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In The Bruce-Diving Tobermory, On.

On July 27, 2017July 27, 2017 By littermatureIn ExperiencesLeave a comment

Tobermory August 2016 093(2)

Niagara II July 2010 002(2)

Toby

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Ontario’s dive capital– Tobermory, ON. is about a 4 hour drive north of the big city. A place where I have been scuba diving, camping, and hiking for over a decade, Tobermory feels like a second home to me. Continue reading “In The Bruce-Diving Tobermory, On.” →

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Urban Challenge– Walk 20km/12mi in Your City.

On July 3, 2017July 26, 2017 By littermatureIn Challenges, Urban Challenge1 Comment

Urban Challenge:

Walk 20km or 12mi in your city.

If you don’t have a city, find a city.

All you have to do is Walk, and experience whatever experience comes with it.

Continue reading “Urban Challenge– Walk 20km/12mi in Your City.” →

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Exactly one year ago today, I was on my way home after walking my first Camino in Spain. - I wrote this down as I sat in the airport with a swollen shin, mangled feet, and missing toenails #goodtimes. ______ "After a month of grinding it out on the Camino– grateful for every minute of it: Even during the most trying times, I have never felt more connected with my environment, more alive! I sit here now at the Lisbon airport waiting to board, surrounded by more, and more Canadians heading for Toronto. I find no language barrier here, so I can easily understand their complaints… “Oh it’s too hot!”… “What, no AC?!“… “We’re all scratching our heads wondering what the heck is going on!”…”What’s with this line, why can’t I go through!”. A list of complaints that spell agitation and annoyance, and a lack of patience. How patient it was in covering a months worth of walking that can be done in a few hours by other means. I wonder to myself, “Was I like this myself before? … How have I been overly demanding of time in the past? … What is my relationship with time now, after my experience? … Am I bound to become re-agitated after reintroducing myself back into the Torontonian atmosphere... Most likely... So how can I avoid it? By choosing to seek out adventure again-- To work with time, not against it." ______ Sitting here today and looking back... It's been one hell of a year. As for you on your path, and your time... It's just as important as mine #timeflies #makeitcount

Between starbucks, working out, and stuffing myself with turkey🦃 and Pie🥧. I spent part of the #thanksgiving weekend with @lost.lens putting together this honest commercial 😝 for my notebooks. #dostuff Again, he did most of the hard work while I sat there butchering takes 😎 #jk #notjk #morecowbell ______ *And Cue Cut & Paste from @littermature : ______ I've done a lot of different things in my life, and I'm still exploring my options.⛏️ - Work? Well, I've worked in sales, I've had quotas, held positions with an incentive for commission, learned about sales tricks in order to grab one "yes" after another to generate sales...🏃‍♂️ - And as a consumer? Well, I'm human too. I cringe when I here sales pitches, or scripts that have an overtone of sincerity with an undertone of B.S. 🤔 - "Umm... So what's the point of your story here pal?!" Okay, okay, not everything is unauthentic-- but a lot of things are! -In skipping a bunch out of the detail, the point is that I love writing, drawing, and designing notebooks-- And yeah, I will even go as far out to say that I would love to earn a full time income with it.✍️ - So BUY LITTERMATURE NOTEBOOKS because they're freakin' AWESOME! -- More importantly, I believe in the benfits of writing, and the notebook itself as a product.📚 - And this "commercial" ... 🎥 Well, it would be cool if you LIKE, SHARE, or LAUGH the word about with your FRIENDS.-- it's Honest Advertising. We have fun here sometimes, 🤪 George Kourtesiotis @tikitakamalikilaka Littermature _____________ Make It Stick, Write It Down. Littermature Notebooks Littermature.Etsy.com _____________ A BIG THANK YOU to Toronto Photographer+ Eric Simpson for filming/editing this video. Super talented artist. Check his work out-- Unreal! @lost.lens 🎥📸

