Vancouver 2010 Street Art

Images of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics “Public Street Art”.

Location: Granville Street, Vancouver (between Robson & West Georgia)

Musings of a novice web designer

It’s almost one o’clock in the morning. I’ve spent almost the entire day at the computer, working on the site overhaul for wanderingpixie.com.

So far, reasonably good. I’ve created the primary template & CSS for use across the entire site and generated all the first level pages today.  However, for the articles and photo galleries, I daresay the “Detach from Template” command in Dreamweaver may come in handy from time to time!

In conjunction with the design work, I’m also going back through my entire travel photo archive. I’ve done this before, back in 2007, whilst working on the “Phase I” version of the site. Even though I’ve just started on the Photography Certificate program at Langara, the lessons I’ve learnt so far have been invaluable. I’m cultivating the ability to be more critical and objective when it comes to my own photography. It’s an essential trait, particularly when one is sorting through about 20-30,000 photos (!)

I went through the entire 2004 archive yesterday, followed by some of the early 2005 shots today. This part of the project led to some colorful idioms spouted to the thin air and the pigeons on the balcony. Even when one takes the relative primitive capabilities of my old Vivitar digital camera into account…AGH! A major portion of the photos from that period aren’t really usable, for various reasons. Dodgy composition, blurring, you name it. Most of the shots in question are great memories for me to reflect upon personally, but they’re not really suitable for publishing them on the Internet for all to see.

If I had the ability to travel back in time – or at least, Doctor Who’s telephone number – I would go back to the early 2000s, slap myself around the head and tell myself to get cracking with some photography related studies sooner. Yes, it is true that every photographer has to start somewhere. Yet, I can’t shake the feeling of kicking myself for the lost photographic opportunities that were all but handed to me on a silver platter, particularly in Europe.

One valuable lesson I did learn in 2004 was the concept of taking charge of one’s own photographic storage. A dodgy CD burn job at a photo place in London led to the loss and/or corruption of some of my Europe and UK shots. My trip to Stonehenge was the worst casualty – only two or three photographs survive from that entire day.

If nothing else, that debacle has given me inspiration for the second of what will hopefully be many articles on wanderingpixie.com.

1.23am – all caffeine has worn off and I’m getting tired. Time to call it a night, I think.

Stranded in the desert, a high-tech cautionary tale

The majority of this post is actually an email sent to me by a dear friend of mine. He’s had some…interesting issues to deal with at his place of employment over the last few years. Earlier today, he sent out a highly amusing description of his current workplace. This has given me the best laugh I’ve had all week!

Note: Yes, my friend gave me his express permission to post this. However, names and places have been changed to protect the innocent (and not-so-innocent). By the way, his name is NOT Cindy!

* * * * *

The Halloween candy should have been my first clue…but let’s get back to that later, shall we? Sometimes it makes you want to go into the “lounge”, pull the pink plastic shower curtain, and cry.

As most of you know, Company X has opened a new facility in Albuquerque New Mexico, except not really. As a convenience to it’s employees, Company X located this facility across the street from the Albuquerque “City Center”.  Stay with me here.

The Albuquerque “City Center”, as a convenience to it’s citizens, is located approximately 13.3 miles northwest of the actual city of Albuquerque, in the middle of what is by any reasonable person’s definition, barren desert.

The new Company X facility was designed by the award winning San Francisco architect Johnny the Git, who in all probability, had never before seen a desert in his life.

It’s an excellent example of post-modernist angular design in steel and glass, boasting striking colors, and would probably work nicely for an abstract art gallery or an avant-garde restaurant; as a place to conduct serious technical research and business however, it poses some interesting challenges.

The sun, coming directly through the glass to shine on us during the afternoon, for example, causes the room to heat up to a toasty 82 degrees (this in January). You also have the option of having said sun shine directly into your eyes, or face away from it such that the glare on your computer screen makes working impossible (of course there are other conditions which have already caused this so hey, what’s one more?). We literally brought in beach umbrellas to counter the glare, and the heat isn’t too big a problem since by 4:00 the sun is gone and the industrial air conditioning has kicked in, cooling you to a nice chilly 58 degrees (at which point you need that jacket you brought in).

