We finally finished off the “Sports Room”. Really the easiest way to show the change is to show before and after pictures. Here is the “before”. Previously, as you can see, this room was basically a catch-all for our gear. 3 surfboards, 4 snowboards, 2 sets of wetsuit gear, 2 sets of snowboarding gear, 2 sets of ice hockey gear, 2 sets of golf clubs, plus camping gear and miscellaneous items. Phew! It was a lot of stuff to cram into one room.

And here is the “after” photo! We really wanted the room to feel more like a fun, bright place where we could show off some of our gear but also be functional in terms of storing everything.

That’s when we came up with the idea of mounting our gear to the walls. When we originally measured out the surfboards, we realized that Allan’s longboard was WAY too big for the walls. Then we noticed that there was a strip of wall that actually went above the door… and bingo, the surfboards all fit on the far wall.

We mounted the surfboards using handmade wooden racks made by Hawaiian Gun Racks. They’ve got some padded material on top to keep them from denting the boards, and also a dowel on the end to prevent them from slipping off just in case. They really are both beautiful and sturdy.

We also mounted the snowboards to the other wall. Mounting everything to the walls really freed up a ton of space, and also I think it looks pretty neat. We installed a cabinet to the wall as well, and put all our books and DVDs in there to save space from the living room. We also are using it to hold some of our snowboard gear such as boots and goggles. It’s also a great place to display some photos of some of our adventures.

From left to right… 2010 Men’s Burton Supermodel, 2007 Women’s Burton Feelgood, 2010 Women’s Burton Malolo… Boots: 2009 Burton Men’s Serow Japanese Exclusive Model, 2010 Burton Women’s Supreme Boots

The snowboards were mounted using HangtimeUSA wall mounts. They are plastic mounts that basically hold to the width of the board, so they are easy to pull in and out of the clips. They can also be mounted diagonally. We were really impressed by how sturdy they were, and the mounting hardware that came with them was awesome.

We fit a couple more things into the room like my golf clubs and the skim boards, but most of our gear is still tucked away in the closet in that room. We purchased a used red microfiber sofa that I LOVE and a couple lamps to complete the room. Not pictured are all the game plaques that Allan and I have from working in the video game industry… you get one when you “ship” a game. It’s kind of a fun addition to the room.

The last part of the room I wanted to talk about is probably my favourite… the coffee tables. We covered one of the coffee tables in all the sporting goods stickers that I had accumulated over the past few years, and that Allan has accumulated pretty much his whole life. There’s a lot of history on that table. Not only is it covered with our favourite brands, but it’s covered in memories of accomplishments, events, special milestones in our lives, and our favourite activities. It really completes the room for us.

So what do you think of the transformation?

We moved into our apartment in March; it has been basically 9 months without fully getting our place “finished”. So this party has been a good hard date to aim for to get our place fixed up… but it certainly has been a lot of work for both Allan and I.

This past weekend we managed to finally finish mounting and hanging most of the items that need to be on the wall. The amazing part is how much space it cleared up. I’m planning on doing a room-by-room post, but for today, just a little teaser until I get the finishing touches in place.

This is the “sports room”. A lot of gear has to fit in this room. We finally managed to hang up the surfboards with the handmade wooden racks that we bought. The snowboards are hung up with plastic board mounts. It’s great to get these off the floor… they look so much nicer on the wall. Full room post coming soon.

We also finally managed to finish off the bedroom furniture. Can’t wait to show you before and after photos of the bedroom and also how the furniture looked before the treatment. For now, just a little peek at the paint finish and the new handles we mounted and treated.

Sorry for the short post… more coming soon! So excited that it is all finally coming together.

P.S. Check out the chaos in this room… haha. This is what we’ve been living in trying to get this all finished on time.

I’m heading to the Westbeach store grand opening on this Friday, November 6th. Setting up on Vancouver’s “snowboard row” on West 4th, doors will be opening at noon on Friday and you can shop till 8 pm. The address there is 1758 West 4th Ave. At 8:30 pm, they will also be hosting a party celebrating the grand opening as well as the veryREALLY movie premiere pre-party… party will go until about 10 or 10:30.

