Saturday, July 28, 2012
A Picture is Worth 1,000 Words
Right? So I am not going to write much of a post tonight, but instead I want to share a couple of my favorite photos from our recent "Small Adventure Along the Way," our friends' wedding weekend on "The Island" in Ontario, Canada.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Shared Commitment = Stronger Commitment
One of the best feelings, that can break through my frustration of a bad day at work, or my anxiety of a long to-do list, or my annoyance at sacrificing things I want now, is knowing we are committed, 100%, to our upcoming adventure.
We can now see our adventure before us. It's still foggy and unclear, but it is on the horizon and slowly beginning to come into focus. We have A TON of work to do, questions to answer, obstacles to overcome, research and legwork to complete, but knowing what we have to do to get there, and knowing in our minds and hearts that we are going to do this, together, is the most important thing.
One of the most frustrating feelings is knowing deep in your gut that you want something more than almost anything else, but not having support. So, I greatly appreciate my hubby's ability to truly listen, open himself up to dreaming, work through the questions and fears, and now share in my excitement as we anticipate and prepare for this upcoming time of our lives!
About a year and a half ago I would not have been able to say the same thing. I was committed and longing to embark on this journey, but I knew in my heart that my hubby was not fully there, and I feared his ability to get there. I knew that without both of our true commitment to a RTW journey, it would be impossible to set out on this adventure together. But over long discussions, including some emotional arguments, we took the time to really look at the situation and what it would mean for us - finances, logistics, risks. We had a lot of long conversations, some of them frustrating and scary, but over continuous talking and dreaming, several months later we found ourselves on the same page, and every day as we look ahead to the day we leave, I am so grateful for this.
We can now see our adventure before us. It's still foggy and unclear, but it is on the horizon and slowly beginning to come into focus. We have A TON of work to do, questions to answer, obstacles to overcome, research and legwork to complete, but knowing what we have to do to get there, and knowing in our minds and hearts that we are going to do this, together, is the most important thing.
I'm a pretty independent person, but even I will admit, an adventure shared is always more fun and it's so important during the planning and preparation stages. It's vital to have support and backup, especially when we are only sharing our plan with a small number of people until our departure gets much closer.
One of the most frustrating feelings is knowing deep in your gut that you want something more than almost anything else, but not having support. So, I greatly appreciate my hubby's ability to truly listen, open himself up to dreaming, work through the questions and fears, and now share in my excitement as we anticipate and prepare for this upcoming time of our lives!
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Canadian Island Tested...Explorer Approved
We got back from our remote Ontario island wedding last night. We had a blast AND I got to test out the capacity, organization, comfort (briefly), and overall use of my pack in transporting my stuff.
Overall Score: A
I love all of the separate compartments of my pack that allow me to organize my stuff. This is HUGE for me and I was very satisfied. I also love that there are multiple ways to access the main compartment!! Finally, there are a lot of extra places in the outside of my pack to strap things onto, like a wet towel or a sleeping bag, not to mention a water bottle holder and other yet-to-be-determined items.
I definitely will need more practice with my pack before we leave-especially as far as loading it up and wearing it around for an extended period of time, but I can happily say that I'm impressed and excited about this pack. I am not longer nervous or worried if it's "the one". I'm looking forward to exploring the world with this backpack!!!
Yay!
Overall Score: A
I love all of the separate compartments of my pack that allow me to organize my stuff. This is HUGE for me and I was very satisfied. I also love that there are multiple ways to access the main compartment!! Finally, there are a lot of extra places in the outside of my pack to strap things onto, like a wet towel or a sleeping bag, not to mention a water bottle holder and other yet-to-be-determined items.
I definitely will need more practice with my pack before we leave-especially as far as loading it up and wearing it around for an extended period of time, but I can happily say that I'm impressed and excited about this pack. I am not longer nervous or worried if it's "the one". I'm looking forward to exploring the world with this backpack!!!
Yay!
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3
Isn't she purdy?
Now it's just about figuring out what to do with all those straps!
This weekend, hubby and I have the perfect opportunity to test out our new backpacks. Our friend is getting married, but this isn't your typical church wedding and hotel/country club reception. No, our friend's family owns a remote island in Ontario, Canada, about four hours north of Toronto. It's a small, humble island with a simple main cabin, small guest bunkhouse and quaint outhouse. Despite of and because of it's simple aesthetics, remote location, and lack of electricity (there's a generator, but that doesn't go on much), this gorgeous island is the perfect location for our park ranger friend and his laidback, nature-loving bride-to-be to tie the knot. It will be a small gathering, totalling about 25 guests, limited to close family and friends.
It's the perfect time to test out our packs for several reasons.
- We'll be camping in our tent for the three nights we are staying there, so we don't have a ton of room.
