Happy Blogoversary

One year ago today this blog was born.

Look back to that first post, and you'll see a couple of people with a dream. Of course, they had absolutely no how idea how it would all come to pass, but they had a dream to start traveling the country fulltime in their yet-to-be-purchased motorhome starting April 1, 2010.

Wow! It's really something to look back. In reading that first post and paging through those that follow our story really unfolds. From here, it reads like a very systematic story. It's as if we actually planned it all to happen this way. Funny how life can be!

As we sit here a year later, with our house readied for the market and our motorhome readied for life on the road, we are smiling. Why? Well, we're a heck of a lot happier now than we were then. And, with any luck at all it will be more like August 1, 2009 (she types with all fingers crossed) when we make our great escape. That'd make us eight months early!

What a pleasure it will be to be ahead of schedule.

Thanks so much for making the journey with us, dear readers. Something tells us the real fun is just beginning.

Cheers!

Life is Weird

Yes, it is.

Today's headline is an excerpt from the closing line of Biloxi Blues, a Mike Nichols' 1988 comedy film based on a semi-autobiographical Neil Simon play of the same name.

How would we know?

Oh, we tuned in to the last hour or so of the movie at about 2:00 or so in the morning after we realized we were both wide awake.

(Hmmm. A little stress will do that.)

But, watching 20-year-old movies in the wee hours? Now, that sounds like a sabbatical!

At the end of the film, Matthew Broderick declares, "Life is weird, you know?" as he talks about seemingly insignificant happenings and relationships that became cherished memories of a lifetime.

We looked at each other in the bleary pre-dawn hours. And, we agreed.

Life IS weird.

Turns out, our ex-employer, of all people, has actually pushed our fulltiming dream along in the final stretch. We got what we wanted. And then some.

Of course, we had to swallow the cold hard fact that they were willing to live without us. But, you know what? A "right back at ya" applies here, too.

The bottom line remains the same. We're really outta here. Soon!

In the last 24 hours or so, we've started "spreading the news" of our very future plans. People who didn't know are excited. People who did, including you - our loyal readers - have provided much appreciated words of encouragement.

Thank you.

Let the Sabbatical Begin!

We stepped one gigantic step closer to our fulltiming dream today: We got laid off.

Both of us. And, we couldn't be happier.

Really!

We must admit that we've kept a few things about us just a little vague since we started this blog - all in an effort to keep our future plans from going too public.  One of the little details is that we both work (or, I guess that's "worked") at the same company. And, given the state of economic affairs, said company decided to let us go...together.  

How very romantic!  The one nice thing is while the laying off was happening, I knew there was one person in the room who loves me! 

The bigger nice thing is that we are now free to get this show on the road.  We have just a taste of the freedom that's ahead of us.  And, if this is just a taste, we are in for one heck of a treat. 

Let's all raise a toast to the beginning of one beautiful sabbatical.

Cheers!

Objectives

Driving home from work yesterday, I contemplated this question: What do we want to accomplish while we're fulltiming?

At the risk of making this lifestyle change sound like a work project (which it's not!), I started to make a mental list. At home, I asked Boris for his thoughts on the question.

"I don't want to think about it that way," was his thoughtful reply.

I know. I know. Neither do I. My thinking is that if we can get clear on a few "big picture" objectives before we go, if there's anything we can do now to help set things up for success life on the road, I don't want to miss that opportunity. And, somewhere down the road we'll ask ourselves how things are working for us as fulltimers. Intuitively, we'll know that we love it (or we don't). Checking in our objectives will give us an idea of why. Besides, right now fulltiming feels like it's all about getting rid of and moving our stuff, selling our house and getting out of here. While I'm fine with all that, me thinks I'm needing to get a clearer view of the bigger picture here and the really good stuff that's ahead of us.

Am I overthinking this?

Maybe so. For now, I'll keep it really simple.

Our fulltiming objectives:
* To enjoy ourselves and each other everyday
* To experience the freedom to explore North America when and how we wish
* To live simply and spontaneously
* To express our creativity
* To reinvent what work might be to us, if anything
* To be active in a community of people who are passionate about doing the same things we are

Sounds good. No, actually. That sounds GREAT!

I'm ready to get to work.

Longevity Bonus

Here in Atlanta, we've had the pleasure of seeing and listening to Ken Dychtwald. Natasha's been a big fan of him and his body of work. He's chronicled the life and times of us Baby Boomers and our impact on, well, everything. Cool stuff.

