Is #HotelPrius Still A Thing?

Hello Friends!
Wow! It still blows me away how many of you still write to me and share with me your stories and your generous words thanking me for inspiring you to get out there and explore, to travel, and and to see the world. I have been so honored to be play such a small role in so many of your journeys – or at least be able to partly inspire them. It also makes me laugh a bit when I see or read of post from one of you, outfitting your Prius and making it resemble mine. I saw one guy even named his car #PriusInn and I think that’s Awesome.

I have to admit though, the lifestyle I once lived, feels so long ago for me. It’s only been a few years, but I certainly have kept myself busy since then. But to answer you questions: No, #Hoteprius has not been a thing for quite some time – at least not in hotel form;). I do still drive it from time to time and is still going strong at 236K miles!! Can you believe it? I certainly can’t. This thing is a machine. #Prius4lyfe.

If you want to know what #Hotelprius is doing now, I’m happy to share: Check out the website to see what I’ve been up to. This is me now. I think I’m what…. 31 years old now – Yikes!

In short, I’ve started a design and construction company called #HomeIsHowYouBuildIt. Sounds Familiar? Some of you already made the connection. It was inspired from the popular hashtag #HomeIsWhereYouParkIt. I started building vans and buses and little campers for a few years then finally transitioned to homes – mostly design and remodeling. I really like it. It’s been a really exciting time in my life but BUSY to say the least. Aren’t we all? Sadly, I haven’t too much cared about sharing my life with the world as of late. I’ve been keeping everything relatively private, even with the new business. Not for any particular reason other than I haven’t made time for it, and honestly I’ve really just always struggled with the role of social media in my life. I learned it had a pretty big influence on my day-to-day life and I felt my quality of life was better without it. I post from time to time but I must admit I do it mostly because I feel it out of obligation to stay “relevant” -or whatever that means. I’m happy to still talk about it, but the desire to be known by strangers became less and less appealing to me as time (and I suppose myself) grew on.

If you want to still connect with me or have questions about the #HotelPrius Lifestyle, I’m still here and check in from time to time. The best way to get a hold of me though is through my website.

It’s been real friends! Happy Travels!

Chris (#HotelPrius)
www.ChrisSawey.com

Sleeping In Caves

Every once in awhile I’ll leave the comforts of my home (#HotelPrius) and venture out, exploring new and sometimes familiar sleeping arrangements. With everything I need to survive in the overhead Thule suitcase above my head, what I call my attic, there is sometimes no reason not to branch out and sleep somewhere different. And no, I’m not taking about hotels.

As of today, I’m headed west, still undecided as to where I am going or what I plan to do. Not to be all cliche on you, but…

It really is about the journey and not my destination.

As mentioned before this trip is my therapy, my medicine, my…dare I say it… rehab. You see, over the last several months I’ve had utter and complete control over my life. In January of 2016, I started a company called #HomeIsHowYouBuildIt specializing in custom renovations and conversions for vans, campers, school buses, and other small homes on wheels. I’ve been busy. I’ve had no time for a vacation or even the time to remind myself I need one. The whole new adventure has been very similar to climbing a mountain, up and down. It’s been enjoyable and exhausting, both creatively rewarding and character challenging. It’s also been completely controlled. Down to every detail. From the slightly OCD organized garage of tools to every cut, cabinet, drawer and dimension, all under my deliberate and all-knowing eye and hand. I governed it all and to my own demise, my life began to govern me. I would wake up knowing exactly what I wanted to do and accomplish for the day, and I would do it. Exactly as planned. I knew what package would be arriving, whom would come over and when work would stop. I managed three employees whom I unknowingly conditioned to come to me with every decision that needed to be made. In short: I became a control freak. As a result, my relationships, my creativity, my character suffered. I created a false world in which I became king and Efficiency and productivity became the god I served.

I started to notice this becoming a problem only after my 105th argument with the people around me. Not just with the team but also with the clients. I was called out by friends but refused to compromise. The control I had in my life led to a unwavering sense of entitlement and need to constantly have my way. With a healthy desire to change bad habits and become the opposite of the person I was becoming, I knew something had to change. The voice of an old wise house-parent growing up in children’s homes, echoed in my head.

