Tag: outdoors

7 more days…

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Can you guess where this is?

an_ef

Ok, so I admit that I know nothing about the 2014 Winter Olympics location.  Other than knowing that it’s in Russia, it’s a complete mystery to me.  However, after seeing this video I was very pleasantly surprised at how lush and green it looks.  I know that it looks very different at the moment and in only a week, millions will be descending on the place to watch, compete in and celebrate the winter games.  I am SO excited!

The Vancouver winter games were pretty spectacular, or so I hear.  I was in Peru on a trek through the Andes during the last winter Olympics and although I was having my own experience of a lifetime, I was still very upset that I couldn’t be with my friends in Vancouver for the games.  I guess I made up for it by being in London for the summer Olympics in 2012.

Anyway, this year I plan to make up for all that I missed in 2010.  I just really hope that we get to see most of the events – so far I’m a little skeptical of how much will make it out as there seem to be some pretty tough restrictions on how many members of the media can make it in etc, but I have high hopes for whatever makes it across the ocean.  I don’t agree with the Russian anti-gay law but I hope that we can celebrate the lifes’ work of all the athletes during this time.  Lets not take this away from them as they deserve this time in the spot light and I wish them all the best.

So tighten those bindings and strap on those goggles, because this is going to a great month of winter sports!

Reincarnation :: Salmon Cycle

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Paul Klaver

What can I say.  When you work on a film about salmon, it kind of sticks with you.  I know this video is long, but it shows the lifecycle of salmon so well.

Ok, so I’ve spent way too long looking at salmon footage… this is still beautiful.

Reincarnation :: Surfs Up!

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As I have just spent the last several weeks at the beach I can’t help but post this as my first video on the reincarnation of materials.

Shwood eyewear

 

I haven’t been on a surfboard in several years, and when I am on one it’s only because I’m floating on a board waiting for a wave.  I usually fall off if I actually catch a wave.  It’s a work in progress for me.  Maybe someday I’ll actually get to ride a wave all the way in before ending up upside down in the water.  You never know- it could happen…

Maybe if I ever get good enough I could buy a board like this.  I’ve been on a wood board once, and its a completely different feeling from the manmade material boards that I’ve been on.  Maybe its just because its made of renewable resources, but I like the idea of using driftwood.  What else can you do with all the wood that washes up on beaches?

As it’s freezing out I’ll stick to dry land for now, but maybe when the weather warms up and I’m at a beach with surfable waves, maybe I’ll try again.  Until then I’m sticking to hot tea and thinking about water sports.

Classroom :: The Three P’s

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Leo Zuckerman

I had a hard time deciding what class I would have learned some of this information from while I was still in school and decided after much debate that it fit the three Ps perfectly: Phys Ed, Philosophy and Psychology.

Saying that one video includes Phys Ed, Philosophy and Psychology probably sounds like a bit much, but if you have ever dedicated yourself to a sport, you’ll know that being and athlete is about the mental power used just as much as the physical exertion.  This is the very reason that I like this video.  It encapsulates all of the different qualities that an athlete needs to have beyond a strong body.

From a technical point of view, I love the editing in this film.  I think that for something that could become a generic ski video, and you have to admit that there are a lot out there, this one is very well put together.  It goes deeper than a series of stunts caught on camera and delves into what it really takes to become a pro skier.

And last of all, and I am very excited about this, it is almost ski season…  I’m hoping for a great snowpack.

Classroom :: Geology

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Al Boardman

I never took a geology class per se, but I did take oceanography and we examined a lot of rocks and sand particles our Thursday afternoon labs.  I know the ocean is a far cry from our highest mountains, but really it’s not as far as you many think.  They are remarkable linked due to the rock cycle.

I like this video for many reasons- one is that I happen to live in the Pacific Northwest where there are mountains on either side of where I’m currently living.  As anyone who’s been reading my blog for a while will know, I love going up into the mountains and hiking as much as possible in the summer.  Another reason I love this video is the animation and the presence of Mt. Kilimanjaro- a mountain that I have actually summited, and Ojos del Salado in Chile, which I’ve looked at from a distance.  It all boils down to the fact that mountains make me feel at home and I love that someone has created an ode to these magnificent natural monuments.

Classroom :: Ecology

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[vimeo https://vimeo.com/75226453 w=640&h=360]

mark wyatt

I’ve taken several ecology classes throughout my academic career.  It started out because I was avoiding math based science and as it turns out that I really enjoyed them.  I love that this film is close to home and incorporates so many things that I studied in the classroom.  I love being able to see what I’ve learned on paper happening in the real world. It also happens to coincide with The Breach, a film that I have been helping with for a few years and have mentioned in previous posts (side note, the film is practically done!).

Originality :: Sand Designs

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Light Color Sound

I’ve always admired those who can create something so beautiful even when they know that it will disappear soon after.  How someone can spend so much time on something so beautiful only to have it disappear?

I find this film mesmerizing and calming- something I think the artist feels when he’s creating his art, hence why this film and the music work so well to convey the reason for the time and effort that goes into something so brief.

Originality :: Flying Clouds

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[vimeo https://vimeo.com/72004730 w=640&h=360]

Sean Michael Williams

Another ode to Andsel Adams- at least filmed in what some would call “Ansel Adams” territory.  And, one last ode to mountain landscapes.

It definitely feels like summer is coming to an end.  The weather is actually cooler now (I shouldn’t say anything though because we’ll probably have an amazing Indian Summer) and it’s dark by 8:30 pm, which I find very disturbing.  No more dependence on it staying light so that I can go on later runs after work.  So as I probably won’t be making it up to the mountain too many more time this summer, I leave you with this.

Landscape :: Big Sur

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Andrew Julian

I live near the water, but since either I’m in the office or off to meetings a lot lately, I don’t get to see nearly enough of the beach.  Although this was filmed in winter, this just made me want to return to the water and enjoy summer.  So there you go, a film about the Northern California coast.  Beautiful even in the cold season.