Going to Ireland

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It has been just over a year now. Ashley and I chose what country we wanted to visit, headed into the Education Abroad office at the university and had our first communication with the adviser. Much paperwork, headache and stress later, we are about to head off on another adventure. The apartment has been packed up and put into storage, tickets and insurance have been purchased, our bags are… not quite packed yet.

This will be my first time out of the country, while Ashley has visited Canada and studied abroad in Finland.

The most common question we get is, “What will your husband/wife do while you’re gone?” Apparently it doesn’t occur to anyone that we can study abroad together. Of course, we wouldn’t have it any other way. We find that any adventure worth having is made better by sharing it with someone, and there is no one else we would rather share it with.

The second most common question is, “Why Ireland?” Well, why not? 😀 We actually chose Ireland for a number of different reasons. They have classes that we both need. It is in close proximity to Finland to go visit Ashley’s host family, as well as close enough to Europe to tour there during our spring break. It is not as popular as the rest of Europe, at least for study abroad students, so we had a better chance of getting to go together. They speak English there (even though we speak American, we will be able to communicate). And, seriously, why not?

Now we just sit and count down the days until we get to leave! That’s ok, though… free time to go geocaching!

The Adventure-Some New Year’s Resolution

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In my personal life, I plan to keep seeking out the adventure in my life. No resolution needed there, it’s something that I already do and will keep doing as long as I am able. (And when I am no longer able, please put me out of my misery!)

However, I do have a New Year’s Resolution for Adventure-Some. I want to help you find the adventure in your life. I want to point out opportunities for excitement, new things to try, locations to explore, activities to do, people to meet, new viewpoints for familiar items and more! Some will be specific, some will be broad and open to your interpretation, all will be parts of the map guiding you to a more exciting life.

Planning Your Adventure – What Do You Want to Do?

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This is the first post in the Planning Your Adventure series.

Before you can get anywhere, you have to know where you are going. Today we are going to start drawing your map. X marks the spot, right?

I will draw my map as we go along, to give you an example. I’ll use this color text to separate it from the directions.

First you have to determine your X. Let’s start with a deceptively simple question. “What would you do if nothing could go wrong?”

    Some examples would be:

  • purchasing something (motorcycle, house, computer, etc)
  • learning some skill (cooking, a new language, jousting, etc)
  • doing something (going on a trip, finding more geocaches, trying out a new restaurant, visit a long-lost relative, etc)
    My list:

  • Running motorcycle (either fix mine or buy a new one)
  • RV -windstream
  • My own company
  • Cross-country motorcycle trip
  • Travel to Ireland/Europe
  • Hot air balloon ride
  • Hang glide
  • Get pilot’s license
  • Paint a picture
  • Sell my ring design
  • Sell stationary design
  • Be debt free

This can be a hard question to answer truthfully. (I’ve had the advantage of time to think about it.) If you are struggling, think back to dreams that you have given up on for some reason or another. Think of things that you hate or fear and write down the opposite. Don’t limit yourself and do not concern yourself with how these things will be accomplished. Just list your dreams.

    If that didn’t help, try answering these questions:

  • What would you do, day to day, if you had $100 million in the bank?
  • What would make you most excited to wake up in the morning every day?
    If you are still having a hard time, fill in these five spots:

  • one place to visit
  • one thing to do before you die (memory of a lifetime)
  • one thing to do daily
  • one thing to do weekly
  • one thing you’ve always wanted to learn

Now you have a list of dreams. Using at most a 6 month timeline, indicate the most exciting and/or important dreams.

    Reordered list, in order of importance & doable within 6 months

  • Travel to Ireland/Europe
  • Running motorcycle (either fix mine or buy a new one)
  • My own company/passive source of income (notice that I am defining this further)
  • Be debt free
  • Paint a picture
  • Cross-country motorcycle trip
  • Hot air balloon ride
  • Hang glide
  • Get pilot’s license
  • Sell my ring design
  • Sell stationary design
  • RV -windstream

I have a number of goals left, too many for a beginning project. I narrowed some down because they are not achievable in 6 months or less (pilot’s license, buy windstream, cross-country motorcycle trip) and some are just not as important/exciting to me (selling designs, hot air balloon ride and hang gliding).

Now that you have indicated the most important dreams that you can complete within 6 months, it is time to choose which ones to focus on. I recommend trying only one or two at a time to start with.

I will focus on the most important goal (a trip to Ireland/Europe) and an easy one to complete (paint a picture).

Now that you have your goal firmly in mind, the X drawn on the map, it is time to figure out how to get there! Next time we’ll Define & Measure!

Planning Your Adventure

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Want to know how easy it is to go on the adventure of your dreams? You’ll be amazed at how simple it is!

In the Planning Your Adventure series I will give you the simple step-by-step directions you need to go on any adventure you want. I will include a walk-along example of me creating a painting (quick and easy) and living in Ireland for a semester including a week in Europe for fun (a bit more involved).

Here is what we will be covering:

And so, without further ado, here is how to go on any adventure you want…

Re-Defining Adventure

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According to good ole Webster, adventure can be a noun:

– an exciting or very unusual experience

or it can be a verb:

– to risk or hazard

That sounds pretty easy. Basically, an adventure is something that is exciting or new to you. That “to you” is the key phrase. Just because your friends do something routinely doesn’t mean that it is not an adventure for you who have never done it before.

This is the target. This is what we are aiming for.

“More adventure in your life today.”

Sound familiar? I don’t want us to forget that, so I was sure to include it on every page.

An adventure does not have to be a safari to Africa (although that can definitely count as an adventure!) You can have an adventure in your local park, or a restaurant you have never tried. Adventure-Some is here to help you see the daily adventures possible in your life. Together we will try new things, go new places, and see things in a different way.