30 to 30: That's It, That's All. . . Yeah, Right!

I had very loose criteria for my birthday adventures; it was simply to do something I’d never done every day for the 30 days leading up to my birthday.

These adventures were inspired by Ken Hall, someone who will always look up to and never forget, Ken inspired us to have fun, have adventures and live life to its fullest (he also whole-heartedly endorsed large amounts of alcohol, nudity, gambling and the corruption of minors). . . I hope I’ve made him proud!

A big shout out to all of you that made my 30+ adventures amazing, I love you and am so very lucky to be surrounded by so many caring, inspiring, witty, adventures and shockingly good looking people!

And now. . . the list:

1. Solo ride to Deep Cove and hike to Quarry Rock

· My adventures started on a day with torrential downpour. . .

2. Rowed Trip with Melony

· I’m always inspired when I see one of Colin and Julie’s movies about their latest adventures, it’s hard not to be when you are presented with what they have accomplished. If you don’t already know about Angus Adventures, check it out: www.angusadventures.com.

3. Night Photo Shoot Downtown Vancouver with Dan

· On a cold, dark and windy night Dan and I shot photos from the seabus to Gastown, to the art gallery, down Robson to Denman, to English Bay, up Davie to Granville and back to the seabus. Yeah Team Dan!

4. Riding 7^th Secret with Seann

· Surprisingly my only mountain bike adventure on the list, but one of my favorites! Seann was chivalrous and let me ride his SX Trail up and my Demo 7 down. . . yep, the perfect combination. Our ride fell on Ken’s birthday so we had a drink for him at the top.

5. Becky and Cory’s Reception with Matt, Meghan and Coreena

· One of many nights where I am reminded that having amazing friends means that you never have to worry if they’ll get along. . . and I guess the photo booth helped too!

6. Patricia’s Baby Shower with Aunty Jan and Aunty Dar

· I am a very lucky girl for the fact that not only do I have amazing friends but also an awesome family. I have three “extra” moms, my Aunty Dar, Aunty Jan and Aunty Sherry. Spending the day with Aunty Dar and Aunty Jan, along with my sister-in-law, many friends and some wine and a lot of food was good for the soul.

7. Hiking The Chief with Meghan

· When we left Vancouver it was pouring rain but as Matt always says “fortune favors the bold”, we had beautiful weather for our hike in Squamish and had a great day. My favorite quote from this adventure was when I slipped on a rock. Me: Woah, I almost when down on that rock. Meghan: Was it that good?

8. LSCR road ride with Sarah

· It was really cold, but we’d never ventured up that way, riding your bike without traffic to think about is pretty sweet. . . except for the creepy guy at the outhouse.

9. Where the Wild Things Are with Seann

· Yes, I cried.

10. Costume Making and Pumpkin Carving with Matt, Colin, Celina and Daryl

11. Climbing with Meghan, Jessica, Matt and Sean

12. Trail run on Ned’s with Celina

13. Halloween as a sexy Care Bear

· Celina hooked me up with a sexy Care Bear costume for Halloween. Apparently its against the law to not wear a sexy Halloween costume when you’re single. . . who knew?

14. Spanish lessons with Xochipilli

· Xochipilli is one of my oldest friends, we’ve know each other since I was 5 years old and visiting Mexico for the first time.

15. Inventory at Obession: Bikes (aka: 12 hours in a bike shop)

· Locked in a bank vault counting rear skewers and loose balls. . . need I say more?

16. Drawing a naked man

· Balls!

17. Night hike on Mt. Seymour with Sarah and Dan

· Shortest hike ever, coldest hike ever, possibly the most fun I’ve had on a short, cold night hike!

18. A day with Erin, David, Talia and Joshua

· I think about my friend Erin all the time but I never get to see her, spending the whole day with her and her family in Whistler was awesome! She always inspires me and I’ve looked up to her since I first met her 8 years ago. Of course I also look up to her husband, David, but that’s just for encouragement to do bad things.

19. Camping in the rain at the hot springs with Jon and Matt

· What happens when you accept an invitation to an adventure in the woods with someone you don’t know very well and someone you’ve never met: rain, hot springs, snow, boobs, cheese buns, fireball, the majority of a day devoted to starting a fire, some zany music and H1N1.

20. Getting a bruised ass while camping in the rain at the hot springs with Jon and Matt

· Technically this was still the same adventure, but the bruise was so big it seemed like it needed an entry of its own. Lesson learned: don’t wander half naked (mostly naked) in the dark, near a river, in the mud. . . it doesn’t go well.

21. Shannon Falls

22. Yin Yoga with Matt, Meghan and Nina

· A shout out her for hip openers. . . so good!

23. Shout Out Out Out Out concert with Aja, Jonny, Jessica, Miriam and Dan

· This night was so good:

- CLAP YOUR HANDS

- Lost earring

- Birthday Shout Out and Hi-five

- Pointing (oh yeah, pointing)

- NWA Strawberry

- Poutine

- Jonny’s unruly harem (this is the worst harem ever!)

24. Having my bike stolen

· Adventures come in all shape and sizes, some planned, some unplanned. My bike got stolen this month, it sucked. The bright side? The generosity people have displayed and the temporary bike that the guys from Obsession hooked me up with! Thank you everyone for being so rad!

25. Meeting my niece for the first time

· When you’re four days old, rocking a KISS shirt and sticking out your tongue. . . you know you’re going to be one cool kid!

26. KISS concert with Chris

· My brother took me to my very first concert 23 years ago, we saw Tiffany. KISS had more explosions! Thanks Chris for a great night (sorry about the beer)!!!

27. Learning how to cook with Rebecca and Cory

· Becky and I have been friends since we met at a mountain biking class about four years ago. She’s the friend that has it together, knows her way around a bike, the kitchen and will sell you a house while charming you with her witty banter. Thanks to her (and Cory), I now can boil water without setting off the fire alarm (my neighbors also thank you).

28. Watching a scary movie with my eyes open (for the WHOLE thing) with Colin

· So apparently Rob Zombie movies aren’t actually scary. . . but I still slept with the lights on.

29. The Rusty Gull with Matt and Diane

· Impromptu adventures are the best! A post class text message led to me waking up with an I O Matt Parker on my arm, Diane’s autograph on my boob and memories of a conversation about petting a purple dinosaur. . .

30. Indian food and a Bollywood movie with Jessica

· Jesus was there. . . need I say more? Okay, well for those of you who weren’t there it was awesome! Three hours, an intermission, Jesus, bad subtitles and two dance routines is all it takes to find true love these days. "BAKER and EVANS!!!". . . "who?"

31. Cardero’s with Jacquie and Michael

· I got the only thing I wanted for my birthday. I night out with my sister filled with laughter, new memories and a bar tab that would’ve made Ken proud. Thank-you Jacquie and Michael for the drinks, dinner, more drinks, flowers, more drinks, cake, singing, laughter and all the memories!

32. Evil Dead the Musical with Matt and Celina

· I was simply having too good of a time to stop adventuring. . . sooo. . . I continued through the weekend. Matt came through with my first adventure after 30 and took Celina and I to see Evil Dead the Musical. . . so ridiculously good! My foot was in the splatter zone!