What would you have done differently?

[chickwhorips]

as of right now, let certain comments slide off my back. not to let "stupid" people affect me. not to take life to seriously. i've learned that now, but earlier i didn't. i'm glad i learned that lesson.

otherwise, i'm still young and have so many things to do. i just hope i have tim to do all of it!

[Trek420]

What I refer to as the "condo that got away". I shoulda told my agent "I want that, increase the loan". It was only 25K more than what I got (only???) near perfect move in condition, dog park 2 blocks away but more important a real nice, short, tree-lined, wide bike laned, quiet residential FLAT ride to BART and downtown.

shoulda woulda coulda....I've been happy here.

[stella]

hmmm...
I would have gone to law school earlier, I just didn't have the confidence when I was younger.

negotiated better salaries for myself so that I could have more money saved for my daughter's schooling and me and my so's retirement....but we still have time!

I am happy with my life, I am just taking the lessons I have learned from the "what I would have done differently" and am incorporating them into my life. I came out at a young age during a "not so friendly" era in a very homophobic town with NO regrets. 99% of the time listened to my gut in relationships (only lived with 2), only 1 time I dated someone that my gut said "RUN." I learned a lot from that, though....like--trust your gut!

oh, yeah....Trek420, like you I had the condo that go away: it was 1987, the condo was dirt cheap in Provincetown, MA. I wouldn't take the risk...

[lizbids]

I heard that, about not living with people when your gut warns you...but you know, all these wonderful things in my life wouldn't have happened if I didn't live with this insane person and straighten some things out in my own life as I moved away. Sorry...just came back from a wedding and am DELIR IOUS!!

[CyclaSutra]

It's so hard to think in terms of doing something differently, because all my choices have made me who I am today.

If I had NOT let a boy cause me to drop out of school, I never would have moved back in with my mom and gotten a little bit closer to her. I wouldn't have had three years of journalism experience under my belt by the time I moved West. I might never have moved West, which is where it feels like I was meant to live.

OK, here's a good one: I would have NOT ridden crazy down an eroded singletrack and tried to hop the side at 20 mph, which resulted in a full knee construction and a 30-pound weight gain that I've spent the past 9 years trying to shake. Know your limits, ride within them.

But being a bit manic, living with abandon, being a little crazy... that's all part of me, and it's served me well.

Maybe a better question for me would be: "How would you raise your daughter to help her avoid some of your less glamorous choices?" But since I haven't yet decided whether to have one, that's a bit moot. Here's the answer anyway: Make her play sports, give her plenty of attention so she doesn't need it from boys, raise her self-esteem and keep it high so she believes she can do ANYTHING she wants to do!

[lph]

Now THAT is a good quote, CycleSutra (G. B. Shaw). I'll tell myself that next time I'm feeling sorry for myself.

[limewave]

I wish I hadn't have spent so much time stressing about things I had no control over.

However, I'm thankful for the road I've traveled that has led me to today. The last five years I feel like I've been living my happily ever after