If money and health insurance coverage were not considerations, I would craft a life that:

• I would split my time between two or three locations (Madison and Orlando being the two with a possible third location on the West Coast)
• I would live communally in one or more of those locations
• I would offer my services to the greater good by working with and for non-profit groups on special projects (research, writing grant proposals, report preparation especially as it relates to presenting quantitative data, or re-organization/system creation) or during transition times (e.g., filling in for staff who are on maternity leave or as an interim director while they search for a permanent one)
• I would seek opportunities to foster connections among ideas, individuals, causes and rejoice in a role as a bridge and catalyst
• I would stay involved in teaching through adjunct or online teaching or through developing materials for courses
• I would pursue more training related to life coaching/mediation/group facilitation and work toward a practice in this area
• I would be actively involved in the local foods/sustainable local economies movements
• I would work on developing writing skills so that I could contribute to magazines and such regarding things I value (gardening, local foods, transition towns, small town/backroads travel treasures)
• I would seek ways to encourage people to see beyond their perceived limits and find a way to do the things they want despite obstacles or limitations (for example, writing reviews of nature related places that are manageable for those who have mobility limitations)
• I would be part of an ongoing goddess spirituality group/circle that studies and celebrates together on a regular basis
• I would work on improving my skills as a photographer (more documentary style than artistic) and reach a point where I could enter shows/contests and occasionally sell an image
• I would be active in disaster preparedness and recovery activities
• I would get my HAM license
• I would support causes that celebrate healthy loving relationships and families in all the forms they take
• I would invite and welcome love into my life in all its glorious manifestations
• I would live mindfully and with intent
• I would be politically active
• I would wander in the woods, explore wild places, and camp on a regular basis
• I would be active in the burner community
• I would make improving my health and well-being my number one priority
• I would seek adventures great and small and find ways to share those experiences with others
• I would create even if my creations fall far short of art (this especially in the areas of fiber arts)
• I would return to writing poetry
• I would take classes and learn new things for the pleasure of doing so
• I would stop trying to fade into the scenery and embrace my quirkiness/geekhood/uppity middle-aged fat woman self

What doesn’t matter to me is fame (though being valued and appreciated by those around me is good) or being wealthy beyond being able to make my student loan payments, give regularly to charity, and meet my basic living expenses”Home” and nesting is mattering less to me as time goes on and I redefine what home means.

So this is where I would like to be. Now the work of manifesting this life begins in earnest as I embrace a life of coloring outside the lines and being more than my vita. Advice, inspiration, and resources for growing in these directions gleefully welcomed.

The list above gives you some idea of the places this blog may be headed though it by no means suggests all the territory that this journey might cover.