A long ramble

This weekend, because my internet was disinclined to function, I could not figure out a bus timetable so I ran to the beach to meet some friends. (When planning the morning, awesome!L commented that the only people she knew that considered running as a form of transportation were people who had been running a long time. In my books, three years does not equal a long time running.) Then I ran from the beach to where I was meeting other people to play soccer. Afterwards I got a ride halfway home and ran/walked the rest of the way. My thought process? “Do I really want to wait for bus to get across the bridge when I could get there just as fast by foot?” And then as my bus came up at my transfer point, “Do I really want to waste a bus ticket on seven blocks?”

All told I ran and walked about 9km, in addition to playing soccer for about an hour and a half. It was a smoking hot morning and I’d completed pretty well a full circle across two bridges and parts of Kitsilano and the West End. It really just boggles the mind how much a person’s attitude can change in such a relatively short period of time. After I had some lunch, I went down to English Bay where people were already flocking in preparation for the second night of “Celebration of Lights” firework festival. I settled myself down, slathered on a ton of sunblock and slept for two hours.



I really do love Vancouver and the fact that there is so much to do here. It doesn’t hurt that it is easy on the eyes as well. It has its problems, a city of this size and surrounding environs will have problems because last I’d checked we haven’t perfected societal responsibility or solved the great injustices of the world. But for all that, I can’t imagine myself living in California or in Nevada. I can’t see myself achieving the sort of personal goals that I have here in either of those places.

A lot of that has to do with the wonderful people that I am lucky enough to have in my life. It has taken a lot of poking and prodding and dares to get me to the point where I am today. A lot of that is attributable to this fine lady here, and the story she relates here is hilarious because it’s the god’s honest truth. Amazing!S is one of those people who inspires others not just with her encouragement and belief in them, but also because she goes out and puts her money where her mouth is. She may push and challenge others to be better than they think they can be – but it’s a drop in the pan compared to what she expects of herself. I think you’d have to be dead to not respond to that kind of energy. Actually, that might account for the recent zombie problem Burnaby has been having….

There are also just the wonderful people that I met and enjoy being around – enjoy so much that I will train for a marathon just to eat breakfast with them. Yesterday I went out into ridiculous heat and humidity to run around the forest for an additional hour and a half, sweating straight through every article of clothing, just to meetup with these people. That doesn’t make sense!! I could just get up and come meet them at the restaurant! But it just wouldn’t be the same as comparing runs and shooting the shit as my legs stick to the vinyl of the booth seat from sweat. I wouldn’t have earned my eggs and ham.

By some sweet serendipity, my soccer team is also full of interesting, vivacious and keen women. Last year, at the end of a twelve hour session of drinking as we were moving into the tequila shots the topic of a team for the beach soccer tournament came up. Most of the ladies present at the session had participated the previous year but I had not as playing soccer on sand is exceedingly difficult. No, really. It’s exhausting. However, given a few rounds of tequila, I cried, “How bad could it be?! Sign me up – I’ll play this year!” It was hard and we did lose but it was also a riot and this year’s team was born – Team Awesome! So yesterday, after cleaning my apartment, I went out again into the sun to practice our beach soccer technique. Which for me consisted of a lot of flailing about and falling in the sand. Pretty much my same level of ability as last year. The good spirits of everyone involved and the plans to get to the beach early to stake out a tent area and setup our BBQ make all the effort worthwhile. It’s going to be two days of a bunch of people getting sweaty, sandy, drinking beers and eating grilled food. I don’t know any better way to sum up my summer.

My life isn’t perfect; I still don’t know what I want to do with my career and I’m sometimes overwhelmed at the financial prospects of a future in a world with an economy that’s chasing my bank account down the drain. I at least have the good fortune to have wonderful companions with me on this journey and truly, that is the wealth that is priceless.