Canadian rockers, 54-40 finished off the free outdoor concert series. It was very much a family atmosphere and the mellow tunes were a welcome respite from the crazy week behind us.

From groovin’ to the Latin-infused jump-up tunes of Ozomatli to rockin’ out to the electronic indie sounds of Metric, this year’s Zune Concert Series has brought us an impressive array of bands.

And then there was the Silent Disco, which brought a whole new dance party experience to Whistler. It started with a flash mob and ended with a group of 200-plus people singing with reckless abandon in a silent room; Skullcandy headphones and radio receivers bringing the party to life.

The arts culture scene was astounding. State of the Art showcased talented Canadian artists like Andrew Pommier and Lauren Javor. While Fashion Exposed featured sustainable fashion label We3 to Westbeach and their 30 years in the snowboard industry.

The showdown hosts took it to another level, from hosting in their underwear to coming out in drag. We enjoyed the winter stoke generated from Rocky Mountain Sherpas’ multimedia film, Paper Shredders. We laughed at the creativity and awesomeness of A Ski Bum Musical at the Filmmaker Showdown. We cheered as hometown photographer Jordan Manley’s photos captured the mountain lifestyle we all hold close to our hearts.

Meanwhile, the pro athlete sightings were out of control this week with TJ Schiller and Danny Kass taking centre stage at their respective competitions.

As we ring out the winter season and welcome the melting snow and sunshine, we’ll always look back to the festival with a smile. Stars were born; heroes were crowned and dethroned; records were spun; alcohol, energy drinks and sushi were consumed in mass quantities; and friends were made.

Now is the time to grab your cleanse of choice from the health food store, chillax, swear off alcohol and sleep. April 2010 will come sooner than you think! See you next year…

She belonged to a network called the “DDD Net” (it was like the social networking site of the 70s and 80s). Today’s version would be a Facebook group or online forum for the “Doers Dreamers and Doners” of the sailing world.

The DDD Net was comprised of a variety of ham radio operators from all over the world. Some of them were in the process of sailing around world (like my parents) – the “Doers”. Some had already “Done” it and still wanted to connect with that world.

Then, there were the “Dreamers”: those who were content to sit at home and live vicariously through the doers and doners. For them, that was enough.

When I was growing up, my parents were “Doers.” They spent 15 years exploring the world. Now, after hauling in the sails in September 1990, they’ve become the “Doners”.

Nearly 20 years later, I can still remember listening to my mom on the DDD Net. Catching up with the fellow ham operators about our latest adventures.

I wonder what the “Dreamers” were thinking when they heard about us exploring Chagos in the Indian Ocean, meeting the Cuna Indians in Panama and surviving a hurricane in the Caribbean.

I wonder if any of them were inspired to become “Doners” because of my parents.

In my opinion, the biggest regret of one’s life is letting the world pass you by. Which of the D’s are you?

Londoners are the only people in the world who could politely trample you during the mad morning commute.

During rush hour, The Tube is a sea of anonymous faces buried in newspapers and half-read novels. The passengers are in their own zombie, “must get to work” zones.

But, every once in awhile citizens will crack a smile, or even laugh, over an unexpected incident.

Perhaps that person who jammed into an already too-full carriage nearly loses their limb in the closing doors. Or maybe, late at night, when the train is busting with bleary-eyed, beer-breathed Londoners heading home after the pub, people will bond over the crusty vomit in the corner seat.

One of the city’s oldest routes, the Northern Line, is almost always delayed for some reason, occasionally because a person stuck under the train – after a failed, or successful suicide attempt.

Regardless of outcome, the transit department will almost always announce and add this travel update information to the notice boards:

“The Norther Line is closed because of a person under the tracks.”

The Tube is a microcosm of the city as a whole. You are anonymous for the most part. But, every once in a while Londoners will band together, in very unexpected, but pleasant ways.

Like, for example, the July 7, 2005 terrorist bombings, when they kept their famous “stiff upper lip” and went to the pub after work for drinks, just like usual.

Londoners are the kind of people who will flip the bird – or their version of the bird, which is a backwards peace sign - at American magician David Blain who claimed he could spend a month in a glass cage high atop the city’s main shopping district of Oxford Street. He wasn’t received well and some Londoners “took the piss” by pelting his cage with debris and verbally abusing him. According to most Londoners, he will never return for a cheap publicity stunt like that again.

Like a typical city with seven million people, London is alive with activity at all hours, ranging from mundane to mental.

There’s the religious megaphone-wielding fanatic, who floats from shopping district to shopping district, moving on only after he’s been hassled by police and store owners for months.

“You’re going to burn in hell!” he cries to the masses from his perch at Oxford Circus.

“Go ahead and shop like consumer robots!”

In certain neighbourhoods, you could be asked for a kiss by an old Rastafarian man, or be called a “wicked selekta” by a random man on a bike.

You could hear the rich tropical sounds of a reggae beat in the dead of winter in North London, or a teenager playing flawless U2 and Pink Floyd songs on his electric guitar in the middle of Covent Garden.

You could pass by “tramps” discussing their municipal rights and buy hash from a falafel place after you’ve had a few beers in a pub that’s three times older than Canada.

Or better still, you could witness school girls duke it out over discount shoes in Tooting Broadway.

You could laugh at the name “Cockfosters” and dare your friend to try pronouncing Leicester Square (pronounced “Lester”).

London is a city with many contradictions, but one thing is for certain: few cities in the world are so electric and no matter who you are, or where you’re from, you will find this city challenging, beautiful, fun, frustrating and exilerating. You will feel alive.