The Christmas Hangover

I woke up this morning after a remarkably good night's sleep. The family - both sides - was over for Christmas Dinner last night. The house was a bit of a disaster, and I had gone to bed without cleaning up much.

This morning I woke to the mess in the kitchen - the dirty dishes, the coffee cups, the wine glasses. There was wrapping paper everywhere, leftover party favourites from the Christmas crackers, dirty napkins All of it went into the garbage. And now we have a very large bag of junk that will be sent to a landfill. That junk must be generated at almost every house in North America. That's a lot of cheap Chinese crap going directly from the dining room to the dump.

And it got me to thinking...

People have ranted about the "commercialization of Christmas" for the past fifty years - I watched "A Charlie Brown Christmas" from 1965 and Charlie Brown laments about it. But things haven't changed much. We still buy things we don't need. We still have an expectation that we should get a commensurate amount of stuff based loosely on how much we give. Folks like me say "I don't want anything" but would be disappointed Christmas morning if that was an actually reality.

So I hope I read this a year from now, and I hope that I've moved closer to this ideal.

We should give nothing except cheer and fellowship and good wishes. Maybe splurge on a meal - just to reinforce that we are rich.

What would it feel like to really have to suffer in order to give someone a gift. I don't know. And if you're reading this, I doubt you do either (you're reading this on a computer of some sort - so  you're rich).  How about this: we all agree that we forego Christmas stockings and presents under the tree, and make the holiday more like Thanksgiving. Be thankful that we're all winners in the gene-pool of life. We were born in North America. We speak English. Most of us are white anglo saxons. Do we have to flaunt it?

It has to stop some-place. How about next year?

Best Night Yet - But I Really Don't Know Why

When I woke up this morning I knew that I had the best night's sleep I've had in a long, long time. The problem is I don't think I did anything unusual yesterday - actually I went to bed earlier than normal - and this would usually cause me to sleep poorly. The only thing I did different yesterday was to listen to some meditation isochronic tones, as well as some insomnia ones, for about an hour - while doing something else (like writing or reading). I'll try to replicate the same behavior today and see if I get the same results tonight.

Resumes

My buddy Dave has thrown me some work to post four jobs on a couple of popular job search sites, and to filter and forward the resumes to him and his colleagues. It's mostly a clerical thing which doesn't involve much brain power, but I find myself frustrated by some simple resume writing tips that most people don't know about (or they do know about them, but they don't do them). So for my personal venting, I'm putting these very simple rules here for my own edification.

• Spell check. Everyone submits their resume online now, and every computer has a spell checker. Use it.
• Grammar check. Same as above. If you can't speak English, find someone who does and can proofread for you.
• Read the ad! If I put "please send your cover letter and resume as attachments to the email" I don't think that's too hard to understand. I'm cutting and pasting all over the place because 1 in 10 actually does this.
• When you are smart enough to attach documents, chances are you'll call them something like junecv-oct2009.doc. How about call it John Smith Resume.doc and John Smith Cover Letter.doc Better yet, send them both (with similar names) as PDF files so anyone can read them.
• I can't stand applicants that won't take an extra 45 seconds to write a cover letter. I'd even accept a cover email. Given my drothers, an application received without a cover document would be sent to the trash immediately (without opening). Note that I forward these on as "John Smith Resume - No Cover". 

Remember, the person reading your application has likely received hundreds. These days, they are rarely going to be printed off, so the name of your document (resume or cover letter) needs to describe what it is - and make it easy to find.

The job of a resume or an application is to get an interview. The easier you make it to read/find/file your application, the higher the likelihood you'll get a phonecall about the job.

My ideal resume would pass all the spell and grammar checks, would have an email cover letter, a copy of that same cover letter as an attachment and a resume as an attachment. The attachments would have clear names describing who and what they are - like my example above.

I've yet to receive one of these.

Fractured Sleep

I am really frustrated by this part of my ongoing struggle with sleep. Fractured or fragmented:

On average, I'm awake 13 times a night. I think the average is about 4.

The most obvious "advice" I hear is to not drink alcohol - because it causes fractured sleep.

But what if you don't drink?

Zeo gives me insight - some good, some not so good

I got a Zeo Sleep Monitor a few weeks ago.

The idea is to gather actual data about your sleep - like that you'd get in a sleep lab. You wear a headband at night that monitors your brain patterns and transmits what it tracks onto your Smartphone (it could be an iPhone, but I have the Android version). The software ap on the Smartphone then transmits this data back to a website that Zeo has for users. The Zeo site has all kinds of tools to manipulate the data, and you can experiment to see what actually has an effect on your light, deep and REM sleep - as well as how often and how long you are awake each night.

And therein lies my dilemma.

My ZQ Last Night = 45 (red-awake, green-REM, grey-light, black-deep)

An average 50-60 year old man should have a "ZQ" (the calculation that Zeo makes on your sleep based on all the time you spent in each phase) of 69. For the first week of use, my ZQ was actually hovering in the low 70's - which provided a kind of psychological boost. Then the last few nights it's been in the 40's. As you can see in the chart that Zeo collected - it's very fractured (note that even the 77 score I got last week was full of fractured sleep - see below).

And that's the problem - I'm doing nothing different. I have a routine that generally lets me sleep relatively well. I know if I don't exercise or watch TV too late - I'll pay. So I avoid doing anything that might upset sleep.

Fortunately there's a coaching service with Zeo, and I don't think I'm the only one with this problem. We'll see...

An Essay From Robert Reich

Restore the Basic Bargain

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2011

For most of the last century, the basic bargain at the heart of the American economy was that employers paid their workers enough to buy what American employers were selling.

That basic bargain created a virtuous cycle of higher living standards, more jobs, and better wages.

Back in 1914, Henry Ford announced he was paying workers on his Model T assembly line $5 a day – three times what the typical factory employee earned at the time. The Wall Street Journal termed his action “an economic crime.”

But Ford knew it was a cunning business move. The higher wage turned Ford’s auto workers into customers who could afford to buy Model T’s. In two years Ford’s profits more than doubled.

That was then. Now, Ford Motor Company is paying its new hires half what it paid new employees a few years ago.

The basic bargain is over – not only at Ford but all over the American economy.

New data from the Commerce Department shows employee pay is now down to the smallest share of the economy since the government began collecting wage and salary data in 1929.

Meanwhile, corporate profits now constitute the largest share of the economy since 1929.

