Adventurous

  Last week I was on the East Coast (in the Washington DC area --more blogs to follow about that) and as I was spending time with friends we had a lot of discussions. I guess spending a week straight with someone, you realize sometimes you gotta talk! It really made me start thinking about some things. We talked about a lot of things and circumstances. We discussed likes and dislikes and although we have known each other for 21 years (2/3 of my life) I learned some new things about him. It was a lot of fun. 


One thing in particular I remember talking about was swimming with the sharks, I think that came up in conversation when we were at the Aquarium in Baltimore. I don't remember his response (I think he said not with the great white shark) but for me I would totally be willing to go into a shark cage and let people toss some chum. I think it would be a little nerve racking but I think It would be an incredible experience as well. 


Since my trip a few times this week I have thought about my sense of adventure. I think that just like our taste buds and other things in our lives our sense of adventure changes as well. I think that different things excite us at different times. As a child I may have thought it adventurous to go down the slide, or to swing really high. But now I look at my life and I want to go sky-diving! And although I would love to jump out of an airplane someday I cannot see myself going bungee jumping off a bridge or something! So does that still make me adventurous? 


As I have been thinking about it this week I have thought about "adventure", what really qualifies something as being adventurous? As I look at the dictionary (www.m-w.com) you see adventure defined as: 

Definition of ADVENTURE

1

a : an undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risksb : the encountering of risks adventure>

2

: an exciting or remarkable experience adventure in exotic dining>

3

: an enterprise involving financial risk

So when it comes to adventure according to #2 it doesn't always have to involve danger or risks. So does that make me adventurous because I am willing to sing karaoke without having been drinking (I know some people who will only do it if they're drunk) I don't have to participate in crazy stunts to be adventurous. So even though I have not been a world traveler and because I don't want to eat certain foods does my "wild and crazy" side make me adventurous? 

I have learned in my life how to have fun and laugh. I don't have to involve alcohol or certain activities. But I can still be just as wild and crazy as the next girl. I love a good water fight, or a good roller coaster. I love to wrestle and to just be myself. I will go up to a street performer and ask for a photograph. I am not afraid to look silly standing next to a giant statue of Yogi Bear at Jellystone campground in VA (another thing I did last week) So where is the line drawn? I will hold a snake or a rat or maybe I will hold a tarantula someday, so does that make me more adventurous than someone who won't? If I will hold a snake but someone else will bungee jump who is being more adventurous? What about a zip-line (i'd love to do that) or petting a sting ray? Is there a difference between the swinging gondola and the non-swinging when it comes to riding a ferris wheel? 

I love to go hiking and I love the view from the top of the mountain, but if I am not sure if I want to go rapelling does that drop my adventure level? If I will jump into the deep end of a swimming pool but not off a cliff into a lake/pond is there a difference? I guess it is all how you look at it. I think that I do have a lot of adventure in my life. It just may be different than the next person. 

I think that the measure of adventure is a measure of comfort. Although I may be more comfortable putting my life into a parachute than a bungee cord, it doesn't mean the bungee jumper isn't adventurous. Just as much as a person who is afraid of snakes isn't a weak person. Maybe they are just as willing to hang out with me in the shark cage! I think that sometimes common sense fits into our level of adventure while other times maybe not so much. Look at animal trainers! They have to have a level of trust to work with lions or tigers, but yet there has got to be a level of adventure there, knowing that at any time that animal may show it's wild side instead of it's tame upbringing. For example the girl who was drown by the whale at Sea World a few years back. She was doing something she loved but all along she was working with an animal the size of a vehicle. She always knew there was a risk of major injury, did she do it for the love of the whale or because of the adventure of swimming with a whale? I guess now we will never know. I would love to ride an elephant someday, but I may not want to attempt to pet a porcupine! What about race car drivers? I would love to go in a dragster sometime! But I think I might be bored in a Nascar race! (wow another left turn) So does that mean I like adventure in short segments? 

I guess I am kind of rambling on here but the thoughts keep flowing as scattered as they may be! Overall I guess this will be a constant battle in my thoughts. How much adventure do I include in my life and how is that adventure measured? Am I being adventurous to the point of too much danger or not enough? I want to feel spontaneous and fun but I also want to feel safe and scure. How adventurous do you feel? If you slide down the stairs on a towel are you good for the day or do you wish you could fly like superman? ... For me I would love to do both right now!