#3 Border Security, Getting Hit By A Car, Self-Defence & Broken Doors

In this episode of Gone On An Adventure, Tyarra shares a bunch of funny stories from what is was like to venture across the Canadian–U.S. border from Vancouver to San Juan Island, where she spent several weeks decking-out her van, exploring, visiting family, and unexpectedly making plenty of new friends!

She talks about unique work opportunities, cruising on boats, kayaking through islands, navigating border security, and how she dealt with various curveballs including a broken van door and getting hit by a car… all before she stumbled across an opportunity to attend a carpentry school back in Canada, which spontaneously lead her to taking a long mountain drive through to Vernon, BC, where she plans to begin a new chapter and learn how to be a builder while living on a goat farm!

This episode takes many, MANY turns - ENJOY!! 

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@tyarratravels

@vanlife.adventurepodcast

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey guys, and welcome back to Gone on an Adventure. I'm your host, Tierra Nelson. And this is a podcast that I'm going to be dedicating to my new chapter of van life, where I'm essentially just going to be telling stories about the places I'm going, the people I'm meeting, the things I'm learning, and all of the wicked and wildlife experiences that I'm having in between. Now, I just want to say a big thank you very much for joining me for what is now episode three. And if you guys made it to the end of episode two, you would remember that I had just left you off when I had essentially just purchased my van, and I'd been spending a few days in Vancouver doing some stealth camping, but I didn't actually fill you in on what happened after that. And boy oh boy, has life been a changing on the daily and the weekly, and sometimes honestly the hourly and even the minutely. Minutely. Is it is minutely a word? I don't know. We're gonna roll with it. Either way, there's been a lot going down, and I seriously need to bring you up to speed, so here we go. Let's rewind the clock. To Sunday, the 15th of March. Woke up bright and early that morning, freezing my absolute tush-off because I was still way too stubborn to turn on my diesel heater. I was trying to save a buck or two, but most of all, I was just trying to prove a point to myself that I could tough it out and I could handle a little bit of the cold. So threw off all these jackets, you know, threw off all these layers of merino wool that I had, brushed my teeth, warm myself up with some instant coffee and some hot protein oats, and then I hit the road. I hit the road. I went and picked my dad up from downtown Vancouver, and by this point, I had familiarized myself with driving the van for a number of more days. I was feeling a hell of a lot more confident in driving such an enormous vehicle with plenty of blind spots that can basically second as a mini little truck. And my dad, God bless him, you know, he'd recovered from a little bit of jet lag, and now he was in my passenger seat once again, but he wasn't gripping that door handle quite as tightly. His eyes weren't quite as wide open, just nervous as hell because his second youngest daughter, who had been driving in another country for the past 13 years of her life on the other side of the road, sitting on the other side of the car, and like driving a significantly smaller car because I used to drive a little Suzuki gymney that I'd whiz around in, and now I was in this big ass Mercedes sprinter van. Let's just say he had a little bit more faith in me, even though he should have fully trusted me on that very first day because I had it all under control. I didn't crash the car. We got home safely. But anywho, this time we were really about to hit the highway together. And it was fun. It was really fun because there was a lot less fatherly commentary on telling me, you know, when to indicate, when to slow down, like warning me that there were yellow lights ahead when I could clearly see them too, because I've got eyeballs as well. Thanks, Dad, for those genetics 2020 eyesight. But anywho, you know, there was a lot less commentary and a lot more conversation. So that was wonderful. That was a great change. Now, before we planned to head over the Canadian US border, I was actually on my very first mission to try to find myself a mountain bike. Because there in Vancouver, it's like a gold mine for mountain bikes. Mountain biking is so popular in Canada. And if you go onto Facebook Marketplace, you are just bound to find so many high-quality mountain bikes that are people are selling for secondhand and super duper cheap. At least way cheaper than what you would buy them if they were brand new. So, my plan was to actually buy a mountain bike on our way down before we got into the US. But unfortunately, my plan did not go to plan. And it was an absolute fail because I thought I had landed myself on this epic mountain bike. I was just gonna hand over a few hundred dollars cash, you know, deal done, get that thing in the back of the van. I would install a bike rack at a later date. But lo and behold, when we rocked up to this place, I realized that, oh, face palm. I should have triple checked the actual size of this bike. Because unfortunately, I'm not a 15-year-old boy who is still yet to keep growing because this bike was clearly built for a teenager. And I'm over 176 centimeters tall. You know, I can reach that top shelf. I've got some height to me, and particularly on my lower limbs. Like, my femurs, they just go on forever. I've got long ass legs. And when I got onto this bike, I was just like, no! Because sure I could ride it, but yeah, I was pretty cramped. And my dad was just standing there shaking his head. Probably thought that I looked like someone from the circus just cycling around on this super tiny little tricycle, but you know, they cut off the extra wheel, so it was indeed a bicycle. I didn't actually make the mistake to almost buy myself a tricycle. But anyway, besides the point, I felt a little bit silly. I felt a little bit defeated. It was a bit of a bummer because I'm like, gosh darn it, I really wanted to buy a mountain bike today because when we were planning to get over to the US and onto San Juan Island, I really wanted to take myself for a bunch of bike rides along some trails. And also, I was having major withdrawals. Because in Australia, I was in the habit of going for a bike ride every single day. It was just what I did. I loved my bike, you know, for over a year and a half, rain, hail, or shine, I was out there on my bike, cycling for close to an hour every single day because it just allows me to get into ultimate flow state, you know, like my mind can just drift off to places that it couldn't otherwise unless I'm actually cycling on a bike. And I'd been in Canada for two and a half weeks up until that point. And yeah, I was having an absolute blast snowboarding and snow kiting and adventuring around in both Vancouver and Alberta, but oh man, I really missed my bike and I really wanted a bike. So I was like, darn it. But either way, I did not purchase this bike, and uh dad and I continued along our merry way to cross over the Canadian U.S. border before we were gonna continue driving down the west coast of Washington to Anacortis, get on a ferry, and then catch a ferry over to San Juan Island. But getting across the Canadian U.S. border, that was, you know, an experience in itself. Because even though I've crossed that border countless numbers of times, especially as a little kid, you know, we were always going across the border. But I was one of six kids in the back of some suburban or a minivan. My parents were up the front, you know, they were the ones talking to the border control, they were the ones handing over the passports, telling us in the back seats to hush and quiet down. Whereas this time, I was the one in the driver's seat. I was the one handing over the passports, I was the one that's gonna be answering the questions. My dad is just sitting in the passenger seat behind me. But, you know, the only way to do it is to just frickin' do it. And there are firsts for everything. And no, there's no reason to be concerned or nervous. If anything, you just don't want them to be unnecessarily suspicious of you because, hey, listen, I got nothing to hide, all right? I'm just that chick, you know, yeah, sure, driving a big ass van with not many windows in it. But listen, you know, I'm just sitting here, toque, piggytails, big smile on my face. I just want to get over to the US. I just want to see my grandparents, you know, and I'm just like, please, please, please, do not find some sort of reason to ask me to pull over and search my entire van because if anything, all I was worried about was them potentially confiscating all of my cans of sardines that I'd brought over from Australia. And I'm like, no, I need those. That's my daily protein and omega-3 and calcium hit. Like, that's my life source. Please don't take my sardines. I need my oily fish. So that's honestly the only thing I was concerned about. Hell, dare do I say I was more concerned about having my sardines confiscated than like actually missing the fairy. Because I'm like, well, we could just catch the next fairy, but like when it comes to canned fish, oh, that's top priority. So please, please, please, please, please don't take this away from me. And lo and behold, you know, I was able to make it over the Canadian US border, you know, sardines still intact in the cans, thank the Lord. But, you know, actually going through border security, you're very quickly reminded that, man, I'm not in Australia anymore. Like, I'm in North America now. Because when they just ask you at face value of, you know, are you carrying any cannabis? Do you have any firearms? Is there anyone else in the back of your van? You're like, whoa, all right, like I would next to never be asked that question in the land down under. But here, it's just common, right? Because of course, weed is legal. A lot of people hunt in Canada and the US. A lot of people have hunting licenses. I guess you know it's not too uncommon for people to just declare firearms and guns so that they can cross the border. But here I am, I'm just like, no, no. And fortunately, my dad and I, smooth sailing, made it across that Canadian U.S. border. And then, yeah, we drove about an hour and a half down the coast of Washington to Anacortas, and then we got onto a vehicle and passenger ferry there in Anacortas, went for about an hour and a half cruising through the San Juans, and then we docked in Friday Harbor on San Juan. And the San Juans, they're these group of islands that are a part of the Pacific Northwest, where the San Juans, they just border the west coast of Washington, whereas you've also got all of these other neighboring islands that are part of Canada and they border the west coast of British Columbia, islands like Vancouver Island, where I was born. That's the largest island off the west coast of North America. And then you've also got Salt Spring Island and Pender Island and Quander Island and a whole bunch of other islands. So all of these islands in the Pacific Northwest, you know, some belong to Canada, some belong to the US, but either either, they're all so effing beautiful. They are all just covered in hills and all of these tall pine trees, and along the coastline, they're speckled with these log cabins that have their own little private beaches and these beautiful little docks that go out onto the water, and people have their own little sailing boats and tinnies and just these islands, right? Like there's so many people out there kayaking and paddleboarding and zooming around in their little motorboats and fishing and going out to these islands, it's like going into another world because this group of islands, it's in the rain shadow. So on the mainland, like if you're in Washington or you're in British Columbia, on the mainland, it might be a little bit overcast, a little bit gray, a little bit drizzly. But then as you get onto this ferry and you start going a little bit further out into the Pacific, all of the clouds start to clear, the sun comes out, and you just feel like you're on a different planet. And being on this ferry, it is so scenic. You know, no, I have not been on every single ferry in the world, but dare do I say, this would have to make the top of the list. Like this ferry ride, it's just glorious. My favorite thing to do is go right up to the top deck and go outside, even if it's windy AF and you feel like you're gonna get blown off the boat. But you just go out there and you feel like Rose from Titanic, and you're just like, I can fly! It's amazing. It's so amazing, it's so beautiful. And as you cruise through all of these different islands, like just the scenery, not just the islands themselves, but the way that the sun hits the water, and it's that beautiful, like turquoise green, and