Adventurous Life Newsletter - Inviting You to Find Inspiration in Odd Corners (May/June 2005)

This month begins the fourth year of publication for Adventurous Life newsletter. In looking back over past issues (which can be found archived online), I've been thinking about the mix of travel and community service that flows through its virtual pages. At first glance, this may seem a strange mix.

Many newsletters, magazines, and tv shows about travel adventures focus exclusively on highlights from exotic locales or the latest in cheap (or luxurious) travel opportunities. When I started this newsletter, I made a conscious decision not to do this -- at least not exclusively. Why?

It began to strike me as fascinating that so many people around me had lives at least as interesting as mine, but that we rarely talked about them. It seemed to me that people's most glorious selves went hidden beneath the surface of daily life. I wanted an excuse to ask these people about their adventures -- whatever form they took -- and to share their insights with others. And I was also looking for the root of something I'd realized on the road: the ability to appreciate adventures in our own back yards is exactly the same ability that makes us more compassionate, involved, and inquisitive global citizens. (Impatience, it seems to me, is not a trait that is useful to a true traveler.)

In addition, I'd made a promise to myself while wandering the globe. Overwhelmed by the complexities of handing out money to people begging on the streets whose situations I knew nothing about, I vowed that rather than try to fix the world with tourist handouts, I would return to my own community and take part in making it better. In the process of following through on this promise, I've learned that community service is one of the few experiences that come close to rivaling travel for its ability to open up new worlds, encourage cross-pollinization of ideas, and simply allow human beings to work side by side to shape their own communities.

This month, take a moment to examine your role in shaping and maintaining your community. What discussions do you have with people about your town or neighborhood? How do you contribute? Perhaps you've decided to give 10% of your income to charities of your choice. Or you might join the board of directors of a local nonprofit organization. Maybe you help organize a fundraiser or a cleanup day for your town. Plant trees. Volunteer to build a Habitat for Humanity house. Lick envelopes for a political mailing. Hold salons to discuss community issues. Mow the lawn for your elderly neighbor.

Whatever it is, remember that this is exactly what people in every village and town across the world do every day. Tourists move in and out, adding spice -- but the people who dig in and do the work are the true citizens. So wherever you are, however long you plan to stay, whether traveling or settling down, consider what you can do to be a citizen of your neighborhood -- and of the planet. Therein lies the core of what Adventurous Life is all about. Thank you for supporting the newsletter with your readership and for sharing stories, thoughts, input, feedback, and ideas over the past three years. It's been a fabulous journey, made all the better by your participation -- and I look forward to seeing where we go from here!

A few years after college, John Freyer got the idea that he might travel a bit. But to his post-collegiate horror, he realized that he'd acquired more stuff than could fit in his car. So on a whim, he had all his friends over for a party in which they wandered around his apartment tagging any and all of his belongings as ones that he had to then sell on eBay. Which he did. In fact, he went so far at one point as to auction off his birthday -- the right to be him for a day, complete with friends and presents.

Each item for sale had personalized descriptions of its history -- including the set of false teeth that replaced the two front teeth he'd knocked out when he was seven and which now reside in an archival box at the University of Iowa Museum of Art -- and all bidding started at $1. The site he created (allmylifeforsale.com) began as "an online project that explored our relationship to the objects around us, their role in the concept of identity, as well as the emerging commercial systems of the Internet" and is now owned by the museum as well.

Soon after starting the project, John began wondering what had become of these items. So he started asking each person who bought his items on eBay whether they would send him updates about these items in their new homes. Then, in 2001, he decided to travel to visit each of these items and the people who had bought them. The web site (and now the book and online travelogue) chronicles the journeys of the items and the relationships that surround them.

So if you're thinking about spring cleaning, imagine not the drudgery and loss, but the adventures that await you (and your stuff) with a little creativity!

Random Recommendations from Readers

The following (in no particular order) are just a few of the recommendations from readers that have trickled in over the past few months. Check them out!

Save BioGems
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is "an environmental action group supported by more than 1 million members and BioGems Defenders nationwide. Our mission is to safeguard the earth: its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends." Every year, NRDC names 12 BioGems -- unspoiled wildlands in the Americas threatened by development -- and mobilizes citizens to take direct action to protect them.

What's Your Ecological Footprint?
Earth Day International and Redefining Progress have teamed up to engage people across the globe in measuring their impact on our planet using the Ecological Footprint Quiz.

At Home America
One reader wrote in to share her enthusiasm for her new home-based business as a direct sales representative for At Home America (like a Mary Kay Cosmetics or Tupperware company, but for home decorating products).

50 Ways to Save Our Children
This site is a portal to a variety of organizations and volunteer
networking sites dedicated to serving the needs of children and their families. The site "does not solicit funds. The goal is to educate, guide and inspire would-be philanthropists to get involved with existing local, national and global charitable organizations that have a track record of serving the myriad needs of children and their families."

