Juggling 3 Balls

Learning to juggle is like learning to ride a bicycle. Once you've got the basic move, you can't unlearn it. I can safely say I can keep three balls in the air, but only for just over a minute or so, on average, before I drop one. Here's a bit of proof:

I started learning to juggle about two or three years ago, but after a couple of weeks I stopped practicing and then have picked away at it in fits and starts. Kind of poor that this is the extent of my ability in all that time, but then, I never was a rapid study. Also, I've realized that, as with learning to ride a bike, there's this steep learning curve in the beginning and then there's this long plateau where you just can't get rid of the training wheels for what seems like eons. In terms of juggling, that seems to be the one minute mark.

Get rich, and see the world

According to an article published earlier this year in The Daily Mail, most of the dreams and wishes on people's bucket lists involve travel or some kind of adventure activity. The top 10 items, in order:

1. Become a millionaire
2. Travel the world
3. See the northern lights
4. Trek the Great Wall of China
5. Be mortgage free
6. Walk the Inca Trail
7. See the seven wonders of the world
8. Visit the Egyptian pyramids
9. Invent something that changes lives (like an iPhone?)
10. Visit Antarctica

Unfortunately, the study (a survey done by Helly Hansen of 2,000 people) also found that most people will only fulfill five of their dreams. If travelling is such a popular dream for so many, why don't more people pack a bag and get on with it, then?

If this survey is any indication, human beings think getting the most out of life means seeing the world and having a big bank balance. Maybe that's just because getting rich means having the means to travel? Thing is, though, you don't need a lot of money to go walkabout. Here is a great article from Verge Magazine about how to travel cheap or even free. I particularly like the last suggestion – enter contests. If you don't enter, you can't win, and if you do enter, you've got nothing to lose; so why not?

If I won the Biggest, Baddest Bucket List contest, which is a really great marketing campaign by MyDestination.com, I'd basically be living the ultimate dream and getting a taste of what it's like to cross off the top two fantasy items on most people's lists: get rich and see the world.

I'd also potentially get to cross off a few of my own bucket list items, all within six months:

#17 - raft down a world-class river
#27 - drive the Autobahn
#29 - ride a camel through a desert
#32 - ride a helicopter and a hot air balloon
#61 - go dog sledding
#65 - visit St. Peter's Basilica
#79 - best suite at a five-star hotel
#85 - kickboxing in Thailand
#86 - experience a dude ranch
#93 - see the Aurora Borealis
#96 - sky diving

...and I'd be a lot closer to #14 - visit every country!

Why travel?

This is Robin Esrock. He's been to 107 countries since 2005.

A few weeks ago I met this guy and his lovely wife Anna at a house party. We got chatting, and I asked him about the hat he was wearing. It looked like a faded old Australian outback hat that he said had been all around the world with him and that it was time to let it go because it had seen better days.

Anna is due to give birth to their first child imminently, and the hat wasn't exactly clean (and had even picked up some radiation at Chernobyl). So, like any good adventurer, he took it out to the backyard to give it the only respectful end a good hat can have – with a ceremonial burning. I'm sure either hairspray or lighter fluid was used to speed things along, but it sure did go up in a blaze of glory.

Back inside, we formally introduced ourselves and I learned his name is Robin Esrock. The Robin Esrock. As in moderngonzo.com and the TV series World Travels, seen in more than 100 countries in 21 languages. He's led an incredible life, and yet he really does seem to be just like anybody else. I really enjoyed what he had to say about where he's been and where he's at now. When he told me he and Anna live in Burnaby the lightbulb went off, and I thought, hey, I could write a feature about this guy for the paper I'm working at. So I did. You can read it here.

Sometimes being a journalist working for the mass media really is the (second) best job in the world, and a serendipitous job to have when you get the opportunity to interview one of the last great travel writers working today.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained

Well, it was a bit of a rush job to get it in by the deadline, but I've submitted my entry for the Biggest, Baddest Bucket List contest. Man, that was fun!!

I had a moment Sunday afternoon, when I hadn't had anything to eat yet, and I was sitting at my kitchen table in my sweat pants, furiously editing the video, thinking, why bother, I'll never get this in on time and I'm not taking advantage of this gorgeous sunny Easter Sunday... but then, nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? At least now there's a chance, whereas if I hadn't given it a shot, it would be impossible.

As my mom once told me, "If you don't take any chances, you won't have an interesting life."

