So, I’m off to Tofino! Time to quickly publish the post I prepped last night and head straight from work to the ferries! I’m not going to get started on the ferries though.

So I’ll be in Tofino until July 6th. Finally, a long week of surfing, camping, time by the beach in the sun (and rain), camp stove cooking, and friends.

Every year, we get a big group of people together and head over to Greenpoint in Tofino for camping and surfing on Canada Day.

Let me show you all the crap we bring along with us! Ah, the joys of car camping. Our equipment is well-worn and not in great shape after camping trips every other weekend, but they still hold up!

First off, time to prep the shallots. I got this idea from my friend Trev: prep all your food in advance where there’s light, good knives, and cuttingboards and then you don’t have to worry about all the mess and disaster while you are camping.

Pro Tip: Wear your snowboard goggles to prevent from massive eye hysteria while cutting up millions of shallots. It works. LOL!

Here’s all the food we prepped last night. Needless to say, we were up late. But it’s such a bonus not having to wash everything and cut it all up when you are hungry after a long day of surfing and it’s dark and cold out. Click on the photo and then click on “All Sizes” to see a bigger version so you can see the text.

Also very necessary: camping equipment. MEC Tarn 3 tent, MEC rollout mats (WAY better than having a bulk air mattress in my opinion, and much lighter)… and we normally don’t bring camping chairs when we go on our own but considering how much we miss them when we have a big group of people we decided to go buy some fancy Roots camping chairs with foot rests. Can’t wait to try them out. Allan’s not a big fan of how bulky and heavy they are in the car, but they will be nice to bring along every once in a while. We are also bringing our golf clubs so we can play 9 holes of golf at Long Beach Golf Course. Golf equipment + surf equipment + camping equipment = VERY full car.

We’ve also got tons of food, not to mention 40 strips of bacon from Granville Island (WOHOOO!), two coolers, a camp stove, a cast iron grill (a MUST for car camping cooking), lots of hoodies, my underwater camera case for my DSLR, my DSLR of course, and lots of supplies.

Food we will have there: Pacific Halibut, scallops, bacon, sausages, breakfast potatoes, everything you need to mix up Mojitos, lots of beer, cane sugar colas, tons of fruit, chocolate vegan cake, Uprising Breads, New Moon cookies, and tons of crackers and chips! I love food.

Not picture: 2 huge surfboards, also tons of wetsuits (bringing wetsuits to share with friends too)… I love my Roxy 5 mil wetsuit, but I bought Allan a new O’Neill Infiniti Drylock 5/4/3 for his birthday this year (a little early, his b-day is in July) and I have to say I am VERY jealous. It’s a darn nice wetsuit. Also pictured, lots of groceries, beach towels. And of course an absolute essential: TWILIGHT! Hahahaha.

Lots more not shown here, but you get the picture. It’s a full car.

Can’t wait to be out there for 8 days, hopefully our food lasts.

In other news, I booked my accommodations for Costa Rica! 3 nights at Paradisus Playa Conchal and then 4 nights in a villa rental on Langosta Beach (loved that beach when we stayed there last). Lots of time for surfing, relaxing, and hanging out on the beach. The weather: Humid, thunderstorms, sun, and rain. Just the way I like it.

Sadly, won’t have much time to blog in Tofino, but I’m looking forward to posting when I get back on July 6th! See you soon, and HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!

Happy Canada Day (believe it or not, this photo was taken with a friend at my Xbox 360 clan’s annual meetup. Yeah, Patron tequila is trouble)!

Yesterday (while getting my monthly wax), my aesthetician and I talked about Vancouver, and how people generally just seem to be discontent here.

If it’s the weather, then it is too hot or too cold. Too rainy or too dry.

The buses are too busy, the traffic is terrible, the men here aren’t good looking, they aren’t happy with their jobs, people in Vancouver dress too fancy, people in Vancouver dress too casual… etc etc. And the list goes on. And yet, when asked about Vancouver, everyone LOVES Vancouver… it’s the best place to live!

So why do so many people seem unhappy here?

I do this a lot myself, too… complaining. My friend once challenged me to keep track during the period of one week how many times people complained about something. I lost count, it was in the hundreds.

My friend also challenged me to not complain once, during the period of one week. I tried, but I eventually failed.

I’m not convinced that this is a problem that is just with Vancouver; I’m fairly certain it is a widespread problem.

And my theory has come down to this: The majority of people don’t know how to make themselves happy, just on their own. Without constant stimulus, without constantly being around others…

When was the last time you sat, alone for an hour, and were happy?

I’ve been doing a lot of people watching lately. And it seems like everyone is constantly on the go. When they are riding the bus they are playing on their phones, when they are out for dinner or sitting on a couch with a loved one they are Twittering, and even when they just have to walk down the street they call a friend so they have something to do while they walk.

I even saw a phone commercial the other day that was talking about turning downtime into uptime.

But you know what?

We humans need downtime, in my opinion. I think we all need time to be introspective, reflect on life, be grateful for what we have, step back and put things into perspective… all the clichés.

I’ve learned a lot about myself over the past few months, about how I need to manage stress and take time to relax.

Here are a couple things I am trying, that maybe you could try (or maybe you already do!):

• I switch my Blackberry to “Bedside Mode” every night at 8 or 9 pm. This turns off the antenna so I don’t get texts, e-mails, calls etc so I have time to disconnect myself a few hours before bed. Nothing is so important that it can’t wait till morning.
• Every night, I’ve been doing yoga before bed. The audio, relaxing kind so I don’t have to watch a TV screen or worry about other people in a class. For one hour, I stretch, do poses, and breathe. If my mind tries to think about anything, I try to focus away from it so I think about nothing. Clear my mind. This has done incredible things for me. I sleep better, I’m happier, I’m more relaxed.
• I’ve been focusing during the day not to worry about anything. Whether it’s work or my relationship or friends, if I ever start having any negative thoughts or stresses, I just try to focus on the positive or the actions I can do to rectify a situation without getting upset. It’s done amazing things for my friendships and relationships.
• When I go to the gym, I try not to watch the TVs or listen to music. Instead I think about myself and how I can improve myself and my life in a constructive positive way.
• At work, after I go to the bathroom (this is embarrassing), I stand in front of the mirror and take three deep yoga-like breaths. It somehow helps me reset and let go of any stress I may have been holding.
• I try and get outdoors on the weekend and away from the computer.
• I’m traveling by myself to Costa Rica and plan on having lots of introspective time, and surfing.
• Surf. Surfing is good for the soul, mind and body.

I don’t mean to sound all preachy or like I have it all figured out. I don’t. I still get unhappy and stressed at times. But I’m really trying to get out of this negative-mind-rut and change things for the better.

I hope that these tips have helped people a little bit.

Do you have any tips of your own for having a little “you” time and being happy?