Roll the Dice

"You roll the dice, and you deal with it." - Hunter S. Thompson

The above quote can be seen in many different places, forms and contexts of meaning. The writer Hunter Thompson had written something similar in his book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. He wrote the words "buy the ticket, take the ride.” I am unsure if Mr. Thompson would say I have taken his words out of context, but I take them to simply mean that life is our journey.

You make a decision and you live with it.

Some will sit quietly with the shades drawn and allow life around them to roll the dice for them. Others may choose to live life on the edge like the famed Dos Equis (Most Interesting Man In The World) commercial. Many of us live somewhere between the two extremes.

The key thing to remember is that we are the ones to live our own life.

We roll our dice, we buy our ticket and those choices we make constitute the journey we take. We can choose to roll those dice at any point. We can change the direction we are going. We can change the pattern in our way of living. We can change our attitude.

We can change.

So buy the ticket, take the ride, roll the dice and see what comes up. But more importantly, live life.

Stay inspired my friends.

Enjoy the Ride

"Buy the ticket, take the ride..." - Hunter S. Thompson

Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our safety net of daily patterns, we forget to live and experience life. I am just as prone to this as anybody. When change occurs, or the pattern is disrupted, I have to remind myself that the "edge" can awaken our senses if we just allow ourselves to come close it.

This past week was my wife and my annual "Grandma & Grandpalooza" event for the grandkids. We take all of our grandkids into our home for the week. We let their parents enjoy some time off as well. We plan out activities and other exciting things for them to do. In many ways we are trying to give them great memories before they are too old to be bothered with Grandma and Grandpa.

My wife always gets excited leading up to the week. She gets to have all of her sweet babies around her and all that stuff Grandmothers do. Myself, I get a touch of nerves as my slight affliction with obsessive compulsive disorder can set off alarms in my psyche. There will be a disarray of toys, clothes and divided attention required. I prepare and steady myself as the time approaches.

The day arrives and events of the week unfold in a perfect non-pattern enjoyment.

We effectively buy the ticket and take the ride during the week. No matter what happens, we enjoy and allow life the happen in a somewhat unscripted fashion. And today is the last day of a fun-filled ride. No scrapes, no bruises or broken bones; well maybe a few scrapes. But the grandkids, grandparents and even our pet dog have enjoyed the week.

You might be saying, "Wow, that's really living out on the edge Joe!"

Experiencing the edge does not have to mean going through a dazed week in Las Vegas or even throwing caution to the wind. It means changing up the normal and making sure you experience life in different ways.

The "edge" I speak of is and will be different for everyone.

It is at the "edge" where you might find a great idea that will take you in a new direction.
It is at the "edge" where you might find a new place to achieve greatness in life.

Buy the ticket, take the ride and enjoy life. Stay inspired my friends.

What Happens in Vegas

"Buy the ticket, take the ride." -Hunter S. Thompson

This is the final day @EMCWorld here in fabulous Las Vegas. This city certainly knows how to put on a show, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and three-hundred sixty-five days a year. Keeping in the spirit of Las Vegas, the quote from Hunter Thompson seems appropriate.

So much can happen here. Many things can be gained, much can be lost and through it all its the ride you take. A popular phrase used by the Las Vegas Tourism folks is "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." It is a catchy phrase, but what I say is to take home the positive things from your stay.

Yes, you probably spent a bit too much money, maybe drank a little too much and maybe stayed up a bit too late, and it was fun, correct?

But you also learned a little bit while @EMCWorld? And didn't you gain a few more friends? And didn't you light a spark of vision inside yourself? Absolutely you did, absolutely you will!

What you have just done is "bought the ticket" and now you will "take the ride" of your life. Don't leave that vision in Vegas. Take it home with you and make it a BIG part of your life. Begin building momentum from this experience and create a great life.

Viva Las Vegas....
Viva your best life...