Oh boy. I’ve abandoned my own blog. It’s not such a bad thing though. It’s all about spending quality time with the ones you love at this time of year. The holidays have been wonderful and I will treasure the memories of these cherished moments with my family and friends. It’s all transcribed in my handwritten journal, but maybe some highlights will make it up here eventually. We’ll see. Since the holidays are not over just yet, everything will get pushed back for at least another long weekend. There are exciting developments in the travel planning prep…I’ll dish the details next week.

Happy New Year! Wishing everyone peace and many happy days in 2006!

Until you try, you don’t know what you can’t do. ~ Henry James

I haven’t bought a plane ticket or backpack yet, and I only have a rough idea of what city I’ll start my journey in, but I have set a goal for myself that I will embark on my European adventure approximately two months from today. Between Feb. 15 - Feb. 18th I anticipate I’ll be flying out of NY/NJ for somewhere on the continent.

I’m currently waiting to find out if I scored World Cups tixs before I move forward with any other major decisions. I’d say there is a fairly good chance I’ve got some, so of course now I’ve jinxed it. (Sorry J&T!) But if I’m going to Germany for an extra week or so in June to see some games, then I’ll definitely have to make adjustments to what I’ve been loosely planning so far. But it will be so worth it. Hopefully we will know more in the next few weeks.

So, the unknowns continue to become a comfortable and accepted part of my daily life as I chart my course. No matter what though, there is one thing I know for sure right now: I’m going. I’ve got my share of butterflies and fears, but only mixed in with these moments of utter peace when I know this is really what I want to do. I’m anxious to buy my one-way ticket to seal the deal. But haste makes waste and I’ve got not a penny to spare.

I’m guessing that one month from today I’ll have hopefully purchased my plane tix or be on the brink of doing so. Until then…writing, reading and good times with fam & friends. I gotta do some yoga soon too.

I finally got my photos uploaded…backwards, of course. Until I get me a nice Pro account on Flickr, they will remain out of order online, tagged with “Portland”, “Bootsnall” and “BNAparty2o05.” It was a great time, and I’m very glad I made the trip out.

It feels like ages ago…

Okay, back to work on stuff for BNA…Viva Las Vegas, Baby.

I’ve got a huge crush on Jack Black.

Yup.

Joaquin Phoenix is a hottie getting lots of love these days for his excellent Johnny Cash performance, but Jack Black has him beat, hands down. JB is funny as heck and a little wild. I’ve been known to admire the off-balance ones from time to time, and he surely fits the bill.

I probably won’t run out to see King Kong right away, but it’s definitely time to rent School of Rock and High Fidelity again. This guy cracks me up, and the more laughs for me these days, the better. I truly need my friends, family and the occasional random wacko celebrity to help keep me from getting too serious or stressed during this whole life transition stuff. Sometimes I just have to take a break from all the travel planning to be silly for a bit…and make sure I keep laughing out loud!!

There, I’ve said it. I have a crush on an eccentric rockin’ film star with a fantastic grimace. I feel much better now.

Don’t miss him Saturday night with Neil Young on SNL. I don’t have TIVO, so you know where I’ll be

Now back to your regularly scheduled travel blog.

I can’t wait to do this myself: Get Lost in Europe!

These are great photos. When I get a faster internet connection (dial-up is dragging me down right now) I’m gonna click through this entire set for some serious daydreaming. I really need to let my head wander in the clouds for a bit.

We got almost a foot of snow last night. I shoveled mom’s car out before lunch, and now it’s time to warm up the house and bake more biscotti. Maybe dad will start a fire when he gets home from work. The dial-up may be slow, but there are great perks and wonderfully cozy things about being home here with the ‘rents too.

Here is a collection of a series of posts I did on Gadling this week about my recent trip to Portland, OR:

1) Getting there: Public Transportation
2) Accomodation: Hawthorne Hostel
3) Exploring the city: Tapas and coffee
4) View from the top: Portland City Grill
5) The last day: Pubs, pizza and PDX

I feel like last Wednesday was a lifetime ago. It has been a slow gradual shift, this transitional phase I’ve been in, but my visit to Portland, Oregon this past weekend had made it official — my life is absolutely moving in a completely different direction.

My passions, mixed with the support and encouragement of so many others, have motivated me in leaps and bounds this past year or so, and I’m now where I once only dreamed of being. I’m on a new and exciting path, and it’s increasingly hard to express in words exactly how I feel about all that is happening.

It’s thrilling, that’s for sure…the three days I spent in Portland were filled with great conversations and dialogue, tons of useful travel & writing tips, loads of fabulous laughter and even a tear or two, sparked simply by moments when I was touched by the awesome spirit of people doing what they love. The buzz one gets after hanging with folks who are truly following their dreams or pushing themselves to new limits is so energizing.

The BootsnAll Holiday bash was just that, and the welcome mat extended by the entire gang all weekend was so great. Catching up with my WR pal was such a treat too, and it was nice to finally meet the BBE. A few other folks took time out of their busy schedules to share a cup of coffee or a microbrew pint, so now I’ve got a collection of special memories to keep me smiling through the dark cold days of winter. (There’s a day-old blanket of snow on the ground here, and more expected to fall tonight…brrr….that Portland rain was not so bad after all…)

So, I returned to New York with this cool wow feeling, a bunch of new friends (including my long lost famiglia in Chi-Town), and a ton of work to do. But it’s work I simply can’t wait to tackle. It’s all good…

I’ll post some pixs when I get ‘em uploaded.