~*...maligne ice canyon...*~

normdate 1.28.06
3:49pm

i am sitting at the bottom of maligne canyon watching grant climb the 75ft ice wall in front of me. ice is frozen time. so beautiful.

pete is ballaying grant. what a rush it is to climb ice. impossible is nothing. my legs are burning. my knees are bruised. my arms and hands are on fire. i couldn't ask for a better first day out ice climbing. the rush of accomplishment as you the reach the top is beyond exhilirating.

ice is falling from above as grant picks and climbs his way to the top.

the crampons on my feet make crushing ice and climbing it much easier. take that frozen water, rock wins again! craompons. reminds me of tampons with cramps. clamp ons...got it. same same but different.

the sun is going down and my body is feeling it! what an awesome way to tune into the force. the prana is very powerful here in this canyon. i can hear the water rushing through the canyon beneath the ice under my feet.

grant is bellaying down the ice wall. nice climb. i can see why people love it out here.

canada kicks ass.

i'm going to spin some poi in this canyon and then hike out of here for dinner at te moose'snook for more luxury dining at hobo prices.

i love it here.

~*...normaste...*~

~*...jasper, alberta...*~

normadate 1.23.06
3:34 central time

i am looking at the sun as it tries to hide behind the clouds above the rocky mountains. i am surrounded by beauty beyond anything words can describe. in front of me is a frozen lac beauvert, a large section of which has been cleared to form an outdoor skating rink. an english woman from london has just skated by me. the rockies are breathtaking.

right meow, i am at the fairmont jasper park lodge. i would say that i am a guest, but really i'm just freeloading off myfriends rob and pete. they arrived here in jasper on saturday night. erin hooked them up with a sweet room at staff discount prices. i asked them if i could sleep on the floor in their room...instead we got a cot set up. schweet. we have been taken care of out here. from a pimp room to complimentary bath robes (with slippers), we are living it up like kings.

don't you know who we are? we're sum 41! ;)

erin's friend monica, who also works here, is the employee of the month. the benefits of being employee of the month include 75% off all regular priced menu items at any restaurant at the resort.

yesterdaymorning we ate at the swanky breakfast place in the lodge before heading out to marmot basin. $25 breakfast buffet for only $6. you rool monica!

i've ridden with rob and pete in ontario at blue mountain. rob has a chalet just north of collingwood, and i normally stayed there when we rode weekends at blue. it was great to see them on the other side of the country, and go riding the rockies with 'em.

marmot basin is about 30mins outside of jasper. its a pretty good sized resort with some breathtaking scenery. the snow coverage was a bit lacking though. maybe its because all of the snow is natural, no man made snow here. its a purist mentality which flows freely through this place. that leaves the conditions up to gaia to decide, and so far gaia hasn't been so generous with her gifts to marmot this season. there were some bare spolts, ice, and even exposed rock....sometimes even in the middle of a run you'd see rocks jutting out forcing us to be much more aware of our line.

there was also some good powder in the trees, and some powder that you had to hike to. riding with rob and pete, who have never really ridden anything other than blue mountain, was a rucsh...similar to me when i rode whistler for the first time. the excitement, the awe, the rush of shredding a real mountain for the first time was priceless for them. i was stoked to be riding with friends.

lift tickets were $43 for the day, a discounted price for this time of the year....jasper in january.i wouldn't say the conditions were ideal, but it was definitely better and bigger than blue mountain and worth $43. after riding big white two days before, nothing can compare to the champagne powder that covers big white.

we made it back to the lodge and ordered some bah robes (complimentary thanks to our vip status that erin hooked us up with). the robes are $100 in the gift shop. we paid nothing...even got slippers too. big pimpin!!!

we're sum41!!!

after a long day of riding, rob pete and i headed to the spa in the lodge for some hot tub aktion. man did that ever feel good. a dip in the outdoor swimming pool (yes, we rolled around in the snow and jumped back in the pool) and a wind down in the steam room really did out bodies good.

i find it fascinating to see what the upper class enjoys when they vacation. i could never afford to stay at a posh fairmont resort and get vip treatment. this is completely opposite of the adventure and accomodations that i am about to embark on.

thanks for the hook ups erin. thanks for letting me crash with you guys rob and pete. you all fukkin rool.

i've always known that i was different, from my skin colour to my personality. i've always known i was the same as others around me too...judge me by the content of my character and not the colour of my skin. in toronto, that diversity is common place and encouraged. out here, i haven't come across jamasian dreadlocks, especially here at the jasper park lodge. the rich are almost all white people, with maybe a few asians in there. i love challenging people to think differently as much as i enjoy being challenged by them. the wave of energy that i stimulate in others just by being in the same room is fun to shape, especially when that energy is brought out in rich white people who aren't used to seeing one of me.

