Welcome to Gypsy Wednesday! Every Wednesday, I strive to highlight all the juicy morsels related to travel and beyond!
As my fellow philosophizing travelers will attest to, we are always on the hunt for an authentic traveling experience. An alabaster purity, so to speak. What I didn’t expect was a desire to have a stronger Jeannie experience, too.
I hinted in my Toronto post how it’s easy to leave a place, but not escape yourself.
Morphing into a fabulous travel writer won’t happen unless I do an internal inventory. Being 2 months in, I’m unearthing dormant parts of myself that can’t be hidden behind the dregs of daily life. It’s liberating, scary, and an opportunity to build not just my travel bucket list, but my personal checklist.
1. Quit that passive-aggressive crap. You wouldn’t suspect dear readers that I’m such a person. Sadly, I am a type. I am the worst for repressing my emotions, especially when frustrated or upset. Goal: learn to be more direct and open with my feelings.
2. Dodge the “life of the party” bullet. As an extrovert, it’s child’s play for me to be in a social setting, but that doesn’t bode well in solo traveling. Goal: take reflective, quiet time for myself.
3. Expect not. My vivid imagination aids writing, but not expectation. I hoped to meet up with an old friend in Toronto, invented scenarios where we would meet, what we would catch up on, but his schedule was so swamped, it never happened. I soaked in disappointment. Whether it’s accommodation, social interaction, or how a city strikes me – mapping out events minute-to-minute is travel suicide. Goal: don’t overload expectations, be a clean slate.
4. End it well. Romance on the road will spring forth (cross-fingers). One of the things I need to learn is to have the foresight and honesty to accept a situation for what it is, not what I want it to be. Goal: don’t add me to your Facebook if you don’t meant it, and I’ll do the same. Agreed?
5. The anti-independent. It will happen, a time will come when I have to ask for something. Sometimes from people I met five minutes ago. My intestines tighten, saliva in my mouth reaches drought levels, and I titter, hum and haw. I. Suck. At. It. I’m use to taking care of things myself, not depending on an outside party. Bad! Goal: work up the courage to ask. For anything.
I’m not a flawless traveler or person, everyone has personal insights to learn. Whether I reach that purity is up in the air, but guaranteed, it will land somewhere.
What is your personal checklist?
Photo: robandstephanie
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
@Jen – Haha, actually that’s not my arm. Just a Creative Commons pic. Definitely not my style of tattoo. I would help my fellow humans, so you make a terrific point on what’s my problem? LOL. Trust me, so much to learn, so much to do. And I hope to come out a better me. Soo sorry I didn’t respond to your thoughtful comment, it got buried in spam!
@Ivo Stoichev – I feel it’s a weakness and odd to ask for things, when I think – I’ll just do this myself. :) Very sorry I didn’t respond to your comment, was stuck in spam! But I saved it. :)
Hey. Awesome that you drew a checklist on your arm. Maybe we should all do that. At least for me, it seems like I’m great at keeping promises to other people but not to myself and it infuriates me beyond belief. Argh. Maybe that one should go on my list.
Anyway, it’s a balance thing. Just because you’re asking for help doesn’t mean you aren’t taking care of yourself. In fact, it’s the ultimate statement in humility; you’re saying I am not perfect and I require the help of my fellow beings in order to contribute to the whole. Question: do you deny others your help if they ask for it? Doubt it and it’s the fact that you contribute to the needs of others that makes asking for help okay and not needy.
And on the expressing yourself part, remember that you are entitled to feel what you’re feeling and can only be effective if you express that. People will respect you so much more if you do and you deserve that.
Kudos to you for being able to admit and share these things.
You’re a very interesting person, normally people expect extroverts not to have trouble with asking for things. Maybe you’re a little bit on the introvert side :)
About my personal checklist ? Well, compared to yours, I certainly have a problem with #3 too, since I always imagine things, I daydream too often and this has to stop.
@Andi – You and me girl. :)
@Nick Laborde – LOL. The arm is extreme. And, no, that’s not my arm. :)
I think a personal check list is an awesome idea!!! My fingers are crossed that you’ll have LOTS of romance. ;-)
I haven’y really thought about this …
A lot of the items on your checklists would be similar to mine. On #2, I am the exact opposite, I’m on the introvert side and I need to get out of my own world. Not that I want to be the life of the party, just a little more social.
I don’t think I’ll tattoo them on my arm though.
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