Category: food

My “Retiree” Routine

On By Rick McIn about Rick, books, cycling, food, health & fitness, hiking, McCharles family, TVLeave a comment

When not traveling, I stay with my Mom at her home in Parksville, B.C.

➙ PLEASE spread the rumour that I am some kind of son / saint caregiver. 😀

Though I tell people I’m semi-retired, I seem to be mostly retired in 2025.

Retirees tend to evolve a daily routine. Here’s mine as of …

March 2025

Wake EARLY

Pick up COFFEE at McDonalds

WALK the coastline at Dawn

Internet in the morning. Updating my 3 main websites. …More coffee.

Typically I don’t eat until 10:30am or later.

RUN or STAIRS in the morning.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

If I run, leisurely is 4.5km in 30min.

Lunch

1 or more hours CYCLING

Dinner. (I’m actually starting to cook a few things. Under my Mom’s direction. 😀)

Chores

Evening WALK or CYCLE. Most often just after sunset.

Parksville Beach, unedited photo

Upper body strength and endurance training at the playground. About 10 minutes.

I sometimes do an abdominal program at home, as well.

9pm TV

10pm SLEEP

Saturday and Sunday I try to shoot some basketball outside the local school.

I SHOULD start golfing once a week.

That’s my regular day. Of course, conflicting things come up.

Right now we’re drinking very little alcohol in Parksville. And I’m trying to eat less this winter compared with last year. Fewer sweets.

Health is still good. Dentures my biggest medical issue.

I continue to listen to about 3 audio books / week. At about 145% speed. Fewer podcasts.

I watch a lot of YouTube, as well.

In my “spare” time, 1st priority is VIDEO EDITING for my Hiking YouTube channel. Over 235 videos since I launched during the pandemic.

Most popular, so far, is a fantastic coastal hike in Portugal.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

V8 vs Clamato vs Mott’s Garden Cocktail

On By Rick McIn food1 Comment

AI Overview

While all three drinks are considered “vegetable juices” with a blend of different flavors, V8 is primarily a tomato-based juice with added vegetables, Clamato is a tomato juice with added clam flavoring, and Mott’s Garden Cocktail is a sweeter, more diluted blend of tomato juice with added vegetables, making Clamato the most distinct due to its strong clam taste and V8 the most tomato-forward option.

Fine tuning my incredibly healthy diet 😀, I’ve added a daily glass of veggie-related liquid.

This replaces a mug of either Health Diet Coke or Fitness Coffee.

V8 is likely healthiest as it doesn’t contain any added sugar and ingredients includes the reconstituted juice of tomatoes, carrots, celery, beets, parsley and other healthy vegetables.

BUT Clamato is cheapest. And tastiest to my esteemed palate. And made in Canada. 🇨🇦




Future of Desalinization

On By Rick McIn clean water, climate change, economics, food, good news, government, product endorsements, things getting betterLeave a comment

For countries where water is plentiful (Canada) and industries where water is a huge fraction of costs, desalination is probably not viable for industry.

BUT for countries where water is already scarce, or for industries that don’t depend mainly on water, bringing desalinated water is completely plausible. Prices continue to drop.

I recall having a hot shower in Saudi Arabia. Great water pressure. … Wondering where the H2O was coming from.

Desalinization plants hundreds of miles distant.

TOMAS PUEYO posted a deep dive.

Does Desalination Promise a Future of Infinite Water?

Heart to Home MEAL Delivery

On By Rick McIn foodLeave a comment

My parents — in their ’90s — still live independently in their own home. And want to keep it that way as long as possible.

Currently they are using a Canadian company called Heart to Home for a few dinners each week.

For example, one of my Mom’s favourites is Orange Chicken. CAD $9.15 delivered free.

That’s just one of 125 lunch / dinner options.

Good value. Little clean-up.

Meals can be put in the microwave — or in the oven for about 30min. So far they’ve only used the oven.

They are delivered with very little seasoning. You must add to taste. (For me ➙ a lot of horseradish and blue cheese. 😀 )

Heart to Home currently offers free* delivery in most of Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Manitoba. 

We order meals on Wednesday online or by phone. They are delivered Friday.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hiking / Skiing Banff March 2024

On By Rick McIn food, friends, hiking, travelLeave a comment

For the 4th year in a row, I stayed at the Samesun Hostel in Banff.

