I'd wander the world. I know it's gay but I watched The Beach with the girlfriend recently, and while the silly utopian island life seemed nice, what really blew my mind was the filthy, spicy urban outdoors of Thailand. I am from CT and needless to say, I've never seen what could be called a shanty town, even the 'ghettos' around here have upscale restaurants in them. (Yeah, fuck you Hartford gangstas. Your worst neighborhoods are on the same block as Bar Celona). I want to spend some time among dirty humanity. I'm not sure why, it seems unpleasant, but I feel my life needs a hefty dose of perspective.
I'm doing it. I lost my job back in January which was such a blessing. I was burned out, hated it, felt no sense of purpose and was all around miserable. I decided to go back to school to get licensed as a chemical dependency counselor and now, I've decided to continue on for a masters degree thanks to the encouragement of two of my professors. I'll finish up my LCDC classes and my practicum in the spring, take the written exam in August, but I'll be starting my masters work in June. I turn 47 in January, so I'll be 49 when I finish my degree, but I'm happier now than I have been in a long, long time.
http://derekkreindler.blogspot.com/2009/11/last-one-to-leave-turn-out-lights.html I just wrote a blog about this subject. I'm afraid I'm entering my dream job just as the industries involved in it are dying or about to be irreparably altered.
I was let go from work and recently given a unique position to do just this for a short time period. We started a company and are anticipating a gap wherein we will receive no funding, so the plan is to take a month and do whatever we want to. Our business partner who has funded us for the first phase of the project is going to likely contact us by March or April as to if they can continue funding the subsequent phases. Without any debt to my name, without any rent to pay, and with money saved up from the past few months, I have the opportunity for a month to 'do my own thing'. I anticipate just doing travel. One less exciting option is to visit everyone I know in the U.S. It would be nice to catch up with people, and there is no better way to do this than to go right too them! The other option is to backpack and stay at hostels around Europe. I have already done this, and its an easy way to meet new people and have a blast. I would prefer if one of my friends came along, since traveling solo doesn't seem as appealing as going with a few friends. 9-5 is a drag, but a steady paycheck and security are nice. Wandering off the beaten track has its downsides as well, the largest being job/pay security. Its easy to wish a life of carefree travel while loathing the day to day job, but its hard to actually put it together and make it happen ( unless you have a trust fund, and I met a few folks who traveled w/ a huge trust fund).
While I love my chosen occupation (a coffee guy in Seattle? No way!), one of my other passions is Photography. During my pursuits of this hobby, I've gotten several chances to meet an amazing photographer named Chase Jarvis. If I had the money, I'd bang on his front door until he let me in to be floor sweeper, just so I could work with him regularly. The amount of knowledge that I could gain just by proximity would be so worth it.
I love driving. Given the time and money, I would either A: drive around the North American continent and having adventures every single day, or B: purchase a vehicle and competitively race it. Nothing too serious, just SCCA. If I lose my legs in a crash, it'll just make my dick look bigger.