What exactly does it mean to be a "responsible adult"? As long as I can remember, people have always told me it looks something like this... Go to school. Get good grades. Get job. Pay dues in entry level job. Work way up ladder. Get married. Buy house. Have 2.5 children. Build picket fence. Paint fence white. Oh, and don't forget the dog!

I do understand the allure of that path, it is what I was raised on and I can see it's upsides. I have no problem with anyone who decides that that is what they want. No, my issue is with people who see that path as the only definition of a successful life. Worse than even that, are the people who belittle my choices because I chose to go a different way. 

The more I travel, read, and consider my options for the future - the more my own opinion sways away from the so-called "normal" life. Why is a sedentary life so much more acceptable? And why is travel not part of the "real world"?

I am not really one for socializing with strangers. In fact, it's kind of the bane of my existence. It's not that I don't like them per say, it's just that I don't really want to talk to them. As you might imagine, this is not an ideal situation for a traveler. 

Entering a room full of people I don't know, with the intention of starting a conversation is pretty much my worst nightmare. Maybe not my worst nightmare, but on the list of things I would rather not do ever - it's pretty much at the top.