And it’s really ok if you’re too hot, cold, or blinded to talk, especially since there are no cell towers out here and the building occupies a cellular dead zone. Of course we do have phones; fancy computer programmed phones which suffer from a variety of amusing programming and computer glitches. Periodically, incoming calls will be routed to the sales team upstairs. If you should happen to call for me and end up talking to a very nice gentleman named Adam Brown, I recommend that you politely but firmly decline to discuss the many benefits of the latest 8086 Storage Server (unless you are extremely bored or are in fact, LOOKING for a new 8086 Storage Server in which case Adam’s your guy).

Of course there’s always email (except for the ten minutes before and after every hour, during which time it seems neigh well impossible to establish links with the Exchange servers in San Antonio) for some as yet unexplained reason.

Then there’s the furniture; retro, uncomfortable and difficult to look at for very long (bright yellows and avocado greens dominate the color theme).

The appliances are state of the art though- the refrigerator for example is equipped with technology to identify you based on the magnetically encoded badge you are supposed to be wearing at all times. It calls me “Cindy”.

“Hi Cindy!” it flashes on it’s digital display screen when I get within 3 feet of it. I always answer back- “Hi Fridge!” (the appliances are at least functional, and I try to be nice to them; not knowing if they are capable of having bad moods, I figure it’s better to stay on their good side).

My friend Brian, however (a rather dour, cynical fellow from New England) generally addresses the fridge in more colorful language; “Hi Brian!” it flashes at him (it never forgets HIS name). “Bite me!” Brian will answer back, or if he’s just come from a meeting, “!@#@ off” or “shut the @#$! up” or, (my favorite) “Your mother was a toaster oven”.

Two of the six restrooms (the two closest to me, naturally) are out of commission; blocked off with that yellow crime scene tape that announces “DO NOT CROSS” in bold black letters (the kind you see on those CSI shows whenever there’s been a murder). One poor lady, in desperation, ducked under the crime scene tape; the resultant flood of water soaked the carpeting in every direction for twenty yards, and would have prompted Noah, had he been here, to begin nervously assembling animals two by two.

When it all gets too much, you can take a break in the employee “lounge” which is equipped (I swear to god) with a shiny silver disco ball (perhaps in anticipation of John Travolta Night), and a large pink shower curtain on circular rails, which one may use as a partition to escape temporarily, the cares of the world.

This from the same people who, as a Christmas gift, sent us small cheap looking metal tins with exactly 6 small pieces of stale Halloween candy. The price of the postage was nearly double the cost of the tins themselves (this we know because the prices of both were clearly visible on the package).

If you’ll excuse me now, I’m off to have a meaningful conversation with the freezer.

The Sundering

My now-ex partner dumped me two hours after midnight on New Year’s. To say it was not the greatest way to start the New Year would be an understatement.

In all honesty, I can’t say I was totally surprised. There have been some problems and issues for a while, but the situation appeared to resolve itself somewhat towards the end of the year. We even went to Winnipeg to spend Christmas with the family, a rather enjoyable experience overall. However, tension reared it’s ugly head yet again, albeit in the form of external family circumstances. At the end of it, Muggins here took the brunt of anger, frustration and hurt that was meant to be directed elsewhere.

Fortunately, I already had a contingency plan in place, due to an ugly incident that occurred in early December 2009.  Said plan was called into action on New Year’s Day. I can certainly say I am grateful for good fortune and good people.

Rather than typing out everything all over again, I’m including some excerpts from two posts made at one of my regular online forums.

(From January 7th, 2010)

In all honesty, I really don’t want to hear the word “relationship” for at least the next year or so. Fun and games, maybe, but even that will take time. This year, it’s time for me to get back to me and what I want and need, sayin’?

I’ve spent the last few days deep-cleaning the kitchen (we’re talking wiping down every damn surface, scrubbing the floor, the works), cleaning up and sorting out the desk area and moving in a few bits and pieces of my stuff. It’ll be a gradual process but if all works out well, I may wind up taking over the lease later this year.

Right now, the important thing is that I had a place to go, where I can be safe and be alone for a while. It’s an extraordinarily peaceful feeling having my own real SPACE again. No more feeling like I’m walking on eggshells half the time.  No more having to deal with constant emotional bullshit and her misery. No more putting trust into a person that has proven themselves selfish and untrustworthy (with a small bunch of broken promises to boot).

