Is this a stupid goal? To save money-live way below your means?

[Rockchick26]

Here are my two problems that I think I figured out a perfect goal that would allow me to fix both of them:

1. I can't find a job that will allow me to keep living in my apartment and I do NOT want to move back in with my mom, since i'm 37 years old.
2. I HATE winter (I live in Minnesota).

So this idea came to me the other day out of the blue, and I really want to do it, but I wanted some feedback on if it's a stupid idea or if there is anything I am not seeing that could make this not work.

My idea was to put all my stuff in storage except for my clothes and my computer, and move south every winter. Nowhere in particular, maybe a different state every year but someplace where they don't get below zero temperatures and 2 feet of snow.

I could get any job I could tolerate, without needing to worry about how much it pays because I would rent a room out of someone's house (which from research I've found the average rent would be about $300 or $400. WAY better than the $650 i'm paying now for one bedroom.

I wouldn't have a home phone anymore, no tv of my own (but I could share with whoever I lived with, I only have 3 tv shows I watch anyway), I would spend my time maybe earning extra money from some type of internet job, hopefully making that my main source of income (I'm working on becoming a writer and I have 2 websites).

The cool part about this plan is that I have always wanted to move somewhere warm, but didn't want to leave my family. But, I would only have to be gone from November til the end of March so i'd be back home here more than I would be away. I would try to come back up for Christmas, of course.

Is there anything particularly bad about moving around so much, job-wise? I mean do they look at that in a bad light when it comes to applying for jobs, if you never stay in one place longer than 7 months and keep getting a new job twice a year? And how about when it comes to renting, does that look bad when trying to find a place if you are always moving around, on purpose?

I mostly want to live this way because I would see more of the country, meet new people often, not have to worry about making so much money since my rent and bills would barely reach $500 a month, and not ever have to deal with the weather I hate!

Has anyone ever lived this way before? Does anyone have any thoughts or feedback or advice or tips on how I can accomplish this?

[Michelle]

Instead of moving every winter, why don't you just move somewhere warm and start a new life there? You could travel just as easily from a new location as from your current one.

You could get a part time job and go to school part time for something you love doing all while enjoying a warmer climate.

Or, you could save a bit and buy some sort of vehicle to live in which would allow you to travel as much as you like.

[SmartAlx]

It's an interesting idea to be sure. I'm 37 too and have been unemployed for over a year and a half. What is your field? Do you have a degree? What are your specialties? If you have a regular job like a professional one then obviously changing jobs twice a year is going to be bad. And if you are going to work at McDonalds it will be easier to find work, but even those might not be the easiest to get once you start to build a track record of quitting all the time. Besides, is that really how you want to live your life? Sure, you can do it, but what kind of life are you going to have just scraping by? You want to see the country but how good will that be if you don't have any money? Honestly you might have more fun seeing the country by getting a good job that will enable you to save up for trips every few months.

You should really think a lot about this. Weigh the pros and cons. Talk to your friends and family. Consider the long term ramifications. You might be in for an adventure, but really at 37 can you afford to be so adventurous? I can see doing something like this at 22, but 37? I don't know. Sounds risky. A bit too risky and the advantages really don't seem to add up to equal the risks. Not to me anyway.

But it's not my life.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by Michelle

Instead of moving every winter, why don't you just move somewhere warm and start a new life there? You could travel just as easily from a new location as from your current one.

You could get a part time job and go to school part time for something you love doing all while enjoying a warmer climate.

Or, you could save a bit and buy some sort of vehicle to live in which would allow you to travel as much as you like.

Well the reason why I have never moved out of the state before is because I don't want to leave my family and friends behind. But if I knew it was only for part of the year, it wouldn't be so bad. If I lived somewhere else ALL year, I would have to come up and visit so often I'd go broke.

I'd love to go to school, that's one of the things I want to do, and all the classes I want to take are just short non-degree classes (mostly stuff like photography, creative writing, videography) so I could do that anywhere anytime pretty much.

I've thought about having an RV to live in or a trailer type thing, but those are way more expensive than the nicest new car, and I'm trying to avoid spending a lot of money. Besides, houses on wheels arent the safest thing to live in down south where there are lots of tornadoes!

[themaster]

I'm kind of living this way.. hey I'm local today how about those cubs.. *cough* I mean twins

If you want practical advice rather than spiritual then let me say.. get yourself on the sero plan and roam around with sprints 500 minutes and internet for $36 w/ taxes a month.. or get yourself a voip line for $1-5 a month (depends on provider) and hook it up to your hopefully new homes internet..

