Casey – Page 2 – Pandaberry Trail

Adventures in British Columbia

For about a week, I worked with my Dad on his house up in Trail, British Columbia. It was the first time I’ve ever been out of the country, and it was a blast! Canada is super awesome. I can’t wait to go back!

We had to fly into Spokane, Washington and then drive 2-3 hours North to get to Trail. Spokane was not really my favorite place ever.

We found out from my Dad’s property manager that the electricity wasn’t on, and there was no heat in the house, so we stayed the night in Spokane while we waited for that stuff to get turned on.

Heading to Canada, things got a lot prettier outside Spokane.

Made it to Trail!

The front room.

It was a *little* cold in the house, and we found out that the furnace was broken beyond repair.

The view of the Columbia River from the back balcony was pretty awesome though.

The kitchen was where we ended up sleeping–with the oven on and its door open to keep us warm. We drywalled and painted the ceiling in here.

The living room. Drywalled and painted the ceiling in here as well, plus did some patching around the fireplace. Painted the walls.

The little hallway. Painted the walls, doors, and ceiling in here.

The bathroom. When we got to the house initially, we discovered that no one had drained the toilet or put antifreeze in it, so the ceramic cracked and covered the floor with water, wrecking the linoleum and causing it to leak into the basement. So we put in a brand new toilet and new tiles for the floor. Someone had started a project tiling the shower, but hadn’t finished it, so we tore out those and put new ones in there as well.

The front bedroom. Painted the walls and ceiling in here.

The back bedroom. Painted the walls and ceiling in here as well. Notice the refrigerator on the balcony outside the window. Not really sure where that came from or why it was there.

We accomplished everything we started, but as you can tell from the leaning chimney and the chimney you can see through, the house still needs some work.

Working sucks, let’s go skiing! Here’s me skiing for the very first time!

We decided to head to the top of the mountain.

The very top! Behind me are some big maps of all the runs.

Rino’s Run.

Skiing is awesome!

Time to head home.

Back in Washington.

Back home with my cutie in Santa Barbara!

"We’re almost to the steep part!"

Casey took Tanda and I on a hiking adventure today! We went on a 9 mile hike from our house to the top of Inspiration Point and back! Casey counted bird species while we counted lizards. He kept telling us that we were “almost to the steep part,” a.k.a. almost to the top, for about half an hour! Goob.

Lunch at the top overlooking the city

Happy to be going down the mountain

Check out our trail:

If you’re a birder, I’m a birder

Casey just finished taking a bird watching class, and let me tell you-he is HOOKED! He loves going out with his binoculars and his beloved bird ID book to look for new birds. He even got a special notebook to document his sightings. He has succeeded in getting me into it too. I find myself sketching birds and taking notes on their color pattern so I can look them up later. So if you see two people peering through binoculars with a little black dog running around with them-it’s us! 🙂

Casey’s Presidential Platform

My first contribution to this series of 3 blog posts–my platform if I were to run for president! (Also, feel free to request a position on any issues I didn’t include, or to elaborate on anything listed)

Healthcare: America’s problems with the healthcare system are not ultimately an issue of scarcity of resources, but instead a fundamental imbalance in how those resources are applied. That is why I support a federally-run public insurance plan that will put emphasis on providing access to the Nation’s primary care physicians. By proper management of chronic disease, and addressing problems before they require costly acute care, we will spend less money on medical bills, and more time living happy, productive lives.

Drug Policy Reform: The criminalization of the use of certain substances has inflicted profound damage to the fabric of our Nation’s society and that of many of our neighbors. We’ve spent a great deal of energy punishing those who actually need treatment, and fostering the growth and entrenchment of a vast and violent drug trade. By decriminalizing the use of illegal substances and developing more effective rehabilitation programs, we can keep more of our citizens productive, reduce the burden on our already overcrowded prisons, and allow our police forces to concentrate on catching real criminals.

Reproductive Rights: I wholly support the right for women to make medical decisions for their own bodies. Limiting access to abortions infringes on the right of women to start families on their own terms, and when they are ready to adequately provide for new life.

Equal Rights: I stand firmly with our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters by supporting their rights to be lawfully wed, raise families, and defend our country. It is not the place of the government to judge its citizens based on the person they love.

Education: Our public educational system needs to be overhauled from the ground up. Wider implementation of year-round school schedules in primary and secondary schooling will improve knowledge retention and prevent burnout of students and staff. Teachers must be rewarded for seeking additional training in both pedagogy and their teaching subject. Furthermore, we must make the teaching profession as a whole more attractive to the sharpest talent via significant increases in salary, credential program accreditation standards, and credential program admissions selectivity.

Energy: Although we cannot yet support our Nation’s powergrid on wholly renewable resources, a clean and practical stepping stone already exists, and America pioneered its use herself: Nuclear power. Modern reactor designs are safer and more efficient than ever before, and using domestically abundant and difficult-to-weaponize Thorium fuel will enhance our national security by reducing our reliance on foreign energy sources.

Financial Sector Reform: The recent economic collapse is the fruit of the deregulatory policies enacted over the course of the previous three decades. If America is to have a strong and lasting economic recovery, a better balance has to be struck between protecting consumers from the volatility of the derivatives market and maintaining the liquidity of capital.

Government Corruption: The inordinate influence of monied interests must be earnestly divorced from U.S. politics. Publicly funded elections, an amendment to overturn the Citizens United decision, and stricter lobbying regulations must be enacted to allow our leaders to fight for the opportunities and dreams of the many, not the few.

Defense: In a world where many nations can scour much of the life from the surface of Earth with the push of a button, our greatest defense is diplomacy and multilateralism. By keeping open dialogue with even those we consider enemies, we can stop conflict without needlessly spilling young American blood. At the same time, the savings from closing many of our unnecessary overseas bases can be applied to maintaining our military’s technological advantage via DARPA and other research agencies.

Taxes: Because the poor and middle class have no choice but to spend larger portions of their incomes on necessities such as food, housing, and utilities, I support a progressive income tax that places more of the burden on those who can afford it—the upper middle class, the rich, and the ultra-rich.

20 Fill in the Blank Questions: Casey Edition

1. Sausages and eggs are always in my grocery cart.

2. Mondays are time to get back to work.

3. I will not run out of hobbies for a long time.

4. Today at 11am I was playing guitar.

5. My favorite band of the moment is anything Eric Clapton was in.

6. In the past week, the grossest thing that has happened to me is getting blasted by Mandy.

7. I wish guitar books were less expensive.

8. This weekend I am going to do my EMT workbook.

9. The sound of penny’s barking always relaxes me.

10. I haven’t driven a stick-shift in a long time.

11. I can’t wait for tomorrow.

12. Someday I will have a job.

13. Getting an “A” on a midterm is a great feeling.

14. The last dinner I ate was pizza!

15. One of my favorite fast food guilty pleasures is the Sourdough Jack.

16. I am wearing a black “Air” shirt.

17. The last things I bought were a crêpe and a metronome.

18. Two things that made me smile today were telling my Dad about my good midterm grade and talking to my Panda.

19. I didn’t think I would have time to move my car today, but I did!

20. Now it is time to do homework!

Guitar Notes Reference Sheet

One fundamental way in which the Guitar differs from the Piano is that the same notes exist in multiple locations on the fretboard. There are upsides and downsides to this property of the instrument, but for me at least, it can make learning all the notes at each position challenging. So as an exercise and to have a reference for myself in the future, I created a printable graphic that shows all the notes on a 22-fret guitar neck (like the one on my Epiphone Dot), and where each of those notes is represented on the music staff. Hope this helps anyone else out there learning Guitar!