Monday, April 30, 2012
Banff Mountain Film Festival
Thanks to my friend Mike for an excellent recommendation - the Banff Mountain Film Festival. This past weekend, they passed through Hood River and I went to check it out. It's a series of short films by independent filmmakers that through various film styles show their love and passion for the outdoors. My favorite (which also happened to win the People's Choice Award at Banff) was the one that chronicled the epic journey of Australian Tim Cope as he follows (on horseback) the trail of Genghis Khan and his horde from Mongolia to Hungary. The segment I saw was only a short portion of the entire film. I really enjoyed it and hoping they eventually release it on a USA region DVD.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Ian Usher
Several years ago, I remember reading a news story about an Englishman in Perth (too bad it wasn't New York) who had just had a divorce. He was fairly depressed about his life and decided to do something about it by getting a fresh start. A REALLY fresh start. He put his life up for auction on E-bay. He auctioned his house and everything in it from the car all the way down to the silverware. He even offered to introduce the winning bidder to all his friends. He would simply walk away with the clothes on his back. Well, it worked and he got $305,000 (I'm guessing US$?). Very interesting story in and of itself. But I always did wonder what became of him.
A few days ago, I caught a news story that reported on what Mr. Ian Usher has been up to. In short, he decided to take off and go traveling for as long as the money would last. He also wanted to set a goal for himself each week of his travels - usually some kind of new experience. After two years, when the money was almost gone, he bought himself an island off the coast of Panama. I'm sure everyone has had the escape-to-your-own-tropical-island fantasy, but Ian has actually made it into a reality. BTW, buying your own private island is not anywhere close to being as expensive as I thought it would be - Google it. This is a truly inspiring story. I have often fantasized about such embarking on a similar adventure. My two month journey to Cambodia last year gave me a taste of what it might be like. I would probably be a bit more practical by maintaining a home base somewhere and I would also want to be a bit more financially secure. But considering his age (48) and how much money he had to start with, it's not entirely unfeasible. Plus, there's a few more things I want to accomplish before I cast aside all responsibilities, but when all is said and done, is there a good reason I shouldn't do something like this? After all, do I want to live my life according to a standardized script? This is something I need to dwell on some more.
He's also written a blog that describes his attempt to fulfill 100 goals in 100 weeks. I admire the hell out of him for being able to turn everything in his life around in a matter of 2 years. Here is a man who was living a life that had lost all meaning. He had nothing left to lose but his material possessions. And so he cut them loose. In doing so, he freed himself from everything that tied him to that life of quiet desperation. All it took was the courage to turn his life upside down and inside out. Cheers to Mr. Usher. I'll be looking out for your Disney movie when it comes out (yes, I do see the irony).
A few days ago, I caught a news story that reported on what Mr. Ian Usher has been up to. In short, he decided to take off and go traveling for as long as the money would last. He also wanted to set a goal for himself each week of his travels - usually some kind of new experience. After two years, when the money was almost gone, he bought himself an island off the coast of Panama. I'm sure everyone has had the escape-to-your-own-tropical-island fantasy, but Ian has actually made it into a reality. BTW, buying your own private island is not anywhere close to being as expensive as I thought it would be - Google it. This is a truly inspiring story. I have often fantasized about such embarking on a similar adventure. My two month journey to Cambodia last year gave me a taste of what it might be like. I would probably be a bit more practical by maintaining a home base somewhere and I would also want to be a bit more financially secure. But considering his age (48) and how much money he had to start with, it's not entirely unfeasible. Plus, there's a few more things I want to accomplish before I cast aside all responsibilities, but when all is said and done, is there a good reason I shouldn't do something like this? After all, do I want to live my life according to a standardized script? This is something I need to dwell on some more.
He's also written a blog that describes his attempt to fulfill 100 goals in 100 weeks. I admire the hell out of him for being able to turn everything in his life around in a matter of 2 years. Here is a man who was living a life that had lost all meaning. He had nothing left to lose but his material possessions. And so he cut them loose. In doing so, he freed himself from everything that tied him to that life of quiet desperation. All it took was the courage to turn his life upside down and inside out. Cheers to Mr. Usher. I'll be looking out for your Disney movie when it comes out (yes, I do see the irony).
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Spring Forward
Time flies - it's cliched because it's true. It's hard to believe it's been nearly a year since I've written in this thing. I've survived yet another Oregon winter and now the temps have started climbing back into the 50's once again. To be honest though I can't complain - this has been the sunniest and warmest winter I've ever seen here. The arrival of last week's Daylight Savings Time served as a reminder that I can actually expect a warm day here and there in the coming weeks. With the additional hour of daylight, I'm finding the time and energy once again to getting back to such things as blogging. Lots of stuff I'd like to write about my favorite topics of medicine, food, soccer, flyfishing, music, and photography. This post is a reminder to myself to get it going again. More soon...
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