Discovering The Story

     Play any fun games during Covid? If so, I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that my guest tonight, Dr. Scott Nicholson, has played it too. Dr. Nicholson is a professor at Wilfred Laurier University where he teaches game design and development. He loves escape rooms and has designed a World Champion escape room for Red Bull. We talk about games, teaching through games, art and the complexities of blending your hobby with your career. He a lovely, genuine guy with a kind heart and a deep desire to make those around him have fun and enjoy games.Ladies and Gentlemen, I am excited to introduce you to Dr. Scott Nicholson.

     What do you know about leadership and did you learn what you know while paddling for 30 days, rain or shine, tired or not through some of the most remote coast line in the world? If the answer is yes, well then you may already know tonights guest. If however, the answer is no, then I am pleased to introduce you to Dave Watson. Dave is an instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School or NOLS for short. As a NOLS instructor Dave has spent more than 350 weeks of his life teaching leadership skills to young people. He does this in 30 and 60 day sea kayaking trips along the worlds most pristine and unknown coastlines.     In his spare time he's circumnavigated Newfoundland, Kayaked lake Titicaca and during Covid, he's building his dream house. Ladies and Gentlemen, Dave Watson!

 Well guys, here he is… Adam Shoalts! I finally got to sit down with Adam, which is kind of funny because after listening to a couple of his book on Audible, I kind of felt like I spoken with him already! Adam is an Explorer in Residence for the Royal Canadian Geographical society, a prolific writer, an epic solo adventurer and an exceptionally nice gut to boot.We get to talking about his current books Beyond the Trees and Alone Against the North, and he gives us the teeniest snippet of his newest book which is coming out in October. Seriously, if you like an adventure story, especially one narrated by the author (I think that's so cool!) then check out the links below to Amazon and Audible.https://www.amazon.ca/Beyond-Trees-Journey-Across-Canadas/dp/0735236852/ref=asc_df_0735236852/?tag=googleshopc0c-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=414405674363&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8331160950208077663&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001013&hvtargid=pla-907124982171&psc=1https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=alone+against+the+north&i=stripbooks&crid=3IW9QI718KQQ3&sprefix=alone+ag%2Cstripbooks%2C353&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-a-p_1_8

Dr. Gordon Osinski is currently a Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences and the NSERC/MDA/CSA/CEMI Industrial Research Chair in Earth and Space Exploration at the University of Western Ontario. He is also the Director of the Institute for Earth and Space Exploration, Director of the Canadian Lunar Research Network, and Chair of the Planetary Sciences Division of the Geological Association of Canada. A great show with super cool dude!

Mark Robinson, what a great guy Mark is! He was the first guest I ever had on the show and now here he is again as the first repeat guest on the show! We talk the 2020 storm season, water a commodity  on the stock market and what winter 2021 has in store. Thanks again Mark!

Phil Watson is the Captain of the Bluenose 2, how cool is that!! We talk about life on Canada's most recognizable tall ship. Who would win in a race between Bluenose 1 and Bluenose 2? What happens when you need new sails for a tall ship? What does it take to become a member of the crew? Whats the highlight of the coolest maritime gig in all of Canada? Answers to all of these questions and more in this episode of Discovering The Story!

Well guys, 2020 was weird wasn't it? 2021, is looking a little off too. There is so much going on with the pandemic, politics in the USA, and schooling from home! Yikes! Thats ok, we are going to be ok. I am on a mission to create great content that is a safe place to put your mind for a while. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show! Love you all!

Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to episode 5 in the Explorer Series! I would like to introduce you toMike Beedell. A Fellow of the RCGS, Mike has made some 20 trips to Antartica as a guide, spent 40 years a prolific and talented photographer, been swimming with  Humpback Whales, sailed the North West Passage, studied the wild horse population of Sable Island, and tells the story of the fated Greenpeace vessel, Rainbow Warrior. He is a wealth of knowledge on the great outdoors and has made every effort to bring that knowledge and experience to us through photography! 

Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to episode 4 in the Explorer Series! I would like to introduce you to Mylène Paquette. She is an Explorer in Residence of the RCGS and a magnificent athlete! Mylène made an epic journey across the Atlantic Ocean, it took 129 days, covering some 5000 km, through 29 low pressure systems, 5 major storms and the tale end of 2 hurricanes. Oh, I should probably mention that she did this solo, in a 24ft row boat!! On top of this she enjoys the high adventure sport of winter canoe racing across the St. Lawrence River. Amid the swift current and massive ice flows, she is as comfortable as I am on dry land. Truly one of the kindest and modest people I have ever had the chance to talk with!

Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to episode 3 in the Explorer Series! I would like to introduce you to Ray Zahab. If you are looking for something to inspire you, then you need not look any farther! At 30, Ray was a heavy smoker and not a particularly content or fulfilled. He turned his life around by getting into sport. The first race he ever entered was a 100 mile ultra Marathon, in the middle of winter in the Yukon… and he won first place! He has gone on to supersede ultra marathons with something he calls expedition running. Ray has since clocked over 17500 KM running through the worlds deserts. He started a company called Impossible to Possible, where he gets students involved in exploration by bring them along and beaming real world experiments into classrooms across the globe. I had a terrific time talking to this Explorer in Residence and I hope you enjoy the show!

Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to episode 2 in the Explorer Series! I would like to introduce you to Jill Heinerth. On top of being a delightful person to converse with, Jill is a World Class cave diver, author and  an Explorer in Residence for the RCGS. Jill and her team were the first ever to capture footage of under water caves found in icebergs, she has explored as deep into the planet as any woman on earth and she works diligently to get the word out about water conservation. Her book, Into the Planet, is riveting, fun and inspirational, plus if you listen to the book on audible, she narrates it herself and I think that is the best!

Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to episode 1 of the Explorers Series! I would like to introduce you to George Kourounis. He hosted the tv show Angry Planet on the OLN network, has worked inside active volcanoes, chased the wildest storms, traveled the world, is an Explorer in Residence and yes, even been in the water with Great White Sharks! He is a one of a kind individual with plans to climb the highest peak in Antartica and he's a kind, humble guy who loves our planet! I had a blast talking with him, enjoy the show.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have something special for you!! Since the genesis of the podcast I have been holding back some of the most amazing content and conversations, cooler than anything I ever could have hoped to produce! This is the intro to the Explorers Series, where I have the amazing opportunity to talk to the explorers of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. These are professional Canadian explorers who dive the deepest caves, swim with humpback whales, work inside active volcanoes, photograph and document Polar Bears, row solo across the Atlantic Ocean, clock 17500+ KM running across the worlds deserts and so much more! If you had told me in February 2020, that I would have the privilege of talking to these beautiful, exciting and humble people, I would not have believed it! For your listening pleasure I am proud to introduce to you; George Kourounis, Jill Heinerth, Ray Zahab, Mylène Paquette, Mike Beedell and Mattias Briter. I hope you enjoy listening to this series as much as I did creating it! Love you all, couldn't do it without you.

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,          Tonight I'm speaking with my friend Sarah Evans. Sarah has lost 80 pounds by switching to a ketogenic diet, fasting and exercise! Her story begins with a 1.5 year long journey of emotional healing from childhood abuse. Once she had her emotional and spiritual self centred, she turned to her body. Sarah, like many of us had tried many diets, lost weight, gained it back and repeat. When she discovered Keto, she was scared to try again. She took small steps at first and a year and a half later found her way to being able to maintain a weight that she is comfortable with! She now encorporates fasting into her routine and gives herself the space to eat junk from time to time. Her story is three years in the making and I couldn't be more proud of this beautiful, inspiring and unbelievably tough lady!!

HI there,     Thanks for tuning in!! My guest for this episode is Kristin Kerr. She is the executive Director of the Stonehenge Addictions Centre here in Guelph, Ontario. We get into discussion about how the pandemic has causes a staggering increase in drug and alcohol usage in our community, the social stigma that plagues the subject and the topic of safe supply. Like a lot of you, I listen regularly to Joe Rogan. On his show, he has mentioned how the Swiss have treated their opioid crisis with safe supply and how that has made a dramatic difference to the lives of those struggling, the legal system and the community in general. I researched what Switzerland did, in preparation for this show, and then get to discuss my findings with Kristin. She's classy, well spoken, and sharp... Ladies and gentlemen, Kristin Kerr!

Hello Everyone!!     Welcome to Discovering The Story, I'm your host Stefan Oland and I'm glad you're here!! Tonight I will be introducing you to the Mayor of Guelph, Cam Guthrie. Guelph is a fantastic city and Cam has done a fabulous job leading it! Before Covid, Guelph had the lowest unemployment rate in the country and has been sighted for being the safest city in Canada. We talk about the pandemic, vintage autos, and yard sales. It's a fun episode, and I hope you enjoy it! If you would like to be on the show, know someone who should be or want to share, please do so in the review section of your podcast player. Ladies and gentlemen, Mayor Cam Guthrie!!

Well y'all this was the craziest conversation that I've ever had with another human on the planet. My guest tonight is Dr. Dill Stone. He's the CEO of Stone Aerospace in Texas, he owns over 20 patents for life support equipment with another 10 patents pending. Bill is a world renowned under water cave explorer and most recently he has taken to looking for life in outer space. This episode is a wild ride so sit back, relax, and enter the world of deep space exploration!!

