Inspiration

I was at a training session not too long ago, and one of the little activities they had us do was to map our life's timeline, and at the end write down the ten things that we wanted to do before we died.

I usually don't go for all that touchy-feely corporate training bs, but I am definitely a planner, and think about how I am going to accomplish my ten things. They include:

- Going to New Zealand
- Going to Thailand
- Diving on the Great Barrier Reef and with Great White Sharks
- Writing a novel
- Participating in a major international treaty or organization
- Living abroad and in NYC
- Speaking at my undergrad college graduation ceremony

It's good to have some life goals, I think. I think that I'll be able to do at least three or four of them by the time I am 40 - which is a pretty good start. (NZ, Thailand, and diing the Great Barrier Reef - maybe the shark thing too)

The novel is going to be tough. Ideally I would have a sabbatical of two years or so, rent an apartment on a canal in Venice, and just write to my heart's content. I have story ideas floating in my mind all the time - I need to capture them at some point. Heck, tons of people have told me that just a year in my life could make a novel. Sadly, that's probably too true.

You have to have some short term goals too... mine for this year are to learn how to SCUBA dive, see a shark snorkeling, line up my work rotations, and renovate the kitchen. I think that I'll do at least three of those (kitchen, SCUBA, and work rotations - the shark thing will be a function of chance and luck)

So dream a little dream today