And then…

veryREALLY is a local snowboard movie featuring local Canadian riders and brands. From the production company Random Large Text, the film features riders from all over Canada, including: Nate Butcher, Jeff Thorne, Cam Rodenm, Bradley Hesson, John Graff, Scott Sych and many others. The movie will be shown at Tunnel Lounge (622 West Pender). There is a $10 cover but $5 will be donated to the Snowrider Foundation, and there will also be tons of giveaways from Pacific Boarder and Westbeach. Doors open at 10 pm and the movie will be on at 11 pm.

I hope to see you guys there! This is a great time to get out and support local mountains, riders, shops, and brands. Quite a few people are going, you can check out the Facebook event here.

Anyone thinking of heading out for this? In other news, have any of you picked up your snowboard gear (outwear, boards etc) for this year yet?

This year, it’s time for me to bite the bullet and get new outerwear. The only problem is… I can’t decide. There are SO many choices out there.

For the past few years, I’ve worn a pink/green combination seen here.

This year, my board is white on top with a pink to purple fade on my 2010 Burton Malolo (the board on the right). And for reference, my boots and bindings this year will be white.

SO, the question is… which outerwear combination do you like the best?

To see a bigger size, click on the image and then click on “All Sizes” and select “Original” to see a better sized version.

Thanks for your help!

Anyway, back to Halloween

This year at work I recycled an old costume and dressed up as Minnie Mouse. I don’t have a photo of me in costume today, but it looks kinda like this, except with bright red pumps. I know, lame right? I have to admit I was feeling a little uninspired.

Here are some of my costumes in previous years, which were a little more creative.

My absolute favourite costume, Cortana from Halo. It’s a little nerdy, but it’s works well at a video game company

Some sort of fairy with wings. Okay, so maybe these aren’t creative at all. I believe this is now called the “duck face”.

Trevor Linden! My all-time favourite Canucks and hockey player.

I hope everyone has a fantastic day today and of course, night out tomorrow for Halloween… hope you all stay safe and have a lot of fun!

The rabbit hole goes quite deep when it comes to “premium liquors”… for example, there are some who consider Absolut to be good vodka, whereas others swear by Grey Goose, and it goes even deeper to $200, 500, $1000 vodkas etc. The same thing goes for whiskey, tequilas and so on…  But the real question is… is there any difference?

Vodka

When it comes to vodka, there has actually been quite a hot debate for years on whether or not there is actually any taste difference between vodkas. Many groups such as ABC, NY Times etc have done tests where they’ve shown that people cannot differentiate between the different vodkas. However, there are an equal number of other tests, such as this one from Slate, that disagree and say there really is a difference.

What do you think? Is there a difference?

I haven’t tried too many vodkas, but I’d really like to try Chopin and Ciroc. My “go to” favourite is Grey Goose because (as far as my own taste perception goes), it seems to be smoother than others I have tried.

I think most people agree that when it comes to other liquors such as rum, whiskey, tequila, cognac, scotch etc… that there are both subtle and significant taste differences between brands.

Rum

For rum, lately I’ve become quite partial to Zaya Gran Reserva (12 years aged). It’s so smooth and it’s got a really rich, dark taste. I’ve also heard good things about Angostura 1824 and Ron Zacapa rums. What’s your favourite rum?

Tequila

Yes, most people know tequila to be my drink of choice. I’m not sure why… it’s lively, flavourful and always dangerous.

In university, I started out drinking Jose Cuervo… that never let to a good experience in the end. However, in recent years I have fallen in love with fine tequilas. Although I do love Patron, I’ve also taken a liking to 1800 Reposado and Corralejo (and it’s stunning blue bottle). There are so many fantastic tequilas out there… I wish I had access to more!

What are your favourite tequilas?

Other Spirits

I have to admit that I’m not very well versed in other spirits such as whiskey, scotch, cognac, and gin to name a few…

So please help! What are some fine liquors that you like? Do you notice a huge difference?

For us here in Vancouver and BC, we are patiently waiting for the temperatures to drop and more snow to fall on the mountains. Realistically it is only weeks away, but it feels like forever.

Whistler Blackcomb has announced its opening day is November 26th this year. Cypress, Grouse, and Seymour have yet to report opening dates. Hemlock is reporting an opening date of December 10th, and over on Vancouver Island, Mount Washington is slated to open December 11th. Big White and Apex are saying December 5th, and Sun Peaks is early with an opening date of November 21st.

