Movies under the stars

The old school advertisements for the concession stand...

During our road trip last summer, we made a special detour to visit the Starlight Drive-In in Enderby, BC.

I've spoken before of my fond memories of going to our local drive-in as a kid. Today, drive-ins have all but disappeared across North America so I wasn't going to let this opportunity pass.

We arrived early. It was raining so to keep the rain off our windshield and ruining the experience I improvised with a tarp and a couple of paddles.

You do what you gotta do...

Take me home...

Country roads, take me home

To the place I belong

West Virginia, mountain mama

Take me home, country roads

-- John Denver

Missing Robin Williams

"In the jungle you must wait / Until the dice read five or eight."

Recently, while trolling for sports gear in a local thrift shop, I stumbled across this game.

It brought back some fond memories of watching this movie with my sons when they were just young children. Robin Williams' films were our go-to movies for family viewing... Jumanji, Mrs. Doubtfire (my younger son's favourite), Hook, and, of course, his unique voice talents in Aladdin.

When he died by his own hand five years ago, the world was definitely a sadder place for his absence.

Pipe Mountain Coaster

Thunderbirds are go!

The Pipe Mountain Coaster at Revelstoke, BC is described on their website as an "exhilarating ride...4 km of twists and turns across ski runs, between glades and through a tunnel while traveling up to 42km/hour."

We camped in the area during our summer 2018 road trip for the express purpose of trying it out.

We ended up doing it three times. The first time we went down, the goof in front of us kept his brakes on for the entire ride. He was completely oblivious to the backed up riders behind him who wanted to do it the way it should be done... fast!

The staff at the bottom acknowledged our frustration and disappointment and gave us a another free ride.

Wind runner

During our recent surfin' safari at Tofino on Vancouver Island we saw this fun little landsurfer cruising up and down the beach at Cox Bay.

Everybody's gone surfing...

Tofino is ground zero for the surf culture on Vancouver Island.

Surfing is as much an attitude as it is a sport it seems. Harcore surfers tend to live a minimalist lifestyle. Owning stuff would tie them down to one spot and all the hardcore surfers I have talked to were transients, following the big waves around the globe. Also, owning stuff requires a job to buy stuff and these people work as little as they need to. Not because they are lazy -- far from it -- but because time spent working is less time spent on a beach.

In Tofino, it's common to see young adults cycling to the local beaches first thing in the morning with their boards strapped to the side of the bike. A lot of them have this almost Buddha-like expression of contentment and satisfaction of their faces. To steal a phrase: "The worst day surfing is better than the best day working."

Authentic vintage

The remains of an old gas station in Oregon...

Unlike the previous post, this gas station on an Oregon roadside is less vintage and more derelict.

I wonder: Did the driver of the last car to fill up here realize  that the pumps would forever fall silent behind them?

Forlorn and forgotten...

Vintage

A gas station out of time...

All shiny and new looking this classic Texaco gas station looks like it slipped through a time warp to arrive in 2019 from the year 1965.

In reality, it's a 'set' outside Coombs in BC. It's actually the storefront for an auto restoration business that specializes in classic cars.

A flurry of flamingos

Flamingos on display at the zoo in Calgary AB...

Although a group of birds is known as a flock, many gatherings of birds have more specific names. For example, a flock of crows is known as a murder while a flock of owls is known as a parliament.

Which is weird since owls are solitary birds not known for flocking.

I think a group of flamingos should be known as a 'flurry'. It has a nice alliteration. However, to find out what a group of flamingos is really called just hover your mouse icon over the image above.

Human racing...

Don't be too quick to race through life...

In the First World, we are obsessed with setting goals and then chasing them with single-minded determination. That finish line beckons us to run faster, to beat everyone else in the race to reach it... and as soon as we sprint past the line what do we see? Another finish line in the distance. And so we race onward with grim determination.

When you are chasing a never-ending succession of finish lines, you can lose sight of the beautiful things -- big and small -- that are passing by you. Sometimes it's okay to slow down, leave the track, take your shoes off and enjoy the feeling of cool grass tickling your toes and warm sun on your face.

Knotty Owls

A magic owl works its stuff...

This is Brian of Ladysmith with one of his carved wood creations. We ran into each other on a somewhat remote stretch of a local river. I was going to try a paddleboard experiment which had the potential for major failure.

Brian offered me one of his handmade good luck charms which I gratefully took. He carves them from assorted beach wood that he gathers and hands them out to strangers that he encounters during his travels.

My experiment was a complete disaster. It ended with me nearly getting swept downstream and losing all my gear.

Brian's carving must have worked its voodoo since things didn't turn out as bad as they could have.

Grass naps

Dogs have so much to teach us...

Grass and sun... made for snoozin'...

Splendor in the grass...

Bonneville

That's a L-O-N-G car!

On a recent trip to Oceanside on Vancouver Island, I came across this classic Pontiac Bonneville, probably from the mid-1960s.

Just look at the size of that trunk! You could put a swimming pool in there. Or a half dozen dead bodies. Just sayin'...