grant said that he has never seen someone shape the energy of people like me...he says that i disarm people with me personality. thanks grant.

erin and monica dropped by our room later and we headed to the posh restaurant in the lodge called the moose's nook. this is where the uber rich staying at jpl come to dine. we may not be rich, but we are with the employee of the month. 75% off baby! ooh yah! that is the only way we could afford our meal there.

we're sum41!

so with that discount, of course we had to order he most expensive things on the menu. my $36 filet mignon only cost $9. our $50 bottle of wine (of which we haed two) only cost $12.50. luxury dining at hobo prices. thank you monica. you fukkin rool too!

duck a foie terrine as an appetizer, seafood and cheeze fondue, and chocolate mousse for dessert, two bottles of wine, with tip, our meal came to $25each.

hooked up!

pete and rob ended up crashing, but i joined erin and monica at a local dance bar called athaby's. they say that jasper has the second highest std rate in canada next to banff. being at athaby's i can see why. the sexual energy in there was out of control. meat market isn't even the word to describe it. seeing as i don't normally go to top40 bars, being there was a bit overwhelming. and yes, i was the only coloured guy there. i better get used to it eh?

we took a cab back to the lodge where i passed out. i skipped riding today to relax, and save some cash. rob and pete said the conditions weren't as good as yesterday. just relaxing and sleeping in was great, and i had a 4hour 24 marathon on a&e to keep me company.

i was going to czech my email and update my blog from the business center in the lodge, but $10/hr for internet access is way too rich for my blood. i'm looking forward to having my pc again.

so as i watch the sunset behind the snow covered peaks of the rockies fom the comfy lakeside seats nestled on lac baurvert, i am reminded how blessed we are to live in canada. this country is beautiful, breathtakin, and diverse.

i'm going to spin some poi and channel this prana through movement.

~*...normaste...*~

p.s.our new government is elected tonight. i hope harper does no leadout country. i am not able to vote out here :(

~...happy 4:20...*~

holy shit, i've been here for how long and this is my first 4:20 spliff? guess so...

happy four twenty. hooray for kind budz. *lights up*


21 years ago today, lou gherig's disease claimed the life of my father. je me souviens.

hey pops, rawk da pillarz of heaven for me. you are missed down here.

~*...normaste...*~

~*...the perfekt part of me...*~

normdate 1.14.06
1:59am pst

i am lying on a cot in the storage laundry room of a sweet chalet at creekside gondola road in whistler. in 6 hours i will be getting on the creekside gondola and make my way up the whistler peak with brett to make first tracks. it will be my first experience riding freshies. i'm so stoked and exploding with anticipation.

so why am i awake? i should be sleeping. well, i was sleeping until 10 minutes ago when my cel phone rang. i though it was my cel alarm that i have set for 5:30am so i can call my friend dawn and get her ass in gear to come ride with us. but this was not an alarm, it was a ring.

only one person i have come across could call me, wake me up, and within seconds turn my mood from tired and groggy to unbelievable excitement and elation. she brings out the part of me that makes me feel perfekt about myself. just the thought of her reminds me of the part of me that i love and trust most. even if it is three hours later than it is now in toronto, she's up and needed to explode my world from the other side of the country with the sound of her voice.

she called to tell me her sister (her brother's girlfriend actually), is coming to van on sunday and would love to see me before i leave for the interior next week.

holy shit the thought of this girl blows my fukking mind. she is the one whom i compare all otherz to. she has reminded me that i am perfekt, and if/when i choose to have a partner in life they will have to make me feel as goof if not better than she does, if i'm to entertain the possiblity.

i know you're reading this (both you and her). i am here...you are there...that's what's wrong with here. but it is dumping snow outside the chalet, and i am at whistler about to rest up for my first freshie experience. soon, i will lose my freshie virginity to newly fallen gaia.

i guess even if there are things 'wrong' with here (did i just say something was wrong?), its still pretty awesome. extreme is my default setting.

thanks you for waking me up. thank you for reminding me that i am perfekt. thank you for loving me.

you fukkin rawk my world!!!

i love you

~*...normaste...*~

~*...exploring vansterdam with olivia...*~

january 12, 2006
captured moment number 1.12.6

i'm sitting in cafe artigiano drinking a grande chai tea cappucino with olivia, a beautiful soul from new jersey.

having people fly in from a different country to spend a few daze with me exploring a new city is a gift.


i just ran into my friend jeff from university. he worked at john fluevog in toronto on queen street. olivia and i were looking at some shoes in the john fluevog store on granville when i hear my name called from behind me (olivia just took my pen).



jeff had finished shool in the tee dot and is now designing for john fluevog here in vancouver. i guess the "you never know who you might run into on queen street" phenormenon happens everywhere for me, even on granville.

sketchin in a cute italian caffe on hornby...life is good. burning man 2006 baby...playa people. happy birthday liz.

