those of you who have been here often may have noticed that i’ve become somewhat quiet lately. here’s why.

i’m trying to revamp my life a bit. bringing some things to a close, shedding others – basically making room for something new. what that new thing is, i don’t know (i guess that’s why it’s a “something”). i also am experiencing a time when i often don’t have a lot of energy.

trying to post less on this blog has been an interesting experience. writing these regular entries here has mostly been very positive – it’s honed my ability to quickly throw down a few words on a topic in such a way as to express myself at least somewhat clearly. it’s given me a structure to write on a very regular basis. perhaps most of all, it’s connected me to YOU – a wide variety of interesting and insightful people.

so why would i slow down when it’s such a great thing? i guess it’s what is sometimes referred to as a “luxury problem”: too much of a good thing is still too much. in fact, it may not be the writing and connecting in itself that is too much but the expectations i have around it. must post at least 4 times a week. must answer comments. etc. i’d like to experiment with wrenching myself away from these expectations and see what happens. probably some of them are good expectations (like answering comments). others might not be so useful.

the other thing that has been rattling around in my head lately, more than usual, is the whole concept of “improving on silence.” is what i am saying really that important? is the world truly a better place for me adding my voice to the 15 thousand gazillion voices already out there? i need some time to think about this.

i’m not planning to abandon this blog at all. however, i’d like to relax on how often i post, and maybe also on what i post. i’d like to stop or at least put on hold the construction project of building the ego-gratifying self image of “isabella mori the blogger.”

so let’s see what happens …

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2) start a web log (blog)
keep an online dossier, or more commonly known as a blog, on your spot and obey it updated with latest news less yourself. kind-hearted beings are interested creatures and they thinks fitting support their eyes glued to the monitor if you transmit disrespectful info frequently. you will also increase up your credibility as you are proving to them that there is also a real sustenance mortal physically behind the website.

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travel is a major activity in the lives of modern people. some of us travel by choice as a source of pleasure, while others only venture away from home when they are forced to. regardless of individual motivations, the act of traveling can have a deep psychological impact on those who engage in it. oddly enough, the same elements that bring excitement to one person can bring dread to others. these distinctly different responses are driven by very similar forces of human nature.

as evidenced by the billions of dollars spent each year in the travel industry, the world’s population is on the move. there are millions who scrimp and save for traveling, constantly wishing they had more time and money to explore strange new parts of the planet. for these folks, each trip becomes an adventure and experiencing travel embodies dreams being fulfilled. among the greatest goals for some people is to go to places they have never been.

there are others who simply accept it as a permanent or temporary part of daily life. because of professional, educational or social necessity, they regularly wake up each day in a different location and give little thought to what it would be like to live a stationary life. an international businessperson, an airline pilot or a truck driver might view travel as just part of the routine. travel for some is just a chore required to get from one place to another.

at the other end of the spectrum are those who feel apprehension at the mere thought of straying from their own doorstep. they have built their own ideas of comfort zones that rely on familiar spaces to give them a sense of safety and security. for this group, the unknown is a threat to be avoided. they are perfectly content with remaining in their own backyards.

what are the basic motivations that make people crave or shy away from travel?

while the impulses that make people want to travel or stay at home are complicated and unique to every person, there are underlying characteristics that are similar in all personality types. the most fundamental of these has to do with self-esteem, along with our definitions of achievements and rewards. essentially, travelers usually place greater value in experiencing places and things than in possessing them. however, both are actually manifestations of control over one’s life.

humans have a basic need to feel better about themselves and elevate their self-image of who they are. naturally, everyone will have their own yardstick by which they measure their accomplishments. we all have our own methods to prove our self worth in our own eyes while we strive to gain the respect and admiration of others. the avid traveler will generally see their journeys as evidence of their ability to set and achieve their goals. those who do not care for travel have similar desires, but keep them close to home.

in this sense, traveling fulfills the same needs that growing a garden, owning a boat or building furniture might do for someone else. it is a way to replicate something we have given importance in our own minds in order to associate ourselves with it. travel also gives us the opportunity to get close to things that we have decided to identify with for the same reasons. it is a another way of transforming a mental image into actual experience.

like many other human activities, travel is a way of expressing individuality by re-creating and sharing the acts of others. when we stand on the same spot where kings stood, touch the eiffel tower or cruise the caribbean, we are participating in the experiences of those who have gone before us. these things become a part of us and expand our identities. in this way, we are able to somehow share the the accomplishments of the people we observe.

in fact, traveling is something almost everyone does for much the same reasons. if we remove the factors of distance and location, travelers and homebodies are essentially striving for the same things. in most cases, the basic difference is only a matter of the proximity of our connections to what we desire to be identified with.

for example, a fan of emeril lagasse will eagerly travel to the kitchen to recreate his cooking feats. some people visit their gardens to enjoy their collections of plants and flowers. others journey to the park to feed the pigeons and watch the people. however, when we take a plane, train or automobile to experience these same things, we call it travel. we all are curious about the world around us and want to repeat the actions of others who fascinate us to express our own self worth.

some of us simply prefer to do it in las vegas, hawaii or spain.

larry blanken is a freelance travel writer and semi-retired english instructor living near lexington, kentucky. in addition to teaching writer’s workshops and creating web content, his passions include creating travel articles.

back in december, the hospital hired three cannibals as janitors – john, frank and randy. it’s so difficult to get good help! on their first day, the human resource manager shook their hands and said, “welcome to the team! you’ll make good money, and the cafeteria has good food, so please, no need to get too interested in your co-workers.” that was fine with the three.

four months later, they were asked to see the human resource manager again. “you’re all doing very good work, and i’m very satisfied with you. only one small thing: one of our nurses has gone missing. do you know what might have happened there?” the cannibals said no, no idea.