“Keep doing what you are doing, you will keep getting what you are getting.”

And so here we are…

There is something very primordial about sleeping in a cave. I’ve slept here before, so this is nothing new. The first time was with a long time girlfriend, the most memorable was with my adopted little brother and sick sister who contracted “Montezuma Revenge” by accidentally swallowing the water from the Rio earlier in the day. Despite the now composted piles of little sisters diarrhea memories scattered across the desert,  it has still become one of my favorite places in all of Texas.

I’m sure you can see why.

 

 

 

I”M BACK! LET’S CATCH UP

Hello my friends!
It’s been awhile. I want to first welcome all the new followers to the blog and say thank you to everyone who has commented, liked, or posted over the last year since I’ve been away. Your words have been a pleasure to read and have brought me tons of encouragement to me as I’ve made yet another big transition in my life.

To catch you up quickly:
Since #HotelPrius ended back in June of last year. Quite a lot has happened. Of course so much more has happened but I’ll share with you highlight real:

• I bought a camper in Tennessee. It was old and crappy.
• I renovated it and nicknamed it #MotelCamper #GoogleIt
• I lived out of it for 6 months and moved back to Austin Read about it.
• I listed it on Airbnb and it got some attention. House Beautiful Magazine Article
• I bought another camper, renovated that and put that on Airbnb.  Check it out.
• I then helped a friend build a real life #TinyHome and learned a ton!
• From there I started a company called #HomeIsHowYouBuildIt converting vans, campers and buses for those who wanted to live on the road.
• My first client was @JaxAustin and his Short Bus Dan. Check out his Daily YouTube
• Since January I’ve been nonstop converting vans and buses and campers alike. Check out my Instagram and see all the progress. Click here. You may have to do some scrolling. 🙂

It’s been nuts to say the least. After spending 15 months full-time in a prius at an average speed of 65 miles an hour, to full-time starting a business at an average speed of 120 miles an hour, I’m exhausted, but proud. I’m more stressed than I have ever been, but I could say I’m also the most fulfilled. Living in #HotelPrius was and has been one of the greatest experiences of my life simply because it allowed me to get where I am. It was no doubt the catalyst for what I do today. But the journey isn’t over yet.

As of yesterday, I’m back on the road for a bit and planned to do some writing and a little vacationing. #HotelPrius is outfitted up and I’m currently in my favorite place on earth – Big Bend National Park. My plan while I am here is really to take a break from it all. I’ll break this down a little more when I have some time to process and put into a readable linear format for you, but for now, I just wanted to catch you up.

For a little more details of whats up and for more of a live view of what’s going on, check The Gram to stay updated.

Adventure What does it mean to you?

In light of recent emails I’ve received, I’ve felt it appropriate to share this blog post with you all in hopes to continue to inspire you. Enjoy!

Recently I was in the grocery store and overheard a woman directing her 10-or-so year old son to the breakfast isle to pick his favorite cereal. “An adventure!” he declared with a fist aimed toward the sky as he took of around the next corner. “Really?” I wanted to say. “You should get out more kid.” But then I thought, “Who am I to define what an adventure means to this kid.” I ditched my groceries and pulled into a coffee shop and wrote the following:

“What is that itch inside of us that longs for adventure? And what is it about adventure that makes us feel so…alive? Is it the excitement? The challenge? The unknown? I guess the real question we need to ask ourselves is, what does adventure mean to me?”
My goal in this post is to not define adventure for you, but to cause you to think about what adventure means in your own life. These are just thought on paper. Questions I’ve been asking myself lately. Questions like: What characteristics need to be present for a truly defined adventure? Does adventure mean taking a trip? Does it have to be fun and exciting? Does it have to be risky, dangerous, lawful? Is an adventure exclusive to traveling somewhere, and if so, does it have to be to a place that is new or unfamiliar? Must a true adventure challenge you or can it be easy? It’s true, a truly great adventure seems to have most of these great qualities, but do these qualities define what it means to have an adventure?

