Getting Ready: some random stuff

Clothing: I haven't done anything about my clothes. My building doesn't have a laundry room, and despite what I was told my the leasing agent, there is not a laundromat just down the street. As a result, I have not washed and packed/given away all of the clothes that I'm not taking on my trip. Or any of them. When I get there, I will have four piles: one for clothes I'm bringing, one for clothes I'm keeping, one for clothes I'm giving away, and one for clothes which are currently too tight, but might look really good on me by May, if I keep up with my exercise. I am completely overwhelmed by clothing at the moment; I feel like I'm drowning in it.

Exercise: I don't exercise anywhere as much as I should. I was blessed with the type of body that's relatively easy to get into and keep in shape, then cursed with insomnia, hypoglycemia, a bad heart and (the most detrimental to my getting-in-shape plans) extreme laziness. Nonetheless, since there is no way I will survive this trip if I'm out of shape, I've been DDRing for an hour straight every day for the past couple of weeks. It seems to be working nicely, but not as nicely as I'd like, which means that soon, I'm going to have to include morning pilates and planking... and possibly drinking cider vinigar every morning, which is about the most disgusting way to start one's day.

Plane Tickets: Plane tickets are expensive, but doable. The trick, I suppose, is finding the right combination of locations to make the whole thing a) as cheap as possible and b) as fun. Since the second leg of my trip includes a trip to Europe (possibly the UK, possibly the rest of Europe, probably both), and because of where I am and the fact that I don't have a definite idea of where I'm going, I can fly out of anywhere from Rochester to Montreal, and into anywhere from Cardiff to Zurich. Basically, I'm looking at somewhere between $900 and $2000, which, if I want to be realistic, means I'd better find something for $1500 or less. That is just flying. Then I have to find somewhere to stay.

Money: I'm honestly starting to freak out a bit about money. In some ways, I'm not as worried about that as I am about other things, because, frankly, I'm not going to let myself die, which is the worst thing that a lack of money can do to me. I'm young and relatively healthy, and I think I can handle a few nights out in the cold, or without food, if I absolutely have to. It'll just be one more story to tell, right? My main concerns money-wise are my cell phone and my Internet (and, of course, my plane tickets, but that all has to be worked out before I leave, or Europe is out), because I think keeping in contact with the people back home is important. The pre-trip money is kind of worrisome, though, 'cause I have so much stuff I need to buy ahead of time.

Stuff: I need a lot of stuff. Most importantly, travel underwear, and travel socks. Oh, and a tiny laptop. I nearly forgot that part, which is scary, because that's important. My Internet won't help me if I don't have anything to hook it up to. Then there are all the little things, collapsible water bottles, rain-proof shoulder bags, things like that.

Gnome: I might just take Leonard with me - but I'm so afraid I'll lose him. I suppose that's one thing I can leave for a little later. It's the other stuff that I need to be focusing on now anyway.

In Conclusion: I know this seems like a whah, I'm so overwhelmed, save me from myself kind of post, but it's not meant to be. Actually, I'm unusually optimistic about the whole thing right now. I guess we'll just have to see where it goes.

Jack

I was given a Captain Jack Sparrow doll from McDonald's by my brother's girlfriend for my birthday a couple of years back. He's still in his package, but I'm wondering if he could be my travel gnome. He would need a gnomey hat, of course, and would have to come out of his package, but since I have no intention of selling my adorable birthday gift, that much isn't a problem for me.

My sisters would probably freak out. All three of us were so desperate for one of those Jack dolls that we actually ate at McDonald's several times, in an effort to get one. It was just happy coincidence that when Deanna got one, it was my birthday that was coming up next.

I sort of want to leave Mr. Jack in his package, because he's pristine, and will one day be an interesting example of what life was like now, when now is then. I don't know. I guess I've got a while to figure it out, anyway... We'll see.

A Random Thought:

I have to get rid of a bunch of my clothes before I go on my wander, so I think I might sew my travel gnome out of bits of fabric, from some of my less donatable clothings. That way I can sew little pockets into him as well.

I told you it was random.

Also, Matches

It's amazing the number of weird little things that you can almost forget, planning for a trip like this, and even more amazing when and where those things occur to you. Today - mere moments ago, in fact - I realized that in all of my multiple lists, I haven't included matches. There're probably about a million and a half other things that I haven't included, but here I was, working away and my mind just went matches! and I felt suddenly inclined to blog about it.

I think I probably have a lighter listed, but matches - well, matches are important. Redbird Light Anywhere matches, to be exact. My favourite kind, since I was a little girl.

Weird, I know, but don't worry; this blog will get a lot more interesting once I'm actually on my way somewhere. Happy Travels.

I Did That in the Wrong Order

Post #2 was going to explain the whys and the wherefores of my little adventure, and #3 was going to explain about the gnomes. Oh well; occupational hazard.

So, why I'm going in May:

Essentially, because my lease is up in May. I LOVE my apartment. I'm going to be absolutely heartbroken to give it up, but I don't want to live in this tiny afterthought of a town for the rest of my life. For the people who were born here, getting out is a badge of honour. There is an entire Facebook group devoted to the people who have escaped. It's hard to live here and not want to leave.

Why I'm going at all:

Actually, it's kind of hard to articulate. Beacuse I want to. Because I don't want to look back at my twenties and think: I got an apartment, I lived there, got a job, went on a couple of vacations, then I was thirty. Actually, there's no part of my life I want to sound that boring when I'm retelling it, or be that boring while I'm living it. Because I grew up watching movies like Indianna Jones and Batman and The Neverending Story. Because I want to live in a world where adventures are real, not something you see in movies or read about in books. Because I want to be interesting, not just to other people, but to myself.

So, there you have it, why I plan venture, jobless and homeless into the world, and why I'm more excited about the prospect than I have been about pretty much anything I've ever done.

Wish me luck.

Looking for Gnomes in all the Wrong Places

As unoriginal as it is, I've decided to get a gnome to bring with me. Only, I can't seem to find one. Actually, it took me the better part of an hour to come up with a useful picture of a gnome (over all, I'm happy with it; I like the bunny and the little mouse).

I've looked at those little travel gnomes, the kind you get for $10 at bookstores, but I can't find a cute one. I've been obsessed with gnomes since I was very small, and my traveling companion must be adorable, or at least very weird.

I would be taking my Doctor McCoy doll, actually, but I'm afraid of losing him. For the same reason, I'm in agony over whether or not to bring Dot, my stuffed chimp. She's come everywhere with me since I was four or five, but I'm afraid she'll get lost or ruined while I'm camped out on some random trail somewhere. Oh, the humanity! (has anyone else ever wondered what on earth that means?)

I think that's it, for the gnome post. Now I just need to figure out how else I'm going to fill up this blog for the next four months... FOUR MONTHS! That seems a lot sooner when you say it out loud.

Huh.

Another Day, Another Blog

I've given up on counting the number of blogs I have or have had. The short answer to the question how many blogs do you have? is Too many. Nonetheless, I think my upcoming trek into the unknown warrents a new one.

In May, I'll be setting off for parts unknown (I mean, of course, that I don't know where I'm going, not that I'm planning to become an amature explorer and go to parts of the earth never before seen my man--just thought I'd clear that up). I made the blog today instead of closer to May because I don't anticipate having much free time after this. My crazy plan is going to require a fair bit of capital, and I figure I'm going to have to work sixty odd hours a week for the next few months if I want to do this thing, and oh, how I want to do this thing.