It amuses me that whenever I’ve gone by the old apartment to pick up bits of my stuff, she’s often sitting on her couch, watching the TV and looking utterly miserable. As unflattering as it may be to admit, it satisfies me and my sense of vengeance to see her sitting there looking depressed and pathetic. However, she’s made her choice (and her bed), she can fucking well lie in it and drown in her wine bottle.

In the meantime, I have more moving/organizing/cleaning to do. On top of that, my first college class of 2010 kicked off tonight, so that’ll also help to keep me out of mischief. I predict that this will be a busy, but good year.

Emotionally…it’s still a little touch-and-go. The last day or so hasn’t been too bad, but there’s still bleeding inside. I just hide it well.

And from yesterday (January 18th, 2010)

I’m holding up pretty well. Indeed, some things are turning out better than expected.

At the moment, cleaning the new apartment has tapered off, for two reasons. Firstly, I’m a little busy again with my studies. Secondly, my friend needs to get over here soon to go through some of their stuff and sort out some apartment-related issues. It’s quite the work-in-progress: right now, I feel like I’m living in Boxland!

As far as relations with the ex are concerned, that’s turning out surprisingly well. We’re back on talking terms and we’ve even hung out a little twice (once for a Canucks game on TV, the second being Sunday evening when I went to pick up my chair). On the whole, it’s all reasonably groovy, but there are the moments where she’ll lapse into her passive-aggressive comments & BS again.

In some ways, I do miss her and being with her. For all the BS, there were good times as well. She’s even admitted her wrongdoing in some of her actions, an example being the break-up night. The real issue bothering her that night was issues with her family. However, rather than being rational, she took her anger about it out on me. It is now a running joke between us that my new nickname for her is “Jackass”.

Ultimately, she still has a long way to go. She’s still wrapped up in herself and is completely blind to what’s in front of her. One thing that amuses me is that she complains of wanting someone that loves her, accepts her and will f**k her on a regular basis. HELLO?! She had that right there in the form of me, but her own rage, self-hatred, negativity and resultant actions wrecked it. On top of that, she waxes lyrical about being ‘proud’ of me for my current scholastic endeavours and achievements, yet she broke her promise of supporting me through school.

Emotionally, it’s still somewhat gray. I have good days and bad days, sayin’? I have become something of a mild hermit again, but I do make the effort to get out and about at least once a day for SOMETHING. I do tend to spend a lot of time on my computer for school, projects and generally stuffing about online so I need to watch myself in that regard. My sleeping patterns are a little wacky again and I’ve been bit by the insomnia bug from time to time lately. It’ll be a while yet, but I should be OK eventually. (?)

At the end of the day, what has happened has been for the best. I daresay she and I will wind up remaining friends, but I’m no longer “stuck” there. Having my own space again, as scattered as it is at the moment, is what I needed. There’s really no way to go back to the way things were, not should they. If I ever need a reminder in my weaker moments, my own posts in this thread serve as an excellent reminder.

As for the future…who knows? Right now, I’ve got my Australia trip coming up, which I’m definitely looking forward to! I have a dear friend down there with whom I’ll be staying and travelling with across the Nullarbor to Perth. He’s been quite the rock for me in these last couple of weeks. Other than that, it’ll be a quiet travel year for me, with the exception of a U2 show in Seattle in June and RushCon.

Being a student is what will be taking up a good chunk of my year in 2010. I’m now back at college, continuing my Web Publisher studies. I’ve also started on the Photography Certificate course and come September, I’m hoping to start the Publishing Diploma course. All this study is good, for multiple reasons. Firstly, it’s keeping me busy (which is necessary) and once it’s all done, I’ll have a couple of shiny new Canadian certificates and a diploma. With any luck, by 2011 it’ll be no more temp office monkey jobs for me!

And so this post ends on a good note.

Emerging from the Road

It’s almost horrifying to see that I haven’t posted anything since April. Self-discipline is something I REALLY need to work on.

