The summer is going out like a lion in my neck of the woods. A very different yet busy summer cools off as we head into an uncertain school year commencement. I generally love the arrival of September as there is no better month to sleep with window open, hockey is starting, and the daytime schedule shifts less from daddying and more to business. With the exception of hockey, it fixes to be a regular Sept and a great last couple weeks of summer so let's take a look at the tale my camera phone tells me.
Seems spring cleaning and some bigger projects have been pushed to the ass end of summer. 8 years in the making, I finally tackled the project which would see me attempt to convert the front room from place where furniture and plants go to die, into something else. A carpet needed cleaning, windows too, and the paint on the walls must have been there for 15 years.
Leading up to this shot, we had taken a few big items to the dump, had the carpet professionally cleaned, and loaded all the livingroom and dining room furniture into the garage. I purchased the primer and paint, taped the borders, and was about ready to roll. From this point to completion took only 3 days but I will have to cliff hang you and force you to wait til I get around to assembling a story for a later blog post.
This may look like a great outdoors shot but it is actually during a wiring job on a high-end house on the edge of town.
You can see the interesting weather as we have swung wildly from hot to cool, and wet to dry with some wind in the mix. This small front unloaded a bit of precipitation but you can see the blue above the horizon which was how it looked the rest of the afternoon.
We also had the chance to help invite members of the community and Multicultural Society to harvest the garden planted a couple months ago as shown in this shot. As I lean my efforts back to the revenue generation aspects of the marketing business, I am insisting on continuing with the charitable acts as they come up. I have made time for helping the community in these interesting times and will make that a permanent pattern.
It was a careful return to martial arts after the 6-month, lock down-induced pause. It was going to be a challenge to get back into Jiu Jitsu shape but the return of familiar faces made it immediately enjoyable again. Even the gathering before class had changed form as safety and cleanliness guidelines are in overdrive.
BJJ is a grappling sport so you can imagine how quickly a virus could spread in in those close quarters without some extraordinary precautions. Confined to squares with our certified 'bubble' partner, we pounded through a lighter warm up, masked technique demonstration, and drilling. So great to be back and I look forward to hammering that back into my weekly schedule this month.
It was not all business and battle though! I had the chance to enjoy regular thousands of steps during golf outings. I have officially golfed more this summer than the past 7 combined and I am damn happy for that. There is a charity tournament this week so I will be out a few more times before the year is over. Another of a few changes this summer I wish to make permanent.
I have been inspired as of late by several Hive initiatives. They are great to engage with the community, connect with active like minds, and produce quality content as we strive for a post a day. In this one, I tapped into the next generation for a little origami wizardry for 
I was also able to power up a couple hundred more $Hive for Power Up Day. A small step for me towards dolphin-hood but a solid initiative where the community collectively locks value into the blockchain for the greater good.
So many great communities and movements here so I encourage you to never stop searching them out.
I would probably have a mutiny on my hands if I didn't mention beer as part of the weekly routine and a return to normal. The end of the summer sees me returning to some of my alltime favourite brews as we await the fall seasonal brews! This one is brewed about 45 minutes down the road and tasted as good as the last time I had it so many months ago.
As things relaunch and reopen, I am also happy to be able to sit at a brewery and have a pint. To make that sweeter, one of the local breweries has reopened with new owners, new branding, some changes and some of the old favourites on tap. Here is last week's Beerologist Blog @zekepickleman/zeke-s-sweet-hops-i-would-buy-this-again and the next one promises to be a flavourful jaunt through the menu at Heritage Hops Brewing Company https://heritagehopsbrew.com/
As the sun goes down on a fantastic summer, it will come up again for an autumn perfectly set up for adventure, a slow crawl back to normal, and great accomplishments in business and leisure. Now I have to maintain the level of fun, fitness and personal productivity while I turn up the performance of the business and drive home some of these guys I have on base. I just got finished watching the Blue Jays beat the Yankees which leaves me in an even better mood and looking forward to October baseball for the first time in a while.
Thanks for checking in! Your old pal Zeke is doin' Fantastic!
I am honoured to curate for:
