Three Weeks Til Departure: Nomad Journey

This post is part of the “My Life Off the Comma” series about my Nomad journey. If you haven’t read my earlier posts, I strongly recommend you go back upstream and read these earlier reflections, so that this post will make more sense for you.

Happy November! The weather changed overnight and the time just changed last night. Shorter and colder days ahead as we move into the darker season. I wish we could collectively treat this time of year for what it is meant to be: rest, thought, recovery… The rest of nature goes dormant during the darker season to prepare itself for the next cycle ahead. I wish humans would do the same. Well, since I don’t control anyone but myself, I intend to do just that. Even on my nomad journey!

What does it feel like to be so close to the beginning of a one-year journey away from home? I’m experiencing a LOT of things right now. Many feelings, many activities, many thoughts… So if you’re wondering what it’s like to be “just about to leave” for something this long-term, let me share what it’s like from my perspective. How does one organize this kind of a post? Bullet list the feelings? Talk about past, present, future? Preparations and expectations? I’m going to talk about Thoughts and Feelings, because I think it’s always a useful exercise for us to get clear on the difference between the two.

What am I thinking right now?

• I’m thinking about all the preparations. I already wrote a little about this in a prior post. Not only is there packing, but there’s the list of things to do to prepare the home for someone else to use it. What kinds of things do I need to pack for myself? What kinds of things will I need later in the year? What kinds of situations come up ONLY during certain parts of the year, when I need something just for that occasion? What kinds of things need to be moved around in the house? What needs to be put away? What needs to be coordinated with the landlord? What kinds of things come up seasonally, like heating/air conditioning, plants, etc? What memberships, subscriptions, monthly expenses need to be cancelled, frozen or updated because I won’t need them for the next year?
• I’m thinking about the “what ifs”. Who needs to be kept up to date about my trip, “beyond” the social media posts and writing? Who needs to be notified in case of emergencies? Who needs to know where I will be along the trip? Who needs to be connected to each other, so they can coordinate in the event of emergency? Where is my emergency contact information and estate planning stuff kept? Who will know to go look for it? Should I start a WhatsApp group or text string to connect my emergency contacts? What kinds of things would someone need to know if something happened to me while I was on the road?
• I’m thinking about details. It’s not just about where I want to go, but also about permissions and reservations. If I’m staying with friends, are they available? Can they accommodate me? Will I be an imposition? Will I have a place to work from their home? Do I need to modify my trip based on their availability? What will I do if someone has to cancel due to their own emergencies? If I’m between friend visits, where will I stay? Do I need to make reservations? What is the cost? Is it in my budget? Will I be able to work from there? Is there something else I can do while in that location, so there is some amount of “adventure” and “discovery” to be had? How do I keep track of where all I’m staying? How do I coordinate all the reservations, arrivals, departures, etc? What about driving? How far/long is the drive? What will traffic be like? What about weather? What does the car need? What repairs, maintenance, preparations? What do I need to have in the car for the long drives?
• I’m thinking about work. As someone who’s self-employed, I am lucky to be able to work from almost anywhere. However, it can easily seem like this journey is “all vacation” and that won’t be the case at all. For every week of the journey, I need to also marry the “trip calendar” with my “work calendar”. Right from the beginning of planning, I need to think about things like: Do I have anything scheduled on a day that I plan to drive? Will that be a conflict? What is on my calendar and how will that affect each day? How do I make sure to protect time with friends when I’m staying with them? How do I make sure I’m set up and fully prepared for the different types of work I do? Will I be able to find a private place without interruptions? What about time zones? What was booked while I was in CA will now be at a different time when I’m in GA. How do I stay on top of the calendar? How do I prevent conflicts? How do I maintain accessible hours on my public schedule? How do I remember to block my schedule on drive days or when other things are planned? How do I carve out time for me to explore and experience new things when I’m in each destination?
• I’m thinking about “newness”. What can I do to “put myself out there” when I’m in a new place? How can I make sure that I’m accomplishing one of the main objectives, which is experiencing new things and meeting new people? Where can I go to meet people? Where can I go to attend group things? What kinds of spaces can I put myself into to achieve some of my personal and professional goals? How can I hold space for things to just happen naturally and organically? How can I hold space for peace and surprise? How do I attract and put out intention for what I want?