So, life has been rather interesting – and busy – these last few months. I was working full-time for a while at the data entry center (as mentioned in the “New Job” post). I say “was”, as I received an email at the tail-end of my recent travels advising me of no work being available. Yes, I was away for 5 weeks, but give over, eh? Thank the Gods I have a partner who’s helping me out or I’d be sinking again. The price I pay for being the “Wandering Pixie”…

In July, I went to Toronto for RushCon 9. I’ve been part of the organizing committee for the past two years and it was good to catch up with my fellow Rush peeps. Notable moments include Chickenman, Random Guy, the Limelight gig, rain & shine on Toronto Island and the surprisingly lovely Michael Mosbach. Although I can’t stand the thought of ever living in Toronto, it does make for a pleasant visit.

Soon, the committee will be meeting to start planning for RushCon 10 next year. There is talk of perhaps holding it somewhere other than Toronto. Whether that comes to pass or not, time will tell, but personally I think it’ll be a good thing. A change of scenery, a breath of fresh air…all that.

On the Vancouver front, I’m now sharing an apartment with my partner. Whilst I do miss my old apartment, my current situation just made it financially untenable. Sharing a one-bedroom place does get a little cramped at times, but it’s working out quite well.

The big event of the last few months was the 5 week trip to the US from late August to early October.  My partner and I travelled together for the first part of it, from Vancouver down to the Oregon Coast, then out to Nevada for the Burning Man festival. Together being somewhat subjective – she drove the camper truck and I travelled in my own car, as I was continuing on with my travels after Burning Man.

Burning Man itself was quite an experience. It was my second burn, having lost my “burn virginity” back in 2006. There were some good moments, including:

• Ranging out into deep playa on my bike.
• Flying my kite in various locations on the playa.
• Meeting up with George & Gloria again. They’re a lovely couple from Texas who come to the burn every year and are famous for their friendliness, hospitality and breakfast pancakes. Indeed, George introduced me (and my ex-partner/friend Kevin) to the concept of Carolan’s in coffee).
• Bumping into Lady Laughter & Calico at the Temple Burn. (Another couple I met in 2006).
• Quiet time and personal tributes to loved ones at the Temple.
• Dancing my butt off at Opulent Temple.
• “Fire Night” – watching a number of fire performances around the playa, including our neighbour Jim from Florida and the Flaming Lotus Girls.
• John – a guy with whom I had a very interesting conversation out near the playa fence.
• The deep playa drumkit and Hippy Guy.
• Painting myself blue and tearing around the playa on Friday afternoon (including my black pixie wings). This was followed later that evening by a clean-up attempt that lead to the shower cubicle being dubbed the “Exploding Smurf Chamber.”
• Self-bondage & the viking helmet.
• Making a contribution at Picasso Camp.
• Taking an accidental swandive off the back of the camper and onto the playa on Friday night, leaving a heck of a playa mark (which I had to remove by hand) and two trips to the Med Tent. Props to November Anne for the initial first aid!
• Lunatics at the Burning Man (which took FOREVER to come down!)
• Random Conversations. This was my partner’s initiative – we couldn’t settle down on the Saturday night, so at about 5am, we went meandering about on the playa, having random conversations with people and polishing off an entire bottle of wine in the process. Definitely one of the highlights of the burn, not to mention that it’s possibly the first time in my life that I’ve been inebriated at eight o’clock in the morning.
• The Temple Burn.

Overall, a mostly positive experience. However, there were the occasional downsides. There was some personal conflict between myself and my partner during the week, not to mention the dust storms from hell. By Friday, the interior of the camper was an absolute dustbowl. Rather than stressing about it, one gets to the point of simply accepting the fact that playa dust is now a part of oneself. You eat it, breathe it, drink it, sleep in it. It’s simply part and parcel of the whole experience.

Despite my still relative newness to the Burn, I did detect a change in the ‘vibe’ of the event since 2006. Part of it may be a result of no longer having the first-timer’s “Wow!” reaction to everything, but I definitely felt a difference. It seemed that the event was being taken over by the candy-raver/tourist/”let’s go out to the desert and party for a week” crowd. Whilst that element has certainly been present at Burning Man for many years now, it seemed to be much more prevalent this year, crowding out the artists and community-builders. Maybe the event is getting too big or too mainstream, but if the trend is not reversed, the artists will go elsewhere and BM will simply become nothing more than a rave in the desert.