(also there are some pre-paid phone plans that are getting pretty down there.. this nice verizon reseller may make yah happy)
$29.95 1200 anytime minutes / 1200 texts / 50mb Data on Verizon Wireless Network! NO CONTRACT! - SlickDeals.net Forums

I would say practical advice again.. if you believe all this economy news then spend some time researching a place to get a job at.. or maybe have that job lined up before you go.. if you don't have your own transport use craigslist rideshare for cheaper or at least faster than bus travel.. (I give people rides on there a lot) can also be a nice savings for you to take a stranger if you are using your own vehicle..

If your smart don't get a storage unit if you don't have too.. while I have one.. and have been trying to finally move it in with family the monthly cost just eats/piss's me off so the idea is, if you have family and can get free storage do yourself a favor.. maybe you can offer to buy a shed from menards or pick one up for free off cg

As for some real spiritual advice.. if you believe that you create your reality.. might I suggest then working on integrating fears when travelling of random serial killers and bad experiences.. if you believe whole heartedly that you attract through the power of your thought.. then create for your "bestest good"

So many statements of lack in smartalx's message.. he runs his EGO way too much.. I should think taking his advice with a "spoonful of sugar" I highly prefer the neutral tone/slightly upbeat of your message "RockChick26"

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by SmartAlx

It's an interesting idea to be sure. I'm 37 too and have been unemployed for over a year and a half. What is your field? Do you have a degree? What are your specialties?

I've been unemployed since February, and I was working in a factory, and manufacturing jobs were the first to start laying people off. Even if I could find a job doing that again, I don't want to. I hated it, I had recurring dreams of my life going nowhere, and that's partly why I have this urge to be free and not be tied down anywhere. No I don't have any degrees or specialities, at my job all I did was handwork/manual labor but that's not that I want to do again anyway.

If you have a regular job like a professional one then obviously changing jobs twice a year is going to be bad. And if you are going to work at McDonalds it will be easier to find work, but even those might not be the easiest to get once you start to build a track record of quitting all the time.

I think unconventionally compared to most people, so no, I don't want a regular professional job. I want to be free to work wherever I want for as long as I want without feeling like I'm stuck there or tied down, which is how I felt for the last 18 years. No more, I say!

Besides, is that really how you want to live your life? Sure, you can do it, but what kind of life are you going to have just scraping by? You want to see the country but how good will that be if you don't have any money? Honestly you might have more fun seeing the country by getting a good job that will enable you to save up for trips every few months.

Well, the main reason why I'm having a problem finding a job (besides the economy) is that I have no degrees, no marketable skills, and no experience in 99% of the jobs out there. All I have is just a bunch of hobbies that I want to explore, and unfortunately they are all in fields that require many years of working your way to the top or being extremely talented in order to make a living right away, well, actually you cant make a living right away in these fields (music, movies, art, writing).

"Barely scraping by" are not the right words I would use, because the way I would be living would require so little money that I would be able to save probably half of my earnings, especially if I can work a few jobs at once, including earning money online somehow. I found TONS of people with rooms for rent in their homes (nice homes!) for less than $400 a month and sometimes utilities were included. In order to come up with that, I'd be able to get by working a full time job paying $2.50 an hour!

You should really think a lot about this. Weigh the pros and cons. Talk to your friends and family. Consider the long term ramifications.

That's the purpose of this thread, to get some feedback about it all. I've talked to my best friend about it, and he told me he's always wanted to live the same life, live in the south every winter and back up here by family and friends from spring to fall. So that's a great source of support, we may even end up doing it together.

You might be in for an adventure, but really at 37 can you afford to be so adventurous? I can see doing something like this at 22, but 37? I don't know. Sounds risky. A bit too risky and the advantages really don't seem to add up to equal the risks. Not to me anyway.

What does age have to do with it, though? I've lived a pretty sheltered life and I feel like now I have this opportunity to change things. Almost every day I dream about a whole different life. I realize that moving to another city or state sounds like wishing the grass was greener on the other side, but honestly I don't require much. I just want to live where it's warm, not worry about having to make my outrageous rent, and feel free to move around with nothing but my laptop and my bag of clothes. For fun I could go to libraries and bookstores and read, I could go out in nature and take pictures, I could hang out with my new friends I meet every year, I could still afford to go to concerts (my favorite thing) since they're only about $30 a pop, that'd be all I'd need for a good life! I don't want to get old without experiencing the feeling of being free. This is actually what a lot of retirees do, travel the country in their Winnebago's The only difference here is i'd be working at the same time.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by themaster

If you want practical advice rather than spiritual then let me say.. get yourself on the sero plan and roam around with sprints 500 minutes and internet for $36 w/ taxes a month.. or get yourself a voip line for $1-5 a month (depends on provider) and hook it up to your hopefully new homes internet..