you can see all this bulb kelp, and you know, just the reflections, oh, the fresh air. It's just it is so so extraordinary. And I love being out there so much. And hell, even when you come inside, the fairies they have these enormous glass windows and these huge wooden tables, and there's so many puzzles everywhere, right? And I am an absolute puzzle fanatic. The past two houses I've lived in, I've actually had puzzle tables. So the fact that you can take this beautiful ferry ride and you can sit inside, the sun's coming through the windows just beaming down on you, and you can chip away at a puzzle while you cruise by all of these islands and fishermen and kayakers and oh, it's just it is so magnificent. Dare do I say, it's the ferry ride of a lifetime. And I just, I really hope in my wildest dreams that every single person out there at some point in their life they have an opportunity to actually get on a Washington State Ferry or get on to one of the BC ferries because it's just, oh, it's so goddamn beautiful. It really, really is. It uh it absolutes my mind the people that stay in their cars, you know, down on like the vehicle deck, rather than climb up the stairs and like actually see where the party's at, yo? But anywho, after this magnificent, magnificent ride, uh, dad and I, we arrived on San Juan in Friday Harbor around 6 p.m. at night. And my grandparents, yeah, they live on San Juan Island, which is the largest island in the San Juans. And they live in this little town called Friday Harbor, just about five minutes right outside of town, down this road called Pear Point Road. And they have this beautiful house. You know, it's this massive wooden house with this huge deck that looks out over these two rocks, and there's all these harbor seals that are up on the rocks, and eagles are swooping down. And if you're out on the deck, you look out over to the left and you can see Mount Baker, and you can see the sunrise over Mount Baker. And then if you look over to the right, you can see all of the Olympic mountain ranges, and you see the sun set over the Olympic mountains, and just surrounding. There's so many beaches with driftwood, and there's float planes going by, and all of these fishermen, and they've got this huge grass lawn and this massive barn and this really big garden where they grow a whole bunch of berries and asparagus and carrots and potatoes and you know, a whole bunch of different things throughout the year. They've got apple trees and plum trees, and there's deer running around the yard. It's just like it is seriously like a North American wonderland. And every single time I go there, I just feel so at home. I'm just like, wow, like this place out of any place I've ever been to on earth, I hold it the dearest to my heart. It is so special because I just have so many memories there. I've literally been visiting this place ever since I was born, ever since I was a little kid, ever since I was born on Vancouver Island back in 1997. My family and I, we've always been taking that fairy ride to go over and visit my grandparents. And what I love so much about it is that everything is preserved. You know, like I swear there's very few places on this planet that you can guarantee you can return to and it will still be the same. And what I mean here is that, like, these fairies, I swear, these are still the same fairies I was catching back in 2001. Like the paper towel dispensers are still the same. Or you get onto this island and the town, every single building is still the same. You know, the people working in the buildings, they're still the same. Just a little bit older, but hey, so are you. But this island, like, there's not even traffic lights, there's no fast food chains, like everything is so preserved. It's like just like I remembered it from when I was a kid. It's like I've been locked in a time capsule. And it's just amazing to have a place like that in life that you know you can always go back to, you know you can always return home to. And it's just the way that you left it. So every single time I've done that drive down Pair Point Road, and I've taken a left onto my grandparents' gravel driveway, and I can hear the sound of the rocks, and I can see their house, and I can see the water, and then I see my grandma open up the front door and say, hello! And that big smile on her face, it's just, oh, I'm just like hit with these waves of nostalgia and memories because all of the sights, all of the sounds, everything that I can smell, it's just it's so familiar. And it makes me feel like I've returned home, like nothing else. It really makes me feel like I've just come back to my roots. And when I finally arrived on San Juan Island in my van with my dad, and I see my grandma open up that front door, and she just has the biggest smile on her face. She's wearing all red, and she's holding up in front of her this enormous red hummingbird feeder. Because not only is red her favorite color, but hummingbirds are her favorite bird on the entire planet. She just adores them. And every single day she will make like pints upon pints of this hummingbird feed, which is basically just hot water and sugar cooked on the stove and then poured into the hummingbird feeder. And then she hangs them all around the house because hummingbirds they migrate for thousands upon thousands of miles, right? From all different parts of the world. And yes, I'm very aware that I'm using Imperial right now, but hang with me, all right? We are in the US at this point in time, but I'm still very aware that kilometers and the whole metric system, that's really where it's at. But anywho, my grandma she hangs up these hummingbird feeders so that all these hummingbirds can actually swarm around the house and they can dance, you know, and they can entertain her while she's like cooking in the kitchen and she can just see all these hummingbirds flying around outside, just like, you know, getting their sugar hit. So it was just so wonderful to feel back at home again. And my grandma, my grandpa, my dad, we all shared dinner that night, and it was just really wonderful to be reunited. And that night, you know, I actually did decide to crash in the house because I was still yet to have pillows and blankets on my bed in the van. And I was like, you know what? I think I'm just gonna sleep here tonight and make my bed tomorrow. And dare do I say, halfway through the night, I kind of regretted that decision. Because I had literally gone from a number of nights of sleeping in this freezing cold hunk of metal and wood and refusing to turn on a heater because I'm just way too stubborn, and I didn't have any blankets, I didn't have any pillows, I was sleeping with my little airplane neck cushion, and I was just bundled up in all of my layers of merino wool that I'd taken to Alberta with me to survive like minus 25 degree weather, and I was wearing coats, I was wearing toques, I was wearing my big woolly gloves, I had coats on me as blankets, like I had a big coat on me at the very bottom of my feet, and my feet were actually in the hood, and then I had two other coats on top of me as well. I'd gone from this and keeping myself warm and yeah, saving a little bit of money because I didn't turn on that diesel heater or attract any unwanted attention while I was stealth camping in the middle of the night in some park in Vancouver, and I didn't want my van humming all night. So I'd gone from this to now sleeping in this enormous king-size bed with this big duvet and four fluffy pillows and the heats on in the house, and I've got my nice pajamas on, and I'm just like, oh man, like for starters, I am way too hot right now, which is crazy because a number of weeks prior, like in that temperature, sleeping in Australia, that would have been a cooler night, and I totally would have been sleeping with a blanket and pajamas on, but like I clearly climatized very, very quickly. So here I was just burning up, and I was almost like suffocating in comfort. I was like, ugh, like this is just too nice, and it felt like it was completely defeating the purpose of what I was trying to achieve. Like, I didn't want to be in a house, I wanted to be in my van, and there was even a point that I woke up during the night to go pee, and I was contemplating of actually going back outside and just like sleeping in the van for the rest of the night. But anywho, I didn't. I followed through, you finish what you start, and I finished my night's sleep in the bed. But that was the one and only, you know, it was the biggest motivator and incentive for me to gather up some sheets, gather up some blankets, gather up some pillows from my grandparents' spare rooms, and actually move into my new little home on wheels so that I could actually sleep in there every single night. And I've slept in there every single night since because I just love my van so much. I love being in here. It's just so So ridiculously cozy. And provided that I'm not freezing, like I love sleeping in the cold. You know, like ever since I moved into this place, I have been getting the deepest, most restful, peaceful night sleeps of my entire life. And every single morning when I can just wake up and I deliberately park my van so that the windows are facing where the sun is gonna rise. The sun comes through the windows and it lights up the van with just this like golden glow. And I get to wake up with the sun, and my windows are cracked open and there's fresh air coming through, and I could hear birds chirping, and I could just look around me and be like, wow, I'm really here right now. Like I'm actually doing this. This is my life now. It it has not got old, you know. I I every single morning, I swear, I still pinch myself, and I'm just like, I love this so much. I love being in here. I love falling asleep in here. I love waking up in here. I love eating my meals in here, I love podcasting in here, you know. Just I love this place. This is really my new little home. But anywho, for those first two weeks on San Juan, I got to spend so much time with my grandparents, with my dad, and it was just this beautiful combination of me being able to go off during the day and just like have my own freedom and solo time and drive around San Juan Island and venture off in the van. But then in the evenings, I would always come home and my family members and I, we would take turns cooking and we'd make a nice family meal, and we would sit around together and tell stories and talk, and it was just so, so wholesome. And also, you know, because the San Juans, they are very protected and there are a whole bunch of national parks around, and they're also incredibly strict about overnight parking and stealth camping, on the San Juans, you're just not gonna get away with that shiz. Unlike Vancouver, where you know you are legally allowed to sleep in a vehicle overnight, it's a big na uh-uh on the San Juans. So, unless you're actually going to pay for a designated campsite every night, which is probably gonna be in the territory of 25 to 35 US dollars per night, yeah, uh you're gonna have a hell of a lot of trouble and you're probably going to get into a lot of trouble if you're trying to just like sneakily stealth camp around the island. So ideally, it pays off to know people so that you can actually park on private property and sleep soundly at night, knowing that you're not gonna get the sheriff knocking on your door. So I was just so grateful that my grandparents let me park on their property, and I could wake up every single morning and watch the sunrise over a mountain, and I could hear the Canadian geese and the seals all saying, Good morning, hello, and I could walk out, you know, onto the rocks, and I could hold my coffee in both hands, and I could sip this just like steaming hot caffeinated beverage and just welcome in a brand new day. It was it was so, so, so glorious. It was, well, God, it was just so beautiful to wake up like that every single morning. And also for those very first two weeks of being on the San Juans, I had my dad by my side, which was so ridiculously fun and so helpful because dad, he was able to teach me a whole bunch about this van when it came to the engine, the solar panels, the batteries, the plumbing, you know, like we got to just do the ins and outs of all the mechanics. We also did a whole bunch of renovations on the van. For example, something that we actually installed in the van was a fire extinguisher. And no, this is not just in, you know, god forbid, the case that there's a fire, because I don't actually have any propane in my van. Like a lot of vans, it's quite common to have gas stoves or gas heaters, but for me, everything's electrical. And I yeah, obviously have my diesel heater, but yeah, let's be honest, that thing rarely ever gets turned on. But in most circumstances, people with vans these days, they are insulated with a lot of wooden boards, you know, on the ceilings and on the walls. And if you have open flames, of course that's going to increase the risk