Geez Lodi, I wish I had your life......

If I had a dollar for each time someone said this too me in the past two weeks i'd be taking a limo across the country instead of a rental. " You get to do whatever you want, no responsibilities..blah blah" The fact is, is that I have plenty of responsibilities, I have just been careful in taking on the ones I want and leaving the ones i'm not ready for on the back burner. But there is another reason why and how I manage to live my life the way I do. I learned a long time ago that there is a huge difference between growing up, and growing out of touch. Out of touch with who you really are, and who you think you should be\try to be. I've never held any qualms with letting people know who I am. Take it or leave it, this is who your getting. This approach may not have worked in the corporate world very well, but fuck it, the corporate world sucks. I believe humans have an inherent need to feel like they have done something worthwhile with their time. How can one do that on a cube farm? I couldn't. I had a harder time walking into my old office, than I ever have walking into a burning building. There isn't a pro jersey i'd rather have my name on than the back of my bunker gear.

Part of me gets a little angry when people say things like that to me. " I wish I had your life." If you do, your doing something fundamentally wrong in yours. My life hasn't been all gravy all the time, and guess what, it won't be in the future either. But the time I have to do the things I want, I take maximum advantage of. So should you. You must have forgotten what it was that made you feel great. The things that made you forget about the world around you. Everyone has them, and everyone needs them. That's why they came up with vacations and strip clubs. If you can't find a way to make yourself happy, how the hell are you gonna make the people around you happy? Your wife, your kids, the people that rely on you to teach them, to love them, to help them. So, during my short tenure on this earth, I've come up with some ideas and ways that help me stay sane, and have a pretty damn good time as well.......
PLAY A SPORT...Whatever it is, do it. Basketball, touch football, tennis, who cares. As long as your body is still healthy, use it for what it was meant for.

RIDE A BIKE...The physical and mental gains are monumental. Plus, it's something that can bring the family together.

PLAY BALL IN THE HOUSE... Nothing will ever bring back the child in you like this favorite past time. Stop being so concerned with being a grown up, have a little fun for a change. ( on a side note, it's even more fun if something gets broken :) )

LET BYGONES BE BYGONES... This was a tough one for me, especially after the end of last summer. But hey, shit happens...roll with it.

LEARN TO COOK SOMETHING GOOD...and i'm not talking about boiling hotdogs. I mean something that the people around you would ask for the recipe. It tastes better than fast food, and will keep the gut in manageable condition.

SAVE A LIFE...whether you rescue an animal from a shelter, or give someone lifesaving CPR. It is the greatest gift you can give someone, and being able to do so is the greatest gift God will ever give you.

ALWAYS HAVE YOUR FRIENDS BACK...like they say, the best nights in the lock up are the ones where your friend leans over and says " ya, but that was a shitload of fun, wasn't it??"

TRAVEL.. Contrary to popular belief, the earth can give you much more than just her precious resources.

That's it for now, i'll stop splitting the atom here. Now go do something other than reading this stupid blog.....

waiting......

I swear, waiting for sept 1st to come around is like waiting for water to boil. I wish I had more days off to use, i'd of been gone already. Anywho, i'm finally starting to figuer out this whole blog thing, and managed to post a map of everywhere i'll be going. You can see it on the link to the right "the map of the mission". While i'm gone, feel free to drop some comments on the site, as i probably won't be checking my email much. Now, back to the waiting game, all my stuff is ready, i'm ready, just waiting for the 1st to come around.....

gettin closer.....

.... been a few days but things are falling into place. My original choice for a car rental fell through, but the second choice came through, so things are looking good. I started a map on google maps, so you guys can see where i've been and where i'm headed. Other than that, things seem to be on target. You can check out the map here

Life's a journey, not a destination....

My senior year in high school, I was blessed to have two of the hottest roommates any guy could want. They were in their twenties, I was 16 and an emancipated minor. They had a little brother to watch out for, and I, well, we won't go there, but it involved crazy thoughts about crazy things in even crazier places. When I graduated, my roommates boyfriend asked to sign my year book. He was cool guy, except for the fact that he was nailing the girl I wished i was. And I was reminded of this fact, nightly, by the not-so-subtle knock of the headboard against my bedroom wall. What can I say, some days your the dog, some days your the hydrant.

Now, he and I weren't particularly great friends, frankly, I was surprised when he asked me to sign my yearbook. But what stuck out was the last line..." College truly epitomises the phrase, the journey is the reward.". The only thing he was wrong about, was only including college instead of all of life. I truly have had an exceptional existence on this earth. People that know me, might think i'm crazy for saying so, but it's probably the most truthful statement ever to leave my lips. I've done a few things i'm not particularly proud of, but so has everyone else. I've also been blessed to have been a part of some really great things.

So this is a start to another chapter. I'm finally taking a trip across the country i've talked about for all to long. I guess i should thank a guy I never met for inspiring me to "get out of my bubble". A guy named Matt Harding. You probably know him, the guy that danced around the world, then got stride gum to sponsor a second trip. If you haven't seen his video, your missing out. You can see it on www.wherethehellismatt.com . It's a cool vid and really makes you think twice about where you are and what you really want to do. Anyway, that's my intro, I'll post updates here about where I am and how much fun i'm having while the rest of you suckers schlep your asses back and forth to work. Thanks for calling and have a great day ( Thanks Skandia, that stinkin line is still burned in my head)