Having said that, there is a possibility I will attend again next year. I’ve certainly learned a few lessons from this year’s experience:

• Camper vans are a cool idea, but when the battery runs out, you may as well have hired a cargo van.
• Kite flying is fun!
• Stay away from the blue greasepaint! Maybe the silver powder may come in handy next year…
• Buy half (if not less) the amount of food – we bought WAY too much food! I wound up taking some of it down to New Mexico with me and donating it to Kevin’s pantry.
• Have an IUD implanted by the time the next burn rolls around so I’m not poleaxed with period cramps for the first 3 days (this seems to be becoming a playa tradition for me).
• Take better photos – scout more, get creative and use the damn tripod!

* * *

Following Burning Man and a turbulent night in Reno, I proceeded south via the east side of Nevada. I’ve always wanted to drive the Extraterrestrial Highway and check out Rachel, Nevada, thanks to it’s proximity to Area 51. Ergo, a good time to take the roads less travelled. On the way, I got pulled over near Hawthorne for speeding (all hail the great god Leadfoot?) but got let off with a warning.

Thanks to the late departure from Reno, the light ran out, so I pulled over for the night in Tonopah, Nevada. My accommodation for the night was the amusingly monikered Clown Motel, named for the collection of clown paraphernalia amassed by the original owner. The collection is now arranged in the main lobby area of the hotel. Some cute, some downright creepy. Dinner that night led me to the conclusion that small casino dining is nothing to write home about. Thankfully, the breakfast the next morning was somewhat more palatable.

The road out to Rachel was one of the loneliest highways I’ve ever encountered during my daytime trips in the US. Barely any traffic for miles, which made for a happy wandering pixie! Mostly desert and ranchlands, with the occasional cattle crossing.

I stopped by the Little Ale’Inn. It turned out to be rather cheesy – a lot of overpriced ’souvenirs’ and a few UFO photos and articles. Not quite what I’d expected, really. From there, I went through Las Vegas, saw the Hoover Dam (finally!) and hit I-40 west through Arizona to land at my friend Kevin’s place in New Mexico. Wound up overnighting in Flagstaff after attracting police attention again. This time, though, it was for a dead license plate light, a small problem easily remedied the next morning at the Goodyear shop near the Super 8 motel.

New Mexico is a place that has been rather dear to my wandering self since my first visits way back in 2005. I can’t quite put my finger on what it is, but there is certainly an energy down there. Maybe it’s the desert landscapes, the mountains (Sandia in particular), the unusual clarity and vividness of the sky, the friendliness of the people…who knows. It’s no mistake that New Mexico has a large population of artists, photographers and other creative types. I’ve said for a long time now that if I had the chance to live in the US, New Mexico is where I would go.

I spent a very pleasant two weeks around the Albuquerque area. Unfortunately, Kevin & I didn’t get to do much together, thanks to his punishing work schedule, but we were able to get away to Santa Fe on the first weekend. The goal of the trip was a day at the Ten Thousand Waves day spa, just the thing I needed after the rigors of Burning Man. A day spent soaking in the tubs, having a wonderful massage and an all-over salt scrub helped to wash the playa away. We timed it pretty well – the Santa Fe Fiesta was happening at the same time. Food stalls, street markets, parades, the town was packed! I was also re-introduced to the joys of New Mexican cuisine at the Blue Corn Cafe, just off the Plaza. I swear, the chili is that good, you walk out feeling high!

Whilst I did spend a fair bit of time on the house front, helping Kevin get his apartment set up, I also took the time to explore the Albuquerque area. Checked out Old Town, the Albuquerque Museum, the Balloon Museum, Petroglyph National Monument and rounded it all off with a trip up to the top of Sandia Peak the day before my departure. Spectacular views over Albuquerque and surrounds, but by the Gods it was COLD! (Note to self: bring a jacket next time).