Ugh. So far away.

So in the meantime, why not fantasize about all the new gear coming out this year? It’s no secret that I’m a little biased towards Burton, so I’m going to kickoff my gear previews with them. This post will just be snowboards, I’ll be featuring other hardgoods and softgoods in a follow-up post. I’ve posted a selection of boards here, feel free to check our their full product lineup at Burton.com.

Note: All images credited to Burton.com

2010 Burton Custom X

Definitely one of the best boards that Burton has put out this year. Not only are the graphics absolutely GORGEOUS (the snowboarder/surfer in me loves the trees and ocean design), but the tech is darn good. It’s got the Channel, which most of the new Burton boards have this year… basically allows you to configure your bindings in any stance you can possibly think of. It’s a super light board and is generally a good board for any condition. Good in pow, the park, free riding and even groomers. So sexy.

2010 Burton Fish

Ah, the Fish. A board I have lusted after for a long time. Who doesn’t dream of adding the Fish to their quiver and having a true powder board? For those of you just getting into snowboarding, you probably don’t need a Fish just yet. But for those of you who skip work on powder days, spend all day hiking for the good stuff… this is the board for you. Light, tapered with a swallow tail, and the addition of an S-Rocker really makes this board float in the powder. It’s also super fast and even has a surfboard-style rail. It’s pretty much like surfing on the snow.

2010 Burton Custom V-Rocker

A little cheaper than the Custom-X, the Custom now comes in Regular and V-Rocker. The Added V-Rocker puts a centre rocker between the feet, which brings the tip and tail off the ground… so basically it’s better in pow and let’s you jib and ollie a little easier. This is a fun, fun board if you like to pop and hop around the mountain, either in pow or park. I wouldn’t recommend this if you’re JUST going on groomers though. I really like the design this year.

2010 Burton Supermodel

This year I think the real sleeper hit is the Supermodel. Not a lot of people talk about it (the Customs are super popular), but I personally think this is the perfect board for a BC boy. This board can be used on the whole mountain, and is light and fast and has the Channel as well. I REALLY love the design on it… the reds are so vibrant (and the blues on other sizes) and they’d look great in photos… a must if you’re into snow photography or video with your friends. It’s slightly tapered so it’ll work nice in pow, and it’s got great control for groomers. It’s got a mid-range price too.

2010 Burton Joystick

I’ve been hearing a lot about the Burton Joystick this year for the park. It’s got a new Freestyle Scoop which makes it super easy to do tricks in the park, and also has a V-Rocker to put that rocker between your feet as well. It’s a pretty aggressive board for the park, but Burton says it is forgiving and fun as well. The reviews are coming in now, and it is looking like a really strong contender for a park board this year.

2010 Burton Malolo

Ah the Malolo, my board of choice for this year. It’s technically a unisex board, as I have the smallest size at 149. It goes up to 166. I actually purchased my 2010 Malolo last year at an event, and I’ve been pretty much waiting all year to ride it. I’m so excited. It’s the perfect board for me… from the surf-inspired graphics to the name.. (Malolo means “flying fish” in Hawaiian). It’s got an S-Rocker for the snow, which helps with the speed and float of the board. I love the powder and the trees, so the Malolo is going to be a significant improvement here. I’ve tried it out on groomers and it’s actually pretty good. I think for real hard-pack ice days though, I’ll bring out my old Burton Feelgood (it’s 2 years old).

Speaking of girls… I also wanted to showcase a couple women’s boards out there for all my lady readers.

2010 Burton Women’s Supermodel

An absolutely stunning board design for a girl’s board. I love it… it’s girly but also colourful and cool. This is a high performance girl’s board. Same as the men’s super model, it’s a tapered board that will ride well in powder. It’s extremely versatile… you can ride it anywhere on the mountain. It also has the Channel if you have EST bindings. No worries if you don’t, it’s got a conversion kit as well.

2010 Burton Women’s Feelgood ES

The Feelgood ES (and the Feelgood) are top-of-the-line women’s boards. This board is SUPER light. It has the Carbon Vaporskin, as well as the Channel. If you’re looking for a fast, beginner to intermediate board (I learned on a Feelgood no problem), this board can SERIOUSLY hold an edge in the groomers. It’s not skittish at all. Note: If you’re wanting to eventually ride this in powder, you may want to get a couple extra inches on the board to hold some float… I found this board wasn’t great for deep powder.

