AT LONG LAST
I’m truly sorry for the long hiatus on this site. I’ve just had a nightmare of a time getting the right parts for my computer, getting it configured exactly the way I want, installing all my old programs, formatting… etc etc you get the picture. I’m truly sorry for the delay and I hope it never happens again!
Anyway, the good news is — I am back up and running 
Here’s a little bit of what’s been happening over the past week…
I love weekend breakfasts at Whitespot.. I just can’t get enough of Nat’s Hearty Brunch and a chocolate milkshake!
I got up to Cypress to shoot some B-Roll HD footage for the snowboarding movie and also to check out the snow situation and the new lodge. You can see the Cypress Mountain’s brand new lodge here (opening 2008/2009)… it looks AMAZING! What a big upgrade from the old one. It’s also in a much better location.. you can ski right into this one. Previously, you had to trek across the road and towards the parking lot to get to the lodge. Can’t wait to try it out.
It was pretty much deserted up there. There was this big exposed drainage pipe with yellow rope I couldn’t resist taking pictures of.
A desolate landscape… solitary chairlifts, sparse snow coverage, and exposed brush and rocks. Not a pretty sight for snowboarding but it sure was neat to be up there without anyone around.
The metal fences used for lift lineups.
This is what happens when you put Allan on an empty chairlift.
Ski resort sign posts just lying around.
Lo and behold, a solitary snowboarder! Pretty intense, considering the tiny snowbase and rocks. Kudos for him for hiking and boarding down though! I have to admit I was jealous since this was before I got to Whistler for first turns.
Crisp snowy footsteps leading into the sunrise…
The beautiful city of Vancouver has such a sparkle at night!
I picked up a new tripod since my old one was really bad for video panning. Not smooth at all. My new Manfrotto with 701RC2 head is incredible. Really smooth, stable, and durable.
We relaxed on the weekend… did some singing to Allan’s guitar playing and thought about funny snowboard songs we could make for the movie. On second thought, maybe we won’t put anyone through that suffering 
Santorini, Greece
Cadiz, Spain
I’ve been following one of my friend’s Flickr photos recently. One of the best trips I’ve ever taken was to Europe in spring of 2002. I traveled to several different countries including Greece and Spain. One of my friends, Kyle, is currently touring around Europe and it is really bringing back memories for me! He’s got some incredible photos so I highly recommend you check out his photostream here.
My amazing friend from university Sandy out in Toronto surprised me with the sweetest gift! Lindt chocolates with an orange snowboard on the front. How fitting! Thanks Sandy you’re the best, it’s a really cool gift and I was completely surprised. You can check out her fabulous blog here.
Finally, the new computer.
I also debated with myself for a long time and talked to a few friends, and eventually decided to go with Windows Vista as my OS to take advantage of my new hardware (a Christmas present from Allan!).
For the other tech heads out there, here are my full system specs now:
- Gigabyte EP45-UD3P CrossFireX Motherboard (SATA2, DDR2, RAID etc)
- Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 Quad Core Processor 2.33 GHZ Yorkfield 4 MB
- 8 GB of DDR2 RAM
- A new Antec case and 650W PSU
- A new monitor (Samsung SyncMaster 2253BW)
- Existing: NVIDIA 7900 GS Video Card
- Existing: HDDs adding up to 2 TeraBytes of storage (mostly full though, probably will need a new HDD soon)
Is it top of the line? No. But it is definitely going to be better than what I had before, and it’ll handle HD video editing no problem, which was the main goal of the upgrade.
That’s it for now. The next few weeks are filled with Christmas parties, snowboarding, and lots of fun… I’ll be keeping up to date on the blog again now that the dust has settled with the computer craziness. Hurray! December is finally upon us.
On a side note. What in the world is up with the Canucks. Lately they seem to be falling just short. Four in a row… I think they can turn this slump around real quick, so don’t lose hope everyone!