If you’ve made it this far, you’re likely a little bit exhausted. I am. At the very least, you may have recognized that I am very much a THINKER. This can be a gift and it can be a burden, and everything in between. By the way, many of the above questions have been answered. I’m just sharing my thought process.

Now let’s about what I’m feeling right now.

• Gratitude. Most of all, I’m super grateful that I can do this at all. The sheer fact that this is even happening just amazes me and I’m more than a little proud that I’m so committed and taking the steps to make it happen! I’m grateful to all the friends and colleagues I am so fortunate to have in my life that I will get to spend time with along the way. I’m grateful for all the support and cheerleading that I’m getting, in so many different ways, to encourage me on this journey! I’m grateful for the car, the roads, the suitcases, my somewhat simplistic way of living, and so much more that will make this trip possible. I’m grateful for the freedom to travel and the open road ahead. I’m grateful for my abilities to walk, think, explore, plan, anticipate, and a billion other things that make this life “living”.
• Anxious. I’m anxious about the little details. Trying to get everything together. Preparing for everything. What did I miss? What’s going to bite me in the ass? What else? What else? What else? And… what if something goes wrong? What if it falls apart? What if I have to give up? (I’m not trying to solve these feelings… I’m just acknowledging that they are there.)
• Anticipation. I’m really, really excited to see what’s going to happen along the way! I have ideas and hopes. I have fantasies and expectations. Who knows how this will unfold. It may be exactly what I’ve planned so far; and if that’s all it is, then that’s great. It may be so much more! It may be so much different! I’m eagerly anticipating finding out what the universe and I have put into motion.
• Expansive. Wow… This one is hard to describe. It’s like I’m about to walk through a door into a whole different room I’ve never seen before. I mean, I’m going places I’ve been before and seeing many people that I already know and love, which is very exciting. But something feels… BIG about this. More than just the “that’s kinda crazy” of it. It seems like this will be a big shift for me and that whatever happens will bring about some major change. Even if I don’t know what it might be, it’s gonna happen.
• Scared. I touched on this in “anxious” above. They are kinda the same, but not. Scared is more about my self-belief. I think when I say “scared”, what I’m really saying is, what if this journey makes me challenge my beliefs about who I am? What if it makes me do really hard things? What if the stretch is more than I want to give? What if I fail? What if I have to become something, or someone, different overall? I have lots of doubts and uncertainties, but I’m doing it anyway.
• Hopeful. I feel like good things will come. I feel like this is positive and will bring me positive things. I feel like this will be an important part of my story overall. I feel like this will be a chapter that sets the stage for future chapters. I feel like this isn’t just a thing that I will do and then check the box. It feels like it’s the beginning of something, after I’ve been sitting on a long comma.
• On Purpose. No matter what I’ve written, I do believe deep down that I trust that this is the road for me. I feel it deep in my gut and it defies any attempts to explain it completely. I can explain parts of it, but when I’m faced with opposing logic or challenges, I always come back to “I just gotta do it”. And for that reason, it feels right. No matter what I, or anyone else, thinks about it, it just feels right and feels “on purpose”.

Okay, there you go. That ended up pulling a lot more out of me than I thought it would and I’ve been typing nonstop for over an hour. On reflection, I’m grateful for this post because it allows me to journal out my thoughts that were all previously swirling around in my head.

I’d love to hear your comments and observations. As always, here’s a question for you:  What is something in your life right now where you could benefit from writing about your thoughts and feelings? What would that bring you?

Subscribe here to follow the journey. I haven’t yet departed, but I plan to write at least weekly (I reserve the right to flex!) throughout this journey. As always, feel free to share more in the comments about what you’d like to hear. Enjoy your journey!

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