~*...family...*~

sunday, january 8, 2006
12:35pm
601 vancouver from the ladner exchange

i'm sitting on a bus heading back to vancouver from ladner, a town 3o minutes south of the city. my cousin debbie and her husband steven live in ladner with their children krysti, geoffrey, jason, and ryan. its good to see family again. i've seen debbie twice in the last six months. that's more than i've seen her in the past six years!

adam and hild dropped me off last night here in ladner. man those two have made my transition to the left coast so smooth for me. from providing me a place to stay (with internet, hoorah!), to taxiing me ass around the 604 area code, they have been a god sent (norm sent?;). if you're reading this adam and hil, fuck yeah and fuck da bullshit!


upon arriving last night to debbie's place for dinner, i was treated to some good jamaican cooking. stew peas, punkin and beef soup, pig's tail, and of course rice. my aunt, my father's sister and debbie's mom, was there with her husband cherry. it was good to be around family blood. friends are the family we choose for ourselves.


i've been blessed out here having such an incredible network of people who love me to call on. come to think of it, i've always been blessed with the best people to share my life with. there is no reason not to.

we played some dominoes, some texas hold em, and even some n64. yah, 1080 snowboarding is crap compared to ssx3, but when 1080 came out i remember freaking out at how awesome it was. aaah, the daze of nintendo cartridges and blowing on them when they wouldn't work properly.



then we watched hackers on ytv (they even left the bad words in there) before i passed out.

HACK THE PLANET!!!

daam angelina jolie looked smokin back then too *rraow*

this morning i joined debbie, steve, jason, and ryan at church, more specifically catholic mass!!! i have never been to mass before, so i was fascinated by the re-enactment of traditions and rituals that create the world's largest religion.

may the peace of the lord be with you...

...and also with you.

jews say shalom (peace be with you)
muslims say aslaam alaikum (may the peace of allah be with you)
jedis say may the force be with you

same technology different brand

it's been so long since i've been to any kind of traditional church ceremony, and i've never been to catholic mass. i was fascinated by the rituals, the recitations, the out of tune singing :p really, does the priest have to sing it? i think he should stick to his day job and leave the singin to everyone else.

as a little boy stood in front of the priest balancing a bible on his head while the priedt read from it aloud, i couldn't help but think how some of the clergy have abused their position of power.

we'll just have to let the giant spider deal with those miscreants :p

eucharist

it was also the day for communion.

"this is my body which is broken for you. do this in memory of me."

"this is my blood which has been shed for you. do this in memory of me."

of course i didn't partake. hey, its not my religion or custom. instead, i crossed my hands over my chest and was blessed by the priest.



god is the part of us that we believe is greater than us. we are all gods.

now its time to decide what to do with myself...head downtown and cruise around, head to adam's, head to brett's, stop by the house gallery boutique and say hello to the beautiful seamstress who owns the shop? options, options, options...wait a second, we're crossing a bridge. i guess i'm going downtown.

jeebus loves you!

2:49pm
thurlow and robson
red robin ~ canada's gourmet burgers and spirits

so as fate would dictate, i'm downtown in van city at possibly the only intersection in the world with two starbucks on it. i'm about to order the bleu ribbon burger and wash it down with a rickard's honey lager. mmmmm....beer just arived. my server's name is kristi. vancouver cuties are refreshing to me. maybe its the newness of it all, me being new to everyone here and me being new to them. maybe its the mountains, the ocean, or all of the above. either way, i'm lovin it.

i'm gonna see a movie after i'm done this burger. maybe the chronicles of normnia or syriana. i'll let my sister decide for me as she is the one who is paying for my movie (thanks for the free passes thail). i'm gonna call her now and see why she hasn't returned my texts. whine aren't you answering? choose your norm adventure. what movie should i see? yay, calling cards. the maximum time for my cell is 201 minutes. boo voicemail. guess i'm going to have to make my own decision *gasp* normnia it is.