1929, by the way, was the year of the Great Crash that ushered in the Great Depression.

In the years leading up to the Great Crash, most employers forgot Henry Ford’s example. The wages of most American workers remained stagnant. The gains of economic growth went mainly into corporate profits and into the pockets of the very rich. American families maintained their standard of living by going deeper into debt. In 1929 the debt bubble popped.

Sound familiar? It should. The same thing happened in the years leading up to the crash of 2008.

The latest data on corporate profits and wages show we haven’t learned the essential lesson of the two big economic crashes of the last seventy-five years: When the economy becomes too lopsided – disproportionately benefitting corporate owners and top executives rather than average workers – it tips over.

In other words, we’re in trouble because the basic bargain has been broken.

Yet incredibly, some politicians think the best way to restart the nation’s job engine is to make corporations even more profitable and the rich even richer – reducing corporate taxes; cutting back on regulations protecting public health, worker safety, the environment, and small investors; and slashing taxes on the very rich.

These same politicians think average workers should have even less money in their pockets. They don’t want to extend the payroll tax cut or unemployment benefits. And they want to make it harder for workers to form unions.

These politicians have reality upside down.

Corporations don’t need more money. They have so much money right now they don’t even know what to do with all of it. They’re even buying back their own shares of stock. This is a bonanza for CEOs whose pay is tied to stock prices and it increases the wealth of other shareholders. But it doesn’t create a single new job and it doesn’t raise the wages of a single employee.

Nor do the wealthiest Americans need more money. The top 1 percent is already taking in more than 20 percent of total income — the highest since the 1920s.

American businesses, including small-business owners, have no incentive to create new jobs because consumers (whose spending accounts for about 70 percent of the American economy) aren’t spending enough. Consumers’ after-tax incomes dropped in the second and third quarters of the year, the first back-to-back drops since 2009.

The recent small pickup in consumer spending has come out of their savings. Obviously this can’t continue, and corporations know it. Consumer savings are already at their lowest level in four years.

Get it? Corporate profits are up right now largely because pay is down and companies aren’t hiring. But this is a losing game even for corporations over the long term. Without enough American consumers, their profitable days are numbered.

After all, there’s a limit to how much profit they can get out of cutting American payrolls or even selling abroad. European consumers are in no mood to buy. And most Asian economies, including China, are slowing.

We’re in a vicious cycle. The only way out of it is to put more money into the pockets of average Americans. That means extending the payroll tax cut. And extending unemployment benefits.

Don’t stop there. Create a WPA to get the long-term unemployed back to work. And a Civilian Conservation Corp to create jobs for young people.

Hire teachers for classrooms now overcrowded, and pay them enough to attract people who are talented as well as dedicated. Rebuild our pot-holed highways. Create a world-class infrastructure.

Pay for this by hiking taxes on millionaires.

A basic bargain was once at the heart of the American economy. It recognized that average workers are also consumers and that their paychecks keep the economy going.

We can’t have a healthy economy until that bargain is restored.

Invest a Little Time

OK, all you right-wingers. This should envelope you from both sides, but will require a little work.

First, watch the decidedly left-wing video, and try not to implode. It's mostly about America, but lots of it apply here too. Let's discuss the meat, not the sizzle.

Next, read the book "Endgame: The End of the Debt Supercycle and How It Changes Everything".

I have to admit, I haven't read much more than the introduction to the book - just downloaded it.

These both should be good fodder for conversation.....

Occupy That!

Globe and Mail

I've received plenty of feedback on my Occupy This! post, both informally and through comments on the post itself.

As I watched the news this morning, I also saw the Premier (carpetbagger that she is) say "I'm fed up" and "it's time to end this nonsense".

These homeless, unemployed, drug-addicted, social outcasts have worn out their welcome. They also have the misunderstanding that they can change the world and (mostly because we told them) that getting an education is the key to upward mobility.

I have noticed, however, that these opinions all come from people who have already "made it".

So from someone who's "made it", here are two specific suggestions to the Occupy movement to really have an impact.

• Pick a multinational oil company and boycott that company. Make it cool not to do business with Shell, or Esso, or Chevron - in the USA I'd pick Exxon.
• Move your money out of one of the big banks in Canada, and move it to a local Credit Union. There's already an ap for that! 

With these two actions, if enough people did them, you'd have an irritating, perfectly legal way of impacting two of the largest, most corrupt, most influential sectors we have - energy and banking. Simple and easily understood.

Actually, in order to have an impact, it's the over 40 crowd that will have to do this. The "Occupiers" probably ride bikes and take transit, and they certainly have no money.

Career Counselling

With winter settling in to it's wet & cold phase for the next several months, and with me pretty much stuck here in Vancouver for the duration (maybe?), it's time to turn my thoughts to using my brain again and doing something that's both challenging and flexible. Earning some cash isn't a bad idea either.

I've started another blog with the intent of commercializing it - but first you've got to get traffic, and the only way get that is with content. I think I'm up for the content creation part of this, but could use some help with some anecdotal stories from any of you reading this - have a look at the blog and you'll know what kind of stories I'd like (maybe a little Q&A is in order as well).

I was somewhat hesitant to jump in this with both feet, not knowing if this was a reasonable idea or not - it was for me, but I hadn't really talked to anyone about it. So yesterday, I had a conversation with John (Alpha), and bounced the ideas off him. He had many suggestions, but on the whole thought that the thinking was clear and the objective was obtainable (traffic and some money). We had dinner last night with another tech/personal friend, and we're going to schedule a lunch in the next week or two to discuss in detail.

John mentioned another idea that I've pondered, but never very seriously - contract technical writing. I don't know if I'd be any good at it (I suspect that I might, though), but he did say that there's a demand for these kinds of people in the Vancouver area and that often it's a career driven by a lifestyle choice - which would describe me perfectly. We'll see how this pans out as I think about it longer. Years ago Dave K said that his ideal job wouldn't be one job, but seven or eight small ones (I doubt he remembers this, but I do). I think that's about as good as you can get, provided that it's not overwhelming.

So back to the blog ... have a read and tell me (honestly) what you think. It's a work in process, so it's not that pretty. The idea is to get content first, traffic second and monitization last.....

Occupy this!

Jeff Vinnick for the Globe and Mail

I've had plenty of time now to come to some understanding of the "Occupy XXX (fill in name of city here)" demonstrations over the last several weeks.

