I made it. Well, I made it halfway. That's a good start for me considering my longest ride was 60km prior to this tour. 5530km of pure awesome. This trip has been incredible. I have seen so many things I never thought I'd see and done things I thought impossible. However, this trip does leave me a little... well, worried.
I came on this tour with the goal of discovering myself. So far, that has been an abysmal failure. I know nothing more than I did two months ago. All I've done is exercise. Lots of exercise, mind you, but still just exercise. It seems everyone on this tour is experiencing the same phenomenon. Many people decided to do this tour with the same intention as myself. They have left their jobs in search of new meaning or a new start. But as I've found, you just get wrapped up in this little TDA bubble, where everyone thinks like you. You spend more time with these people than your family, usually, and you feel like it's never going to end. Unfortunately, in another 50%, the bubble will burst and it will end. And then what? I will come back to a world where I have no job, no money and a little bit of debt to settle. Now, the debt doesn't scare me, the lack of job does. I have a few opportunities, but as far as career goes, I am at a total loss. I don't really want to do the mechanic thing, so the army is feasible. However, the army is still just another facet of the government and I really hate all the bureaucracy. So, really I find myself stuck in the same place as I was two months ago. Now, don't read into this as a failure. I think this trip will be one of the best things I've ever done. I've loved every day of it and will probably love every day to come. My attitude has just sort of shifted into this bubble that I forget has to end sometime. Anyway, I've come full circle in this point. I'm stuck in the same mental place that I was before, only now I'm there with 60 others. Also, after such a long time cycling, I still have no calves. That was another goal, but I didn't see that being accomplished anyway. Thanks, genetics.
So, I have really been thinking whilst I cycle along: What am I going to make of myself? Only time will tell. I have two months left to sort myself out and figure out what is going to happen. I do know this: I am capable, durable, stubborn, efficient and really good at spinning my legs in a circle. If anyone has any ideas for a good job, please let me know.
On a much less serious note, I went on safari here in Arusha, Tanzania. It was awesome. I went to the Ngorongoro crater, which is home to about 20,000 animals within a 265 square kilometer area. It's like a zoo, only it's not because it's their natural habitat. I saw lions, cheetah, zebra, rhino, elephants, pumba (warthog), buffalo, wildebeest, hyena, hippo, gazelle, kudu and all sorts of crazy birds. I actually ate lunch right near some hippo. They are huge! And my first elephant sighting was right out of Marsabit, a few weeks ago. I didn't mention it, as I had other things on my mind, but it was awesome! I came cycling up a hill and there was a huge bull elephant on a hill about 20m to my right. I just stared in awe. It was only about 5km out of town and I never expected it to be there! I've also seen giraffe in the past few days, but only from a car. It was getting to the point where everyone had seen a giraffe on their bikes except me, so I was ready to see a dinosaur before I saw a giraffe. But, good news: They're not extinct. They're just surprisingly hard to see. The vegetation can get incredibly dense here, now that is actually rains. In fact, I experienced rain for the first time in two months only two days ago. It was a weird feeling seeing clouds again.
Anyway, I have to head off. I have a bike to fix and more eating to do. I will post again in 8 days, after a long section of dirt. Hopefully I will make it unscathed. So, until next time everyone!
Danimal
Finding yourself ... hmm: here's a bit of fatherly advice. Accept the fact that, as an intelligent person, you will likely not occupy the same niche for your entire life, but will move from one (hopefully interesting) thing to another as your interests and cicrumstances change. You will likely never have an ultimate goal, or at least not a goal that lasts your entire lifetime. The key, I think, is to do what interests you, and while you're doing that make sure that you're laying the groundwork for the next step (or two), because you're sure to keep growing. Even at my advanced age, I keep wondering what my next career move will be (i.e., what I'll be when I grow up).
ReplyDeleteAs for the rain, I'll offer a quote that I remember from MAD magazine about 45 years ago: "Let a smile be your umbrella, and you'll get a mouthful of rain!"
It's great to hear that you're enjoying the trip. Maybe there's a job at TdA with your name on it!
Hey Daniel. Check on your facebook or your hotmail page and get back to simon or me at khauser09@hotmail.com. We need a little info from you
ReplyDeleteDaniel, regarding your goal of discovering yourself, maybe you can’t see past the obvious proof that you already have discovered yourself. You’ve already proven,
ReplyDeleteto all those who know you, exactly who you are by your actions and your success in everything you do. You are one hard piece of gear and you have set some very ambitious goals and reached them. Don’t think of being stuck in some mental place and struggle over what you will make of yourself. At the end of this journey, when your TDA bubbles bursts, you will simply just have to set another goal; and we all have no doubt that you will.
To quote Denis Wately “The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them.”
Good luck on the rest of the tour, Uncle Gord.
Daniel, I hear you. I know that you were counting on this trip to be a life altering experience. Just because you still don't know the specific job you want to do when you get back, doesn't mean that this isn't life altering. As you say, this is the trip of a lifetime. You have met people from all over the world whom you will be able to call friend and visit over the course of your life. And, you're slowly ruling out options that you know you DON'T want to do which is one way of ending up doing what you DO want to do.
ReplyDeleteSo, what I want to say is, don't beat yourself up for not having an ah hah moment! If nothing else, you're broadening your horizons and learning that there is a huge miriad of opportunities for kinds of jobs, many of which you wouldn't have known about or considered before. It may take some time once you get home, but you will eventually come to the place you want to be.
love, Mom
I've always thought you'd end up hooking in Vanier...just accept it!
ReplyDeleteMark