2010 Burton Women’s Lipstick

The perfect board for a girl in the park, the Lipstick is super poppy with a V-Rocker and Elliptical Kicks. It’s light and has super cute graphics… not to mention the Channel and Pressure Distribution Edges (helps you on groomers and also on landings). Unfortunately I’m not much of a park girl, because I would really love to ride this board.

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And that’s it for now folks! What do you think of the boards that are out this year? Any particular favourites in the Burton lineup? Anything you’d like me to cover in future posts?

Cheers!

This past weekend Allan and I headed out to Tofino again for some surf and relaxation. This time however, we were invited to stay at the famous Wickaninnish Inn. “The Wick,” as it is affectionately called by locals and fans, is well-known for its fabulous location on Chesterman Beach, luxury accommodations, world-renowned spa, and five-star dining. No wonder — it’s a Relais & Châteaux property. I also found out a little interesting tidbit from some folks in town which confirms my theories… the Twilight Cast stayed there while they were shooting New Moon. The Inn cannot comment on this of course due to privacy issues, but you can be sure I did as much digging as possible on the subject from the locals.

The Wickaninnish Inn has long had ties to the area and the Pacific Rim National Park. It is family-owned and operated by the McDiarmid family who were born and raised in Tofino. You can read more history on the Inn here.

When you arrive, what strikes me most about the property (and what staff seem to be most proud of) is how the Inn sits on the fine line between the ocean and old growth forest. Compared to most other properties in Tofino and BC, the Inn does an incredible job of preserving the natural surroundings. Every single room has an ocean and beach view, but not at the expense of chopping down the old growth trees in front of the window. When you lie in bed and look out the window, you feel a little bit like you are floating somewhere between ocean and forest.

You can tell that Managing Director Charles McDiarmid spares no expense with his attention to detail. Every room has pieces of nature integrated into the decor, from the driftwood chairs to the solid rock bookends. Every piece of wood in the rooms and around the hotel is hand-crafted and custom made, including the moldings in the rooms, the closets, the doors, bedframes, desks… it’s really something to see.

And all with a focus on sustainability without it being a trend. Claire Macdonald, Marketing Planner for the Inn, spearheads many of the projects herself. The Pointe Restaurant at the Inn actually composts 100% of all its food waste. Claire also organizes frequent beach cleanups with the Surfrider Foundation in Tofino.

The Canopy Room is one of the fanciest rooms in the Inn, with a gorgeous canopy teak bed, living room, plasma TV, multi-jet shower and double soaker tub. Not to mention a great view. I hear it is the celebrity choice when staying at the Inn.

Our room was awesome too. A deluxe top floor room at the Inn, we enjoyed the King bed, local artwork, double soaker tub, and glass panel shower looking out onto the ocean.

The service was great too — all our bags and personal items were organized in the room and the closet. The huge closet also held complimentary rain gear and gumboots. Definitely a plus for storm watching in Tofino.

We also of course had to order breakfast in bed.

Yeah, after surfing Allan and I spent quite a lot of time in our double soaker tub looking out onto the ocean. I’ve probably never felt so relaxed in my life. Honestly.

Of course, I had to try the spa while I was there. The Ancient Cedars Spa is probably one of the most talked about parts of the Inn. It has won so many awards it’s crazy, including being reader-voted as the World’s Best in Travel + Leisure magazine.

The real shame here is that I had to take photos of the Spa after hours, so unfortunately I couldn’t capture how beautiful it is with the natural light streaming in and the ocean views. So bear with me!

Every aspect of the Spa is beautiful… from the wood carved handles on the lockers in the shower rooms, to the huge wood burl mirrors and tables. They also carry a really unique line of spa and beauty products, many from Vancouver Island and BC. Many influenced by the ocean and nature.

They also have an incredible (you-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it-kind-of-thing) Cedar Sanctuary where you can get treatments done… in a beautiful cedar house literally looking onto the ocean. Imagine having a massage while the ocean is spraying up in front of the windows… wow! All guests also have access to the Rainforest Sauna… which smells exactly like… the rainforest. So nice.