The story: Last year, reaching the Cruz De Ferro on the Camino Frances was a pivotal moment during my walk. It was a landmark that I had been eager to reach since first intrigued by the Camino years earlier. Fast track forward, I became a tour guide for American Adventures, running Trek America and Intrepid tours. I lead guided hiking/camping/lodging tours across the beautiful Canadian Rockies. The Cruz De Ferro's personal impact and physical symbolism struck a chord with me, and it naturally blossomed into a ritual of my own within my tours. Mount Robson -- significant for the highest mountain in the Canadian Rockies -- was first summited by George Kinney, a Methodist preacher. I lead every group visiting Mount Robson through a hike to Kinney Lake (named after George Kinney) and back. There are so many connections to draw from, but the hike to Kinney Lake always pulled me into an introverted reflection and it resonated with a particular 'Camino' feel. After spending some time at the lake admiring the iconic glacial color, we would hike back to the van. Before doing so, I'd instruct everyone in the group to find a rock that 'spoke' to them. The reasons behind the search was a mystery to the group, and I'd patiently watch with entertainment as people scanned and scuffed through wet dirt to pry out a stone or two. When they were set, their eyes would fall on me for what to do next, where I would lead into the story behind my Camino experience and the Cruz De Ferro. At this point, If they were willing to, I would give them a chance to huck whatever burdens of their own into Kinney Lake to be 'cleansed' by the preacher-man himself. George Kinney/Kinney Lake was such a natural fit for this amazing ritual to blossom, and the symbolism is beautiful. 🙏 _________ Picture 1: A stone from Mount Robson to throw into the Atlantic coast upon completing another Camino. Signed DTC -- my last tour group of the season, Picture 2: I put together this water bottle as a tour leader to hydrate and care for me on my 1000km walk. Picture 3: Kinney Lake. Mount Robson, BC. Picture 4: D.T.C. (Drive-Thru Corn) Mount Robson, BC. Videos: Completing 1000+ km Camino Norte. . #teampixel

Hi,👋 I'm George, and these are my feet.👣 They are ugly as F**k.🤮 But, I love my feet.💛 They do a great job of carrying my heavy ass through life's miles, towards wherever I need to go.🙏 __________ #havefaith #dostuff

Don't cry because it's over, smile because good times and crazy friends make amazing memories. __________________ 🇨🇦🐻🗻⛰️🚐🚂 . . . . #teampixel #dostuff

Geology Rocks because it makes my life Boulder! 🤓 🤘⛰️🤘🏔️🤘🌄🤘🏞️🤘🗻😎 . . . . . #teampixel #dostuff

Fun fact: If you love what you do, you'll become what you love. -G.kourtes. #dostuff

Nothing is really work unless you would rather be doing something else. --JAMES M. BARRIE #teampixel #dostuff

“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be.” – Douglas Adams . . . . . #teampixel #dostuff

“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.“ -- John Lennon 🎸😀💛 . . . . . . @travelalberta #LiveYourAdventure #dostuff #teampixel

I'm going to see the world, but first I'm going to eat. 🍽️🏕️🥾 6 nights, 6 meals. . #dostuff

When just about everything around you looks endlessly obscure and out of reach. Any direction works, make a choice and work towards it. 🧭 . . . . . . #innercompass #followyourgut #takechances #travel #seeking #wanderer #wanderlust #nomad #motivation #hiking #camino #elcaminotravel #caminodesantiago #takemebacktospain #pilgrim #saintjames #doyou #procrastination #lifework #lifegoals #personalgrowth #personaldevelopment #keepgrowing #keepmoving #cantstopwontstop #cantstopaddictedtotheshindig #dostuff

Got out for a minute for some creative exploits and the following quote came to mind: 🤔 "We don't make movies to make money. We make money to make more movies" --Walt Disney The point is to chase your passions in life. Choose a path that helps facilitate the lifestyle that you are not only seeking, but the one that you are craving. It is easy to settle when you argue in favor of your excuses. I know, "Easier said than done" -- said Everyone. I know it is, because chasing passions is hard work filled with many of the hardest roadblocks and obstacles that you will ever face-- Patience is key to bring on your ideal reality. I like to find immediate hope in the thought that you attract better as soon as you stop settling for worse-- Everyone willing has the capacity to do that NOW. _____ 🏍️DvCruise: Putting together this short clip in artistic style with my Toronto buddy Eric Simpson 💪 (he did the hard work, while I mostly sat there looking pretty)😎. He has a really good eye for creativity in art/music and photography/film. Check out his camera skills around the urban streets of Toronto. Wicked work 👉 @lost.lens #dostuff

