Happy. Canada Day.

I'm spending Canada Day in America. It's July 1 and I'm in the heart of Washington, DC, just a few blocks from the White House. In a few hours I'll be at the United Nations Environment Program headquarters here to meet Executive Director Achiem Steiner to get his photo with a Porchlight bulb -- and to secure a deal to work together to give UNEP a grassroots angle to their global work.

Cool, eh?

It's an old tradition of mine to buy a new shirt and tie for big new events. This was fine when they were rare occasions. My closet would be full if I'd kept it up over the last 18 incredible months. But I figured today would qualify as a big enough deal, so yesterday I spent an hour in a shirt shop called "Pink" on Connecticut Ave with a young guy named Omar (who turned out to be from Guelph). I walked out with a nice, crisp light blue shirt and navy tie with flecks of gold. Good for the UN. Omar got a gold-trimmed metal maple leaf pin in exchange. O Canada!

As I walked back to the hotel it occurred to me how much my world has expanded over the past two years. I have a new favourite dinner spot in Chelsea, Manhattan, preferred inns and tucked-away b&bs in three provinces and two states; I've fallen in love (with Vermont), and I buy my dress shirts from a Canadian a few blocks from the White House. Everywhere I go, from Arizona to the Alaska Highway, people seem to dig the Simple Actions message. I'm the guy with the little light bulb campaign and a big carbon footprint. But that's something I'll try to reconcile later.

Today's Canada Day, and after my UNEP meeting I'm heading home to shuck the shirt and the work for a pair of sandals and a beach with Suzy and the boys. For a month.

Because there's nothing like being away to make you want to go home. And nothing like a global perspective to make you appreciate what's near. Watch for reports of the fascinating comings and goings of trees and seabirds over the next few weeks. That's travel I can handle.

Refer a friend, make $50

Hi Folks

If you're a regular reader of this web site it's about time you were rewarded. Thanks for dropping by!

Gas prices, the rising loonie and my lack of attention to my rental site have resulted in a shortage of bookings at Walden Cabin in PEI this summer, so my good friend Elizabeth suggested I post something here.

Please help. If you refer someone to me who books a week at Walden, I'll pay you $50. And, well, you'll also get that good karma.

Consider a week for yourself! Long outdoor showers. Walks in the woods. The edge of crisp PEI evenings cut by the warmth of a gentle wood fire. Relaxation.

I'm spending the month of July there with my boys (4 and 8), but the rest of the summer is free. At $650/week it's a steal, minutes from golf and seaside strolls in central PEI.

Here's the rental site. Please help me share the Walden experience. Spread the word. Pocket some cash. HD Thoreau would be pleased at my entrepreneurial spirit.

Lights, south of the border

I'm proud of this. It's a good summary of a fun day.

This little light of mine...

I have a New Idea. But it's too early to talk about it in detail here. Let's just say that it brings together my past, my present and my future into one project. Or, at least that's what I think tonight. I could change my mind by morning.

*

One thing I do know and can share is that I truly believe I have the best job in Canada. And maybe in the US too. We launched Project Porchlight in Vermont this past week and, after kicking off the BC campaign at Mile 0 of the Alaska Highway in BC a week before, I can honestly say that there is universal truth. And here it is: People want to do stuff. They want to be part of something. They want to Believe again. And this little light bulb idea I had gives them that. I'm really proud of that.

*

And another thing I now know: I will be living in the US within 2 years. I can feel it. Over the past 18 months I've traveled extensively, but I have never had such a profound experience of "I must live here" as I did this past week in Burlington, Vermont. Yep, Burlington. What occurred to me while there, and that sums up my feelings is that it's "PEI, all grown up." I love my home province dearly, but I don't think I could live there year round. It's still a little too isolated, to insecure, wanting to be progressive but still afraid to be. Too, well, how I've been a lot of my life. Burlington has a quiet, simple, progressive confidence that impresses me ... That I aspire to. That I am increasingly feeling in myself. I'm never going to be a big city guy. But I want to live in a small city that welcomes big thinkers.

