Self-reliance: comes in handy!

Self-reliance is one of my most treasured assets.

I stumbled upon this Web site after I read about it on a friend's blog...it's entitled "50 Things Everyone Should Know How To Do"

I remember one of my many lessons in self-reliance came when I learned to drive a manual transmission (#5 on the Web site) deep in the woods of New England where my family summer vacations.

On a Jeep Wrangler, no less- probably the jerky-est car ever to learn on.

Nevertheless, a couple dozen popped clutches, a couple sets of tears (my dad is not the most patient teacher haha), and a summer later (I had to put it to rest the first time), I was good to roll!

The next summer, I was able to teach my sister. Now she can cruise. Not like it comes in handy as she's at school in metropolitan Boston. But for the summertime, ah yes.

But because of that skill, I've been in situations where it has come in handy.

And seen how lack of that skill has inconvenienced others....

Exhibit A:
When a bunch of friends and I were considering renting a car to drive down to the coast of southern Spain from Madrid for Semana Santa last year, we of course, were trying to penny-pinch the best we could and a stick-shift car was the only option unless we wanted to pay double the cost for an automatic (this was back in the day before the world's economy collapsed and the Euro was uber-strong).

However, as you had to be 21 to drive and the only one over the age of 21 at that time (damn my September birthday!) was the only one who could NOT drive a stick shift, our roadtrip from arid central Spain to the sands of Malaga were thwarted.

(But alas, i swear there are much less 'glamorous' ways driving a stick shift could come in handy.)


Urgency is another issue that stands in the way of learning essential skills.

I dont know if learning how to change a tire is really important. Well, I guess it is.
I just dont know when I'll find time. Summer maybe?

Anyway, for the long run, some of my goals include learning French and maybe a Scandinavian language, going to culinary school, getting a master's degree or two (maybe a Ph.D.), taking jobs/living in more countries, becoming a yoga instructor, yada yada...

okay now its daunting that i've just blogged about some of my goals, because now a part of me is liable for holding myself to attaining them!