- It's an island where the main activities besides the wedding will be relaxing, fishing, swimming, drinking, stargazing, and laughing, so we don't need to bring that much-just enough to cover temperature fluctuations.
- It's crazy to realize this, but the amount of stuff we are taking for this four-day getaway will be close to comparable to what we will take on our RTW adventure!
- It's very easy to over pack, but limiting ourselves to our packs is good practice and will keep our things manageable as we go from six hours in our car to about 30 minutes in a boat to setting up our tent and living out of it.
It's funny, but I'm already sort of attached to my pretty little pack, the Gregory Deva 60. It took me a little while to find it, I was nervous about it being "the one", but now I've been seeing it every time I walk into my office/art studio, and I like it! It's a usable symbol of our impending adventure! SOOOO...I just hope I like it even more after using it for a few days!
(And yes, I do plan to remove the tags before I leave tomorrow!!)
For more info on my pack, see my blog from April 16th called Go With the Flow or click here to visit the e-OMC website where I purchased mine (the price has gone up since I purchased mine, so I would look around and google the pack to see if it's available cheaper anywhere else!)
Wish us luck!
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Travel Inspiration - Peru, Bolivia, Guatemala
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| Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
Check out these shots from photographer Manuel Romaris:
http://cielbleumedia.com/2011/12/09/trekking-through-bolivia-peru-and-guatemala-with-photographer-manuel-romaris/
Stunning!
Monday, July 16, 2012
The House: Rent or Sell?
I lied.
Back in April I wrote a post about how we finally made a huge decision and that it was so exciting, blah blah blah. I said that we decided to sell our house.
Well, thinking, researching, and more discussing brought us to a new decision. We are keeping our house and renting it out. Based on financial talks with family and friends, second thoughts about what renting meant for us, and the benefits of keeping our house as an investment rather than a place we are definitely moving back into, changed our viewpoint on the whole thing.
We had several issues that are now going to be addressed:
Thoughts? Opinions? Expertise?
Back in April I wrote a post about how we finally made a huge decision and that it was so exciting, blah blah blah. I said that we decided to sell our house.
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| Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
We had several issues that are now going to be addressed:
- We didn't want to burden our family with taking care of the house while we are gone and having to deal with any renting issues that come up. So, we are currently in talks with a property management company who does everything from finding a tenant and collecting rent checks to resolving any problems that may arise.
- We don't know exactly how long we are going to be gone or even if we are going to want to live in this same location when we return. By renting, we are treating this house as an investment rather than a definite place to settle down again, leaving us open to opportunities that may arise.
- We didn't want to rent "our house" to just anyone because it is "our house." We've changed our perspective. This house may be "our house" again in the future or it may not. It might be an investment property while we are gone and continue to be that when we return. We may want to sell it and never live in it again.
- For tax purposes, we are able to right off heaps of expenses because this will be a rental property. (Before this decision, we were afraid we would owe money because we were selling so soon after buying and not buying another house.)
- We should be able to rent our house for enough money that we will, at the very least, break even on our mortgage, taxes, etc, while we are gone. There is even a chance that we will be able to make a small amount of money while we are away.
- We are not married to our house. However, if we come home and want to move back in and make this house "our house" again, we can.
- Even though we are keeping our house, we won't feel it as a burden or weight on us while we are gone because no one that we love will be feeling it as a burden.
- The investment that we've put money into over the last three years will remain our investment, and maybe, if we're lucky, it will continue to appreciate in value.
Thoughts? Opinions? Expertise?
Friday, July 13, 2012
"Did I tell you about this website I fou--squirrel!"
Anyone know the movie referenced in my title? :)
I am home alone on a Friday night. I couldn't think of anything I wanted to do more than work on ATW Adventure planning! (Seriously!)
But I have to tell you, I started about two hours ago, it is now 9pm, and I am exhausted. Granted, it's Friday night and it's typical to be tired after a long work week. However, the combination of staring at my laptop for two hours (in addition to how many hours at work?!) and sorting through the mass of information that is available online is overwhelming. Not to mention, I am interested in pretty much everything I read, so I end up getting distracted continuously and I'm not really sure how much progress I've made other than creating two new word documents and an excel spreadsheet with a few lines of text.
My online activity and thought process goes a little something like this:
My brain: "I wonder if I'm 'on track' according to those planning websites as far as what we've done so far."
Fingers type into Google: "RTW trip planning"
Results: Tons of sites, one is bootsnall.com, one of my favorites. I "know" the article I am thinking about lives here. I search. I read. I get distracted by an article about planning where to go. I open a Word document because I want to write down (again, but this time on my computer) some of the various route options we are considering.
My brain: "Hey, weren't you looking for something. Oooh, yeah. Back to bootsnall.com. Where is that article? Oh, what's this? Overland travel... in Europe. We'll need that. I wonder how much it costs."
Fingers type into Google: "Euro Rail"
Results come up. "Click."
