It's the era of scary gas prices and the stay-cation, and even though you still have a job, you're feeling insecure and worried about the future.  Guess what?  It's happened before.  Seriously, history shows us that there has never been a generation that hasn't lived through a serious recession.  It's real and visceral and so humbling, but don't crawl under a rock.  You should still make it a point to live, try new things and expand your horizons, even though your animal instincts might be to hoard food, don't make any fast moves or unnecessary changes, settle for less and stay in your lackluster job/apartment/relationship.  Don't do it.  Agitate. Congregate.  Don't isolate.  Rebel, even. 

I'm not saying go out and run up your credit card debt, quite the opposite.  Minimize your life.  Do you really need 200 cable TV channels?  Do you really need cable TV at all? (I mean, you can get your news and many of your favorite TV shows online.)  Cancel your magazine subscriptions. What about that gym membership?  Is it really worth $80/month or could you eat healthier and less, take a few yoga classes and run around the park?  Get a better phone plan -- tell your carrier, you are tempted to switch to the other guy.  See what that gets you.  Borrow books from the library again instead of buying them from Amazon.com.  Buy your food from local growers or farmers markets and avoid Whole Foods.  Make your own coffee and avoid Starbucks.  Put your apartment on an energy diet: it's not just right, it will save you money every month.  Give yourself a body scrub with wet sand at the beach, do your own nails and touch-up your own roots with Clairol Root Touch-Up (under $10 and it works so good!)  Ride your bike more.  Invite friends over for a potluck instead of meeting out at restaurants. 

And here's a big one: Stop buying things made in China unless it's secondhand.  You'll be shocked at how little you can buy in stores like Target or The Gap, and at how easy it is to find almost anything you want on eBay or craigslist or in your local thrift store.  Plus, you probably don't really NEED anything new anyway.  In fact, play this game:  Instead of buying new stuff, sell your old stuff.  Look at this article about people who live with just 100 things, giving something up to get something new, just for inspiration.

It may feel like punishment or going regressing at first because it may remind you of the way you lived when you were 21 and a starving artist.  But the difference between consuming less now as opposed to in your salad years, is this is doing with less by your own choice.  You are in control here.  And with the extra money you have from making these dozen or so little mind-clarifying changes, you can do something significant with your dollars.  Something that may change the direction of your life.  Like finally taking that trip to wherever it is you've always wanted to go.

There is a very big world out there and you are actually connected to all of it.  Decisions you make every day effect people living in India and Vietnam and Israel and Peru (major manufacturing centers).  And it you find you're feeling ashamed of how the U.S. is perceived by the world, go abroad and maybe change even one person's mind about how awful Americans are.

Why now?  Well, because there's only now. For sure.  I mean, you could perish in any number of mundane and unspectacular ways and not have another chance.  And it is possible that the economy could get worse and you'll be even less likely to get away a few months from now.  And because by traveling you could meet someone who will become your new business partner, life partner, or muse/mentor who could change the course of your existence.  And because the feeling of mobility reminds you that you can change, and you can make changes, you can literally move out of the rut you are in.  And you will take some inspiration from seeing how other people live, the choices they have, and the choices they make.  All of this new stimuli throws your own life and your (relatively abundant) choices into a new light. 

Even if you can only get to a different state (perhaps where an old friend now lives and has been inviting you to visit for years), and you have to take a train or a bus, and maybe sit next to someone who is 21 or 71, and pack your own lunch.  Go. Go. Just go.

Cathay Che is the MOLI View's contributing editor for Travel & Leisure. She posts every Tuesday and Thursday.