I have a few thoughts.

What Adventure is NOT:

Adventure has nothing to do with fun or excitement:
Sure, some adventures can be a ton of fun and super exciting, but I would argue that a true adventure is not depended on whether or not there is a smile on your face or if there is a release of endorphins to your brain. Last year, I made the choice to live out of my car instead of dealing with the financial obligations of paying rent. I remember the moment when I finished packing my car and sat in the drivers seat and closed the door for the first time, to begin this little “Adventure” of mine. As I sat there, in the seat of my Toyota Prius, still, I remember feeling a variety of emotions and sensations. Of course there was a large part of me that got excited because I knew I was going to at least have a little fun. But even if I didn’t, that is not what my trip was about. For me, it was something much more. Fun and excitement were just possible bi-products of a much greater goal.

An adventure does NOT have to be a new experience:
Contrary to popular belief, an adventure does not have to be something new. Yes, I will agree newness is great. Newness is exciting. But newness is not synonymous with excitement number one, and number two, and perhaps most importantly, newness wears off. Like any new car or new toy, or game or thing or place, the excitement associated with the “new” dissipates over time and most often the thing that once occupied the majority of our time, thoughts, energy and temporary affection is forgotten and replaced in time with something else. This, sadly, is the culture we live in. We are always wanting more and more. We want the next biggest and best thing. We become bored and the desire for more stimulus is only deepened with each passing “new” thing we aquire or place we visit. Case in point, newness does not define an adventure. You do! Regardless if you are experiencing something for the first time or for the thirteenth, it is your choice what and how you do and choose to spend your time. Not every experience is the same every single time. Tell that to your second kid! Much has to do with who you choose to adventure with.

Adventure is not about the Travel:
We like to think adventure is synonymous with travel also. Why? Because social media platforms like Instagram do a really good job of convincing us that traveling across the world, climbing a big mountain, experiencing some remote place is where the real adventure lies. That may be true, but one thing is certain, travel itself is not a requirement for adventure. I was having a conversation this week with some friends of mine who recently got married and are strongly considering trying for a baby. For anyone familiar with having a baby, they know that this experience and process is nothing less of an big and risky undertaking. An adventure of a lifetime one could say. But travel? Traveling back and forth to the hospital maybe.

What Adventure IS!
Adventure may not be defined by travel, but it is defined by the Journey! 
First and foremost I think an adventure needs to be a journey. But not necessarily a physically one. You don’t in fact need to travel anywhere to be on a journey. Journeys can be emotional, spiritual, intellectual, personal. If I have learned anything in my 27 years on this earth it is this: Where I go, ultimately means nothing in my story. It’s the people I meet along the way. And I don’t think I need to state the obvious, but I will. You don’t have to cross state lines to meet new people. The truth is, people travel for lots of reasons. We travel to expose ourselves to the experiences of new places, new perspectives, and new world views. Some do it just to escape. But for those of you who feel you have to get out to experience this, or I guess more importantly, for those of you who feel they are missing something because they are not out gallivanting the globe, don’t worry! The meaningful life and adventure your heart seems to longs for, can be attained right where you are. And It doesn’t have to be right NOW. Listen, by all means I want you to travel, I want you to experience new places and people. I want you to learn about life outside your town or city or country. But what I don’t want is you to feel that if you don’t travel, or don’t have the means to travel right now, you are missing something that is required to feed and sooth your soul. As I mentioned in a previous post. Travel will not help you find yourself, all it will do is help you realize who you were back home.
A real adventure involves at least a small level of risk.
This, I think is the kicker. Good stories and a good adventures involve risk. A leap of faith. Or at least a step into the unknown and unfamiliar. The unknown is inherent IN the risk. It’s why it’s considered a risk, because you don’t know the outcome. This can be scary because all of us to some extent fear failing. Failing and falling are apart of life and something we need to experience at some point in order to move forward. Its how we learn, its how we grow, it’s how we toughen-up when life throws us a curvball. And when that same curveball hits us in the kneecaps and sends us to the ground. I like the way Thomas Edison says it. “I didn’t fail, I just came up with 1,000 ways to do it wrong.” I like that. But I also know that sometimes we fall and it hurts. I’ve never known a kid learning to ride a bike to not fall at least once. You are going to fall! It’s bound to happen. But that can’t stop you from setting your eyes on whatever it is you want to do in life, and be willing to suck it up, brush off your bruised knees, and try again! Don’t be afraid of risk. Big risks equal big rewards. Adventure thrives on risk, like oxygen to a fire. Go for it!

