Hello all, I have decided to pick up my things and head for South America for a while. The seeds were planted long ago, but I really started considering this in January 2009 while visiting Portland, OR. My buddy Shaun (who also made this website for me) found a book at Powell´s City of Books in Downtown Portland and handed it to me. Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel by Rolf Potts. The subtitle kinda gives it away but it showed me that the type of travel I am interested in is possible given my current economic situation. I did have a few large obligations, namely my job and a duplex I shared with my roommates, neither of which were easy to part with. But I suppose the crux of it all is that whether it is moving out of your parent’s house, buying a house, selling a house, moving to a new state, breaking up with someone, there will always be at least 5 excuses not to do something. This is not to say that I advocate rash decision making etc. It’s like being on the 5 meter diving board. I recommend, once you know you want to do something, throw your excuses away and put yourself in a position where it will be embarrassing if you wimp out. (aka, once you are up on the diving board, however bad the dive will be, it won’t be as bad as climbing back down the ladder after having not jumped). Wow, what a hallmark card …sorry for that.
Either way I hope you all enjoy,
-Matt