Lovers and Haters

I can put every person in my life from friends, family, acquaintances, and colleagues in to two distinct categories. The lovers and the haters. People who think this trip is the most fantastic thing they've ever heard of, they've done it before or dreamed of doing it. Their eyes are wild with jealousy, to live vicariously off every single exotic city that falls from your lips or smile broadly with the confidence that they've made a leap just like this one and are better, wiser, and fuller because of it.

And then there are the other people, the Haters, that have to bring up every practical and very reasonable explanation about how this plan to travel the world is not reasonable at all. You don't have enough money. You're going to blow your entire savings?! It won't be all its cracked up to be. Just take a month off and go back to work. The economy is in the toilet. You won't be able to find a job when you get back. You'll wish you didn't go. Or will I?


To the Haters out there. Why you hatin? Thanks for your concern. I know you do it because you love me. But if you love me, you gotta support me. Because this is my life. Queue music. I have this silly business card I made and carry around in my wallet that says: Executive Director, My Life to remind myself who is in charge. Y'know we all have total control over our lives but we usually don't feel that way. We make a constant stream of choices that shape everything we have and if we aren't happy then there is only one person you can complain to.

Nifty (and relevant) quote from Steve Jobs:

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

So I stared at my myself, into my own eyes, and promptly fired the girl in the mirror. I am more than my resume. My life won't be measured by a list of accomplishments in perfect order that read like every other person on this block like every block in every town of the country. And the world could go down in flames tomorrow, or I could get hit by a bus and then all this careful long term planning is bullsh*t. So I'm going for it! I'm gonna spend all those pennies I saved for a rainy day, and when it rains I'm going to make a poncho out of my gleeful memories and dance in the street.