Tags: 701RC2 head, Cadiz, Canucks, chairlifts, Cypress Mountain, DDR2 RAM, Flickr, Gigabyte, Greece, guitar, HDD, Intel, Lindt, Manfrotto, Motherboard, new 2008 lodge, NVIDIA, Quad Core, Samsung SyncMaster 2253BW, Santorini, sign posts, ski resort, snow, snowboarding movie, Spain, sunset, terabytes, Whitespot
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December 5th, 2008 at 12:26 am
I’ll be trying that Whitespot breakfast soon – that photo looks *really* good.
And 2 terabytes of storage that are ALMOST FULL? :O Good lord Allie what do you have on there? Something to go Arrrr, shiver me timbers?
Cypress lodge; are those windows still being installed/sporting the “new window stickers”? And it looks like some exposed insulation up there too…
December 5th, 2008 at 6:18 am
Great photos as per usual! That black corrigated tube.. isn’t that covering the ‘margic carpet’ things for the toddlers when they learn to ski? At least it was when I was up at Cypress a few weeks ago picking up out season pass. We have friends who work on the mountain too so we went to visit them. It will be great once the lodge is done (and there is snow). I’m excited for when Cypress opens though!!
@mike the windows do have the stickers on them. its to ensure construction workers see them so they don’t put anything through them. There wasnt any exposed insulation when i was there last. Pretty cool lodge though its going to make being at Cypress even cooler than previous seasons.
December 5th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Welcome back Allie! Those are some wicked photos. Cypress lodge looks beautiful and the location is awesome. You can’t ask for a better location, can’t wait to get up there!
The Canucks, it seems Roberto is much more of leader than we first thought, then again if the Canucks won 4 in a row we’d be talking about how we don’t need Louie anymore lol. Awww to be a Canucks fan…
December 5th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Hey.. nice shots. Congrats on the new comp, always feels good doesn’t it?
December 5th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
That brunch looks so good – my favourite part of the weekend is going out for, or making myself, a nice big breakfast with eggs, hashbrowns, turkey bacon and toast. I also suggest the breakfast burrito at Milestones!
As for the Canucks and their losing streak… we’ll let’s just say that you can be happy you are not a Leafs fan like me
. And your team beat Minnesota tonight so things are looking up already!
I would have been tempted to take home one of those resort sign posts!
December 6th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
Those are some great pics Allie, you have a good eye. Also, nice new tripod and system.. 8gb of RAM… that’s bangin. I just hooked myself up with a new laptop recently with close to the same specs (not quite as good
but im loving it.
Look forward to some updated boarding pics!
December 8th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Mike, you definitely should. It’s just a cheap greasy breakfast but it is always yummy. Don’t forget to try the chocolate milkshake…. mmmmm. Haha yes, almost full.. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions
As for the windows.. looks like Tyler has the answer 
Tyler, yes you are probably right… I don’t ever remember there being a magic carpet ride there but I could be wrong (that pipe is right across from the main ticket window at Cypress).
Urban Dweller, thank you mister! Yes it is going to be epic when it opens
It’s true, we must never give up on the Canucks! You’re right, Lou appears to be a very important component of this team… I’m not disappointed with the way our backup goalies have been playing, but I think Lou does bring an extra something that can make the difference in a game.
Davin, yes it feels great to have a new computer! Phew
It was a disaster there before.
Yes! Josh that is amazing… I love making breakfast on weekend mornings, especially before a ski trip
Hehe hey, at least the Leafs have won a Stanley Cup! Yeah it was a good win against Minnesota but they couldn’t pull it out against Colorado last night. *shakes fist at shootouts* I was seriously thinking about taking one of those sign posts but I’d probably feel guilty forever about it, so I didn’t 
Dan, thanks very much. I’m happy with the RAM so far. Nice, what laptop did you get? I can’t wait for boarding pics too.. if only there was snow to take them on
December 8th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
really nice pix allie!
August 26th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
[...] when I was younger. I had a blast going and getting all the parts and putting it together myself. I still build my own computers (I need a picture of my new [...]