Figures in the Mist

Exploring in the fog...

It's a typical Vancouver Island West Coast scene... tendrils of heavy fog drift ashore from the ocean, slipping between the trees like wraiths and reducing fellow beachcombers in the distance to barely visible silhouettes.

Nice... art

"Raven Lady" by Mike Camp

Ucluelet is just down the road from the town of Tofino on the outer coast of Vancouver Island. Tofino gets all the love though for its proximity to Canada's best surf beaches.

Nonetheless, Ucluelet is deserving of its own respect. Not as close to the major surf spots, but it has more of a home town feel compared to Tofino which feels increasingly commercialized.

These roadside sculptures from artist Mike Camp grab your attention as you drive into town.

"Surfer Girl" by Mike Camp

Sunset over Parksville Bay

The setting sun sets the bay on fire

 The setting sun lights up the windows of a resort as well as tidal pools of Parksville's main bay.

Pacific Paradise... in Canada?!

Bali High... or Ucluelet, BC?

Now that tropical destinations are off the table for many Canadians due to the continuing pandemic, these hearty palm trees and BCs stunning scenery near Ucluelet will have to substitute.

Fishermans Wharf

Water taxis among the float homes...

Water taxis coming and going from Victoria's Fishermans Wharf...

Life on Mars

COVID protocols... dining in domes at a local restaurant

 I'm always bemused by the race between billionaires to spend their fortunes trying to get humans into space. Elon Musk has his eyes particularly on Mars.

Are millions of people... even thousands... clamouring to live out their lives underground or behind protective domes never again to see a blue sky, or dip their toes in a lake or river? Never again to hear bird song, or the sound of wind rustling through corn fields? Feel the breeze of a warm sunset caress their face?

I'm not one of them. I've no desire to boldly go anywhere in space.

With the multitude of problems we face on our own planet, I wish the ultra rich  would check their egos and spend the money down here helping humanity.

Here be monsters...

A sun-bleached sea serpent on Quadra Island...

Attack of the Giant Cephalopod

Cthulhu emerges...

On the beach at Port Renfrew sits this piece of driftwood looking vaguely like a giant octopus with its tentacle-like roots.

You might be thinking: "Well that's ridiculous. Octopuses live in sea water. They can't crawl around on land."

Guess again... and try not to think of one of these critters crawling out of the deep looking for a meal.

Momento mori

Dust to dust

"Momento mori" is Latin for "remember that you must die". Legend says that slaves accompanying generals on victory parades in ancient Rome would whisper these words in their ears along the way. It was meant to remind them that their lives would have little significance in history after they had passed away. It served to keep the commanders from being consumed by their own hubris.

In another context the phrase is a reminder that each passing year brings us closer to our end. 

The start of a new year is an ideal time to consider whether we will make the best of life in each day, or waste it on the mundane and the inconsequential. Will we embrace life with gusto, or merely pass through it?

Choose your fate...