The universal reaction I get to this "gotta live in Burlington" feeling is, "yeah, but it's the US."

Honestly, I think Burlington is more Canadian than a lot of Canada, including PEI. And CBC TV is among local channels. Montreal is 60 min north on I89. The cabin is 2 hours closer via Maine. Bye-bye Renous.

And, the US has hit rock bottom. Eight years of Bush and there's nowhere to go but up. Maybe it's time to buy some stock in America. I have a feeling things will be different in a year or two. They have to be. And Americans really seem to want it to be. Especially in Vermont.

The final sign that I should move my family to Vermont came when I learned about Burlington's mayor. People say he's from a new "third" party called the Progressives. I immediately thought, "My God, now I know where the P went when the Conservatives cut it in Canada ... "

I gotta move there ...

I got sunshine on a cloudy day

Sometimes I get serious here. So I'll spare you the mouse update except to say that the thing that was clogging the drain in the wash basin this weekend wasn't lint.

As I write I'm listening to Ideas on CBC Radio. Tonight's program features Ray Kurzweil, an inventor and futurist being called "the rightful heir to Thomas Edison." So of course my ears perked up. I do a lot of Edison bashing.

What got my attention was his confident assertion that solar power will supply all of humanity's energy needs in 20 years. It's the first time in months I've heard a positive perspective on the future. I'd like to have a more positive view of the future.

Occasionally when I speak to groups about Porchlight I share an anecdote about a conversation I had with Jasper one night as I was tucking him in to bed. He asked me why I spent so much time talking to people about light bulbs. It was late and I was tired, and I remember snapping back something like, "I'm trying to save the planet."

I don't remember how he reacted. But it was a kind of slap in my own face, a reminder that I was trying to do something meaningful. And so when I reflect on this during events or in media interviews, I can say that even if changing bulbs seems insignificant, I know that in 20 years when my kids ask me "What did You do to change things, Dad?" I will have an answer. I tried.

Now tonight I'm thinking that the question might be, "Dad, why were you so worried?"

And we'd have a good laugh about the bulbs. And open another cold one in the clean, cool woods of central PEI. Safe.

Royal Blue

Here's a tip:

Never try to take an organic wild blueberry spelt crust pie home on your electric bike. First of all, it's not worth the $9. And chances are the young woman in tie-dye with dreds behind the counter will give you a used grocery bag with holes (when you ask sheepishly for that unholy item to take home your righteous tart).

I'm enjoying my bread-free journey to a healthier me, but there are some things that will never change: blueberry is unkind to library books lulu lemon sweats. And bikes and pies don't mix.

Spare us this day, our daily bread

Suzy's in the pre-week of the Raw Diet. Meaning, she is cutting back on certain things like meat and processed stuff. The idea is to eat better and lose weight.

I've never had a problem with girth; if anything, I shy away from shorts because of my "chicken legs" (as my sister used to call them). I'm heavier now that I've ever been, but that's 157lb. I was a svelte 145 when I got married (in 1999). But I've been feeling kinda blah lately, so I thought I would join Suzy's journey by giving up something, to see what happens. I decided to give up beer and bread.

Beer makes me grouchy. I Love the stuff, but after just one I get a bit sleepy and irritable, which is bad for someone who's already, well, kinda intense. (One of the few benefits of advancing age is self-awareness). Besides, I prefer wine, especially red. And the indulgence has a rationale; red wine is "good for the heart." Which is great because even with a tight waistline, my cholesterol is high. A doctor told me at age 22 to stop eating eggs, saying I'd have a heart attack by 40 if I didn't. I didn't. And 40 was so last month.

Giving up beer. Easy.

But I'm a bread-aholic. I'm thinking about it Right Now. Because the reason for giving up bread is to reduce wheat intake, and Wheat's In Everything. No more granola breakfast. No more chewy snack bars or cookies or pita or tuna on whole grain at lunch. No more nacho chips with salsa or kaiser rolls. No more pasta.