A true Adventure needs Challenge.
I want you to think about every good story you have ever read or watched. What does it have in common with all other great stories? I’ll tell you. It has a character who wants something and has to overcome a challenge to get what he wants! Think about it, every good movie or book has this very important element. If life is a story and you are a character, the question you must ask yourself is, “What do you want?” And better question: “What are you willing to do to get it?” I think every good adventure needs to challenge you in some way. Very much like risk, It’s how we grow, its how you learn, and it’s all apart of your journey. Challenges in our lives need to be embraced not pushed away. But you know what I love about challenges? They can be fun! That is with the right state of mind. What if you started thinking about the challenges in your life not as stumbling blocks, but stepping stones to where you want to be! Let that sink in. Read it again.

It’s all about how you look at it. When I made the choice to live out of my car, it was paramount I viewed my setbacks with that stepping stone perspective, or else I’m not sure I would have ever made it. Truth: Nothing beats the feeling of accomplishment after completing something big, especially after setbacks. The excitement, the rush, remembering the struggle, the strategy, the new found confidence! Wait, was I just describing an adventure? See what I mean?

So now I ask you this: What’s your current adventure? What story are you telling? What challenges are you currently going through? Whatever it is, I encourage you to Find it. Embrace it. And call it what it is – an Adventure. And scream it outloud with your first held high like the boy in the grocery store, unashamed! Whether that is moving to a new place, starting a new job, getting married, having a kid, roadtripping across the country, buying a home, starting college, building a garden, volunteering with a new organization, trying a new church, or whatever it may be. I want you to think of your life as a whole, as one big adventure, not a bunch of individual ones comprising of a life. And remember, not every moment in that adventure needs to be a mountaintop experience. What you do along the way, no matter what it is or how you go about it, rest assured it is part of your individual unique story and journey that makes you, you! Live the life you dream and don’t live with regrets and don’t be afraid to fail!

Go for it. I believe in you!

Happy Adventure yall!

-Chris Sawey
#HotelPrius

Lesson 14: Starting New Friendships is NOT as Fun as Starting New Restaurants

If you have ever wondered how #hotelprius funds its adventures, restaurant startups is your answer. As an experience server, educator, and all around efficiency efficinato , I had this great idea once.

My idea? I would combine all the things I was good at and pursue a field that could benefit from my skillsets and experiences. I wasn’t looking for a career, just something to give me an excuse to travel. After some thought, an idea come to the forefront. But in order to make it seem “legit” to the outside world, I needed a fancy title. So I made it up.

I now call myself a “Quality and Efficiency Specialist.” (I may be giving my secrets away here but I don’t care.)

Now, I make a living by jumping on board promising restaurant start-ups in new-to-me-cities and teach what I know about efficiency and the customer service experience. It is my excuse to travel, and it’s a great excuse to try new delicious food from chefs all over the world. The secret to my success? With proper timing and marketing, most restaurants are successful in the first 90 days. Why? Simply because people love new food and new experiences and there will be always be people wanting to try a local food source in their city. Essentially, I make my money from tips delivering stellar service and promising to bring in positive reviews. With each new restaurant and new city I drive into, comes with it a new set of people.

What I’ve leaned, investing in restaurants is easy. Investing in friends is much harder. With new restaurants, the order of action is, I come in, present my knowledge, implement some efficiency strategies and teach it to the team when needed. The tools for my work exists in document form on my computer and my initial investment is minimal, but highly educational and productive. When it’s over, I walk away with more experience, full pockets, and a sweet lingering taste in my mouth.