In bumping into old faces I find myself reminiscing: I remember a brief time in my life when my world revolved around football, training for football, and naturally, intermittent binge drinking. My identity was wrapped up in this lifestyle for a long time, so it was struggling to see it slip into its ending. I could be wrong, but I can imagine that many of my teammates felt a similar void that soon followed the end of their own chapter: Hollow, lost, broken... Boy, what a sob story-- it definitely felt like one. Fast track a decade later, I hardly care about the last 'proper' training session that I've had, or much for the game itself, but occasionally I do miss the contact. Physically, I miss hurling my body at someone with the intent to hurt or dominate them... It wasn't personal, it was an expression of strength and power that naturally occurs in sport-- and It was fun, because it was organized. But, it should serve as an example that we all have the capacity to enjoy violence at times... It may sound mean spirited, or harsh, or evil, but it's a reality, and an integral part to sport, and the human experience. It is important practice to bring that level of aggression into whatever craft you are honing or pursuing-- Constructively of course. This primal energy in sport was reinforced and bound in community-- a band of broheem's cohesively smashing into whoever was outside of the circle. #union Close to a decade later, one coach's words ring true for me: "As invested as you are, football will only take up such a small portion of your life" Though it feels like another life altogether, the values in camaraderie that have come about as a result have embedded themselves into the foundations of who I am today. For that, It is a slice of time that I will always cherish because of the people that understand the lifestyle that was cultivated in competition together. Photo 1. The GOLDEN years Photo 2. My 15 minutes of fame Photo 3. Where it all started, and the life long acceptance that people will always butcher the spelling or pronounciation of my last name.

"Life is a mission, not an intermission" -- Except on Sundays.😎 ___ **That time I lived on Canada's other coast and spent time chasing down sunsets... And making random videos like this one... Always up for a few more days with a few more miles. ___________ 🎶 "Bit by Bit" -- Mother Mother #throwbackthursday #dostuff

It takes one person to say something within a group that can change the course of everyone's path. And where there is something in it for everybody, what is taken from it is up to interpretation. But, saying nothing at all can leave us missing out on something beautiful. It's okay to be afraid to speak up or speak out... Say it anyway, you're courageous for it. #teampixel

This isn't where I parked my car...😝 #teampixel #eurotrip #dudewheresmycar #dostuff

Vocabulary Lessons 🤓 Juxtaposition: The fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect. Ex. Photo of a photo of a photo. Contrasting Photography. My camera is a smartphone and I egoistically capture my own vanity. Oscar's camera is a Canon and he selflessly captures the beautiful scenery outside of himself. Conversations of awareness, labels, and perspectives. ... Oh, and the hilarity of eating a @clifbar on a cliff. @aim_hunter @ephemeral_daydream #goodtalkbro #teampixel #dostuff

Since the Camino in Spain, I find myself really enjoying eating my meals outdoors. Outside of my evening meals, most of my eating has been on a mountain with a view, or on the side of the road overlooking the water, or at something green with a view. Most recently, I've gone out -- probably because it's warmer as well-- to find some sun to picnic with myself on my jeep, in my jeep, on a bench, in the grass, and generally in places that I can appreciate a meal, or snack. Some places are more enchanting than others, but it's pretty eclectic to witness the moment with the birds, the bees, from grassy smells, to ocean air, or mountainous winds. I find this sort of grounding clears my head while filling my gut. Again, something that came naturally while walking the Camino in Spain, I've really come to appreciate this ongoing practice. So I'll gladly take on the challenge to eat it up with the views any day of the week with more intention to enjoy these 'picnics' with myself. About the video: I passed out for about 14 hours after a long week and woke up early enough with the intention to catch this sunrise. What you see is 5 minutes worth of the 1 hour of footage that I tried to time lapse... My breakfast got pretty frozen along with my fingers and feet. After all my intentions to eat my meal outside under the warming sun quickly turned into a scramble for heat in my jeep with wet socks, and frigid hands that were barely capable of gripping my spoon. One of the thoughts that came to mind while I sat there was the Pareto Principle or 80/20 rule, in which 80% of the results amount from 20% of the efforts. 5 minutes out 60 is what I needed. Usually in life, there is no straight line from A to B, but there is value to dig up in the zigzagging road to get you there. It's fair to say that I jumped the gun and filmed 55 extra minutes of still mountain, out of fear of missing the beat on the timing of the sun rising above the peak. And as obvious as it is to say that the video doesn't do it justice, I'll take the cold hands and cold feet to sit there waiting for the sun to rise again and again for the view, the experience, and the lessons. Happy reading. #dostuff

The pearl in which we strongly seek often exists as the envisioned perfection of our hopes, wants, and dreams. We can become so easily fixated on the mysticsm of the prize of the pearl inside, that we are often overlooking the beauty and simplicity that the shell itself has to offer us. #teampixel #dostuff

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