I think this entry might be a large one... I haven't been on here in about a week.. and I have many thoughts to share.

Ok... where to begin? I guess where I left off in Winnipeg. From there we headed West and, despite our noble attempts at driving, only made it to Saskatoon. Upon arriving, I mentioned to Forbes that a dear friend of mine Sue Stewart from Ottawa was now living in Saskatoon working for Grain Magazine - http://www.grainmagazine.ca/. Unfortunately Sue's number was deep in my online email account which I couldn't access from the road, so we decide to drive on towards Edmonton and see how far we got by midnight then crash out in the van. Forbes decided to call his cousin to check in. While he's doing so, I figure I might as well pick up my cell and check if the phone company has actually disconnected it as I had requested a few days earlier. No... hmm... seems telephone companies don't listen too well. You'd think they would... hmm, cell's internal phone book still intact... VOILA!... Sue's digits! Now this isn't too strange but what is strange is that a) Sue lives in Saskatoon. b) I never see her. c) I have enough problems entering my local friends into my cell because of a refusal to be too dependent on technology (note: If you've been reading Forbes' blog you'll see a theme developing ;-) d) The reason I have her number in my phone is because I was in Edmonton in 2001 at an Independent Film and Video Alliance conference -IFVA (Now IMAA - Independent Media Arts Alliance - http://www.imaa.ca/ and had just bought my phone and had entered her digits in case I could drop by to see her. It didn't happen.. I never got in touch.. But, somehow, maybe I was planning ahead for 2006? It gets a little stranger later on in this blog entry so keep reading. Anyway, got in touch with Sue, dropped in at her place, had a lovely visit, caught up on the politics of art and life in Saskatoon, slept in a beautiful meditative space, visited Grain Mags headquarters the next morning.. hugs, a wish of bon courage, and we're off towards Edmonton!

Current Location: Edmonton, Alberta.

We're staying in a condo with Forbes' cousin Jessica Campbell just off Whyte Ave.

1) I have no idea where I would be if it wasn't for Forbes family. I'd probably be in the van somewhere trying to get some Fedex delivery guy to deliver a very important package to me in my world of Nowhere! Alas, I'm here with an actual address, a warm shower, and a full kitchen, and a gym. We're definitely not roughing it yet as the universe is being gentle with me as I attempt to leave it all behind. This in itself makes for a wonderful tangent about how, here in the West, regardless of how hard we may try, it can actually be quite diffifult to arrive at that place of having nothing. And it does speak to the value of community, friendship and good Karma... I am amazed and awestruck with a deep desire to help those less fortunate.

2) I love Whyte Ave! I love everyone's I don't give a $^#% fashion style, I love the little niche junk shops, and I just love the overall vibe. Again here everything is running full circle for me.. back in 2001 I was here for an IFVA conference as a delegate for the Independent Filmmaker's Cooperative of Ottawa - IFCO - http://www.ifco.ca/. I didn't want to stay in the posh hotel where most other delegates were staying since I wanted to save some cash for IFCO. So I stayed at this lovely place called the Strathcona Hotel. Now, if you know Edmonton you probably know about the Strath, and that lovely is not exactly the word to describe it. I, however, love the Strath. It may be a bit grungy, maybe filled with drifters from the wrong side of the tracks, but it's beautiful all the same. The building was built in 1891 by the Calgary & Edmonton Railway Company and is the longest standing woodframe commercial building in Edmonton. During prohibition the building served as the Westminster Ladies College, and over the years it has also served as a gathering place for all walks of life.

So now.. in 2006 I'm right across the street from the Strathcona Hotel in a cush condo... I'm walking down Whyte Ave having complete deja vues... life is funny. Which brings me to my current feelings about this film project. My feelings at this moment are best summed up by an except from Gary Zukav's Introduction to the Perennial Classics Edition of his book The Dancing Wu Li Master: An Overview of the New Physics. This quote is perfect with the only exception being that I am at the beginning of my film's process and therefore I have left far more room for faith and hope. The only thing I know, is that I know nothing.

