As the wheels on Duane Storey‘s plane pull up off the YVR tarmac tomorrow he’ll be on his way to an adventure some of us may only dream of living. For the last year or so, Duane has been planning a working holiday that will take him below the equator, over the Atlantic, and across dozens of time zones.
Back in January of 2009 Duane quit his job downtown and moved from his False Creek apartment to a condo in his hometown of Chilliwack, BC. He had previously founded Brave New Code with Dale Mugford of Hamilton, Ontario and they had already begun to change the way we all use WordPress by creating popular plugins such as WPtouch and WordTwit.
With his new-found employment freedom, an idea began to sprout and it will come to fruition tomorrow when he leaves for Argentina from where he will be working (and blogging) for the next few months before moving on to another location.
“As much as I’d like to kick my feet up and relax every day, I’ll be working and helping run our company on most days during normal business hours,” Duane told me.
“Instead of having a small farm town as the backdrop though there will be various cities in the world, such as Buenos Aires, where I’m starting. Hopefully as the year progresses I’ll be able to do more four day weekends and week long trips. But at first, most of my exploring will be in the evenings and on weekends as I go.”
Having the freedom to work from anywhere is one thing but when your business relies heavily on internet usage and web applications, connectivity is something Duane needed to research diligently.
“Most countries have fairly reliable internet these days, and some even have better internet than in North America (such as Japan). I’ll mostly be renting furnished apartments as I travel, and most of those have high-speed internet included.” If he doesn’t have luck with WIFI, Duane said that getting a cellular data plan is the next best option as they are fairly easy to acquire abroad.
While he only planned to be away for about six months, Duane’s wandering appetite has grown and he will most likely be gone through the fall of 2011.
“My rough plan is to do South America for three months (where it will be summer), then hit Europe for three or four months (where it will be spring going on summer),” said Duane who plans to chase the season. “I’ll then move on to Asia for three months (where it will be summer going on fall), and then end the trip in Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii and then home again for Christmas.”
You can follow Duane’s travel tips, tours, and adventures by following Migratory Nerd on his blog, Twitter, and Flickr. We’ll be checking in with him over Skype and FaceTime as he makes his way around the globe.
Chinese and Scottish traditions collide with the annual Gung Haggis Fat Choy event happening later this month. Combining the Chinese New Year with Robbie Burns Day, this legendary fusion is distinct to Vancouver and has become so popular that there are now multiple events happening across the city and as far south as Seattle.
Photo credit:
bmann on Flickr
Gung Haggis Fat Choy Gala
The Vancouver Public Library’s celebration with poetry by James Mullen, Steve Duncan, Michael Morris, Dr. Ray Hsu. Performances by Rob McDonald on bagpipes and Ariadne’s Dream Dragon Dance.
Where VPL 350 W. Georgia St., Alma VanDusen Room, Lower Level
When January 24, 2011 from 7:00pm until 8:30pm
Tickets Free, but seating is limited. Call (604) 331-4044 for more information.
Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dinner
Toddish McWong’s 14th Annversary Dinner, celebrating the 252nd Anniversary of Robert Burns’ birth and the incoming Chinese New Year of the Rabbit.
Where Floata Chinese Restaurant, #400-180 Keefer St.
When January 30, 2011 doors at 5:00pm, dinner at 6:00pm
Tickets Students $54.50, adults $65, children $44. Group rates are available for tables of 10.
Should you know of any other Gung Haggis Fat Choy events please feel free to leave details in the comments section.
This afternoon I grabbed my new Nikon D90 and we bundled up for our third annual ‘first photowalk‘ of the year in Anytown, USA – otherwise known as my husband’s hometown in Iowa.
The sun peeked out and began to melt piles of snow that quickly re-froze as solid puddles, causing my less-than-adequate soles to slip and skid. We walked by houses with frosted tire swings, porches laden with piles of firewood, and flags waving proudly on the front lawn.
Next we strolled past main street’s salons, boutiques, and hardware stores before making our way to the park down by the river.
