Upon turning 30 on my 30th birthday

On my 30th birthday this year, I turned 30.

It's true. 30 years ago I came into this world the son of a woman who was younger than 30. In itself, this mere fact is enough to make me pause and take stock in my existence on this planet. If I was my mom, I'd have a 9-year-old today. Luckily, I have had enough experiences to fully evaluate this "monumental" occurance. Here are some observations.

I like to think that I'm smart enough to fully appreciate all of the advice and commentary that has been given to me by the over 30 set. Quotes such as, "it's only a number," "you're only as old as you feel," and "my 30s were some of the best years of my life" have not gone unappreciated. I know that my "over 30" friends are right.

I completely understand this sage advice, yet one fact remains. I'm 30. 30 is old. Now, before you get all worked up and try to convince me that it's not because you're older than 30, please understand that 30 is old. Starting last Tuesday, all of my stories now begin with, "when I was in my twenties" instead of, "when I was in college."

I still believe that by 30, people have wives, mortgages, dogs and children. I have an iPod, a snowboard and an insecure future.

After 3 days of perspective, I've realized that I'm not dying, nor I am I that old. I foresee a continued future of my international lifestyle and the opportunity to continue to grow. I also know that the best is yet to come. 20 years from now, I'll turn 50 and I'll look back at this post with nostalgia and I'll realize the naviety of my youth.

For now, I'm 30.

jc

Captain Gadget and the Gadgeteers

Addicted. Simply put, we're addicted to gadgets.

My friend Marshall and I have recently come to the realization that we are addicted to gadgets. We can't get enough of them. Living in Asia, the hotbed of gadgetry (cell phones that do laundry, micro digital cameras, chopsticks) doesn't help. We're constantly going out and buying things that we must have.

Case in point: Marshall has recently joined the computer music generation and as a result went out and bought 2 removable hard drives for his computer. His MP3 player is practically on its way. I had a 20 gb iPod that was too small. As soon as the 60 debuted, I ran out and got it. But these things, I think, are commonplace. A lot of people have iPods. Our love of gadgetry spills over into our other hobbies as well. Marshall bought a GPS so he could track and map his favorite mountian bike trails. He bought a helmet cam for taping the bike and board trails, and my new favorite item is my Burton headphone-integrated helmet for snowboarding.

I love it. The integrated headphones mean I don't have to fumble with my special noise-reducing, in-ear gadgetized earphones. The automatic mute button on the ear flap means my friends won't hate me any more because I can't hear them. The rca "tail" hanging out the back of it means I can plug it directly into my impossibly big iPod and most importantly - I have a new gadget.

Check out the engadget.com post about the helmet here. NOTE: The JC that posted was NOT me.

Travel

I'm trying to break my personal record for once-monthly plane travel to foreign countries in consecutive months. In August I flew from Costa Rica to Hawaii to Korea. In September I flew to Taiwan, in October I went to Hong Kong for a conference and in November I flew back to the States for my good friend Eric's wedding. In December I flew back to the States to visit my parents and it was back to Korea in January. Late in January I left for Bali in Indonesia and I've just returned.

So far that's seven months that I've been blessed with travel. In March I'm presenting at a conference in the Philippines and I have a week's vacation in April. For now, it looks like May will be traveless, so I may top out at nine, but I'll keep you posted.

Last year I wrote,

"Experiences. Collect them as a child collects seashells, with awe and wonder." I've been lucky to collect many experiences in my short life and I thank everyone that has helped me to make it happen. Gracias. While I have done many rare and interesting things, Bali contributed to the lighter side of my collection. Here are some ramblings.

BALI, INDONESIA
I've just returned from a week's vacation in Bali and it was brilliant. It was great to escape the frigid cold of Korea and head to the beach for a week. My time was spent largely relaxing, mostly by the pool. Due to the unfortunate bombings, Bali has suffered a tourism drought, which meant cheap package deals for the time being. My friend Marshall and I headed out to the island for 6 nights plus flight for a VERY reasonable price. When not relaxing by the pool, we went white-water rafting, explored the island and enjoyed the great food and night life.

Here is a list of great things overheard in Bali, in no particular order.

1. Buy 500 DVDs, get 300 free.
2. Hey boss, you want transport?
3. Where are you from? (to which we answered differently every time...I mean come on, do I really look like I'm from Andorra?)
4. You want women? (7 times, not counting every cab ride)
5. You want marijuana? (5 times)
6. Dear Mr. Coleman and Captain Bintang....
7. This is the art process. First he sketches, then he paints. (at an art gallery "tour")
8. Hello. My friend.

It was a good week.