Refreshed from my New Mexican sojourn, I struck out on what would become the Epic Drive of ‘09, crisscrossing the bulk of the continental US and Canada. On the way…

• I captured a beautiful New Mexican sunset with my camera.
• Had my second speeding warning whilst crossing the Texas panhandle.
• Witnessed the morning mists in Arkansas.
• Got woken up from an afternoon nap attempt by a local high school parade in Kansas City, Missouri. I also went on a fruitless goosechase in downtown Kansas City whilst looking for the Central Public Library. The library carpark is painted to look like books on a shelf, a point of interest to my photographer self.
• Went stomping through mud in sidewalk roadworks whilst taking photos of a church and the Arch in St. Louis, Missouri.

The evening/day I drove from western Ohio to southern New York state would have to rate as one of the all-time driving days from hell. Whilst the lightning storms around Columbus were suitably spectacular, the pounding rain, the endless stream of trucks, roadworks on Interstate 80 and crazy Pennsylvanian drivers made for a rather miserable day. I breathed a massive sigh of relief as I entered New York state and later turned north on I-87.

The primary aim of this part of the trip was to meet and spend time with a dear friend who lives in the top part of the state. We’ve been acquainted for a couple of years, thanks to the magic of cyberspace and phones, but never wound up meeting in person…until now. Even though it was a fairly low-key visit, it was still good to see him and hang out with him. He’s been having rough times for a while now and whilst I do worry for him, I think he’ll be OK eventually. His dog was also an absolute sweetie – barked at me for 5 minutes, then became my new best friend.

I do know this – given the drive that followed, the next trip I take over to that part of the US WILL involve a plane flight to Montreal!

* * *

I’ll be posting pics from various legs of the journey in the coming days & weeks. All I will say for now about the final leg of the journey is this: 3,027 miles – 6 provinces – 93 hours.

Never again!

Disgusted

I’ve been involved with the Vancouver BDSM scene for about a year now, both as a helper and participant. Albeit with two hiatus periods in between.

In that time, I’ve had a number of experiences, mostly positive, a couple with negative aftermaths. That’s the way it rolls, eh? Overall, it’s been good times to date. I’ve been very fortunate to make a number of friends here, some very close, others a little more distant but all people with good hearts and intentions at the end of the day.

I am content with doing my own thing, bopping along as my pixie self is wont to do, at various parties, munches and gatherings. I do hear pieces of gossip and scuttlebutt from time to time, but on the whole I prefer to keep myself apart from the scene politics.

Given what I’ve witnessed in recent times, I’m glad to have taken that path.

When I first became involved, I will confess to having the mildly Pollyanna-esque thought that it would be one big happy kinky community. I was disabused of that notion early on in the piece, but nonetheless thought that a relatively small scene such as Vancouver would ascribe to the principle of “agreeing to disagree” whenever people were at odds with each other, for whatever reason. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

Whenever there are a number of groups in existence that have conflicting ideals, goals or visions in place, it would seem somewhat unrealistic to expect everyone to “just get along”. Our own human natures hamstring that particular ideal, yet there is still room for respect for others, cordiality and perhaps even positive inter-communication. Sadly, again, this is not the case.

The amount of venom, childishness and outright attacks on people I have witnessed in reality and virtuality just blows me away. You’d think it’s a hard enough time to exist as kinky peeps in a world where much of what we do can be easily twisted, misinterpreted or appropriated by mainstream society. Yet I see people who should be acting like mature adults running around acting like the proverbial bullying kids in the schoolyard. People are jumped on for voicing an alternative opinion or attacked outright for daring to speak up and call others out on bullshit or to defy the often self-proclaimed authority of a few.

Such behavior is puerile at best, but when it’s gotten to the point where two of my friends have been effectively run off a website and gone to ground in reality…that’s just beyond the fucking pale.

Whatever happened to common decency and respect? Whatever happened to the idea of agreeing to disagree with the opinions of others? Whatever happened to the idea of tolerance, of allowing others to be what they choose to say, or be, for themselves?

Just chill out and grow up.

To those of you who are also witnessing the endless drama, I say: Take heart.

There are good people to be found here. They may be a little quieter, a little less visible, but they are here.

That is all.

New Job…

Yes, I know – an update is sorely needed. I really need to get back up to speed vis-a-vis photos.

In the meantime, I’m rejoicing, for I am now employed again. Hurrah!