of things just catching on fire. And like, yeah, the van being set alight. And once again, like I never wish in my wildest dreams that anything in this van ever ignites. But if it did, at least I do have a fire extinguisher. But do you know what else a fire extinguisher can second as? You guessed it. A weapon. Because once again, you know, I am someone who always wants to think the best in people. I choose to see the good in people, the good in the world, the good in myself. And it probably is a little bit of that Australian culture that has rubbed off on me of, oh yeah, she'll be right. But at the same time, you know, you still have to be prepared for worst-case scenarios. And yeah, here I am thinking, okay, you know, if I ever get some sort of just like creepy knock at the van or someone's just like making me feel uncomfortable or unsafe, and I just feel a little bit threatened, what am I gonna do? Because, yeah, sure, I've got a few karate skills under my belt. Pardon the pun, but you know, I've got some fists, I've got some feet, you know, I can yell and scream, I've got some decent strength behind me, I've got two little pocket knives. No, I am not carrying a rifle. But even then, like, that still requires you to get quite close to someone. Like, if someone's legitimately giving you a hard time and you actually feel like you have to defend yourself, yeah, using your fists and like using a pocket knife, uh, you know, maybe that should be like next to a last resort. But what could I do instead? Uh-huh. I could grab that fire extinguisher off the wall and just blow a whole bunch of white smoke up in this person's face and be like, yeah, didn't see that coming. And also, yeah, that's right, you can't even see now. And you know, even if they somehow made it through this big white cloud of smoke and weren't so disoriented, I can then whack them over the head with it like. So just saying, you know, fire extinguishers, they can put out fires and they can also take out people. So if you ask me, pretty multi-purpose, consider getting one. So, apart from installing a fire extinguisher, dad and I, we also jacked this thing up and I learned how to change over a tire, especially considering that this big, beautiful beast, it has six wheels, right? It's a dually, it's got four wheels in the back. And once again, God forbid I ever have a flat tire. And especially on the inside rear wheel tires, where I would have to actually take off both tires, you know, and of course, Murphy's Law would probably be pouring rain and just stuck on the side of a windy mountain. I'm like, ah, but you know, you have to be prepared for these things. And I'm just so glad I learned how to do that. And it just reinforces to me that, man, I spent so many years at school. And even though I'm so grateful for my education and I went to a phenomenal private school in Australia, and I spent nearly five years in university, I just think back to all of the things that went through my brain that I had to rote-learn, that unfortunately, I've forgotten a lot of them. And also, I just question, man, did any of those things actually equip me for real life? You know, like, like it's crazy. It boggles my mind to think that in history class you learn about when human beings discovered fire or when they invented the wheel or when they invented the tire. But when it comes to the here and now, if you're actually put in a life scenario where you need to put out a fire or you need to change over a tire, do you actually know how to do that? Have you ever actually done that before? And sure, you could be like, oh yeah, I just like watch a YouTube video on it, but there's a difference between actually like just seeing how something's done and then actually doing it yourself, especially when you're actually in a circumstance where you need to act on the here and the now, especially with fires, right? Like a fire extinguisher. Yeah, it's pretty freaking straightforward. You pull the pin, you pull the trigger, right? White smoke, hopefully the fire gets put out. But like if there's all this commotion and you've got adrenaline running, like pumping through your veins, like you don't want to be thinking, ah, you know, like and fumbling around because you've never done anything before and you have to really, really think on your feet and work it out. That is not the time, you know. Like, prepare thyself. That's the best way to instill yourself with confidence, is actually do the thing, you know? And no, you're never gonna be able to replicate an exact scenario, right? But like at least to the degree of know that, okay, like I've actually had my hands on a tire before or on a jack before, or I've actually blown a fire extinguisher before. Like, God forbid, if I'm ever put in a situation where I need to act on the here and the now, at least I would know how to handle things, right? So it just instills you with that little bit more reassurance, confidence, self-belief of, yeah, you know, like this freaking sucks, but there's not even time to think about how this sucks. I just need to deal with this. And you deal with it. So voila, there you go. Prepare thyself. Now, during those first couple weeks, a few other things was I just really turned my van into a home. You know, I unpacked all of the suitcases that I'd brought over from Australia. I was able to start putting things away. I even went to a thrift store and I bought this $4 sheet that I used some scissors to cut up, and I got some needle and thread, and I made myself these really just cute little curtains, which I just absolutely adore. So that was a fun little van project. And just taking advantage of Amazon USA because I was so fortunate to actually have a home base for a number of weeks and be at my grandparents' house, which had a reliable postal code, so I could order a whole bunch of things for the van. Things that I know at some point or another I'm gonna need to fall back and depend on to get me out of some pretty gnarly situations. Things like traction boards, things like tow ropes, a variety of tools, leveling blocks, and of course, fun things too. I bought myself a new inflatable paddleboard. Dad gifted me a whole bunch of fishing gear because hashtag top priority. And no, that's not just me being sarcastic because my dad's a marine biologist and like the number one fish dude on this planet. But seriously, like taking myself on a number of fishing trips while I pursue van life, that is an absolute top priority. Like, that's gonna be so much fun because I legit can't wait to start cooking up my own fish in this van. With, of course, you know, the big sliding door wide open, so I'm not stanking the whole place out. But let's be honest, you know, like my stash of Australian sardines for one dollar a can, day by day, those things are trickling down, and I refuse to pay like six dollars for a can of sardines here in North America. So yeah, fair to say that I'm gonna have to start catching my own fish soon. But listen, I've got all the gear. It's literally right under my bed. All I need is a fishing license and to just head out to a lake. But apart from all of the Amazon orders and just packing up my van with a whole bunch of clothes and shoes and shiz I'd brought over from Australia, my grandparents, they actually have these super generous neighbors called the Sharps, and they were so kind. They actually gave me two really nice cast iron cooking pans. They gave me these two massive sleeping bags, and they also let me borrow their bike while I was on the island, which is just this adorable turquoise and red seven-speed cafe racer, which, sure, it's not ideal for mountain biking, but boy, it just goes so smoothly along all of those paved roads. And I was just so grateful for all of these things, especially like to have the bike while I was there on the island. And a funny story, all right. So during the very first few days while I was there, you know, I was just craving some iron. And I'm not talking about dietary iron because I was getting a hell of a lot of that. Not just through trace sources from my new cast iron cooking pans, but from red meat, you know, because my dad and I, we love meat, you know. I grew up hunting with my dad, and funnily enough, during our little road trip from Canada down to the US, we actually teed up with one of his buddies who gave him this humongous bag of moose meat. There was like moose steaks and moose burgers and moose sausages and just so much moose meat. Dad and I, you know, we were not at a lack in any sense of protein and iron. And yeah, we were actually planning to make some jerky together on the island, which was gonna be super fun too. But anywho, the type of iron I'm talking about is the type that you grip in your hands and you put yourself under some heavy ass resistance, and you get a sick pump and all the post-workout endorphins possible. So yeah, I was craving the gym. All I wanted to do was lift weights because I'd been in North America now for two and a half weeks and I'd only gone to a gym once, right? I went to one just like little community gym while I was in Vancouver. But apart from that, I was just doing a whole bunch of other activities. Obviously, on the snow when I was in Alberta and just a whole bunch of walks, and I got a lot more into trail running again. But man, like all I wanted was to just get on a bike and take myself to the gym. And again, here's me super duper stubborn because the day that I actually got this bike from the sharps, it was actually pouring rain that day. And I'm just the type of person that if I can bike somewhere, then I don't want to drive. You know, like, and sure, ideally, if it's clear blue skies and super sunny and there's a light breeze, that's glorious, that's beautiful, that's like the pristine bike ride, the bike ride goals. But at the same time, I don't really mind if it's drizzling or in this case, absolutely bucketing down rain because I just love being outside in the fresh air. I love pedaling over. Biking is so therapeutic for me. And again, like I was having serious withdrawals from not just the gym, but I was also having serious withdrawals from actually being on a bike. So at that first chance I got, like, I was like, I don't wouldn't even care if it was pitch black right now. I'm hitting the road. So I chucked on my rain jacket, put on my helmet, you know, and I pedaled off. And I was on a mission. I was on a mission to check out two different gyms because the island only has two main gyms, and the information on their website is like very, very vague. These dudes were not picking up the phone. So I was like, you know what? I'll cycle to both and I'll compare the prices. So the very first gym I cycled to, it was in town. It was about a 20-minute bike ride. And when I was getting into town, there's this one really steep street that you need to cycle up to get to the gym. Well, here I am in the absolute pouring rain, right? It's bucketing down, and I'm on the lowest gear, going slow as a turtle up this hill. And even though every time I lift up my head, like there's all these raindrops that come off the edge of my helmet, and I can hardly see, I was still scanning my surroundings. I was still looking around, navigating traffic, because I had no intention and no desire to be hit by a vehicle. You know, it was a Tuesday morning. I did not want to be hit by a car in the rain. You know, I had things to do, I had weights to lift. But what do you think happened? You know, I don't know if I jinxed it or what, but here I am, just like pedaling up this street. And before I even could comprehend what was going on, it happened within a millisecond. I start to feel this just big heavy hunk of metal coming into my right side. And I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, what the hell's going on? Right. And I yell out and I'm like, stop. And this car is reversing into me on the right. And it actually took them a moment to actually realize that, like, oh, like there's an object back there. I better actually put this thing back into park or like maybe take my foot off the gas pedal. So anyway, I got reversed into by this car while I was actually going up this street, and my bike got all mangled up and I got all twisted around because I somehow I was still standing on my feet, but this thing was like shoving me over to the left as it came over, and my handlebars got all twisted, right? Like my shoulder got all banged up, my left knee got all like twisted near the pedal, like my seat was all crooked. Somehow I got this massive cut on my knuckle because it must have hit something like on the back of the car that was quite sharp, and my hands started to bleed. And here I am just trying to understand what the hell is even happening right now. Because I couldn't exactly have like automatic reflexes and like start pedaling really quickly away from the vehicle because I was already in the lowest gear. I was already going as fast as I possibly could up this super duper steep hill. Like my quads were already