Universal Tink Day(s) - 22/09/'07

Seeing as it's MY birthday, I can label it however I want, so this past weekend was the celebration of "Universal Tink Day(s)".

The plural is because celebrations started Friday eve and are still continuing.

On Friday, the beautiful MiMi Giggles treated me to dessert and sharing a bottle of champagne at my fave local patio hangout - Glowbal. The night was perfect, a little cool, but completely comfortable and fresh.

Saturday started with a great workout at the gym, brekkie, then off with Val for a hike to Deeks Lake about an hour north of Vancouver.

The drive along Howe Sound was incredibly beautiful. The highway winds along cliffs high above the ocean and the views stretch for miles. Beautiful islands to the west and tall, snowcapped mountains to the north - stunning.

The hike up to the lake took us just over two hours, which seemed like a fraction of that time as we were constantly enthralled by the scenery, incredibly fresh air and great conversation. This was also a good test for my knee. A few weeks ago, I sprained a ligament on the side of it and have just begun to be fully mobile again. I was being cautious with lateral movements, but everything else was completely fine.

When we reached the lake, we encamped on the shore for a well deserved lunch and birthday cake dessert (organic pumpkin pie). Moments after we began to eat, a mist rolled into the valley and it started to rain. The wind picked up and the temperature dropped. Prior to that I was seriously considering a birthday plunge to celebrate, but that idea disappeared as we put on as many layers as possible, finished the food and started back down.

We decided to run down, which was an even greater test of my knee and all was still fine. Took us only an hour to make it back to the car.

That's got to be one of my favorite hikes. I've done it once before and both times have been completely devoid of others. If you want a peaceful, beautiful and not-too-long adventure, check this one out.

Once back in the city, I had time to shower, nap and meditate before we headed back out to a party organized by the lovely Krista Kelloway. She did a fantastic job. The venue was great, a lot of friends were there and we all had a great time.

Afterwards we zipped across the street to an opening party for a cool clothing store, then a little while later I headed home, hike-weary, full of smiles, laughter and love.

Sunday started with a great sleep-in, then I was treated to a loooooong and damn fine champagne-fueled brunch by Jason Crosby, after which we did a lil' shopping and hit up a little more champagne at a Gastown oyster bar. Home just in time for dinner and a flick ("Stardust" - kinda interesting, not quite there...) with Val, then a nice early evening afterwards.

Thanks as always gang for being such wonderful friends.

YeHaaaw!

Happy Birthday to Me

Happy Birthday to Me...