At first, although I sympathized with the demonstrators, they didn't have a single, cohesive theme to grab me with. Something I could latch on to. Kind of like the Tea Party. Although they (the Tea Party) had a simplistic, easy-to-understand, uninformed theme - at least it stuck. Seems that the right wing in the USA has a distinct advantage of being able to stay on message.

But the more I listened and read, the clearer it became to me. There isn't a clear message because there can't be one. We're past the days of 'easy solutions for easy problems'. There is no single thing - or even several things - we could do to meet their needs.

What I think they're calling for - and this is just my interpretation - is an entire restructuring of the way we do things. The system we have now is 'winner take all'. There is no long term view - either in the business world or in our individual lives. The rules have been rigged to support this idea. Here are several examples of what I'm thinking of:

• Corporations have person-hood.  Corporations have all the privileges of being a person, with very few of the responsibilities. And none of the downside. Being beholden to shareholders first, second and third is lunacy. And most every corporation that says their employees, customers, or social responsibility is high on their list - is lying to you. Shareholders trump all.
• Young adults today have a much reduced chance of finding real, rewarding work. Unemployment is very high, and the 'under-employed' is a huge class (across all age groups).
• We've been fed the 'you must go to University to get a good job' line for decades now. Today we know that's foolish and stupid.
• We export everything we can export - jobs, water, oil - without regard for the repercussions (like huge unemployment). We reward the people who do the exporting. 
• People who add no value are rewarded excessively (banking).
• People who add huge value are not rewarded at all (teachers, cops, firemen, social workers).
• We have lived way beyond our means in the West for decades. Now it's coming home to roost.
• We're very quick to promote democracy when it suits us (Egypt, Libya), but not so quick when it doesn't (Greece, Occupy XXX).

When I see in the news today that the City of Vancouver is trying to shut down the Occupy site downtown, I can't help but think that 'if you want to really inflame the situation and bolster the movement, that's how to do it'.  They're inconveniencing nobody. The cries of 'but someone died there' are hollow - go to the Downtown East Side and see how many die there every week. But we never see or hear about those deaths. The site is at most an eyesore for those who live by the Art Gallery (nobody). It's a shame that all the people working in downtown Vancouver might have to look at the site for a few minutes a day. And a shame that they had to re-route the Santa Clause Parade - hardship, I know.

So that's my rant of the moment - I'd like to hear from anyone who's over the age of 30 and agrees (or disagrees) with me!

Sadly, the redneck antenna is going...

This morning, Laura took it upon herself to phone Shaw Cable and change our lineup - again. As of tomorrow, Doug's redneck antenna experiment will end, and corporate greed and consumer hand-feeding will return - it's part of the bargain when you sign up for cable.

So, in this household anyways, Internet-only + over-the-air television doesn't cut it yet. I think that I could be quite content with this setup, but I'm apparently only one vote. When Laura went to sign up again, she did get the cost down, so it won't be quite the financial hit that it was last time.

Perhaps if I could just get a US-based IP address, then we could use Hulu or Google TV? Hmmm.....

The debacle...

In mid-August I did something that I've heard lots about, but knew no-one who had actually done it. I cut the cable TV. Completely. Zero. Zilch. Nada. In order to somewhat compensate, I beefed up the Internet access to higher upload and download speeds, as well as an increase in the monthly data cap.

This has now transformed into a full out family brawl, to which I've become particularly obstinate. You see, David returned from Korea this last weekend, and wants to get his hockey fix. Laura wants the fix too. After the tremendously fulfilling Canucks season last year (if you don't read the sarcasm, let me assure you that it's there), I have no doubt why.

I figured that with my redneck antenna, you could get CBC quite well, and you can. I didn't know that CBC doesn't carry all of the games, for that you'd need SportsNet. SportsNet isn't available over-the-air. Hence the argument.

Both Laura and Dave have offered to pay for all or most of the cable required to get hockey on for this season. Problem is that I think Laura's cash could be better spent (she is the only breadwinner in the household right now), and Dave is a starving artist that can better use his funds. And I'm pulling the "I'm an asshole" card and saying "no" regardless.

My argument is that, other than some hockey (non-CBC) there isn't anything worth watching that we can't find some other way - be it over-the-air, Netflix, or downloaded. Hockey is the casualty. Since I'm no hockey fan, it doesn't bother me at all. But I do understand that the other members of the family (note that both Kathryn and David are only here for a few short weeks, and Kath could care less) love it. I can't say I love (or even like) the "hockey shrapnel" left in the house during and after a game. The yelling at the TV confuses me.

So am I being a "ruthless redneck" or just "ahead of the curve"?

My response to Bruce's reply...

My friend Bruce sent a compelling message to me in response to one of my previous posts about packing too much stuff.

I've considered my position again, and am sure that I can compensate for Bruce's earth-killing-carbon-footprint when he travels. Among the things I will consider in the future are:

• Travelling naked where allowed.
• Sleeping under a borrowed tarp - there is no need to bring your own. Everybody owns a tarp.
• A homeless dog makes a useful pillow. A dead homeless dog won't move and wake you up.
• Did you know that most restaurants throw out meals that haven't been completely eaten? Bonus.
• The police can chauffeur you most anywhere if you act up in public. Every sixty days or so, do something really outrageous, and you can get a free haircut (not to mention meals) when you are in prison.
• Movies are free if you watch them through somebody's window.
• If you borrow a knife, you can carve shoes out of abandoned tires. Radial tires work best. Attach them to your feet using tree sap (also free).
• Instead of a digital camera, just draw pictures in the sand or dirt. They are as available as most people's digital photos anyways.
• Did you know that they have these places that let you have books, and expect you to bring them back in a few weeks. Fools.
• If you need to learn how to wash in a public restroom (if you care about that sort of thing), ask for tips at the local Chevron station. As an added bonus, the odor of gasoline is an effective deodorant.

These tips are important for any enlightened traveler. Let the Bruce's of the world destroy the planet - I'll try to save it!

Home Sweet Home

Going to Sydney on a ship was a lengthy process. Sixteen sea-days and six time zones (plus crossing the International Date Line which was actually pretty uneventful - go to bed on Friday night, and wake up on Sunday morning).

Getting home from Australia was a short matter of a fourteen hour flight. But I'm sure the jet-lag will make it a multiple day affair to recoup (although right now I feel pretty good - even slept through the night until 6:30am).

Home is much, much cooler than where we came from - we're entering fall while Oz is well into spring - and spring in Sydney means 30C.

