Getting off the Treadmill .....

A very lonnnnng time without having made a blog posts. It's an easy enough process and but after 50+ years in the sport, life can take many twists and turns. Change of venue, change of priorities..... change. 

Having lived all of my life in BC's Fraser Valley and a full on participant of the "Rat Race" there came a realization that it was time to get off the treadmill and move on.  

Mia and I had always "talked" about moving, going someplace quite and a bit off the grid, for certain we had enough. The stars aligned, there came an opportunity to make a move and we took a leap of faith.   

I had 43 years of working for the same employer (Ecolab, a Giant American Corporation and heartless destroyer of the planet.... affectionately known as "Evil Corp" 😉). Funny in a way, I enjoyed the work, enjoyed "most" of my coworkers but like so many large corporations, employee's are just tools for profit and shareholders. The fake platitudes of "The Planet, our People and lofty aspirations to be all that we can be" is of course just bullshit. It's all about burning the planet to a crisp and profit. Totally admit to being a hypocrite and sucking the hind tit of capitalism. Not bitter... just done. I passed on my years of wisdom "Aim Low and you will achieve your goals" and retired.   

The Fraser Valley (our home base for flying) was no longer a rural community, it had become  just one giant mess of people and congestion, your proverbial Sodom and Gamora. The stark reality that when it came to flying, the "Old Days" were over and replaced with the new kids and all the toys. Doing anything in the valley was a competition. Expensive, stress and no longer home. 

Grand Forks BC has been our new home for the last 2 years. Very rural but just enough "city" that it fulfills our life needs. The new place has a list of endless projects but at the end of the day a beverage on the deck seems to bring much more satisfaction than returning home after hours of hands clenched to the wheel fighting traffic to return "home". 

There is a downside... Flying sucks. We have a couple small hike and fly sites suited to the paragliders but nothing that would work for the ATOS.  Truth is, getting after it in the sport of hang gliding has also run its course. Both of us no longer have that burning desire to huck ourself headlong into what has been a life and lifestyle commitment.  To that end, I sold my VR (a bit sad as it was the best glider I had ever flown, the Ali Tailed VR was perfect but I saw no point in having money tied up in something that was just going to occasionally flown and certainly not useable in my new digs).   I will post more about our flying decisions but for now we have taken a step back, or as I put it, "dumbed down our aspirations". 

I may shift my blog to doing what bitter old people do, rant about the world around us. In-between refreshments on the deck I might just have something worth saying.... or not? 

Regardless... We Truly got off the treadmill!

Cheers!