Sharing a Treat: Ball of Light Photography

Due to my love of Australia, interest in photography, and presence on Facebook, I came across some really amazing art this evening that I felt I needed to share.

I stumbled upon an Australian photographer, Denis Smith, who creates what he calls "Ball of Light" photography.  Not only are the pictures amazing and not edited in Photoshop, many of them are of some of the amazing places I myself have visited in Australia.

I'm not sure what I can share without permissions, so you're going to need to just click the link and check it out yourself.  

http://www.denissmith.com.au/

Make sure to read Story --> Ball of Light? so you can understand how it is done.  His blog is pretty neat as well, so if you have a couple minutes, check it out!  (I am also in love with the images in Angkor Wat, Cambodia, as that was part of our honeymoon adventure! (Happy three years tomorrow, hub!)

Incredible.  Unique.  Beautiful.

I'm impressed.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

And now I want to try!

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

How do you travel?  Do you prefer to have it all planned out for you by going on a tour?  Or do you work with a travel agent to plan where you will go and when?  Maybe you do a lot of your own research ahead of time so you are well-informed.  Or are you at the other extreme, where you just go and see what happens?

One summer vacation while in college, the hubby and I (we were just dating at the time) were able to make one of my dreams come true - a much smaller version of the longer-term around the world dream that we are currently working towards.  I wanted to get in the car and "just go."

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

We took five days, packed our car with some clothes, a tent, and food, and took off.  Our only destination was "the ocean."  For us, that meant we were headed east since we were leaving from Buffalo, NY and only had five days. 

The only other rules we had were that we were not going to plan anything ahead of time, we were not allowed to drive on highways (except maybe on the way home if time was tight), and we would go wherever our whims would take us.  We would follow roads that sounded intriguing, visit a random hole-in-the-wall restaurant and discover an amazing meal, flip a coin if we came to a fork in the road and couldn't decide which way to turn, and overall just enjoy the journey and the freedom of it.

It was an amazing trip.

We spent a night at a campground in northeast NY,  drove over gorgeous green Vermont and New Hampshire mountains. We spent a night at a campground and had a pizza delivered to us by a four-wheeler. One night it rained on our tent and we couldn't dry it out, so that was the end of our camping for the trip.  We made it to the ocean in Maine and discovered an adorable (but extremely busy!) beach town, Old Orchard Beach.  We ran into trouble finding a place to stay on a very limited budget.  It was a summer weekend in a popular beach town with limited hotels.  Eventually, we found a crappy motel, paid way too much for it, and made the most of it. We reveled in our accomplishment of reaching the ocean and playing in the crisp, gorgeous water. We paid too much for a hotel in nowhere, Massachesetts. We had our ups and downs, our frustrations and annoyances, and a lot of excitement and fun.

Some of the highlights:

• Turning the car around to get a delicious burger at a random burger joint on the side of the road
• Playing tennis at a stumbled upon tennis court
• Driving down a road just because I liked the name of it
• Eating pizza in a tent that was delivered to us by an old guy on a four-wheeler
• Driving over and among beautiful green mountains
• Arriving at the ocean and playing in the water, despite its chilly temperature and large waves
• Overcoming frustrations by working as a team and stepping up for each other
• Being in a car with my best friend, with the radio playing our favorite songs and the windows rolled down
• The feeling of freedom and adventure
• Knowing that we had everything we needed to reach our goal and have an adventure

This was just a small snippet of a trip in comparison to our upcoming six (plus?) month adventure, but somehow I know now, just like I knew then, that we'd be ok, we can do it, we'll make it work. 

I can't wait for that feeling of freedom, spontaneity, and adventure...in an amount that I've never felt before!

Do you ever travel like this?  With limited or no plans, letting yourself "just go" and see where the journey takes you?

Garage Sale-ing

A couple weeks ago we held the big "garage sale" that we had been planning all summer.  The same garage sale I secretly was afraid wouldn't happen due to weather or unexpected engagements.  The same garage sale that we collected stuff for in boxes in the basement since spring, but I was afraid wouldn't amount to enough things to make it worthwhile.  The same garage sale that we continued to bring out stuff to sell while it was in progress.  The same garage sale that continues to this day, as we have some of the remaining items on Craigslist.

I am happy to report that we made a very satisfying amount of money, cleaned out a lot of "junk" that other people could use, and even had some fun!

We made almost $450 at our garage sale over two days.  We made over $60 more on Craigslist in the day that followed.  And we're not done!

