Live Life. Life is Short. Life is an Adventure.

1. Be all that you can be.
2. We only have one short lifetime, live it.
3. Dream big, strive for it all and do not compromise.
4. If you are not having fun, change that.
5. Love passionately all that you do.

It’s been a hectic last few days, but I’m in the final stages of exiting the country and this chapter of my US Adventure.

Everything is packed, stored or now checked in luggage. As I sit in the President’s Club at Newark Airport, only the low lying cloud and rain now can dampen my likely impending departure in just 2 hours.

Diary: Wed 26^th March 2008

My impending exit from the US is rapidly approaching. Yesterday/today sorting out moving, many things on the list like mail redirection, change of addresses, packing etc. I’m leaving it to the last day of my visa obligations (10 days following end of employment) to vacate the country.

My US Adventure is almost at an end, my German Experience about to start.

One always has two paths, either to stay on the path you are going or elect to go a different way.
I have chosen the later.

It’s not a matter of right or wrong.
Only time will reveal what wisdom be gained or opportunity lost.

One can stand on the path and think what could be, or one can act and be what could be.
I have chosen the later.

Many will watch, and some I trust will follow or chose their own path.
But to be the pack, is to never see what could be.

Comfort with potential opportunity or high risk for high reward.
I have chosen the later.

Diary: 21st March 2008

I am now officially gainfully unemployed, my last day at MySQL being today, and as such my US Adventure is coming to a close.

Drinks and dinner with friends last night in celebration brings a great sense of freedom in what I can achieve in the world, in my world and so I embark onto a new high risk, high reward opportunity, he hard work I hope leading to the lifestyle I’d like to live.

I love New York, this is my home, and I hope and expect that I’ll be returning home again soon.

Default Skype message of friend Dan

I had the chance to actually watch some television over the weekend. You have 200+ channels with the Time Warner cable extended HBO package and you never get any time.

I got to see the last 30 minutes of my present favorite animated movie, Over the Hedge. If you have not see this, I must recommend this movie, it’s so funny. I look very closely at animation these days. The music score, the shadows, colors, depth of field is all detail easily missed when enjoying the movie and the story line. Animation movies are also made for adults by adults, the added benefit is children can easily watch and enjoy and not get the specific details. Still one of my all round technically brilliant animated movies is The Lion King.

I also got to see most of We are Marshall. A most impactful movie of a true story of tragedy that I believe is told well. I actually ended the weekend again only seeing the last part, but of my favorite movie called Lorenzo’s Oil. It was never a blockbuster, but a true story of the devotion and love of parents for their child and all children. A movie I recommend.

I stood tonight at the NW corner of 29th St and 5th Avenue in New York, with tears streaming. Even now, I’m deeply moved by my impending words.

New York never ceases to amaze me, I truly love just walking the streets, going places I’ve not gone before, seeing things I’ve not seen before. Tonight, with day light savings and returning home at 6:30pm from work enabled one of days I’ll not forget.

A church stands on this corner, that’s nothing special for New York, but on the fence around the church I’m drawn closer. As I move towards this I see ribbons, yellow and blue, and I’m drawn closer to see what are name tags on these, and names on these ribbons.

What brings an extreme emotional response that I don’t feel I’ll forget in such a long time, is not the names, but the ages. 19,21,22,24,26. It took some time to even find an age of 39, older then me. For these are the names, and ages of the lives lost in in Iraq, thousands of them, lives cut short, people who did not live as long as I lived now. Again, I have to reach for the tissues. I have many things I wish to do tonight, but this striking image of Prayers for Peace has made it’s intended mark.

I am fundamentally opposed to any and all wars. Why can’t the world live in peace. Do we have to destroy life and love to realize it’s too late and humanity ceases to exist. I think I’ll need to write more on this as time and reflection permits.

As I’m writing I’m drawn to remember the words to the song “Tie a yellow ribbon around the old oak tree, if you still love me…. then something about seeing one hundred yellow ribbons”.

How do we make a difference in this world, how does one person influence others, how can we make the world a better place. I came up with the following quote on 16 August 2006, some 600 blog posts ago.

Staring heavenly I see stars, but not of gases millions of miles away, but of an elaborately decorated astronomical painting.

For I stand at Grand Central Station in Manhattan, New York, a truly amazing feat to the eye. Rather then walk on by as many do, I stand in awe. In appreciation, in the splendor. What manner of man constructs the largest train terminal for mankind. A design and construction of over 100 years.

Where is grandeur today? Where is there the work of man today so great that those that design, labor and toil never see the wonder in all is completed magnificence? History shows many great works, of churches and castles that centuries passed by before completion. For even this work I stand by now is but young to so many I have seen but still in encompasses the passion and the drive to the creation of a truly wonderful structure.

I stand and wonder, fortunate I can enjoy as a daily pleasure now, that might I be so creative too, is more then a dream and desire, it is a need to survive.

As I ponder the passing of time, place and people I consider my own self worth. I wish to create, to invent, to have the knowledge that I have achieved all I can in this short time alive, that I’ll be known and remembered.

What can I do?
What should I do?
How can I achieve it?
Who and what do I need?
When will I be satisfied?
From were will inspiration come from?

For to toil is to have a labor of love, but to remember the fun in life, love and time.

I exit from the 1 line at 34th despondent. Looking up to a fog veiled Empire State building with overcast skies and damped footpaths, I turn to walk the two avenues to my current midtown Manhattan home. Without observing the details of people as I sort of trudge along I see individuals, couples, people rugged up, carrying items, a person on a cell phone, another smoking, a broken down car, a store person and potential buyer, jewellery, shoes, food, starbucks all on offer. A lack of many yellow cabs for now. The noise is somewhat distant as I shroud and continue despondently homewood.

My thoughts are heavy, flickers of potential joy surrounds the mountains I’m prepared to climb, if only a way through now, a guide, a path, an opening. My thoughts are only of one thing, “Finding Christina”. Three attempts in the past trip have failed to provide the opportunity for direct or indirect contact. A glimmer existed, arrival to not Terminal C ruined it, local engagement and no more travel limiting access options. I’m troubled, resilient to not giving up. Will time be my enemy, is this just fantasy and not feeling. No, my emotions well, greater urgency and impassable obstacles stand.

Hamburg, and just one week ago seems so far away. My inabilities to self confidence weight greatly on my mind. Like a toll over my life these many years, never will I be so incapable of such a simple communication to another.

Christina, would you hear me now.