Vancouver Island Gatherings.

As I mentioned a bit before, a couple of weeks ago I was carried off to British Columbia to make a promotional video for a Gluten Free Health & Wellness video going on up there.  It was a new, exciting, and terrifying  opportunity - a lot to get done with the 3 weeks I had to work with.  I've been waiting to post until I finally got all of it finished, and I can finally say it's done!  I officially shot, composed, directed, and edited my first real video!   I compiled all of the leftover footage that (largely) wasn't used in the original video to stay inspired and offer a small thank you to all the people that helped me out while I was over there!  They were so patient and kind during the whole thing and I hope this video documents, despite the hectic moments, all of the fun I had while I was out there.

Also, if anyone is interested in the promotional video, here it is!

It's finally done, weeeeeee, now I can really explore Brooklyn!

goldstream

Somehow, in a couple of days I've managed to reasonably settle into my new Brooklyn room.  There are lots of things I'd like to share about this new crazy place I'm living in, not to mention new recipes to post, and birthday gifts to share, but first I have to get *the now* squared away - mostly finishing up this video project so I can feel like any other leisurely photo taking isn't some form of procrastination.

And less than a week ago, I was here, on Vancouver Island.  Our picnic was a set and an excuse to go to Goldstream Provincial Park.  The previous days of being shuttled around and feeling a bit haphazard were immediately quieted here.  The green and redwoods as a backdrop to my lovely friends and colorful food inspired, and I found a zeal for the project that had been missing in the previous days.

 My friends endured the damp cold and the strong smell of dead salmon (an annual winter occurrence in the nearby Goldstream river) for this project and I can't thank them enough for having so much patience as they watched me fumble around this new videographer character.  They brought me coffee in the morning, made delicious meals, and were all around good company.  Every time I'm near them I think what a wonder it is to have found people so far away with such similar interests as my own.

And while I am so excited about all the possibilities that go along with big city living, there have been a few times these last couple of days, where I'm walking around these foreign Brooklyn streets, enduring a bit of culture shock, and I've found myself wishing I was comfortably nested with these sweetie people as my company.

Also, I have promoted her blog countless times, but you should really look at Sophie's space - Wholehearted Eats !  Over the course of knowing her I've watched her blog blossom into a beautiful raw foods haven with countless original and creative, healthy recipes.  It's even more impressive because she manages to maintain her blog and work a full time job!

While you're at it, you should also look at her angelic sister, Hannah's space - Tea and Toast.  She's a busy student, but when she does post her photos and words are the loveliest.  

whirlwind

The year started at a sprint.  My belongings were moved from my familiar apartment in Vermont, to the new, unfamiliar Brooklyn loft.  A small room that overlooks the city, I will cozy it and make it mine in time.  
Just after midnight I journeyed from Brooklyn to the airport to use my small bit of free time before internship to shoot a film for some people back on Vancouver Island, my first ever paid job.  So, here I am.  I got to spend my birthday with my sister and friend on the olympic peninsula and now I am soaking in this wonderful excuse to see all my lovely Victorian friends again, and to see all the moss and grey.

rückkehrunruhe

Rückkehrunruhe

n. the feeling of returning home after an immersive trip only to find it fading rapidly from your awareness—to the extent you have to keep reminding yourself that it happened at all, even though it felt so vivid just days ago—which makes you wish you could smoothly cross-dissolve back into everyday life, or just hold the shutter open indefinitely and let one scene become superimposed on the next, so all your days would run together and you’d never have to call cut.

the last bit.

I'm so sad to say this is my last bit of film from my time in Victoria.  It was our last lunch together and we shared a sweet afternoon eating fish and chips, (I had the most delicious salmon burger), and drinking ciders by the water.  

This past week things haven't been going that well for me.  It seems like it's one thing after another, and once I make progress one thing, another thing comes along to set me back further.  Blame it on the Mercury retrograde, or whatever you'd like, but there have been quite a few times this week where I've felt pretty defeated and wishing I could be lounging around, avoiding the rest of the world, with these people again.

