I always enjoy these sort of listicles from others because they get me out of my own world a bit and expose me to different ideas. Here are 5 things I am ‘Currently…" doing and or thinking about:

  1. Road tripping to the Redwoods in Northern California

I try to go on a road trip with my kiddo every summer. We’ve gone north and east, so this year we are heading south to the giant Redwoods that reside along the northern California coast. Our trip will take 8 days and we’ll stay in hotels, a few Airbnbs, and do some camping. Good times!

  1. Listening to Goose’s new album and current tour

Big Modern! is another solid effort by Goose. I especially love the way the album ends. Bandcamp makes it easy to listen to their live shows pretty much immediately after they happen.

  1. Looking forward to lots of great live music this summer

I’m going to see one or two Rush shows in the YYZ. I also have two Bend weekends booked for Widespread Panic and Goose. Summertime, back-to-back shows in Bend is hard to beat! I’ve also got tickets to see JRAD (finally!) in downtown PDX in mid-August. No Phish this summer, but I am not feeling like my live music itch isn’t going to get scratched.

  1. Enjoying some fiction (for once)

My reading diet leans heavy to the non-fiction side of things. However, I am really enjoying the bestselling Dungeon Crawler Carl. The book was originally self published and is now a smash hit. I can see why. If you enjoy quirky science fiction, I highly recommend it.

  1. Appreciating another summer to recharge

The life of a teacher is cyclical. For me the hardest stretch is mid October through the end of work in December, as the days get shorter and the grading starts to pile up. However, every summer I get 10 weeks to recharge my batteries. I really, reallly appreciate this part of my career. This is especially nice because summers in the Pacific Northwest are so beautiful.