Alternated days of winter hiking and downhill skiing.

I skied one day with Kelly from Canmore. Two days with Rocco.

Click PLAY or watch Rocco on YouTube. Footage from my new Insta360 Ace Pro action camera.

April 1, 2024 conditions were PERFECT for me.

I opined that this was the best ski day at Sunshine for 10,000 years. 😀

Me and Assiniboine

Kelly introduced me to happy hour at Hello Sunshine Banff Sushi. Fantastic.

I’ll be posting 2024 hiking videos on BestHike.com.

Here’s a hike from the past that gives a good idea what it’s like to get on the trails in the Spring.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

MORE videos from Banff.

related – Spring Hiking/Skiing Banff 2023

I’m already looking forward to 2025 in Banff.

Hello Sunshine Banff Sushi

On By Rick McIn food, friends, travel1 Comment

Kelly — a BIG Sushi fan — lives in Canmore.

His favourite restaurant in Banff is Hello Sunshine Sushi during Happy Hour.

50% off many Sushi platters.

As well as beer and other menu item specials.

I’m hoping to go 3 times this week. 😀

Kelly introduced me to Hello Sunshine after a GREAT day skiing powder at … Sunshine.

Visiting Port Townsend 2024

On By Rick McIn food, friends, travelLeave a comment

Due to the pandemic, I hadn’t made it back to Port Townsend, Washington since 2019.

Since then, Doug and Diana had built a new house on one of their properties.

I was both 3rd and 4th in the guestbook, visiting both going to and coming from Coeur d’Alene.

Carrie came up from Vancouver WA to videotape a chat with myself and Doug about the start of the Tumbl Trak Ambassador Program. Actually, she drove MANY hours in the dark and rain to pick me up in Port Angeles.

I was the first Ambassador, we think, when Doug gave me an inflatable tumbling mat to take to my Gymnastics tour of Australia in 2007. I did clinics in 5 different States.

The other BIG news of my visit was that Diana was getting packed for a trip to Europe with a friend.

Also — Doug bought a new car. A Nissan Leaf.

It was my fault. I took the ferry from Seattle to Bremerton WA by mistake — and there happened to be a Nissan dealership there. 😀

As always in Port Townsend, we enjoyed some terrific meals.

My favourite was Finistère.

Carrie’s oysters with horse radish

As always, I got out running and hiking.

This is dawn down close to Fort Worden.

If you’ve never been, Port Townsend is a tourist gem hidden away off the main highway in northern Washington State.

A Tourist in Seattle

On By Rick McIn food, travelLeave a comment

I do like being a tourist close to Pike Place Market in Seattle.

The original Starbucks opened here in 1971.

Downtown Seattle is a little grungy. That makes it more interesting.

I normally stay at a Green Tortoise Hostel right by the Market.

One night they offered all you can eat Mexican.

Next night, Green Tortoise offered all you can drink local wine.

Ivar’s is a Washington State institution.

I had several meals there looking over the port.

Clam Chowder in a sour dough bread bowl

AND here’s where you drop off your gum when finished chewing. 😀

In praise of McDonald’s Jr. Chicken

On By Rick McIn foodLeave a comment

The humble, inexpensive Jr. Chicken is my GO TO SNACK when on the road.

AND it’s got 25% of your daily SALT requirements. You don’t want to run short on SALT. 😀

Juicy and flavorful. Identical every time.

Typically two of these cost less than the bigger McDonald’s chicken burgers.

97% thumbs-up on Chick Advisor.

related – Canada’s fast food chicken sandwiches ranked from worst to best

Under the Vines – season 1

On By Rick McIn food, TV1 Comment

Charming and heartwarming. 

Yet another fish-out-of-water comedy.

Like Green Acres. 😀

Under the Vines is a New Zealand comedy drama television series …

Two step-cousins — Australian socialite Daisy Munroe and UK lawyer Louis Oakley — inherit a declining New Zealand vineyard, Oakley Wines …

The joint heirs have no experience with wine-making or New Zealand rural culture, and each is having financial, social, and existential crises. They become interested in the winery’s future but frequently don’t see eye-to-eye. …

Some nudity. Randy Kiwis.

General nonsense.

I really like Trae Te Wiki as Tippy (Isabella) Bidois: Oakley’s young, adventurous and newly successful vintner/winemaker. 

Some funny lines.

Why are they so loud?

They are Australian. 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.