Life without bread is hard. I need help. I almost caved tonight when I ordered pepperoni pizza for the boys -- it's Jasper's birthday tomorrow and avoiding the Duncan Heinz will be a new threshold of discipline.

It's been three days, and it's a good thing I'm taking a few days off this week. I needed to sleep this afternoon. The spinach salad with beets at lunch just didn't do it for me. And yesterday's experiment with microwaved green beans with salt for breakfast was not repeated today. I need a coach!

And maybe a tailor. I'm also running again. 5k today, the third time in a week. It feels great, but the energy's got to come from somewhere, and there's not a lot of excess me to burn. Which makes my wife burn; three days in and I'm down three lb.

Maybe I'll get my six-pack back. On my gut, anyway.

Simplify, simplify.

It's harder than it sounds.

When I bought the 10-acre clearcut in 1994, I just wanted some land. Then I thought I would just build a little shack to "get out of the rain." Then I consulted an architect. And buried power lines underground. And added a clawfoot tub. Then an outdoor shower. This year it's screening in the porch and adding LED outdoor lights.

What does Simplify really mean? Life without convenience sucks. But discipline and hardship are essential to happiness. I really believe that. So where's the balance? These days I long to spend time in the woods. The first few days I'm at Walden among my trees I revisit old friends: The tiny birch twigs donated by colleagues for the '95 replanting, now requiring trimming and thinning, 30' tall. The Norway Maple my grandparents donated that now dominates the driveway and is on fire, red in the fall. I love that tree. Every time I visit I stand among them in awe. At times people who pop by (or my wife) ask me if I'm ok because they find me standing alone and still in the woods.

Despite all my busy-ness and plans, and frenzy, I really think that I could be quite content with a simple life there, observing. Writing. But maybe I should try it for more than just a few days. In fact, I will this summer. A month at Walden.

The thing about the woods is it doesn't wait to be figured out. It keeps changing. So every visit is an introduction as well as a return.

Write it on my stone. Stuart loved his trees.

It's taken me a year of moving and shoving to get rid of a third of the junk in my house in Ottawa. This shocks and saddens me. Why did I have that stuff in the first place? Why do I want to shed Even More?

And why do I think I would be happy on a hill in the woods watching trees grow? What kind of life would that be? And why in my heart do I believe that my children would be stronger and happier adults if 10 acres of mixed woodland were the only clutter in their life?

The thing is, I will probably never know.

Miles to go

I've decided to take three days off this week. Wed-Friday. Since this option occurred to me this morning, I've been positively giddy. Now I can do stuff that's fallen behind, way behind. Here's a quick list:

- Sort socks. I just keep buying more when I need clean pairs. The result is two laundry basket-fuls of almost-matching black socks. The worst part is that the kind that is most numerous also includes several with a hole in the toe that is only visible when you put them on. Trial and error and trial again!
- Fix the toilet. We have two at home. Due to a leak in the tank of the one on the ground floor (inside the ceramic is stamped Oct 1966), we have had to flush with a bucket of water - Since November.
- Rake. I bought the last rake for sale in Ottawa yesterday. Canadian Tire and Walmart were sold out and I nabbed the last one at Home Depot. Seriously.
- Fix this blog.
- Rent the cottage and cabin. Know of anyone who wants a nice rental place in PEI? Please pass the word.
- Run. I just did my third 5k run in 10 days and I feel great. Suzy says I'm going to injure myself, but I feel like a million bucks at about 4k, so I gotta keep going there.

- Find the power cable for this laptop. It's about to die, again, so I'd better log off. Besides, the compost needs turning and it's been a while and it's still sunny out so I'd better go.

It's recover balance week at Walden. Stay tuned for more updates.

Stuart

PS - Mark, I'm waiting for the cabin pics. $5US is in the mail if you send 'em!