"While writing The Dancing Wu Li Masters, I knew it would be published and that it would be very well received. I also knew that it would sell very well for many years after its publication. I did not need to have faith in these things. I knew them. I could see them. It was clear to me that all I needed to do to make them happen was to continue writing. In other words, to do my part. I knew that without my part, none of what I saw would happen, and that with my part, it was already accomplished. I was the key. Everything depended only upon my doing what I was already doing-writing about physics, studying physics, discussing physics, and writing about it each day. That was no problem for me because I love doing those things. I woke thinking about the ideas in The Dancing Wu Li Masters and I went to sleep thinking about them the same way that some people wake in the morning and go to sleep at night thinking about a Beloved. ... A spirit of giving prevades this book... Another reason is that The Dancing Wu Li Masters contains within it the seed of the thought that consciousness lies at the heart of all that we can experience, all that we can conceive, and all that we are. It also points toward the possibility that intentions create the reality that we experience.... When I began writing The Dancing Wu Li Masters, I could only suspect or deduce things about the role of consciousness and intention in the creation of experience, but I soon discovered that some of the founders of quantum mechanics has suspected and deducted the same things decades before me. This was exciting enough, yet as I became more engaged in the writing, I began to encounter phenomena that I could never have imagined. For example, I realized that the book that I was writing was more intelligent than I was... In every instance, I would write not for long before I had to choose between following the outline that I had prepared and going with the energy that developed as I wrote. I always went with the energy."

Some pics from the road.

1. Hula Dog... our vans mascot. I gave him a funky new sarong instead of the lame hula skirt he came with. Notice the dragon pattern. He jives all day as we add up the mileage.

2. Ice on the tires on the way from Toronto to North Bay. Nature meets machine.

3 & 4. The Mondragon Coffee Shop and Bookstore in Winnipeg. This place is run according to the mondragon principles of participatory economics. It is run and owned by its workers. I looked into this system a few years ago and I have future plans of building a mondragon film company. It's a very interesting concept and you can read more about the coffee shop at, http://www.a-zone.org/mondragon/about_us.html and you can read more about the origins of mondragon at, http://www.mcc.es/ing/index.asp I really like the idea of worker owned organizations.

5. This is a shot of Glen Murray's bridge. The story as I heard it from Glen Murray himself goes like this. Glen Murray became mayor of Winnipeg and had to build a new bridge. So all these developers brought him plans of new fancy bridges. One problem. All the bridges were designed for cars. Glen asked that they come back with a design for a bridge that involved people. The picture displays the design that obviously won. A nice bridge with a restaurant where people can walk, talk and eat. I heard about this bridge at a creative city conference and was really excited to see it in person. I must say though I am a little disappointed. The bridge is beautiful and I like the walking pedestrian aspect but the restaurant is a Salisbury House! Like what the %$#*! They build this amazing structure and incorporate people and then they throw down a chain restaurant. What makes it worse in my opinion is that this bridge is located right next to The Forks where the Assiniboine River meets the Red River.. this is historical site with amazing Aboriginal history. http://www.theforks.com/ Why not put a restaurant on the bridge that pays tribute to this location? Why not have a restaurant that educates people about traditional Native cuisine.. or even some cool fusion of Native and North American... but a Salisbury.. "home of the nip".. I don't get it.

Anyway that's my rant. I'm sure Glen Murray didn't have much to do with the restaurant choice... and I've heard that the mayor who followed Glen overturned many of his plans of public transit making Winnipeg a walkable, livable city. It's a shame that we seem to lack the ability to follow through with real vision without messing it up. It's a shame there aren't more visionaries like Glen Murray in politics. And it's a shame that in the end it seems the message remains CARS & Restaurant Franchises RULE!! and don't you ever forget it!! Ok, maybe I'm being a little dramatic... but I'm so disappointed.

peace,
d

OK, First things first. I've been trying to finish this blog entry for 3 days. Life on the road isn't all that conducive to internet blog updates. Plus my laptop caught fire in Toronto so now I'm working off the kindness of those around me. Forbes and I are now in Winnipeg. But before I get to the Peg, I want to finish my entry for North Bay...
Mar 20th
We just arrived in North Bay at my close friend Natasha Cibischino's place. Natasha is here studying to be a teacher at Nipissing University. She and her roomate Christine fed us some fajitas and have given us a place to lay our heads for the night. It's cold outside and we're very grateful for the warm beds.

The drive up here from Toronto was nice. It's good to be finally moving North. What I really enjoyed about the drive was the absence of major food chains. None of the seemingly omnipresent Wendy's, McDonald's or Harvey's along this highway. It's refreshing to see family owed restaurants and motels. And from our brief stops for gas, I can see that the food served tends to be slower and home-cooking in style, which I find nice and comforting.

