I need to buy a ticket…

Posted: January 18, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Goals, Life, Reading & Books, Work | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

According to Elizabeth Gilbert, “There’s this wonderful old Italian joke about a poor man who goes to church every day and prays before the statue of a great saint, begging, ‘Dear saint – please, please, please… give me the grace to win the lottery.’ This lament goes on for months. Finally the exasperated statue comes to life, looks down at the begging man and says in weary disgust, ‘My son – please, please, please… buy a ticket.‘”

My lament has gone on long enough. It’s time I bought a ticket. I don’t really think that trying to win the lottery is the way forward though – the odds aren’t really that great. So instead, my “ticket” will be a metaphor for action.

I haven’t been lamenting because I’m poor (although I’m not exactly rich). No, I’ve been lamenting because come April I will be unemployed for the first time in over ten years (if you count part-time jobs). I won’t have an income, and I will be back at my Mum’s house in a town I don’t really want to live in (nothing personal to anyone living there).

So I need to make a plan of action – I need to buy my ticket. If I don’t have a ticket, I’m never going to win, am I?

Plan of Action

1) Spruce up my CV.

2) Make a list of all the companies I would like to work for and agencies who deal with those kinds of companies.

3) Apply! (Even if no jobs are advertised.)

4) Believe that I can get a new job (this is a belief based on the knowledge that I’ve done everything in my power – not just a vain belief)

Wish me luck! 😉

Eat, Pray, Love…

Posted: September 20, 2010 | Author: | Filed under: Life, Reading & Books, Travel & Tourism, Writing & Blogging | Tags: , , , , | 1 Comment

Eat, Pray, Love.

First, I saw the preview for the movie. Then, I decided to read the book. Finally, I saw the movie.  Now, I have to admit… I’m totally in awe of Elizabeth Gilbert. I want to meet her, shake her hand, and tell her she’s my hero.

Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert

OK, so I can’t actually relate to her story. It’s a story of divorce – something I know nothing about. But on the other hand, I can relate to her story so much. It’s a story of breaking free from the life you think you have to live, daring to ask yourself the radical question “What do you want to do?”.  It’s a story that reminds us that it’s ok to eat a whole pizza once in a while, that it’s ok to stop and think about life, and that when we stop looking for all the things we think we need, the ones we actually need find us anyway.

I won’t ruin the story for those of you who haven’t read it yet. I will just say READ IT. As for the movie, watch it after you’ve read the book, and accept that it is different from the book, but allow it to carry you away on an adventure anyway.

Oh, and then read “Committed”, which is a sort of sequel.

If you tell me, after reading these books, that they didn’t have a profound affect on you, or that you don’t now want to travel or start something new, I won’t believe you.

Finally (and this will make more sense once you’ve read “Eat, Pray, Love”), find yourself a “Richard from Texas”. I think everyone needs one in their lives… 😉