I decided to go for a massage treatment at the Spa. When I showed up, I was offered refreshing citrus water and tea, and shown to my hand-carved locker in the ladies room. I popped into my robe and slippers and enjoyed a steam in the Rainforest sauna for a while.

Then I was shown to a beach chair outside overlooking the ocean, given a warm blanket and a hot foot soak with pebbles in the bottom to roll my feet over. After an aromatic consultant and some time to relax while taking in the ocean breeze and the view with some hot tea, I was shown to my treatment room. Each of their certified professionals must have over 1000 hours of experience before they can work at the Inn, and my masseuse was no different. A wonderful woman with an amazing background (she previously worked in the advertising industry at notables such as Ogilvy and Mather), she worked her magic on me for an hour. I was completely relaxed. So, “Ahhhh at the Spaaaaa” gets a very relaxed thumbs up from me. You must read about the treatments there.

Of course, our experience wouldn’t have been complete without having dinner at the Pointe Restaurant. We had eaten here before so we knew it was going to be good, and we were looking forward to trying some new dishes.

The restaurant overlooks Chesterman Beach and is situated at a rocky point, which causes dramatic sprays of water and the sounds of waves to accentuate your dining experience. You must visit the Inn during storm-watching season (late Fall and Winter), as that is when the waves are the most dramatic. Believe it or not, that’s the coolest time to come to the Inn and see the power and wildness of nature. We always make sure to visit Tofino at least once a year during this time. Anyway — back to the restaurant — they also occasionally mic the waves underneath the restaurant during a storm for the full effect.

Chef Nutting was in the kitchen that night, and put together some amazing dishes for us. Unfortunately I’ve recently found out about some allergies (egg, dairy, wheat… which feels like everything), but the chefs did an amazing job of working around the allergies. Allan got an amazing selection of bread (including olive and chorizo bread), and I was surprised to see I was also going to get bread… some delicious grilled rice bread and pappardum.

I had a mojito, and Allan tried a sidecar and a Manhattan.

For appetizers, I had the scallops with dungeness crab, pine mushrooms, and a chicken jus. Allan had the grilled octopus with baby shrimp, cherry tomatoes, foccacia croutons, pancetta vinaigrette, and watercress.

For mains, I had a crispy sablefish with citrus, asian pear, bok choy in a szechwan pepper sauce with braised pork belly.

Allan had the Lingcod with fingerling potato chips and chorizo sausage.

I finished off the meal with homemade blueberry sorbet, and Allan had a quartet of creme brulee — vanilla bean, saffron, strawberry, and dark chocolate. I think I’m going to steal that idea for my party coming up. Some homemade truffles came at the end as well, with honey and thyme. Mmmm.

We explored the property a bit the next day before leaving. The Inn has built so many amazing boardwalks, trails, and paths around the area. We found out they shot some of the scenes for New Moon on Long Beach, and also right on the beach in front of the Wick!

And of course, we made sure to get our surfing in.

And that wrapped up a fantastic long weekend at the Wickaninnish Inn. If you haven’t already, check out the website… you must check out the restaurant menu, the accommodations, and definitely the spa treatments. The Wick is a fantastic place for a romantic getaway, a surfing weekend, a mother-daughter or girlfriends pampering experience… or just because. They’ve got some awesome deals coming up for the stormwatching season and the O’Neill Coldwater Surf Classic, so check those out.

Hope you enjoyed the review!

I mentioned I had a big announcement to make today, and since then I’ve been getting Facebook messages and MSN messages asking me if I am pregnant or engaged. NO PEOPLE, no. Goodness!

Yes, today is my last day at work at a wonderful company. Since graduating university, I’ve been working in the video game industry here in Vancouver. While I absolutely loved games, since March I’ve been trying my hand at working at a software company as a Product Marketing Manager. I was blown away. I can’t say enough good things about this company, my boss, and about my coworkers. In all honesty, I could have seen myself working here for another 5+ years. I’ve been extremely happy here.

And so… if it was any other company that called me three weeks ago, I would have said no. I would have said that I couldn’t make a change now. But, it was that company.