Still in the trial period at the moment, but it’s looking VERY good indeed! The job is evening shift, doing something for which I seem to have a natural talent – data entry. The pay…could be better, but that will come in time. Besides, a job where it’s casual dress, that works in with my natural bio-rhythms and allows me to listen to music whilst I work – it’s groovy for me.

Overall, I’m just relieved to be working again! If all works out with this job, it might just save my Canadian life. Sure, I won’t be living the high life for a while and any travels I do in the near future will be relatively frugal, but better to have some funds coming in the door than nothing at all.

I have to say, I’m feeling a lot better overall these days. After getting the “lose weight” order from my doctor a few weeks ago, I’ve started walking and/or swimming on a regular basis. It’ll take a while for the benefits to kick in fully, but apparently it looks like I’m losing a few pounds already.

Living in the West End has it’s benefits, thanks to the proximity of Lost Lagoon, English Bay and Stanley Park. The rise and fall of the streets also presents an interesting challenge, albeit one that I’m overcoming. My stamina is improving and I’m now at the point where I’m merely breathing heavily (ha ha) after an extended uphill walk. A few weeks ago, it was a case of gasping for air and having to stop every block or so.

On top of that, my kinky side has been relatively neglected of late. Apart from one or two play sessions (one public, one private), I really haven’t been doing much over the last couple of months. To be fair, there have been other issues taking up my time and energy, but I do need to reactivate that part of myself again. Been too long, sayin’? Honestly – if it wasn’t for the plastic container, my rope collection would be full of dust bunnies by now – eek!

Besides, it’s high time I brought some kink ramblings into the mix – without them, the “Travels” aren’t really that “Twisted”, are they?

Photos – Lost Lagoon

Still quiet days at the moment, but starting to get better. Last weekend turned out to be a lot of fun and it’s helped to lift my spirits somewhat. I sense a future journal entry in the making…

In the meantime, here’s a few shots taken at Lost Lagoon a few days ago, plus a leftover orange from a preceding breakfast at Joe’s Grill.

After all these years, I’ve finally dived into the deep end of shooting RAW, rather than JPEG. I’ve downloaded a trial version of Adobe Lightroom, which helps with the conversion process.

Enjoy!

Catch-up & Black Dogs

So much for getting back to “daily photos”.

It’s been a rough month, I’m not going to sugarcoat it. I’ve hit the proverbial brick wall and consequently spent most of February in hermit mode. The madness of the last few months finally caught up with me in a big way. There have been days in a row where I haven’t left my apartment at all.

I’m feeling a general sense of hopelessness about many things at the moment. Losing two jobs after the scooter accident and the resultant medical bills have now left me behind the eight ball financially. Work is very hard to come by in the current economic climate and I’m going backwards in a big way.

As it stands right now, if I don’t get some form of regular work within the next month or so, there is a possibility that I may have to go back to Australia for a while. I’m now living on reserves only, to the point where I’m literally paying to live in Canada. That was not the idea behind me being here in the first place. Living on my own funds whilst travelling is one thing, but not on a day-to-day regular basis. I do want to try and stick it out for a while longer, if I can. Part of it is because I have an apartment lease to consider, but I’m feeling that having to return to Australia in these circumstances would amount to defeat.

I’m also feeling wrung out, mentally and emotionally. There are days where I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I barely recognize myself. I feel empty, a shell of myself, of the Pixie I used to be.

I was going back through pieces of a travel journal I kept during the USA/Canada epic wander of 2005. Looking back at my younger self, s/he was also conflicted, but at least s/he had a sense of hope and energy. I wonder whatever happened to that Pixie…

How it’ll all pan out, I really have no idea at this point. It’s just day by day at this point.

At the very least, I’m starting to make some effort to salvage the 365 project. The four shots below are grabbed from random snaps taken throughout the rest of February.

Catching up on the 365

Some random “365″ shots from late January and early February.

Starting tomorrow, it’s back to daily photos!

Driven to Distraction / Australia Trip

Life has a nasty habit of getting in the way of plans from time to time. Not to mention my own habit of taking my eye off the ball…

It’s been a pretty turbulent few weeks. My return trip to Australia stirred up a lot for me, to the point where I’m feeling torn between two countries. “Confusion” isn’t an adequate enough term to describe the inner turmoil that now plagues me. My return to Canada also saw a major life change that served to stir the pot even more.