Hmmm, I've already entered this blog once, but accidentally erased it, so I'm trying to remember what I wanted to say. Oh! There is this guy Natasha was telling us about, who is attending the same University to be a teacher, but the twist is, he's been living out of his car and a tent. He didn't want to drop the cash on rent so he went bushwhacker! I love it! Not the living out of your car, but living out of your car all winter in NORTH BAY!!! Brrrr! Anyway I feel a certain bond with him since we share a common lifestyle. It's an interesting idea to downshift to a lifestyle that might not be all that comfortable. And I think it's beneficial to test your survival instincts now and then while realizing how much we all take for granted. I wanted to go track this student down for some footage and an interview, but we had to get on the road early to New Liskeard for the next day.

Above is a picture that Natasha took of a structure behind Nipissing University. I really enjoy these lone structures/sculptures since they force people to stop and wonder. We need to build more places to stop and wonder in our wonderful world ;-)

peace,
d

Still in Toronto. We're held up by my laptop, which, when plugged in, smells like burning plastic. Technology is actually slowing me down ;-). It's five years old, so it's somewhat expected, but a fried computer is bad for me in terms of an unplanned production cost. I've also been running my numbers and the upcoming reality is to be one of serious simplicity. Looking at the entire project, and the distance left to travel, money is officially tight. The drifter vagabond budget is now in full effect.

Going to visit a Russian computer expert in the a.m. to see if the laptop can be salvaged, then hitting the road out of T.O.

peace,
d

Yesterday we had the opportunity to sit in on José Etcheverry's class "National and International Environmental Policy Making" at the University of Toronto. In addition to lecturing at the University, José is also a Research & Policy Analyst with the David Suzuki Foundation. (Thanks to Eric Campbell for inviting us to class with him.) I'm so happy to be on this journey as we keep encountering people like José... people who are clear and optimistic in their vision of a sustainable future... people who are strong and down to earth... and people with bright friendly eyes who are willing to open their doors to us and help us in our search for wisdom.

Our timing in everything is exquisite right now... and somewhat overwhelming as we continually find ourselves in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. For instance, yesterday José had arranged a guest speaker for his class.. this speaker was Paul Gipe. For those of you, who, like me, have little idea who Paul Gipe is, let me tell you. As introduced by José, "Paul Gipe is the world's top expert on wind energy!" Paul has been working with wind around the world for 29 years. If interested, you can read more about Paul and his ideas at, www.wind-works.org. Forbes and I sat in class listening to Paul for over 3hrs and in that time we were exposed to the vast potential of what's possible in terms of wind energy. Wind is a viable source of energy... wind energy will play a very important role in our future... wind energy is clean.. and finally wind energy is a solid investment.

What I find extraordinary is that with all the potential of wind power clearly evident, we still continue investing vast amounts of our country's capital resources into oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear power. We're holding onto and investing in resources that don't support a sustainable future. Meanwhile, around the world other countries are moving far beyond Canada, installing countless mega watts of power. Read excerpt from Walrus in sustainability/alternative power section of Windpathfilms.com ...very interesting material.

In other news, I recently purchased a digital camera.. here is a pic of a blurred college street.. and another of José Etcheverry (middle) after class with students. Eric Campbell on left.

Well, I'm officially a nomad, a wanderer, a pilgrim, a rambler, a rover and a vagabond.

It feels nice.

We recently made our way to Toronto for another media release and launch party at The College Street Bar. The event was held last night, Mar 15th, and was a great success! Thanks to Joe Touil & Neil DeGasperis for organizing, Paul Pascolo for hosting & Mike Budd for spinning the beats. We had a great time talking about the project with a solid and genuine crowd. I'm always touched by the support, interest and encouragement we receive from complete strangers when they first hear about the project. I feel that something special is taking place and that on some level people are connecting to us out of a deep seated desire to see positive change in the world. For me, the support I receive gives me hope since I always intended to make this project out on my own as a pilgrim... these days I realize there is no alone anymore and as the project itself will investigate, everything in this world is interconnected.

On a side note. Last night I had a spectacular deja vu. The deja vu is an amazing phenomenon and right now I can't help but interpret mine as an affirmation that I'm walking the right path and everyone and everything is exactly where it needs to be.

peace,
d

Being human is being both a work of art and an artist. - Alan Jones

Loading van at night.
Fog outside fills the spring air.
Ready for long road.

The launch party a HUGE SUCCESS!! Thanks to everyone who came out.. we have a solid community here in Ottawa!! It will be missed while out on the road...

peace,
d

The past week has been pretty hectic but everything is in place for our departure and we're pretty much ready to rock out tonight at the launch party and leave tomorrow. Time to step into the void, jump off the cliff, have faith and ride the waves the universe provides.

