It's a new day
But it all feels old
It's a good life,
That's what I'm told
But everything, it all just feels the same

Good Charlotte's opening lyrics to The Anthem ring in my head from time to time. Very catchy stuff, if not a bit hackneyed.

Then again, tons of punk bands have their own "anthem" songs. It rings true though, and I could and still can identify.

I was exposed to punk rock in my early teens, after moving to New Jersey when I was 10.

My friend Jeff, in particular, exposed me to the good stuff - The Dead Kennedys, Slayer, and NWA.

I found others on my own, such as Suicidal Tendencies and Sex Pistols. It definitely helped shape my attitudes about conforming vs rebelling.

I was interviewed by Wendy Reiger of the Washington, DC NBC news affiliate last Fall for a story she was doing on people who leave their career and travel long term.

It was my 15 seconds of fame. Ok, maybe 30 seconds. 

The angle was that backpacking is often thought of as something that is done when you're young, in your early or mid-'20s, before getting immersed in a career, family, house, etc.

Well, I've got my career, however, I'm far from a serious relationship, and probably wouldn't seek one out given I've set this travel goal for myself and want it too much to be diverted now.

I bought this painting in one of the many art galleries in San Jose, Costa Rica in May 2005.

"Go to college,
A university
Get a real job"
That's what they say to me
But I could never live the way they want
I'm gonna get by
And just do my time
Out of step while
They all get in line
I'm just a Minor Threat so pay no mind

Friday, payday, good day! I just finished watching the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Great movie, a little trippy.

In particular, I really dug the Portuguese adaptations of David Bowie songs.

Bill Murray has made some great movies - among my favorite being Caddyshack, Ghostbusters, and Rushmore.

I picked up a bottle of South African Merlot at the store on the way home. I think it's the first African wine I've had.

Golden Raan - it has a gold on black graphic of Africa on the label. I'm not sure I'd buy it again as it doesn't quite float my boat.

Jacob's Creek from Australia is one of my favorites. I could even see myself checking out their vineyard if it weren't too far off the beaten track.

January is almost over, like sands through the hourglass, these are the days of our lives.

If things go according to plan, I could be on my way in nine months -crazy!

The biggest adventure of my life. Like skydiving, I might need a slight push out the door.

Not only am I writing 20 performance reviews (due in five days), I learned today I also need to self-evaluate myself (due in three days).

Of course, I'll write a stellar review for myself (my boss actually gave me that advice about a year ago), though it'll be a little weird.

There's no way around it, I'll need to put in a few hours at the office this weekend.

It's been a week since I started this blog, and I'm increasingly keen on the idea.

I've been keeping written journals for the past five years or so, and have put my three travel journals online at GoBackpacking.com.

I continue to customize this site, and I'm sure I'll find new ways to tweak the look, feel and functionality until I leave.

Today's updates include site stats and breadcrumb navigation.

The US Men's National soccer team beat Denmark today, 3-1, in the first international match since the first-round defeat in the 2006 World Cup.

I keep remembering that I'll likely be in the vicinity of China for the 2008 Olympics. Soccer would be tops on my list of events, especially if I could score tickets to a US match.

I'll get to posting a pic of myself, however, for now, I snapped this birdie outside my apartment window this afternoon.

It reminded me of Three Little Birds by Bob Marley, which is my go-to stress-relieving song.

Bob Marley's Legend has been in my car's CD changer for the past two years straight.

I'll begin posting more about myself as well, given we've got a lot of time to shoot the breeze before the adventure begins! 

 

Eureka! Installing this blog software by WordPress on my own website was a snap. I had already done the message boards a few months ago, so I'm sure that experience helped. Still, with this up and running so quickly and easily, I'm now psyched to host my Round the World travel blog on home turf! The biggest benefit will be a somewhat unlimited sense of photo storage. Life is good.