(also there are some pre-paid phone plans that are getting pretty down there.. this nice verizon reseller may make yah happy)
$29.95 1200 anytime minutes / 1200 texts / 50mb Data on Verizon Wireless Network! NO CONTRACT! - SlickDeals.net Forums

Wow! Those deals are way cheap! Right now i'm paying $65 a month for my cellphone and $100 a month for my internet/cable! Yikes!

if you don't have your own transport use craigslist rideshare for cheaper or at least faster than bus travel.. (I give people rides on there a lot) can also be a nice savings for you to take a stranger if you are using your own vehicle..

Oh wow I never knew Craigslist had a section for that too! Well I have a car and a truck so I got that going for me...I was thinking I could even do the bus or fly, if you pay attention there are always cheap flights (by cheap I mean around $50).

If your smart don't get a storage unit if you don't have too.. while I have one.. and have been trying to finally move it in with family the monthly cost just eats/piss's me off so the idea is, if you have family and can get free storage do yourself a favor.. maybe you can offer to buy a shed from menards or pick one up for free off cg

My mom has room where I could keep some of my stuff in her house and she has an outdoor shed too (right now it's full of my brothers stuff though). My dad barely has room for himself in his little place. I could probably scatter everything around at friends' houses too!

As for some real spiritual advice.. if you believe that you create your reality.. might I suggest then working on integrating fears when travelling of random serial killers and bad experiences.. if you believe whole heartedly that you attract through the power of your thought.. then create for your "bestest good"

I don't have that fear, really...I go to concerts alone in big cities (i live in a small town kinda far from the big cities) and my friends and family think i'm nuts cuz I'm so daring that way. So no problem there!

I highly prefer the neutral tone/slightly upbeat of your message "RockChick26"

Thank you! It's refreshing to hear someone say i'm being upbeat, I don't get that much on these forums! But in real life people say I'm always cheerful and smiling!

[Lisa McGregor]

Rockchick - I think this is a fabulous idea. You're unemployed, no children/husband etc. What's stopping you. The world's your oyster. Must be plenty of opportunities in the warmer states.

Best of luck

Lisa

[JMonkey]

If you are feeling unsettled, how about doing some seasonal work in hospitality? I believe the jobs pay really well, and when I worked out in Florida for winter, it wasn't exactly a picnic for polar bears

Maybe for a year or two, until you figure out your purpose?

[spirit4711]

Originally Posted by Rockchick26

Well the reason why I have never moved out of the state before is because I don't want to leave my family and friends behind. But if I knew it was only for part of the year, it wouldn't be so bad. If I lived somewhere else ALL year, I would have to come up and visit so often I'd go broke.
...

I've done something like that. For the past two winters I've spent 3 months (half Nov to end Feb) in Thailand! It's not so much the cold I hate over here, but the short daylight, the barren trees and the rain. And I escape the christmas season too! And when I came back the days started getting longer, spring was not too far away, I loved it!

Thailand is cheap to live (cost of living about 1/3 of my country and I didn't skimp, can be done even cheaper). Getting a job is not easy, but you can work as a writer and on your sites of course.

And I'm older than you. Your age is not a problem.

[Michelle]

Perhaps your friends and family would be willing to visit you in your new location. If not, would you really want to keep them around?

Your emotions are part of your inner guidance system which helps you make appropriate decisions for you and your life at any time. Your good feelings point you in the "right" direction whereas bad feelings generally signal caution. Consider what your feelings are telling you concerning a move to a warmer climate compared to what they tell you about staying put, for example.

[James81]

Originally Posted by Rockchick26

Well the reason why I have never moved out of the state before is because I don't want to leave my family and friends behind. But if I knew it was only for part of the year, it wouldn't be so bad. If I lived somewhere else ALL year, I would have to come up and visit so often I'd go broke.

You realize that you WOULD be leaving your family and your friends behind, right? Every year for 5 months out of the year you'd be leaving them behind. I really don't see how you could develop and maintain relationships with them (close relationships that is) when you are constantly leaving them. If I had a friend who was constantly leaving, I'd probably try to phase out of her/his life simply because I wouldn't want to be friends with someone who was that "flaky."