My new made friends on the other hand, not as easy. Simply because investing in people is much different than investing in restaurants. There are no easy tools and efficiency tactics to be a good friend. Only time and a willingness to be venerable and show your true self is how to be successful in this market. True friendships, well they take time that a 90 day period most always doesn’t allow. When I leave a restaurant my job is done and I don’t need to come back. With new friends however, that is never my intention. I don’t want to be a friend for 90 days and leave, but inevitably that is what ends up happening. Starting a new restaurant is always fun. Starting new friends over and over, not so much. Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer to how to maintain long lasting frienships while only being in a city for only a few months. I wish I did. If this lifestyle has taught me anything though, it is that I CAN’T do this forever, (at least not in #hotelprius), but it is a great way to travel and make money and gain experience at the same time.

Lesson 13: Life is a Story and We Write the Chapters.

It is perhaps this idea that “life is a story” that has catalyzed so many of my latest risks and adventures. Somewhere in my early twenties, through a series of books, personal life events, and talking with inspiring people- people like Don Miller and Bob Goff, I began to subscribe to this idea that life is only what you make of it and that in order to live a life of measurable value, it needed to contain great stories. Stories full of love and adventure and meeting great people. Stories of taking big risks and having great faith. Stories of failure and successes, stories full of whimsy and grace.

I guess, not every story needs to have these things, but the goods ones seem to and I want to live a good one.

I think all of us want to live great lives, and for me, seeing life as a story has really encouraged me to live life to it’s fullest. I love stories and I love great characters. I want to be able a great character and want to look at my life as a whole one day, and say, “Yeah that was awesome!” I want to run after the things I think are important while I still can. Above all, I want to be me to the best of my ability.

Here is what I have learned though in the last year in living out of my car. If you sit around waiting for life to happen to you, you are going to miss it. It will pass in front of you and before you know it, and you will miss out on the one chance you have in this life to make or be apart of something great. Life is a story that we have to write ourselves.

Now, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying that #hotelprius was my gift to the world, no not by any means, but it did provide me the launching board to discover and explore new things, new people, new cultures, and helped me hone in on where my gifts and talents lie. It helped me strategize and write my story without the distraction of bills and debt hanging over my head.

My journey is not even close to being done. My character is still being introduced, and I’m still finding my niche. However, I am hopeful, I will find it in the next couple of chapters. Eventually, I’ll settle down, and you know, get a house and a wife and kids in all that. But right now, I’m enjoying this chapter as best I can because I will never be able to live it again.

Lesson 12: Learning to be content in every circumstance is by far the hardest task in the world.

What is contentment exactly? Contentment is being satisfied with what we have and where we are in life, no matter the circumstances, no matter what.

Yeah…I’m not there yet. Not even close!

I think all of us desire to be happy in this life but sometimes, at least for me, I find myself believing that if I had more, I would be happier! If that was true, then people with the most would be the happiest. Fortunately, we don’t have to look far to see that is just not reality. So knowing this to be true, I’ve made it a personal goal of mine to pursue contentment rather than happiness. Happiness is fleeting. It is here for a moment then gone the next. It is different from contentment because while happiness usually requires something external to fuel itself, contentment is derived from within. Being content takes constant work and the constant reminder to yourself of the things you do have, and being appreciative for them. For me, I have to go out of my way to do this. Through my everyday, there is apart of me that wants and desires more, either more stuff, a better job, or just more out of life in general. And that’s not a bad thing. I think it’s good to be thinking of ways to improve the quality of life. But it is the desire of wanting more that makes me unsatisfied with what I do have. I have to force myself to convince myself I don’t need more and having more, is not what I need. Finding contentment is by far the hardest thing I have ever had to do because it requires tricking the mind into believing something that is completely contrary to everything we have learned and thought we knew. We live in a world where wanting more is hardwired into American culture. Wanting more is literally what fuels our American consumerist economy.

But if we are honest with ourselves, haven’t we missed it?