being put to work, so I couldn't exactly pedal past the line of the vehicle. And because it kept reversing, it kept pushing me closer on the inside of the street. But fortunately, this vehicle finally came to a stop, and this old man got out and he came around the back to see me, and his hands were just on his head, and he was shaking, and I could just see the look on his face that he felt so awful. He felt so, so bad. He was apologizing, he was saying, I'm so sorry. He told me to wheel my bike around, you know, to the side of his car and get off the side of the road. And I could just see that this guy was so nervous because he wasn't just scared I might lash out at him in public, but most of all, he was probably terrified that I was either gonna press charges or scream out in the middle of this street, I'll sue you! Because, like, here I am standing in the pouring rain with this mangled bike and my body's a bit battered up, and I'm looking at all these American flags just like waving around in the streets, and it just instantly reminded me that oh yeah, people do that here. People make mistakes and things happen, and then they threaten to sue one another. But apart from that thought running through my brain, that would never be a thought that would run through my brain because I know what it's like to deal with lawyers. I know what it's like to go through a court case, and it is emotionally taxing and it is exhausting and it's so draining and it takes so much time and it just sucks the life out of you. And I had to go through that for months on end when I was doing my whole house separation back in Australia, and God, if I can live out the rest of my days on planet Earth and never ever have to do any sort of other legal battle during my entire lifetime, then I will be an incredibly happy camper. So, long story short, I had no desire and no intention of ruining this guy's life, taking all of his money, and also I had no desire to ruin a portion of my own life. Like, I did not want to get in contact with a lawyer, I did not want to fill out paperwork, I did not want to put myself through some lengthy court case that was just gonna absolutely suck all of the energy and the time out of me. Things that are so precious and sacred, and I really value. I value my time and my energy and my sanity and my peace of mind far more than money, especially when it's a circumstance where, like, yeah, look, this guy, yeah, his car, it hit me. Sure, I'm a little bit hurt, but not to the degree where I'm actually injured and where I need to go to a hospital. Like, these are things that I can easily heal from. And for example, my left knee, you know, like that thing was pretty swollen because the bike pedal and the bike frame actually twisted into it. But listen, I'll just take it a little bit easier on my cycling, you know, a little bit easier on my leg extensions, a little bit easier on my lunges. That's okay. Or my right shoulder, you know, that thing definitely got banged up because that's where the car hit it. But hell, you know, sure, lateral raises might be off the cards for a few days, but I'll be back swinging around some dumbbells next week. Like, no worries. And eventually my hand, it'll stop bleeding, right? You know, vitamin K to the rescue, clot that shiz. But anywho, right? Like, I just had no desire to carry this on out. At this point in time, it was still absolutely pouring rain. I wanted to get to the gym. So I just let it go. You know, I accepted his apology. I said, listen, you made a mistake. It's okay. Let's just move on. And that's exactly what we did. I got back on my bike and I kept riding slow AF up this hill, probably extra, extra slow now at this point. And it was still pouring rain. My handlebars were all twisted, and I just had to get accustomed to actually cycling like with my hands and my wrists over to the left, which was just hilarious and felt and looked so wonky. But I was just being extra precautious and just making sure that my eyes, you know, were always on the lookout for reverse tail lights turning on so I knew how to respond in an instant. But I'm very, very happy to report that I made it to that first gym in town without any more collisions. But I also didn't stay there too long. Definitely did not get a training session in because by the time I found out their prices when I visited the front desk, I was like, yo, this ain't gonna fly. All right. They were trying to charge me $100 just for a sign-up fee. And then on top of that, I'd also have to pay another $100 just to be able to train there for a month. Like, that's absolutely ludicrous. Like $200 US dollars to just go to a gym for four and a half weeks? Yeah, nah. I'm literally not buying it. So I got back on my twisted AF bike, you know, and then I continued pedaling down the road for another 15 minutes. Once again, still in the absolute bucketing rain, to another gym. And I feel like that's where I got my good karma. I feel like that's where the universe rewarded me for just like having this like really crazy start to my morning and not ruining someone else's life. Because when I got to this gym, one, they were not going to charge me for a sign-up fee. And also, they only charged $50 per month. But the thing is, is that here in the US and in Canada as well, it's like this very common thing for bills to always come out on the very first of the month. So if I was to sign up there on, let's say, like the 17th of March, it wouldn't actually start from the 17th of March. I'd be paying from the 17th of March until the first of April, and then a new billing cycle would start from the first of April all the way until the first of May, yada yada. So here I was on the 17th of March, and I was just so grateful for this woman at the front desk who simply just charged me between the 17th of March all the way up until the first of April because I was not planning on staying on the Sam Juans all the way up until May. So I'm like, listen, two weeks at the gym, that'll absolutely do me. You know, sign me up. And the great thing is, is that I only had to pay for that portion of the month. It only came out to be around 25 bucks. And I'm like, yes, you know, this is an absolute steal. Like, what a freaking win. What a gem to find. Because 25 bucks, that was cheaper than what this other place was trying to charge me for just a day pass. And that's like a quarter of the price of what they were trying to charge me to just sign up to their gym, which like like that's that's loco. That's like that is literally stealing money. All right, like I could I would not be able to sleep at night if I was running a business like that. So anyway, I was just so grateful to have found this place. It had awesome equipment, it was called Island Strength. And one of the most hilarious things was is that this gym was right next to a weed shop. And this weed shop was called the Bud Hut. And when I would cycle to the gym, I would just pass by all of these huge glass windows with all of these bongs, and they just looked like ice cream cones and palm trees, and it was just kind of crazy to me because I was just shaking my head like America, like it's the land of the stoned and the land of the jacked. Like, depending on which door I walk through, like what sort of experience do I want? Or hey, do I want both? Is one gonna be pre and one's gonna be post-workout? I don't know, but either way, it's legal, and it's very different compared to what you'd ever see in Australia, because in Australia, pot, it's still medicinal, you know, like you can't just walk into a store and it's not just sold to the public, and there especially aren't pot shops right next to gyms. So yeah, I'm just always being reminded that, oh yeah, I'm in a different country now. I'm not in the land and more, you know, like I'm in the northern hemisphere, and people roll a bit differently up in this joint. Pardon the pun. But in all seriousness, I had the pleasure of experiencing plenty of post-workout highs after I went to the gym and uh the gym only, of course. Okay, I swear. No, but I had a lot of really awesome workouts, and it just felt so effing euphoric to lift weights again, to be back on my bike cycling again. And on that day, you know, apart from just the good karma coming my way from not ruining this man's life because he hit me on my bike, but I actually got a super cheap deal at the gym to go there for two weeks. And also on my ride home, oh, what do you what do you know? The sun came out, all those skies parted, those ring clouds disappeared, right? And I just had sun beaming down on me. And I'm like, ah, all right, I feel like a good person today. And I just had a really, really good training session. So for those first two weeks on the island, it was just so relaxing. I just had so much downtime to spend with my grandparents, to spend with my dad, just spend more time really moving into the van, learning more about the van. But it was still this perfect combination of I still had plenty of hours during the day to go off and just do what I wanted to do, right? Like I could take myself down to the beach, I could go for a long run through the forest, I could cycle to the gym and lift some weights, like you name it. It was this perfect combination of family time, but also solo van lifetime. And yeah, those first two weeks on the island, they were awesome. They were super duper fun. But before I knew it, I was driving my dad back to the airport because he was gonna tee up with my mom and they were gonna be heading back to Australia. And I only had a few more weeks that I really planned at that point to spend on the island. And those weeks that followed, they were drastically different to the first two weeks because I just felt as though all of these new people kept appearing in my life, and all of these new opportunities kept showing up, and I'm just like, this is freaking awesome. This is exactly what I'm here for. Like, for example, I was able to tee up with my friend on the island named CJ, the guy who I've spoken about in the past podcasts, who's actually building out a freaking school bus right now. So we were able to hang out. He gave me this tour of his school-y, we went for a hike down to the beach, had some epic conversations, and he invited me to this event in town called Green's Drinks, where a whole bunch of different people from Friday Harbor they get together and it's like this community event where different people who host charities and fundraisers, and they're just like the leaders of different groups, they all share their ideas and upcoming events, and that was really effing neat because I met so many fascinating people there, and a lot of people my age who are working in conservation and the National Park District, and they're working as park rangers, and they help to build trails in the parks, and all of this type of work, it can literally have them work around different parts of North America, and they can travel and they can do seasonal work. It's just it's so freaking cool. It was just like really, really opening up my eyes to like all of the different jobs out there, and all of these people who are so energized and enthused, and they're passionate about being outside in nature and they want to teach other people things, and I was just sitting there like, man, like this is a really solid network of people, you know. And there's no doubt that I am crazy inspired to work with the National Park District one day. And especially I love the idea of building trails in national parks. Like, I love just like the thought of putting in that sort of physical labor and being outside in the sun and actually like contributing to something that so many people are gonna benefit from and so many people are going to appreciate, and you can take pride in it as well. So, yeah, that's definitely somewhere down the pipeline for me because I would just love to build trails out of wood or out of stone or whatever material of the day. But I'm just so enticed by the idea of doing that sort of hard physical labor just outside in nature. I just I can't think of really next to anything more enjoyable than maybe kite surfing. But something else that I did was I teed up with one of my grandparents' neighbors. He lives right across the street and he actually owns this vineyard. And I've met him before because a few years ago he took my family and I out on his boat for the day, just like cruising through the San Juans, which was super duper fun. But I went over there and I was just like, hey Dave, do you need any help? And before I knew it, I had a pair of gloves on, I was holding a wheelbarrow, and I was just going up and down this vineyard, just picking up all of these old grape vines that I needed to pile up and we were gonna take to a wood burning pile. And also, I got to ride on this massive lawnmower and just like spend hours going around this vineyard just cutting all of this grass, and I was genuinely having the time of my life. Like I loved being out there in the afternoon sun