be an adventurer

Believe it or not, but I’ve decided that my next adventure will be to take something I’ve bought back to the shop. The salesman said I could, so I’m going to try it.

Tonight was another first for me. I sang 3 songs at the Open Mic night at the local Club, while Evan played guitar. I did “25 Minutes to Go” by Johnny Cash, “Styrophome Boots” by Modest Mouse, and “Lachlin Tigers” by The Bushwackers. The Club was packed as the band that was playing after us was a well know local band that had reformed after many years off.
It was a really intense experience… the adrenaline is pretty full on. I am so exhausted after it all, but I did help someone move house today so that doesn’t help either.
I’m not sure if its a good thing or not but it seemed like the whole town was there.

went on a “first date” tonight. I invited a girl to meet me for dinner at the Club and decided to enter the open mic competition with my band-mate. Seemed like a good idea when i teed it all up but by lunch today I was definitely feeling the pressure… a first date and a public performance in the same sitting… the nerves were really getting to me!
I remembered something I read in “Shakey”, Neil Young’s biography, where one of Neil’s friends confided in him that he was having panic attacks after seperating from his wife. Neil said something to the effect of, “That’s just so you know you’re alive”. So that helped me… thinking, I’m only feeling this stress because I’m getting out of my comfort zone which is an opportunity to grow.
So anyway, I met the girl and she was lovely. I think we had a nice time together despite my nerves about playing. We played 115th Dream (Bob Dylan), Born Under a Bad Sign (don’t know who) and Little Wing (Jimi Hendrix). The first song warmed up the crowd pretty well, 2nd song got them grooving and the Jimi got em hootin’. We ended up winning 2nd place for the night, the first time we have won a place!

So, the pressure is all over and I’m feeling pretty proud of myself. I’d like to see the girl again and I’m keen for more public performances…

Here’s to getting out of your comfort zone!

we are in contact again. Just friends. That aweful crappy feeling is gone. I’m relieved.

Met a great girl online but never met in person. We talked for hours and hours on the phone. It got too complicated for her. I think she’s awesome. I think she liked me. My travel plans were the problem. Now we are not talking. I miss her so bad, I haven’t felt so crap in years.
If you ever read this… I miss you.

The world of internet dating… sheesh!
Fastest way to make your life complicated… try finding a meaningful relationship while also planning to go travelling around the world alone for a year or 2. There is a not-so-small conflict in this situation, especially if you are honest about your plans!
So it seems that I am bound to continue the trend in my life of making great friends with awesome girls that settle down with other guys.
It’s been real…

I have decided that my fretting over picking a new career is pointless. At this time in my life, the challenge that I feel energetic about is not career oriented but experience oriented.
I currently love where I live and my lifestyle so I have enough good things in my life that my job is not really that much of a burden to stick with. The main objective is to pay off all debts, save a decent amount of cash and then travel around the world for as long as I want/can. I imagine that it will be at least 1 year but maybe up to 3. Who knows. What matters is that it is the desire of my heart and I will never regret it.

I got over my “ugly” feeling and decided to have some fun with internet dating. I’m surprised at at the number of people that have profiles! I saw the profile of a girl that I particularly liked before I had registered and decided I wanted to contact her so I registered straight away. I indicated my interest, she indicated her interest so we’ve started emailing. Nice when things move along quickly, in’it? ( I love in’it)

Tomorrow morning I will be leaving on a train journey to Cape Town. Circumstances will be very different from the last time I did something similar, two decades ago.

I will deliberately not be taking my laptop with me, so I will possibly not be on 43 Things to report how it’s going. I wish all my subscribers a pleasant week. If I do get time and feel compelled, I may post to my travel blog.

There are times when it is perhaps better to not be an adventurer. When it’s a dark night and its raining and one is tired it is probably better to take the well-known freeway rather than the narrow unknown road.