Reflecting on Time, Money and Living on the Road

Doesn't life always seem to fluctuate between having time and having money? When you have one, you don't have the other. A major reason that we quit jobs, sold the house and took to the road 2 years ago was to have more time. Simplify, simplify, simplify. That's what I wanted for my life, and Jim agreed wholeheartedly. We are both very good at using time to smell the roses, see the sights, and simply enjoy life. That's what we wanted to do. But, how to support ourselves, that was the question. When we sold the house we cleared $90,000. We bought our 'new' house (1998 Safari motorhome) on eBay for $30,000. The remaining $60,000 made us feel comfortable enough to hit the road without any real plan. We were confident our computer skills would prove income-producing somehow, and we invested $6,000 in the Datastorm 2-way Internet satellite dish so we would have Internet everywhere. I could do website work and continue to support database clients remotely. Jim hooked up with Coach Connect, and figured he could do some work here and there for them. But, we had no commitments, no known income. It didn't take me long to start freaking out. Check out this weblog post from May, 2004. "Gee, wouldn't it be nice if we had some kind of regular job (and income) we could do from the road?" Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it! If you've been reading this Blog, you know that we ended up working more and more for Coach Connect. I've written quite a bit about the seminars we did in the member parks. We loved that! We met so many wonderful people. Learned SO much about WiFi. Traveled to interesting places (like Minot, ND) that would never have been on our list otherwise. But, the job grew to the point that we had no time anymore. In addition to the seminars, we did work that required being on the phone or on the computer a lot. Since I believe that time is our most precious possession, we quit the job with Coach Connect. We still love the company, and hope to do piecemeal work with them, but the 'regular' job is over. That was about a month ago, and I made a list of all the things I wanted to get done during our 'catch-up' month here in SLO. I haven't gotten very far. It seems that I still don't have enough time. I keep getting rid of obligations that take up my time, and I still don't have enough time. hmmmmm - could it be me?! Living on the road takes up time. Even when you're not driving. We average 4 nights staying in any one spot. When we do drive, we rarely drive more that 4 hours in one day. So, we're talking maybe 8 hours/week for actual travel - not enough to account for my lack of time. And, sometimes, like right now, we plan to stay in one area for a month. I think it's the fact that we're never 'settled'. Y'know how, when you move to a new house and all your stuff is in boxes, you're not ready to take on commitments/jobs/friends until you've gotten 'settled'. Some people empty those boxes and get their new home all set up in a matter of days. Some others (moi?) are still living out of the boxes even months later. Once again, you gotta be careful what you wish for! I *wanted* a life where I never knew what the next day would bring. I don't like structure, I don't like routine. I got my wish! I love the spontaneity of this lifestyle. I love the lure of the unknown. So, I'd better learn to deal with this feeling of being 'unsettled'. Little things could help. When we drive there are certain things that must be stowed. I think I could be better about re-setting things up when we park. The quicker and more completely I get the motorhome into the 'living' configuration, the more 'settled' I'll feel. The other thing is simply to realize that we *are* settled! We are settled into the RVing lifestyle. It's been over 2 years and, although I have my anxious moments, I have no desire to live in a home without wheels. So now, back to worrying about money! It is so easy to panic and think we need to stop and get a job. I fear that our savings will run out, and we won't find another way to support ourselves. I fear that one of us will get sick, we won't be able to continue RVing and we won't be able to afford a house. Yes, we have good health insurance AND long-term care insurance. In fact, that's why we need to make more income - so we can afford the premiums!! I learned long ago that we are motivated either by fear, or by love. Let my fear of being poor drive me and I'll be unhappy and unproductive. Let my love of this lifestyle, my family, and my computer work drive me and I'll be happy and productive. The following proverb, I think says it best: An elder Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, "A fight is going on inside me ... it is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other stands for joy, peace, love, hope, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. the same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too. " They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?" The old Cherokee simply replied..." The one you feed."