“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. ” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

You know. I’d love to sit here and tell you that somehow I’ve always known I am a girl filled with a thirst for adventure and a gypsy soul dreamer. I’d love to regale you with stories of my natural inclination to inspire people to live their best lives by traveling the world. But that simply is not the truth. I’ve made a half dozen or more wrong turns along the way but now I’m excited to have found my true north.

In fact, until recently, I had always thought that by this point in my life I would have met my white knight and we would have ridden into  the sunset. Unfortunately it appears that my knight is somewhat directionally challenged and will show up one unexpected day. I realized that I’ve been holding my breath, waiting for my prince to come instead of celebrating life and reveling in my independent adventures. It didn’t occur to me that John Lennon, in his infinite wisdom, was right all along. “Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans” ~ John Lennon. Life doesn’t start 5 lbs from now. Nor does it start when the knight in shining armor slays the dragon and wins the princess. That’s actually when the fairy tale ends, isn’t it? How ironic.

So I decided to take stock and realize that in my holding pattern, I’ve been fortunate enough to find a job that I’m passionate about that also affords me the opportunity to travel the world and explore a vast array of new experiences. Through this blog, I’m highlighting my independant travel experiences  including following Metallica around Australia, being able to attend 2 World Cup Football tournaments, SCUBA diving in South Africa, and sampling the local alcoholic delicassies all over the world. And as I continue my solo travels without a map, I hope that you’ll join me in my reindeer games. Afterall, life’s a journey and only you hold the map.