with like these views of the freaking ocean and the islands, and I was just able to put in a podcast and just fall into a flow state and just like feel like I was doing some hard work, like actually putting my body and my strength to good use. It felt really, really effing good. And even Dave, he's actually building a pickleball court because he's just this freaking pickleball fanatic. So he's in the middle of building this court with like this fence around it, and he taught me how to use this nail gun to put all these different posts in the fence, and he has like a huge background of like decades in building and engineering, and he just knows so much. And he was teaching me a hell of a lot about like how you need to put in a nail and go with the grain of the wood so that it can actually go straight and doesn't shoot back at you. And funnily enough, Dave he owns a sprinter van too, and he's recently just renovated it. So he was super keen on checking mine out and looking under the hood and looking at all like the solar panels and just checking out all the logistics to do with my new little home. And he gave me so much advice. For example, because I have rear dually tires, we actually noticed that the actual back valves on the most inner tires, they're really, really difficult to get to. So, what I've actually had to do is book myself into a tire shop, which I've done just recently in the past few weeks, and I actually needed to get these little valve extensions so that when I need to check my tire pressure or I need to inflate or deflate the tires, like I can easily access those, which is absolutely crucial. You know, you need air in your tires, and you need the right amount of air in your tires, and you should be regularly checking your tire pressure. So I was just so grateful that Dave pointed that out to me. And then over those next couple of weeks on San Juan Island, so many people just started coming into my life and appearing out of the blue completely unexpectedly. And I was just taken by absolute surprise all of these opportunities that I was offered. And I truly believe that it all stemmed from my sliding door just having a complete malfunction because I got myself into a little bit of a conundrum one night, you know, and of course these things always happen at night, right before you're about to fall asleep. You know, that's when your van starts to crack the shiz. Because I went out of the van at night after saying goodnight to my grandparents, went to open up the sliding door, and it was completely jammed. You know, it would only open up a few inches, but then it also wouldn't close properly. So I got down there on the ground with a headlamp on in the pitch black, and I was literally out there just with sheer determination for about an hour and a half, trying to squeeze my fingers in underneath the van door and trying to like put this belt back on the railing because it was quite clear that like it had just gotten all jammed up and it wasn't sliding properly. So I was like, oh, you know, if I I could just squeeze it back into place, then I can actually shut this door. Because sure I could still sleep in the van at night, but it was open up quite a bit more compared to like a window. So obviously bugs might get in during the night, and like obviously it was gonna be a little bit chillier. But anyway, despite my absolute best efforts, I could not get this door to shut. So toughed it out for the night. But then the next day, I put out this little post on Facebook on this page called What's Up Friday Harbor, which is like a community page for the island. And I just put up this post saying, hey, I'm new to the island, I'm living in a camper van, and unfortunately, my sliding door is all jammed up, it won't close properly, it's malfunctioning, and I don't actually have the tools to be able to take it apart and fix it. Can someone please help me out? Because the frustrating thing was that obviously I've got all these panels on the inside of the door, but I just didn't have the tools to actually be able to unscrew them and get a really good look at this belt. So the great thing is that the community in Friday Harbor is so effing wonderful. They're so helpful, they're so nice. I got this overwhelming response from so many people, and it stemmed far beyond the island. I literally had people messaging me on Facebook from other islands, like Orcas Island, offering to catch a ferry over to actually come and help me fix my van door. So it was it was amazing, it was amazing. But one of the very first people that responded to me and was able to get to me that morning, his name was Eric, and he was just so nice, you know. Like he's this dad on the island, he works for the fire department, he's like a boat captain, he's worked as a teacher. That's the fascinating thing about the San Juans is that there's so many super unique people there that come from all walks of life. And again, they're just really good quality, but super interesting people. So Eric, he was super duper nice. He drove to my grandparents' place, he helped me take apart all the panels on the van door, like get it sliding on the belt again. It's just, it's those little things, right? That you just sometimes, or mostly all the time, you take for granted and you almost just expect them to work. But when they're not, you're like, oh, damn it, like this is actually really important. So I was just so grateful when I was actually able to shut my door again. And as a big thank you to Eric, like he noted that, oh yeah, like you do quite a bit of sewing because I pointed out the curtains that I'd sewed myself. And he actually has this like big varsity jacket, and he needed some little badges sewed onto it. So as a thank you to him, like he actually gave me his varsity jacket and all these little badges, and I did a little sewing project to him that I then a few days later was able to cycle back to his house across the island and you know, deliver it back, which is awesome. But then out of that came another amazing opportunity because Eric, he's worked for like years upon years on boats, and he's got this pretty sick gig right now with this person who doesn't actually live on the island. They just keep their boat on the island and they travel there every few months to just, yeah, enjoy boating around the San Juans. And they actually live up in Alaska. But the thing is, is that you need a boat to be regularly running just in order to actually take care of the engine. So Eric and this woman, they've actually got this pretty great deal going on where she's like, hey, I'm gonna keep my boat docked in the harbor. I'll pay for the fuel, but I will pay you to make sure that you're just doing a bit of maintenance on it. And listen, feel free to take people out on this boat whenever you desire. Because again, when a boat is regularly running, then you're actually going to extend the lifespan of that boat. So Eric, he's basically allowed to like take people out on this boat whenever he wants. And it's this amazing boat. You know, it's like three levels, it's got like this massive freaking deck, right? It's got like this big captain's quarter in the bottom. It's just, it's this incredible boat. And Eric, like one Monday morning, was just like, hey, do you want to come out on the boat with me? And I had no reason to say no. So we went cruising for this entire day, all the way through these islands in the San Juans, and we went all the way around Spiden Island, and we saw all of these sea lions and all of these deer and these wild sheep. And we went over to this island called Jones Island and we got off and we went for this beautiful hike. We went around Yellow Island and just all around the different coastlines of the San Juans. It was so gorgeous, it was absolutely beautiful, and again, it was an opportunity that just completely popped up out of the blue, and you know, I was able to meet a new person, right? Form a new friendship. It was just, it was so effing awesome. And it was so unexpected. And that single Facebook post also connected me with this other awesome guy called Duncan, who reached out and saw my post and he offered to help out with the van door. But I was like, hey, like, thank you so much. But thankfully it's already been fixed. But he was traveling to the island anyway because he owns a house there and an investment property, and he's also a van lifer, and he's like, Oh, well, that's great, but hey, do you still want to tee up and actually compare vans? And I was like, Yeah, sure, why not? And I had no clue who this person was, other than that their name was Duncan and that they owned a van. But on a Saturday morning, this dude he rocks up to my grandparents' house. Again, I have no idea what to expect, but he rocks up in this super slick, like 2020 Mercedes Sprinter. Obviously, a far more recent model than mine. He's decked out the whole thing himself from scratch, but out climbs this like hunk of a man, right? And this is this like retired Navy SEAL who actually has an amazing sense of humor, and like we got on like a house on fire, and we were just having these super fun conversations, and I just found this person so fascinating and so inspiring because the fact that you know they'd served over 30 years working as a Navy SEAL, and he'd also helped direct and he'd acted in a whole bunch of different movies and like film productions related to the SEALs. For example, that movie called Act of Valor. And when he was 23, he like ventured off to New Zealand and he rode his bike across the country. And now, even though he's a retired Navy SEAL, working as a kayak guide in the Pacific Northwest, like doing all these super nifty things. I'm just like, man, you know, like your life continues to rock, but your entire life thus far, like you've done so much with it, right? And that's exactly what I'm in awe in. That's exactly what I'm on a mission to achieve myself, is to like actually live a fulfilling life filled with so many various epic, awesome chapters. So meeting Duncan on that Saturday, that just came so out of the blue. It was so unexpected. It was by absolute random chance, and it was just one of those moments where the back of my mind, I'm like, is this really happening right now? Because I did not wake up this morning with any inkling that I was gonna like make friends with a retired Navy SEAL, but hey, here I am. And he was super generous. He actually gifted me this thing called a tire table, which is this table that kind of does what it says. It sits on your tire. And he says he never uses it for his van. And I was like, man, hell yeah, I'll use that. So that was really, really nice of him to actually give that to me. And that's gonna be so helpful, especially once I'm spending is even more time outside in the van. Like once I get an awning and I can actually set up this tire table and two little chairs out there. Oh, cannot wait. You know, just bust out a fishing pole, you know, turn off the beats on the Yui Boom. It'll be a sweet time. But because Duncan is a kayak guide, he was there on the island staying at his house, but he had kayaks and he actually mounts the kayaks to this roof rack up on the top of his sprinter, and he invited me to go out kayaking with him that next week. And I was like, hell yeah, I'm gonna come kayaking with you. I had no reason to say no, just like how Eric invited me out on a boat. I'm like, why wouldn't I spend my days out on the ocean, you know, doing all this cool shiz. So Duncan he picked me up on Monday morning, you know, with like this fully loaded van with the kayaks on top. We drove down to Jackson Beach, we heaved these kayaks off, we launched right from the beach, and we were able to kayak for hours all along the coastline of San Juan Island, and it was just so effing beautiful because we were out there on the water, it was super duper flat, like there was hardly even a breeze, you know. So there was Like no waves to be concerned about. It was a super clear blue sky day. Like we could see Mount Baker, we could see the Olympic mountains. Like the water is just that gorgeous turquoise, like just the visibility of all of the islands, all these little bits of bulb kelp that were just floating around us that we would just kayak through. And passing by all of these massive rocks where you could kayak right by these just harbor seals basking out in the sun. And it was so neat because I was literally able to kayak right past the beach that my grandparents live on and see their house up on the cliff. And never in my life have I ever seen their house from that view, actually from the water view. And I was able to call my grandma on the phone and tell her to come out to the deck. And you know, she was able to wave and take a picture. And oh, it was just, it was so much fun. And we literally kayaked for hours that day. We went all the way around Turnpoint Island. We got off there, we spent some time on that little island, and then we kayaked all the way back to Jackson Beach. And when we got to back to