be more adventurous

Since my last entry, I traveled back to Perth, Australia.
We had a lovely house at a beach and I managed to make it through three temporary positions where I learned more than I could hope for. Yes, my dreams of LA blew over, however the other experiences I had instead were just as rewarding and fulfiling… this year, my life took a little U-Turn, when I went back to Europe.

I love traveling and have actually now found a position at my Business School, which is located in Antwerp, Brussels, Zurich, Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona. What a fantastic place, surrounded by people who are so diverse, each from different backgrounds, most of them speaking at least 3 or 4 languages fluently…
The energy my students have are completely amazing and allow me to see “cold, freezing” Europe in a different light.

Since July 09 I have seen…

1) Perth, Australia (the one year work-holiday visa)
2) Berlin, Germany (the parents)
3) Lyon, France (Quality time with the Mum)
4) Saeuritz, Germany (country side..)
5) Basel, Switzerland (the best friend)
6) Barcelona (this time not to study, but to teach for the first time)
7) Metz, France (the church, the town, the countryside)
8) Antwerp, Belgium (my new home)
9) Paris, France (only 2.5h by train from Antwerp)
10) Amsterdam, Netherlands (only 2.5h by train the other way)
11) Prague, Czech Republic (for photos of course)
12) Leuven, Brussels, Gent; Belgium (all towns completely new to me)
13) Planned Christmas Trip: Indonesia
14) Planned trips in Brussels: Brugge

The possibilities little Belgium offers are endless, a quick flight to London is my next little dream after that.

Instead of partying away and spending my coins in booze bars, every month I can just duck off for a trip to an other culture.

I love the new work, as well as discovering new places by myself. My camera is extremely happy. I am learning French and hopefully Dutch soon, all courtesy of my lovely new work place.
Who would have imagined that work could be so much fun.

I could talk myself out of anything and everything that has even the slightest perceived risk attached.

Slowly, I’ve been breaking myself of that, because without risk there can be no gain. It’s mostly baby steps so far – trying new things here and there, shaking up the daily routine, allowing myself to be a little spontaneous. It’s going well. :)

There is a snow cone place that has been there for years. Whenever we pass it, we always comment on the long line. Tonight I said, “Let’s get in the car and go get a snow cone…let’s do something different.” Everyone was up for the adventure! We had fun talking and laughing while driving to the Shack. We waited in the long line, enjoying being around all the lights and doing some people-watching. We each ordered a small snow cone. Yum! Now we see why it’s always so busy! Next time, we each want to get a large!

An adventure doesn’t have to be a complicated thing…just getting out there and doing something is the adventure! :)

with my son tonight! We went to Dave and Buster’s. I ate a delicious salad, some of Tyler’s french fries, and we shared a chocolate fondue dessert…YUM! Then we had a blast playing the games! I enjoyed spending time with him…him and me!

He goes to college on the 22nd of this month. Even though I am excited for him, and want this very much for him, it tugs hard at my heart! I love having him around! I am so blessed to have him as my son! He is a wonderful young man! Tonight was a blessing for us to build this memory together!

went to a restaurant with my daughter, siblings, cousins, and Mom and Dad tonight. It was so much fun! I had a yummy margarita, ate some tasty Mexican food, had great laughs and conversation, listened to festive music the band was playing, had fun dancing, and took lots of pictures!

I am blessed to have these people in my life! :)

tonight! Went out to eat at a restaurant downtown and to the musical “Wicked” with my Mom and sisters! It was a great adventure tonight…I found a new place I want to take my family out to eat, and I have discovered that I like going to musicals!

I drove around town, really observing what I was passing…I stopped and took a picture if I thought something was neat.
I was out-and-about for hours…all by myself…in the quiet, no radio…just me and my thoughts…and eyes! I took a lot of pictures! I did a lot of thinking!

WHAT A DAY! :) (Unplanned…it just happened!)

I decided to clean the bathtub. I “Scrubbin’ Bubbled” it, then I rinsed it, and put some Drano down the drain. When I rinsed the Drano away, I could see a big glob of hair stuck around the grate. I thought, “Well, that’s all I can do for now. I’ll have to wait for Brad to get home to get that big hairball.” I went on a walk, and about 20 minutes into my walk, it hit me…”I don’t need Brad to get that hairball! I can do it, I just don’t want to! But I COULD do it!” So, I walked home, went out in the garage, got a screwdriver and some kind of pliers, and I worked at it, and got that hairball out of the drain! Yay, me! I am proud! Not a fun adventure, but something I have never done before, and found out that I am very capable of doing! Wonder what other things I am capable of doing but just never have…whatever the reasons!

Oh, and when Brad got home, and I told him what I did…he was speechless! :)

Tawanda! (Off of Fried Green Tomatoes…a favorite movie.)

weekend this July 4th! It was a great weekend all-the-way-around, but what really made the weekend is that I got myself out there and did some fun things! I drove a sea-doo! I drove a boat! I held a firecracker and lit it with a lighter! I didn’t get the firecracker thrown very far, because I paniced and flicked it really fast once the fuse was lit…but I did it!

I didn’t let fear keep me from these opportunities this weekend! I have let fear keep me from these fun things in the past, but this weekend, fear didn’t win! I had so much fun! And my confidence level is up!

I’m done letting fear control my life. From now on I am going to create opportunities, and stop letting them pass me by!
I’m going to:
-Explore my city(Charlotte)
-Try new activities/hobbies
-Take different driving routes
-Stop in new shops
-Go to more social events/ outings
-Try new restaurants
-Get involved in the comunity/a project/ volunteer
-Try new things in bed
-Be spontaneous