Turning the Dream Into Reality
I can’t pinpoint the moment that we sat down and said ‘buggar it, we’re outta here’. We spoke about it for so long, dreaming, researching and watching endless Youtube channels. We have been through so many scenarios in our heads that it would be easy to focus on just one of the many ‘what if’s’ and throw our hands in the air and say ‘it’s just too hard’. Instead, we have decided to focus on positives. Yes, there will be things that go wrong. We’re not looking at this journey through ‘rose coloured spectacles’ but be beggared if we’re going to sit in that Rest Home and say ‘we should have, we could have, if only we had of’.
“Forget all the reasons why it won’t work and believe in the one reason it will”
Past the Point of No Return
When was the defining moment? The moment that there was no going back. For me I think it was the decision to sell our pride and joy, our passion……our beloved boat. Boating and fishing consumed our summers lives and I will really miss the days out on the water.
The second defining moment was when our house sold. We didn’t have much time to mull over it fortunately. Receiving a pre-auction offer too good to turn down and then after another 23 bids, it was sold on the fall of the hammer. We are fortunate enough to have a long settlement and we we’re not homeless until February 17.
We are now sorting out what to keep and what to throw (or sell). There is actually a waiting list for Storage Units in Pukekohe believe it or not so our name was down at two different companies. Good grief, we didn’t want to have to travel out of town to secure a unit! Then ta da one became available. Our whole life’s belongings have to fit into here (including the car we are keeping). We’ve already had a clean out, now we are going through everything again. What is really important to keep. Electronics aren’t going to take being stored for a couple of years so there’s not much point keeping them. It has to boil down to just the important personal stuff.
When it is time to come back, it is more likely that we will be moving into a unit or an apartment so our large 8 seater dining table, large bulky coffee table and oversized leather lounge suite just isn’t going to fit.
I think the third defining moment will be when I have settled the sale of my business and Scotty has finished work. At the moment there is such a lot going on, a lot we’re having to deal with that we feel that we will be limping to the finish line, not sprinting.
I’ve mentioned before that I never realised just how much we are involved with until we have to become ‘uninvolved’. The nuts and bolts of the logistics of doing what we’re doing is over-whelming at times.
Planning Not To Plan
Those that know me will know that this is something that I’m going to struggle with. The ‘Lindy List’ just cannot exist and that is something I’m coming to terms with. However, in saying that I have got lists of things to do coming out my ears at the moment but when we eventually get to leave – there will be lists no more. No more waking up at 3am most mornings with a head full of stuff to add to the list.
Many of you have been asking where we are headed to first. There does need to be a certain amount of planning involved in setting off for your first destination.
At this stage, we are heading for the beautiful Gold Coast, Australia for a short layover with my brother and Alan at their gorgeous apartment. This will be a far cry from what we will be living in for the next two years. It’s just so fortunate that I’m a chameleon and can adjust to my surroundings.
After this stopover, we’re headed to Indonesia. The tourist visa that we will be entering on is for one month and we will probably be spending this in Bali. We have been there before but we feel that we have some unfinished business and would like to explore this island more. We will be spending our first week in Ubud. This is the spiritual and cultural centre of Bali and I think that we just need time to stop and just ‘breathe’. There will be no Kuta or Nusa Dua as we’ll be staying clear of the tourists, rather venturing around the coastline where the visitors are scarce. When we have been here for a month we will need to fly out of Indonesia for a ‘visa run’ which involves getting out to a close, cheap destination and returning so your month can start over again. And that is as much as I know at the moment – but even that might change. That is the exciting thing about it.