Time

Everyone has their own idea of time. Sometimes you can never have enough, and sometimes you have too much on your hands, sometimes time is against you, and sometimes you lose all track of time.
It has come time to put in my 2 week notice at my job, that I have had for, going on 15 years. I have been a 'Customer Satisfaction Manager' for 10 of those years. I have gotten to know alot of my customers as friends, that come to visit a couple of times a week. Also, most of my co~workers have come to be my family. The majority of my new family know that I am leaving soon. Everyone else thinks that it is coming soon, but they don't know that it is at hand.
So we have sold everything, well almost everything. The only things we have left to sell, are the stove, the microwave, and the microwave stand/butcher block, and more stuff to give away, but they have to come and get it, and the rest goes to good will.

We miss our Cap'n, but we are right behind him in a couple of weeks. woop woop    Bunkmate

we are 'Movin' On Up'

Well the time has come to head on down the road. Cap'n Carey has taken a job in Napa, so  he left us in Medford, to wrap things up, while he gets everything in order for when we join him. I still have to stick it out at my work for 1 week, until I can put in my 2 week notice, and join him at the boat.
I have been getting things all cleaned and put in order, but I have alot more stuff to do. I have soo much to do. It's gunna be a long month, but totally worth it. =]

bunkmate

Give it way, give it way, give it away now

The daunting task of selling and giving away 90% of the possessions, or "stuff" that we accumulated over the past 40+ years has officially been put into motion. The giving away is pretty darn easy, but the selling, and the sacrifices in lifestyle that accompany the sale are starting to make our adventure feel so real, or is that surreal.

 We have sold our bedroom set, washer & dryer, TV, truck, living room set, and a slough of other household items, and are on the verge of the refrigerator, stove, and many other items that make day to day life comfortable. But we still have a little over four weeks before officially moving aboard our boat Cerridwen. This dream does not come without sacrifices, but that's why so many people are unwilling to take on a change in lifestyle of this magnitude. Simplifying life is everything but simple, after spending 30+ years complicating it.

We hear comments daily now from friends, family, and acquaintances that are not from this lifestyle, that they could never do ... , or aren't you afraid of ... , but the truth is that we must be the odd ball out. With the dumbing down of our society with all the hillbilly realty shows and such, and the high pace hurry hurry lifestyle that is apparently the american dream, we feel the most valuable commodity in life is family and TIME! People have all of the many many conveniences of today that apparently save time, but surprisingly have less spare time, and higher stress levels to show for it. For us, we are choosing a higher quality of life over a higher net worth, or more so called "security". Dying, sharks, being in the middle of the ocean, the list goes on and on, do scare us, and you had better give them all great respect. But what we truly fear is going through the rest of our lives in the same day to day routine "we refer to as a rut" over and over until our final tide rolls out. No this is not for everyone, and quite frankly we are glad! It wouldn't be nearly so peaceful then, but it is definitely for us, and we are growing anxious to get on with the adventure, and get back to "LIVING", instead of just living "if we have to explain it you wouldn't understand". It has been a five year, very disciplined commitment to rid ourselves of debt, stuff, and societies cold paw holding us by the foot. But it is now time to jump, and we have complete faith the net will indeed appear.

 So we may be sleeping on the floor, cooking chili from a coffee pot, playing Yahtzee or reading a book instead of watching TV, pulling our beers and food from an ice chest instead of a refrigerator, riding a bicycle or rowing our dinghy instead of driving, or having to put a sleeping bag over us instead of turning up the heat, ... but guess what? We are OK with that! Because at the end of the day we have a fabulous sunset to watch, and a freedom that so very few really understand today.

 To everyone that truly enjoys their life just the way it is. Congratulations, and we definitely mean no disrespect. It just scares the heck out of us.

Four weeks until we are no longer CLOD's (Cruisers Living On Dirt).

whales survival depends on all of us.

These whales are children, they were ripped away,from their POD, by humans. With nets, they trapped them, and starved them to obey, All so they can make MONEY!!  . . AND, people still keep paying to watch them. The other whales abuse them, because they do what they ask him to. But, given a chance, they will play with you like a toy, hold you under water, and listen to your heart beat, like the fish they hunted in the wild. Set them free, back to their families, not a foreign country. They know where each one of them have come from. their families would love to have them back. Just saying.  When will the human race learns that family is the most important key to survival, for all mammals.

Off We Go

We have been waiting long enough, lets get the ball rolling!! We have finally decided which direction to go, we have chosen to go south. South is warmer, and it is closer to the places we want to go. It will take us less time to head to Mexico. I can't wait for everyone to come visit us on the boat enjoying the sun and the fun.
The wind is filling the sails.
On the downwind blow
Bunkmate

Live Simply & Simply Live!

We have had to update some of our plans timelines after a premature departure from my place of employment. Our plans didn't call to leave any jobs until summer 2014, but life is an adventure in itself. So we are making some adjustments, and will be moving aboard our boat by next summer,  either in the San Francisco Bay Area, or in the upper Puget Sound. The evolution of downsizing life and life's finances from the "normal" to the simplified version they must be in before proceeding to a cruisers lifestyle successfully.

 I came across this story on another blog, and agree that it really show what is the meaning of life

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.
“Not very long,” answered the Mexican.
“But then, why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more?” asked the American.
The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.
The American asked, “But what do you do with all your time?”
“I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs…I have a full life.”
The American interrupted,
“I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant.”
“You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge enterprise.”
“How long would that take?” asked the Mexican.
“Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years,” replied the American.
“And after that?”
“Afterwards? That’s when it gets really interesting,” answered the American, laughing. “When your business gets really big, you can start selling stock and make millions!”
“Millions? Really? And after that?”
“After that — and this is the best part — you’ll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, catch a few fish, take a siesta, and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends!”

step, by step

Ya know, the hardest part of our whole situation, >for lack of another word< is the waiting, the not being able to go down to Napa and get to work on finishing up all the things we have started. Then get her ready for the next adventure. I feel like the limbo part is going to be the hardest leg of this journey. The not knowing what the next step is, where we are starting our cruising life.  Bunkmate