The List

"You get whatever accomplishment you are willing to declare" - Georgia O'Keeffe


Everyone's got a list, their personal bucket list of things they must do before they die. Books have been writted, lists have been made, and even a tv show (MTV) is about crossing items off a life list. Mine's not really about before I die... it's more about where I have to go, what I have to see and experience before I come back to a 'settled' life again. This is just the beginning but I'm off to a good start.


Eventually I'll give it a page or link of it's own and I expect it to grow, ebb and flow as necessary along my journey. But here's my first declaration of places and things I want to see, visit, experience or take in...

The List: Things I Want to See, Taste, Do, Learn, Visit, Experience, or Take In

1. Visit the world’s only pub inside a tree (South Africa)
2. Giolitti – one of the oldest, family owned gelaterias in Rome (Italy)
3. "Fly” through the rainforest (Costa Rica)
4. Stay in an Ice Hotel (Norway)
5. Stay on a working Dude Ranch (USA)
6. Go on an African Safari (Kenya)
7. Visit the Outback (Australia)
8. Hike Cinque Terre (Italy)
9. Go dog sledding (Sweden)
10. See the Northern Lights (Sweden)
11. Ice Skate in Rockefeller Center (USA)
12. Walk the Great Wall (China)
13. Eat Sushi (Japan)
14. Deliver postcards from the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador)
15. Ski the Swiss Alps (Switzerland)
16. Christmas at the Biltmore (USA)
17. Camp at the Darvaza Gas Crater (Turkmenistan)
18. Visit the other Georgia (Georgia)
19. Drink Wine in Bordeaux (France)
20. Dive off the Great Barrier Reef (Australia)
21. Watch the Changing of the Guards (England)
22. See the Running of the Bulls (Spain)
23. Sail the Strait of Gibraltar (Spain/Morocco)
24. Ride a Camel (Egypt)
25. Ride the Orient Express (Eastern Europe)
26. Celebrate Oktoberfest (Germany)
27. Celebrate Carnival (Brazil)
28. See Elephants Paint (Thailand)
29. Tour the Sewers (France)
30. Learn Spanish (Spain)
31. Walk Abbey Road (England)
32. Hike Brooks Range (Alaska)
33. Celebrate Easter at St. Peter's (Italy)
34. Ride the Moscow to St. Petersburg wide gauge railroad
35. See the Gigantic Carved Heads of Easter Island (Polynesia)
36. Play Blackjack in Monte Carlo (Monaco)
37. Float down the Amazon (South America)
38. Celebrate St. Patrick's Day in Dublin (Ireland)
39. Trek through Karakoram (Western Europe/Eastern Asia)
40. Snowmobile (Finland)
41. Sit on the Lawn at Wimbledon (England)
42. Walk the fabled Bund in Shanghai (China)
43. Cooking Classes in Paris (France)
44. Shop the market at Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso)
45. Watch the sun set over Machu Picchu (Peru)
46. Take Surfing Lessons (Australia)
47. Take the Chunnel from London to Paris (England)
48. Eat street food in Bangkok (Thailand)
49. Ride the train down the Malaysian peninsula from Bangleole to Kuala Lumpur (Asia)
50. Journey along the Sillk Road (China)
51. See the Acropolis of Athens in the moonlight (Greece)
52. Tour the ruins of the "rose-red city" (Jordan)
53. Ride the Chihuahua-Pacifico Railroad (Mexico)
54. Swim with the Dolphins (New Zealand)
55. Spend Bastille Day in Paris (France)
56. See Stonehenge (England)
57. Attend a Venice Biennale Art Exhibit (Italy)
58. Fish for wild trout (Scotland)
59. Shop the yearly sale at Harrod's department sale (England)
60. Sail into the harbor of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
61. Stand at the Wailing Wall (Jerusalem)
62. Visit Peace City in Hiroshima (Japan)
63. Visit the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg (Russia)
64. See the Royal Jewels (England)
65. Walk Milford Track (New Zealand)
66. See the Sydney Opera House (Australia)
67. Taste vintage Port (Portugal)
68. See Angel Falls (Venezuala)
69. Snorkel Bora Bora (Polynesia)
70. Walk the Hall of Mirrors (France)
71. Climb the Harbor Bridge (Australia)
72. Tour the Kremlin (Russia)
73. See the Viking ruins & runes (Greenland)
74. Watch the sunset from Capitoline Hill (Italy)
75. Visit the Valley of the Kings (Egypt)
76. Ride through the Panama Cannal (Panama)
77. See the remains of the Berlin Wall (Germany)
78. See the Rosetta Stone (England)
79. Stand among the Tulips (Holland)
80. See the fountains of Villd'Este (Italy)
81. Ride double-decker buses around London (England)
82. Hike the Grand Canyon (USA)
83. Visit Lake Baikal (Russia)
84. Visit the Turtle Sanctuary (Seychelles - Africa)
85. See the David (Italy)
86. Tour Jane Austen's country (England)
87. See the Flamingos at the Lake Ngorongoro Crater (Tanzania)
88. Float the Sepik River (Papua New Guinea)
89. See the Hieroglyphic Stairway in Copan (Honduras)
90. Set foot on the Ho Chi Minh Trail (Vietnam)
91. Drive on the Autobahn (Germany)
92. See the Danube (Czech Republic)
93. See the Great Sphinx (Egypt)
94. Visit the Blue Mosque (Turkey)
95. See the Paelolithic art in the Caves of Altamira (Spain)
96. Eat Limburger cheese in Limburg (Belgium)
97. Stand on the grounds of the first Olympics (Greece)
98. Tour the Baja (Mexico)
99. Take a class at Oxford (England)
100. Stand at the beaches of Normandy (France)

