Well it’s that time of the year again. The time to reflect on the past year and prepare myself for the year to come. This year was unlike any other for me, and it was definitely a turning point in my life. So here goes:

Top 3 Places

1. San Diego, California

2. L.A. California

3. Thailand

Events

1. Roadtrip to California.

2. Loi Krathong (Chiang Mai, Thailand)

3. Taking off of the runway in L.A.

4. Getting in touch with my spirituality.

People that changed my life (had to list 10 for this one)

1. Evita Robinson- for making me realize what a strong person I was.

2. Jean-Pierre Chery- for being a big brother to me.

3. Tyler Batson- for opening my eyes to the world around me.

4. Bogdan Tiflinsky- For making me realize that cameramen have souls too. And becoming a part of my family.

5. Evan Engel- Same as Bogdan. Can’t wait for you guys to come to the Bayous.

6. Nui, Black, Tor, Mint- for showing me what real friends are.

7. Nora Godkin- for bringing out the animal in me!

8. Benz and Meang- for being awesome friends that I will never forget.

9. Ying- for being my big sister and friend!

10. Thai mom and dad- for bringing us into their lives, and treating us like their children.

11. Cameron and Kanako- For being my partners in crime.

12. Last but not least, Mom and Dad for supporting me along the way.

Most Memorable Moments (Needed 4 for this one)

1. Loi Krathong (Chiang Mai, Thailand)

2. Showering in the waterfall (Chiang Mai, Thailand)

3. Caressing a tiger while it slept (Chiang Mai, Thailand)

4. Jet Set Zero

Successes

1. Getting out of Calhoun, Louisiana.

2. Making a group of true friends. Ones  I will never forget.

3. Finding happiness.

This year was a major milestone in my life. I have been blessed with so many great things. I know that 2011 will be a year filled with many more adventures. 2010 was just the beginning.

I fought with a stranger and I met myself, I opened my mouth and I heard myself. It can get pretty lonely when you show yourself. I guess I could've made it easier on myself, but I could never follow.

“My friends from high school married their high school girlfriends, moved in to houses in the same zip codes where their parents lived, but I could never follow.” These lyrics describe my life perfectly. Destined to write my life story my own way, I’ve never been one to have an outline, and I definitely wasn’t born with an infrastructure. Truth be told I’m an unorganized mess. At this point in my life I’ve come to a fork in the road where I can either settle down or follow the obscure path of uncertainty. With the above being said, it is no secret that settling down isn’t in my blood. I’ve always been a dreamer, people would say “pull your head out of the clouds Jeremiah”. But, why would I ever pull my head out of the clouds when I can see the entire world from up here? I mean who ever decided that life came with a map: We graduate high school, we go to college, we find a career, we get married and settle down until it’s time to retire. I’m setting out on my own with no map and a heart full of wonder. I’m learning to marvel at the world and I am finding myself along the way. My life is a blank sheet of paper, and I’m using the world as my pencil.  Here’s to taking the long way around.

It’s crazy to think that in less than a week I will be living the life I have always dreamed of. The good Lord has an awesome way of working. One day I’m absolutely clueless as to what I want to do with my life and then a day later I get an offer to be a part of the Jet Set Zero team. It finally hit me like a ton of bricks that this is what I was meant to do. Prior to Jet Set Zero, I was terrified that I was destined to stay in Calhoun for my entire life. I was terrified that I was doomed to lead an “Average life”, when I knew deep inside I was anything but average. The stubborn fighter in me won’t accept anything ”Average”.  So here I stand with a world full of adventures in front of me and a restless spirit to light the fire under my ass. So let’s raise a glass to never giving up.

Look at that video above. That is a perfect example of a dream come true – which I’m all about. What I did there was a figment in the human imagination at one point. Then, time passed, and it became an idea, that idea became a dream, and that dream a reality for thousands of people, including myself.

I have gone from a quiet, withdrawn, and – let’s be honest, suicidal – person (following the death of my Dad at age 11), to someone that can see the endless beauty in all forms of life. Falling through the sky over Switzerland was the first time I ever cried out of joy. It was the first time I was willing let everything go to embrace the world. It was the first time I realized that anything is possible, that love is everywhere, and that neither death nor life are to be feared.

