BigDog Speaks

I can remember many, many, many, years ago, I came very close to going to Australia. I seriously considered loading up, lock, stock, and barrel and making Australia my new home. At the time, I had the skills they were looking for, was the right age, and had the attitude that said, "I want to be a ground breaker!" What all that hype really means is my family and I had something to offer to Australia and in return, they were going to help us get there. I hadn't thought about that in YEARS until I saw a short piece on New Zealand.

[More:]

I am still within the acceptable age range, I just don't have the skills they are looking for. Transplanting one's self to New Zealand is more a younger persons realm rather than an old fart like me. That doesn't stop me from thinking about it. I guess those of us with a pioneer spirit, never really outgrow it. Taking on new challenges, exploring new worlds, or at the very least, new countries, is a deep seated desire instilled in those prone to wanderlust. I am one of those, even if I never make it past my recliner. I watch the TV documentaries, and I read anything I get my hands on, and I can let my mind do the wandering while I stay safe at home. Yes, I am an armchair adventurer. Occasionally I get out of the armchair, throw caution to the wind, and follow the wild hairs that pop up in my psyche. I suspect that is why I prospect for gold, hunt, and fish. It is never the destination, just the journey that counts. Yes, I find gold sometimes, I bring home an occasional animal, and generally catch fish yet, none of that is the real point. I am out DOING. I'm not reading about it (I do a LOT of that) I am actually out there DOING. For me, the DOING is what counts. I've gotten off my backside and ventured out and done things a lot of folks never will. I have done things that hold value to me and make memories that I will carry all my life. My form of LIVING with GUSTO. A lot of folks never have these urges. They are content to sit by the fire and experience their adventures second hand. TV, books, the Internet, all offer them what they seek, from the safety of their homes. I can't say they are wrong, I just wonder if they haven't missed out on something? Dry washing for gold in the desert, hunting hogs in the swamp, catfish in the lakes, and tucked away somewhere in the back of the mind, the ALMOST of picking up and moving to a new country and starting fresh, hard, and raw, like the old day pioneers. The opportunities are still out there, will you sit in your chair or take the bull by the horns? I'm sad to say, I need to sit this one out.