Are we willing to admit that maybe we have gotten a little out of control with the things we want and feel like we need? Why do keep wanting more when we already have so much? And if the things we do have, aren’t bringing the satisfaction we had hoped for and we are still not happy, then why would having something else be any different? I’m afraid the problems are not our products, but us! Some of us, myself included are seeking the wrong things and we don’t even know it. Contentment is difficult because it’s not a product to acquire; it’s a state of mind. And that may be new to many of us because again, its contrary to everything we though we knew. The sooner we realize that we are being lied to about what will make us truly happy the closer we will be to finding contentment with who we are and where we are in life. I am by far still working towards being content. I struggle on a daily basis and expect to struggle for the rest of my life.

The only real advise I know how to give in this area that has worked for me, is to be continually thankful for what I do have and remind myself that having more is not the answer.

Seek to be content. Not happy.

Lesson 11: I don’t need nearly as much as I try to convince myself I do

Everything I own and need fits in my car. So, as you can imagine I don’t own very much.

Honestly, the bulk of what is in #hotelprius right now is sleeping bags and/or gear to better prepare me for the different weather conditions I encounter in the different places I visit. Stuff like extra jackets, my laptop and a few cooking needs, a day pack with toiletries, a flashlight, a stove, an air pad, and clothes. Clothes are perhaps the things that take up the most space. It takes a lot of different types of clothes to stay prepared for all weather conditions.

Sidenote:
I will say, I don’t have very many clothes now, at least relative to most people with… you know…real closets. These days, I only wear one of the two pairs of jeans, a flannel with a plain tee underneath, and usually the same grey Patagonia sweater or jacket almost everyday. I do have some nicer clothes on reserve but only for special occasions like job interviews or dinner parties. What I own currently is truly all I can fit in my car and in the small “basement” that rests under my head, and the little extras up top in the “attic.” End sidenote.

The truth is, every single day I am bombarded constantly with advertisements and billboards, and other people that do such a great job convincing me I need something that they have. Some times I can avoid the bait dangling in front of me, but other times I fall for it hook line and sinker. But, I will say this: living out of my car has caused me to really evaluate what is truly a need and what is merely a want.

The thing is, I used to not think or be this way. I was excess’ biggest advocate. Just a few years ago, I wasn’t a minimalist, in fact I was on the complete other side of the spectrum. What happened? Perhaps this great purge of mine was in response to the fact that I finally saw my stuff for what it truly was; just stuff, and I arrived at the place where I had enough and was tired of looking for material posetions to make me happy.

It was before college and certainly before #hotelprius was ever even thought of. I was in my early twenties and I took a few years off from school and began building my empire. Just kidding. But in a short few years, I accumulated more than I’m proud to admit. I had it all. From several big screen TV’s to the latest gadgets and coffee makers. All different kinds of things to make life easier and more comfortable, but mostly crap I didn’t need. Sadly, I used material possessions to try to add value to my life that ultimately never gave me what I was looking for. In retrospect I realize now, the things I owned made up a large part of who I thought I was and who I was trying to be. I let stuff be apart of my identity. Without it, I’m not sure there would be have been a whole lot left. The way that I saw it, my stuff and what I owned was a direct representation of my success at such a young age. It was only when I had to sell everything and get rid of my stuff, that it was revealed to me just how much of my identify was placed in what I owned.

Fast forward to a year ago. When I chose this adventure last December, I forced myself to get rid of everything again, of the what I thought to be accumulated “excess” in my life. It was a huge purge and I rid myself of almost everything. Everything had to go through a very rigorous filtration process… and then another, and then another, just to make it all fit. Am I glad I did it? Yes and no. But mostly, yes!

Yes, because it made me realize how much of the crap I could actually live without. And no, because I’ve learned that little things do add up and nothing is worse than a wasted investment and having to but something for the third time.

