Please Spread This

(via Ecovelo)

Land's burstin' to the sky

I'm back. I feel ecstatically mellow and happy to be alive. And incredibly tired. See you soon.

To the sea again

Hey y'all. Just letting you know that I'm off to play at this tomorrow and Saturday, then staying in Vancouver on Sunday, so no Post this week. Have a good weekend!

(Mine! Whoo!)

Sunday Post

Goooood morning. I like this getting up in the morning thing - the days feel so long and glorious. Yesterday I went out early to the town farmers market and an absolutely fantastic loaf of bread. Right now I've been up for almost four hours already, and it's just after 10:30.

Happy treat. Weather be damned, I'm feeling warm and fuzzy.














I love Sigur Ros. I love being cozy. I love free outdoor concerts.
Mmmmmmmmmmmm....

National Geographic

So I went for a ramble through the National Geographic website, and one thing lead to several more things, ie. photo galleries, and before we were even half-way through the week I've got a dozen big-ass pictures already as well as another four galleries still sitting open in another browser window, still waiting to be looked through. Good Lord I love their photographers.

Sunday Post

Mornin' y'all. Small-ish but awesome haul for you, and a bike treat straight from my heart via Copenhagenize. Please watch it. (it's occurred to me that I'm actually kinda really preachy about biking, but it's not a matter of a muslim guy and a christian guy saying "you're wrong!" "no you're wrong!", it's more one guy saying to another guy "uh, dude? your shoes are on the wrong feet")













"Have Keg, Will Pedal"

"Transportation and simple living are two of my favorite soapboxes. With this project, I want to dispel the notion that bikes are difficult, dangerous, impractical, etc. So I rode my bike, with an empty keg in tow, to my favorite local craft brewery (Stone Brewing). We had a couple of beers, and talked to the folks there about their commitment to sustainability. Then I loaded up a fresh keg, and pedaled it home 17 miles over some consequential elevation changes. I don't expect everyone to drag a 160lb keg up a steep hill on a bicycle, but I see my neighbors driving 1/4 mile from their homes to go to Vons, carrying their groceries away in plastic bags. Then they drive back to the same shopping center to get their requisite exercise at 24hr fitness. I just want to convince them to bike or walk that 1/4 mile to Vons to fill up a backpack with useful brew. At once they'll save time and money, and reduce dependence on oil and pollution going into our oceans."

Have Keg, Will Pedal from marty benson on Vimeo.

Point of View

For those who haven't seen this view themselves, this is what you see if you look west while heading over the Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver. I just adore the sheer height you get from the bridge, and the dichotomy between the shining mass of the city to the south and east and vast expanse of forest, mountain, and ocean to the north and west is what every city should strive for, both for ecological preservation and for the pure enjoyment and love of the people who live there.

I think I'll have to say that this view is tied for my favourite "view" with what you see when you're heading to Victoria from the ferry. I unfortunately don't have a picture of this view, but I'll explain as best I can; obviously this won't do it any justice but it will give you a bit of an idea. The lower island is a mass of rolling hills - no mountains to speak of (Mount Doug is not a mountain, I don't care), just hills and small valleys everywhere. There is a particularly large hill between the depression Victoria is in and the rest of the peninsula that the highway comes down from, so you can't see any of the area to the south. As you come to that last hill, though, you pass the "Welcome to Victoria" sign and then the hill just disappears, and ahead of you just see the Olympic Mountains rising up, covered in snow and cloud toppins across the sun-reflecting Juan de Fuca Straight, and then before that is Victoria, small but beautiful with church spires and building towers poking up from the core, surrounded by a dense sprawl of beautiful houses, hills, and trees with Christmas Hill and Mount Doug bulging to the left.

Like I said, that really doesn't do the view justice at all, but the second I come over the hill and see the mountains, I know I'm home, and I think anyone else who experiences that view finds a smile on their face, even if they don't share the same adoration for the city as I do.

Anyway, I'm curious to know what other people have as their favourite views. I know there are at least two of you :P so if you want to add a comment or just send me an email that'd be neato. Views you've actually seen I think are more powerful, but there's a picture you have that is just damn gorgeous and you have made a point of finding that view someday, that's fine too.

Sunday Post

Mornin', y'all. Sunday Post is back with a big pile this week. Huzzaaaaaah.
Some Josh Rouse at the bottom. Make sure you give it a listen/watch because it's one of my favourite covers of anything.

Josh Rouse - Cotton Eyed Joe / Valencia - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.