new gf named barbie, or that I swam through an avalanche (which actually is what you are supposed to do! Lucky guess David!) But yes, it is I who have written the last stories...

Now, on to my latest adventures!

David mentioned that he has 8 months of winter, well, I am currently at month 8, and stil expect another month or two before I can think of wearing shorts or until june before I can swim in the lake... Thankfully hockey is still going and keeping me semi-sane!

We are in the playoffs and the semi-finals, it is a best of 3 series, and Thursday we played game 2, Monday was game 1,

Game 1 we managed to have a 2-1 lead when the ref's called the game! Seems that one of their players was drinking alcoholic beverages on the bench! What a fool! But he learned his lesson as his team automatically forfeited the game.

Game 2: we managed to lose 2-1. Needless to say, this team doesn't like losing! We ended the regular season with a 17-3 record! Along with the loss, the team started attacking each-other for the little mistakes and as the captain, I became frutrated... Very frustrated! So, I needed to get away!

Barbie, Bikini Barbie, (that is the name she chose!) and I were all feeling like we needed to get away, and we always talk about road trips... So thursday night we decided it was time!

The former director of operations from the chateau, whom I played hockey and softball with last year has become the GM of the delta grand okanagan resort... So, an e-mail was sent, arrangements made, and we were on our way...

Mandatory stop in golden was needed... Guess why? Yes. Tim Hortons! And then on to salmon arm, and another Tim Hortons! And then down to kelowna! And, cruising down all roads I took on the bike tour, although in the wrong direction! So I got lost!

But it wasn't long before we made it to the hotel, downtown kelowna, on the waterfront! Check facebook to see the pics!

We checked in and found out we were in one of the best rooms in the hotel! It's in the royal residence pavillion! We walked in the room... As the name implies: 2.5 bedrooms, 2 bath, balcony, fireplace, laundry, kitchen! A full apt! And on the roof, swimming pool, hot tub, fitness centre and... BBQ's!

A walk around the waterfront park was a must, and then off to the grocey store. Apparently these girls have heard of my bbq prowress. So... Steaks it was!

It is now morning and I'm back in the hot tub on the roof, but it's time to go make breakfast and get on the road to get back to Lake Louise. Game 3 is tonight and we need to win!

A day on the hill...

So, as I mentioned yesterday, mel, tara and nancy came up today to go skiing! Barbie was excited for me to get a chance to meet up with mel, but sad that she wouldn't see me this day.

I did have to work, but convinced cathy (my boss) that I needed the afternoon off. By 1pm I was at the hill and ready to ski!

We started with some simple runs, rodney's ridge is a fav. Of mine. Generally good snow, but steep! Then off to E.R. 7, it stands for eagle ridge... Not emergency room! It took some convincing and encouraging words to get mel to go down the hill, but she did it with style and grace! Then off to kiddies korner. Another fav!

When we reached this hill I discovered that the snow was tracked out really bad, and I got stuck on a ridge. I promptly fell off said ridge (about a 10ft drop) bounced off the snow a few times, rolled and stood back up on my ski's. All this infront of mel and a ski school that followed us in to kiddies korner. I wasn't hurt but my pride took a beating!

A few more runs and a trip through the terrain park finished the day off.

Mel and I had some chances to talk, but not nearly enough, so she'll be back on the weekend to ski and possibly meet Barbie.

A date with barbie

Well, it's past 1:00 am, so I should get to bed, but I thought I should mention my latest date with Barbie.

Barbie is really supportive of my active lifestyle and enjoys watching me play... Whatever I am playing that day. Today was curling. We were in the bronze medal game! And she came to watch! It was a loosing effort! We were down 5-0 after two ends but she still cheered for us... "HARD... HAAARRRD". She'd yell when we needed to sweep in a rock. We started to claw back, but could never regain from the first end.

After the game we went to the elk to celebrate some friends birthday's and then the eddie burger. Good times with good friends. Needless to say. We were out way too late, and now it is time for bed.

Cousin Mel, Tara and Nancy are coming skiing tomorrow, so I need to convince my boss to give me the day off!