One of Dr. Dychtwald's themes is that Boomers (and the generations following us) are planning a "cyclical life". Instead of going to school for 20 years, working for 40 or 45 and retiring for how many years after that you're blessed with, our generation is cycling in and out of education, work and leisure time throughout our lives. Dychtwald calls these periodic periods away from work as "Longevity Bonuses". Fact is, we're all living longer. And, rather than taking advantage of those extra years when we're 85, we're using them earlier. These are times of 1-10 years when we step away from work to learn something new, explore, refresh and recharge. Then, we tackle the next chapter of our work with renewed passion.

This wasn't the first time we'd heard this message. But, being months away from stepping away from full time work to fulltiming for a few years, we found it most inspiring. No longer are we wondering if our great escape is retirement or sabbatical. Now we know it's a longevity bonus!

Go Do It

One of us, who shall remain nameless (but does most of the writing on this blog), has developed quite an obsession about this fulltiming thing. I spend just about any spare moment doing something related to fulltiming. Seems I'm either adding to our list of things to do before we go, taking inventory of all of our stuff and figuring out where it will go, reading a blog of a current or future fulltimer, checking out the fulltiming topics on an RV forum, researching campground reviews across the country or adding to our list of places we'd love to explore on the road.

Yes, it's serious. The other of us is totally on board and passionate about this idea, of course. We're both growing a bit concerned about my obsession.

Until today.

On my way home from work I spotted a quote in a store window:

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it.
Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

The words belong to Howard Thurman, an American theologian and civil rights leader.

Today this quotable quote inspires me to keep moving toward our fulltiming dream. It's not a crazy, worthless obsession as I've lately worried. I've wondered if we should be pursuing something more noble and less self-serving.

What I know is pursuing this idea of really seeing our country for a year or three makes us both come alive. I can't imagine how alive we'll be when we're actually doing it.

And, I love the thought that it might do the world a bit of good.

Accelerating?

On this most auspicious day (08-08-08) we're reflecting on yesterday, when it seemed just about everyone was encouraging us to accelerate our plans to become fulltimers.

Boris had lunch planned with a friend. With pictures of Bullwinkle and our latest adventures in hand, he shared the news of the latest addition to our family and our plans for the future.

I spent time with my hairstylist yesterday. And, as every woman knows, the best hairstylists also provide a listening ear and sage advice.

Back home, Boris and I shared stories of our outings. We were surprised to hear that the friend and the hairstylist had exactly the same thing to say:

"What's keeping you here?"

We both answered that we didn't know for sure. So, being the dutiful friend and stylist, they asked a few more questions and listened attentively to the answers. Then, we reported to each other, they came to the same answer of the big question they had asked:

"Nothing!"

We talked about it together, and agreed that our therapists du jour were absolutely correct. Really, truly, there is nothing keeping us here. (Heck, one of my sticking points was indeed my hairstylist. I told her I wasn't sure what to do about my hair on the road. She had an answer for that, too! So, now it's really nothing!)

Today we are seriously thinking about accelerating our plans. We're not ready to declare a new departure date just yet. But, we might soon. So, stay tuned!

Retirement or Sabbatical?

When contemplating when to start our Great RV Escape, there's one looming question. When we hit the road as fulltimers will we be "retired" (as in never planning to work because we have to again) or "on sabbatical"? When that question is answered, a lot of other things should fall into place.

As we've mentioned before, we are career workaholics. We're closing in on 30 years of that incredibly unhealthy behavior. So, no surprise, we're pretty darn toasty. These days our opinion of our jobs isn't all that high. But, that's not the problem. We just don't feel like working. Really...stick a fork in it this whole work thing. We are done.

Now, if we have no plans of working ever again once we start fulltiming, our confidence in being able to fund our retirement as we would like gets a wee bit shaky. We have a lot of expertise in this area, so we know of what we speak. We could get by just fine and not outlive our money. But, if something extreme happens, the odds of a successful plan diminish.

But, if we stick to our plan of returning to work after exploring the country for a year, or two, or three - or even four - our financial plan is rock solid. We'll be a couple of well-rested, no longer toasted professionals, in our not-yet-mid 50s. Our entrepreneurial spirit will find a way to create satisfying work for ourselves and the income we need to have a safe and secure future.

So, what's it gonna be, kids? Retirement or sabbatical?

