New Years Eve

Champagne
   Fireworks
      Dancing
          Party Hats
             Noise Makers

... not this year.

On December 31st, 2018, Chris and I boarded the 9:55am sailing of the Salish Eagle from Tsawwassen to the Gulf Islands. Our reservation was for Otter Bay, Pender Island, but the recent windstorms left the Tiny House we were planning to stay at without power and with a shattered window. A last minute Airbnb search later, and we were now on our way to Sturdies Bay, Galiano. It didn't make much difference to us - neither of us had been to either island. Admittedly, some slight disappointment arose from not getting to stay at the tiny house...

We spent the sunny sailing in awe of the snow-covered mountains off in the distance. We also took a moment to study a map and get our bearings of the scarcely populated island we would soon be disembarking onto.

First stop was to get the legs moving at Bluffs Park. It was just a short jaunt up the hill and we were treated to the sight pictured below. We let the sun nourish our skin (the small sections that were exposed anyways), and finished sipping the coffees we had got back at the ferry terminal.

After driving along some of the scenic and winding roads that traverse the island; we stop to check in to our cabin in the woods.

The Velvet Owl Studio

With little-to-no plans for the remainder of the day, we had time to get crafty and play around with "latte-art" on our curried leek and zucchini soup. Having recently been introduced to the magic of cashew sour cream, I found an excuse to whip up a batch - for atop of the soup. It's the simplest thing: soaked raw cashews, fresh lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, water. Blend. Done. Creamy non-dairy goodness. The soup art thing is a work-in-progress...

From the hours of 4:00pm on we watched Mr. Holland's Opus, we played some rounds of crib, read books, ate a generous portion of chips and salsa, reminisced of New Years Eves gone past, and drank a healthy serving of wine. Earlier in the day we had visited the Hummingbird Pub, situated just a kilometre and a half down the road, to inquire about their New Years Eve festivities. We contemplated joining in for a celebration with the locals but unanimously decided that we would be equally as content to stay inside our cozy abode until the year was over.

At about 11:38pm, we decided to embark on a night walk down to the end of the road. The headlamp that was lent to me by my lovely mother provided an insufficient amount of light, so we were cautiously watching our steps. It was so quiet out there. No sounds of cars racing by, no sirens, no music; just peace. We returned back to the studio around maybe 11:51pm and the clock seamlessly passed over from PM to AM without any special recognition. For a holiday that often creates unrealistic expectations it was a sweet relief to let it pass without much thought.

Imagine how glorious it was to wake up for the first time since my late-teens without any trace of a hangover. My liver was rejoicing. And my heart was full. It was pure bliss to lounge in bed reading my book by Inuit author Tanya Tagaq who writes of her childhood in Qausuittuq (Resolute Bay, NU); the first community I had the privilege of visiting in the Territory that forever remains in my heart.

No hangover!

I've come a long way since New Years Eve 2012 when I chugged more Smirnoff vodka than I had cumulatively consumed in my life previously. I blacked out on a bus somewhere between Deep Cove and Lynn Valley and didn't even make it to the countdown. I remember waking up the next morning with my mother lying in my bed to make sure I didn't choke on my vomit in my sleep. Ice cream buckets on the floor next to the bed. Needless to say, I didn't feel amazing that January 1st. I watched as my friends plunged into the frigid ocean at Panorama Beach for the annual Penguin Plunge, meanwhile I was using every ounce of my strength just to hold myself upright.

New Years 2015 was spent in Lisbon, Portugal with a group of new friends from Basque Country who I had met earlier that day. They spoke a very limited amount of English, yet less limited than the amount of my Quebecois-French that was comprehensible to them. The result was a lot of hand gestures and an abundance of giggling. That night, one of them purchased a gram of green tea from one of those infamous Portuguese 'drug' dealers. That night may have also been the first time that I had ever stayed out late enough to watch the sun rise in the morning. The nice thing about staying out that late is that your hangover doesn't actually hit you until much later the next evening. But when it hits, it hits with vengeance... while I was on a bus heading to Barcelona.

With more energy and less nausea than any January 1st in recent history, we kicked off 2019 with a hike up to Mount Galiano, the highest point on the island at 311 meters above sea level. The timing was just right as the clouds thinned for a bit and beams of light poured down over the Southern Gulf Islands. I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend my first morning of the year than with the best company and a wicked coastal view.  

Views from the top of Mount Galiano.

We spent the weekend in such comfort, in fact, that my hair never made its way out of a messy bun.... until this photo. Hair catastrophe. Glorious laughter. 

Vantage point of the other Southern Gulf Islands.

The first day of the year brought many other great things:

• Some of the best masala potatoes my taste buds had ever encountered.
• A nostalgic conversation with a man from Halifax visiting his daughter on the West Coast.
• Satisfying my craving for a peanut-butter cup with a chance find in the Galiano convenience store. (Not willing to settle for Rhys's Pieces, I was gutted that we arrived at the local bakery at 3:11pm, only to find they had closed at 3:00. I know many people make January a month for clean eating, but sometimes its better to just give in to the craving.)

So I am entering 2019 feeling refreshed, rejuvenated, and optimistic for what lies ahead. I'm expecting lots of change in my life. The next few months will be hectic; back to work full-time, taking two online courses, applications for Grad school, trips to Japan, Montreal, and Washington, organizing the Goalball Grand Slam, volunteering for Adaptive Snow Sports, trying to enjoy some winter adventures, and the list goes on.

Gratitude for the last few days of calm before the storm. I'm ready to dive head-first into what lies ahead. Entering 2019 with sincere gratitude for all that I have in my life. My intention this year is to approach situations with tenderness - both towards others and towards myself.