One-to-One Peace Project
Feeling creative? This simple grassroots project was "born out of the knowledge that the people of this world are peace loving, caring people, who don’t want conflict or war." This is a nice one for a rainy day project with kids -- or just because you feel like reaching out to someone.

GreenNewsletters
This site has a listing of action alerts and newsletters from a variety of coalitions dedicated to saving everything from the environment to humanity. Choose your favorite and stay informed. Plus the Care2 site that hosts the list offers free e-cards with an eco-twist.

BOOK - Ten Things I Wish I'd Known - Before I Went Out into the Real World by Maria Shriver
Described by the reader who recommended the book as follows: "I have been reading a book that has been on my shelf for awhile as I needed a little boost and inspiration: Maria Shriver's Ten Things I Wish I'd Known - Before I Went Out into the Real World. I think I will buy copies to pass on to young friends (and older ones too, as we all could use reinforcement/reminders). I love her style and being so 'real' on paper."

50 Things to Do Before You Die
Who knew there was an official list? (Speaking of which, send me your list of top five or ten -- or whatever! -- things to do before you die. We haven't had one in a while!)

Stumbled across any books you've found particularly inspiring lately? Movies? Web sites? Share the inspiration! Drop me a line with your recommendations, and I'll pass them along to other readers.


	Welcome to this month's edition of Adventurous Life!
I welcome your thoughts, feedback & suggestions for stories. Please don't hesitate to contact me or swing by www.judywolf.com to see what's new. Pass this newsletter along to a friend!			In this issue: Happy Birthday to Adventurous Life Newsletter Top 5 Ideas to Inspire You This Month Got Stuff? Random Recommendations from Readers Everyday Adventures

*Happy Birthday to Adventurous Life* Newsletter** This month begins the fourth year of publication for Adventurous Life newsletter. In looking back over past issues (which can be found archived online), I've been thinking about the mix of travel and community service that flows through its virtual pages. At first glance, this may seem a strange mix. Many newsletters, magazines, and tv shows about travel adventures focus exclusively on highlights from exotic locales or the latest in cheap (or luxurious) travel opportunities. When I started this newsletter, I made a conscious decision not to do this -- at least not exclusively. Why? It began to strike me as fascinating that so many people around me had lives at least as interesting as mine, but that we rarely talked about them. It seemed to me that people's most glorious selves went hidden beneath the surface of daily life. I wanted an excuse to ask these people about their adventures -- whatever form they took -- and to share their insights with others. And I was also looking for the root of something I'd realized on the road: the ability to appreciate adventures in our own back yards is exactly the same ability that makes us more compassionate, involved, and inquisitive global citizens. (Impatience, it seems to me, is not a trait that is useful to a true traveler.) In addition, I'd made a promise to myself while wandering the globe. Overwhelmed by the complexities of handing out money to people begging on the streets whose situations I knew nothing about, I vowed that rather than try to fix the world with tourist handouts, I would return to my own community and take part in making it better. In the process of following through on this promise, I've learned that community service is one of the few experiences that come close to rivaling travel for its ability to open up new worlds, encourage cross-pollinization of ideas, and simply allow human beings to work side by side to shape their own communities. This month, take a moment to examine your role in shaping and maintaining your community. What discussions do you have with people about your town or neighborhood? How do you contribute? Perhaps you've decided to give 10% of your income to charities of your choice. Or you might join the board of directors of a local nonprofit organization. Maybe you help organize a fundraiser or a cleanup day for your town. Plant trees. Volunteer to build a Habitat for Humanity house. Lick envelopes for a political mailing. Hold salons to discuss community issues. Mow the lawn for your elderly neighbor. Whatever it is, remember that this is exactly what people in every village and town across the world do every day. Tourists move in and out, adding spice -- but the people who dig in and do the work are the true citizens. So wherever you are, however long you plan to stay, whether traveling or settling down, consider what you can do to be a citizen of your neighborhood -- and of the planet. Therein lies the core of what Adventurous Life is all about. Thank you for supporting the newsletter with your readership and for sharing stories, thoughts, input, feedback, and ideas over the past three years. It's been a fabulous journey, made all the better by your participation -- and I look forward to seeing where we go from here! Got Stuff? A few years after college, John Freyer got the idea that he might travel a bit. But to his post-collegiate horror, he realized that he'd acquired more stuff than could fit in his car. So on a whim, he had all his friends over for a party in which they wandered around his apartment tagging any and all of his belongings as ones that he had to then sell on eBay. Which he did. In fact, he went so far at one point as to auction off his birthday -- the right to be him for a day, complete with friends and presents. Each item for sale had personalized descriptions of its history -- including the set of false teeth that replaced the two front teeth he'd knocked out when he was seven and which now reside in an archival box at the University of Iowa Museum of Art -- and all bidding started at $1. The site he created (allmylifeforsale.com) began as "an online project that explored our relationship to the objects around us, their role in the concept of identity, as well as the emerging commercial systems of the Internet" and is now owned by the museum as well. Soon after starting the project, John began wondering what had become of these items. So he started asking each person who bought his items on eBay whether they would send him updates about these items in their new homes. Then, in 2001, he decided to travel to visit each of these items and the people who had bought them. The web site (and now the book and online travelogue) chronicles the journeys of the items and the relationships that surround them. So if you're thinking about spring cleaning, imagine not the drudgery and loss, but the adventures that await you (and your stuff) with a little creativity! Random Recommendations from Readers The following (in no particular order) are just a few of the recommendations from readers that have trickled in over the past few months. Check them out! Save BioGems The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is "an environmental action group supported by more than 1 million members and BioGems Defenders nationwide. Our mission is to safeguard the earth: its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends." Every year, NRDC names 12 BioGems -- unspoiled wildlands in the Americas threatened by development -- and mobilizes citizens to take direct action to protect them. What's Your Ecological Footprint? Earth Day International and Redefining Progress have teamed up to engage people across the globe in measuring their impact on our planet using the Ecological Footprint Quiz. At Home America One reader wrote in to share her enthusiasm for her new home-based business as a direct sales representative for At Home America (like a Mary Kay Cosmetics or Tupperware company, but for home decorating products). 50 Ways to Save Our Children This site is a portal to a variety of organizations and volunteer networking sites dedicated to serving the needs of children and their families. The site "does not solicit funds. The goal is to educate, guide and inspire would-be philanthropists to get involved with existing local, national and global charitable organizations that have a track record of serving the myriad needs of children and their families." One-to-One Peace Project Feeling creative? This simple grassroots project was "born out of the knowledge that the people of this world are peace loving, caring people, who don’t want conflict or war." This is a nice one for a rainy day project with kids -- or just because you feel like reaching out to someone. GreenNewsletters This site has a listing of action alerts and newsletters from a variety of coalitions dedicated to saving everything from the environment to humanity. Choose your favorite and stay informed. Plus the Care2 site that hosts the list offers free e-cards with an eco-twist. *BOOK - Ten Things I Wish I'd Known - Before I Went Out into the Real World* by Maria Shriver** Described by the reader who recommended the book as follows: "I have been reading a book that has been on my shelf for awhile as I needed a little boost and inspiration: Maria Shriver's Ten Things I Wish I'd Known - Before I Went Out into the Real World. I think I will buy copies to pass on to young friends (and older ones too, as we all could use reinforcement/reminders). I love her style and being so 'real' on paper." 50 Things to Do Before You Die Who knew there was an official list? (Speaking of which, send me your list of top five or ten -- or whatever! -- things to do before you die. We haven't had one in a while!) Stumbled across any books you've found particularly inspiring lately? Movies? Web sites? Share the inspiration! Drop me a line with your recommendations, and I'll pass them along to other readers.				"Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality..." *- Martin Luther King Jr*

