Last night at a friend's birthday party, I only knew a few handful of people that I briefly met over the years at her get together functions. I don't know them all that well. Most of the time, I would avoid going as I always feel uncomfortable around a group of acquaintances and new people. It's been a few years since I have been to her house parties. But this time, she texted me and asked so I decided to go for once.
As the night wore on, more and more people showed up to her party (25+ people jammed into her apartment). Yes, she is Miss Popularity. She does have an eclectic group of friends to say the least.
I sat in my corner most of the night... Right in front of the cheese, deli meat, crackers section where I pretended to look busy by eating and taking sips of my drink. A few people came by and chatted briefly for a bit.
Her friend, Brian, is a motorcycle traveler who had been riding America/Canada for the past three years. The only reason he is back in town was an accident last month. He got thrown off his bike going down a ravine onto a soft patch of sand which he lost control of his bike in this rural road in Alberta. He was 5 km away crossing the border to Idaho. The plan was to ride down to Nevada to meet his friend in Vegas as he just did a 3 month road trip visiting Alaska, NWT and Yukon.
I have Brian on my FB so I get to see updates on his travels from time to time and asked him how he was doing? He ended up with three broken ribs, not just cracked, and his collarbone. The doctors were amazed that he was still walking around. They gave him pain killers and sent him packing. No bandages or anything told him it will hurt but heal in time.
Seems like Brian is healing up just fine. His bike was a write off as the assessor saw the mileage on the bike and didn't bother to fix it. I don't think he even got money for the write off from the way he was talking in disappointment.
Brian told me his elaborate plans to travel the world on his bike. He is already planning his next trip down to Central and South America before flying his bike out to Australia -> Asia -> Europe -> Africa. He plans to live in Europe after his expedition for a while before coming back to Vancouver.
I'm amazed at how free spirited he is. Not in the care in the world, just his bike and the places he is to discover. Of course, he is single and nothing to tie himself down to.
Did he win the lottery? I was curious as to how he can afford all this without working.
After I asked, he basically told me he sold everything he had. Both of his parents are gone, so I would assume he had collected a sizable inheritance.
One of the things that caught my attention was he invested in this Alberta oil company that given him great returns. Turns out to be Penn West Petroleum (PWT.TO). He started picking up shares around $10/share and yielding 20% at that time. They went on to split three times all the while paying out a very nice distribution each month. Anyways, he sold out all his shares at the top three years ago before leaving on his adventure. Turns out to be a great move as we all know oil crude has come down significantly.
Money isn't important to Brian. It is only a tool to create your own life. It was nice to catch up with him and seeing another life not in such a conventional way.
My path is very different from his. Work, family, vacation from time to time... Its a routine. I hope someday I can break out of the box I live in and be free.
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