Growing up, one of my closest relatives was my uncle who was working in software at the time. He was a programmer, and when he set up a 486 computer for my family… I fell in love with computers and technology. As I mentioned in my blog post here, I’ve always been a huge nerd. Although I grew up into the arts and playing sports, I wanted to be a programmer when I grew up. Yes, I had a copy of Bill Gates’ “The Road Ahead”. My childhood dream was always to work for Bill. Yes, I know I’m the devil. I took AP Computer Science for a couple years in high school, and I got accepted to Waterloo for Computer Sciences. At the last minute, I made a drastic decision and decide to go to Western and Ivey instead for Business. I’ve always loved video games and in university I joined an Xbox 360 clan and pretty much played dozens of hours a week. And so it was natural that I ended up working in the video game industry after graduation.

Yep, I actually like Windows Vista. I’m excited for Windows 7. I drove down to the States to buy a Zune. I’m probably the only person I know who has a Zune. I use MSN Messenger exclusively as my messaging platform. I own an Xbox 360. I think you can tell where my loyalties lie.

So, as my boss likes to call it, I’ve “crossed over to the dark side”. Next Tuesday, I will be starting my new job full-time at… yup, you guessed it.

I’ll be working at their game studio here in Vancouver, part of their Games Division. I’m nervous, excited, and very happy. I feel like I’m taking a big risk. I can’t believe my childhood dream is actually coming true.

Back into video games!

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In other news, this weekend Allan and I have been invited to stay for two nights at the Wickaninnish Inn in our favourite place, Tofino. We’ve eaten there before and it was fantastic, but never stayed there. We feel very grateful and fortunate for the opportunity (hurray, no camping in the cold this time!). It’s a Relais & Châteaux property, and in my opinion, the most beautiful luxury hotel in Tofino. It couldn’t come at a better time… a little mini long weekend getaway for surf and relaxation before the new job starts to clear our slate is exactly what we need. We leave tomorrow morning and come back Sunday night. I’ll definitely have some photos and videos for you!

My long weekend was filled with Canucks hockey, a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner and time with the family, and of course… more furniture sanding, painting, and refinishing.

Thanks to the awesome people at Canucks Hockey Blog (Hi JJ and Mozy!), Allan and I won tickets to the Canucks Open Practice this past Saturday. Now, tickets were free anyway, but they scored us awesome seats in Row 1 right beside the players’ bench!

It was great to see all the fans come out to support the team… and also great to see all the families and kids there. It’s a great event that everyone can afford to go to, and the team put on an exciting performance.

The practice was filled with various drills and scrimmages, and lots of goofing around from the players. I especially enjoyed the showboating during the shootout at the end of the practice. We had an awesome time and it got us all pumped for the game on Sunday night (which the Canucks won in an awesome shootout of course… must have been all that shootout practice … right?).

The rest of Saturday and Sunday was spent mostly hunting for furniture, and sanding and painting. It’s amazing how much time it takes. We’ve spent dozens of hours already on just our dressers.

I spent Sunday afternoon cooking in the kitchen with my mom… and I think we put together a pretty nice spread! My dad did the turkey, which is (in my opinion) the best… he makes an amazing overnight brine for the turkey with fresh herbs from the garden… and of course it is cooked all day in the oven until it is fall apart tender.

We also had Kansas City ribs (no pre-made sauces, only fresh herbs and tomato sauce made from tomatoes from the garden, and oranges), avocado and beet salad, home made Ciabatta bread, roasted potatoes with carrots and blue potatoes from the garden, a vegetable tian with parmesan and bread crumbs, sparkling grape juice punch made from homegrown grapes, and some homemade chocolate crème brûlée from dessert.

Judging from the amount of food on Allan’s plate I think it turned out pretty good!

Monday was spent hunting for furniture, and finally completing the last coats of lacquer finish on the dresser. Here’s a shot of our setup in my parent’s garage. I will have before and after photos for you when all the bedroom furniture is done. We still have the bed to do!

Although I try to remember what I am thankful for every day at some point during yoga or prayer, Thanksgiving is always a good time to formalize it. So, here is what I am thankful for…

- Allan… my wonderful partner who means everything to me in this world! Thank you for always making me laugh and that we never get bored of spending time with each other.
- My amazing parents and my little brother… my whole family who I’m so grateful to be so close to.
- Our beautiful city and province where we can do all the activities we love to do
- Friends, for always being there for me
- My job and my coworkers
- A healthy body and mind!

What are you thankful for? What did you do this past weekend?