Coming to you from a new location, here’s the early summer update…

Next / Best (Version 2)

Escape
River Valley trails / BC

Inspiration
Communication Arts magazine / Nature

Fad
plaid board shorts / flip flops

Director
Joss Wheden / Wes Anderson

Photo ProjectWedding / Self Directed

Music
Lay Me Down – The Dirty Heads / Summer reggae

(click for more)

Purchase
RockStar Energy Drink / Bike Parts

City
North Glenora, Edmonton / North BC, BC

Meal
Vector cereal for breakfast / Food cooked over fire

Style
classic, yet modern / Bold and unique

Art
Street art / design with functionality

Useful Accessory
FM transmitter for my morning commute / a good helmet on a bike ride

Cuisine
home cooked / fire cooked

Travel Companion
iPod / a bike

Comment to contribute!

A conversation recently with a friend brought up some interesting questions. Which things in our life should we half, and which should we double? With such a focus on consumerism and money in today’s society, would we be able to live a more fulfilling life with half the consumerism and double the “living”?

These questions challenged me to examine my life and how I could Half and Twice to make things more meaningful. Some of the items on my list are easier to write than they are to implement, but hopefully the mere act of writing them down will affect me subconsciously the next time I’m doing or thinking about that activity.

Half
• Eating meals out
• Time spent in front of a screen
• Money spent on unnecessary objects
ª Time spent alone
• The amount of overtime I work

Double
• Cooking my own meals
• Time on a bike
• Money put into savings for the future (or my next international vacation)
• The number of times I sweat in a week
• Time spent with friends
• Time spent reading and studying
• Time spent exploring

I know this won’t be an overnight change, but if I can pick one or two things a week to focus on, hopefully the habits will develop and before I know it, my life will be half and double what it was before.

Go outside and live.

Bikes, sun, music. Three of the most important ingredients for a good spring weekend in Edmonton.

I’m not a Twitterer.

When I first heard about the concept of Twitter – a website made up entirely of 140 character or less updates about your thoughts or what you are doing at a certain moment – I made a vow that I would never in my life create an account. This decision was based on two main components. First – I could not believe that a website dedicated entirely to what is essentially a Facebook status update could gain any momentum or have any longevity. Second – the word “Twitter” and its derivitives – Tweet, TwitPic, TwitVid, Tweeps – simply rubs me the wrong way. It sounds so juvenile, and to hear educated people say “I Tweeted about ______” makes me fear for the future of humanity.

With that being said, I feel like the concept of a site dedicated to instantaneous and brief news updates is a foreshadowing of the future of how information will be spread through the evolution of technology. People with cell phones or smart phones are now able to receive news the moment it happens. After hearing of a tragic shooting in the west end of Edmonton some time ago, I decided to check the news updates on Twitter to see if anything was being reported that wasn’t making it onto the mainstream news sites. Typing in “#yeg” filled my screen with information that people were posting to their profiles, news that wouldn’t appear on the larger news outlets until hours later. Granted, this information was probably not fact-checked or substantiated to the extent that a legitimate publication would go to, but it hit the web minutes after the event instead of hours, and – for the most part – was accurate.

So where does that leave the people who refuse or are unable to evolve with the changing of media trends? Are they not making the change due to pride, stubbornness, or the hatred of a word that gets its roots from a British insult (or Disney cartoon, depending on your generation)? With the surge of social media based websites in the last few years (MySpace, FaceBook, Twitter) it seems like the trend is only further evolving to a point where people crave information and want it to be available at their fingertips where and whenever they want to access it. This concept comes with benefits and drawbacks. We’re able to search for news that affects our lives the moment it happens, but in doing so, we contribute to a society that focuses on relationships based on online communication instead of interpersonal relationships. When everything we do and say is condensed into 140 characters or less, we lose the ability to dialogue with people in an actual physical environment. We become so focused on searching websites and status updates for news that the idea of meeting with people and carrying on conversations takes a back seat. There seems to be such an appeal to people today that they can anonymously read the thoughts and updates of strangers without having to start or develop an actual relationship. It’s so superficial and really doesn’t seem to lead to the type of meaningful relationships that are so lacking in today’s society.

I can’t say I’m completely innocent from browsing irrelevant information on people, but I think I’ll continue to try and treat Twitter and other social media websites as sites to go to for quick updates on relevant news, not places to go to when I want to learn about peoples likes/dislikes, favorite movies, plans for the weekend, or what they had for dinner. If I want to know that information, I’ll call you or meet up with you so we can talk in person. I think it means more that way.

It’s been a strange last two weeks. I’m still finding myself thinking a lot about my time in Zambia, the people I met there and how I’m going to let this experience affect my path through the next few years. The fact that my time in Africa affected me so deeply is an encouragement for future travel/photography/design possibilities. While I would absolutely welcome the chance to return to Zambia to visit the people who took us in, I’d also love to visit a number of other countries to experience their cultures and traditions.