What's unbelievable is all the people who have been helping us out.. the project really has it's own momentum now and all I really have to do is sit back and watch it all unfold. In the last week my good friends Jeanne Van Lankveld and Sarah Van Stiphout made us some beautiful curtains for the van's interior.. Amazing job ladies! Biggups!! Chris Graham welded a ladder and solid roof rack for the van.. (check Forbes' Blog for pics), Joe Touil a good friend in T.O. has set up a media launch at the College Street Bar on Wednesday Mar. 15th 8pm.. Amazing Work Brotha! The guys at ProtonMedia are rippin it up with the press and media releases!! And listen to this.. Wednesday night we go to sleep, friend Jasmine Jarjour forwards media release to Martin Landry up in Inuvik and when we wake up he's arranged dog sleds, a place to shower, internet access and two plane tickets to Holman Island (off Victoria Island) care of Sean Gray at Aklak Air!!! All I had to do was sleep.. madness.. people are so amazing and generous and we're very grateful!

In other news.. I had my first TV spot on CBC Newsworld.. national television.. yikes. I'd rather be behind the camera but Shana Cohen, Andrea Cardillo, Sarika Sehgal and producer Bernadette Vanneste made it all a very enjoyable experience. Right after the TV spot we raced over to CHUO for a radio interview on the Train with Chris Jack. Man I have to slow it down when I speak. All these interviews will be up in the press section of the Windpath Films website once Cory at ProtonMedia has some time to fix it up.

Aight that's it for now.. have to go build some media kits for tonight.. it's going to be a mad evening! We're Stoked!!!

Oh the reason for the title.. Escape Velocity comes from when astronauts go to space they need escape velocity to get out of earth's atmosphere.. we currently have plenty of escape velocity from everyone involved to send us on our way.

peace,
d

I'd just like to say that last minute planning is causing me to LOSE MY MIND!!!

:-)

In times like these it's important to remember to breath deeply and not lose touch with the fact that everything is only as important as you make it. I always try to return to the perspective of the planet... in 100yrs this week along with many other things will be long gone... I imagine self-important people in Rome stressing out over relatively trivial events. Everything goes back to a blank slate in the end. SO RELAX and enjoy the ride!

We just sent out a mass email to over 1000 people and with that have left our comfort zone well below the radar. I'm interested to hear feedback and I'm very excited for our March 10th departure party, 7-10pm at the Mercury Lounge.. should be a good time!!

Oh and it's FREE to get in... donations to the project accepted with zero pressure. It's not about the money.

d

We've moved the Launch/Departure Party to it's final date MAR 10th 7-10pm at the Mercury Lounge. We hope to see lots of friends, Ottawa film & video community members, the media and our sponsors out for the event. It should be a good time.

This past weekend I got into some grease and installed new brake pads and tie rods on our van. I installed the parts North of Ottawa in the small town of Gracefield at my cousin Lionel's family farm. It was great to hang out, play with tools and torches and talk about the project. While working, our conversation led to what it's like to work as a local farmer in the year 2006. We talked about how most food on supermarket shelves these days comes from over 2000km away, while local farms are struggling to survive. I believe this may become a serious problem down the road as oil and gas becomes increasingly expensive or, as many experts suggest, actually begins to run out. WATCH DVD: END OF SUBURBIA!

Lionel said one thing that has stuck with me since our conversation, he suggested that although in the past one hundred years we have made great progress in terms of technology and living conditions, we're about to return to a dark age of sorts caused by a lack of oil, loss of local farming skills and food production, and an overall disconnection to the land that provides for us. What I find most interesting is this simple man living up North working on machines and tending his land shares the same viewpoint as many respected scientists, authors, and environmentalists around the world. My point is, often we don't need a PhD to see what's happening, we just need to open our eyes. We're in trouble and our current lifestyle of mass consumption is coming to an end.

My question becomes, how will we move forward into the future? How will we adapt? I personally believe in a future where urban farming becomes the norm. I see cities that utilize the passive solar energy (http://www.newenergy.org/sesci/publications/pamphlets/passive.html)
shining on our office towers for food production. I see people digging up yards in the burbs, building gardens and taking back all the valuable farmland we've paved over. I see people dependent on walkable local economies and communities for their survival and wellbeing. Finally I see the potential for a paradigm shift in the way we live and the ecological footprint we leave behind.

Anyway... I'm rambling... in any case these are all interesting things to think about. We know our current model is unsustainable, the questions are, what do we really see when we actually look around? Can we change things for the better? How do we change things?... and/or is it already a little too late?

Maybe we should all just be looking for an exit? Maybe the exit is the only solution? Maybe we all have to let go, just to hold on.

peace,
d