Jackson Beach, we loaded the kayaks back up onto his van and then he actually needed some help getting them off of the van. So he offered to actually show me this investment property that he has and this amazing rental just house that he's recently built that the views would just blow your guys' mind. Like this place is crazy! All right, like this huge deck that spans out over the water. And this deck has like a hot tub and a sauna and this big fire pit and this like massive hammock. And there was this huge stairwell that took you from the deck all the way down the cliff face down to the water. And there was this platform where, yeah, if you're game enough, you could jump off and go swimming, or at least take a paddleboard down there, or you know, launch a kayak or you know, like pull in a little boat, whatever it may be. But either either, this entire house, this entire property that he had built, it was just a work of art. And it was so beautiful and it was so inspiring to just like meet this super fascinating person who had achieved so much with their life, and they were continuing to do so many awesome things with their life, and just seeing the life that they were truly building themselves and that they had built themselves. I was just like in such awe. I was like, whoa, all right, it can be done. But yeah, we were able to actually develop this awesome friendship, and in some way I felt like I could kind of give back because of course he was being so generous with taking me out kayaking, but I felt like I was actually able to teach him a little bit about nutrition and dietetics, and I was just answering a whole bunch of questions for him, which I knew that he really appreciated too. And that's now even now branched into this new opportunity where he's actually hosting this event for retired Navy SEALs in August, where he's gonna be bringing a whole bunch of people to the island and they're gonna be going on this kayaking tour and this camping trip. And he's invited me to actually come on that trip in the summertime and actually like be the nutritionist for the trip. And I can actually teach all of these retired Navy SEALs and their partners and just all of the people who attend about nutrition and dietetics and just health and longevity, and I'm still just sitting here pinching myself, like, really? Like, is this really happening right now? Because this is so freaking neat. Like, I just cannot believe that the fact that my van door wouldn't have shut one day, and I put out a little cry for help on Facebook, and then neck minute, all of these brand new people and these brand new opportunities are showing up in my life. I'm going out and I'm cruising on boats and I'm going kayaking and I'm being invited on camping trips. I'm gonna meet Navy SEALs. I'm just like, man, this is just so cool. And I'm so grateful my van door broke that one day. And it just goes to show there's always good in the bad. And that wasn't even that bad, you know? Like it was an easy fix, right? Everything was fine, everything was extra fine in the end. But it just goes to show that there's always a silver lining. And whether something is good, bad, neutral, however you wanna, you know, label it, there's always gonna be something that comes out of that experience that wouldn't have happened otherwise. And no matter what, even if the experience was downright awful, at least you're gonna have a pretty unique story to tell. At least that's what I always tell myself. And then I do my best to try to tell those stories on the podcast. But something else I really want to share with you guys is this crazy opportunity I stumbled across on the interwebs, which actually led me to exactly where I am right now. Because at night I was actually doing a whole bunch of searching on work away, which I spoke about on my previous podcast, because a huge mission of mine embarking on this new van life chapter is that I want to meet brand new people and I want to learn brand new skills, and I just want to feel like a really positive contribution to the world, and I want to help out. And most importantly, I just want to learn how to be a lot more hands-on. I want to learn how to build things and fix things and paint things and plant things and just being able to tinker around and work on projects and renovate things and be really creative. Like, I just think that would be so much fun, and those would be such awesome skills to have. So I was looking at all of these different workaway jobs where I could travel, I could stay with hosts, and I could really like help out, you know, with whatever they essentially needed help with. But with a lot of these jobs, they do actually put in the job description that it would be ideal if you had a little bit of experience with these skills. Like, for example, if I was to get on a ferry and head over to Pender Island and meet some people who had a little acreage there and they were in the middle of actually building a log cabin, yeah, they're probably looking for people who have experience in the trades and people who actually have carpentry experience. But here's me, and I'm just like, I'm so willing to help, but I don't really know how. So either I'm depending on other people to teach me, or I need to be previously taught. So here I am, just Googling away at night, and I'd simply type in free apprenticeship Vancouver because I'm like, maybe someone will take me on and just teach me the tools of the trade. But funnily enough, what came up in my search was this thing called Toolbox to trades. And I clicked on this, and it turns out this is this fully funded carpentry course offered by the Canadian government to both citizens and residents. They hold multiple different classes all throughout the year in both British Columbia and in Alberta. And essentially, it's this 12-week crash course that just introduces you to the trades, and you get a taste tester for all things carpentry, and you graduate at the end with eight legitimate certifications that show that you know how to operate machinery and use power tools and drive forklifts and you can build scaffolds and put the roofs on houses and you know do all the flooring and this, that, and the other. Essentially, this course it equips you with all of those skills. And in the end, you are deemed as competent to actually go off into the workforce and you could get a job as a carpenter if you wanted to. And it's so, so neat because not only is it fully funded in the sense that it's free schooling, but at the same time, the Canadian government, man, I'm just saying, they are so generous. They will give you money every single day for food, they'll give you money for fuel and transport. They also provide everything in the course as well. They provide you with brand new work boots and all the tools that you need, and just like thousands upon thousands of dollars of funding for each and every student so that they actually feel supported and they really want to encourage them to succeed. And the neat thing about this course is that they're actually trying to push it toward more females because they want more females to actually be interested and excited about working in the trade. So I stumbled across this and I'm like, oh my god, this is like a dream come true. This is almost too good to be true. Like basically, I get to be paid to go to school and learn about all the things that I want to learn about, especially considering that with this carpentry course, only like 25% of the time are you actually in a classroom, whereas 75% of the time you're actually in workshops and you're actually using tools and building things. So it's super duper hands-on. So I was reading about this and I'm like, this is so exciting. This is right up my alley. And I applied immediately. I like sent in this huge application that morning. And then this woman called Carly, who actually runs the course, she got straight back to me. We set up an interview in the next few days, and ha I'm so happy that I was accepted. And this just again totally came out of the blue. And I applied for this at the very beginning of April. And the next course, it was actually starting on the 20th of April. And at this point in time, I was still in the San Juan Islands. But this course, it was going to be held in a place called Vernon, which is in British Columbia. And once again, I was like, this is a sign, you know, this is almost too good to be true. Because when I was looking at all these different workaway jobs, a number of the workaway jobs I was actually looking at were in the Okanagan Valley and they were in Kelowna and they were in Vernon. Because Vernon, the lake country, the Okanagan Valley, that entire region, I'd say it's like the Australia of Canada. Like it's so ridiculously sunny, it's so ridiculously warm. This is actually where they grow a huge amount of the fresh produce here in Canada because again, it's got this rain shadow from all the mountain cascades. When you come down here into the valley, it's just clear blue skies, it's super duper dry, it hardly ever rains, it's really, really sunny. But you still get these amazing temperature swings where when the sun sets over the mountains at night, then it gets quite chilly at night. You know, it's like zero degrees, minus one, minus two, but then the sun comes up and during the days, it's like highs of 23s. It's just, it's wild, but it's such a beautiful area. And I was very aware that this area existed because I'd been reading about it a whole bunch online, especially looking at all these workaway jobs, because I was like, man, maybe I could like go to Vernon and there's all these lakes there, and I could go kite surfing and paddleboarding, and I could work on little farms, and you know, I could work on, you know, different different fruit orchards, etc. So I was very familiar with Vernon and it was a place that I really wanted to go. And it just turns out that this next course intake was in Vernon. So I was just ecstatic by how quickly the ball was rolling on this. But it was one of those things where you just come across something and you're like, this is it. Like, I'm meant to do this, and you just freaking go for it. And because if something's meant to be and absolutely nothing is forced, then things just happen, you know, things happen so smoothly, so seamlessly, because that's the way that things are just meant to pan out. And I have full, full faith in that. That there's there's a plan for me. The universe has a plan for me. And right now it was quite clear that my plan was to attend a carpentry school for a few weeks in this beautiful sunny area of Canada and equip myself with a whole bunch of new skills, travel to somewhere that I'd always wanted to go, but I'd never been there before, and yeah, just take myself on a freaking wicked adventure. So this was all happening so quickly. I only had a few weeks to plan. And what I actually did was I went on Facebook and I joined this group called Vernon Buy, Sell, and Rent, and I just put up a little post saying that I was gonna be moving to Vernon, I was gonna be there for 12 weeks, I needed a place to stay because yeah, realistically, I was not going to be trying to stealth camp every single night and just drive around this place, finding a different place to obviously park. Ideally, it would be great if I just had a set location where I could pull in at night, I could sleep soundly, and then I could leave for class in the morning. So that was the ideal. And similar to that Friday Parbour post, I had an overwhelming amount of responses. So many people offering me a place to park and stay with my camper van and just be super low-key. But I'll tell you what, it was definitely a mixed bag. I got everything from people trying to charge me $1,200 per month just to park in their driveway on the side of a really busy street, all the way to free rent on a hobby farm in the middle of the countryside. So, which one do you guys think I picked, right? Out of all of these different offers that I got, the one that was absolutely golden. And again, I'm just like, what did I do to deserve this? Because this is just, oh, this is amazing. This is so kind, the generosity of this woman. But this woman, she reached out to me. Her name is Sam. She's a single mom. She has three little girls, and she's got five acres in Vernon. And she has this little hobby farm with some chickens and some goats and some sheep. And she offered me a free place to stay to just park my van on her property, provided that when she goes away for the weekend, I can just look after the animals, which again are so low maintenance. All it requires is during the mornings, I just need to let the chickens out of their coop so they can run around freely in the yard, or I just need to let the goats and the sheep out of their pen so that they can walk along the pastures. And then in the evening, the chickens basically put themselves to sleep, and I just need to close and lock the door. And then I also just need to rein in these little goats out