04May 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#31 Lesson] Peer Pressure can be a Good Thing

[#31 Lesson] Peer Pressure can be a Good Thing

BUCKET LIST, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #31 Eat Blowfish. When we first went into the restaurant, there was no way that Toby, Maria or Claire were going to try fugu. By the end of it, we had all tried it. We were cracking jokes, having fun and taking silly photos. All thanks to peer pressure. Peer pressure is commonly regarded as a bad thing, but it really depends on the outcome. Peer pressure towards a negative outcome, such as doing drugs, is a bad thing. However, peer pressure towards a positive outcome can be a good thing. Maria took a bit of convincing to eat the fugu but admitted that she was glad she tried it when she had the chance. This goes for all of us. We…
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20Apr 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#31 Eat Blowfish

#31 Eat Blowfish

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 4th February 2019 in Tokyo Japan. For the last two years my best mate, Jesse, has made a pilgrimage to Japan to go skiing for his birthday. He wanted me to come both times but unfortunately I wasn’t able to make it. Well, this time it was for his 30th birthday so he told me I was obligated to come. As soon as I booked my flights I knew that I would be able to cross a couple items off my list. Jesse, Emma, Toby and Maria had already flown to Japan a week before me so when I arrived we coordinated a meet up in Tokyo. I met Toby and Maria there, as well as Maria’s sister, Claire, who came over from…
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06Apr 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#72 Lesson] Try, Try and Try Again

[#72 Lesson] Try, Try and Try Again

BUCKET LIST, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #72 Walk on a Glacier. I usually try to avoid diving too deep into the world of clichés, but this title was just too perfect. My first attempt was foiled by a lack of money. My second attempt was due to inclement weather. And even the third attempt was affected by the weather, but I managed to cross this one off the list. There are a few items on the list that I have had one crack at, and failed, but this is the only one that has taken me three attempts. It really is true what they say, the harder it is to achieve something, the more rewarding it becomes when you do achieve it. Perhaps I was just being stubborn…
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23Mar 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#72 Walk on a Glacier: Part 2

#72 Walk on a Glacier: Part 2

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 2nd January 2018 in Franz Josef, New Zealand. In my previous post, #72 Walk on a Glacier: Part 1, I told the stories of the two attempts that preceded my third, and final, attempt at walking on a glacier. This item took me nearly four and a half years to complete it but, on 2nd January 2018, I was successful. Attempt #3 In December 2017, my mum came to visit me in New Zealand and I wanted to take her to the West Coast. She and my dad had travelled the South Island in 2015 but skipped the West Coast due to bad weather. I thought this was a good chance to get her to the West Coast and, with any luck, perhaps…
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09Mar 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#72 Walk on a Glacier: Part 1

#72 Walk on a Glacier: Part 1

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This particular item seemed to be quite elusive to me and took me three attempts, which spanned nearly four and a half years. Some bucket list items are easy to achieve. It is just a matter of planning to go do it and then following through. However, walking on a glacier proved to be much different. I will recap the first two attempts in this post and then the story of how it was finally completed will be told in my next post. Attempt #1 While travelling through New Zealand in 2013, my friend Kyle and I found ourselves in Queenstown, then Wanaka and then heading up the West Coast. The West Coast of New Zealand is a rugged place as it cops the brunt of the weather systems that…
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26Jan 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#61 Lesson] Marvel at Human Capabilities

[#61 Lesson] Marvel at Human Capabilities

BUCKET LIST, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #61 Watch the Tour de France Live. Just as I described how I Marvel at Engineering Capabilities, I marvel at human capabilities in the same way. I have never been a fan of road cycling, but I love the Tour de France. The reason I love the Tour is because of the feat of endurance that all these athletes put on display for us. For a month straight, they bike all over France, through some grueling stages in the French Alps. This is what I truly love to watch. Endurance athletes have always impressed me. Although I am a fit person, I would not be able to complete many of the endurance races that this world has to offer. I have completed…
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12Jan 2022 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#61 Watch the Tour de France Live

#61 Watch the Tour de France Live

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 22nd July 2017 in Marseille, France. Ever since I was a kid I have always marvelled at the endurance of the athletes in the Tour de France. I have never been into road cycling and have never actually rode a proper road cycle but the Tour de France was always an event I could not ignore when it was on TV. I just had so much respect for the athletes who were going flat out, stage after stage, for a month straight. And not just over flat ground... They would go up and down mountain passes and through small villages as they toured around the country. It was my admiration of the athletes that compelled me to put this one on the list.…
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29Dec 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#27 Lesson] You Don’t Know Until You Go

[#27 Lesson] You Don’t Know Until You Go

BUCKET LIST, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #27 Watch a Bullfight. The first time that I heard these words, laid out in that exact order, was from my friend Jesse. He was referring to a surf report that we were trying to decipher. Modern surf reports are very accurate and used by every surfer to figure out whether the drive to the beach is worth it or not. However, they are still based on a computer model that is susceptible to inaccuracies. From Halifax, the nearest break is about 40 minutes away. When the reports are marginal, it becomes a gamble to determine the value of the next 80 minutes of your life. If you don’t think the conditions will be surfable, do something else. Or take the chance…
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15Dec 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#27 Watch a Bullfight

#27 Watch a Bullfight

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 8th July 2017 in Pamplona, Spain. This post continues on from the story in #54 Run with the Bulls in Spain: Part 2. As a forewarning, I will describe what I witnessed at the bullfights. For those of you who don’t know, the bulls are killed in the ring during the fights and it can be gruesome. As I sat on the bus on my way back to camp, all I could think about was finally getting some sleep. I began chatting with the girl next to me and explained what had happened to me in the ring. I told her about the doctor and all the checks he performed on me. She mentioned that it would be a good idea to assume…
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17Nov 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#54 Lesson] Do Things for Your Own Reasons

[#54 Lesson] Do Things for Your Own Reasons

BUCKET LIST, LESSON
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #54 Run with the Bulls in Spain. The San Fermin Festival in Pamplona is known around the world by millions. Just as a flipped coin has two equally weighted outcomes, it would appear that 50% of people think that the festival is an incredible experience, while the other 50% think it is despicable. Unfortunately, my ex-girlfriend Sarah, her mother and the loud-mouthed English holidaymaker on the airplane were part of the latter 50%. I never tried to impose my beliefs on any of them, but they did their best to bring shame to those very beliefs. I wasn’t doing it for them, and I didn’t need their approval, but their disapproval made it tough on me. It took a lot of resolve…
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