Journey & Adventure

I can't believe that I haven't posted anything since October.  Wow!  I don't know where the time went.  There are the usual excuses - work, family and the many, many craft/jewelry shows that I participated in.  There are times when the time passes so slowly and then there are other moments when the time just screams on by.  Apparently, October through December contained a lot of those latter moments. Well, rest-assured I'm still here and all have been good.  I've been lurking, I just haven't had the time or energy to put anything to "paper". J and I were fortunate to spend two glorious weeks on Bonaire at the beginning of December, with plenty of diving, sunshine and relaxation.  You may recall to Bonaire is one of the "finalists" in the places we wish to retire to in a few years, so it was good to spend time looking at the island from that perspective.  We toured many neighborhoods - discovered those that held potential and ruled ou...

Well, there's a longer blog post in the making about our recent trip to the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador.  It is a truly awe-inspiring place to visit, but for now, I present a bit of our underwater experiences. Here's a little snippet prepared by J - filmed using my GoPro camera (which I should point out - I've never used since buying it over a year ago).  I did get to open the box though.  I think I'll let J keep it - he's pretty good with it.

Get your minds out of the gutter...I'm actually headed to the Galapagos Islands. Blue Footed Booby Red Footed Booby I'm hoping to post some photos from Ecuador provided we have wifi.  Hasta luego...

This is a great video about the little island J and I are considering as our early retirement destination.  I absolutely love the wild, rugged beauty of it.  I hope you enjoy it too...

As a follow up to my Bonaire - 2012 Photo Montage (and as requested by my other favorite redhead, Crazy Cris ), here is a photo montage of some of the wonderful critters that live in the lushious reefs surrounding the island of Bonaire.  Of course, these shots are all courtesy of J. Spotted Moray Eel  French Angel - Close Up Hawksbill Turtle (we counted 8 on one dive alone) French Angel at the Salt Pier Another French Angel at the Salt Pier Queen Angel Brown Spotted Trigger (I Think)

Artistic Photo by J Gumby Enjoying the Sunset - Day 1 Love the Boat Name:  "Free at Last" Lac Bay, Bonaire - Heaven on Earth Gumby Enjoying the Salt Pier - Best Dive Site on Island 1,000 Steps Dive Site - Only 60+ Steps to the Bottom,  Feels Like 1,000 with Dive Gear On Gumby Enjoying A Couple of Cold Ones After a Hard Day of Diving -  Polar, A Nice Import From Venezuela

Our vacation was fantastic. We had great weather, great scuba adventures and of course great company - overall it was a huge success. The downside however, was the lack of rest. We went with our usual group of scuba friends and needless to say, there was no shortage of laughs, beer or knocks at our condo door at all hours of the day and night. I truly enjoy the camaraderie of the group, but also long to be left the hell alone after a long day of diving, sunshine and fresh air. I now recall why on previous visits to the island, J and I chose to stay away from the group at other accommodations on the opposite side of the island. Are we anti-social? Perhaps we are, but I’m not apologizing for liking my privacy. I find that after working for months on end – day in and day out in a “social” work environment with meetings, phone, calls and various interactions with co-workers, I need a time-out while on vacation. Don’t get me wrong, I love these scuba friends and am blesse...

Yes, it’s ALMOST that time of year again. Time for me rejuvenate and store up on some sunshine and vitamin D before the long winter ahead. It’s time for me to pack my bags and scuba gear and head off to a place where memories are made, good times are had and the ocean is explored. For some, Disney is the happiest place on earth, but for me it’s Bonaire. You may recall this is one of my contenders for places to retire, so J and I plan on using this opportunity to do some more research into the actual cost of living, average cost of vehicles, neighborhoods, etc. Five years is still a long way off, but at least we’ll be getting an idea of how expensive things actually are. I can hardly wait to get there and park myself at the beach bar for a beverage or two - for a live webcam view of it, take a look here .  Maybe you'll see me there (in a week and a bit)... Here are a few photos of the island from vacations past… By the way - all of the above photos are cour...

The 5 year plan is still chugging along and time is passing much slower than I would like. I’m actually quite ashamed that that I’m eagerly wishing the next five years of my life away, but when you finally have an “end goal” in sight, it’s difficult not to become consumed by it. As mentioned previously J and I were sure Ecuador would become our future country of residence and although it wasn’t our first choice, it had everything we were looking for – warm climate, affordable day-to-day cost of living and cheap real estate. We’ve been recently re-evaluating our future needs, wants, must-haves and nice-to-haves. Where does that bring us? Well, we’ve decided that maybe we shouldn’t give up on our first choice just yet – at least not until we’ve done a little more research and financial number crunching. Our first choice is a place we’ve been close to 10 times over the past 14 years and from the first time we arrived on the island, we were in love. Yes, love. It’s a magical ...

I know what you were you thinking! Sorry to disappoint, but I was talking about nudi(branchs).   Crazy Cris over @ Here and There and Everywhere is playing hostess with the most-est again this year to World Ocean’s Day.   The theme?   Write something witty about our oceans, your experience with the ocean, etc.   So since I don’t really have anything witty to say, but wanted to participate, I will share some of J’s cool underwater photos with you.    The photos are all of nudibranchs (NEW-dih-bronk) – a bottom-dwelling, jelly-bodied, shell-less, type of sea slug.   These are some of the most interesting creatures I have every witnessed on the sea floor.   They can range in size from 0.25 inches up to 12 inches long, but given their color, they are fairly easy to spot once you’ve trained your eyes accordingly.   All of these pictures were taken during our trip to the Philippines and as you can see, they vary greatly in ...

Well, we've been back over a week now and all I can say is that it feels like we were never away.  So before I completely forget about the trip, let's get started... Let’s start by telling you a little bit about where we stayed in the Philippines. Our first stop was the island of Negros, Philippines and on this island, we stayed at a beautiful resort called Atlantis Dive Resort . From the moment we were greeted at the airport by our hosts, we knew we were in for a treat. Every detail of our stay was beyond our expectations. The resort was clean and comfortable. The staff were over-the-top attentive and they knew our names by the second day. This is not a tiny resort, so memorizing all the guest’s names should be commended. A personalized greeting goes a long way to making you feel welcome and at home.  Gloria - She Was The Best !!! The food was 5+ star to say the least. It’s a miracle I did not gain any weight while we were here, but I guess having the abilit...

I’ve posted these lyrics before, but they sum things up quite nicely, as we get ready to depart tomorrow… Changes in Latitude Jimmy Buffett - 1977 I took off for a weekend last month Just to try and recall the whole year All of the faces and all of the places Wonderin where they all disappeared I didn't ponder the question too long I was hungry and went out for a bite Ran into a chum with a bottle of rum And we wound up drinkin all night Chorus: Its these changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes Nothing remains quite the same With all of our running and all of our cunning If we couldn’t laugh we would all go insane Reading departure signs in some big airport Reminds me of the places I’ve been Visions of good times that brought so much pleasure Makes me want to go back again If it suddenly ended tomorrow I could somehow adjust to the fall Good times and riches and son of a bitches I’ve seen more than I can recall Chorus:...

In less than a week, we are off to the Philippines for two glorious weeks of scuba diving, snorkeling, eating, drinking, relaxing , more relaxing and maybe some shopping. I’m looking forward to everything - except the journey to get there. The first leg of the trip will see us depart Toronto for a 15 hour flight to Hong Kong. Then it’s another 2 hour flight from Hong Kong to Manila and then another 2 hour flight from Manila to Cebu and then a 2 hour bus ride to the dive resort. Estimated time in transit to get there, including flights, wait time at the airports and bus time = 25+ hours. A previous trip to Palau was 36+ hours of travel time, BUT we had an overnight stop over in Hawaii, which softened the blow a bit. All of our travel companions are pretty easy going, but I’m sure someone will have a meltdown before that excursion is over. My money is on one of the smokers in the group. Should be interesting. I’ll be sure to let you know how it goes. The suitcases are ...