Pretty awesome.  That money covers our backpacks and then some, although we already bought those, so it's much more fun to think about what $500 might get us on our RTW adventure:

• Visas for both of us for Russia
• A month in a private room in a hostel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• Both of us to fly from Mumbai, India to Dubai, United Arab Emirates
• Cost of one of us to hike the Inca Trail in Peru with a guide and porter
• 50 steak dinners for two in Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Full day of scuba diving in the Galapagos for two(with rentals and National Park fees)

Now, these are just SOME of the amazing things that this money could get us!

It's great to know that our time and effort paid off, people can use the stuff that we considered "junk" and "clutter," and we have a little boost to our trip fund.  Not too shabby.

I figure it's only right that I share some of my Garage Sale Tips:

• Signage is key!  We didn't advertise, but we live off of a few highly trafficked roads and used that to our advantage.  We had bright yellow plastic signs that stuck in the ground.  The text was bold and readable, contained our address, and arrows pointing in the direction of our house.  There were also subsequent signs that potential buyers would see along the way to direct them to our house in case they were unfamiliar with the area.  An early-bird garage saler even complimented us on our "A+" signage!
• Organization is appreciated!  We had a futon, small table, chairs, pillows and throw blankets for sale.  We arranged them into a room-like setting, decorating carefully.  I also made a board for displaying my jewelry, so the necklaces could hang freely and everything was visible.  We sorted items on tables into groups so that housewares were all in one area, books in another, and so on.  As people bought things, we would rearrange to maintain neatness and fill in empty spots.
• Labeling is important!  Put prices on everything!
• Some people are bargainers, others are not.  Don't assume people will always haggle the price down.  Many don't.
• Don't jump the gun!  Don't lower prices prematurely, you could greatly reduce your earnings.  My husband was an anxious bargainer in the first hours of our garage sale, lowering the price on certain items before the person had even made a decision on the labeled price.  We may have lost some valuable dollars.  Later in the day, a pair of women had a small child and as they walked up the sidewalk they immediately began ogling a plush "Nemo."  The price tag was high, even in our eyes.  Hubby wanted to tell them they could have it for half price (without them even approaching, asking, or remarking on the price).  I told him to just wait...they walked around the entire sale with it.  One asked the other what the price was.  She read it, they did not show any signs of shock or outrage at the price and proceeded to come over and pay the asking price.  Score!  On the other hand - towards the end of our sale we knew we would simply be donating most of the stuff that was left.  I walked around and told people that everything was half price.  It may have encouraged a bit of increased spending, it may have simply reduced what we earned, who knows.
• Have fun! We found the people who attended our sale to be friendly (for the most part), entertaining, and just plain fun to talk to.  It was great to hear what amazing uses people had for some of our "clutter", and it made me feel really good about getting rid of everything, on top of the money we made and additional space we gained in our home!

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Rejuvenation

Hurray!  In just a few minutes we get to embark on another "small adventure along the way" as we head up to my in-laws cabin in the Adirondacks.  One of my best girlfriends is flying in (in just under an hour!), we're picking her up from the airport and driving away.

It's going to be a great weekend with the hubby's parents, my great friend, and each other.  I plan to hike, paddle, drink, read, maybe swim, run, eat, write, and relax.

It is sure to be a much-needed time of rejuvenation.

I wonder what our lives will be like when we're on our long-term adventure.  What will we need to "rejuvenate" when we're on the road constantly? 

Rejuvenation for us tends to mean getting out of our routine, clearing our minds of all the things we "have" to do, spending time with the people we love or alone with each other, and oftentimes we both find great rejuvenation from spending time outdoors, in nature. 

I'm guessing there will be a few splurges on decent hotel rooms where we just hang out, relax, and enjoy each other's company.  Maybe we'll find a hidden place to camp in the middle of nature away from it all.  Maybe it will be enough to sit on a beach gazing at the calming ocean for an hour. Maybe getting away from the day-to-day of work, chores, errands, and home stressors will be enough and the whole trip will be one big period of rejuvenation.

What rejuvenates you?

Life Changes

I have to apologize for being MIA for a little while.  We had our big garage sale last week (post coming soon!) and about a week and a half ago I found out some news that has already begun to change my life and kept me pretty occupied during my free time.

I tested positive (through a blood test) for Celiac Disease.  There's a lot to it, but the basic outcome is that I can no longer eat gluten.  This means that I can't eat anything containing wheat, barley or rye, but it's much more complicated than that because gluten is in A LOT of things.  I'm not just eliminating bread, baked goods, and pizza, I also have to look for special soy sauce, eat oatmeal from a "certified" gluten free manufacturer, and check the labels of everything I eat.  Gluten can be hiding everywhere and I'm only just beginning to figure it all out.

