Welcome to A Crock of Schmidt. Here you will find campground reviews from all my camping adventures over the years. I also share cool attractions and destinations we’ve been to, great hikes we’ve done, and some insights on our hobbies. Once in awhile, I toss in some ramblings on whatever nonsense moves me at the moment. Thanks for coming by and I hope you find something that helps and/or entertains. If you do, kindly tell a friend about this place.
My 7 Favourite Atari 2600 Games
April 4, 2016
I recently read Ready Player One, the best-selling first novel by author Ernest Cline. This book became somewhat of a phenomenon a few years back, particularly in the geek world. Building on the current coolness of all nerd pop culture thanks to shows like The Big Bang Theory and Community, Ready Player One tapped into
Canada Has Lost Pride In Our Beers
March 28, 2016
Canadians have long taken excessive pride in our beer. It’s a tenuous point of boasting considering the long, hallowed history brewing has in the Old World, not to mention that when Canadians crow about our beer it’s solely in comparison to American beer, a contest arguably on par with the last two finishers in an
Ellison Provincial Park – Review
March 13, 2016
Have you ever slipped away to the mountains with the family to go camping and abruptly found yourself in a Juicy Fruit commercial? This happened to us at Ellison Provincial Park just outside Vernon, British Columbia. Late one evening, and thankfully only one, four young lads set up their tent across the way from our
The Legend of the Schmidtmobile
March 7, 2016
Each January my news feeds pique my interest with news from the infamous Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale classic car auction. This event has become a must see annual event for car aficionados and ‘shake your head in disbelief at the spending habits of the rich’ addicts alike. Once again the price being paid for antique cars these
Geography Lessons From The NHL
February 22, 2016
I was watching the 2016 NHL All Star Game when I was reminded of a perturbation that’s been eating at me for twenty years now. Actually, that’s not true. My kids were watching the 2016 NHL All Star Game because they are still young enough to find this game fun because they have no understanding
The Invisible But Very Real Border Wall Between Canada and the USA
February 15, 2016
You crazy, paranoid Americans and your walls. Always with the walls. Usually you’re yapping semi-coherently about wanting one along the Mexican border, or more accurately finishing that one, but now some of the looniest in your midst, hello Republicans, have openly fantasized about erecting a wall along the Canadian border. A 2015 survey found an
Shakespeare Didn’t Write EVERYTHING
January 20, 2016
“Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” I was all prepared to use that famous quote as an opening for a new catty blog post I was writing about community volunteers and hockey parents. Shakespeare’s famous quote seemed the perfect launching point for my rant with hockey parents, especially, being regularly associated with fury
SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT is a Better Movie Than STAR WARS
January 12, 2016
Three weeks past release and audiences continue flooding into movie theatres like flies to a corpse to watch the long anticipated seventh chapter of the Star Wars franchise. I am still not one of them. I prefer picked over bones to fresh flesh, not to mention a cheaper price tag and fewer people, so I’ll
The 1977 Movie That REALLY Needs A Reboot
December 16, 2015
Ever since Disney bought Lucasfilm in 2012 and green-lit a sequel trilogy, not a week has passed where something Star Wars wasn’t blowing up my social media. This year it’s become a daily irritant as the orgasmically anticipated The Force Awakens inches ever closer to its December 18, 2015 release date. Star Wars this and
7 Reasons Why I Don’t Have Any Tattoos
October 29, 2015
Last week while my kids played after school at the school playground, I had my first ever genuine hipster sighting. I’ve heard about and read about these peculiar creatures for a couple years now but had never actually seen one in real life, this despite living in what you’d call a large, modern, and demographically