of the pastures and put them back in their little pen. Like, easy done, right? That's the trade-off. So I was like, yes, please, I would absolutely love to stay with you. I had a phone call with her. We organized the whole thing, and uh, it just felt right. It felt like everything was falling into place. It felt like I was absolutely making the right decision. And ever since I decided that, yep, I'm going all in, I'm gonna move to Vernon, I'm gonna do this carpentry school, this is exactly what I want to be pursuing right now. Everything in the universe was just sending me signs that I was on the right path. For example, those final few days that I was actually in San Juan, I met this other guy who I've formed this awesome friendship with, and his name is Greg because CJ invited me to Greg and Lynette's house one Sunday morning because they were having pancakes. And I was like, sure, why not? So I rock up to this guy's house. I have no idea who he is, but CJ's there at the kitchen table. Lynette, who's Greg's wife, is cooking all the pancakes, a whole bunch of people are sitting around the table. It's just something that they do on a Sunday morning to get together, to meet new people, and I was the new person that morning. But I was sitting next to this guy called Greg, and we just again totally hit it off. And it was just so awesome to talk to him because, again, he's this super fascinating person. He's worked as a ship captain, he's worked as a builder, he's worked as a teacher on the island, he's done so many things. He helped build his own house. He also helped to build CJ's neighbor's house as well, completely from scratch. And when I told him that I was doing this carpentry course, he was just ecstatic. And he ended up giving me this entire tour of his house and teaching me all about the carpentry work that went into it and all of the architecture plans and why they made this decision instead of that one. And it just blew my mind. And I was like, this is so cool. You know, this in itself is a little mini crash course, but it just really felt like it was preparing me in a sense for what I was in for. And Greg was just so adamant that we gotta stay in contact. We have to have a weekly phone call, you have to keep me up to date with what they're teaching you in the course, and even on the final day before I was about to get on the ferry and head back to Anacortis and drive back to Canada from the US, Greg actually met me early at the ferry terminal. He picked me up in his truck, he gave me half a sandwich, and we drove out to Lime Kilnstone Park. And he actually took me on this field trip that he was hosting for a whole bunch of other students because all of these people they'd actually traveled to the island to learn about the ecosystems on the island because they were actually wanting to become like museum guides and actually work in these whale museums, and they needed to be educated on that front. But hell, I was just along for the ride. So I got to attend this amazing field trip where we walked all around the coastline of the park, and Greg was there and he was just teaching everyone about the geology of the rocks and everything about the orcas and the whales that would migrate through, and everything about limestone and the history of the island. And once again, I was just there with like my hands on my forehead, like, am I really here right now? Like this opportunity would not have come up if I didn't one meet CJ, who owns that schoolie, and then also said yes to a Sunday morning pancake invite. So it just goes to show guys that like just say yes. You know, when you're offered an opportunity, just say yes because you have absolutely no idea what is going to come from it. So on that Thursday, the 16th of April, I got to hug and say goodbye to my grandparents and just remind them that they're gonna be seeing me again before they know it. I will definitely be back in August for that kayaking trip, if not sooner. But then that Thursday afternoon, after I'd gone to Lime Kilnstone Park with Greg, I was back in that ferry terminal, parked, about to load my big white, beautiful beast of a van onto that vehicle deck, climb up to that top of the ferry, wave goodbye to the Friday Harbor sign, soak up the sun, and just cruise all the way back through the San Juans back to the mainland. And that was such an amazing boat ride for me because I was able to stand up there on that deck for like an hour and a half, just feeling the wind, watching the sun twinkle on the water, and just fall into this deep state of reflection and just think about everything that had just happened over those past number of weeks and everything I was so grateful for, but also feeling so excited and anticipating the unknown. And that's when it really hit me that, oh boy, this is when it really begins. Because as much as I loved those weeks on San Juan Island, and I love and adore my family, I love my grandparents, I love my dad, I also really love my independence. And a huge mission for me during this next chapter of van life is I want to embrace my independence to just the nth degree, and I want to ride solo, and I want every single decision to be in my hands when I'm in that driver's seat. So when I was actually on that ferry and it just hit me that wow, all right, I no longer have that safety blanket of support from family anymore. And because of that, I just felt more free than I ever had in my entire life. It was euphoric. It was this euphoric sense of freedom that I continued to carry on with me as I got off that ferry. I drove up the highway, I got across the Canadian-US border, and it was golden hour and the sun was setting, and I was back in Canada again. And it was such a smooth cross through the border as well. And no, they didn't pull me over, and no, they didn't think I was suspicious, and thank the Lord, no one confiscated my sardines. But when I finally got into Canada, I was like, oh man, I'm really home now. I'm really, really back in Canada, and this is where my van life truly, truly begins. And that evening, again, I was just so grateful because I was able to technically park at my house, at least my house on paper, but I absolutely do not have ownership over this property. But if you guys remember from some of the previous podcast episodes, I spoke about how we have family friends called the Davies, and they're actually letting me use their address as my former residence just for things like paperwork, which is so handy and I'm so grateful for. But they live on this dairy farm that's really not too far outside Vancouver, and it's pretty darn close to the border as well. And I contacted them previously and they said that I could sleep on the property that night, and they were just so welcoming. They have this amazing dairy farm with not just dairy cows, but they also grow a whole bunch of blueberries and corn and potatoes. And not only was I allowed to sleep on their property that night, but they actually gifted me with a whole bunch of blueberries and corn and apples and just like kilos upon kilos of produce that I could just shove into my van. I'm like, oh, thank you so much. I literally got like 12 kilograms of fruits and vegetables, which is quite bonkers. But they let me sleep at their house that night, and then I woke up the next morning, took a nice little walk around the farm, which again in itself was incredibly nostalgic because that was actually the farm that I grew up duck hunting with my dad on back when I was just in elementary school, you know, all the way from the age of like Four years old, Dad and I would wake up super early in the morning and he would take me duck hunting with our Canadian duck dog Ragnar, this beautiful black lab. And that's the way that I would start my days in the fall. You know, like walking back home with a bunch of mallards in my hands. So yeah, it was just a really, really lovely to be able to spend that evening at the Davies, feel so welcomed. And then the next morning, before I was actually planning to drive to Vernon, I also decided to take myself down memory lane. And what I actually did was I drove myself back to my old house where I grew up as a kid. And wow, did that hit me with waves upon tidal waves of nostalgia or what? Just driving up that street again. And I moved away from that house in 2006. And it was quite crazy to now be returning 20 years later in 2026 and parking my big camper van in front of the driveway. And fortunately, no one was home. So just gonna say, I kind of made myself at home. And this house, it was like a low-key mansion. This thing was three stories tall. It had seven bedrooms, five bathrooms, it had a library, it had a freaking ballet room with like the mirrors and the ballet wooden poles and everything. It had this huge foyer that opened up with these two massive front doors and this huge hanging chandelier and this big staircase and banister that like would spiral down. And on the second level, we had this really, really long hallway, and it was all made of wood. And my sisters and I we would get our mattresses and we would literally like run and jump and slide from one end of the hallway to the other. And this house was just enormous, and it was an absolute dream to grow up in because the backyard, like we had this huge lawn where the dogs would run around, we had this big trampoline and this massive pool with a diving board and this really big driveway that had like this huge slope. So when it would snow in the wintertime, we could literally like go sledding into boggaining all the way down our driveway. It was just, it was so much fun. It truly, truly was growing up there in Canada with my four sisters, with my brother, with my parents, with all of our pets. It was just, it was the most incredible childhood. And to actually take myself back there and just go down memory lane. And because no one else was home, just like being able to walk all around the property and sneaky sneaky. You know, I even like went up onto the deck in the backyard and just like peeked through the windows. And I'm like, oh my gosh, that's our old kitchen and living room. And oh my gosh, like I can see my bedroom up there. It was just, it was incredible. It truly, truly was. It was a very, very full circle moment coming back 20 years later and seeing my old home, but then also seeing my new home, aka my van, parked right in front of the house. And I just got this picture of the two of them side by side, and I know I'm gonna have that photograph for the rest of my life. And after I said adios to my old house, I continued walking through my old neighborhood, and it was just nostalgia upon nostalgia. I was being hit with so many memories because I was seeing the houses that I used to trick-or-treat by, and also like the places I learned to ride my bike, and all of my old friends' houses, and oh man, the memories were just flooding in, and it was so beautiful. It was amazing. It was this incredible full circle moment that I hope everyone gets an opportunity to experience at some point in their life when you can actually go back to where you might have grown up as a child and just give yourself a good amount of time to take it all in and just like have a moment of very deep personal reflection on how far you've come in life and how much has actually happened in your lifespan and everything that you've been challenged with, everything that you've achieved, every single thing that you've conquered, every single life experience between the moment that you left that chapter and now you're back again. It's it's incredibly moving and it was actually quite emotional. And it made me realize that I had a lot to think about because it was the biggest full circle moment that I'd ever experienced in my entire life. But fortunately, I had plenty of time ahead of me on the road to let my brain spin over and try to make sense of everything that's happened in these past 28 and a half years, and particularly the past 20 years, ever since I moved away from Canada, because after I was leaving my old neighborhood, you know, in Surrey near Crescent Beach, I was on my way to Vernon. And boy oh boy, did I have a drive and a half ahead of me. And this was gonna be my longest continuous drive to date in the van. And I was gonna be on the road for over five hours going through a bunch of Canadian mountain cascades. And the other thing is too, is that because this is my very first time driving in the van over the mountain ranges, I had to be prepared. And this is just where I want to say that Chat GPT can definitely come in handy. It can definitely be your friend, all right? Because it's no secret that regardless of what type of vehicle you're driving, if you head up into the mountains and you are not aware of the conditions up there, it can be incredibly dangerous. So I was able to tell ChatGPT the type of vehicle that I'm driving, the days that I'm intending to actually drive from Vancouver over to Vernon. And it was just able to give me so many heads up based on the weather