Postcards From Myself

Yes, I am a huge parrot head. I have been going to Buffett concerts for nearly 30 years now and have been a fan of his music for even longer. Hopefully he will come closer to Charleston, but right now the closest date is in Charlotte, North Carolina. I bought my tickets today. It has been a while since I bought lawn seats, but hey, I can still hang with the lawn crowd!

And while you are at it, please check out my Parrot Head Page. Fins Up!

Have you ever seen a flying dock dog? Take a look at the picture and you will. These are dogs of all types, all sizes, and all ages that are trained (and I use that term lightly) to run down a dock and then sail into the air. They land in the water anywhere from five feet to about twenty-one feet away in a huge splash.

Now for some explanation. The South Eastern Wildlife Exposition is in town here in Charleston this weekend, and I played hooky on Friday to attend. We also took the kids down today, and I may go back down for a while tomorrow. The Expo is an annual event that has been going on 26 years. It is a huge get together of artists, hunters, conservation groups, fisherman, vendors, and just about every one else involved with wildlife. While there is a large emphasis on hunting and fishing, there is also a huge push in conservation and education. This year Jack Hannah did two different free presentations. In past years there have been other guest presenters such as Jeff Corwin and Mutual of Omaha’s Jim Fowler.

The part that my family and I enjoy the most is the dogs. Not only are there dogs doing various things such as retriever exhibitions and the above mentioned “dock dogs”, but everyone who can brings there dogs and puppies out to walk in the parks and visit the various venues. I saw spaniels, poodles, basset hounds, retrievers, mastiffs, dachshunds, German shepherds, hounds, and many more. From five pounds to a hundred and five pounds, they were all there.

But the most fun this year was had around the dock dog pool. These dogs, even the ones who more fell in the water than dove, just really seemed to be having a good time. This is a competition, but a very friendly and light hearted one. And the crowds loved it. I am really not sure who were grinning more, the dogs or the children watching them. And if the response from everyone gathered round was any indication, there will be at least a few more dogs in the water next year. I can’t wait.

This is totally random, but I just came across a site that is so odd and interesting that I have to share the madness. This is the kind of site that the Internet was created for and that I can literally lose myself in for hours. Take a look at Strange Maps. Seriously, look a it and then scroll down and look some more. When you are feeling that the world is a dull place and everything looks the same, consider these maps that can take the extremely ordinary and present it some amazingly different point of view. From New York under German occupation to Europe as a conglomeration of cartoon characters, the maps on this site convey more than places and directions; they offer up an alternative way of looking at all that surrounds us.

Enjoy!

I am just wondering what you want for Christmas? Not necessarily some big item like a television or a diamond ring, but what is it that if you could have anything and weren’t afraid to be laughed at that you would ask for? Remember when you were a kid and you would freely state that you wanted a pony, or a train, or a spaceship? And remember how, every once in a while, you got what you asked for even if it wasn’t it the exact detail of your request?

Maybe you asked for a spaceship and you got a LEGO set to build one. Or maybe you ask for a pony and got a play set with a pony and other little animals. Or who knows, maybe you actually got a pony? Yes, there are those times when you actually get exactly what you ask for. So, be careful that what you ask for is really what you want!

As for me, what I really want is a trip to England. I would love to go back for a week or even a few days. Problem is that right now there is no way I can afford the ticket and the hotel. I keep trying to find a way, but nothing has reared its head yet.

But that is me, and the question here is about you. So, what do you want? Really, what do you want?

Oh, and when you do go out skipping the globe please stay in contact and let me hear from you. At least every once in a while, because I am going to miss you.

And now some links for our intrepid travelers.

First, how do you get out there and get going? And once how there, how do you keep yourself going mentally, spiritually and financially? An excellent book that will answer some of those questions is “Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel” (Rolf Potts). Well written in a conversational style, Vagabonding is about taking time off from your normal life—from six weeks to four months to two years—to discover and experience the world on your own terms. Veteran shoestring traveler Rolf Potts shows how anyone armed with an independent spirit can achieve the dream of extended overseas travel.

There is an accompanying website to the book here, but more interesting than that is the blog site that can be found at vagablogging. This has entries from Rolf Potts as well as others about travel, touring, exploring, and almost anything even slightly related. From books and movies to food and relationships, it will all get hit upon at vagablogging.

Next there is the site Glimpse Abroad. This is not one of those where to go, what to see travel sites. This is mainly a site of personal stories of the experiences you have when you travel and get yourself out of you safe little comfort zone. The glimpses into what happens abroad that you will read at Glimpse Abroad are often personal, sometimes funny, but always thought provoking. This is what happens when you stop looking at a place on your trip and start to experience your travels.

And finally a language site. Unlike a lot of the world, Americans aren’t normally brought up to be bilingual or multi-lingual. Learning another language can be hard for us, not to mention frustrating. LiveMocha attempts to change some of that by making the process interactive. While breaking the process down into lessons, LiveMocha also involves you with a community of people doing the same things so that you have others to interact with and feed off of. Finally there is a motivational aspect where they track your process and actually measure how you are doing. Different approaches to learning work with varied results for different people, but this is one that certainly seems worth trying.

And again, please don’t forget to keep in touch.