The Conversationalist

    The way books are birthed is changing. What used to be a clearly defined publication process has morphed into a buffet of dissemination options.

  Human rights are a complex subject.

Most bloggers are curious about/obsessed with their analytics. And I am no exception to this navel-gazing phenomenon. Besides a comment section, blog statistics are the primary determinant of whether a site has social value.

Each month I crawl into bed with you. Wait, that doesn’t sound right. Here’s how it works: You pose questions via facebook, twitter, email or in the comments of this blog. I answer them in place that I’ve been sleeping. It’s interesting. It’s intimate. It’s informative. It’s all Baylis.

Each month it’s been my pleasure to snuggle up with you and respond to your questions about the current country I am visiting, my travel experiences and life in general. I make it my personal mission to ensure that everyone gets a response.

Dear Family and Friends, Oh what a world! My week in this world has brought a variety of adventures, some fun and some… errr… rather nasty.

I’ve decided to spend the month of November in Laos (pronounced without the ‘S’). As I began to tell people of my travel plans, often they would have a blank look on their faces when I told them the name of this Southeast Asian country.

Travel is many a splendid things. It is an insistent, but patient teacher. It is flirtatious, slightly intoxicated babe. It is an old man with no teeth laughing at the wind. Travel’s multifacetedness keeps us guessing and inspired.

Twenty first century reflections on the dilemma between urban and rural living. Can we have it all?

Traveling is many things to many people. For some it has to do with exploration and adventure, for others it might be about tasting or relaxing or escapism or learning.

I’m currently reading Nelson Mandela’s memoir. It’s a horrific/inspiring tale of human rights atrocities/triumphs. As I’ve thumbed my way through the pages, I have returned to a specific question many times – For what would I be willing to go to prison for thirty years?

As you know, my dear reader, a big part of my  adventure this year is volunteering with various organizations around the globe. This gives me the opportunity to engage with communities, as well as to do a task that I might not have ever had the opportunity of doing.