For a few years now I’ve been trying to live with a different attitude: an attitude of saying yes, rather than no. Of trying new things. Of being willing to take more risks. I’ve enjoyed so many “firsts” over the past few years that I’ve lost count — and track. So now I’m going to keep a record of my firsts, no matter how small, in the hopes that it might inspire you to consider trying something new.
January 23, 2012 – Dragonfruit. Melon-like texture, bland but oddly nasty taste. Not likely to become a family favourite.
January 22, 2012 – I went skate skiing for the first time and learned two things. 1: skate skiing is harder than it looks. 2: persistence pays off. After a couple of hours I had a little grace, a big grin and some sore muscles. Again! Again!
December 22, 2011 – First outdoor ice skate (such a novelty for a girl from Oz), with my kids and bf on Grouse Mountain. I was a little unstable at first, but by the end of the night I’d even forgotten how much I dislike cold weather.
October 1, 2011 – First ride on a road bike, and oh, was it good. I got a sexy new steed from my guy for my birthday (lucky girl) and took it for a super smooth ride in Bellingham, WA. Next step: learning to ride clipless (so I can go really fast).
August 25, 2011 – I can’t believe this is true, but it is: first go kart experience. Now I just want more. I’ve heard there’s a track where it’s really easy to drift….
August 20, 2011 – Jackfruit. Yup. That’s all I’ve got to say.
August 2011 – First visit to Darwin, Australia, and the beautiful Katherine Gorge and Kakadu: camping in the outback, sleeping under the stars, swimming in crystal clear waterholes; crocs and wallabies and beautiful birds; four-wheel-driving down sandy red “roads”, driving through rivers, eating roo and croc. Fantastic.
June 15, 2011 – Downtown for the final of the Stanley Cup, I enjoyed my first Japadog: a tasty combo of pork hotdog, cabbage and bonito flakes. Almost got caught up in my first riot… but had the sense to leave downtown Vancouver before it started.
June 13, 2011 – Finally tracked down the Roaming Dragon food truck in Vancouver. Loved the fried rice balls, and the pork sliders were damn tasty. Almost made up for the Canucks loss.
June 2, 2011 – First time going to a theatre… in the back of a restaurant. Very amusing play (Bedroom Farce) starring the wife of a friend, playing at a 60-seat theatre out back behind the bar in Havana, on Commercial Drive in Vancouver. It also has an art gallery.
May 14, 2011 – Pumpkin pie ice cream, which was tasty – but one of those “dang — I wish I’d ordered XXX instead” choices. I had my eye on red bean paste and black sesame ice creams, but I choked when my time to order finally came. Lesson learned: go with your first instinct and get what you really want.
May 6, 2011 – Aloo tikki: spicy fried mashed potato croquettes. I love all Indian food (it tops my list of favorite foods), but these little nuggets were a new delight. It pays to skip your perennial favorites on the menu every once in a while.
April 30, 2011 – First trip to La Conner, Washington -- a small town that is renowned for its colorful fields of tulips. Stunning. I’ve wanted to make this trip for years but never got organized; this year I picked a date and made sure it happened.
April 21, 2011 – First trip to Las Vegas, Nevada – and so many firsts within this first: braving heights at Hoover Dam, driving a convertible black Mustang (with the top down, of course), stuffed French toast at Raffles in Mandalay Bay (OMG good), Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill, a perfect meal at Tao, crashing the beach club at Wynn Encore, shooting into the air from the top of the 1,150 ft tall Stratosphere (on the aptly named Hot Shot), cocktails before noon…. Sometimes you just have to let go, open your mind and enjoy yourself.
March 29, 2011 – First trip to Portland, Oregon - a city I’ve breezed through and past several times. I love bikes, thoughtful architecture and interesting food, and Portland has them all in abundance. I bought my kids their first Doc Martens, ate well (check out Ping: my fave find, and get a maple bacon donut at Voodoo Doughnuts) and generally marvelled at the sights for a few fun days with my loved ones.
March 26, 2011 – Curried lambs’ brains. I know: some of you will shudder at this post. But I have fond memories of my grandmother treating me with pan fried lambs’ brains as a child, and I love Indian food. This was a delicous combo at Ficelle, in Parkdale, Victoria, Australia. Side note: Melbourne is a food-lover’s paradise.
March 20, 2011 – First time on New Zealand soil – a short stopover on my way to Australia, and a great reminder that the world is a big unexplored place — and that you should seize every opportunity that arises.
