The Art of Fully Living

Tal Gur's memoir, "The Art of Fully Living," is one man's inspiring journey across continents to discover happiness and the keys to living a full, meaningful life. It's like "Eat, Pray, Love," except that it spans a decade, has way more than three goals was written by a man. Gur, doesn't break down every single one of his hundred goals but he does break up the decade into ten distinct chapters of his journey. From wiping out debt, to total cultural immersion, to love, and giving back; Gur really focuses on not only being a better person, but looking inward and being the happiest he can be. IUt's a lot of trial and error but when he sets his mind to doing it, whether it's training for the Ironman Competition, learning to socialize with peers (especially women!), becoming fluent in a language, or eliminating all debt; Gur tackles each goal with a tenacity that is inspiring. Throughout the book he also offers useful advice and tidbits to help readers come up with their own goals and solutions, and keep them motivated on moving forward and living life to the fullest. A quick read, this memoir will inspire readers to look inside themselves and discover ways in which to change their lives for the better, one goal at a time. 

“In America you can always find a party. In Russia the party always finds you.”

In less than two weeks I will be in St. Petersburg! Ahh! Excitement, butterflies, panic, vodka, anticipation, nervousness! I should follow up by saying that I HOPE to be in Russia in two weeks. Everything is banking on the Russian visa that I have yet to obtain. I'm hoping to get it in the next week, if I don't get it I am shit outta luck because those airfare tickets are non-refundable. Woof. Keep those fingers crossed people! I have a lot of money riding on this!

So far I haven't met anyone that I'm traveling with. I've been in correspondence with my soon to be roommate Lisa (if you're reading this you're awesome and we're going to have a blast!) and I can't wait to meet her in person. We're going to be a pretty diverse group of library science students. We've got people from Texas, Indiana, Maryland, and New York, should be a good group! Orientation starts next Friday in Maryland and then we all fly over to "the motherland." We'll be there about two weeks and well get to do loads of awesome stuff. We're going to visit the Hermitage, the Marinsky Theater (to see a ballet!!!), multiple libraries and universities, book shops, cultural sites, and the countryside. I can hardly contain my excitement!

Here are my goals for this trip:
1. Get my damn visa in time so I can actually go
2. Take a picture with at least one tall, sexy, Dolph Lundgren look a like (best case scenario, take him home with me!)
3. Drink vodka with a Russian and live to tell the tale
4. Buy a Harry Potter book written in Russian
5. Go to an underground nightclub
6. Buy at least three nesting dolls to add to my collection
7. Learn a few Russian curse words
8. Pass the class I'm taking so I get my 3 credits

For once I'll be using this blog to do more than write book reviews. Stay posted to hear all about my exploits!!