This may be a simple realization to you’re average person, but I’ve battled displacement and cultural hybridization, homelessness and near-death experiences most of my life. Throughout, I’ve managed to not only survive, but thrive within the consequences of change. And you know how? I gave up. I stopped caring. I slung the bullshit and focused on sharing what I consider the core of human existence: love, freedom, beauty, peace, and bliss at its purest. And I wouldn’t change a minute of it if I could. Without faith in my very own existence and awareness of how I impact the world on a daily basis I wouldn’t be who I am today: a skydiving, joy-crying, creative, and loved vagabond philosophizer!

So next time you get bored, just think of all the ideas, dreams, and images swirling around in your head and make some magic happen. Stop rationalizing them away; stop saying you don’t have time. You do. Beautiful changes are happening all around you. Join in. We’ll shed a tear together.

Adventure

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“Shoot a Travel TV Series” has been hanging at the top of my life list for a while.  Now that JS0 Italy is in production (pinch me) it’s time to attack a new list, the definitive JS0 Italy Bucket List.

Even the most ambitious bucket listers would find it difficult to narrow down all of the must-do experiences in a country as soul-feeding as Italy.  But we’ve managed to conjure up nine.  The 10th is up to YOU!

Send us YOUR ULTIMATE ITALIAN EXPERIENCE via Twitter @jetsetzero (include #js0italy) or via Facebook.  The best one wins a sweet Jet Set Zero t-shirt and the glory of watching me, Perrin, Sarah and Lynne attempt to carry out your awesome idea.

Time is ticking and we’ve only got one Italian summer to live out our weirdest and wildest dreams so without further ado, The Bucket List:

1.  Ride bikes through the Italian countryside ACCOMPLISHED

2.  Appear on the Italian news ACCOMPLISHED

3.  Cruise the canals of Venice ( Perrin & Sarah) ACCOMPLISHED

4.  Crash a Miss Italia pageant

5. Find and wear the ultimate Mumuu (Courtney & Lynne)

6.  Make pasta with an Italian grandma

7.  Sail the Amalfi coast

8.  Take a Nutella bath

9. Fit the cast in a vintage cinquecento

10.  ??? VIEWER VOTED ???

[Photo:  David]

We came, we sweat, we learned, we conquered.  A grueling week of ACLE teacher orientation in Sanremo officially finished today with this photo and a resounding sigh of relief.  At 150 20-somethings strong, this week’s orientation was the largest in ACLE history.  We were a team of many hidden talents and nationalities:  Aussies, Kiwis, South Africans, Canadians, Scottish, English, Americans, and Irish.  From here we’ll each embark on our own Italian journey…some to Bari, some to Rome, Veneto Tuscany, Lombardia and beyond.  Stay tuned for the exact coordinates of team Jet Set Zero!  Here’s a clue:  we’re 4.5 hours away from Sanremo by train…

The United Nations of ACLE

Lynne and I are part of the ACLE teacher training staff this week and Perrin and Sarah are two of the 140 trainees from the around the world who have come to Sanremo to learn how to be an ACLE tutor in Italy. Next week we join forces to work together as tutors in an English immersion camp. Tomorrow is D-Day when our fate will be decided. Where in Italy would you like to see us go?

Some stuff you won’t see in the episodes:

Dinner with the BF's Bro

Via Piero della Francesca

The Best Terrace in Milan

For our holiday weekend celebrating the Battle of Pichincha when Quito won its independence (also known as Laurene’s last weekend before she started her 6-day-a-week job), a few of us fled the mean streets of Quito for some fresh air, hot springs, and adventure. And how could that be bad?

Poor Ryan was sick with what looked like the flu and wasn’t able to make it. That’s okay, because there are so many outdoor activities to enjoy in Baños that we’re all more than happy to go back. Yes, baños is the Spanish word for bathroom, but the town is named after its restorative hot springs (or baths).

We soaked in some hot springs set at the base of a volcano for a mere $3; at dusk we watched a waterfall trickle down the mountain as we lounged in the mineral pools. Then we worked up a sweat dancing at a club called Son Cubanos, where the happy hour was whenever the DJ said it was.

We came to Baños in search of an adrenaline rush -  our next mission was choosing between bungee jumping, river rafting, waterfall rappelling, horseback riding, and hiking.