50 States of Yoga

What is Vagabond Zen? They're just a couple of words that I feel describe me, my goals, and balance me and my eagerness to reach and reach for the shiny objects all around the universe.

I've been attached to "vagabond" since my early 20s. My BFF {at the time} and I were discovering ourselves and taking advantage of the gift of travel - as we worked for an international airline together. She was known as "the gypsy". A year or two older, she had already had a strong sense of herself and her artistic nature. She wasn't afraid to be creative, dress fashionably, and loved to travel in a very bohemian spirit. I adored her. I admired her sense of wanderlust and her freedom of self. I don't think she knows this - but I truly admired her. She mesmerized me; her confidence was empowering for me. While spending so much time with her and growing my own passion for travel, I decided I needed a moniker too - and somehow The Vagabond was born. When I was 24 I bought my first brand new car - a Jeep Wrangler - and even made her license plate read vagabond. That was the beginning of me as the vagabond. An identity I have proudly held onto and even tattooed into my skin.

Me and "The Gypsy" at a bar in Edinburgh, Scotland... I'm wearing PJ bottoms!

Not sure where this was taken, but by the looks of that shirt, I think it was one night after work.

Zen came a little later for me.. perhaps my early 30s? I don't recall exactly - but that would make the most sense. In my early 30s I struggled with alcoholism. I was out of control and really having a hard time connecting with myself and doing a great job of rejecting everyone else. I knew I had to find a way to create balance in my life. I had been interested in The Beats and Alan Watts since my teens and frequently read up on Buddhism, so I guess it makes sense that I turned to zen to fulfill that other side of me. I've been sober for a bit over 5 years now and still struggle with my zen everyday. Finding my center, meditating and practicing yoga are all things that I value dearly and yet are always the last thing on my plate that I make time for.

Alan Watts and the Beats still influencing my thoughts...

So why am I telling you all this now? Because I am making 2015 my year of Vagabond Zen. The year I connect my wanderlust to my centered being. The year I connect my desire to travel and roam freely to my need to balance and be still. My new year's resolution is to travel to all 50 states - and take a yoga class in each one.

Blue States = States I've been to.

So far in my life I have traveled to 36 states. Several road trips up and down the East Coast and to the Midwest, one solo camping trip across country in my mid 30s, and a smattering of random flights here and there to see places and things. There are several chunks of the country that I haven't touched at all - The Deep South, The Northern Mountain States {do they have a name? - ND, SD, ID, MT} and a few more in between. It seems a little weird that I haven't been to West Virginia, but all the states around it. It's possible I've driven through on some adventure, but I just can't remember anything specific about being there and so I'm just not sure. {I'm certain my Mom, upon reading this, will remind me of some great adventure through WV in my teens.} Anyway, I think it would be an amazing thing to accomplish, it would allow the vagabond in me to get out and explore, and {with our dream of someday moving to Hawaii} it would make me feel better to have seen every state before I get 6+ hours away from them!

But yoga classes in each?! Yeah, that's my attempt to honor the Zen in me. I need to connect better with my soul. I need to connect more with my body. And yoga allows me to do both. By challenging myself to take a yoga class in each state, it's a guarantee that I will have the opportunity to connect at least 50 times this year! And my hope is it will also give me the chance to meet some local people and experience each state with a little more authenticity than a tourist might.

My vagabond license plate from my Jeep Wrangler - still have it!

It's a big undertaking and with only 52 weeks in the year I will have to aim for a state a week! I don't intend on using any vacation time from work for this, as Dave and I do have a trip planned in March for Paris and would love to do something {maybe Mexico!} in August for our 5th wedding anniversary. So that means I will have to be creative in my travel planning and time management. I do love a good challenge, though.

Phew! That's a lot.. but thanks for hanging in there! I hope you'll come back throughout the year to share some of my adventures in yoga. I'll be sharing my stories here as they happen. And if you have any suggestions - please share! I do have basic itineraries {lump this state with that state} but no real plans yet. Your feedback is welcome!

My vagabond tattoo.  I got it when I moved to Brooklyn - and sold my vagabond Jeep.