But even in the last year of having minimal and finding contentment by living as efficiently as possible, and even with this newly learned life lesson, I’m amazed at the crap I still try to convince myself that I need. I need this new Iphone or I need these new jeans. I need these _______(fill in the blank). Now I’m not saying these things are bad in and of themselves. I don’t believe they are, at least not anymore. In fact, I think having nice things is great and certainly some things make life easier or more convenient and there is nothing wrong with that. But need? I think the real battle I fight is finding balance between the minimalist lifestyle I live now and the excessive one I lived before. The real battle is fighting the lie that having more things will make me happier. I unfortunately still make this mistake more often than I care to admit. On occasion, when I am looking for something to do to kill time, I’ll find myself window shopping. This is partly due to boredom and partly due to how American consumerism has conditioned me to believe that I will be happier, more confident, more productive, more comfortable etc if I have more. The worst part of it all is thinking that this logic is somehow right or okay. It’s not, and I think most of us know this and desperately want to get away from the consumerist, “I-need-everything-lifestyle” if we could. We know we have become excessive but most of us don’t care. We keep buying things and spending our money on more stuff in hopes that the next thing will give us what we are looking for. Then something newer or prettier comes out, and suddenly we need that too.

I don’t have any solutions to avoid the american epidemic plaguing our country. I don’t know if it will ever end. We are too far gone. The only advise I know how to give is what I have been trying to focus on in the last year of my life. And even still, I’m not claiming it as foolproof. For me, I have to remind myself and be thankful every day that what I have now, is truly all that I need. And it is. The truth is, we really don’t need much to live. And we don’t need much to be happy, but coming to the place of contentment with what I have, I find is the biggest challenge of all.

Lesson 10: It’s not what you do, it’s who you do it with that matters

I’ve done some crazy stuff in my day and #hotelprius only scratches the surface.

But I will say, #hotelprius is by far the longest amount of time I’ve spend doing something this intense for this long.

If you have spent any time with me at any point in my life, you don’t have to think too hard about a time I convinced you to do something outlandish with me just for the sake of having a little fun and living to tell a great story about the experience. Maybe it was the time I called you to climb a construction crane at midnight. Or the time I asked you to help me build a street sailboat out of an old shopping cart in preparation for the hurricane. Or the time the streets of Boston were shutdown because of the blizzard and we skied down the empty streets. Or what about the time we spent the whole day constructing that igloo so I could add “Eskimo” to my resume? Remember when we met up one night with my moped and your skateboard to sketch the streets of Boston? How about the time we climbed that mountain with sleds on our backs so we could say we sledded Massachusett’s biggest hill. Or the time we swam across that freezing lake in the middle of November on an inflatable air mattress to film that film project last minute? What about that time we made a bon-fire and slept on that beach in the freezing wind so we could watch the sunrise?

(Okay, we get it, you and your friends are crazy Chris!)

The truth is, I like to do crazy things, because I like the crazy payoffs. No way would these stories be as memorable had I not had someone to share in these experiences with me. Stories are always better when told together. I am thankful for the people I have met on my journey through this crazy life and I would not at all be the same without the influences of these people and letting me be me and keeping me safe.

In short, Life is better when shared.

Lesson 9: Dreams don’t come true!…..Goals do!

Our whole lives we have been told that “dreams really do come true if we just dare to dream them.”

Bunch of Fewee if you ask me!

The people that tell you this are most often trying to inspire you and/or are just full of it. That, or they can’t think of anything better to say and just repeating some ridiculous rhetoric they heard from Buzz Feed or the Disney channel. It’s just not true! A dream will never be anything more than a dream, until you turn that dream or idea into action! You do that through goals. But goals don’t happen overnight and it takes work. It’s about setting for yourself not just goals but attainable step-by-step goals. Undoubtedly some dreams are bigger than others and will require a bit more work and a few more steps. But with a little persistence, a little help, and that hard work thing you’ve heard so much about, I’m confident the dreams we dream are possible.

Easy for me to say, right? Yeah maybe. But I’ve been there and #hotelprius was not started because I dreamed of living out of my car. That’s lame! No, I dreamed of more for my life and #hotelprius became the means in which to attain what I wanted. Sacrifices had to be made, I had to stay focused and it was hard most of the time. I just made it work. And you will too. That is if you want it bad enough.

I believe that if you want something bad enough, and your heart is in the right place, and ask the universe (I call it God) for it, and create attainable goals, there is little that will stop you from achieve whatever you set your heart on.