The Oil Zombies

"The oil zombies are coming, the oil zombies are coming!"

Warning! The zombie apocalypse is nigh.

Look out British Columbia, the oil zombies are stumbling their way west with outstretched festering arms and mumbling, "We need oil, pipelines, LNG terminals, coal exports, nuclear, rail transport of hazardous materials and fracking."

While the living are investing in planet-saving technologies like solar, wind, biogas, tidal and other sustainable methods, the undead are flogging their dying energy source - fossil fuels.

"Never mind brains and tissue, we need pipelines," the piles of pus implore. "Lots of pipelines."

The only way to dispose of the oily undead is to expose them to logic and reality. No environment, no economy.

If we fail to evolve our way out of the impending fossil fuelled apocalypse, there will soon be zombie ghost tankers laden with zombie oil leaking along our fragile coastline.

Say NO to the oil zombies.

Special Places

Roche Cove Park is a special place that I bike to often for rest and relief - it is my sanctuary.

I have always been drawn to certain places in nature - special places that have exerted their force of attraction on me. Such wild places, rich in natural beauty, have been my sanctuary over the years. These sacred, magical points of power have saved my sanity on numerous occasions.

In my special spots I sense an increased and/or unique natural energy that is mesmerizing and rejuvenating. Who couldn't use some rejuvenating from time to time? I do believe it is a necessary requirement for a sane existence in a crazy world.

My current favourite special place is an 8 km bike ride from home. Almost the entire route follows a trail laid over an old rail bed used between the early 1900s and the 1950s to move giant logs and freight. 

Now it is a train-free, motorized vehicle-free corridor allowing peaceful transit across a beautiful landscape of forests with mountain and ocean views.

I frequently use the trail to trundle myself to my special place for a bit of refuelling. My caboose of stress decompresses immediately upon arrival.

Populated by patient trees, this power point juts out into the ocean allowing waves to play on its black rock perimeter. The sound of lapping water provides a backdrop for the vibrant beauty that shimmers everywhere. 

It is quiet, and private - just me and the butterflies. I have never seen another person at this location, meaning I can be confident that my train of thought (or no thought) can move along uninterrupted.

No worries. No stresses. Only the soothing, healing power of nature.

Me and a small, rustic bench to sit and ponder, or lay and relax deeply. 

Ahh, saved again.