Sometimes it's good to have a roommate

I mean rarely, rarely does a roommate at a hostel show any value other than conversation.

Well Monday was one of those days.

My roommate was an Aussie living up at Whistler. Anyway he just head out across the road for a drink.

15 mintues later he walks back in and says. Do you want to go to the Vancouver Canucks Hockey game? I just got given 2 tickets from the bar across the road. They had a few tickets leftover and the game just started.

Well he didn't have to ask me twice. Canuck tickets, and at my price level too. Free. Woo hoo!

Anyway we got there in time to see half the 2nd period and the 3rd. (wierd game with only 3 periods)
Anyway the game was Awesome, even if we were in the nose bleeds.

Interestingly the Canucks are currently upto over 172 games of consecutive sell outs. Wow.

Other than than I start my job tomorrow. And my next biggest challenge is finding a place to live. Vancouver has rental vacancy of less than 0.2%. And house prices are the highest in the country I hear.

Winner... I have a short term contract

I hate not knowing where my next pay check is coming from.

Hence I'm very pleased to say I have a contract. A short term contract for 2 to 3 weeks here in Vancouver. But a contract nevertheless. It'll help take the stress off of not knowing. Or well until I am next unemployed.

Next item on the agenda. A more permanent place to live.

Sleeping in Seattle

The title of the novie was incorrect. Seattle is a sleepy place. Or at least where the hostel is located is not very happening.

Last few days have been ok.

Here are a fews sights of Seattle for everyone to enjoy. They include the Seattle Space Needle, Starbucks, the Sonic basketball (another shot), and the skyline from the Bainbridge Island Ferry.

And for those very observant people look at the Starbucks photo. It's different to the normal logo. Thats because this starbucks is the original one. It's just across the road from the Pike St Markets here in Seattle.

The other night I went on a trek for a bar with live music and atmosphere. To find the Grunge music scene of Seattle. I only stumbled upon one bar of mention. The Crocodile Cafe. That night they had 3 live bands each doing a set. I've heard better. But hey who am I to complain. I have no musical talent myself.

Tomorrow I return to Vancouver.And you'll be suprised to know, today there was even direct sunlight. Wow! Who would have guessed.

Is that a bad view to have?

I know I don't use this forum for random thoughts or comments but this just needed to be said

Two Minute Noodles is not a meal. Am I wrong to say this?

I'm no expert cook by any stretch of the imagination but it surprises me the number of people who get amazed at my cooking up a simple pasta in the hostels. This is when they are opening a packet of 2 minute noodles.

Gee I don't think is extravagant to put a simple bottle pasta sauce onto a few bits of pasta and add in some bacon or Tomato and Onion. Last night I had this American dude just amazed at it. Far out. It's simple. And it's a meal. Those 2 minute noodles he had weren't. Any he knew it.

He was looking at me as if I was doing a complex operation spending a fortune of ingredients. Nope not me. I'm cheap.

Finally after all these years I've seen an NBA Game

Yeay. Another goal accomplished.

Last night I went to the Sonics vs Cleveland game here in Seattle.

So that completes another of the things to do.

The ticket cost me $40

What did the White Xmas involve

Sorry to be posting out of chronological order here but I've only just got back my unlimited internet access here at this hostel in Seattle.

Anyway the Christmas in Kananaskis was great. And we did have snow on Christmas morning. The photo on the left was first thing Christmas morning. It was snowing. Even if it's hard to see going by the photo. And yes our snowman had seen better days by this stage. He had originally suffered from a head splitting headache before getting headless. He had no legs to get legless. Staff did that for themselves.


Dinner in the evening had been prepared by one of the chefs. Hence a big thanks goes out to Anthony. He managed to cook for 25 of us using limited utensils. Of course the night was also helped along by the fact another of the Chefs managed to receive a keg of beer which was apparently bad. We all didn't have a problem with the taste after an initial freezing problem when hooking it up.

Of course we did a not-so-secret Santa. People just couldn't keep secrets here.

But of course the other highlight was we got coverage of the Boxing Day Test. Now I'm not usually one to sit down through 7 hours of test match cricket but when it's being viewed from a projector, downloaded from the internet, in backwater Canada then you can't but respect the game by at least watching a few overs. Alas for Tom, the only English resident in the staff Manor, it was not a good night. He was left to constantly revise down his target of what he'd be happy to see England reach, and then also receive constant taunts from the 50 Australians either watching or passing through.

Back on Kananaskis. Greg Jnr had a friend

I couldn't tell you if this is a female or male friend. But just before I left they were hanging around together.

Greg Jnr has worked out he was on a good thing visiting us regularly. What more could an elk need than bread, Chicken in a Biscuit, Corn Chips, and Salt'n'Vinegar Chips.

At least he's not like those caffine and sugar addicts at Nakiska. Those little squirrels were there trying to shovel down coke enhanced snow, or frozen starbucks coffees all the time.