I’m now at a point where my 20s are almost over. The Wandering Pixie will be turning 5 years old at the end of March. That’s five years of aimlessly meandering around the world, searching for a purpose in life. As much as I’ve learned during that time through the people I’ve met, the places I’ve seen and the travels I’ve done to date, it’s becoming obvious that something has to change.

One of my biggest problems with life, or perhaps one of my failures, is an inability to find a sense of direction. Personally, professionally, the works. I feel as if I’ve just been stumbling along these last few years and not really getting anywhere. To be fair to myself, yes I’ve done a lot (including an international move!) and I’ve got some kick-ass pictures in the process, but I NEED to find a focus.

Suffice to say, 2009 is going to be a turning point for me in a big way.

So…

The Australia trip turned out better than I’d expected in some respects. Got to spend a little time with my dad and his partner (who is most groovy!) before heading down to Victoria to sort out the mess. In a nutshell – got most of my stuff back and sorted out and in the process, reconnected and formed a beautiful friendship with my former partner. Woohoo!

In lieu of the rest of the January “Photos of the Day”, here’s a few random shots from the trip. It’s a random mix of Interstate 5 driving, Australia and Napa Valley…

On the road again…

Made it down to Australia in one piece. Currently wading through and sorting nearly 30 years worth of crap. Yay for my friend in Victoria for being such a good sport about it all!

I haven’t forgotten the 365 photo project, just been flat out since I hit the ground in Australia last Sunday (local time). I’ll be catching up soon, though…

Scattered…

Another post-sunset shot today. I call this one “Leftovers”

Can’t really think too clearly at the moment. On tenterhooks, waiting for funds to come through, the clock is ticking…

Hurrah for Mirrors…

Thanks to various distractions today, I lost out on natural light for my Photo of the Day. Ergo, time for a momentary flash of inspiration involving me, my camera and my partner’s bathroom mirror.

I call this one “Under Stress”…

Getting a little anxious and scattered in the lead-up to the Australia trip. My partner says I have nothing to worry about. True, to a degree, but I do have a fair bit to do before I leave. It’s not just mirrors but also the concept of lists that are worth a “hurrah!”. Having a list of “Things to Do” helps one’s state of mind immeasurably.

Snow Returns to Vancouver

Yet another snow day in Vancouver. Oh joy. Quite a shame, really, considering the blue skies of yesterday.

Even ‘native Vancouverites’ are amazed at the oddly Canadian wintry weather we’ve been experiencing of late. Vancouver has a reputation for rain rather than snow, the Coastal Mountains being an exception. As I put it to my partner last night, maybe we’re overdue for a true Canadian winter…

What worries me is that I’m supposed to be driving down to San Francisco for my Australian flight in a few days. I can only hope the snow melts in time. I’m already going mildly out of my mind as it is with trip preparations, making lists of things to do before and after I go. It’s bad enough I have to contemplate snow chains, the last thing I need is to get stuck in snow somewhere. Ugh, too much stress!

The snow and grey skies today didn’t really help my mood much. However, it did give me an interesting and abstract Photo of the Day.

2009 – A Year of Photos / Intro

One of my major goals for 2009 is to get back into my photography again.

Events over the last few months (scooter accident, constant house-moving, life) drained the creative juices and I’ve gone days, even weeks without touching my cameras. Yes, the “Year of Photos” idea isn’t particularly original, but it’s a good motivator nonetheless.

I had toyed with the idea of a double “365″ project, one set being ‘regular’ photos of everyday scenes, people or objects, with a kinky counterpart. However, best not to push myself too much at this early stage. I’m sure it’s one of the tenets of Sod’s Law that if one tries to attempt too much in one hit, one is inevitably doomed to failure.

As for the rest of it – this is going to be my regular blog for EVERYTHING. Whether I feel like doodling or declaiming about daily life, ruminating on my BDSM experiences or simply jabber about my latest travels, this’ll be where you can find it. Best to keep everything in one spot, no?

Now, without further ado, my first two pics for 2009 – A Year of Photos…