You were in the rut of work and spend. Now your head is above water. Breathe deep the treasure around you. Your surroundings belong to you. You have a free pass practically anywhere. You are personally free of the individual property taxes and maintenance of all this beauty. Explore neighborhoods in the best parts of town, the forests, the coastal highways, all the places you've already indirectly paid for in sales taxes. One no longer feels as an outsider in financially prohibitive areas.
This brings up an important point, Trust. The modern hippie has adapted and evolved toward comfort rather than pricetag fashion statement. In the back forty of our lives, cleanliness is not an option as philosophical statement. No matter the disdain for the mechanics and hypocrisy of society's norms, clean is the necessity for admission without question. An eccentric look is fine, many have come to believe, especially in the retail world, that one must assume they're talking to a sale, and not look too far down one's nose at the absurd. Dress code in most pricey restaurants is now so relaxed that one can assume whomever has the ease of entry and the air of home away from home is welcome. The truth of business is that they need you more than you need them. Being free to be on the customer side of the formula is no excuse for rudeness or contempt. Remember where you came from not so long ago. Never piss in your own pool. All the world belongs to you and you to it.
Free and almost free places to go are priceless in the best sense. The wi-fi coffee shop, the bakery, the library, the bookstore, are all places of etiquette and resource.
Wi-fi freebies:
Shoutcast
YouTube (dig deeper and do a thoughtful search for your interests)
Friends!! Chances are most of your friends are still working to pay the no principle mortgage and kids' student loans and wedding bills. Try not to rub their noses in it. They know they're waist-deep so lay off the excess grinning. Be a beneficial influence and use your superpowers for good. They'll find you and the times together will be better than ever. Friendship is the spiritual penultimate of all relationships, less expectation, less disappointment than marriage's white lie to God and the Universe. Nurture and nourish this garden. There is definitely love in it, as much as you wish to harvest.
Support local business:
These are the guys that welcome the discriminating nonconformist.
Touring:
This for me is the ultimate in travel, especially on two wheels. The ground covered at ten miles per hour is the perfect rate of cognition, attention, and pace. Sit up in the saddle and watch the cinema unfold just for you.
Ongoing education:
Adult school is the deal of the century. Learning keeps one young and in touch and poised for growth. Start here on the net, with the greatest world community forum, and then take it to the streets. Face to face is the path of humanity, so make sure never to miss a day with conversation.
Open your eyes and your heart to all you can. You only have so many days left on this earth, and chances are you've already spent half of them. Wake up!
NoMoneyFun
Commitment and Caring
Now that you're older and more distant of the rat race, you have the authority to speak your mind... no pissant company tool to report your aberrant behavior on your chart, no one but the law to question your beliefs.
You can now afford to support your cause, in a far more direct way than to write a check. You are a physical entity rather than an account number. See and be seen, hear and be heard. Stand and remain standing. Pressure from people like you ended the war in Vietnam. The war then didn't run out of money. Dissent and disagreement on a world scale ended occupation there. Now it's a major tourist destination. Make the entire world an unlimited tourist destination. Explore culture and ethnic specialty. Travel is exposure and education. Understand why things remain in conflict and do what it takes to chip away at the mountains of inhumanity. Enjoy and exercise the freedoms left in this world. They are an endangered species now but will always resurface as the trickle-down of any administration just the way a reinstated draft will certainly get the complacent up in arms about the current war. When it's our kid in the line of fire, we get concerned. Speak up and be unafraid to listen and learn.
Happiness and Flow
What is it that makes those old Italians so content to work in the olive orchards all their lives. Is it the mysterious fulfillment of all things zen and cosmic? Is it the security of encompassing knowledge and the full appreciation of every working detail of their lives? Or is it the simplicity of the basics covered; family, identity, and the cycle of life before their eyes. Understanding delivers peace, the philosophers generally agree. Being able to relate to the next guy is harmonious, so why is it we limit by nationality, borders, and attitude? Territory, space to propagate, i suppose.. ownership and exclusivity, most likely. We want our individual space and the accompanying certificates of authenticity.
When we become comfortable with owning less, the aggression diminishes, the rage of one dog eating another becomes ludicrous, and the peaceful life becomes more idealized and precious. We are progressively owned less by the maintenance and protection of our depreciating symbols of wealth. Room to move is created by less clutter and we manage to create real estate by subtracting the storage space.
This brings a tangible design of what comes and goes, a more honest assessment of what allows comfort and method and what can be let go as useless and anchored obligation. Happiness is realized as contentment of the continuous now, the flow of the cooperative and helpful. Swimming upstream to spawn sacrifices life to society, trusting the current provides a most beautiful cruise of life's pleasures along your way.
The last and most essential ingredient is Love. Trust the current on this as well. It will wash you to the most splendid shores of understanding and certainty. Timing is everything and being true to oneself will connect the wandering soul to its perfect reflection. Be prepared to soar higher than you ever imagined.