ENTRIES / Lisa Taylor
August 28, 2010
Nineteen found me in the Alaskan artic and then saw my unabashed departure six months later. The rolling hills of tailgate country (read: Wisconsin) provided domicile to the first half of my twenties. I was sure at that time I had gained sound direction, but an abrupt travel experience halted this perceived ambition and so embarked the corrective course.
So, at 27, I created a thin-veiled explanation for unemployment after a year in AmeriCorps and accepted a self- proposed career offer to freelance write. At 27 1/2, my bills made another offer, unwise to refuse, and I took a separate full-time job. My freelance writing has become a part-time fervor. I write about the world as it’s lived, but want the opportunity to write about living the world.
It'd be untrue to say my motivations in trying to win Blog Your Way Around the World are completely unselfish. My desire to board trans-oceanic airliners is strong, my bank account’s desires lie in the realm of dust bunnies and tumbleweeds. While I hope my need for written expression of a traveled life is blatant, one of the greatest attractions to the competition is the stipulation of “trip for two.”
I’m guilty of “How I Spent My Summer” slideshows, but not to brag or create illusions. The stories, the carefully chosen descriptors, the photos are shared to convey experience with friends and family who aspire for, but not achieved travel beyond occasional weekend excursions or cross country business trips. Within the ability to fulfill another’s dream lies an amazing satisfaction. For the consummate wanderlust, to be an involved observer of a maiden travel experience is akin to a parent’s witnessing a child’s first step. You’ve observed, possibly created, the foundation of a journey.
The practicality of blogs where readers can research logistics are relevant, but tedious; requiring patience, perseverance, and a bs-detector worthy of Sherlock Holmes. I’m intrigued by a developing interest in creating intentional community in everyday life. Conversations on a train or in line go beyond perfunctory and become connection. The goal of my blog would be to create that intentional community between reader and world. With the knowledge that these trips are bracketed with pre-planned specifics, the hunt for culture then necessitates certain aggression to create honest interactions between traveler and culture.