My brain: "Here we go. Oh no, that's an impostor, rewind. Oh, there it is! Now let's see..."
So I discover that if we were under 26 we could get discounted passes, but no, we're officially "adults." Also, apparently if you are over 26 you don't even want to consider 2nd class cabins on these trains because they don't give you the option! Come on, I think I can handle it. Where's my freedom of choice? Although...1st class does have a nice ring to it. Oh, "When available. Not all trains have first class." Right.
My brain: "This is good information. I'm never going to remember all this. I should start an Excel document with a preliminary budget where I can save all the valuable information I am finding! Great! Progress!"
And so it went for the next hour and a half, as I looked up Inca Trail advice and tours, Antarctica group tours, Galapagos tours, advice on overland travel from Peru to Brazil, special deals in Croatia using a Eurail pass and MORE! So much more!
So, before I continue this blog post like I continued the next hour and a half on my computer, I will wrap up. I DID eventually find the "timeline" I was looking for and it was nowhere near as good as I remembered (Also it was NOT on bootsnall.com, it was on airtreks.com).
The good news is, it calmed my mind a bit seeing that according to their recommendations we are in a very good place right now. Everything up to six months (YES, we are now only six months away from our ETD!!!!) is very vague and fluid - right where we are. Even 4-6 months is pretty low-key....just deciding on places and booking main flights!! That is coming soon....
Once we decide if we're going to South America or New Zealand first we will be able to arrange more pieces of the puzzle.
Hmm, I should Google that city in NZ where my friend going to be and see what's around there....I wonder how much an RV costs to rent in NZ...
 |
| Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
I am home alone on a Friday night. I couldn't think of anything I wanted to do more than work on ATW Adventure planning! (Seriously!)
But I have to tell you, I started about two hours ago, it is now 9pm, and I am exhausted. Granted, it's Friday night and it's typical to be tired after a long work week. However, the combination of staring at my laptop for two hours (in addition to how many hours at work?!) and sorting through the mass of information that is available online is overwhelming. Not to mention, I am interested in pretty much everything I read, so I end up getting distracted continuously and I'm not really sure how much progress I've made other than creating two new word documents and an excel spreadsheet with a few lines of text.
My online activity and thought process goes a little something like this:
My brain: "I wonder if I'm 'on track' according to those planning websites as far as what we've done so far."
Fingers type into Google: "RTW trip planning"
Results: Tons of sites, one is bootsnall.com, one of my favorites. I "know" the article I am thinking about lives here. I search. I read. I get distracted by an article about planning where to go. I open a Word document because I want to write down (again, but this time on my computer) some of the various route options we are considering.
My brain: "Hey, weren't you looking for something. Oooh, yeah. Back to bootsnall.com. Where is that article? Oh, what's this? Overland travel... in Europe. We'll need that. I wonder how much it costs."
Fingers type into Google: "Euro Rail"
Results come up. "Click."
My brain: "Here we go. Oh no, that's an impostor, rewind. Oh, there it is! Now let's see..."
So I discover that if we were under 26 we could get discounted passes, but no, we're officially "adults." Also, apparently if you are over 26 you don't even want to consider 2nd class cabins on these trains because they don't give you the option! Come on, I think I can handle it. Where's my freedom of choice? Although...1st class does have a nice ring to it. Oh, "When available. Not all trains have first class." Right.
My brain: "This is good information. I'm never going to remember all this. I should start an Excel document with a preliminary budget where I can save all the valuable information I am finding! Great! Progress!"
And so it went for the next hour and a half, as I looked up Inca Trail advice and tours, Antarctica group tours, Galapagos tours, advice on overland travel from Peru to Brazil, special deals in Croatia using a Eurail pass and MORE! So much more!
So, before I continue this blog post like I continued the next hour and a half on my computer, I will wrap up. I DID eventually find the "timeline" I was looking for and it was nowhere near as good as I remembered (Also it was NOT on bootsnall.com, it was on airtreks.com).
The good news is, it calmed my mind a bit seeing that according to their recommendations we are in a very good place right now. Everything up to six months (YES, we are now only six months away from our ETD!!!!) is very vague and fluid - right where we are. Even 4-6 months is pretty low-key....just deciding on places and booking main flights!! That is coming soon....
Once we decide if we're going to South America or New Zealand first we will be able to arrange more pieces of the puzzle.
Hmm, I should Google that city in NZ where my friend going to be and see what's around there....I wonder how much an RV costs to rent in NZ...
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Cleaning Out Using Different Eyes
As we step closer to our departure each day (our tentative fly date is January 15, 2013), we are constantly thinking about cleaning out, clearing out, and not accumulating any more stuff. With just the end goal of getting away in mind, it is interesting how easily that can motivate me to get rid of stuff that I probably would hang on to if we weren't having to pack up our stuff. It's making me look at my stuff with new eyes - especially clothes and accessories.