Now that I've had a taste of "down under", I will have to re-evaluate the places I want to go in the next few years. Europe is always attractive, but sometimes I'm convinced that the tourists outnumber the locals. South America really sounds interesting, but maybe it's a bit too "rustic" for me right now.

Oz is probably a place I want to go back to, and spend some significant time. Outside the cities. Circumnavigate the country in a "caravan". You can get a six month tourist visa really easy. Wanna come?

Goodbye Sydney

If this isn't an iconic city, then I don't know what iconic means.

Sydney, on our last couple of days in town, was spectacular ... moderate, warm weather together with spectacular views taken from a State Park located across from the Opera House.

Not much to say after that.....

Bruce's reply...

This was so funny I had to post it...

On Thursday, October 20, 2011, Bruce Chambers wrote: 

Doug,

It sounds like the trip is going well (despite the rain in Cairns) by the descriptions in your blog. I just read the latest installments to Sandra while we are having our morning coffee. In particular the entry entitled Smaller is Better. She had two responses to your write up on what you have and what you need for a lengthy trip such as this:

1. "He must smell real nice" ..... I get the feeling she was being sarcastic.

2. "It's some kind of sickness".

While I can't vouch for your personal hygiene or your apparent inability to carry more than five pounds in your luggage I have to say that we differ in our modes of travel and what we think we require for said travel.

I, personally, can carry 200 pounds in a back pack or 350 pounds in a suitcase with wheels. And this is why I like to take any items with me that there may be the remotest chance, a glimmer so to speak, of being required and of being put to use. For our recent trip to Italy, the cruise and Turkey I took the following. (The list is not inclusive).

• Pants (not zip offs .... only a dork would ..... oh,never mind .....,
• Shorts, lots.
• At least two bathing suits. Putting on a damp bathing suit from the previous day just will not work!
• Shirts (long sleeve, short sleeve collared, short sleeve collarless, various colours and fabrics)
• Hiking /walking sandals
• Shoes, casual and dress
• Boots, casual and dress
• Pool sandals
• Light jacket
• Wind breaker
• Rain jacket (packable to save space)
• Ski jacket (in case of freak snow storm .... it could happen),
• Portable BBQ in case of food cooking emergency.
• Some smoked meats in case of a lack of food emergency. Smoked meats travel well and don't need a lot of refrigeration.
• Hockey stick to show the 'natives' real Canadian culture.
• Three books - in case two are crappy, third time lucky. And they should be hardcover as they travel better.
• Norwegian hiking sticks  ... to be used in the off chance I succumb and buy zip off pants.
• Starbucks VIA coffee.
• Folding chair in case I need to sit down.
• Enough hand wipes to have an entire sponge bath (for two) in case of a lack of shower emergency.
• Spare automotive 12 volt battery. You certainly wouldn't want your taxi to fail to start if you were rushing out to an evening of washing your clothes at a laundromat. (This is just a suggestion for you as I would have enough clothes packed to last the entire trip+ and never have to wash any.)
• Screwdrivers (flathead, Robertson and Phillips, a crescent wrench and a pair of pliers.)
• Every AAA map in print.
• Other assorted necessities.

The sea was angry that day my friends....

It has been the wettest October in 43 years in Cairns. That's because Laura and I are visiting.

We had hoped by postponing our trip to the Great Barrier Reef till the last day we were to be in Cairns, the weather might improve. It didn't. 

The Quicksilver catamaran left the dock in Port Douglas at 10am precisely (if there's one thing these Aussies are - it's on time!). We had been warned that their 1 hour 30 minute crossing of the Coral Sea to their floating pontoon location on the outermost reef would be "rough". They were handing out ginger tablets (and, for those that ginger didn't work, some narcotic) for sea sickness. Even though I took two ginger before we left, Laura said I looked "a little green" by the time we arrived.

As soon as we tied up beside the pontoon, we headed over to their partially submersible submarine/boat to take a half hour tour of the reef - it's sort of a glass bottom boat, except the sides are underwater and you sit at windows looking at all the fishies. The tour was really quite good, and showed you what you could expect when snorkeling, without getting wet. Alas, the boat itself was quite claustrophobic, hot and bouncy (because of the choppy sea), so it didn't help my green-ness.

We got back onto the platform and Laura donned a rented Lycra suit for her first dip into the Coral Sea/Great Barrier Reef. They rent the suits, I imagine, because they can capitalize on a little "fear-uncertainty-doubt" with the passengers - they told us that nomally the jellyfish don't arrive until November, but because the water was especially warm, they were early. And a jellyfish sting is not something you want to experience. So we rented a couple of suits.

Laura enjoyed frolicking in the sea, despite the swell and the waves, and after she came out for some lunch, I decided that I better have a go of it as well. Donning the same (type, not actually the same) lycra, and attaching an XXXL lifevest, I went in the water for a half hour or so. I was worried the whole time that the waves would swamp the snorkle, but they didn't.

Overall, it was a fantastic, though expensive, day. We were picked up at 8:10am and dropped off at 6:30pm completely exhausted. Highly recommended.

Wet, wet Cairns

We arrived in Cairns on Tuesday morning (Monday for those in N.America) and it hasn't stopped raining since. They have received over 500mm of rain in the last 48 hours, with no end in sight. The rain here isn't the gentle stuff you get in Vancouver, it's the "oh my god run for shelter" type that soaks you in about three seconds. Think of a garden hose.

Regardless of the weather, though, we figure this may be a once in a lifetime adventure (hope not) so the advantage is that all the tourist spots are empty. We took the Skyrail to Kuranda and managed to stay more-or-less dry, but we had the place pretty much to ourselves. Tomorrow (Friday) we take Quicksilver to the Great Barrier Reef, and I expect much the same.

It's nice to know that even though it's really wet, it's also really warm. So imagine that garden hose with warm bath water. You are wet, but you're not cold. We still hope for some sunshine before heading back to Sydney for a couple of days, and then the long flight home to cold and damp...

Smaller is better...

I can't believe I'm saying this ... "I brought too much stuff with me". Although I did this 40-day trip with a 25l backpack, and Laura tires of seeing me in the same clothes, I brought stuff I could do without:

• I only need one pair of pants - I have a pair of zip-off's that do nicely. they even look presentable.
• I need one pair of shorts. For when I'm not wearing the pants.
• I need a pair of swim-trunks. These also double as pajamas.
• I need a pair of good looking sandals that look presentable in a dining room, but you can also wear to the beach. Boat shoes might works well too.
• I would leave the socks at home.
• I would leave the second pair of shoes at home. They take up too much room in the pack.
• I need a waterproof jacket that comes down far enough to cover the wallet in my pants/shorts.
• I'd add a small, compressible, light backpack for running around town - put the camera, passports, and jacket in it (like those shopping bags you can carry on your keychain, only with some shoulder straps).