				Top 5 Ideas to Inspire You This Month Pick up a copy of Maskmaking by Carole Sivin and have your friends over for a mask (or body) casting and decorating session Team up with your neighbors to create a flower garden (or window box) for someone on your block who doesn't have the time or ability to do it him/herself Learn how to windsurf. Fall off a lot and laugh about it. Borrow a bird or plant identification book from your local library and take it to the nearest park for some exploration Take an immersion language course in a country you've always wanted to visit, then stay for awhile afterward, going off the beaten track and chatting with locals
				"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" *-Mary Oliver*

				Everyday Adventures #29 Go on a survival mission in your own kitchen. Eat your way through your pantry and your freezer and don't buy any more food until you exhaust everything that you squirreled away in your home. On this archaeological dig, you'll be surprised to discover canned goods in old-fashioned packages and strains of mold you didn't know you could grow. This everyday adventure is from "A New Adventure Every Day: 541 Simple Ways to Live with Pizzazz" by David Silberkleit, excerpted with the author's permission.


		About the author: Judy Wolf is a world traveler, freelance writer, speaker, and whitewater kayak instructor. She's taken many long solo journeys around the world, traveling by foot, bus, jeep, camel, truck, boat, train, plane, elephant, and bicycle to over 30 countries on five continents. Her work has appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies, including Far From Home: Father Daughter Travel Adventures and A Woman's Europe. She's currently working on a book about her most recent adventures…that is, when she's not plunging off waterfalls or entertaining the dog. Learn more at www.judywolf.com.

Please feel free to forward this newsletter to anyone you feel might find it of interest. If you cut and paste content, please make sure you include all attribution, copyright, and contact information. Thanks! To subscribe to or unsubscribe from Adventurous Life, go to www.judywolf.com/newsletter To contact Judy Wolf: http://www.judywolf.com or e-mail now (or snail mail to 3786 Dawes Ave, Clinton NY 13323). Copyright © 2005 Judy Wolf