Growing up in a poor country makes you think that the reason you don't get to do things is because you can't afford it.

Growing up in a town where there are no opportunities makes you think that the geography is what's standing in your way

You don't think about it but there's an expectation that once you pass those hurdles, you will get to do so much. That is entirely true. There's endless opportunities and you'll never run out of things to do. But there’s another kind of things to do.

I discovered that there are other reasons why you don't get to do things. One of these is preparation. There's plenty of exciting adventures out there that are open and affordable. But you can't go. Not because of money, not because of some visa. It’s only because you're not prepared. Just like you need to earn enough money to buy the plane ticket, you earn the fitness to experience these adventures. You pay for them in preparation as much as you do in cash.

Growing up in a normal setting makes you think that the only cost of things is money. But effort is also just as costly. Time is another thing. Choice (opportunity cost) is perhaps the most pernicious of all.

You don’t get to do Patagonman because It’s too expensive. That’s true. But in a reality where that stops being the limiting factor, I’m now aquatinting myself with the other costs. It takes a while to wrap your head around it. It’s like reaching into your pocket to pay with some bills. Here’s a “One year of my life bill”. Has my picture on it of course. Here’s a “I’m not traveling anywhere” bill. Here’s a “I will wake up everyday at 5 for this shit” bill.

Some of these bills were always in my pocket. Some of them I earned over the years. But regardless, the first bills, the money bills, are so material, so tangible, so loudly absent that I never stopped the other ones.

A year of one’s life is a very long time.

What could I buy with a “My entire lifetime starting now” bill?