My biggest problem, I know, is the amount of tech I carry with me - it takes up almost half the bag. One laptop with power adapter. One Kindle. One iTouch. One camera. The shaving kit takes up some room too, but it's hard to imagine ever trimming that down more than has already happened. Next time....

Cairns or bust

When we sailed to Hawaii from Vancouver, we met Peter and Marion by chance on a tender from the ship to the island of Maui. Laura struck up a conversation with Marion on the trip over, and we subsequently met back at the ship for drinks. They were from Sydney, and answered lots of our questions about what to see in our short time in Australia. They departed for their home after the Hawaii leg, but not before inviting us for dinner once we landed in Oz.

Dinner was last night, and it couldn't have been more wonderful. These were folks we'd met for a sum total of about an hour, spread over a few days on a ship. Turns out that we had much in common, and we were disappointed when the clock struck 11:30pm and it was time to catch a cab back to our hotel - we still had to pack for the flight to Cairns this morning. The dinner they fixed was spectacular - salmon, flat fish (an Aussie favorite), lamb, steak and two salads - followed by dessert and coffee - followed again by a selection of Australian chocolate bars that were strange to us, but turned out to be mostly small variations of North American favorites (O-Henry, Caramilk, and Mars Bars come to mind). We've had chance meetings that turned into a dinner invite before - with mixed results - but this was really a great evening.

This morning we were up and out of the hotel (or is it a hostel - hard to tell) with two backpacks and Laura's gigantic bag (which is slowly dissolving - it is now adorned by several strips of duct tape, and one wheel is held on by chewing gum and spit). We checked the huge bag into long term luggage storage at the Sydney Airport, and we'll collect it when we're back from Cairns. I've convinced Laura to downsize into her backpack for this short four day stint north to see the Great Barrier Reef, and once she was unencumbered she will admit that light and carry-on is the way to go.

So it's off to Cairns we go - a three hour flight from Sydney. I have no idea what to expect, except that the wallet will take further shrapnel from the Australian economy (it's expensive here!). What the heck, when in Rome....

Auckland, New Zealand

This is a huge city (geographically) with no people. Both islands of New Zealand (North and South) contain about 4 million people. Over a million of them live in Auckland.

When we stepped off the ship yesterday, our immediate reaction was "this is Vancouver". After touring around a bit, we'll restate as "this is Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle and San Francisco" - but without the people and the high-rises (outside the downtown core). The weather is the same as home - today it's cloudy, foggy, and raining - about 15 degrees C. The primary difference we can see is that there are very few apartment buildings, and almost everyone lives in a single-level, detached home. Apparently, up until a few years ago the standard lot size in Auckland was a quarter acre. Imagine a city the size of Vancouver where everyone has a detached house on their own plot of land - that's Auckland.

They have great infrastructure here - although no rapid transit (cuz they don't need it). The buses are clean and frequent, and their roadways are well maintained (most are newly paved for the International Rugby Finals on here now). Overall, the city seems very livable.

But I'm never one to talk about something without addressing it's shortcomings. Auckland (if you're a Kiwi, please forgive me) seems "quaint". It's almost like their the irritating young brother who just wants some attention. Because of its location, though, it never gets it. The city, seems to me, almost tries too hard to impress. They're proud of their circa-1975 shopping centre, and the museum is filled mostly with British stuff and memories of the war (if I was to place you in some parts of the  museum, and asked you to guess where you were, you'd likely say "Victoria"). The "trendy shopping area" is kind of like Kerisdale, and they're very proud of the fact that "Bill Clinton has been here twice."

And the city is also expensive. Housing is expensive (we hear $1M-$3M near the downtown), and when Laura and I stepped out to buy some cold medicine last night (she's got a cold), it was $22 for a few tablets - and the druggist helped us with the right selection!

Internet acccess here is like 1995. WiFi is available, but it's hard to find and it's slow and unreliable. I've heard the same thing about most of Australia - hopefully we have better luck.

At dinner last night we all (Cathy, Frank, Laura and me) all agreed that we shouldn't take our situation at home for granted. Reasonable taxes, good climate, great infrastructure, super food, and compared to most of the rest of the world - we live well for cheap!

Enjoy cruising?

My Dad sent me an email, and said that he'd been reading this blog and noticed that I hadn't ever really answered the question "do I enjoy cruising"?

That's a loaded question, which I'll answer here. The answer is "yes and no".

YES

• Who wouldn't enjoy a floating 4-5 star hotel?
• Our room stewards have been fantastic. They notice when we're in and out of the room, and somehow manage to make it up perfectly unseen every day. They introduced themselves the first day, and since then they've always addressed us by our first names.
• The dining room staff has been great. We've gotten to know our waiter well (we have "my time" dining, so if you want somebody's table you have to ask for it), and he knows all of us by our first names (Mr. Douglas, and Mrs. Laura).
• We've had a Norwalk virus outbreak on the ship, and the entire crew is involved in quashing it. Senoir Officers are manning the buffets to serve food for us. To prevent the spread of the virus, there is absolutely nothing handled by the guests themselves - coffee, dessert, ice cream, you name it. Every member of the crew must be working 18 hour days! They sanitize the ship deck by deck once during the daytime and once in the middle of the night. The Captain reports about the virus every day at noon, and we've seen the count go from about 100 passengers and a handful of crew about a week ago, down to 1 passenger yesterday. Their protocols, although a pain in the ass for the crew, work.
• It will take a few days at home to remember that nobody is going to pick up your dishes or make your bed.