That seems like a good start... we'll go from there, revise... edit... clarify... delete and experience all the people along the way. Sounds fun, hmmm?

Behaving Badly

“Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use.” - Emily Post



I've been 'that' person lately... the one who's a little snarkier, snippier, and a little ruder than necessary. Not proud of that. The last time I felt this way, I quit my job and moved to Chicago for a new start. It took me three months to calm down, be nice and have fun again. I miss having fun... I feel like I've forgotten how. Annoying.


So, I have a new plan and it excites me. Motivates me to make the time work for me and spend my energy working toward my new goal. But it doesn't make my fuse any longer. Sigh. How do I fix that? Learn to take a deep breath and remain patient and be positive. Channel my inner Emily Post, stay on top of my game, think before I speak and remain polite. I know better and I don't know that person (or like her).


So, moving on to better things. Continuing to work on myself. Making progress on my new dream... that's what I can do and those are positive things.

Connections

"The world is too dangerous for anything but truth and too small for anything but love." - William Sloan Coffin

Kind of exciting progress on my trip idea... all I've done is start saving some money, mention it to some friends, recruit some advice, and write some posts. People have been coming out of the woodwork with connections, suggestions, places to go and people to visit. I love it. Makes me so excited to make it even more of a reality.

So Far, I have people in the following countries:

1. Peru
2. Ireland
3. New Zealand
4. Australia
5. Japan
6. England
7. Germany
8. The Philippines
9. South Africa

Nine Countries... and without much effort, how cool is that? I'm sure when I contact my friends and explain what I'm doing and why, more will come. Just wanted to share my enthusiasm. And express my surprise about how many people read my blog when I had no idea. Nice.

Adding it to the List

"Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today - James Dean

One thing I'm going to do while preparing for my trip is find places I want to visit, cities I want to explore, things I want to do and put them all in one list. I'll continue to update it as I go along and check things off my list.

Here's something I stumbled upon today, TheFunTheory.com and I'm adding it to list. I need to check out this place in Sweden. It's another example of a different way of life and a different way of living. I love it. Share it with others.

Plotting My Escape

Maybe you don't like your job, maybe you didn't get enough sleep, well nobody likes their job, nobody got enough sleep. Maybe you just had the worst day of your life, but you know, there's no escape, there's no excuse, so just suck up and be nice. - Ani DiFranco


I've been thinking, almost constantly, about changing my life. Again. Trying something different to find my place in the world. And I need the change. I do. Because I'm not nice anymore. And I don't care if I am either. Which is a whole different level of scratchiness in my life. And I agree with Ani, I believe I should be nice to others and I try but when a constant simmer is under the surface, I'm less able to remain patient, kind and understanding. I don't like who I become or how I behave. I remember it from being in Chicago, it took me about 3 months of living there before I didn't react to everything with anger.


I'm in Gulfport, Mississippi* to babysit my nephew for a couple of days while my sister and brother in law play in the state USTA tennis league championships in Jackson. (Yes, I realize how that sounds but it's fun for me to spend time with William and they always need a couple days off.) As I drove down here, I realized I had everything in my car I needed to start my journey... car, computer, camera, clothes and my dog. Too bad I left behind a lot of obligations. This time, when I leave, I have a lot more to do than just quit my job and pack up my stuff.

So I'll go back instead of heading another direction like I was dreaming to do, sell my stuff, make arrangements, save some money, and plan my escape. Even though I call it my 'escape' - I'm not running from anything. I'm looking for a way to live my life which makes me happy and allows me to cross some places off my list. It may not be everyone's way of living or everyone's idea of a life but it appeals to me and I think it will give me a greater level of satisfaction than my current work hard, please everyone but myself situation.

We'll see. One step at a time.


*I always spell out Mississippi, mainly cause I like to sing, "crooked letter, crooked letter, i, humpback, humpback, i" outloud to myself.

Financing my Dream

Faith is forward motion. –Karen Maezen Miller

Money is always a part of reality... unfortunate, but true. To make my dream a reality, I have to revise my personal lifestyle and daily budget to make it happen. I've been looking at other travelers, talking to friends and crunching numbers. I'm great at research and ideas but not so good at the follow through. I'm not good or used to telling myself "no".