A typical Saturday

Yesterday, I woke up, had breakfast, and practiced my crokinole triple bank shot. It wasn't long until people were begging me to go up on the slopes. So I grabbed my skis and poles, and headed out into the great white. I performed my standard 'donut' as I parked my car at the lodge. Then I travelled up the mountain in the gondola. I saw signs that the gondola was about to break, so I opened the safety door and jumped to safety. Just in time. Unfortunately, I had landed in a rocky spot, so my skis are going to need to be waxed again. I was also a little disoriented, so I must have headed out in the wrong direction. I thought it was a little weird for me to be breaking fresh tracks but didn't pay much attention until I heard a roar behind me. The roar was a wall of snow! So I chucked my stuff (to make myself lighter), and as the avalanche caught up to me I began a freestyle swim to keep myself above the snow. I was lucky not to hit anything and to get to the top. There I saw that the avalanche had carried me far into unknown terrain. But, as a good employee of Lake Louise, I knew that snow only falls on the East side of the mountain (the other stuff is manufactured). So all I had to do was get to a side of the mountain that didn't have snow. It was lucky for me that I still had my snowshoes strapped to my back. So off I went. It wasn't long before I heard another roar behind me. I turned around to see that a cute momma bear was following me. So I quickly took off my snowshoes. As the bear charged toward me and then leaped to grab me, I sank into the snow, and the bear went straight over top of me. I knew I didn't have long, so I tunneled through the snow to the other side of the bear (snowshoes are great as shovels!). I popped out of the snow on the other side of the bear and whacked it on the head with my shovel. Of course, this knocked the bear right out, so for emphasis I said, "Bad Kitty," and went on my way. It took me about three hours to find my way back to the other side of the mountain. I was slowed down by a lot of animals running up to me to give me presents of nuts and berries, as thanks for beating up the bear, which was apparently the bully of that side of the mountain. Finally, I made it to the other side of the mountain, only to find that I had made it to my appartment... My car was still at the slopes. Tomorrow I'll have to walk back around to get my car.
But that's just a typical day.

Woh to the Spring Thaw of My Heart - by Michael Geertsema

As the winter turns to spring

I contemplate what the weather will bring

Are these thoughts just spring love

or something given from above

Alas, our time on the slopes was short

Our trips up the mountain will have to abort

Dear lady, my new-found love,

You alight upon my heart just like a dove

I cherish our rides upon the gondola

In joy I cry out as my heart falls-ah!

For you my lady, my new found love

My New "Friend"

Lately I've been hanging out with this new girl I've met. She's pretty cool. Some might call her a ski-bunny. I mean, who else wears a bikini when it's -20 outside? I've been missing my family a lot and she's been filling the void. So we've been playing together. We have great conversations. Sometimes I brush her hair. She has gorgeous hair. I'm thinking of going to Banff and getting her some new clothes. I think her wardrobe could use some more variety.

In this picture we're just hanging out on the slopes.

And here we're just hanging out on the deck.

I'm looking into plane tickets so I can bring her home with me on my next visit!

How my love of bicycles and the open road began

It was the middle of summer, or maybe fall, or maybe just the spring. I'm not sure. But whatever season it was... it was also the time of year when creeks are not at their fullest. You might say that the creeks are half empty. Or, half-full, depending on your perspective.
My cousin Philip was over at our house for a visit. This was when we were still young, and loved to tour around on our BMX bikes.
My bike was a little different than my older brother David's. My bike was blue. With a little bit of white. And Handle-bar brakes.
David's bike was red and white, and had foot-pedal brakes.
For some reason or other, the three of us were outside... Philip, David, and I. We had decided to go for a bike ride down the ol' highway called "2nd line road," in the easterly direction of Kanata.
Philip was given my bike to ride. David used Stevin's, and I took David's bike.
It was a good day to ride. To be sure, this was a frequent route David and I took on our many excursions away from home.
As we travelled we talked about things, that young, 8-12 year old boys talk about. We weaved on and off the road, and paid little attention to the time as we travelled.
There is a creek that bisects 2nd line road. Depending on the season, it is either half-full, or half-empty.
We decided to check it out, because water has a way of drawing children to it. It is somehow mesmerizing to see the water ripple and flow, and sometimes throw things into it.
So it was that, being so engrossed by the water, I decided to get a closer look, and decided to slowly roll my bike off the shoulder of the road and on to the culvert.
This proved to be a mistake. In a temporary lapse of brilliance, I forgot that I no longer had hand brakes.
As I slowly rolled toward the end of the culvert, I suddenly realized that I would not stop, panicked, flailed my arms, let out a sound, and watched my front tire roll off the culvert, tipping me and my bike into a 3 foot fall to the creek below.
Hence, I later decided I would redeem myself by biking across the continent.
The End.

Soon To Be Michael's Blog

This page is soon to be Michael's Blog. Unfortunately only his sister-in-law remembers how to get onto it....unfortunate for him that is. I think that if he sent a package of Rocky Mountain soap to my home in Barrie, I could be persuaded to remind him of how to access this page....