yurt life

Welcome to the island, where the vibes are witchy and I feel like a strangulating force upon my psyche is instantly lifted. It's always when I go to the island that I realize how uptight the main land is — exhaustingly grumpy and stuck up and really lacking substance upstairs.
We landed in Victoria, made a deal buying an XT5 with a guy who [1] was a lawyer, and [2] invited us to stay at his house should we ever visit Victoria again. In the 20 minutes we were at his house testing the camera, we learned that he likes Leica, and lost his wife due to a botched surgery. I think this guy has a lot more stories and is intensely lonely. I want to go back to the island and I want to listen to him talk.
Then, the driving to Uclulet. This whole time I didn't know there were 2 l's in the name, and kept calling it U-COOL-IT. We drove to a yurt where there were ample postings about how to exist with bears. Take all your food and water inside. Don't leave garbage laying around. Don't leave containers open. Don't be stupid. The natto we packed in the cooler had melted and its goo leaked everywhere, leaving a slime trail that smelled quite foul. I wondered if bears would like or be appalled by fermented soy beans. It was late afternoon, or perhaps evening. I couldn't tell because time seemed to pass a bit strangely on the island. All I knew was there was to be a new moon that evening, the perfect time for witchcraft.
After it got dark, we climbed the rocks on the beach just outside the yurt, and did a spell in the inky night. I asked the ocean to listen to my petition and I think it did. I thanked it when we left. On the island, I felt like the suppression on my psyche lifted, and I could send and receive signals with ease.

We left U-CLOO-LET in the morning, making sure we disposed of all the garbage into bear proof bins, and went to Tofino where Solen promptly dropped the newly acquired minty XT5 while waiting in line for mediocre tacos. There were too many kids around we decided, and departed to go swim in a lake somewhere along the twisted highway. The lake we found wasn't hiding, it was the biggest lake on the island, called Kennedy Lake. We pulled over at a boat launch where there were barely anyone there, and got in the tumultuous water. I didn't think anything of it, but upon remembering, the waves were quite violent for a lake. It was bright and warm and I couldn't stop thinking about how I don't properly't fit into my swimsuit.
More driving, I decided we needed to stop at Coombs where the goats live on roofs. Inside the goaty roofed market, I came across some impressive looking cheese, camo-cheese. Without knowing exactly what that cheese comprised of, I decided I needed to have it. Outside the building with goats on the roof, we found a plaza littered with weird stone statues. The shops there were already closed, so the place felt a bit off. It felt like Sunacland.
The next stop was Costco, where I was shocked that I had a relatively pleasant time. I didn't think it was possible to have a pleasant time at a Costco, but I'm pretty sure that was also the island effect. And then, it was the ferry back, where the sunset was drawn out and ruby orange like the guts of a grapefruit. I had a wonderful island time. I needed to know that magic is accessible to me, and it was.

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