April 21, 2004

• TOPIC: The stress of a traveler

  
  

  Do I take off for Namibia for a few days?  Am I spending too much time in Cape Town?  Do I need to come back to Africa?  What about traveling America first?  Or Canada even?  Or somewhere completely different?

  
  

  These are the things I do stress about.  The life of a travel lover is not an easy one.  It requires a lot of decision making.  What am I hoping to get out of traveling?  The rush of travel?  Going somewhere popular?  Somewhere remote?  A place to work?  A place to call home for a while? 

  
  

  What about other plans.  Will traveling allow me to have the types of relationships I want with friends and family at home?  How does traveling fit in with my career plans?  Do I need career plans?  Do I want to plan a massive trip, or just do something last second?  Are there certain activities I want to do, sites to see, or just go somewhere because of it’s name, where it is on the map?

  
  

  Do I want to go somewhere by the guidebook?  Somewhere where I know they speak English.  Somewhere perceived as safe and easy to travel around?  Do I travel alone, or find someone to go with?  Do I go for a short while, or do a full on year of travel?  Do I investigate one country, one continent, or try to make it all around the world?

  
  

  It’s stressful I tell you, just as any life is.

  
  

  So…what will I do?

  
  

  Well…I really want my book to be my #1 priority.  I wish I could have one whole month to type, but unfortunately i only have 10 days at home before going to work at camp.  So…logistically, I need to work my ass off those days and at camp to get it done.  Then, i can either send it to a proper publisher, wait a few months (too long if you ask me) and if they take it, well…i’m set, booktours, bookstores, marketing, cash, you name it.  Or, I can just get it published online, and do all the marketing myself.  Do to my desire to go on a college tour as soon as possible, i think doing it myself is the way to go. 

  
  

  I can just go to colleges, set up shop there, especially move-in weekends, and sell my book.  The goal isn’t to make money here, just to get my ideas out there, and create a network of people who are as passionate about me about changing college.

  
  

  My plan for a college program in S. Africa I may put off.  I want to dedicate time to the book, and that means dedicating time to being in the US, and I think travelling the US will be fun.  It’s hard to put off an idea you once totally fell in love with, not because the idea isn’t good, but because logistically, you only live once, and need to take care of other needs.  For me, spending time in the US where things that relate to my past are going on, to spend time in the real world and not in the woods, to have access to the news, to internet, to be able to call people from home, that’s of paramount importance now.

  
  

  But…we’ll see how i feel tom.

  
  

  But…if all goes well for that year, then i’ll probably be ready to start answering those other travel questions.

  
  

  Maybe do a proper year of African travel.  A year without seeing curio shops selling mass-produced wooden giraffes, marked up considerably from what they cost in Zimbabwe where they’re actually made.

  
  

  TOPIC: Outward Bound South Africa

  
  

  http://www.fundforleadership.com/current_040318.htm

  
  

  This is a link to the recent course called OB Global, which sent US high school students to Outward Bound South Africa. 

  
  

  TOPIC: The Book

  
  

  I just contacted the New World Library, a book publishing company.  I found their site from the back of a book I read called GLOBETROTTER DOGMA, 100 Canons for Escaping the Rat Race and Exploring the World   
  By: Bruce Northam

  
  

  His book is listed under personal growth, self-help, and since I identified with his book, I guess for now that’s how I’ll classify my book.  I hope by reading my book people will be able to better understand themselves, and better be able to do whatever it is they want to do in their lives.  I’m hoping my life, my story, and my writing will inspire others.

  
  

  This is their goal, taken from their website:http://www.newworldlibrary.com/nwl_Pages/nwlAboutUs.cfm

  
  

  “New World Library publishes books and audios that inspire and challenge us to improve the quality of our lives and our world. The ultimate goal of the company is a sweeping one: personal and planetary transformation — awakening both individual consciousness and global social potential by publishing inspirational and practical materials in spirituality, personal growth, and other related areas.”

  
  

  They only publish 35-40 books annually, so I’m guessing the competition is pretty high.  But…as my book is about, it’s only impossible if you don’t try.

  • 6:22 pm
  • 2 Comments