The pond was solid, covered in snowmobile tracks and footprints, and we crunched along buried paths trying to chase the sunset’s light.
While I have much to get used to using a DLSR camera, I have hit the ground running and look forward to trying out my new toy on the streets and beach-side strolls of Vancouver upon our return.
As Vancouverites awake after a night of confetti-filled celebration, 2011 is perhaps welcomed with a dip in English Bay, a pound of the snooze button, or that first venti-sized coffer of the year. Although most are looking ahead, I decided to look back and see how our city rang in the New Year throughout the last century.
January 1, 1911
Hastings Townsite, the residents of which had voted to be annexed by Vancouver, became part of the city. Today’s Glen Drive was the Western edge of the townsite.
January 1, 1920
Peter Pantages started the Polar Bear Swim Club.
January 1, 1922
Motorists in BC began to drive on the right-hand side of the road. The rule took effect at 2:00am and no accidents were reported.
January 1, 1929
Point Grey and South Vancouver amalgamated with the City of Vancouver.
January 1, 1934
There was a riot in Chinatown caused by racial tensions.
January 1, 1943
As a result of World War II rationing, the sale of whipping cream was forbidden in BC.
January 1, 1977
The British Columbia Ferry Corporation was established as a provincial Crown Corporation, successor to the British Columbia Ferry Authority.
January 1, 1978
The Polar Bear Swim celebrates its largest attendance to date as 1,000 people take to the brisk waters of English Bay. 20,000 spectators watched from the shore.
A new Polar Bear Swim record was reached January 1, 2011 as 2,246 participants took the plunge.
All references have been researched through VancouverHistory.ca.
While I only managed to do 25 weekly photo posts over the last year, profiling pictures added to the Miss604 Flickr Group, there was no shortage of snapshots of Vancouver throughout 2010. I personally took over 3,000 photos (608 of which were during the Olympic and Paralympics) and enjoyed watching unique, candid, and breathtaking images pour in on Flickr, Twitter, and blog posts. I thought it only appropriate to feature some of my favourite photographers in my last recap post of 2010.
PiscesDreamer
Although I’ve never met PiscesDreamer (Philip) and don’t even know his last name, I realized that I probably featured more images of his in my weekly photo posts than any other. They range from serene sunsets to bleak streetcapes and always tell a story.
Susan Gittins
I don’t know how she does it but Susan Gittins manages to be everywhere and anywhere. She manages to snag timely images of ccurrences around Metro Vancouver and her raw ‘woman on the street’ photos during the Olympic games offered alternate perspectives of our city’s global event.
Clayton Perry
Clayton Perry has HDR (high dynamic range) photography down to a science. Colours pop with vivid detail as he captures everything from street scenes to natural landscapes across the region.
John Bollwitt
I may be totally bias on this one but since he’s the lead photographer for Miss604.com, my husband John Bollwitt definitely deserves a mention. When he accompanies me to concerts or on travel media trips, my coverage immediately jumps to a whole new level. His camera skills have been honed and sharpened, and I’m lucky to have him as a partner both personally and professionally.
John Biehler
John Biehler is one of my dearest friends and I have to agree with others when they say, 2010 was the “Year of Biehler”. He took time off from work during the Olympics (yes, photography isn’t his full-time gig) and uploaded over 30,000 photos to Flickr. He was on the mountain, rink-side, and above the city by zipline taking videos, producing time-lapses and panoramas.
Kris Krüg
While I’ve known Kris Krüg since 2006, he went above and beyond in 2010 covering everything from the Olympics to the Gulf Oil Spill. His rock and roll style is often imitated and rarely duplicated as his piercing images are always one-of-a-kind.
Honorable mentions go to Nordica Photography for their amazing wedding and engagement shots and Bob Lai Photography for his stunning portraits. I was fortunate enough to work with both this past year and their professionalism and dedication to their craft shines through each .jpg they upload.
You may also browse photos I have marked as favourites on Flickr and please feel free to add your own images to the Miss604 Flickr Group in 2011.