Making this video, I've realized travel videos are more challenging to make than I would have expected, and yet it's reinforced that yes, making videos is what I want to do all day, every day. If I actually did win this contest (or any like it), I would be obviously be ecstatic, not only because it would mean travelling, but because I would get paid to blog and take pictures and make movies. Hell, they can keep the fifty grand, I'll do this gig for free! But, shhh, don't tell that to the good folks at mydestination.com.

The Biggest, Baddest Bucket List around

Wanna get paid to cross items off your bucket list?

Check this out. This company – mydestination.com is holding open auditions for a travel show host/blogger for a six-month, all expenses paid round-the-world trip and (for serious?) $50,000 cash. The winner will embark in the summer and be home by Christmas. Do you want this? I want this.

If you're not tied to a job or a family and you're ready for an awesome new job (and it IS a job, despite what anyone might say), then why not throw your hat in the ring and see if you can land this dream role? You pick the itinerary and set sail on the most epic adventure of your life. Personally, I think getting a platform to share my adventures online through video, photo and blogging would be the best part of the whole deal. That, and of, course, getting paid to cross off at least 20 things from my list.

To enter, submit a photo of yourself, a short blogpost about a travel experience, and a three-minute video of yourself showcasing a destination. Make it good. Make it really good.

Here's some tips for what I think the judges will be looking for:

1. Charisma on screen – don't be boring. (Obvious, and yet many people make boring videos of themselves every day.)
2. Your true self. Don't make it all about showing how "zany" you are, despite wanting to demonstrate how un-boring you are. It's a fine balance. But just have fun, because if you do, your viewers will, too.
3. Internet skillz. If you're already comfortable interviewing strangers, writing, taking great photos and writing snappy blog posts, you're golden. If not, learn quick. The Internet is a wise teacher.
4. A story. You'll want to show that you can capture the attention of your audience and inspire them to follow you on your journey.
5. An open mind.  You're going to have a lot of different experiences if you get picked for this gig. It's not going to always be a vacation and you're not going to stay comfy inside your comfort zone. Be willing to ride a horse. On the beach.

Enter Here until March 31, 2013

New Year, New Goals

Every year, on Jan. 1, I feel a wonderful optimistic anything-is-possible vibe, regardless of the weather, what I had for breakfast, how hungover I may be, or what I'll be doing the next day. There's just something about the first day of a new year that's deep in my psyche as a really good thing. The day always includes some time in nature and a sense of gratitude and enthusiasm for life. I wish I could conjure this feeling on a random Tuesday in March and feel this good for no good reason every day.

Of course, Jan. 1 is a day for Resolutions. For me? The usual: health/fitness, finances, relationships, yadda yadda yadda, but also the bucket list. For Christmas I got a book called Creating Your Best Life, about getting to your goals and fulfilling all your hopes and dreams through your life list, and how to best go about doing that. Flipping through it, I've realized my bucket list could use some tweaking. Some things on the list should be more specific.

More importantly, though, this year is going to be about having more fun. Everyone could really use more fun in their lives (except maybe clowns and Casey Neistat, who clearly already have that one down) and I think it's a good resolution.

I also talked to a couple of psychics last week (for my job at the paper) and they informed me that 2013 is going to be a good year the world over (except for Justin Beiber and the Iranian government). So I'm looking forward to getting back to working on my list and just having a raging good time in the next 12 months.

Flying

Today I landed a plane, and now I'm wondering if I shouldn't have removed "get a pilot's licence" from my bucket list... man, that was fun!

Took a short flight around Boundary Bay and Semiahmoo Bay with King George Aviation School this afternoon after my brother gave me a Groupon he didn't want. I got to handle the controls and brought the plane in for the landing myself. Wasn't expecting that, but it was actually pretty easy and smooth (though my adrenaline was definitely going).

The plane was a Rans Coyote II. It's a build-it-yourself. Pretty much made of toothpicks and pillowcases, it probably weighs only three times as much as I do, and it's super sensitive to the hand and foot controls. It took about three seconds to get off the ground, and then it was spectacular views of oceanfront properties in the States and around White Rock the rest of the way.

I asked the pilot if we could do a couple of rolls, and he obliged. It was like a roller-coaster ride 400 feet up. Epic.

What a way to spend a gorgeous summer afternoon. I recommend this for something to do on a sunny day. And I may have to re-consider getting my licence.