alexander.

vacation

i’ll tell you what. it’s been a long past couple weeks. portland in june for a week, nashville in july for a week, and most recently, current river this past weekend. i always thought i would like the life of a traveler, but i’m not so sure now. perhaps it’s just that i still have so many responsibilities back home. it is good to be back, but much fun was had these past three trips.

i’ve spent a lot of time these past couple months thinking about things, and my personal journey through life. being out on your own, making every decision for yourself, you become so much more aware of where your life is headed. and thus, by that, i think you take even more responsibility — not just for those day to day things, but for the long term things as well. when it’s just you responsible for the rest of your life, and no-one else to tell you what to do or where to go, you realize after a while that it’s all up to you, and that it’s time to jump, grab life by the horns, and go for what you want. nobody else will. hopefully i’m not being redundant.

having major sunburns on my feet (odd place, i know) i’ve spent much of my time around the apartment today, resting, and working on my book. i’ve spent a fair share of my time since i’ve moved out working out things in my head, and deciding what i want my next business venture to be — trying to follow some of the advice i’d set out in the book. what i’ve realized is that i pushed my passion aside and started doing second things first.

i’m back to the book now. i’m back to my real passion — studying success, writing about it, and devising a common sense plan for the average joe to follow, so as to revolutionize and change the way we all go about finding success in the future. the plan that had been laid out for me by the previous three or four generations of humanity just wasn’t appealing. my heart wasn’t in it, and i just didn’t feel any sense of excitement or inspiration. they say in life, sometimes, that you just have to do what you don’t want to do. call me crazy, but i don’t buy it. i’ve bit the bullet and done plenty of things i haven’t wanted to, but i’m slowly and successfully working away from that.

alright, time to get back to the book. this day, on a personal level, has been one of the most fulfilling in a while. don’t get me wrong. i have loved my vacations, and especially getting to spend more time with my family as of late — precious moments as they are. but the only truly life-changing experiences, the ones that propel you to new levels of success and fulfillment are the ones you embark on, endure, and pass through on your own. and that’s what i’m on right now.

back to writing. love to you all. :)

hunger absconds me.

took a nap. i feel wonderful now. sometimes there’s just so much on your mind, and the only way to flush it all out and start the day over (in a way) is a nap. happens to the best of us!

i’ve spent far too much time on this site already tonight, which is ironic because that’s why the creator of tumblr, whoever he is, created this damn thing.

now, it’s time to get some food. nothing like having the fix to my thai cravings seriously 10 minutes away. shrimp pad thai, here i cooooooome. :)

personal excellence - professionally done.

destination si

lately i’ve been spending a lot of time working on my most recent project. i’ve pretty much narrowed my outside-of-work hobby list down to two things: the book, and destination si.

unlike a lot of people who live in this area (southern il, if you’re curious) i actually really enjoy the area and i’m glad to be here. do i want to move away? not really. what would i even begin to do to keep myself busy and happy somewhere else? i have a passion and vision for this area.

i feel happy here because i feel like it’s the canvas for my dreams. since a real young age, i’ve had an innate interest in cities, urban environments, architecture, the beauty of nature, etc. i’ve also always been a self-starter, and a leader. 

i have a vision for an organization that will work under my vision and direction, but also with the thoughts, ideas and inspiration of others to become a mastermind of sorts, a coming together of many passionate people all united with a similar vision — to improve southern illinois. 

how you might ask? develop great downtowns. offer a better urban experience, for those who want that and for those who may be drawn here because of it, amongst all of the already great suburban and rural environments already here. how would we do that? well, it’s an organization. get members. hold meetings. solicit the wants and needs of the citizens. take our knowledge, insight and visions, and combine it with those things. consult professionals and get their opinions on these things. work with property owners and local government to give the conclusive and convincing evidence on how the improvements and ideas we have will benefit us all.

it’s education, advocacy, and networking - in a way. but that’s not all. that’s just the downtown area.

there are great things volunteers can do, especially en masse. the only reliable power you have is in numbers. we can grow the organization to include passionate, willing and helpful citizens. we will work to write grant proposals to gather funds, so as to conduct different volunteer improvement projects throughout the area. 

it’s a beginning. it’s something i’m working on with a great deal of passion, and i’m finding all the right people to help out with it, so it becomes a great group of powerful individuals with the same dream and vision — for a better southern illinois. 

five manifestos for the creative life.