forecast, based on the road conditions, based on just like times of day that I should actually go in order to avoid traffic, and also giving me little pinpoints on places to take rest stops, places to fill up with cheap fuel, also telling me about different sections of the mountain ranges that I need to be aware are far steeper than others, and I'm really gonna need to use the downshifting gears on my van. So I just had this enormous heads up. So thank you very much, ChatGPT. That did come in mighty, mighty helpful because I knew that the best and safest day for me to do this very long road trip halfway across BC through the mountain cascades was going to be Friday. Because on Thursday the temperatures weren't too low, it didn't snow, so there was no snow or ice up there on the roads. And also on Friday, it was also meant to be a super clear, sunny, you know, fairly warm day, at least as warm as you can get when you're in that high of elevation. But the bottom line is that the roads were safe. You know, I wasn't risking getting caught in a snowstorm, I wasn't risking sliding around on any ice, like it was basically ideal as it could possibly get. And that road trip was absolutely beautiful. I was just belting out all of my favorite music on loudspeaker, and I just did this huge drive up all the way through the mountains, and the views and the scenery were phenomenal. You know, the higher you get, right, you start to see a lot more like snow starting to cover the top of the pine trees. And then as you get right up to the tip top of the mountain, there's snow all on the sides of the roads. But of course, the roads are completely dry, the roads are completely plowed, but side by side, you're just seeing these beautiful snowy mountain ranges, and it was just breathtaking. It was literally like a winter wonderland. But the crazy thing is, is that when you come over the other side of the mountain, it's like you enter into a whole different world. Because once you go over these mountain cascades, you come back down into the Okanagan Valley and you enter into the lake country. And as you're driving down these winding mountain roads, there are just endless views of all of these huge lakes like Lake Okanagan and Lake Kalamalka, and just these rolling hills with all of these farm fields on them, and the sun is beaming high in the sky, and it's like all the clouds have just completely cleared, and rain just doesn't exist in this part of the world. And it's not just the scenery, but the temperature. Because when I'd left Vancouver that morning, it was around like four or five degrees. It was fairly chilly in the morning, and then obviously at the tip top of the mountain, it was literally freezing. But then you come over this other side, and does it turn it up or what? You know, I drove all the way down into Kelowna, which is about an hour outside of Vernon, but I decided to take another little rest and I parked my van near this big lake called Lake Oganogan, and I got out and I was like, Oh, I am not dressed for the weather. I'm literally overdressed in the sense that I'm wearing way too many layers right now. Because outside it was like 17 degrees at 5 p.m. at night, and I was still wearing long sleeves and layers upon layers of tights and track pants and t-shirts. And I was like, man, I need to chuck on some shorts and a crop top right now and take myself for a lovely afternoon walk. And that's exactly what I did because I had not felt those temperatures in a month and a half, ever since I'd moved away from Australia. Like this was the first time I was breaking out a pair of shorts and a crop top the whole time that I'd been living in North America for the past month and a half. So it's fair to say I was pretty excited. I was pretty excited to put some sunscreen on my cheeks and put a hat on my forehead and you know, go walking around this glorious lake and on a Friday afternoon with a whole bunch of other happy folks. So I had a wonderful time. And when I landed down there in landed or drove parked, when I got down there into the lake country, I was just like, oh wow, this is seriously where I'm meant to be right now. Like I love the snow, I love the chilliness, but man, I love the sun. She's literally my best friend. She is my life force. I just, I love that big ball of gas so gosh darn much. And just to feel her on my skin on a Friday afternoon, you know, walking next to this glorious pristine lake, I'm like, huh, all right, I'm ready to call this place in the world home for the next few months. So after my lovely afternoon in Kelowna, I still had about an hour to commute to Vernon. And even that drive was so beautiful because it was golden hour. The highway goes right along the lakeside. It is just, oh, views upon freaking views. And then late on Friday evening, well, late, you know, it was around like 7:30 at night or so, just as the sun was setting, I arrived on this farm in Vernon and I met the owner. Her name is Sam. She's so sweet, and again, just so welcoming. She invited me on to her property, she showed me where I can park or all the various different places that I can park because she has five acres. And she introduced me to all the animals, her two chickens, her two goats, her two sheep. And I was able to just pitch camp there for the night, and now for many, many nights to come. And it was just so gorgeous. This property is just outstanding. The views, again, like not just you have views of all of her pastures, but off in the distance, you can see a whole bunch of other pastures where people ride horses and people have cattle, and you can just see all of these rolling grassy hills and these little snowy mountain peak tops off in the distance. And heck, like on one side of the house, you of course see the sunrise and the moonrise, but then on the other side of the house you see this gorgeous sunset and the moonset over the hills, and oh, it is just breathtaking. And that was Friday night, and I wasn't starting my classes till 7 a.m. on Monday morning. So I had the entire weekend to explore Vernon and really just get my bearings. And on Saturday, I went for this gorgeous walk all the way around Lake Kalamalka, and I was like so inspired by all of the freaking mountain bikers that are going past me that after that walk, I went right back to the van. I got on Facebook Marketplace and I started looking up mountain bikes. And then within 15 minutes, I had bought a mountain bike. And I'm not gonna lie, I'm 99% sure that this thing was probably stolen because the owner was a little bit sketchy. And when I was asking him questions about the bike, like, oh, so like when did you buy this bike? Uh he like couldn't answer. He's like, uh, I don't know. And then also, because I was actually looking at these two bikes on Facebook Marketplace, and they were both listed under different names. And I messaged both of them, and only one of them actually replied. I was like, okay, well, this is the one I kind of wanted anyway. So I drove to this location to get this bike. But get this. When I rocked up to the location, the person there, he had both of those bikes. So he was clearly selling both of these bikes under different names on Facebook Marketplace. So again, I was like, all right, this is uh this is a little bit fishy, but listen, it's it's it's too good of an offer to pass up on. Like, I literally got this like pristine, awesome, high-quality mountain bike for like $225 Canadian. So I'm like, oh, I hope I'm not contributing to crime right now, but yeah, I'll take it. So I bought myself this awesome mountain bike. I was able to go grocery shopping. I even joined a gym, you know. I joined a world's gym here, which is this awesome gym. It's only five minutes from this farm. And also the gym, you know, talk about resources. This gym has a shower. So that is fantastic for me because I've let you guys know in the past that my van, it does not have a shower because I definitely do not think that's necessary. I think that's a bit overkill to have a shower in a van. But it's just great to know that now I've got this gym membership and I can most importantly go somewhere to lift some heavy ass weights and get some really great workouts in. But it's an absolute plus and a bonus that, yeah, I can stay hygienic and get clean too, you know? You talk about an absolute win. And hell, this thing even has a sauna. So if I'm down for it, I can always use the sauna as well. And it's in such a convenient location because where this farm is that I'm staying, it's only like a 10-minute drive to my school, but the gym is exactly at the halfway mark. So I can literally drive to my school in the mornings and then in the afternoons, it's only five minutes then to the gym, and then it's just five minutes to come back to the farm, which is freaking fantastic. It's such an amazing setup, and I'm just so, so grateful. And already just being here, like that first weekend, Sam and I, after I got my bike, her and I went for like this hour and a half bike ride on Sunday morning, and she got to show me this rail trail cafe, and we also just went cycling all along this gorgeous gravel path that just goes on for kilometers and kilometers. You can literally cycle from one massive lake all the way to another. Like you can go from Vernon all the way to Kelowna. It's like over 50 kilometers along this path, and hell, maybe one day I'm actually gonna do it. But you can just cycle endlessly until you need to choose a point to actually turn around. So, Sam and I, we could have just been out there all day if we didn't have to make it home. But yeah, we were out there for close to two hours in the morning sun talking, laughing, bonding. I feel like her and I are already developing a friendship, which is just so nice, and I feel so welcomed by her. And her daughters are absolutely adorable, and I just feel so peaceful living on her property, and yeah, I can't say it any other way than I just feel so welcomed, and I'm so happy to be here. Like, I know that the universe has sent me to Vernon for a reason, and I am just so crazy excited for everything to come down the track, every day, every week, every month that is pending, because not only am I going to be studying this kick-ass course where I am just excited to go all in and learn all the freaking skills when it comes to building, but to actually be in a classroom environment again and to actually like be mentally and physically stimulated and challenged. I've missed that. I've been craving it for so long. So I can't wait to just be taught brand new skills and really be a student again. But also, I feel like it's gonna be that perfect combination of Monday to Friday, I'll be in this school. It's like 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. But then on the weekends, I have the weekends to go off and camp and explore and take myself on adventures in the van. But even then, I don't feel like it's just restricted to the weekends because the sun rises so early here and it sets so late, and there's still more daylight hours to come as it leads into the summer. But right now, it's light enough to see at 5 a.m. And it doesn't properly get dark until after 9 p.m. So even then, there's so much to the day. So I can wake up early in the morning and I can take myself for a run before class, and even with my classes finishing at 3:30 in the afternoon, man, in the afternoons, I can't just go to the gym because obviously there's even more hours to burn after just a good workout, but I can take myself for a bike ride. Hell, I live so close to all these lakes now, and these lakes are known for paddleboarding and kite surfing in the summer. So, oh man, I am just an absolute heaven here in Vernon. And again, it's like the freaking Okanagan. There are so many orchards everywhere. This place is like known for Canadian fruit, and particularly Canadian peaches. So I can be hitting up cheap farmers markets. It's just, it's the works. I just, I know this is exactly where I'm meant to be right now. So I'm so excited. I'm so happy. I'm just so eager for everything to come, all the people I'm going to meet, all the things that I'm gonna learn, just all of the wicked and wildlife experiences that I'm still yet to have. I am so here for it. And I hope you guys are here for it too. And I hope that you're going to stay tuned for episode four, where I can give you the down low on what it's been like to start attending carpentry school in Canada and what it's been like to really adjust to van life now that I'm living in Vernon. So all of that awaits just around the bend. But until then, I just want to say thank you so much for tuning in for another episode of Gone on an Adventure. If you made it to this point, just know how much I dearly appreciate you, and also how much I would appreciate if you could please like or subscribe or follow the channel. You know, send me a little comment, send me a little DM, like give me some feedback. I would absolutely love to hear it. And until then, I will see you in the next one.