About Me

Have you ever felt in your heart that you needed to do something? 

 

Almost like it was inevitable that you were going to continue down a certain path? 

 

I’ve felt it too.

 

I’ve felt that way about very few things in my life, but when it happens, there’s no denying it! Vet school, van life, and thru-hiking are among those goals. That’s why I have created this blog!


I love science and logic, but I also have a spontaneous and creative side! It would be so much simpler if I was strictly professional or strictly nomadic, but my life would also be incomplete without a blend of both. Balancing a professional and nomadic lifestyle is not – and I repeat – NOT easy. They conflict in so many ways…. BUT the good news is that you can make it happen!

It takes some effort, and I still have a lot to figure out, but it’s worth it! After all, it has been said:

“You can have it all, just not all at the same time”

– Betty Frieden

Let me formally introduce myself!

My name is Taylor.

Now, I know this is supposed to be the page where I spill my entire life story...

...but I'm going to keep it short with just a few facts about me:

I have spent most of my life in school, and I am currently enrolled in an accredited Canadian veterinary program. My current interests in the field include research, surgery, diagnostic imaging, epidemiology, and wildlife/exotic animal health;

The longest hike I’ve ever completed was the Pacific Crest Trail (2019), but most of my hikes are day hikes (and not a lot in-between those extremes); and

crossing over river balancing on a log with a backpack on
cargo van against blue sky and wild grasses

I have lived in a van before, but not at the moment. I finished the build in 2022 – just enough to make it “liveable”. However, there will be more modifications coming in 2023!

I've learned many lessons along my journey that I wish I had known sooner. If I can help smooth the way for others, nothing would make me happier!

Here are a few directions the blog will be headed in over the course of 2022:

Professional Lifestyle

  • How to get into vet school
  • How to succeed in vet school
  • Information about how veterinary clinics function
  • How to find work-life balance in practice and as a student
  • Study tools + strategies

Van Life

  • How to bridge the conversation about where you live
  • How to be a professional while living on the road
  • How to build out your van on your own
  • Living the Van Lifestyle
  • How to save for your dream adventure

Hiking

  • How to prepare for a thru-hike
  • Motivation to thru-hike
  • Trail entries
  • Exercises for metatarsalgia (common overuse injury)
  • Gear lists

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More than anything, this is a lifestyle blog! While the focus will definitely be on hiking, van life, topics related to being a veterinary students, and how to balance a professional and nomadic lifestyle, there’s no saying where this wild trajectory will take us (but I am so excited to find out)!

 

I hope you gain something from this blog. If anything, I hope it inspires you to chase your dreams! Whether it’s hiking from Mexico to Canada, getting accepted into the program you’ve always wanted, or going after something else you’ve kept on the backburner for far too long, now is the time to go after it! 

 

– Taylor

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