AN IDEA IS BORN
Friday, June 16th, 2006Greetings Friends Old and New:
Sold the condo, gave notice at work, and now we’re getting ready for the trip of our lives. It was over 9 months ago that this idea was conceived, and I can’t believe that we’re actually getting so close. (twitch, twitch from excitement) I will always remember the morning of Sunday, August 21st, 2005, about 9 a.m. (while reading the travel section on yet more places we don’t have time to visit) my wife, Cheryl, tired of my bitchin’ and moanin’ about work, the lack of time, the condo association, the new neighbors upstairs, etc, etc…rather mildly suggests “Why don’t we just sell the place, quit our jobs, and travel for awhile…..” She then waited patiently for my customary cautious response such as “no way, we can’t do that now for x,y,z reasons….” After all, we’ve been working straight since we’ve been together (14 years, 9 married, all happy) Work, work , work like a good American.
We were in deep, but there was still hope. We owned a nice (pricey of course) condo in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of SF. It took us nearly 10 years to buy a place we liked and could “afford”, but the huge mortgage, HOA, and just the worry about the place added a whole new level of complexity to our otherwise “simple” lives. The marble countertops and stainless steel appliances just didn’t fit our soul. We have lived a simple city life without a car and with many bikes for years, but we were convinced that perhaps the “yuppie” renovated Edwardian condo would change our happiness level. Although we enjoyed living there, entertaining, and even fixing the place up, it didn’t really change our outlook on life.
So stuff doesn’t really make you happy, it just complicates life. It’s like the studies that have been done about lottery winners. The overall happiness level of big lotto winners six months after they win is nearly the same as prior to winning. We are happy now, so why get sucked into the “live to work and aquire more things” mentality. Of course, this is not retirement (by any means), but it does feel like an important revelation relatively early in life. We’ve had all the things we could want, except time to visit friends, family, and new places.
So suddenly after years of saving, living modestly, and trying to do our part to minimize our impact on the planet; we have the opportunity to trade in some “stuff” for some precious time. People, experiences, and satisfying work can make you happy; but stuff is just stuff. Goodbye stuff and goodbye condo. Luckily, the market had gone up in the past few years which made selling easier, especially since my wife and I both feel the US is heading for a rough patch with debt, wars, and misguided leadership. Did I mention the debt? I feel that we are headed for a serious day of reckoning in the ol’ US of A with interest-only loans and a negative savings rate.
So for now, these are the easy steps we have followed to achieve some mid-life bliss….
STEP 1 – Downsize from 1900 sq ft. yuppatorium to 600 sq ft rental! Half our stuff is gone (sold, donated, passed on to friends, etc) We haven’t looked back. We are going to shed even more load prior to putting things into storage.
*********SOLD********
STEP 2 – quit jobs (Almost there)
So here we are in the middle of June with a few weeks to go until we quit our jobs! It should be easy, right. But there is so much to think about….health insurance, aging parents, moving our stuff into storage, finances, wrapping up at work, but most of all….how the hell do you plan for a one year trip? The short answer is, of course, you can’t. I’ve been digesting travel blogs, forums, websites, and now have a Lonely Planet collection that rivals the local library branch. So what have we learned so far…..
1) Giving notice at work is sweet! But having to endure a few more months after that is a combination of bliss and sheer torture. People will simultaneously get on your nerves when in the next moment all you can think is “This is totally meaningless, there is a whole world out there going on right now” All you can think is about the ability to make everyday the adventure it should be without the constraints of a 40-hour work week.
2) Read, read , read, and learn about the world. Then go meet these people. We have so many advantages living with prosperity in the U.S., but there are drawbacks and responsibilities. We need to try to help those in need and make an effort to understand other cultures. We are a nation of rednecks and I fear we are a nation that is simultaneously heading towards more cultural isolation and expanded cultural imperialism. The real imperialism may be coming to an end soon. (Too much debt, too many dead, and too much resentment building in the world)
3) Some people just won’t get it. We’ve had a few people (one parent) who think our whole approach to this is crazy. Selling the condo was perhaps not the most financially prudent thing to do (but who knows if there is a real estate crash; I’ve met people recently who really believe that real estate CAN’T go down in value! Read about Japan in the past 15 years, baby…99-year mortgages, and people immobilized by depreciated assets.) Most people do get it and almost all say to a tee, “I wish I could do that” Many of them can, but it will take a change in perspective. And it’s not “easy” to do in the middle of your lives; otherwise, there would be lines a mile long at the airport.
STEP 3 – Travel wherever the winds blows! (Visa permitting)
More on “the itinerary” in the next installment of MLATO.
Peace
rich.coffin