A Mishmash of Unrelated Topics and An Effort to Get Back on Track

General

But not a very good effort. I have sort of made a decision on my quandary of whether to take a year off and travel or to come back to Antarctica…My decision is to more-or-less leave it up to the universe to decide for me. I think I may be being told that my destiny isn’t to be a ski bum. I have received an offer letter to return to my job in Antartica – acceptance of that offer would mean another winter at The South Pole and another chance to join the ‘300 club‘, an opportunity to save a large travel fund for maybe a bigger trip. But, like I say, I’ve left the decision making process up to fate. The default option is to go to South America for eight or nine months, but Marsha is pursuing a winter job at The South Pole, if her efforts bear fruit then I would likely accept my current offer and put off traveling until the end of that contract.

The current financial situation in the U.S. and the world have also got me pretty distracted and my thoughts turn to those issues more than they probably should. I wish there was some way to know for sure when the bottom has been hit, as I’m in pretty good shape financially, despite my massive loss a couple of weeks ago. I’d like to get back in, especially if I will be returning to work after a short 12 week vacation. Even more than my own financial situation though, I am distracted by the obvious corruption and greed that envelopes U.S. politics and finance. The $85bln dollars that was loaned to AIG (Another Infusion of Greenbacks) and the subsequent $440k spa trip…only to have them back at the trough for $40bln more a couple of weeks later. We all know this is how things happen, it isn’t a surprise to anybody, but somehow it is allowed to go on. Bailout my ass. I say prison sentences for all executives of any of these companies. Unfortunately it seems that America has forgotten that it is a country founded “…for the people…” but instead the laws have been tailored to protect non-living, non-breathing, corporate entities and the people who are committing outright theft against the American public are protected under the umbrella of these laws. The election will soon be over but I fear that the outcome will do very little to alleviate any of the problems that need fixed. The potential to make these problems worse though is huge. So long as my countrymen have 60 channels of shit on their huge screen plasma T.V. I doubt anything will really change for the better. Idiocracy anyone?

Anyhow, in the coming weeks I intend on getting the focus back on travel. With my upcoming, albeit brief, trip to New Zealand, look for some information on traveling in that paradisaical island nation and with a month long trip to another Pacific Island destination, watch for stories, advice and maybe even pictures of Hawaii, which I’m now really looking forward to.

Will @ October 9, 2008