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Posts Tagged ‘Mount Douglas park’

anyway you choose me, it won’t be wrong

Posted in ...this is your father speaking, tagged , , , on May 28, 2011| 2 Comments »

Finished my first little hike with Madelyn today.  It went pretty good, considering she is three-years-old and at no time during the journey was there a Treehouse break.

Basically a hike can be summed up as thus:

First 1/4 of the hike, “slow down.”
Last 3/4 of the hike, “hurry the FUCK up.”

We made out way to Mount Douglas Park, but instead of going up the hill, we walked down to the ocean.  I dunno what it is with people, but the ocean… rocks… people need to throw them.

Madelyn bee-lines straight for the shoreline and gets hucking.  Water spilling over her gumboots, everything soaking wet.  I have fantasies of me going all Hasselhoff and Baywatching it into the sea to drag her out.  She is a rock throwing machine.  When I finally used our picnic food to drag her away some UVic kids wandered down.  And they too made a straight line to the shore and started hucking rocks.  Funny how that is.

If there is any advice I can bestow after just one little hike it is this; bring snacks.  I am pretty sure another Mom told me that, but it works.  In my little half sack I packed the trail-mix with the smarties, pepperoni, apple and water.  Mads loved the rustic snacking on the shoreline, sitting on a piece of driftwood.

Our day ended with a trip downtown.  I have had a mad lust for the Smashing Pumpkins‘ Siamese Dream album.  Coral is at the Sasquatch Festival and Madelyn is doing back-to-back sleepovers and during my down time, I actually get to put on a record and just sit for a moment.  I had a lot of stress balled up over the past little while, but today during my hike and just now before blogging it evaporated.  I could actually feel it unwinding during a few stretches of hide-and-seek in the forest.  It was kinda scary actually.  Like a reverse panic attack?  odd… but ultimately a good feeling.

I can’t wait to free up my Saturday nights (its in the plans for after wedding season) and actually take more than an afternoon to hike and sit.

Go with yourself.

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everyone high-fiving everyone

Posted in life or something like it, music, tagged , , , , , , , on March 15, 2010| 15 Comments »

Coral and I went for a nice hike on Saturday before the rains came.  We headed up to Mount Doug park.  It was the first time in a long time that I went for anything that resembled a “proper” hike.  We had to trek over mud, across puddles, under felled trees and scramble up rocks.

We must have looked pretty comical.  I was wearing white hipster street shoes and and huffing and puffing away.  Coral and I didn’t want to carry anything, so we left the water bottle in the Jeep.  yeah, bad idea.

But in the end, we felt really good getting our  hearts pounding (and pounding and pounding) in our chests (and throats).  We’ve decided we like doing a nice walk that is more challenging than a stroll but not running around a track on pavement.  We’ll try it again and again till we get ‘er that we can easily trail-blaze to the top.  Then maybe run down!

I had to hit Mountain Equipment Co-op today and buy some shoes.  That was fun… I put on a pair trail running shoes and couldn’t believe my feet.  Years of hipster slip-ons and  Chucks had me thinking that feet were supposed to just hurt all the time.  This is like walking on angels.  A road made out of baby angels.  so soft.  I am going to DJ in these shoes.

My new shoes ::Vasque Light Trail Shoe

It was pretty scary going into MEC and seeing the wall of shoes (and really all the out door stuff).  Luckily there was another gentleman in the shoe area buying shoes and he seemed the hiker type.  When I was explaining to the clerk lady about my needs and weekend warriornessisms… the dude interjected and said, “buy these shoes.  I am actually here to buy my next pair of them because the first ones were so so so good.”  Thanks old teacher hiker guy at MEC!

We’re going to hike again mid week.  Tuesday its supposed to rain and I am meeting with an accountant anyways… but Wednesday onward looks spectacular to get outside.  Then I was telling Coral about how in my youth Bob and I used trail run all the time at Buntzen Lake.  Next time we’re in Coquitlam I’ll have to take her.  Maybe we’ll need to drag Vancityrockgirl as she likes the nature hikes too and its her neighbourhood!  When I’m rich I am going to move to Anmore or Belcarra.  As kids, we used to explore back up in that area a lot.  The best shape I was ever in my life was the summers when Bob and I would trail run in the hills at Buntzen (didn’t hurt that I was like 17 at the time!).

***
What do you think of the name Ottoman Empire?

I’ve been thinking about a name or brand for DJing.  The easy answer is just to use my name.  People know it.  But boring (no offense Mom) and I wouldn’t mind splitting off from my radio DJ persona for the music I want to present and create as a DJ.  Sometimes I find when I DJ and people find out its ‘Jeremy Baker’ they get confused if I don’t lay down a Pearl Jam song and tell them the weather in the bar.  Weird, but true.

I like Orc as well but Coral was pretty meh on that.  I like Orc because its super nerdy and is short.

She sent me DJ Beatdown… but that sounds way to aggro for the chillwave/indie/classics that I normally lay down.   A spin on that that I like is Beatmonger.  Like a fishmonger, but of beats.  get it?

The other name I liked is National Sound Company because… well I love the National, so its like an homage to my favourite band.

Any thoughts you have are always appreciated.  I can use a name or maybe no name and keep trucking along under my actual name.  Whatever works I guess, just let it come naturally.

Go with yourself.

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