Growing up in my family, vacations were never exactly standard. To begin, my dad is a pilot and used to fly commercially. This occupation brought a certain chache when it came to traveling. He would often fly my family in our small private airplane. While that may sound extraordinarily glamorous, it's not as fancy as most probably imagine. However, growing up, this was just the norm for me.
One difference between the airline and our small airplane is assurance. Usually, when a friend tells you they're going on vacation, they can tell you for sure where and when they are going. When a friend asks me where I'm going on vacation, very often my answer will be something like "well...we're thinking East coast. But we're not sure, we may end up going out West instead." When they ask when I'll be leaving for my trip, my answer will almost always be along the lines of "No idea...we might not even end up going if the weather changes." So as one may imagine, we've gone on our fair share of adventures in our small plane. Several times, a trip we've been planning for months gets completely ruined by the unreliability of the weather. Even more often, it just leads to unexpected adventures. So you could say that I've had to get used to "flying by the seat of my pants" when it comes to vacations.
About a week ago, my grandma began talking about cruises and got a wistful look on her face. If it were up to her, she would spend her golden years traveling the world. However, my grandpa doesn't exactly have the same plans. That day, I saw ads for cheap last minute cruises. I looked into it, just for fun, and found several options that looked like they could maybe fit our busy schedule. Though I didn't think anything would come of it. However, as of Friday, we have airline tickets booked for Copenhagen, Denmark and cruise ship cabins booked to leave on Tuesday. If someone told me that was hasty or spontaneous I would say "why yes, it is" with a proud smile on my face.
Friday morning, my expectation was to be in Boston this week visiting my sister. However, maybe it was due to the shift in the winds or fate or whatever you may want to say, now I am expecting to be in Northern Europe this week. Who even knows what will end up happening? All I know is that I'll enjoy the ride and have some great stories to tell when I get back.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Sunday, June 3, 2012
When You Feel Sad...
It's been an interesting few weeks since I last posted a blog entry. I had some of the best days of my life, and probably some of the worst as well. I've had a ton of fun, been incredibly happy, been incredibly stressed, felt extraordinarily confused. However, that description is probably pretty standard for life in general. Cycles of happiness and sadness. But, I've found the cure. Yes, it's revolutionary and something no one's ever thought of before, I am sure of it.
So are you ready to hear my secret? Keep in mind, this is not a permanent fix for sadness, however it is a temporary solution. Okay, here it is...
Stop.
Being.
Sad.
Be.
Happy.
Instead.
That is all.
When things seem so bad, and you just cannot stop thinking about whatever it is that's making you sad, STOP BEING SAD! Now, I know what you're thinking, that's much easier said than done. Well, luckily, I've come up with a few steps you can take in order to ward off these bad feelings that get you down.
1. Embrace the power of music. The right song can change your mood at the drop of a hat. That may be a cliche, but trust me, don't waste your time on angsty music that just makes you feel more sad. Use those songs that make you want to dance and sing to your heart's content.
2. Food. Another huge cliche, but seriously, you're sad, these are the moments for your version of comfort food. Whether that be ice cream, pickles, chocolate, just go for it.
3. Things that are self-fulfilling. Exercising, studying, learning a new skill, a big project. Anything that gives a feeling of accomplishment.
4. My biggest suggestion, and probably what is the most effective: Friends. Surround yourself with the people you love who will make you laugh and smile. It's moments like these when you realize how invaluable your friends and family really are.
On another note, I've had a lot of crazy stuff been going on in my life lately, and I wrote down subjects I wanted to talk about at one point or another, but never got to writing an entry on, so those will trickle in in the next few blogs.
So are you ready to hear my secret? Keep in mind, this is not a permanent fix for sadness, however it is a temporary solution. Okay, here it is...
Stop.
Being.
Sad.
Be.
Happy.
Instead.
That is all.
When things seem so bad, and you just cannot stop thinking about whatever it is that's making you sad, STOP BEING SAD! Now, I know what you're thinking, that's much easier said than done. Well, luckily, I've come up with a few steps you can take in order to ward off these bad feelings that get you down.
1. Embrace the power of music. The right song can change your mood at the drop of a hat. That may be a cliche, but trust me, don't waste your time on angsty music that just makes you feel more sad. Use those songs that make you want to dance and sing to your heart's content.
2. Food. Another huge cliche, but seriously, you're sad, these are the moments for your version of comfort food. Whether that be ice cream, pickles, chocolate, just go for it.
3. Things that are self-fulfilling. Exercising, studying, learning a new skill, a big project. Anything that gives a feeling of accomplishment.
4. My biggest suggestion, and probably what is the most effective: Friends. Surround yourself with the people you love who will make you laugh and smile. It's moments like these when you realize how invaluable your friends and family really are.
On another note, I've had a lot of crazy stuff been going on in my life lately, and I wrote down subjects I wanted to talk about at one point or another, but never got to writing an entry on, so those will trickle in in the next few blogs.
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