NO

• While being at sea on a cruise ship is wonderful in smooth seas. But the higher off the water you are, the more you notice the motion of the ship in rougher water. Today, we have 6-9 foot swells, and you can sit on the 11th deck and watch the pool splash itself dry.
• There's absolutely nothing authentic about a 2500 passenger cruise ship arriving in a port of 1000 people. While the locals love the commerce, I hate the experience.
• It's even less authentic when a cruise ship pulls into a major port (Honolulu). You're at the mercy of the tour operators unless you've been there before and can figure out local transport (bus, taxi).
• I know they need to make something too, but the cruise ship generally charges 200% of what you could get the same tour for on the dock. I hate tours, but sometimes that's your only option in a new place.
• The cruise industry, I predict, will soon become just like a hotel. You'll pay for you're room and some basic entertainment at the start. Everything else, from buffet dinners to dining room dinners, to "headliner shows", to snacks, to booze, basically everything but the room and the transport, will be extra. The business is so competitive, and we consumers are so driven by the initial cost, that they'll have no choice but to reduce the "price" of the cruise and charge for all the add-ons.
• The demographic of cruising doesn't include me yet. Years from now, I can see it - but for now I see it as the "rich, white way to see places in an ultra-safe, cocooned, choreographed way". That's why I  call myself a hypocrite.

So there you have it. I enjoy the time at sea, and I enjoy seeing new places if I can find a way to escape the crowds and the local expectation that I'm going to spend money.

Two years, Bora Bora, and Steve Jobs

There is no possible way that I could have ever predicted that, on the second anniversary of my stroke, I'd be in Bora Bora, French Polynesia. As a matter of fact, if it weren't for the stroke, it's unlikely I'd be here either. I'd probably be working someplace, and could never afford to take a six week vacation.

So perhaps there's a lesson in here somewhere. Whatever you want to do - do it. Now. You can almost never predict what will happen to you a day, a week, a month, or a year from now. So if you have the means to go do something - go do it. If you don't have the means, find some way to acquire it. And for the most part, the most memorable part of anyone's life is the part that costs nothing - friends, family, conversation, laughing. The travel component can cost some money, but if you're smart and frugal, you'd be surprised how much of this can be done on the cheap too.

Even this "once in a lifetime trip" has been made relatively inexpensive. A tough market is a good place to find travel deals.

We'v spent the last three days in French Polynesia. Day one was on the island of Tahiti (Papeete), the second a few miles away on the island of Moorea, and today on the island of Bora Bora. Yesterday was truly remarkable, a picture postcard of every tropical advertisement you've ever seen. And today topped yesterday.

Laura even openly admitted to me today that seeing these places without the crowds and the expectation of tourist dollars (a la sailboat) would be the ideal way to go.

When we got back to the ship, Fox TV was piped in to the rooms on the TV (the only real time satellite feed we can find - why is that?), and they were reminiscing about the life and career of Steve Jobs. Note that I wrote almost all of the above before we turned on the set and learned the sad news. Steve will be missed by millions. Carpe Diem never meant more than it does now. 

Norwalk Virus

The ship is in the middle of a Norovrus scare. A couple of days ago, some kids were seen in the infirmary with symptoms of the gastrointestinal culprit, and yesterday the ship went into their lock-down to prevent the spread. They've been asking that anyone who doesn't feel their stomach is normal go to the infirmary to get checked out. They've removed any costs to this (including any treatment that may be involved) and that tells me how serious they take it. They've stopped and self-service of food (they are using their officers and wait staff), and shut down all the kid's programs.   Rooms have been shut down and are being cleaned, and there's staff all over the ship wiping everything down that could possibly be touched - chairs, tables, elevator buttons, handrails - anything and everything. Apparently, if they cannot get this under control and eliminated quickly, they will stop the ship - not sure exactly what that means, but I'm sure it isn't good.

It's kind of intriguing (and impressive) to see a ship of this size handle a potentially huge health scare. They obviously know what they're doing...

This cruising life...

Laura and I were invited to a "repeat" cruisers reception last night. As we have now done four cruises with Royal Caribbean, we're a prime target market for them. So they ply you with a few drinks and appies, and then tell you all about the exotic destinations they carry 3000 people at a time to. They also reward and recognize their "really frequent cruisers"  at this same event.

They count your "reward" level based on the number of nights you've been aboard a RCI ship. So a 7 night cruise would net you 7 points. When we're done with this cruise, Laura and I will have 40 points or so each. The winner last night had 650. That's almost two years aboard a ship! Apparently their "top" cruiser has 1700 points! When I sat back last night and saw all the people at this reception, I thought again "you are such a hypocrite".

Rewarding someone that can spend money on a cruise ship is a great business strategy - but it should hardly qualify you as someone exceptional (except, of course, to the cruise company). Applauding this achievement is lunacy (except for the cruise company - spend, spend, spend!). The fact that I was there witnessing this lunacy is even more absurd.

So I'll chalk this all up as "I did it for my wife" ... Laura loves the cruise ship life. I was the one who said "sure" when she suggested the trip, and I appreciate the destinations we're heading to - I just wish that I was with a couple of friends instead of 2450 strangers. Then you might stand a chance of really seeing the destination instead of some commercial derivative. I can see doing this with no regrets if I was the age of Laura's mom and Frank - late 70's and early 80's. 

I was thinking last night that the most memorable, fun vacations we ever had were with our kids - and the Mitchener's and Devall's - in a tent on the beach. No money for fancy food or anything but a canvas roof over our heads. Laura and the kids have traveled with me and stayed at fancy hotels and eaten at nice restaurants - I would work while they would vacation - but they still all admit that the tenting days were the ones they most fondly remember.

OK - enough griping about the 5-star life I'm leading for the next couple of weeks. When we start planning the next one, though, I think it will be a bit more towards the tenting end and less toward the floating hotel.

PS on the Aussie thing from last post - I still maintain everything that I said with one caveat: individually, they are all wonderful, interesting, polite people. But when you get a gang of them together - watch out.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie - Oi, Oi, Oi!

The cruise ship started another cruise from Honolulu to Tahiti, New Zealand, and Sydney yesterday. There were 900 Canadians on board from Vancouver to Hawaii, but now there's 60 of us. The number of Americans has diminished quite a bit as well. The big change for this cruise, however, is the Australian contingent. There are now 1600 paying class aboard.

So this next bit may seem a bit chauvinistic, but I started to list the changes I've noticed on board. I'm writing this on Day One of the actual Hawaii-Sydney leg, so you know that these changes are really obvious to me. If you're an Aussie and you're reading this, don't be offended - I mean to imply that, although we come from basically the same stock, our cultures have diverged.

