Regarding the future and career counseling, I used to advise my high school students that if they figured out what they'd do for free (or nearly free) and could get someone to pay them to do just that, it would seem less like "work." Am I fortunate to feel like I'm being paid to do what I'd do for free (or nearly free)? I sort of planned this, focusing less on financial gain than following my heart and so far it's working out well enough. Writer, artist, teacher, not always in that order, and I'll probably always struggle with making a living from making art (although I'm tickled to see that others are doing so!).
So finances aside, my bucket list would be worldwide travel whenever and wherever and hopefully however I wanted, and not on the soles of my shoes alone but rather by planes, trains, boats and maybe a four-legged animal. But since I don't play the lottery, thus will never make the lump-sum required to just travel, I have a more practical summer bucket list: touch the ocean (either coast will do), learn to juggle (balls, which I can't say without laughing), and renovate my "new" old travel trailer so even if I can't travel worldwide, I can get out and see as much of this great country we live in as I can. And I'd travel until I got homesick for Idaho sunsets, familiar sights and sounds, the art yet to be made, students yet to be taught and stories yet to be written.