~*...normaste...*~

~*...giving shape to memories...*~

happy new year! merry clitoris!

this new year has been a whirlwind for me. unbelievable. out of this world. nucking futz! i'm sitting down right now in front of adam c'z pc sorting through pix of the most intense closing moments of 2005 and an explosive start to a new chapter in my life for 2006.

i've got so many pix to sort and prep for each blog entry, but i thought i'd just take the time to capture right now before i attempt to remember what i've done since i've moved over here to the left coast.

my friend will said to me today on msn that i should update my blog, people might think i'm dead :p so here i am about to give shape to the past two weeks of my life in an evening of intense bloggin aktion...

the people out here have made my transition to the west coast a warm and welcome one. it seems no matter where i go i surround myself by the best people, why would i settle for anything less?

looking forward to having my pc with me again. until then, my blog entries may not be as frequent while in transit. i've got such an insane month ahead of me, and i'm so excited.

what decisions in my life would you like to be involved in?

here goes life...let's see where it, more like we, take it.

~*...normaste...*~

~*...starting the year off with powder...*~

seeing as new years fell on a sunday, the official day off work was the monday. so what better way to enjoy a holiday than to shred whistler blackcomb.

adam, hilary, and i got up early monday morning and began our two hour journey to the peaks of whistler blackcomb.

the conditions had improved significanlty at the mountain from the previous monday. there was more snow covering the mountain, and the sun was out and shining brightly.

sometimes the snow was a bit too much...

but we're not going to complain about all that powder to ride through...

what an awesome day out at whistler. riding just keeps getting better and better with every day that i am out. its not hard to have your mind blown when you have the best mountain in the world to shred.


~*...normaste...*~

~*...left coast familia...*~

after a good night's rest, or should i say good day's rest, i went to richmond to my aunt thelma's place for dinner.

thelma is my father's half sister. she lives in richmond with her husband cherry. my cousin debbie, her husband steve, and their four kids were also there. it was good to see family, and even better to eat some good jamaican food.


my mom warned me that aunt thelma would have something to say about my dreadlocks...and of course she did.

"is wha you do to you hair? is you a rasta or something? what's your mother think of your hair?"

"my mom hasn't liked any of my hairstyles, but she's learned to look past what i look like and still love me."

after dinner, i jumped on a bus back to vancouver with a new year of incredible adventures and experiences ahead of me.

the world awaits.

~*...normaste...*~

~*...new years on the sunshine coast...*`

brett, laura and i left early saturday afternoon and headed towards the horseshoe bay ferry docks. our destination was the sunshine coast of british columbia...86km of west coast beauty.


we took the 45minute ferry from horseshoe bay to langdale. the ferry ride was beautiful. this province never ceases to blow me away with majestik beauty.


we arrived in langdale and drove to sechelt where my friend markus lives. his place is 30 feet away from the pacific ocean. you can see the lights of nanaimo on vancouver island from his living room. the coast is beyond beautiful.


there are no major roads connecting the sunshine coast to mainland british columbia, so all vehicles have to be ferried there. i thought that the towns on the coast would be sparse, but i was wrong. they look just like regular towns with lots of cars...its just that the cars have to get therefrom the mainland by ferry. the b.c. gov't is thinking of creating a road connecting the sunshine coast to the mainland in preparation for the olympics in 2010.

after a few beers and some lifted spirits, we left markus and headed towards the ymca camp at mt.elphinstone for a new years party called intention7. held by the tribal harmonix krew, intention7 could not have asked for a better venue. mt.elphinstone? hard to get much more majikal and hippie than that eh?


the main venue was decorated nicely with a very grassroots vibe flowing freely through the camp. shoes were taken off at the entrance. there was a chill area of mattresses in the corner next to a blacklit community painting. just grab a brush and add to the piece.

the energy is not just on the playa, its everywhere...


the music at intention was a nice diverse serving of breakbeatz and trance. there was no house, but i wasn't realy expecting to hear any at this event anyways. the people were beautiful though, majikal to be exact. many mystikal and vibrant creatures live on the sunshine coast.

i ran into my friend valerie at intention and met her partner. she surprised me with the good news that she is pregnant. i'm so stoked for you val.

my friend jules was also there...another toronto to left coast import. we're taking over! ;)

jules had created this altar at the entrance of the party. the force flows freely and powerfully through mt.elphinstone.

what an incredible way to ring in the new year. i danced and celebrated with good friends and majikal creatures on the sunshine coast. gaia is radiantly gorgeous out here....and she also kinda smells like hippie ;)

there is a plethora of beautiful dreadlockz out here...yes, it is heaven when you are this close to the water, and the mountains.

and wouldn't you know it, the beautiful dreaded creature in the pik above is named....jess. of course that's her name.

you never stop loving silently those you once loved out loud.

i love you jessie.

it was different celebrating my new years without my closest cirlce of usual suapects around me. i was glad to have good friends with me here, making my transition so much easier...but there are many times where i wish i could just have tea with mel, play video games with homer, see a movie with my sister. i miss all of you guys like crazy. i love you.

happy new year.

~*...normaste...*~
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