Monday, January 19, 2015

One week, one month, time goes on

One week from today, I will be an Australian Citizen! One month from today, I will be boarding a plane to San Francisco - embarking on an amazing journey. Two months from now, I will be in Florida with my parents. Three months from now, I will be in Paris with a friend. 

Never in my life did I imagine that I would take so much time off work, let alone travel with no end-date in mind. I'm in awe of my own life and that's pretty cool.

I still don't feel like the adventure has begun, even though it clearly has. The problem stems from the large number of hours I spend each day "doing nothing" - which could also be known as "doing whatever the hell I want" or "enjoying life". My roommate came home late one evening, finding me on the couch, and asked me if I'd gone out of the apartment that day. I had, but only to get a new book from the library. It didn't feel like much. It didn't feel like enough. So, I started thinking. When I was stuck in a cubicle a year ago, five years ago, ten years ago, what did I dream of doing. What did I tell myself I would do, if only I could not work for a while. 

There was the obvious choice to get super fit at the gym (my goal to go every day has slipped by me. I blame the cold I am fighting, but really, I just lost interest). The other obvious choice, the one I have dreamed about while in grey offices around the world, write a book. 

Having a Master's degree in English (creative writing), it seems only appropriate to use this time to write. To write every day. To write with the intention of producing something. Without committing to anything (Mom, don't get excited), I've spent a few days exploring that very idea and am loving it so far. I don't want to share any specifics, but I will say that I have begun writing and researching. I don't know where this will take me, but if I don't write now - while I have nothing else to do - then I would beat myself up in a year or two when I'm closed back inside four grey walls tip tapping away in Excel.

Of course, I'm going to the movies more often (if that's even possible). I love movies, always have, and can't get enough. I had the thought of writing movie reviews, but the thing that makes me hesitate is...when I say what I feel about a movie on Facebook, my friends are influenced. If I say something was disappointing or predictable, they'll also be disappointed and say, "Oh, but I wanted to see that." Meaning, my review will make them NOT see it. I don't want that. I think everyone should see everything. Why not watch a bad movie, or a movie that I don't like, but you might. Predestination is a great example. I thought it was rubbish with a great plot. Other people thought it was the best movie they'd seen in a decade. If they hadn't seen it because of me..what a shame that would be. 

Alright, in other news, my impending trip is getting me excited to make plans and explore options. Off the wall options. For example, I have a credit with an airline for $250 that I need to use by April 2015, but I have no real reason to use it. My US flights are booked and paid for and I'll be heading to Paris in early April (unable to use this voucher for that, as it has to be a domestic flight), so I'm just going to use it anyway. I'm going to go somewhere I've never been, just because I can. I've decided that I'd like to go to Boston. It would make the flight to Paris cheaper and shorter than from Florida, also allowing me frequent flyer options for the Paris leg that I didn't have out of Florida. Unfortunately, I won't be able to tick off my bucket list item of going to Fenway (just yet) because it'll still be Spring Training and the Red Sox will be down in Fort Myers Florida (irony). I started thinking, what else is in Boston that'd be cool to see. And that's when I emailed Harvard and asked if they'd let me stay on campus for a few nights. You never know unless you ask, right? 

Let's see, what else is going on? Oh, I started Duolingo studying French. Hopefully, by the time I land, I'll be able to say more than, "Ou est la toilette?" But if not, that should do.