In addition, I could easily "cheat" and suffer the short term consequences of not feeling well the next day, but there are much scarier long-term effects that eating gluten can have on a Celiac's body.  Basically, Celiac Disease (CD) is an auto-immune disease in which the small intestine attacks itself when gluten is digested.  So, not following a gluten-free diet when you have CD can lead to other auto-immune diseases, nutritional deficiencies, cancer and other problems.

If the short-term affects weren't enough to make me want to change my lifestyle the day I found out about CD, thinking about the potential long-term damage definitely keeps me motivated to learn as much as possible and start changing the way I eat for good.

It's only been a little over a week, but I've already run a gamut of emotions.  On one hand I feel empowered that I can control my health and this "disease" by simply eating a certain way, on the other hand it's overwhelming and frustrating to have so much to learn and so many labels to read before I put anything in my mouth. 

It's made me a little nervous to think about how I will deal with it when we embark on our journey around the world - especially when I think about real Italian pasta...

But, I'll cross that bridge when I get there, and for now it's just a constant "adventure" as I like to call it.  I do love to learn, so I enjoy reading up on it all - but that doesn't keep me from feeling sorry for myself some days, or sad that I'll never eat a real piece of pizza again.  Overall, I'm trying to stay positive and focus on all the things that I love that I can still eat...popcorn, strawberries, many kinds of ice cream, yogurt, broccoli, most chocolate, etc.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Do you or anyone you know have CD or follow a gluten-free diet?  I'd love for you to share any resources, tips, or ideas, whether they relate to travel or simply day-to-day life.

Cloud of Words




Using some of the commonly published words in my blog, I created this awesome word cloud! 
I love it and it's free!!!
Check out www.wordle.net to create your own!

 

Every Little Bit

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

As I've mentioned before, the hubby and I are getting quite diligent about saving money in all the ways we can - even little things.  We have also started clearing out and figuring out how to make a little money from the stuff we don't need or want to hang on to.  Here are a few things I'm doing to make a little extra cash (every little bit helps!!).

1. Next weekend we are hosting a garage/yard sale.  Current status:  Pending.  Hopefully we get rid of a lot of stuff and make some cash.  Whatever isn't sold will be donated.
2. With the help of my Mom who's an experienced eBay seller, I'm listing some of my better clothes, shoes, jewelry and more on this site to hopefully get decent chunks of change while cleaning out my closet!  Current status:  Just this week buyers snatched up two pairs of shoes, making me over $60!
3. I've listed a bunch of books on Amazon.com.  Current status:  I just posted the listings on Thursday night, but I've already sold one book!  I'll only make a few dollars from this, but if I can sell more, it will add up! (AND...it's more money that I would have made if I donated it!)
4. I'm contemplating selling some of my artwork (A year ago I began taking painting classes and I just love it!  I don't have a ton of pieces, but there are some that I'm not completely attached to.  It would be great to not only make a little money, but to know that someone likes my work enough to pay money for it!)  Current status:  Figuring out what I would sell and how.  Etsy?  Word of mouth? 
5. I tried selling a bunch of clothes at a consignment shop - not successful.  Apparently everything I took in was over a year and a half old, so it doesn't matter if it's in great shape.  Current status:  Pretty disillusioned with the whole consignment shop thing.  I might try others, especially for some of my work clothes, but at this point it seems more lucrative to pull out the good stuff for posting on eBay.
6. We are keeping our ears open for people who are looking for some larger items (futon, bookshelf, small kitchen table and chairs) so that we can sell them.  If we don't get anywhere with that, we will list them on Craigslist.  Current status:  Holding pattern.  I sent a few pics and prices to a friend, but she is waiting to make a decision.  If she doesn't want anything, we'll move forward with Craigslist.

It's a great feeling to clean out, and an even better feeling to get a little cash reward for not too much effort!

Purging tip:  Over the last few years I've gotten better about getting rid of stuff, but sometimes it's still tough for me because I am indecisive.  It's been a lot easier for me to make decisions about purging items when I think about packing everything up for storage in a few months!  The more we get rid of now, the less we have to pack, move, and store (and unload some time down the road!)  If you are trying to clean out, try to figure out something that inspires you to really move stuff out.  Maybe you are moving to a new house?  Or having a baby and need more room?  Or maybe you just feel cluttered and don't want to end up on an episode of Hoarders!?  Try to think about how you will feel down the road, when you have tackled this project and can see the back of that closet or open those drawers easily. There is always a good reason for cleaning out and keeping life a little more simple.  You just have to figure out the reason that means something to you and will keep you motivated to clear out!  One other tip I've heard that I think is a great one:  If you haven't worn it/used it/looked at it in over a year, it's probably safe to say you aren't going to miss it!  Get rid of it!