Travel

I can’t understand people who don’t want to travel. They say they’re happy where they are, that they don’t need to go somewhere else to have fun. In my opinion they miss the point.

Sure, many people travel purely have to have fun. The gaggles of students that hit Florida beaches each year can attest to this, as can the European party-goers who mob Ibiza (or whatever the cool spot is now) and its clubs.

But I think fun, while an important reason to travel, is almost incidental when you consider everything else that comes with the experience.

I think that, while it’s cliched to say it, travelling really is an eye-opener. It places you in a different culture and forces you consider yourself as a stranger in that place. Unless you’re a completely self-centred boor (and we know there are plenty of these types of travellers), you’re going to try to respect the customs of this culture. You’re forced to take a step back to realize the enormousness of the world.

At the same time you realize how much like you the people in that other culture are. Like you, they have the same basic needs, but they also love their children, care about their communities, and want to live a life within the bounds of their laws. We may be separated by distance, language, and customs, but in the end, all people are human beings.

You can learn so much from other people when you travel, including other travellers you meet along the way. Travellers are usually more than happy to share their thoughts and ideas about cool places to go and interesting sites to see. Oftentimes this is how you’ll hear about things that are off the usual tourist routes. Some of the best friendships are made with other travellers. The act of sharing an experience in a foreign place creates a bond because it’s a common anchor that roots the friendship.

I used to not like travelling: too much hassle, expensive, and boring. Since then, I’ve had opportunities to travel with friends and on my own, and I’ve come to realize that hassles can be planned for, expenses can be controlled by staying in hostels and eating where the locals eat, and boredom can be overcome by simply talking to people and finding out what there is to do.

I can’t imagine life without travel – as much as I love Vancouver, I have to leave it every now and then. I have to see what else is out there.

Buying A Home In Vancouver

My parents bought the house they live in, the one I grew up in, about 26 years ago. Back then, the price they paid for the house was pretty typical, about $200,000. Recent government property assessments have put the value of their house in the neighbourhood of $700,000. Realistically speaking, they could sell their house for $800,000+.

I think it’s great that their main asset has appreciated so much. It’s something they can use to their advantage when they retire in about a decade or so.

But where does the situation of ever-increasing house prices leave first-time homebuyers? Housing prices in Vancouver are sky-high right now, and they’re probably not going to drop anytime soon. Coupled with this is the fact that first-time homebuyers tend to earn less money than the national average because they’re younger and have less job experience.

A Stick To The Face

What the title says is pretty much what happened.

It was Saturday afternoon, and we were playing the top team in our division with our eight-game unbeaten streak on the line.

I got the start on defense. At the drop of the puck, they hemmed us into our zone, finally putting a weak wraparound on net. Our goalie froze the puck and stopped play.

After the faceoff, the puck came back to the point, but their defenceman’s shot was blocked and didn’t make it through. When the play started heading away from us, my defensive partner let his man go. My partner had been holding down his stick while the guy struggled to lift it. Unfortunately for me, when my partner let go of his stick, it flew right into my face.

I didn’t even have time to react. I caught it square under my nose and went down. Of course it hurt, but I was more concerned about my teeth. A teammate had gotten most of a tooth knocked out in the previous game, and I didn’t want the same thing happening to me.

I took off my gloves and felt around my face. Felt like everything was there. Then I looked at my fingers. Blood! Red blood! My blood! Ahhhhh! I was leaking all over myself and the ice. I left my sticks and gloves behind and skated towards the bench. One of my teammates handed me his towel and I held it to my nose – he wouldn’t be wanting this back.

After enduring some jokes at my expense from the first aid guys at the rink, I got four stitches at Burnaby Hospital, a swollen lip, and a trickling nosebleed for the next two days.

Luckily, though my teeth were sore for the next couple of days, I still had all of them. The mouthguard did its job.

So did I learn anything from all this? I doubt it, since I’m still not going to wear a cage. But I definitely feel lucky since it could’ve been a lot worse. Just a little higher and I would have a broken nose. A little lower and some of my bottom teeth would be broken.

Bottom line? We won, and our unbeaten streak is intact at nine games.