A few years ago I would never have imagined I’d start a blog, just like I’d sworn I’d never join Facebook or own a smart phone.  So much for resistance huh?  The blogging process is certainly a step outside of my comfort zone as I am generally a private person, despite the fact that I do have a Facebook account.  I’ve been navigating the set up process for several days and I hate to admit it, but I’m afraid I have reverted to my simian roots.  I learn by clicking on everything possible while tilting and scratching my head in confusion, I figure eventually I’ll get the hang of it.  A dear friend of mine has no fear when it comes to jumping into something new, so I channel her when I get frustrated.  Thanks to Google, I’ve educated myself about copyright law, domain registration, and a few other things that I will likely have to google again, but all in all it’s been quite enlightening.  I sit here contemplating this first entry, I’m not exactly sure where to start, so I’ll just begin with what ultimately brought me here to what I’ve learned is the blogosphere.  

Friendship, scuba diving, and learning through shared experiences.  

My husband and I have terrific friends and we cannot express to them what they mean to us.  They keep us active, learning, and young.  It doesn’t matter if it’s concerts, mud races, cooking classes, learning the art of craft cocktails, birthdays, fundraisers, weekend getaways or some other crazy activity, we always have a great time and our motto is “Go Big or Go Home!”  I love them for that, they’re like family.  Most of them we have known for over a decade, but a few we’ve met in the last two years through a series of events that I can only describe as kismet.

Sometime in 1997, after finishing my scuba certification, I read an article about Anthony’s Key Resort in a dive magazine.  An all-inclusive concierge dive resort in Roatán, Honduras, with huts built over pristine water and your own private hammock.  Sign me up!  I love a good hammock, almost as much as I love diving.  I promptly put it on the proverbial bucket list.   In 1998 I met my husband, he agreed it was a trip worth experiencing, so he added AKR to his bucket list.  He was certified shortly after we moved to Florida in 2000.  It took over a decade, but in April of 2013 we finally booked that trip to AKR and hopped on a plane 6 weeks later.  We had planned on going in May of 2012, but changed our minds and invested in “house stuff,” instead, ha ha.  Little did we know, that decision set our fate.  At AKR, we met five crazy kids that all share our love of scuba diving.  Assigned to the same boat for the entire week, we were stuck with one another, and by the end of that week we were a dive family.  Our dive family has continued to expand through other serendipitous quirks, so we now have an extended dive family.  This little band of lunatics has kept us on a regular schedule of diving throughout the last two years.  

The more we dive, the desire to keep diving deepens.  Weightlessness, relaxed focus, and the excitement of discovery are just a small list of what makes scuba diving an amazing and addictive experience.  We are relatively new to diving, compared to many in our group, with 130 dives each give or take, we still have a lot to learn.  As we become more comfortable, we’ve been able to combine certain interests, like photography.  We don’t take Nat Geo quality photos and videos, but that isn’t our ultimate goal, although it’s a wonderful dream to consider ditching the day job!  Our goal is simply to share what we experience and learn.  We have learned a great deal, but like most things, the more you learn the more you realize you know nothing!  Ordinarily, I share photos and videos of our dives via Facebook, but contrary to popular belief, not everyone is on FB.  Our folks for instance, ha ha!   I began looking for a comprehensive way to share our experiences with those who are truly interested, or not on FB.  A blog, as far as I can tell, is the answer.

I’ve set out on many occasions to keep a travel journal.  Over the years, two of my very close friends have given me beautiful leather-bound journals.  You know the kind.  Reminiscent of Indiana Jones or Hemingway, with handmade paper interiors that should only be written on with ink flowing from a vintage calligraphy pen.  Perfectly worn to the point you would likely smell a cigar when opened and see the occasional scotch stain.   Yeah.  They sit decoratively on my nightstand like movie props, one or two entries over the years.  It’s a travesty.  With the digital age my handwriting has become deplorable and my hand cramps after writing roughly a paragraph, so this blog thing may prove to be an indispensable way to ACTUALLY keep a travel journal.  I, like most everyone, have an electronic device attached at all times, so dictation, copy, and paste are now my travel friends. 

My husband and I have an upcoming adventure in September that has my heart racing and hands sweating, yet I’ll jump out of my skin if we never do it.  Just like our trip to AKR, there is not much time between booking and travel.  It was an opportunity we did not see coming a few months ago, but we have had it on the top of the “list” for quite some time, so we decided to jump in!   More than a few people will call us crazy (several already have), but it would be crazy to let the opportunity slip away from us.   In 2004 we met a much older couple in Aruba, they had been retired for a year and were closing out a six month journey around the world.  Asia, Africa, Europe, you name it.  We were in awe of them.  They were grateful to be seeing the world, however, due to their health and physical decline, many of the activities they wanted to do on those trips they were unable to do.  Their one regret in life was that they didn’t travel more when they were younger.  They gave us some of the best advice we’ve ever received and that I will never forget.  As simple as this advice is, it’s often hard to bring it to reality due to, well…reality, but we have agreed to always aim for it.

You can always get more money, but you can never get more time.

There are never-ending locations to visit, different cultures to experience, and bucket lists to cross off.  I am eternally grateful to those who share their escapades so that I might live through them.  This life is short, it’s next to impossible to do it all.  The blogosphere is full of people sharing their experiences.  I’m not doing anything new here, but If you’re reading this, hopefully you’ll enjoy ours.