It Was a Quiet Weekend

I haven’t felt like living online these last few days.

Happens. Always passes.

Saturday night looked like this.

Glued out, filtering photos while replaying and reviewing the week in my head. I think that’s important to do.

On Thursday I attended a Breast Cancer fundraiser for the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation.

They’re a class act who do important research and run a tight ship. I’ve been inside plenty, the bell is the best part of the whole place ;).  Please give.

My BFF was the evenings’ keynote speaker, then she heated up the stage in the fashion show.

I said nothing online during her treatment, but too bad missy, I get this one time – your toughness is impressive, you wore cancer better than anyone, and I’m so happy you’re back love you.

Internet, this is my favourite cancer story: deep into her treatment her insurance company calls, they’re all confused; how was she at work this much, if she’s undergoing chemo, radiation and surgery? HA she’s that tough.

On Sunday, this.

It wasn’t until I pulled into the same industrial park that it hit me. Then I got all reflective and pensive.

That’s not my best profile pic is it, let’s change that. Done.  Here is the new one.

Classic Keri.  KeriCDN.

Recent outfits.

Picked up fresh flowers this afternoon.

I’ve kept fresh flowers around, long as I can remember. They make a place a home, and don’t have to cost a lot.

I like carnations actually, they’re colourful, cheap and last 2 weeks.

And that concludes this blog post.

 

 

Been Working on KeriOnCars.com

I’m gathering posts and links, going back in time on my blogs (something I never do), and it’s been really fun.

Presenting car-themed posts from Canadian Explorer 2007-10

Giant magnet.

‘The Canadian Explorer’ theme song (written by me)

 

I’ve logged a lot of hours in auto body shops.

This was a fun afternoon #ChevyNova

The last line, I LOLd at my own joke all over again.

I think it’s a good method.

Canadian Explorer, woah, that show. I still have more to tell you about it. Director’s Cuts Videos for each episode.

That was THE best training, creating / producing / editing / executing it all.

That blog though, so rich in content, but you’d never know because it’s packaged so poorly.

One day. I have a plan, leave it with me. I need an assistant first.

I’ll use parts of this post for the ‘About’ page for KeriOnCars.  Have you ever written one, an “About Me” or bio? It’s tough, eh.

Next KeriOnCars.com Videos:

  • Exploring the LA Autoshow
  • Let’s Talk About the New Ford Escape
  • Using Your Car’s Rear-facing Camera

Kay I could sit here and blog myself into oblivion.  I have to pack my camera bag, tomorrow I’m off to a Honda event – a professional driver and I are going to talk about driving standard.

Night, TTYT

 

 

 

Me Laughing REALLY Hard

My brother can make me laugh ridiculously hard.

He called my phone one night at 11:30pm, and until midnight, this was me.

I knew it was wrong to be so loud that late, we but we could not stop.

My laugh carries, it just comes out that way.

Years ago I was laughing in a parking lot, when three floors up someone’s head pops out the window, “Keri? I recognized your laugh” and hello, an old friend I hadn’t seen in years.

 

 

 

Remember the Olympics? Van2010

Last week, South Korea was awarded the Games in 2018. Good luck to them.

Let’s take a look back at ours last year. Many of these photos you’ve not seen, I’ll throw in a couple episodes, too.

The photo text is true; there’s almost no point to posting that photo. H U G E.

‘Irish House’ was out my window, where I lived.

Right in the middle of everything. Irish House was THE place, not being dramatic. They were collecting noise violation fines before the Games even started.

We’d hear ‘I Would Walk 500 Miles’, and ‘Small Town Girl’, three times a night minimum. Fortunately, by day 10 neither Mary or I could hear it anymore… that thing that humans have kicked in and tuned it out.  Like the people who live beside train tracks.

Mary and me.

We’re at a club, my editor gave me tickets and said, take the night off.

Thanks to Mary is why my Olympics was as great as it was. I went out there, without a place to stay (no really – there was talk at my newspaper of some empty moved-out apartment, I had a towel with me, just figured I’d wing it all).

Mary offered her couch, I crashed onto it three days into the Games, then never left.

I thanked her by leaving a bunch of swag hidden around her house, including a cowbell in her freezer. Which she recently moved to her freezer … 5 provinces away, see it here.

I had this great morning routine going by the end… wake up, walk down to my coffee spot, pick up a paper along the way, read my article and eat a gingersnap cookie, back home and get online, and start working.

I was there representing Canoe.ca and, in addition to producing videos, I wrote for Vancouver 24 Hours.  Read them all here.  Third largest newspaper in BC!

“Social Keri”; I had not input there.

That backpack, my mobile studio – 22 pounds.

I was the only person at the paper, left to her own devices, not tasked with a story. Instead, I was expected to chase down and produce my own. Proud of that.

I met Carol Huynh on the Alberta Train. She’s our first ever Gold Medalist for Women’s Wrestling (2008).  Click here for her podium moment when our anthem plays, very cute.

I don’t remember this photo being taken… at this point, I’ve been awake for 36 hours, filmed and produced two videos, and was en route to film a third.

This is Exploring Whistler Village, shot that day, I really like this episode.

I squished so much into three weeks, I didn’t stop.

There’s so many stories and behind-the-scenes stuff I could tell you, cue up another video series.

I’ll leave you with this: the spirit I went into this all with.

This was taken right downtown, after the men won a hockey game.

And here’s me, taken minutes after the above (my camera is on a garbage can).

It’s from this episode, What Happened After Our Hockey Win

GO CANADA GO!

 

 

 

Now THAT was a Canada Day Weekend

My first one off since 3 years! I’ve worked them all because… I was The Canadian Explorer.

And not gonna lie, the lack of pressure this weekend was fantastic.  I used to explain it like – this is likely how Santa feels on the 25th.

This weekend I did very Canadian things… I went to a BBQ, drank beer and laughed my guts out, watched the fireworks, spent time out of a city in nature, designed my weekend around traffic times, and put my feet up Sunday night on my porch.

Speaking of traffic, get THIS – I heard the traffic Sunday night into Toronto was backed up to…. Napanee O M G (that’s 200km-ish).

Did you know our Coat of Arms has a unicorn?! A UNICORN!

That’s our motto at the bottom, in Latin: A mari usque ad mare – From Sea to Sea

Of course I own one of these.

And lots of things like this:

I went to Ottawa in 2008.

A decade before I was also in Ottawa for Canada Day.

I’d borrowed this guy’s bike to get downtown, but he’d lost his bike lock key, and I had to drag it through the dense crowds.

So if you had your shins taken out by a pedal around this time, that would’ve been me and sorry about that.

To be clear, Episode #80 is … still undone.  Oh I know.  Guarenteed it bugs me more than it bugs you, it’s like this lead ball that hangs back left over my head always.  But.  It’s just……

I’ve sat down one thousand times to edit it, and I physically cannot. It’s my swan song.  It’s summing up 3 years of my life into 8 minutes.  It’s re-editing footage I’ve already spent tens of hours looking at.

I could use an editing helper.  I have it completely storyboarded, look.  My website needs a serious overhaul too, it’s just… to properly close up my show is a couple hundred hours I don’t have right now, it’s so daunting when I think about it.

Leave it with me, it WILL get done.  And I have a little celebration party coming together in my head for when it’s done, and you’re invited.

Viva las KeriCDN and The Canadian Explorer!