Tim and Tony

At first, we thought it might just be the second verse of the Stick House Blues. But, now we're not so sure.

We've been thinking about our timing for this change in lifestyle. We've asked the question before: Is April 2010 soon enough? Today is one of those days where the answer to that question is an enthusiastic and heart-felt "No!"

We're both news junkies from way back. And, the world of journalism lost a couple of shining stars in recent weeks: Tim Russert and Tony Snow. We watched their careers and developed great respect for them as professionals over the years. We were saddened when they were taken far too soon: Tim at 58; Tony at 53. As we sit here at 50, the ages they departed this earth are within shouting distance of where we are today. And, that has us thinking.

"If we could ask Tony Snow," Boris started this morning as we were getting ready for work, "if you had the chance at 50 to go off on the adventure of a lifetime for two or three years, would you do it? What would he say?"

Now, we didn't know Tony Snow or Tim Russert. So, we can't with total certainty say how they would answer that question. But, we can guess. And, we guess the answer would be "YES!"

Add to that today was a particularly challenging day at the office for us both. And, it was not an isolated day. It's a long story not to be detailed here. But, bottom line, we find ourselves asking the question "What are we waiting for?"

You know what? We don't know!

Is it the money? No. Not really. We've done lots of calculations. And, we're very conservative in that department. Truth be told, we have that covered, best we can tell. And, if it turns out we don't, we'll figure something out.

Is it that we have lots to do to get ready? Well, yes that's true. But, will it take us almost two years? We made a move halfway across the country eight years ago in less than six months. Do we really, honestly, need two years? Well, probably not.

Is it that we're not on board with this crazy idea? Oh no! We're both quite on board. We're ready for the adventure. (Heck, we bought a new RV in eight short weeks.) Maybe part of us is thinking this crazy yearning might fade a bit. But, so far, it's shining brighter than ever. No fading in site.

So, what, exactly, are we waiting for?

Boris "vests" in his retirement plan in March. So, we guess we're waiting for that. That's something.

So, what else, exactly?

We may not know. But, we are definitely thinking....

Not Soon Enough

It's Friday, again. Another work week behind us. With two precious days of relaxation ahead, it's that time of the week when we ask ourselves the same question:

Are we leaving soon enough?

Today, April 1, 2010 feels like it's light years away. What would it be to leave a year earlier? Or, what if we took off in the Fall next year instead of Spring the following year?

What we're finding these days is that - on Fridays - we are definitely ready to hit the road.

Happy weekend!

Running From or To?

Use the words "great" and "escape" in a sentence and it can raise an important question: Are you running away from something or to something?

When we think of our Great RV Escape, we'll be the first to admit there is a little bit we're running away from: overwork, overwhelm, overcrowding and overcomplicated. And, there are numerous ways to remedy those challenges. Fulltiming is but one.

Much more powerful for us is what we're moving to: simplicity, adventure, travel, quality time for ourselves and each other, opportunity to meet new people, reconnecting with friends and family across the country, spending time outdoors, hiking and biking, exploring our amazing country and continent, and doing it while we're young enough to enjoy it all. We also are eager to explore a lifestyle that we find interesting and intriguing. In many ways it seems that we're made for it and vice versa.

OK. We confess. Actually, we're obsessed!

Between the two of us, we've had many "romantic notions" over the years that were fun to think about for awhile. Only a few really stuck. Like cooked spaghetti on the wall, this fulltiming thing has moved from "romantic notion" into seriously sticky territory.

And, oh how we both love spaghetti!

April 1, 2010

No fooling! That's our goal date for beginning "The Great RV Escape".

And what, you ask, is this great escape?

We don't know exactly. But, we'll share what we do know...so far.

The Great RV Escape is our mission to leave our current home, jobs and lifestyle for something very free, very mobile and very different.

Free from all the obligations that come with a job, a mortgage and a bunch of stuff, we'll load up a yet unpurchased motorhome, pack it with a little bit of stuff, a couple of cats and hit the road. How long will we be "gone"? At least a year. Maybe two. Perhaps as long as three. Who knows?

At the end of the road we'll settle down in a new spot. Right now, we're thinking it may be our old college town. But, again, who knows?

This blog will be a spot for us to share our thoughts, capture our learnings, document our plans and chart our progress on this great escape.

It'll be great fun for us. Hope you enjoy it, too.

Just 663 days and counting....