I'm definitely a bit of a girly-girl, with a healthy mix of tomboy thrown in that keeps me adventurous and active. But that girly-girl part of me loves getting dressed up, having a closet full of clothes to choose from, having colorful and unique shoes, and having a large collection of purses, jewelry and other accessories in order to be prepared for any occasion (or outfit) that presents itself.
The thing is, thinking about only taking one backpack full of stuff for six months, and packing the rest of it up, has made me realize I have way too much of pretty much everything, and quite frankly, I want to have the least amount of boxes possible! That doesn't mean I'm getting rid of everything, I'm too emotionally attached to some stuff, and too unsure of what the future holds to just trash/sell/donate it all. It's just that I've acquired some "new eyes" when looking at my stuff.
I am able to look at my clothes honestly - it's OK to have one or two t-shirts that you absolutely LOVE because they are so worn in and worn out and comfy - but you don't need five. Why am I hanging onto these sweaters that I only wear when I have nothing else clean (which is never!)? Why do I have these dress shirts that I get annoyed with every time I wear because they just don't quite fit my short torso the right way? It's not like I don't have enough clothes that I love to wear, that fit me well, and will work for different situations. So, I've started to clear out. So far I have two overflowing shopping bags of clothes, a pile of on the futon in my office, a jumble of shoes and purses on my office floor, and after another pass through my closet and dresser, I'm pretty certain I can double that amount.
And you know what? It feels great! My closet is STILL full, but now it's not so crammed that things fall off of their hangers, but still stay "hanging" because they're squished between all the other clothes in there. It's really quite liberating, and as I said, I'm not done. When I finish, I want to only own things that I really love, fit me well, and look good.
With all this cleaning out, I can't help but be curious about how I will feel when we return from our journey. Will I think, "Wow! I'm so happy to have CHOICES and tons of clothes and shoes and accessories again!"? Or will I think, "Wow, I can't believe I thought I cleaned out and gave a lot away! This is ridiculous!"? Time will tell!
For now, the next step is figuring out what to do with the things I am weeding out. As we are constantly saving and "fundraising" for our adventure, I am hoping to sell as much as I can at a consignment shop, so I am in the process of researching the ones in our area. Whatever I can't sell or give to friends/family will be donated to Goodwill or Salvation Army.
It's exciting and cleansing as well. It's amazing how much easier and almost fun it can be to clean out when you are devoted to the reason you are doing it!
I'm definitely a bit of a girly-girl, with a healthy mix of tomboy thrown in that keeps me adventurous and active. But that girly-girl part of me loves getting dressed up, having a closet full of clothes to choose from, having colorful and unique shoes, and having a large collection of purses, jewelry and other accessories in order to be prepared for any occasion (or outfit) that presents itself.
The thing is, thinking about only taking one backpack full of stuff for six months, and packing the rest of it up, has made me realize I have way too much of pretty much everything, and quite frankly, I want to have the least amount of boxes possible! That doesn't mean I'm getting rid of everything, I'm too emotionally attached to some stuff, and too unsure of what the future holds to just trash/sell/donate it all. It's just that I've acquired some "new eyes" when looking at my stuff.
I am able to look at my clothes honestly - it's OK to have one or two t-shirts that you absolutely LOVE because they are so worn in and worn out and comfy - but you don't need five. Why am I hanging onto these sweaters that I only wear when I have nothing else clean (which is never!)? Why do I have these dress shirts that I get annoyed with every time I wear because they just don't quite fit my short torso the right way? It's not like I don't have enough clothes that I love to wear, that fit me well, and will work for different situations. So, I've started to clear out. So far I have two overflowing shopping bags of clothes, a pile of on the futon in my office, a jumble of shoes and purses on my office floor, and after another pass through my closet and dresser, I'm pretty certain I can double that amount.
And you know what? It feels great! My closet is STILL full, but now it's not so crammed that things fall off of their hangers, but still stay "hanging" because they're squished between all the other clothes in there. It's really quite liberating, and as I said, I'm not done. When I finish, I want to only own things that I really love, fit me well, and look good.
With all this cleaning out, I can't help but be curious about how I will feel when we return from our journey. Will I think, "Wow! I'm so happy to have CHOICES and tons of clothes and shoes and accessories again!"? Or will I think, "Wow, I can't believe I thought I cleaned out and gave a lot away! This is ridiculous!"? Time will tell!
For now, the next step is figuring out what to do with the things I am weeding out. As we are constantly saving and "fundraising" for our adventure, I am hoping to sell as much as I can at a consignment shop, so I am in the process of researching the ones in our area. Whatever I can't sell or give to friends/family will be donated to Goodwill or Salvation Army.
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| Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
It's exciting and cleansing as well. It's amazing how much easier and almost fun it can be to clean out when you are devoted to the reason you are doing it!
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