The Weekend Went West

Plans were to leave city this weekend, but circumstances changed, and instead was marooned at home.  I had just wanted to escape the city, see green and non-city people.

So instead, I walked deep into downtown.

Out my front door with no destination, wandered aimless, looking at people and things, turning a corner when my heart said to.

Probably walked 10km.

Didn’t feel like being on camera all weekend.

This would make a beautiful photo shoot for, “This Week’s Car”.  I need to bring back that widget in my sidebar, on it.

I’m feeling over living downtown, everything takes too long, the traffic.  And I graduated myself out of the event circuit, so I no longer need to physically be here constantly.

The feeling to escape happens couple times a year. Over the years, friends have talked me out of some elaborate moving ideas.  I was reminded of one last week over dinner, “Keri, this is starting to sound like the time you were going to move Markham, and be an airport baggage handler”.

If you could see it in my head, you might nod at the brilliance; that was a good one.

Other ideas include: a coach house in Unionville; Etobicoke water front (both those ideas had actual places lined up); up by Senecca college; and Kingston.

Going to try and zero my inbox tonight, then video editing, I have a list of 7 half-edited ones here, including the Raptor off-roading footage that if I don’t upload soon, I’m going to smother myself with.

If I had help, even just one video editor, I could make videos all. day. long.

I dream of that… film whatever adventure, hand over footage, see it on YoutTube the next day.  I could churn out 3/day like that.  And like, if anyone should have reality cameras following them…  I am a weirdo magnet, and the stuff that regularly happens to me is ridiculous, like, I don’t bother telling half the stories it’s so unbelievable.

kk the end, off to Final Cut, enough babbling, can you tell I’m procrastinating  TTYT xo

 

Went to Hungary for 48 Hours

Flew out Sunday at 5pm, returned today at the same.

My first pod.

I travelled with Audi for the newspaper, to test their all-new 2015 A3 Sedan.  Basically, the new entry model Audi.  In my review I called it a “starter Audi“, because once you become accustomed to the elegant minimalism, it’s hard to leave the family.

Great times, nice car.

Budapest because the car is manufactured in the city of Gyor, about an hour away.

Another first – the presentation was in Hungarian, so I listened to an interpreter.

This trip’s driving partner was Russ Bond, who you’ve met before, and who just discovered photo filters.

Budapest is beautiful.

Got some amazing footage, went through it tonight and mapped out 5 short videos, including one for the paper, wait, another first – I had to make a 1-minute video for work, talking to the camera no editing, about the car.

I’m nervous, you can tell; I’m fidedgty.

These events are fast paced as it is, the speech was delivered in Hungarian, add in a video, I’m in a busy park, in a foreign land, and there’s more consequences than if I mess up facts here on my blog…

3rd take, not bad, although I did get off to a rocky start, “this is the new A3. It has a trunk”.  Oh boy.

Remember that ‘Just a Minute’ video series I did for a minute? That helped.

Seeing really old stuff is good for the head.

Saving my best photos for work.  Got the skeleton of my review done on the plane, then honed the angle earlier tonight.  Some journalists have already filed their stories, I look at them like this :O  Auto journalists are really good at time management, I’ve learned.

My column prints tomorrow, “How to shift gears”, and I’ll get to video editing this weekend; I’m now almost 10 behind omg.Interested in a fun editing job? Pays low to start with huge potential for growth, must be on Final Cut X for Mac, apply within.

I have this weird mindset right now – wired and  way overtired un-decompressed, my hands feel huge while typing this, objects have that dreamy sheen to them, night.  I have a lot of auto writing to do tomorrow, TTY when that’s done.

 

Oh Canada

It’s Canada Day! 

Years ago, I’d be pretty stressed around now, feeling the pressure to come up with a dazzling video, having called my show, ‘The Canadian Explorer’.

This one was spent out-of-country in Budapest, with a group of Canadian auto journalists, which is why I Instagrammed the dinner table reservation card.

Some previous years included: going to Ottawa one year; another year my cycling team won a race ; then one time I attended a citizenship swearing-in ceremony.

I asked the gentleman to take me through the Canada-oath.
Do it too – FF to 0:50, takes 11 seconds

Ep # 28/80 – “Exploring Canada Day” – aired 2009 (original post)

THE OATH – I affirm, that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance, to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada, and fulfill my duties as a Canadian citizen.

If you say, “but Keri, what’s this Queen stuff?“, my thinking is: life’s pretty good in Canada right, so she can’t be all that bad, and sure it’s a bit antiquated, but of all the things we could focus on improving (homelessness / drug abuse / etc), let’s get fired up about that first.

It’s just, Canada is Shangri-la, and that needs to be protected, and if you live here you won the life lottery, so there’s a responsibility to do so.  I love that we’re a quietly awesome yet humble group, but maybe a touch more celerbating would be good.

Remember when we simultaneously threw the “Party Olympics”, while winning the most Gold medals ever in a Games?  Oh Canada.

(original post)

 

Cheers to You this Friday Night

Been busy juggling the usual blog stuff; yesterday was writing, today was production stuff; email, spread-sheets, phone, and Life Admin. Tonight is video editing; I have 3 half-finished ones.

Once I get the video to the loosly-put-together stage, I wish I could hand it off, someone else would polish the audio, make all the micro-adjustments that are sooo boooring.

Below are photos from the week. Sunday morning I’m at a conference, then Sunday night we’re off on an adventure.

xo Keri

 

Have a good Pride weekend.

Holy engineering in this flower.

Had a Lincoln MKZ this week, and wait till you see the weirdo gear shift method.

Around the track with professional race car driver, Alex Tagliani.

Have this on video. It was at Honda’s annual ‘Manual Driving School‘.

I took Niki with me; so proud of her here.

The next day, she did my hair.  Thank you, Brennen Demelo Studios

Finally made it to my inaugural 2013 summer patio beer, commemorated with this weird photo.

The end.

Once around the park and home, James.

 

Scroll Down and Down

There’s a huge blog update below, 2 pages

Had to back-date a bunch of stuff, sorry, don’t like it either. So I spent a good chunk of Sunday at my laptop.

Night drive.

Did the DVP loop route, I’ve mapped it out before.

Not black.

Started writing poetry.

Total lie.

I just got an app that adds text to photos. Above is the learning photo.

I’ve been transitioning to photo-editing on my phone. It’s more efficient than photo > computer > online, better quality, more fonts and filters.

Another filter.

I’ve had a Ford C-MAX Hybrid for a few days.

Returning it tomorrow, and picking up a Lincoln MKZ for a week.

Tuesday is the 2nd annual Honda Manual School, remember that last summer.

I’ll re-embed last year’s video.

Big planets weekend eh… summer solstice Friday, then 2013’s SuperMoon is tonight.

Not travelling this week, have a birthday party to attend, why haven’t I hung out on a patio yet, and that’s about it, nothing earth-shattering to report. Oh, I’ve got 2 tricks up my sleeve this week, both of which I’ve alluded to here, please cross your fingers.

See you online xo