Retirement vs. surfing - how to afford travel

A cool ex-girlfriend from Ontario texted me while I was in California and said, a -"wow, I love that you're so full of life", and b- "how can you afford to do all that?"
The short answer is, to misquote Kris Kristofferson; I am spending my tomorrow's on today. Instead of the other way around. I'm not knocking retirement, if that's your thing - go for it. I think if I retire at 60, and get to travel some, that might be ok. On the other hand, if I'm still working at 66, 86, and can look back and say, 'man, what a great ride it's been!" that sounds good to me.
I just turned 38. Pretty old. Pretty young. Young enough to bunjee jump, chase girls, take huge professional risks, skinny dip, miss sleep, and dance all night. I'd rather take the time off now, have adventures now, and work later.
I went and watched the Canadian Coldwater Classic surf competition this afternoon. Hung out with friends on the beach and talked about life, Plato, the conundrum of today. Watched surfing. I posted that I was there on my fb page. A friend asked if I was surfing, I said 'no - only the seas of fate.' ;)
I still haven't tried surfing, no rush. But it was great to watch those guys today, twist, turn, really working to feel the wave, and stay on top of it. That's kinda how I feel sometimes.
In short, but other words, this is how to afford to travel - go. Sort it out later. All within the boundaries of personal power, of course. Do I have a poem for this one? Not sure, let's see..

Beyond that sandbar is the river's turning.
There a new country opens up to sight,
Safe from the fond researches of our learning.
Here it is day; there it is always night.

Around this corner is a certain danger.
The streets are streets of hell from here on in.
The Anthropophagi and beings stranger
Roast in the fire and meditate on sin.

After this kiss will I know who I'm kissing?
Will I have reached the point of no return?
What happened to those others who are missing?
Oh, well, to hell with it. If we burn, we burn.

It's not about where you are or how far you've gone. It's about going past your own limits, past your known world, past your previous safety net of friends and family, beyond your known realm of financial comfort. We all have our comfort zones, and we all have 'explorations over the rim.'
These blogs are connected, or I think so, even if it seems like they're not that much. 'Contemplations on personal power'. I think that is what lets us go further over the rim, into the wasteland, to cross the desert, and that leap, I believe, is the only way to get to a our new world.
I'll return to that theme in another blog.
A few friends have suggested that with my fb page, and now this, I might inspire some people to do the same. Great. I hope so. The world is changing, life is changing, you're changing, I'm changing. The "On the Road" beat generation preceded the sixties, there was another 'on the road' generation in the 20's, a very different one, also a huge time of cultural growth. It's part of steep shifts in changing culture. Forget about the money, who cares? It'll work out. Maybe there'll be a bunch of really happy, interesting people in the bankruptcy lineup. I might see you there. Today, I am Alive.
Since I mentioned it, here's an ever-so-slightly-pretentious Kerouac quote, "There's nothing nobler than to put up with a few inconveniences like snakes and dust for the sake of absolute freedom". In the course of finding it I think I found another which brings me back to the point of this little essay: "Vagabonding is not a lifestyle, nor is it a trend. It's just an uncommon way of looking at life-a value adjustment from which action naturally follows. And, as much as anything, vagabonding is about time-our only real commodity-and how we choose to use it." - Rolf Potts.
I choose to use this time in my life this way: to travel, to do work of meaning as it is presented to me, to make new friends, explore new horizons, have fun, and learn about myself, to explore my inner and outer world. For me, that is the best use of my time right now, better than socking away a pension plan, buying a house, or adding lines to my resume. I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna regret it. I know that because I've never regretted the things I've done, but those I haven't done. I'm not saying travel is the only way - whatever your passion is, whatever makes you feel alive. But travel's pretty damn good for that...
I'll close with a quote that goes out to my brother - "You either get busy living or you get busy dying" - Shawshank Redemption.