February 18, 2011 – First helicopter flight. I get serious vertigo but I was too excited to get nervous — and I loved it. So much smoother than a plane; much closer to hot air ballooning, but fast.
Awesome.
January 4, 2011 – Feria #73. My ex-husband used to say that dying your hair was a sign of insecurity, but I see it as a form of self-expression — like a style of clothing. At different times I’ve been platinum, black, red; the changing colors reflect my changing personality over the course of my life. Now I’m Golden Sunset 
January 1, 2011 – Mmmm. Biscotti. Double chocolate, fresh from my oven, first time ever, inspired by Eat. Pray. Love. – or, perhaps, by the idea that there is more to life than cold Canadian winters.
December 31, 2010 – Three hours at a spa. No, not my first time at a spa, but my first time at a spa when I did not obsess over the size of my thighs, or the squidginess of my tummy, or the fact that several families could be fed on the price tag of my indulgence, but instead let myself fall completely into the abyss of pure relaxation. Thank you: lovely Christmas gift.
December 18, 2010 – First live band experience with my kids, aged 12 and 14: both big fans (esp. my teen girl) of Mariana’s Trench, who we saw at the Orpheum in Vancouver. Imagine this: the fun of seeing a great band live, combined with the vicarious pleasure of seeing your kids fall in love with live music – or, in the case of my daughter, live musicians – for the first time. Incomparable.
November 11, 2010 – Went (with BF and teen daughter) to hear Romeo Dallaire speak – about everything from Rwanda to child soldiers to the need for countries like Australia and Canada to get involved in international politics. It made me think — and be thankful. Now, I want to take the next step (the hard one) and act.
November 7, 2010 – I’ve eaten it but never cooked it: polenta. And today I did both. Of course, it would have turned out better if I’d read the recipe (didn’t seem necessary, with only three ingredients but it was still tasty (if slightly lumpy). Always good to put something different on the dinner table.
November 4, 2010 – A trifecta of firsts tonight: first time eating at the Twisted Fork (I’ll be back, for the ahi tuna nicoise – so delicious – or perhaps just the vibe); first time at the Vogue Theatre (retro loveliness); first time seeing the Stars in concert (*sigh* Amy Millan is adorable). What a perfect night out in Vancouver.
October 29, 2010 – I stepped about as far outside my comfort zone as possible and wore a costume for the first time since high school — to work. I even stood – dying on the inside, blushing deep scarlet under my white “corpse bride” makeup – in front of what felt like hundreds of people for the office costume contest. The result: by end of day I felt like my comfort zone was just a little bit bigger… Big enough to stop at the video store on the way home.
October 16, 2010 – Today I earned my first: chasing a big XC ride on some old/some new trails in Squamish with my first bowl of poutine - a French Canadian fave. French fries, cheese and gravy. Really, what’s not to love?
September 26, 2010 – Instead of the usual (coffee from Starbucks, mountain biking) we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast (French toast and warmed grapefruit) at the Templeton, a deliciously retro diner on Granville St., and went to the Vancouver Art Gallery for a photo exhibit – all firsts. I don’t think any of these will replace my current faves (except perhaps the diner) but it was good to shake up the routine and stimulate a different part of my brain. And taste buds.
September 25, 2010 – First ride on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast. Beautiful, loamy terrain; almost no other people; and some sweet skinnies to test my skills. This first will not be a last.
September 19, 2010 – Today’s first (up and over a fallen tree and down a steep, narrow ramp 6 feet or so off the ground) reminded me that you’re more likely to succeed at something new and scary if you approach it with confidence, and that confidence comes from within. I’ve bypassed this stunt many times (hearing someone else tell me that I could “totally do it”) but I couldn’t take the plunge until I believed that myself. Timing is everything, and only you know when you’re ready to give something a whirl.
September 12, 2010 – First Cirque du Soleil performance (Allegria), which was nothing short of amazing. Elements reminded me of the circuses I loved as a child (the acrobatics, the spectacle, the wonder) but it was so much more: a perfect marriage of art and athletics.
September 5, 2010 – First visit to the Interior Provincial Exhibition in Armstrong, B.C., which gave us occasion to pet unusual goats, see a newborn calf take its first wobbly steps, eat perogies covered with bacon and mini donuts covered with cinnamon sugar, be entertained by agile sheep dogs, watch the world’s corniest lumberjack show, gawp at cowgirls dressed to match their horses and win cheap made-in-China stuffies. Fun.
