100th Post - Some Thoughts

Nine months. 100 posts. Roughly one post every two-and-a-half days. Wow! When I did my first one back on January 12th of this year, I didn't know what to expect or how long it would last. I can't believe what a trip it's been!

As some know, I set out about one year ago to learn everything I could about myself and the world. What started about a year and a half ago with the two worst days of my life has ended up being a life-changing experience beyond what I thought even possible. First off let me say that, if I could give it all back to change the outcome of those days I would. Since I accept that I can't, all I can do is move forward and make sure to live each day like it's my last.

For most that are reading my blog (all three of you), the most visible thing has been all the traveling that I've done this past year. Let's review for fun... Since October of last year, I've been to:

-Hawaii (at my favorite hotel in the whole world - The Royal Hawaiian!)
-Philadelphia (three times)
-Mexico (for Day of the Dead in Merida where I lived for a time in the mid 90s)
-Japan (three times)
-Israel
-Egypt
-Turkey
-Peru
-Spain (pretty much the whole country)

-The Canary Islands (okay, part of Spain but oh-so-cool!)

-Gibraltar
-France

Yes. It's a lot of flight time and miles. My estimate is that I've been on 53 flights in the last 11 months! In fact, I've been to five continents (and Hawaii) this year and have completely flown around the globe since June (Osaka -> Istanbul -> Barcelona -> Lisbon -> Philadelphia -> San Diego -> San Francisco -> Osaka). Can you guess how many miles in a year? I was surprised. Yeah for tickets with miles!

A little over a year ago, a friend at the time challenged me to live for one year without an address. What's actually happened is that I've ended up living in four places (you should see my amazon.com address list):

-San Diego
-Philadelphia
-Barcelona (!!!)
-Osaka (!!!)

So, what have I taken away from all of this? First off, my friends and family are amazing. Thank you to everyone that's opened up your heart and/or home to me this past year-and-a-half. You are what makes life worth living. Everything else is a bonus.

Next, experiences are far better things to have than stuff. Last year, I got rid of probably 80% of what I owned and it was amazing. (I still do have some things in San Diego.) In the first seven months of this year, apart from food and travel expenses, I bought three T-shirts and a new pair of running shoes. I'm amazed at what I used to spend to buy and maintain things. In this area the most important thing I've learned is that you'll have so much more money and freedom (time) if you can stop buying "stuff". Work to live and spend the money on experiences that last a lifetime.

Last, probably the thing that's most changed who I am and how I see the world is that I've learned that I need to let go of the past (I can't change it), not worry about the future (I can only influence it), and live/enjoy "now" - in this exact moment (it's really all we have). It's deceivingly simple but truly life changing. (For a very sappy and overly spiritual version you can read this. My advice: wade through the fluffy crap and stick to the big picture.)

And no, even though I know I will need to return to "normal" life one day, I'm not done this journey yet. "Normal" life won't ever look like it did before, I'll never stop growing and learning, and I still want to see the rest of the world. Wanna' meet me somewhere?

Let me close my 100th post by saying, once again, that I know that I'm very lucky to get the chance to have the experiences of the past year. The people I've met, the things I've done and seen, and the places I've gone have hopefully made me a better person. My friend Jim told me that I've made lemonade from lemons. I like to think that's true.

Thank you so much to everyone. Muchas gracias a todos. どうもありがとうございます。