Alone vs. Lonely

I'm often amazed that so many people assume being single or solo also means being lonely. Is it better to be with someone who causes stress and anxiety, than to enjoy the many benefits of solitude? Not for me.

One of the few blogs I read is "Solo Traveler." I linked to her description of this topic in my title. But, another contributor on her site wrote a fabulous article on traveling alone to "still the anger." Here's a great excerpt;

The best thing about solo travel is that it can be anything you want it to be, because, ultimately, everything you do is totally up to you. It can be rehabilitative, healing, reflective, cheap, luxurious, serious or just plain unadulterated fun. It can even be a mix of all these. It all depends on the experience you want out of it and if you want to take this opportunity to discover yourself or challenge your boundaries.

Read the whole article for his perspective on the anger part. (And, look at those fab pics of Australia! I'll be checking out his blog, too.) I spend a lot of time pondering the anger angle and use all the Buddhist and Taoist techniques I can find to deal with it. But, for this post, I'm primarily considering solo travel.

I admit I have anxieties about it. I could write a tome on the pros and cons. Many pros were succinctly said in the quote. I would add no one nagging about directions or schedules. If I want to veer off to see something, I do. My dog does not question why. She's happy to go wherever I go. That's a huge plus! I guess technically I'm not solo, since I opt for RV Van travel so she can go with me. It's not a minor point -- being ALONE is different from traveling with dog. Izzi is a companion and protects me. She just can't help with heavy lifting. sigh...
And, I'm only speaking about road trips. If I was flying to foreign countries, I might have an entirely different take on travel, and I'm afraid I couldn't do it with a dog. I guess I'll consider that later when (IF) I truly am solo.

Finally, on a recent Charlie Rose show (late night PBS) Rose asked E.L Doctorow why someone would look inward rather than outward. Wow, I was blown away and E.L. looked rather stunned, too. It's really a bias toward coupling and especially here in the U.S. An automatic assumption that all answers are "out there" -- for God, for happiness and for society. I strongly believe that if you aren't comfortable in your own skin, you can never successfully be part of a couple or society.