after they left the room, frank hissed at john and randy: “which one of you two blockheads ate the nurse?”

randy slowly raised his hand. frank tore in to him, “for four months now we’ve been eating nothing but hospital managers, and nobody noticed it. and now you idiot have to eat a nurse?!”

how bald and miserable many a piece of land would look were it not for the weeds growing on it
wilhelm raabe

i can tell you, my friend, who to believe: believe real life; it is a better teacher than speechmakers and books
wilhelm busch

work as if you could live forever; live as if you were to die any day
giovanni don bosco

nobody has ever learned to love the truth by being beaten for telling a lie
ellen key

the thrill of the forbidden can only be tasted by going after it immediately. tomorrow it might already be allowed
jean genet

@dorylanenter: new friendships i made

joanna poppink: transforming my front garden into a gorgeous, free chi flowing rock garden. i kept all the plants that were doing well. i covered bare spots with rivers of flowing mexican black smooth pebbles. the steep areas are now embedded with large black mexican stones. the plants grow better because the rocks hold the slope and retain moisture. the stone change color in different light and moisture conditions.

i use half the water i used before. my neighbors pause to look. children stop to look and ask questions. i get reports now of how people linger on a regular basis and feel better, even nourished and inspired by the garden.

it cost very little because i did it myself. unlike most gardens, it requires little tending. i loved doing it. and now, like most gardens, it keeps giving.

katana: i quit smoking.

airdrie miller: owning my first dog, lucy, is my biggest success of 2009. lucy is a four month old shihtzu poodle. she is my new best friend. i love her.

@patientanon becoming even closer 2 someone where the relationship had 2 already withstand unbelievable trials 2 stay together over years

sanjib: my biggest non-monetary success in 2009 was getting into plan B trying to anchor myself in canada as a new immigrant. i used to be a journalist back in my home country of india as well as in taiwan. but now I am working in both the fast-food as well as retail sectors to learn and equip myself with those extra skills necessary to be successful here in canada.

@crpitt i think just keeping it together when the mum had her leg amputated was a success, using the power of humour and doodling

corinna carlson: the renewed relationship with my parents… was time there when i thought that was it, we wouldn’t be speaking again, they almost got a divorce this year, we ‘rescued’ my mom from bali while i dealt with three embassies and foreign affairs to get her out of bali, and somehow we’ve worked it all out and are a real family again..

@blissfulgirl i beat cervical cancer. it doesn’t get much better than that

@DTSuites finally getting my composter in the garden working efficiently, taking several theta healing workshops which have pushed me more toward energy healing and awareness than before. new year’s resolutions are now all about my continuing shift in awareness, personal and lifestyle goals…back to basics

@kattlea my non monetary success – healing enough to start playing guitar (although that cost a lot of money)

hera (a recent canadian immigrant): my success – got along with the canadian working environment more and more, completed several projects including writing the reports.

karen: firstly, all my successes necessarily have to be non-monetary: i was let go of both my contract gigs, and now i’m an overworked graduate student working part-time and not pulling in rent! i’m not ready to write-off the year entirely

looking back, i think the most important success i can name is really coming to grips with how important knowing thine self enables being true to said self. acknowledging, accepting, relentlessly cataloguing, reminding, remembering… it never really dawned on me how quickly it can shift and how much i’m still thinking of myself as i was 10 years ago, until really just now. i think realizing that is a success in and of itself! everything flows from this first and foremost: what i want to do, what i’m good at, where i can provide the most value, how i go about asking to be paid for this awesome i do…and how best to communicate this to others and to ask for acceptance for who i know myself to be.

monica: i have to say speaking as one of the keynote speakers at a conference was quite a success. as usual, i was (very) concerned about doing a good job (i’m a little nutty like that), and was quite relieved that it went well. (here is the video)

craig (a piano player):   howard and i had a concert called “a nutcracker christmas” scheduled.  the day before the performance, howard came down with such a severely sore throat that he could not perform. almost all the planned repertoire was not useable without the clarinet part. with just 24 hours to go before the performance, it was not possible to find a replacement.

for a fleeting moment, my old being visited and i thought about canceling. include embarrassment, loss of income (the hall was rented) and frustration in all that.  but, i am strengthening the muscle of stepping over my fears, and i quickly (like in 5 minutes) decided the show was to go on.  the concert was just 2 seats short of being sold out. i was sticking my neck out.  45 minutes before the performance was to begin, i had all my christmas music spread out on the chapel floor and i was creating a program from scratch.  we had promised the nutcracker, so i chose three of numbers from that suite that would work as vehicles for improvising. i had not tried this before.  i chose 8 favourite carols that i could extemporize on.  i had 3 classical masterpieces i could play.  i walked into the music hall and calmly greeted all the guests as they arrived.  then i entertained them for 2 hours.  just about everyone went out of their way to say how delighted they were.

as recently as 5 years ago, i never, never improvised in public.  as recently as 3 years ago, i only improvised in situations where i was background music and know one really seemed to be listening.  i wrote down on my life rocks form when catherine wood was coaching me that i had the dream of being able to do a solo concert that was almost entirely improvised. and it happened …

@janaremy sent me something on twitter the moment i asked – and i just realized i lost her post.  i think it was this one – it’s entitled what’s your dream? and starts like this: ‘a few years ago i dreamed that someday i would start each day with paddling on the ocean. but i thought to myself how ridiculous that was given my physical limitations, the difficulty of actually getting to the beach on a daily basis, the expense of procuring a boat, etc. it seemed…impossible, implausible, impractical. undo-able.”

finally, creativity coach roger von oech sent me his personal highlights for the decade, which involves, among other things, swimming, a fascination with the greek philosopher herclitus, and putting something whacky on a communist grave in russia.

sooo … what was YOUR success?