Now, the tough part. What do I do here in Edmonton to find fulfillment in my job? For the past year, while my nights and weekends have been focused on design and photography, my day job has been at an industrial supply warehouse. Not a glamourous job, but fulfilling in the fact that I work hard and earn my wage. I don’t feel this is the area where I’m meant to be for the long term, and I’m pursuing a full-time graphic design position again. I need to find a position that matches my desire to work for a meaningful result. To work for a company or project that is more than just rampant consumerism and irrelevantly ephemeral.

I’ll keep you updated on the journey. In the meantime, here’s a video that made my day last week.

…with a whole new appreciation for life, social justice, and raising awareness.

I’m going to attempt to put the words that have been spinning around my head in the week that I’ve been back into coherent paragraphs and sentences. It’s been a huge switch to come back from Zambia and I’m just now beginning to find my routine again. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing…

The last thing I want to do is come off sounding all “preachy”, but I honestly believe with my whole heart that everyone from our western, North American culture should take a trip to a third world country to learn from the people there. Yes, LEARN from them. Despite having so many more worldly possessions and making more money in a few weeks from my warehouse job than the people there will in an entire year, the people in the villages taught me so much about living a life that is meaningful and impactful on those around me based on their example of how they exemplify the concept of Community.

As much as I had been expecting to see a country and people different from anything I had experienced before, I wasn’t prepared to have it make me feel so humbled by their example. The friendship and brotherhood shared by the people in the villages where we slept was something so far advanced from any community that I had seen before. There is so much love and care for their fellow Zambian. In our Canadian, industrial, “cold” culture, so much of our life is spent focusing on the individual, making sure one’s own needs are met that we often neglect the needs of those around us. Seeing how one village cared for a mentally disabled man – making sure he always had enough food, that his house was always kept clean and stocked with any necessities he needed, offering him a meal or supplies if he was lacking – was such a stark contrast to the coldness we often show the mentally ill people living on the streets of Edmonton. We’re so quick to turn up our iPod as we walk past, to look the other direction so that we don’t have to meet their gaze and their requests for help.

How can we change from our ways? Let me know what you think…

I really don’t know the answer, other than being exposed to how impactful and more fulfilling the idea of Community can actually be. We all need a chance to see it in action. To step out of our comfort zone and just to get a taste.

There will be MANY photos to come. Trust me.

Here I sit, roughly 24 hours before my flight leaves to take me to Zambia. The total travel time to get to Zambia will be almost 24 hours. I’m nervous, excited, prepared, unprepared, scared, anticipating and ready all at the same time. Our team of 4 has been preparing and meeting for this trip for approximately 8 weeks and we have been briefed on what to expect, how to act, what to do and what not to do.

Our meetings have focused on poverty; its causes, solutions, misconceptions about it and our role in dealing with it. I’ve realized that we’ve been conditioned to believe that we need to give money to poor people to make their lives better. Is this always the right answer? Does throwing money at a problem make it disappear? History shows us that this is not the best solution. Perhaps a better alternative is to develop relationships with people who are in need. Talk to them and learn what their needs really are. The Zambia Partnership that we are working with is trying to do just this. Our goal is a long-term relationship to develop methods of allowing the Zambian people to be self-sufficient and able to use their own gifts and skills to increase their quality of life.

It’s been eye-opening for me to realize that this journey will be more about developing relationships with the people than building a school.

I’ll try and post one more time before I leave, but if I don’t get the chance, I’ll talk to you again in three weeks.

I’m less than a month away, so here’s another update on my upcoming Zambia trip.

Our team of 4 leaves from Edmonton International Airport on January 27th on a direct flight for Heathrow Airport in London, England. After a brief layover there, we continue on to Nairobi, Kenya where we will transfer to a flight to Lilongwe, Malawi. From Lilongwe, we drive the remaining distance (approx 600km) to Chipata, Zambia to meet up with the Zambian team who will be hosting us.

(click below to read more)

Throughout our 10 days working with the Madzimoyo Board, we will be meeting with church and village leaders in their efforts to develop a plan for resources among the numerous smaller villages that they oversee. The resources will be directed towards projects such as encouraging HIV/AIDS awareness among the villages, working with HIV/AIDS orphanages, agricultural advances (new farming techniques, seeds, irrigation techniques, etc), encouraging and developing adult literacy among the villages, and most importantly, developing relationships with the people of the Madimoyo region in an effort to promote a long-lasting partnership between The River Community Church and the people of Zambia.

We will have the opportunity to job-shadow people of the Madsimoyo community as they work with orphanages, general health facilities, and agricultural facilities, learning from them as much as they learn from us.

After the Madzimoyo portion of our trip, our team will be taking a brief trip to Livingstone, Zambia and to visit Victoria Falls for some sightseeing and cultural exploration.

I know that I will be very challenged on the trip to step out and experience things that are nowhere near being inside my “comfort zone.” Foreign languages, foods, and cultures are things which I have not experienced, and I look forward to being exposed and immersed in a culture so different from our own.

I’m still actively fundraising for this trip. Please take a minute to visit www.vndrl.com/zambia to read how you can support me on my journey. Your thoughts, prayers, and any financial contribution you may be able to make are greatly appreciated!

In an effort to help raise more funds to pay for this trip – which is now only 2 short months away – I’ve set up an online gallery of photos that I have made available for purchase. Details can be found by clicking on this link.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support!