I’m not sure which one it is, but I’ve got something going on that isn’t pleasant. I’m leaning towards it being a tooth issue because I’ve never had an issue with my ear before. The tooth on the other hand, has caused me problems on and off for over 10 years. First there was a cavity, then a couple of different fillings, then a crown and then a root canal (and another crown). The problem goes away for a little while, but eventually comes back. Well, it’s back now and the pain is once again to the point where it’s time for a dental visit. With only 3 weeks left until I leave on holidays, I want to make sure everything is in order, so I can stop eating Tylenol like candy. Tooth issues are particularly problematic for scuba divers because an improper filling or crack in the tooth can cause something called “tooth squeeze”, which is basically air trapped within the tooth cavity and upon descent and/or ascent, the trapped air has nowhere to go. Although I’ve never experienced ...

So, I feel sort of ashamed of myself and I don’t mean to brag, but I’ve just booked another vacation. I know, I know, I haven’t even left for the one in March, so what business do I have in booking another one? Well, I don’t have any business going anywhere after my complaining about how much the March one is costing me. Well on the topic of cost…cheap airfare is the reason I do EVERYTHING!!! I live for cheap airfare and literally receive daily updates from all of the major airlines and booking sites. I’ve been watching flight prices since last October for my favorite place on Earth (Bonaire by the way) and airfare has been averaging $1,000 pp. Well, $1,000 airfare is just too much to pay for something in the Caribbean when I also have to consider accommodations, vehicle rental and scuba diving. This morning, there is an e-mail in my inbox saying my watched flight to Bonaire has gone down by $250. Hmmm, that’s still a lot of money but I decide to take a peek at the f...

Only 28 more days until my journey to the Philippines begins. I can’t believe it is getting so close. To be honest, I haven’t thought much about it with everything else that’s been going on with my life at the moment. I know it seems insane, but I’ve already started to pack. Packing for a scuba trip is a completely different form of packing and because we take all of our own gear (with the exception of tanks and weights), we need to start early to make sure everything is still in working order. Believe me, there is no such thing as “packing light”. With all the scuba gear, including regulators, suits, boots, BCD’s, mask, fins, snorkels, underwater flashlights, batteries for the flashlights and underwater camera equipment, my “gear” suitcase is usually just shy of 40 lbs and then when the first aid kit, sunscreen, medications (decongestant, Pepto Bismol, Dramamine, Tylenol, toiletries and anything else we think we might need that won’t be readily available) is added, I’m push...

J and I have talked about buying a boat for some time.  It makes perfect sense considering we are avid scuba divers, love to fish and we live less than 20 minutes from Lake Erie.   We have certain requirements in mind - it needs to be large enough to hold scuba tanks and gear, fast enough to get us from point A to point B in a reasonable amount of time and we wanted to have a cuddy so that we had the ability to be able to overnight on the boat if we wanted. I found the perfect boat - it meets all of the requirements and is gorgeous.  The only problem is the cost.  I've always believed that the only thing you should finance are a car and a house, but suddenly I'm faced with the fact that I may need to add a boat to my list.   Seriously - why the hell are boats so expensive and why did I foolishly need to fall in love?  

I would be the talk of my scuba club with a pair of these...

As I slog away reviewing another wretched contract, my mind begins to wander to a better place. First, I start to think about lunch and how it can’t come soon enough and then I’ve moved on to weekend events and then I think “ooh, I should probably see what my horoscope has to say” and then once I’m on the entertainment page, I’m obligated to check the daily comics and then current events – it’s quite a vicious cycle. Needless to say, I’m easily distracted when I’m bored, which has happened a lot lately. Not that the legal department is an overly entertaining place on the best of days, but today I seriously feel like a poke in the eye with a stick would be more entertainment than what I’m currently experiencing. My happy place is one of magic and mystery and just the thought of it brings me peace and a certain sense of calm. No, it’s not Dairy Queen. Let me rephrase that – at least it’s not DQ today. I haven’t had an opportunity to visit this pla...