Well, I didn't blog for a whole year. My last post was a reflection on 2021 where I left off saying "For now, I’m still feeling introspective and perhaps in waiting. For what, I can’t say—though I have some ideas. Yet, I sense a new beginning in 2022." So, let's start there!
It was a year of quiet introspection and growth. In the Pacific Northwest, we experienced record heat, flooding, and snow. The garden has come into its own, supporting a budding ecosystem that invites ever more bees, birds, rabbits, deer and snakes.
I struggle to understand the messaging around the vaccines and what they are purported to do, and how mask mandates seem contrary to a vaccine mandate, especially when it results in firing healthcare workers.
Recently, Alberta Health attributed their youngest COVID-19 related death to a 14-year old boy. This triggered the family of the 14-year old to criticize the reporting, calling it "fake news."
Our response to the Covid-19 pandemic has shifted hospitalizations and mortality from the over-65 to the under-65 age group. Social distancing, lockdowns, and masking are contributing to mental health epidemics, and affecting the immune systems of children.
Early on in the Pandemic, it was all "we're in this together!" "two weeks to flatten the curve!" "We love our frontline workers!". That message of unity and positivity has declined. Shifting, instead, to "anti-vaxx" vs "pro-vaxx". Why is that?
Democracy and Science are amoral. So morality is left to the people. In liberal democracy, it's left to the individual. Without a higher source of morality (God), do we actual lose morality as a people?
Massive energy use and the creation of e-waste have been talked about rather extensively in regards to BTC -- Still waiting on a decent rebuttal to those points -- but I haven't seen much said about the inherent inequities of BTC. So, I thought I'd share some thoughts on this.
It seems proponents of BTC think that it actually has a net positive on the environment. Which is absurd to me, especially when the arguments are rather weak, and lack sources.
Alberta's United Conservative government recently announced they are investing $1.5 billion directly into the Keystone XL pipeline, plus a $6 billion loan guarantee. They must feel quite confident that oil prices will go back to historic highs?
I've been getting more and more into shooting 35mm film these past few months. So much so, that I'm starting to head out and only bring my film SLR, leaving my Sony NEX 6 behind.
This past weekend we hiked a similar route that we did about the same time last year. Only, we found one of our favourite sections had changed.
Almost exactly 2 years ago today, I bought a OnePlus One. It was (and is) my first real smartphone after spending $100 on the Geeksphone Peak. And, I have next to no qualms with it.
I came across How I Got Converted to GMOs via ma.tt. This is a response to that article.
Roy Choi is a pioneer of awesome street food with the Kogi, korean taco, truck.
This is how Ecquire caught my attention ~2 years ago. Then, just a couple weeks after joining, I got to meet the team at Nerds on Vacation in Tofino, BC. Which was awesome.
Veganism is not the end-all answer to a better world. Leo Babauta is claiming that is is. To me, Leo is still reacting. He is presenting Veganism as the only answer to numerous injustices. And yet, closing his eyes to other perspectives.
Awhile back, I lived atop Burnaby Mountain. Often, I would take the 135 bus in and out of downtown Vancouver. One of these times, returning from downtown, I happened to sit next to a fellow who wished to share a story.
James Somers asks if coders are worth it. Well, I’d like to answer that.
Last year, I spent 8 months living and working out of a 5th Wheeler. I did this with my partner, on a public farm, in the city of Vancouver. What were we thinking?!
I've been out of the freelance game since I joined Ecquire back in May. And, I feel I need to reflect on those years freelancing and see if I learned anything.
John Lius, a documentary film-maker and ecologist, has dedicated his life spreading the knowledge and successes of rehabilitating large-scale, damaged ecosystems.
Anna Bronnes recently published on Ecosalon a link-bait article—with good intentions—that unfortunately fell a bit flat.
I spent 10 days this July, in the breathtaking town of Tofino, surfing and writing code as part of Nerds on Vacation.
A few weeks ago I posted about possible drawbacks of being a self-taught web developer and I got some really good feedback.
I had yet to notice any drawbacks of working in a field where I have either taught myself what I need to know or learned through work experience. Until now.
Since I missed the chance to see one of my all-time favourite people live, in Vancouver, I had an all-too-good reason to visit Seattle for the first time.
I don't subscribe to any sort of minimalist way of life. But, that word seems to have a meaning that I can often attest to my life. The funny thing about words and their meaning is that they aren't consistent across all means.
I have relaunched my website and launched my blog as a separate website. Here's how and why.
Chris Allen is a Vancouver based freelance Graphic Designer and Art Director, an Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design graduate and has strong roots in the Skateboarding industry.