Pictures

Sporting the septum ring and a whole lotta attitude.

Good place to hang out and observe the 4:20. Get happy, then hurl yourself off a cliff into the unknown.

Again, like I said. That's my leap into the abyss. It's really quite a fall. Ahh. Skipping class, getting wet - Van Morrison would love this.

Yessss, always good to see the friggin' bird suit make an appearance. I believe this night started out with a contest: "Volume of Beer by Time Trials". I believe Graham was heard to utter "I wish you guys wouldn't make me drink so fast - it makes me feel funny". Yeah. Later on that evening we accosted young lovers on the beach. The Last Cowboy and Danger Bird ride again.

Standing on CP Rail Car, Athelmere, BC 1999

One of the May Long Weekend Debauchery Challenges. This particular weekend had many full moons, and was the basis for me returning to Invermere after Victoria. Nothing like warm Pilsner at 8 in the morning and campin' in the brush... Team Givn'er is born.

Beautiful place, Washington. We could always see it from the Canadian side of the border, so we decided to invade. A good trip - fending off a madman with a handgun in one of the campsites... Not a fireside guitar kind of guy. Got really naked in the hot springs, too. God bless the outdoors and good company.

Playing songs of oppression after my first near-incarceration experience. Who knew my passenger had all those mushrooms crossing the border? Not I, said the fly. Ps. Thanks to the Sweetgrass Montana Sheriff for being a genuine asshole cop.

I believe Victoria to be one of the most beautiful places on earth (when it isn't pissing rain, of course. A lot of the material came from this geography, and a lot from the people I met there. It was the first time in my life that I visited the other, less appreciated places in human experience. Before it, I was merely a musician in embryo - when I left, I was an artist.

Margo and I, Springtime in Invermere, 2001

Coming back to Invermere always feels like home, somehow. After 25 summers there, it is my escape - my personal wilderness. When it came time to flee Calgary, there was no other destination.

Somewhere Between Regina and Winnipeg, 2001

The prairie is huge. Emerson once wrote that a human being is comprised of his geography and his experience. I agree. Anyone who is looking for a muse will easily find her in the vast expanse of the Canadian prairie. Take the Trans-Canada someday - you will be transformed. Awe is an emotion too often denied us these days.

Kelowna, BC, 2002

Haze and winter cloud, 2002

Sombrio Beach, Vancouver Island, 2002

Sombrio Beach, 2002

Whistler, BC, 2002

Long Beach, Tofino, BC, 2002

By the Ocean, Oregon, 2001

Here's a cool trick: put your camera on slow shutter speed, drink 6 beers really fast, then point the camera at the full moon, press the button, and start spinning. That little curlycue at the end is where I fell to the sand.

On a sailboat, Georgian Bay, Ontario, 2001

That was a bumpy ride. I'm not really a sea-fairing gent, but the romanticism of one man against the ocean is intriguing. Maybe there's a song in there somewhere...

Team Givn'er, or Team Choda - not a group, but a way of life. Drink it down like you're not going to wake up tomorrow. Dive into everything head on and don't question the motives of hedonistic pursuit. This world is yours and everyone's, and life is too damn short to be concerned with the small stuff. 

It was to this view that I wrote the majority of 'Nocturnal Valley Seduction'. Dark, sluggish winters give way to Summers that fly so fast you can blink and miss them, except for the lingering feeling of absolute satisfaction. Just me and KB, the masters of all we surveyed, empowered through many a deckside debauchery. A happy time. 

Lee 'Marvin' Spurrell, Egypt and Isis - Edgewater, BC

Lee Marvin - the guitar noodle master! King of the improvised melody! I am humbled by this man, a true searcher. Nothing but good tidings and wishes.

Ah yes, Aurrora Borealis, the original 'Lady Moon'. One of the truly cosmic individuals I have had the pleasure to share space with. Wherever you may be, Peru or Mars, may you stay radiant.

Invermere Area, 2003

The inescapable, lonely beauty of the wild. The mind can only reflect.

So, time to experience something a little different. '99 Days I had in anonymity'.  I believe the occasional complete mindfuck is essential for keeping one's universal egoism in perspective. The journey was both humbling and empowering. I can be happy anywhere. 

Pickup Truck with Bob, Ometepe Nicaragua, 2003

Nicaragua was awesome. Such chaos, yet the people are fantastic. Considering the horrific things that America is responsible for there, we were treated so well. I recommend going there to anyone. Plus, you can live well for virtually nothing. The uncertainty of travel is a really strengthening experience. Something weird? Deal with it.

Utila, Honduras with Bob and Dale, 2003

What a shack that place was. I felt like Boxcar Willie, swilling a gallon of cheap rum and staggering around our dilapidated clapboard living room. You know what? It felt fucking awesome. 

My time cometh soon. One life is but a instant, but infinitely important. Death watches behind your left shoulder, always. I shall carry on knowing full well that this sunset may be my last.

Greene Machine, Drunken Reprobate, Utila Honduras

Bring on the fuckin' Hoolie Hoolie and let the good times roll, dude! You meet so many team Givn'er Members on the road. Solidarity, Brothers and Sisters!

Neil springs to mind: "Hate was just a legend, and War was never known, people worked together, and they lifted many stones.

And they carried them to the flatland, and they died upon the way, and they built up with their bare hands what we still can't do today."

-Cortez the Killer

Cemetery Rooftop, Chichicastenegua, Guatemala 2003

It's amazing who you meet traveling. Here we have an Aussie, a Kiwi, an Israeli, two Dutch, and a handful of girls from Arkansas - not including the fuckin' Canucks. It was a regular UN session. One of the Arkansas ladies had a guitar. Beautiful. Music was the thing I missed most about being away. Now I'm back and the guitar calluses have never been bigger.