Look, I get it. Travel is your thing​. It's what you talk about at parties. It's what you post about on social media. And your travel stories are way better than everyone else's.

​But here's the thing: if you "travel shame" people who don't travel the way you do, all it tells me is that you probably aren't that good of traveler.

Novels are great! They stir the soul. They share emotional journeys we can all relate to. It's great to read novels – which is probably why Stanford provides a list of three books -- usually novels -- for its incoming freshmen to read each summer.

My freshman year, the Three Books were M Butterfly, Annie John, and Old School, which was actually pretty spectacular -- especially since I'd just graduated from a New England boarding school.

But let's be honest. Did any of these books change my life? Prepare me for college? Change the way I think? Improve my cognitive skills?

No. But this one will:

There's a common myth in popular psychology that money doesn't buy happiness. 

​It totally does.

If you love scuba diving and you haven't been to Bonaire yet, you are missing out. 

​I was fortunate enough to be there over the 4th of July this year, and I got to try something I've never done before... Underwater fireworks!

Want to know how I know there is magic in the world?

Because I just returned from Bonaire, where there is magic everywhere. 

Three weeks ago, I had never heard of a place called Bonaire. But then, one day, I decided to Google "world's best shore diving," and Bonaire kept showing up -- usually in the number one spot -- on every list.

So I did an image search for Bonaire, fell in love, and booked a flight.

As my departure rapidly approached, I checked the CDC website to read their recommendations for water and food safety in Bonaire.

​Like many things, the government got it all wrong. 

Bon bini! 
​
I have spent the last two weeks diving, dancing and exploring the beautiful Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire. A few weeks before that, I spent several weeks traveling in Costa Rica – so clearly I love travel and all the quirky (and even inconvenient) things that happen abroad.
 
I love the way your brain changes when you travel. I love the way your vocabulary changes, and I love the way your diet changes. And one thing I also come to love and appreciate more each time I leave the US… is the US.

Whether for your health, your fitness, or your looks, many of us want to want to work out... but we don't.

I have the opposite problem (err, "problem"): I have no interest or motivation to work out... yet I do it all the time.

I recently returned from an amazing month in Costa Rica and Panama -- and I had a blast! Let me show you:

SOOOO much surfing, scuba diving, snorkeling, hiking, ATVing, motorcycling, and amazing people meeting! 

Not only did this trip inspire hundreds of photos and a video -- it also inspired three songs (the first I've ever written in my head -- normally I can only write music on my guitar) and several blog posts, including:

Just me, myself and I, hanging out at the Rio Celeste in Costa Rica. #MieScattering

Let me start by saying, you're right. I am pretty cool for traveling alone. It's something I love about myself -- that if I see something I want, I go for it. Even if "it" is a country on the other side of the world, and no one else wants to go there with me.