Am I crazy?

I have been all about checking off my Bucket List lately. I think it's my way of avoiding the extra stressful last two weeks of the semester. I hate that the last two weeks are the hardest because this is when I'm most burnt out. I would rather work super hard at the start of the semester when everything is fresh and not quite drug out yet. Blah. Bah humbug! Waahhh!

Ok, I'm glad I got that out.

One of the things on my Bucket List is to make money from taking pictures.
Another is to leave the country.

My brother has been teachign English in Japan now for two years and is about to return home in August. I can't believe that he has been gone for two years, or that these years have past by so stinking fast! I have had intentions of visiting him since the day he left, but I had a baby, got a new job, and have been kind of busy with day to day life for the past two years. Two years, it's still a crazy thought that it has been that long no matter how many times I think about it!

There are lots of peices to my point, so bear? bare? with me?

I have been reading the book Three Cups of Tea for my leadership class and have been so inspired by Greg Mortenson (until I saw 60 Minutes the other night) or atleast the story of the book and the message behind it that I want to do what I want to do in life. I want to take charge and accomplish things regardless of the obsticles. I have the power to do that, we all do.

So my solution? To take pictures (something that I have loved doing since I was a child) make money, even if it is a small amount, and use the money to visit my brother in Japan. I almost don't even want to hit the publish button though, because at first it seems like such a crazy idea. Will people ever really pay me to take their pictures? I have no idea what I'm doing about advertising or finding people or anything else and inbetween. Should I be courageous? Can I even make $1500 for a plane ticket? We'll see, but this is a journey I would like to try to take, and as a bonus I can kill two birds with one stone for my bucket list. :)