Hi beauties,    I want to introduce you to Gail Hoekstra, Executive Director of the Drop In Centre in Guelph Ontario. She's boots on the ground helping Guelphs homeless population before and during the pandemic. She talks openly about her role as director, the silver lining of the of the pandemic for the homeless and the community push back agains some of the newest options for those in need. I want to hear from you! If you have stories of homelessness from your life or if this show touched you somehow, please leave your story in the comment section of where ever you have gotten the podcast. I hope you enjoy the show!!  

Well Ladies and Gentlemen, I have an exciting episode for you! My guest today is Helen Fishburn, Executive Director of the Canadian Mental Health Association Wellington/Waterloo, which is the biggest in the country. We talk about the effects of lockdown fatigue, how the local police are utilizing the CMHA in a progressive initiative called Impact and we talk practical tips for keeping it together during the riggers of life. Enjoy the show!!

   Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to Discovering The Story! Tonight I will be chatting with Jeff Keleher, who is perhaps my oldest friend! Jeff and his brother Bob, sister Jenny, and father Rick put on the Pocologan Camp Party music festival every year in New Brunswick, Canada. In this year of 2020, where everything is cancelled, the crew of Pocologan Productions scored a win!! They were the first in Canada to have a live music event at a drive-in theatre and it was a sold out, beauty of a show!! The Keleher clan are LEGEND now, pulling together over 1000 people in a socially distant, live music performance during the lockdown of 2020. I bring you non other than Jeff Keleher! Enjoy the show!

Hello everyone out there in podcast land, welcome to the show. My guest today is Dominique O'Rourke and she's pretty cool! Dominique is an elected city council member for Ward 6 right here in Guelph! We get to chatting about a ton of different topics form what it takes to get elected to what a hummocky landscape is. 

Tonight I welcome Will Rowe to the Show! He is the CEO of Nutrasource Diagnostics Inc, based right here in Guelph Ontario. His company takes natural products like Vitamins, marine oils, cosmetics etc, from hypothesis to product, so you can buy them off the shelf. He helps companies test the validity of their claims, create and protect Intellectual Property and navigate regulatory bodies like the FDA. Nutrasourse works with the "Happy side" of the pharmaceutical industry and you can tell by listening, that Will loves what he does!  We also get into conversation about the Eastern front WW2. 

My guest today is Frankie Searle. When I met Frankie a year and a half ago, I had no idea that besides working at the YMCA she was getting her Masters degree, running her non-profit, Roof4Ghana and raising $50,000 to build a library in West Africa! Frankie was in Ghana, West Africa when Covid hit. She speaks candidly about the scramble to get home to Canada during the Covid panic flights of late March 2020. Thank you for coming on the show Frankie, your one of the good guys out there making the world a better place!

Dr. Anne-Marie Zajdlik has been boots on the ground fighting Covid since the very beginning! She's now become a folk hero in Ontario for her straight forward and honest Facebook posts that chronicle her journey and inform us, her followers! Truly a pleasure to have been able to talk with Dr. Zajdlik!

I welcome the @Mercytraveller, Philip Maher. He's been to 85 countries, ten active war zones, multiple cities in lock down, multiple displaced persons camps. His story is gut wrenching, exhilarating and full of hope and forgiveness!

I welcome the @Mercytraveller, Philip Maher. He's been to 85 countries, ten active war zones, multiple cities in lock down, multiple displaced persons camps. His story is gut wrenching, exhilarating and full of hope and forgiveness!

Hello everyone!     Here is the first official episode of Discovering The Story! I would like to welcome Mark Robinson to the show. Mark is a meteorologist for The Weather Network and has a TV show available today on Prime called STORM-HUNTERS. He's been inside a live volcano,to the North West Passage, Antartica and Everest base camp. Join us as we dive into Storm Hunting!

Today we get to talk with Mary Buck, who is in charge of the Covid-19 floor of the Grand River Hospital in Kitchener Ontario, Canada. She gives a candid, boots on the ground account of what treating Covid is like. She talks about transition of the virus and how hospitals are coming up with new ways to treat and study Covid. Love you Mary, your one of the good ones!!

Do you want to come on an adventure? I sure do! I am Stefan Oland and I'm fascinated by the world around me. Come along as I converse with people from all walks of live, who have traveled the four corners of the world. Join me as I attempt to quench a deep seeded curiosity about people and the circumstances that shape them. From exploring the effects of Covid-19 in my area, to hunting storms, to hearing tales of tragedy and forgiveness with the @Mercytraveller, we are going to experience it all through the power of conversation! So get your gear, strap in, and get ready to go on an adventure by Discovering The Story!