• There's a giant TV screen by the pool on Deck 11. For the last two weeks, it's been tuned to NFL Football whenever it was on during the day (they sometimes showed movies at night). Now they show Cricket. I have no idea what's going on.
• There is a cold drink dispenser that Laura and I would get Lemonade from for the last 11 days. It's now "lemon-lime flavored water".Maybe it's just coincidence, but maybe it's on purpose.
• The no smoking rules have changed. Now you're only allowed smoking in one very small, outdoor, public place (before, there were  indoor "smoking areas" scattered about the ship). Unfortunately for us, it appears that you are allowed to smoke on your outdoor stateroom balcony - and we have smokers on both sides of us, so outdoor/balcony time is limited. It's amazing that, when you're a non-smoker, you can smell burning cigarettes from a thousand yards.
• Australians don't drink Foster's Beer. They hate the stuff. It's what they ship overseas to all of us. We had a pre-cruise meeting the other day for people continuing on from the Vancouver-Hawaii leg. A couple of the Aussies on board asked "are we gonna get some real beer in when we reach Hawaii?".
• Australians do, however drink. A lot. The bar staff have huge grins on their faces - they probably sold more yesterday afternoon than they did for the entire Vancouver-Hawaii cruise.
• The "hours of operation" for the bars have been expanded/extended. The cruise line knows where their bread is buttered.
• There are lots more kids on board. Every second Australian couple seems to have brought their kids.

These next two points I'm sure are unfair generalizations, but I'll write them down here just because Laura thinks it's rude:

• The Aussies seem much more "in your face", "direct", and "forceful" than North Americans (and especially Canadians). I've watched the wait staff look somewhat surprised by the lack of "please" and "thank you" they now get. Many are now treated like second class people. If you were Canadian, and you were served a steak that was underdone, you'd likely say "oh, that's all right, it's really OK" to the waiter. The Aussies (generalization, I know) would say "this steak is garbage, get me a new one". He might add the word "boy" to the end of that sentence too (I did here this last night).
• Young women in their 20's in Vancouver (Laura says it's purely a Vancouver phenomenon) generally look healthy, body conscious, dress conscious and well put together. On the cruise from Vancouver there were maybe 20 girls of that age aboard, and they all fit this description. There are now about 100 aboard of that age group, and none of them fit that description (shallow, I know). When they get older (30's, 40's) things don't improve.

So that's my initial take on things from my balcony on out first sea day out of Honolulu. As I get to do more thinking and observing, I'll be sure to write some more. I know you can hardly wait.

Aloha

So we made it to Honolulu. We've been off the ship for two full days, and depart at midnight tonight bound for French Polynesia - which should take us another five full days at sea.

Since almost everyone I know has been to Honolulu several times, I thought I'd give you my "virgin" first-time impressions:

• Honolulu is a big American city that has nice weather and a nicer beach.
• Traffic in this city reminds me of LA. It took us a half-hour to travel about 10 blocks on a bus yesterday afternoon (a Monday, at about 2pm - so not rush hour).
• The place looks like Banff - there are more Japanese here than anyone else.
• It's expensive - but I knew that it would be. $27 for a hamburger in Tahiti, though, puts it all in perspective.
• We were going to go to see Pearl Harbor, but were warned that if we weren't part of a tour, or arrived very early in the morning and were willing to wait for a few hours to get in, don't bother. We'll have to come back to do that.

We did venture down to Waikiki again today, and ended up spending a few hours at the Honolulu Zoo. We'll see about hitching another bus ride around Diamond Head as soon as I finish syncing my email.

The next dispatch will likely be from New Zealand in a couple of weeks, as I have no idea about WiFi in Tahiti and Bora-Bora.

Hopefully, some of the photos we've taken have uploaded here.

Cruise to Hawaii (and eventually Australia)

I have to admit, especially to myself, that I'm a hypocrite. For a guy that swore he'd never "cruise" again, I'm on my second (actually second and third) cruise this year. Laura and I left Vancouver on September 16th bound for Hawaii - a nice little eleven day affair over to and then in and around the Hawaiian Islands. Then, because we're greedy, all of us are on the same ship (Royal Caribbean Radiance) bound from Hawaii to Tahiti, then New Zealand, and finally to Sydney. I found out later you can stay on the boat for another month and circumnavigate Australia if you'd like as well. Unfortunately (or fortunately), David comes home from Korea at the end of October, and the extra cruise would double the costs - so we're hanging around in Sydney and Cairns for ten extra days and flying home on October 24th.

This cruise so far (I'm uploading this dispatch from Hawaii - the first chance to get reasonably priced (ie: free) WiFi) has been very nice. Laura's mom (Cathy) and husband (Frank) are on the boat all the way to Sydney with us, and so far nobody has thrown me overboard. It's a bit boring during the days at sea (there were five sea days enroute to Hawaii, with twelve more at sea to go), and you tend to eat too much, but it's easy and convenient to eat healthy and get in plenty of exercise.

As we booked so late, we couldn't get an assigned dinner time - so we're on "my time, where you just show up whenever you want and get put at a table. Ordinarily you'd think I'd balk at this - me too. But it's turned out to be the most enjoyable time of the day for me. We get to sit with and talk to new people every time.  A really interesting gay couple from Tampa are extending their trip to include an entire circumnavigation of Australia, with Tasmania and all of New Zealand included to boot. They'll be on board for 62 days.

Many we've sat with at meals have been from Vancouver (one couple even from Shaugnessy Square in Port Coquitlam - less than a mile from our house) - but many others are from all over the place. There are lots of Aussies and Germans on the boat, and every age (except schoolage kids) is well represented. I am certainly not the youngest or the oldest on this ship. I'm sure I'm close to the average age.

A striking part of this cruise for me has been the transition to semi-tropical weather and the deep blue (almost indigo) colour of the ocean. It's been quite calm during this passage, and the big, big ocean looks quite inviting to go sailing in (although I know it can be dangerously inhospitable too). I want to do this trip in a small sail boat! Much to the chagrin of friends who've done this cruise before, and talk about the vastness and the dark cloudy nights, it just seems to stir up even deeper conviction in me.

As of Wednesday, September 21 (today) we had a talk from the Captain who said that the low pressure systems that have helped "push" us to Hawaii have now become a hurricane in the North Pacific. Feel kinda bad for my mom and dad, who are cruising to Alaska this week - I suspect their weather would be the exact opposite of the stuff we've been having.

All four of us have been visiting the gym every day, which partially offsets the pre-dinner bar rendezvous and the post-dinner pre-bedtime calorie free dessert bar. Laura attempted the rock climbing wall today - and got about half way up until her legs gave out. I'm a bit afraid that my "looking up" and "balance" skills aren't where they need to be for me to attempt it - but I may try if it's not too crowded one day.