And even despite all the setbacks, I've got a couple of good friends here who have been helping to keep my spirits light.  Times when your luck is so unbelievably bad, it is a blessing to have people around to help you laugh it off, and the warmth I've received from my classmates and friends abroad, have made all the difference.

already reminiscing: salt spring island

Just 10 more hours of traveling and I'll be back in Vermont - it's so crazy to think.  I dipped down to Cleveland, Ohio to visit a friend from school and it's all starting to become real.  In just a week's time I'll be back, attending classes, receiving formal baking training, and spending as much time as I can dealing with the heat at swimming holes and waterfalls.

 And then, just 3 weeks ago I was here - on Salt Spring Island!  It was a beautiful day - waking up early on Saturday morning and biking over to Sophie's home (unfortunately, she, our crucial member, was sick) to be met with coffee waiting in a thermos in Adam's old Volkswagen Cabriolet.  I've never considered getting a different car until riding in this one. Riding around the island, wind blowing in our hair and drinking coffee, with the B-52's and the Life Aquatic music as a our soundtrack, it was so fun.

... stopping along the way at True Grain bakery in Cowichan Bay - amazing crusty breads using natural starters!

At the local Salt Spring Island market (where I picked up many things for this giveaway) we gathered cheese and hot pepper jelly, took them to a park, and shared them on our True Grain rye bread, right next to the ocean.

...and dorky photos were taken of me.

Ahh British Columbia, I'm already nostalgic, I'm doomed.

Also, for good measure: Wowwww I love it.

foggy // misty // rain

I made this short video of my journey through Washington state and British Columbia.  I was entranced by all the tall green masses encircled with cloud and fog, so there's a lot of that, and then also a lot of coffee.  I quickly put it together here on the road, so sorry about some of the shaky footage, but even still - I think you can tell how how beautiful and majestic that part of the world is - something that you could probably never entirely capture on camera.

p.s. note the moose I saw at the beginning!!!!!!

cathedral grove

 At dusk, we stopped along our way to Tofino, parking at the signs marked 'Ancient Forest: Cathedral Grove'.  At that time of night the moss ceremoniously swayed in the trees and the stumps cast shadow figures on the soil.  Hushing our voices, we quietly tread along, listening to the faint voices carried on the breeze,  admiring what we could see of the large dark masses and the grey light seeping in between.  

It was a magical experience.  That night we stayed nearby, in Port Alberni, and I insisted the next morning that we take our coffees and see all the old-growth again, in the early light. 

It wasn't the same eerie, haunting feeling, of the night before, but much more fun.  We intended to only stay for a few minutes, but ended up as children again, playing around for what must have been a couple of hours. 

I pretended that I had grown up in that forest, and had only ever known cedar and redwood, moss and pine.  Or that I should abandon the trip and find a way to live on the mountainside, building myself a canoe to paddle alongside the heritage trees.

And an 800 year old tree!

We eventually had to return to the road, so, I filled my jar with water from the stream, the most cold and crisp water, and tried to make it last the rest of the trip.

Also, the giveaway winner is Emily Sadowski !  Thank- you to everyone who entered!  I hope to keep

giving away awesome handmade and crafted things in the future!

little things.

Appreciating the little things about Victoria, like the bike trail that meanders around little bays with fisherman setting up their boat for the day, or that my bike ride to work involves pedaling through cute neighborhoods where the flowers are in full bloom and everyone's always out tending their garden, not to mention the shifts where I get to appreciate the sunrise on the way. Then there's always my favorite park where you can see the snow-capped mountains of Washington state across the water and there are 100's of dogs always running around off of their leash.  And of course, there are the days off that involve decadent chocolate chip, coconut, and almond pancakes with maple syrup I brought all the way over from Vermont.  I've got to appreciate these things, because before I know it I'll be packing up heading back to Vermont to return to school.

mountaintop cemetery

Easter Sunday was the most light-filled day.  We went to the hot springs in Nelson, but found that, since we were graced with such warm weather, it was too hot out for hot springs, so we decided to explore the area and wait for the cool afternoon air to come.  In our exploring we found a little trail that led to an old miner's cemetery.  One of the most historical things I've found in British Columbia, the graves dated back to the 1800's.  There was a sacred feeling to the space, with butterfly pairs flitting above the graves and the pollen floating on the springtime breeze, Caroline and I quietly walked around the residual snow.  As I walked I became powerfully aware that I was bearing witness to life in all of it's stages, just another being floating through the cycle, I've never felt so grounded in the present.  After a bit Caroline and I sat down and looked out over the lake and mountains in silence.