The psychologist was not telling me what I wanted to hear. We were skyping across time zones, navigating work, kids and continents and I had a pretty clear idea in my head of what I wanted from him. Damn head-mechanics. I was looking for an expert to back a theory – to offer up neurological…
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#SlowtheForkDown: top advice from a (former) top chef, whose now happier mucking about in the dirt
When they flew in 800 avocadoes from Mexico for the television commercial, to make sure they had one absolutely perfect fruit, Jenna Dashney knew that the money she was making wasn’t going to make this sit right. “You couldn’t even give them away to the crew afterwards, because they were constantly being fed by a…
Your flaws, my fix – how healing yourself can help others
Paul Sherman celebrates two birthdays. The day he was born, 41 years ago. And his rebirthday, the day he was brought back to life, after being dug out of an avalanche at McGillvray Pass by his companions, blue in the face, and unconscious. He was 35 the day he spent 20 minutes buried under the…
Want to go halves in an orchard?
When Dawn Johnson dreams, she dreams impossible dreams. Instead of home schooling her kids or putting them in Waldorf, she dreams of inspiring the administrators and teachers of School District 48 to think outside the classroom box by sharing statistics at PD Days about the tangible benefits of nature education. She dreams of kids who…
Planting the seeds of a sustainable community
Erin Baumeister is a transplant. She landed in Pemberton after a nomadic childhood — her dad, in global telecommunications, moved the family to Taiwain and then Israel. At 19, Erin, who had spent her youth taking camel-riding field trips with the Bedouin and fundraising to deliver school supplies to Masai kids in Kenya, found herself…
The power of pulling together
It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had — although fresh tracks, a sweet mountain bike descent in which I manage to stay off the brakes, a crash-tackle hug from a dear friend, and a baby falling asleep on my chest are nice, too. My last year at University, my three best mates and I…
The best place to be is in the kitchen. Being cooked for.
Technically, I’m a vegetarian. Have been for over 20 years. Pretty much since I was in a position to say “this is what’s going into my body, and this is not, “I’ve taken a left turn at eating anything that used to have a heartbeat. But when Chef Randy Jones says “try this” and slides…
Forget you Siri. I don’t want a robot PA. I want a doula.
I read an article that said the single best way to win the dinner party (ie make a positive enduring impression) is to ask people what they do for a living, and then say: “That sounds hard.” Apparently, this social ninja move is the fail-proof opening gambit. Three simple words to bypass tedious small…
Some stuff I learned in 2015
I’m a slow learner. But this is what I managed to piece together during this most recent solar orbit. I learned that productivity is a con (and I should really stop clicking on all those headlines that offer happiness and productivity hacks), that hope is a radical act, and that writing is still my best medicine,…
What 13,000 year old human footprints on a BC beach taught me about living in the moment
This, from the latest issue of Coast Mountain Culture, which can be hard to find on the ground – being such a luscious piece of print yumminess that it gets scooped up quickly. So, here’s one of the pieces I penned for the Holy issue. Ancient human footprints unearthed on British Columbia’s Central Coast challenge…