News: I have Kissed the Nakiska Goodbye

Hello from Seattle. Yes Seattle.

For some of you this is a surprise. What is Chad doing in Seattle, its not a part of Canada.

Yes true, Seattle is not a part of Canada. But Seattle is the reason I'm here. You see about a week ago I got onto a computer of a friend at Nakiska. While on the computer I decided to look at the NBA website. Ahead into the schedule of NBA games, and what did I see? An omen. First of Cleveland at Seattle on the 16th January, and then Milwaukee at Seattle on the 19th. This was enough for me to remember part of the reason I'm here is to see basketball. And who better to see than the number one player, LeBron James, and then number one Australian player Andrew Bogut. So after a short thinking period I decided it was time to leave the hill.

I just had overnight in Calgary. Visited the Calgary Fort, and Calgary Tower. Other than that my first impression of Calgary is that it is a hole. Perhaps its good in the spring. Oh well to me it was just cold and ugly. Mind you I was only there for a night. Hardly gave it a chance.

Anyway to keep with the update here are a few photos. For a laugh I've included a photo of me sruggling to attempt indoor rock climbing. Basically I sucked at it. Not enough upper body strength, and I've also had very swollen fingers from a combination of wearing gloves nearly every day (sweeping snow, and skiing).


Then there is the another photo of Nakiska Resort. On a slow weekday this was taken. Don't ask me which run it is. I suspect though it was Maverick or Lower North Axe. One of the last runs opened. My favourite run though was Whoop-Up. I skied that on the last day. It had a nice groom on it that day, which made it easier to negotiate the steep pitch near the top.


A photo of the view (with the Eagle Tail and Easy Way Down) at the Top of the Mountain near the Gold Chair.

Interestingly I have come to the conclusion I can't ski 'powder'. I learnt on groomed runs. Put me on a fresh bit of snow, on a black run and watch me do cartwheels, while swearing my head off at the ski buddy at the bottom the run.

Which brings me to the next photo of me at the Sunshine Ski Resort outside of Banff. The resort is one of the bigger ones around, and full of powder. Especially on the day I went. They had 20 cms the night before. I've never tasted snow so much. I just kept hitting soft powder and face planting it into the snow. It also didn't help I had forgotten my googles that day and was using my sunglasses instead. Sunglasses as I knew beforehand are usless after the first stack.


Some of the regrets I have of leaving Nakiska so early besides the friends include, not having learnt to ski backwards, not having convinced a ski patroller call through a 'Yard Sale' (think about it) instead of an accident, and not having skied at a 4th Mountain.. Oh well. There's always Whistler.

And then finally I have also included 2 photos of Calgary. The Fort, and the view to the Calgary Tower.

The local wildlife

While I remember. I can also report I have completed another of the goals.

I have seen a moose.

Well in fact I've seen two moose. Unfortunately they were both females (ie no big antlers). They were walking through the carpark licking car tyres. As the do. It wasn't the first time the had done this. Unfortunately my photo of them is also very dark.

To complete off the set here are some other photos of the wildlife around. One of the squirrels around the ski resort, and another of our pet Elk at the residence. His name is apparently Greg Jnr.

The fuller update of the past few weeks in Nowhere

Yes it's me. I'm still in Nowhere, Canada. I can't get anywhere even if I tried. So nowhere is where I am.

Last few weeks in Kananaskis working at Nakiska Ski Resort have been interesting if not tiring. My job as Trail Crew is very physical. In the very least I am on my feet 8 hrs a day walking around. More likely than not I am either shovelling snow, pushing snow, chipping pact snow, or throwing gravel on snow. Snow, snow, snow......

Last few days have brought diversity. I was drafted into Food & Bev for a day due to a few no shows on New Years day. Alcohol flowed freely the night before. Benefit of this was that get to stay inside most of the day, and a free lunch. Then yesterday I had to go help the liftee's scanning tickets for a while. A fun change to some of the crap tasks I also do.

The Xmas / New Years period was very much about food. We had our Turket Roast Xmas dinner. Christmas was perfect. We had snow completing the White Xmas experience.

Soon though I think I'll leave the hill and return to civilisation. I just can't stand the isolation.

Anyway here are a few photos of the past few weeks. Included are photos of Nakiska Resort (before openning day).

Our snowman (made by (in photo order) Anita, me, Zoe, and Craig).

A very delicate photo of me ice skating. If you can call it that. I think it's foot torture. Designed to assist making people fall onto hard ice. My skating was more like an ice shuffle.

The housemates of floor 500 (Craig, Steph, Chris, Lanie, Zoe, Susan, Jill, Nicole, Heidi, and me),.

Poutine (a Canadian favourite food).

And the 'Avalanche' ( our favourite dessert from the tourist hotel).