More to come during our next leg ... going to try and upload this in Kona.

Photos available here.

Great return on investment

A few years ago, after some careful thought about the best ROI for a charity of some sort, I came upon Nothing But Nets - where for a small donation they would provide anti-malarial mosquito nets through most of Africa (they have a neat distribution map on their web page). I've pretty much forgotten about that decision, though I do receive regular emails from the Nothing But Nets folks.

Today when I opened my email, there was a message from Seth Godin (kind of a thought leader in the techie world). He's been working for the last several months on something he calls the Domino Project - the aim of which is to stand traditional publishing on it's head. With all of the new tools we have available (computers, the Internet, Amazon.com, social media and others), why is it that we are doing things the same old way?

The message Seth had this morning is my first real indication of what his project is attempting to do. A group of A-list authors has gotten together and collaborated on a book called End Malaria. $20 from every book sold ($25 is the cost of a paperback and $20 is the cost of a Kindle version) will be donated to Malaria No More, who use the funds to distribute more nets. Note that if you buy the e-book version, 100% of the proceeds go to Africa.

Seth's Blog does a better job of explaining all this than I can, so hop on over and have a read. And donate. The very fact that you're reading this post means you can afford $20 to save some lives.... 

Thoughts about Apple

This post in Wired last week got me to thinking...

I'm no Apple fanboy (perhaps I would be if I had bought the stock when Laura wanted me to - about fifteen years ago), but I do feel a bit of the legacy.

My first "Apple" was a II+ clone that me and the other guys at Northern Telecom put together over a winter's weekend in cold, cold Saskatoon. We ordered motherboards, disk drives, chips, cases and power supplies from a company called "Parts Galore" in Toronto. I remember this vividly as Paul, one of the engineers that was putting together an Apple clone for himself, had a brand new American Express card. His first transaction was to order these parts for all of us - I think the total came to $18K. He got a phone call from Amex at work in about 30 seconds.

My second computer was an Apple IIc - no faster than the II+, but it had a sexier case. It was amazing that back in the days when we had almost nothing - a rented apartment, a rented TV, mom and dad's pots and pans - I still could find $1500 for a new computer. Guess that tells you where my head was at.

Anyways, after Apple came Atari for me, and after Atari came HP's first foray into the PC business. But even then I was interested. Mike Devall and I skipped out of work one Friday afternoon so we could get a look at the new McIntosh computer on display in downtown Edmonton (he would take orders, but you'd have to wait for delivery).

I've long since left the Apple computing world behind, although I've had my share of iPods and still use my iTouch daily. Both my kids are Apple fans, and they both drive Macs of some description (Kathryn is on her third, I think - Dave is on his first).

So on to the question of the day. I was at dinner last night and John thinks that the Apple franchise is about to go the way of every other company that preceded it ... Xerox, Wang, IBM, HP. They get run by committee, and the vision is gone. Their products become evolutionary, not revolutionary.

Steve Jobs has long been the vision of Apple. He's famously adopted the role of tyrant and chief decision maker, and has created this image (I don't really know if it's true) that he will veto any product idea that doesn't meet his criteria.

As everyone knows, Steve stepped down as CEO of Apple last week. The elephant in the room is that he's dying, and he knows it - so this is his way of peacefully transitioning the company to new leadership.

Many, like John, would say that marks the end of Apple. I initially thought this as well. Now I'm not so sure. Jobs has had lots of time to get the transition in order. And the pipeline. And the culture. And the vision.

If Apple can successfully keep the culture of "insanely brilliant" alive and thriving, the company will do just fine. For the next decade or two anyways.....

Hang on for the ride .. it may be a long one

AP Photo/Kyodo News

Back in February I wrote about pretty much what's happened (happening) this week. Markets collapsing and staying collapsed (may be too soon to tell) and rioting in the UK are symptoms of the problem - but not the problem itself.

The problem as I see it is the unsustainability of the "Western World" life we've created. You cannot build a society that depends on growth for it's survival. Growth has to stop somewhere, and the magnificent thing about our natural laws are that, whether we do something about it or not, the growth will stop. Just like gravity, we can defy it as long as we want, but in the end, gravity wins. It doesn't matter whether we're talking about capitalism, debt, resources, people, food, whatever. If our current system relies on everything increasing infinitely, it will fail.

Our planet could care less whether we're here or not ... and perhaps everything would be much better off if we weren't. Until we learn to accept that growth is not all good, and we become OK with the idea of "enough", we're doomed as a species.

That's quite the extrapolation from recent events, huh? I think this is only the tip of the iceberg, and we're in for a long, rough ride. A ride that doesn't really care how we feel about it - we're on it anyways. We've had plenty of opportunity to change our course, but we've refused. Now it's out of our hands.

Grouse Grind

This photo of The Grouse Grind is courtesy of TripAdvisor

For the last 15 years or so, I have pretty regularly done the Grouse Grind or the BCMC trail in North Vancouver. I still have a faded T-Shirt from the Grouse Grind Mountain Run in 2001. For a few years early last decade, I would do the Grind two or three times a week, and my times continually got better ... I tried to break 40 minutes, but could never reach that mark regardless of how much I "believed" I could get there. My best time was 40:35 somewhere in 2001 or 2002. Up until the stroke, my times were in the 45 minute range.

If you've ever done this insane climb, you know there is no training for it ... except to actually do it. Bike riders seem to do better than most, probably because of the cardio and the heavy leg exercise involved. I've been able to walk since December 2009 - about 20 months - and I have been able to hike our local hill - Minnekhada Park - with Bruce leading the way. Minnekhada is about a quarter the distance and elevation of Grouse Mountain, but it's a good warm-up for the main event.

As part of a ruse to get my brother Rob out of the house for the day (his surprise 50th Birthday Party was this Saturday) I asked him to come with me up the Grind - which he does it pretty regularly in the summer. Besides, I needed someone to spot me and make sure I didn't kill myself. Two other friends, John and Grant, as well as my nephew Alex, joined us. I have been pretty apprehensive about trying this again, as I didn't know what I'd do if I got half way and couldn't go any further. Oh well, damn the torpedoes.

As it turns out, my lungs and heart felt good the whole way up. Only my right foot gave me some problems - sometimes foot placement wasn't exactly where I wanted it to be. I had said to myself "if I could do this thing in under 90 minutes, I'd call it a success". I did it in 72 minutes. Pretty proud of myself....