September 4, 2010 – Second trip to the Silver Star bike park — but first near-collision with a deer, first time on a wall ride and first fast rip down Rock Star behind my 12-year-old boy, who really keeps me on my toes.
August 30, 2010 – I’ve enjoyed s’mores many, many times but today I enjoyed s’more soup for the first time, courtesy of my daughter and a campfire ban. Sometimes you’ve just got to let the kids take over the kitchen (or, in this case, the camping stove) and see what happens. The results are often surprising, generally delicious and rarely healthy.
August 25, 2010 – Tonight we re-rode a couple of trails that helped me cut my teeth as a mountain biker: Pipeline and Crippler (sounds worse than it is). Before I tell you my first, I need to give you some context with a couple of facts-about-Vicki. One: I get such bad vertigo that I’ve been known to crawl on my hands and knees across tall structures like, say, the Eiffel Tower. And two: I’m ridiculously safety conscious; I see danger (and hospital visits) at every turn. So mountain biking and I aren’t a natural fit.
And yet I persist, because it gives me such a tremendous sense of accomplishment. Tonight’s first? Riding a steep rock face with an unforgiving transition: my last unconquered section of Crippler. When I got off my bike I hollered and high-fived. Now, how often do you do that when you take the easy safe route in life?
August 22, 2010 – Installed my first laminate floor, with my BF and daughter. And it only took two trips to Home Depot. I am now the (proud?) owner of a circular saw. High five.
August 21, 2010 – To celebrate my birthday we went to the Summer Night Market in Richmond, BC: a first for the whole family. A delightful mixture of kitsch and culture, the predominantly Asian market offers everything from cheap socks (“Six pair for 10 dollar!”) and random knick-knacks (miniature bento box keychains) to surprisingly legal Asian weaponry and a curious assortment of snakes and lizards. But what we really went for was the food: grilled squid, spicy fish balls, steamed pork buns, sticky rice, bubble tea and assorted foods on sticks — some expected (satay, prawns) and others a little more unusual (chicken wings, sticky buns). Nothing really new there, but I did eat my first piece of deep-fried cheesecake (really: how could I not?) and spent 20 riveting minutes watching a man and his wife make Dragon’s Beard: a delicate candy that looks like a cotton ball but tastes something like baklava. Hugely entertaining. Check out the pics on Flickr.
August 17, 2010 – First play at the Stanley Theatre, a fantastic art deco and neon building on Granville Street in Vancouver. Built in 1931 as a movie theatre, the Stanley is “old” by Vancouvr standards. I wish I’d taken my camera with me (note to self: take camera everywhere), both for the theatre and dinner afterwards at the Ouisi Bistro (another first), which reminded me to put New Orleans on my bucket list. Oh, the play? Glengarry Glen Ross, which featured the most brilliant cast. I was riveted, entertained and left with intentions to buy season’s tickets for my daughter and me.
August 13, 2010 – Tried Pulparindo: a sour, sweet, salty and hot candy made from tamarind pulp. I think this is what my parents used to call “an acquired taste.” This first will be a last. But, like I say to my kids, you have to try all kinds of stuff, because you never know what you might end up loving.
August 6, 2010 – First Angelina Jolie movie. I would have happily left this one off my list, but it was a film my son really wanted to see – so we did; just the two of us. I had a great time, and I’m still not an AJ fan. Lesson: sometimes happiness comes from doing what you don’t want to do.
July 26+, 2010 – First trip to the South Chilcotin, first flight in a float plane, first ride in alpine meadows, first close call with Search and Rescue. What makes this one special was sharing all of the above with my BF (who also enjoyed a first: s’mores). Who says there isn’t life after divorce?
July 21, 2010 – First ride in an articulated dump truck, which became my first YouTube video. I love this first because it was fun and because I sound quite Bridget Jonesish in the video, which makes me realize that I’ve finally learned to laugh at myself. Finally.
July 17, 2010 – I built my first fence, with my neighbor and my BF. There is something incredibly satisfying about creating something, especially with hammer and nails. It made me feel like Superwoman.
July 3, 2010 – Rode the Drop-In Clinic at Whistler: a double-black, heart-poundingly steep rock face. If you’d told me six months that I’d even attempt this, I’d have laughed. Never say never. It’s amazing what you can do if you believe in yourself, and it helps if you have someone else who believes in you too.
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Awesome!!!!