I'm good at making lists. I've got a lot of them. A "To Do" list, a wish list, a bucket list, a "bad habits to break" list...and more. They're not all written down, but they're at least in my head somewhere. Making them is easy. Executing them is more difficult.
One of the lists I've been thinking about recently includes the places I want to travel for some "grand adventures". Among the places within the U.S. that I want to travel are Boston (great historical sites), the coast of Maine, Alaska, Washington State and Oregon. Internationally, I don't think I could go wrong, but I want to get to Great Britain (especially if I can tour the castles), some of the Aztec areas of Mexico, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil....and on...and on...
It's a fair-sized list, but there's nothing out of reach. I've started to wonder what's stopping me, though. Some of it is monetary. I think that's a fair excuse, especially with a new house (well....new to me). There are still plenty of expenses. But there always will be. I'm comfortable with my life, but there's so much more to see. I think some of the reluctance is due to that complacency and the fear of stepping outside of "the norm" on my own.
There's something to be said for having a travel companion. It's a second set of eyes to check the map, it's someone to bounce ideas off of, someone to split costs with, someone to confirm that you're seeing what you think you're seeing, someone to prove that you were actually there. It's a great comfort to have a familiar person with you in unfamiliar locations.
But at this point, I don't have that travel companion. It's not something I say to elicit pity or seek out volunteers, it's just a statement of fact at this point. And it's an easy excuse to keep myself at home. Even though I dream of a grand adventure, I just haven't gotten the nerve up to just make that decision and go with it. Lots of "if only...", "soon...", and "I'll do it when....", but no firm dates yet. Most of the big trips that I've been on have been with a school or initiated by the family. There's certainly nothing wrong with that, but it doesn't qualify as the grand adventure.
Really...I want to have fewer lists. Shorter lists. I need to do something about it. I need to make a step toward taking that grand adventure.
Soon.
Showing posts with label list. Show all posts
Showing posts with label list. Show all posts
Monday, May 31, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
And Away We Go!
This blog has been a long time coming. Seriously.
I’ve always loved writing, but a year or two ago I started getting sidetracked by other things going on in life. So I decided that I was going to start a blog in order to get back to writing. But I got sidetracked. Sometimes it was for healthy aspects of life, sometimes not so much (Nothing illegal, mind you. But sometimes I think that gaming and TV can be just as addictive as any drug). I made excuses, I got lazy, I got involved doing other things, and the blog didn’t happen. I got sidetracked.
I turned 35 last summer. It’s one of those birthdays that has significance solely for the fact that it’s a year that’s a multiple of five. But regardless of the significance, it got me thinking. When I was in college and pictured myself at age 35…well…let’s just say that I live a very different life than what I pictured. Not necessarily bad…just different. But as a result of noticing that disconnect, I started cataloging the things that I want to do to improve my life and accomplish within my life. It’s a significant list. Initially, I didn’t handle it well. It was absolutely overwhelming. And instead of inspiring me to action, it froze me. And when life handed me a few more obstacles early this year, it left me utterly lost.
Within the past couple months, I’ve come to the conclusion that I needed to divide that significant list into two columns: things completely within my control, and things not completely within my control. I found that I could attack column A. And once I realized that it’s impossible to get everything done immediately, I stopped thinking and started doing. Nothing huge, but the small steps are nice. I’m becoming more organized. I’m exercising. I’m involved in groups that I care about. I’m working on some projects I’ve been procrastinating for months or years. And look—I have a blog (naming it was a story in itself, but I’ll save that for another post)!
I can’t say for certain what you’ll see coming up on this page. I can’t say for certain how often you’ll see it. But for me, it’s a small step toward crossing more things off the list. And hopefully, there will be less of me getting sidetracked.
I’ve always loved writing, but a year or two ago I started getting sidetracked by other things going on in life. So I decided that I was going to start a blog in order to get back to writing. But I got sidetracked. Sometimes it was for healthy aspects of life, sometimes not so much (Nothing illegal, mind you. But sometimes I think that gaming and TV can be just as addictive as any drug). I made excuses, I got lazy, I got involved doing other things, and the blog didn’t happen. I got sidetracked.
I turned 35 last summer. It’s one of those birthdays that has significance solely for the fact that it’s a year that’s a multiple of five. But regardless of the significance, it got me thinking. When I was in college and pictured myself at age 35…well…let’s just say that I live a very different life than what I pictured. Not necessarily bad…just different. But as a result of noticing that disconnect, I started cataloging the things that I want to do to improve my life and accomplish within my life. It’s a significant list. Initially, I didn’t handle it well. It was absolutely overwhelming. And instead of inspiring me to action, it froze me. And when life handed me a few more obstacles early this year, it left me utterly lost.
Within the past couple months, I’ve come to the conclusion that I needed to divide that significant list into two columns: things completely within my control, and things not completely within my control. I found that I could attack column A. And once I realized that it’s impossible to get everything done immediately, I stopped thinking and started doing. Nothing huge, but the small steps are nice. I’m becoming more organized. I’m exercising. I’m involved in groups that I care about. I’m working on some projects I’ve been procrastinating for months or years. And look—I have a blog (naming it was a story in itself, but I’ll save that for another post)!
I can’t say for certain what you’ll see coming up on this page. I can’t say for certain how often you’ll see it. But for me, it’s a small step toward crossing more things off the list. And hopefully, there will be less of me getting sidetracked.
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