This morning I finished the rough draft of The Ant That Found God! It’s a great feeling to have gotten the story out of my system so quickly. It feels freeing. For the past month I woke up early and wrote for one hour, in that special place between waking and fully awake, before the mind [&hellip...

IWIC (International Writers Inspiring Change) has posted their book review of The Oarsman, giving it five stars. It is nice to begin getting positive feedback from strangers, beyond the friends and editor who had already expressed their love of the book. Read the review here: IWIC Book Review of T...

Today was a playful hike, where the morning was cool enough that shady parts were tricksters that lingered too long, and the sunny patches were welcomed, making me slow to a crawl to relish their warmth. I saw the usual birds scatter from trees when I neared, the panicked lizards zig-zagging across ...

Thanksgiving in Canada is on the second Monday in October, instead of like in the US, where it is on the fourth Thursday in November. It was also only in recent years that Thanksgiving became more popular up there, and is now pushed heavily by retailers and advertising on TV. Growing up in Canada, T...

On Friday I decided to wake up early and hike up to Nordhoff peak. It had been a few months since I made that trek, and the weather now seemed cool enough for such a long hike. I was at the parking lot by 9:30AM and there were already a few cars there. People were […]...

I went for a bike ride this morning, and it was already 86 degrees (30℃) when I set out on the trail. The shade at the start was welcomed, making up for the lack of breeze, while the sunny sections offered a two-faced blanket: a warm one gently wrapping on the way down, and then […]...

Yesterday I want for a hike up Fox Canyon trail. It had been cooler the last few days compared to the heat of last week, so it was nice to go for a longer walk. From Fox I went to Fuelbreak, and then over to Pratt to stand and look at the valley from a […]...

I found it interesting, when I wrote The Oarsman, observing the dance between silence and mind. Silence, the place from where ideas are sent up on wings of inspiration, wasn’t enough on its own to craft a good book. After having the first draft pour out, and then greedily wanting to expand the b...

I trekked up the mountain today on a beautiful and cool-for-Ojai fall morning. The sky turned blue from the morning white, as shy remnants of clouds chased after their long-gone siblings. I wanted to be quiet on this walk, and I tried. I tried to focus on my steps, on the fresh air, and the [&hellip...

I went for a hike later than usual this morning, so it was already quite warm when I got to the top of the trail. I was sweaty from the climb, and breathing heavy, and suddenly the way the sun sparkled off a boulder to my right caught my eye. The slope of the boulder, […]...