Happy New Year - 2011

Well, this is the day that everyone seems to think we should make New Year’s resolutions. I am not a fan of them for several reasons. I feel that a person ought to act on a thing once it is in her head and not wait until a particular milestone comes along. For instance, if one sees the need to go on a diet, go on a diet, don’t wait for New Years, or Monday, or September 1^st. You get my drift. Do it when you need to. Another reason I don’t like them is that most often there is no follow through, especially if they are grandiose vows. Or there is stress involved if one wants to quit smoking or drinking. What a way to start the new year, cranky as all get out. Lastly, I feel I am so perfect I don’t need to correct anything so what is the point of searching for a list? J

It’s the same with the Bucket List. I discovered this year that if a person wants to do something they should do it when they have their health and the desire to do it. I’ve been struggling with this pinched sciatic nerve since June and let me tell you, it sure isn’t a fun way to live. I realized that in the next seven years a lot of other things could start to happen to my body so if I wanted to see the world I better say yes when the opportunity comes along. That’s why I went on that extravagant trip to NYC and why I said yes to Ecuador. Sure, I had already been to Mexico and to B.C. and I had spent a lot of money on my driveway but I listened to Raymond Burr (another one of my heroes) “if I leave two cents behind, I won’t have lived well”.

My philanthropy is currently taking a selfish turn, one might say, but I look at it differently. If I can experience the world as I have experienced people-dom then I will be rich in memories and rich in ideas. I may be able to write something worth reading. And if not, I will still be rich in experience. Travelling has been one of my little known desires. True, I mostly wanted to see Europe and the U.S.A. but if South America calls, well, why not? A colleague of mine got the opportunity to go to Egypt and I encouraged her to say yes. To go with friends, it’s the best way to see a place.

Now I will also say something about my trip to England. I absolutely adored my trip. I planned it with my travel agent as a literary tour with the specific request that I be able to stay in the various places for more than a day. So I flew in to Manchester and got my feet wet by taking an afternoon trip on the train to the downtown part of Manchester since I was at a hotel near the airport. I hadn’t known that there were lots of authors I could have checked out in Manchester until later but that’s alright. Next day I was on the train to Windermere, Beatrix Potter and William Wordsworth world. Gorgeous. The next day it was raining so I thought I would escape the rain and jaunt up to see Hadrian’s Wall. What an experience. Carlisle, Vindolanda, Hexham/Newcastle. To walk where Romans had been!

After Windermere I went to Haworth for 3 days. I took the long walk to Top Within which is the inspiration for Wuthering Heights. As luck would have it, I spent a solitary half hour there before others joined me. It was me and the sheep. I spent a day in York and I saw the Viking village underground. I realized how much the Vikings impressed this area.

Next I went to Bath. My hotel was fabulous, very high end and I felt very posh staying there but this was also where I felt the loneliness burnout. I did all things Austen but I was really feeling lonely. I cut my stay short by a day and consequently lucked out when I went to Torque. I got to go on a sea ride that took me up the River Dart to Agatha Christie’s summer home Greenway where I celebrated my birthday with an ice cream. Then on to London which is a whole other experience.

I loved my trip but I can promise you I won’t ever travel alone again, that was the only down side of that perfect trip. So when someone asks “do you want to go to Ecuador with me?” I say yes. I’ll go just about anywhere with anyone. That’s my resolution.