Living the Dream decided on a budget of $30,000 for a little over a year (415 days). It's a flexible plan and it allows for cheaper countries to make up for more expensive countries. I want to travel for a longer time, at a slower pace and experience more of living like the locals. I plan more home stays, work for board, jobs as I move around the world so I can limit my expenses and continue my income. Plus I'm hoping to have another source of income (more on that later) besides whatever I'm earning at my work/stay job.

I need to do more research on:


1. Costs of Visas


2. Transfer Taxes


3. Shipping Charges (Gifts, Souvenirs, Holidays, etc - sending packages home)


4. Health Insurance (Cobra? Travelers? Job Provided?)


5. Pre-Trip Purchases (what do I need?)



How much do these cost? What's my personal needs? What's my comfort level? What am I forgetting?

One thing I've learned is I need an international bank, with partnerships around the world, and offering a 4 digit PIN (I didn't even know PINs came in larger numbers). The most highly recommended bank was HSBC so I've looked into their account choices - I'll be able to link my international account with my current local bank through a money market account. Maintaining my local bank account will allow my parents to have emergency access - I'll have to set that up before I leave - they don't currently have access but it's a small town with a small town bank and they know we're related but if I make it official, it could save some time and make it easier on everyone.

GOAL #1

• $1500 in travel savings to open checking account
• $1500 for Money Market account to meet free account minimums.

TOTAL = $3000

I have over $3000 in savings but I don't want to pull any of that money for travel (yet). My savings are for home or pet or human or car emergencies* and I want to leave them for those purposes until those responsibilities are no longer mine.

So that's my first task - Save $3000 to open my new accounts and begin earning money on my money (every penny helps!). Of course I decide to do this in the worst economy, after my salary has been cut and right before the holiday season. But if I can save money with all this going on, then it'll just get easier from here.

Spending cuts (how I'm going to start living a more frugal life)

1. No high speed Internet at Home - I have a Sprint card and DSL at my office so it was over kill to begin with and easy to let go.
2. Cable TV - This one is going to hurt more but I'll get over it. I can watch at my parents' house or at the gym (it may help me get there more!).
3. Eating Out - I eat out a lot for networking purposes and a lot for convenience as well. Breakfast @ $5/day = $25/week = $1300/year. I don't eat out breakfast every day but pretty often so that will be a huge savings. I'm going to limit my lunches and dinners - those will be harder but necessary.
4. Shopping in my pantry - I love to cook so I'm fine with cutting out my expensive restaurant meals but I'm not much better at the grocery store. I'm the queen of standing in my kitchen, looking at my full refrigerator, saying "there's nothing here to eat". I'm sure I'll be telling stories about my progress in this area.
5. Non-Necessity Spending - shoes, purses, clothing, home decor, etc. I've got a lot of stuff around here... I need to trade, sell, give away or barter some of it to help me achieve my dream. I've already been selling some old clothes at a local consignment store so I'll continue, maybe add some ebay selling, and continue to declutter my life.**

*Such as my car not cranking this morning, keep your fingers crossed that it's just a need for a new battery as we think.

**Some of it will be hard to part with, as I decorated my Christmas Tree this weekend, I loved pulling out my decorations plus I have some nice things (ie. china, crystal, etc.) which were gifts and will have to be stored. That may be another cost I need to factor in my budget.

Daily Inspiration

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them. - Henry David Thoreau

I haven't listed my favorite websites lately, so I thought I'd share what's motivating, inspiring, and pushing me to be more. Check them out.

Shutter Sisters - A collection of gifted photographers, storytellers and artists. These ladies inspire me daily to create, explore and make more of myself.

More is Better - This is one funny chick, her antics crack me up but she's also exploring the world at 24 in way which I envy. She's got a list and she's traveling around the country/world (so far just the US) to accomplish her bucket list.

Sara France - As you know, my love of photography is growing daily. This is just one of the photography blogs/websites I check frequently to see what they're doing and receive inspiration. On the west coast, she's got amazing coastal shots.

Chookooloonks - I found her through Shutter Sisters, she inspires me, makes me laugh and is utterly relatable. I love her post about finding what you love - it's nice to know I'm not the only one who struggles with this.

Jurgen Nation - A new find: crazy humor, great stories and a reality you can't deny. She's crazy smart (getting her PhD in Neuroscience) and it comes across in her writing. I love how she'll refer to herself in third person b/c she's just saying...

The Nichols Blog - A husband & wife team out of Austin, Texas who are unbelievably talented. Peoples... Places... all beautiful. I can spend hours looking at their pictures, getting inspiration and admiring their talent.

Nomadic Matt - My new favorite blog, Matt's got his MBA and he's given up the corporate life to be a nomad. He's completely one 18 month, round the world trip and he's living in Thailand, running his blog and supporting his traveling lifestyle. He believes in slow travel and he's motivating me everyday to make my trip happen.

Almost Fearless - Found Christine through Nomadic Matt and I love her stories, insights & suggestions just as much. She and her husband have traveled around the world after cashing it all in and inspiring me to do the same.


So that's it, a bit of what I'm reading, you can see where my head is: travel & photography. Working on a way to make both of them more of my life. Stay Tuned!