And yes, getting two new jobs every year will eventually look very bad on your resume. Especially if you're in a professional type career. The only way to "combat" this would be to find a job you could work from anywhere (by either starting an online business or working somewhere where you can work from home, that doesn't matter if you travel or not). That would be the obvious solution to your dillema. That way, you aren't going through jobs like people go through clothes, but you still have the flexibility to travel.

I think this is a case of "**** or get off the pot" honestly. You're going to discover that you can't have the best of both worlds and that you can't ride the fence forever. You're also going to discover that it's not going to be easy finding places to live (both here and there). I think you need to decide what is more important to you: family and friends or your own personal happiness.

At the end of the day you need to do what would TRULY make you happy. I think you'll discover that your discontentments with where you live might be rooted in other issues that you haven't talked about here, and that if you deal with THOSE issues directly you'll have a clearer idea of what you want to do.

If you have to cycle through this process of moving away and coming back a couple of times to figure this out for yourself, then so be it, it'll be a much stronger lesson than just taking my word for it. But yeah, you need to make a decision and go with it.

[BitterFlower]

You can be a carnie, in a way (no offense to carnies). If you have good sales skills, you can acquire some cheap products and sell at festivals across the south. I always wanted to do that but my husband is not on board...yet You can stay in cheap hotels (or get a hotel with reward points) for a week in each town. Plus, you can keep a main address at home for all of your mail.

Most places put up festivals a few months in advance, and the festivals run the same weekend every year (usually). There are even some websites for specific festival types (like arts and crafts) across the nation or regionally.

Just putting that out there. HTH.

Sue.

[Angela]

I love the idea of being a nomad. Go for it, if it inspires you! And it sounds like it does.

Now that my career is location independent, Danger Man and I have been talking about how much fun it would be to take on a nomadic lifestyle. Wouldn't it be nice if someone gave us an Airstream Trailer? I love those things.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by JMonkey

If you are feeling unsettled, how about doing some seasonal work in hospitality? I believe the jobs pay really well, and when I worked out in Florida for winter, it wasn't exactly a picnic for polar bears

Maybe for a year or two, until you figure out your purpose?

By hospitality, do you mean working in a hotel, or an actual hospital? lol I'm pretty picky but the good thing would be I wouldn't have to work full time, especially if I can earn money online somehow.

Yeah I am hoping this doesn't have to go on forever, I would prefer to own my own house (someplace warm!) but obviously that can't happen anytime soon. This is just something I think would be perfect for this time in my life.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by Michelle

Perhaps your friends and family would be willing to visit you in your new location. If not, would you really want to keep them around?

My family wouldn't visit me, my brother is deathly afraid of flying, my mom doesn't even leave town, and my dad won't even visit his own brother who lives out of state. I tried to get my family to take a trip to California with me a few years ago but none of them would even talk about it for 2 seconds. But i'm not too concerned with that because a little of why I want to do this is to get away from my parents. I don't mean that in a harsh way, I just have this urge to be far away where nobody can find me easily. For the last few years I've had this increasing desire to hide myself from the world and take myself out of the everyday rat race and having everyone know where I am all the time and what I'm doing. But at the same time, I don't want to completely cut myself off permanently. I'd prefer to live alone but the money issue is more important right now. I'd be happy living in someone's house if I had some way of being alone for part of the day. But eventually I would like to own my own house.

Your emotions are part of your inner guidance system which helps you make appropriate decisions for you and your life at any time. Your good feelings point you in the "right" direction whereas bad feelings generally signal caution. Consider what your feelings are telling you concerning a move to a warmer climate compared to what they tell you about staying put, for example.

I'm getting a lot of "right" feelings about this, and what I like about it most is that it came to me out of nowhere. I didn't dream it up or choose it out of a list of options, it was just a thought that popped into my head randomly the other day and I haven't been able to shake it. Almost like the idea was given to me somehow. Unfortunately I am not a very motivated person, I'm extremely lazy, and I'm hoping I can do this without letting my excuses control me.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by James81

You realize that you WOULD be leaving your family and your friends behind, right? Every year for 5 months out of the year you'd be leaving them behind. I really don't see how you could develop and maintain relationships with them (close relationships that is) when you are constantly leaving them. If I had a friend who was constantly leaving, I'd probably try to phase out of her/his life simply because I wouldn't want to be friends with someone who was that "flaky."

By leaving them behind I meant moving away for good. I don't want to NEVER live up here again, I have no problems with it during warm months. My hate for winter is just stronger than my need to live near my friends and family ALL the time. I don't see it as being flaky at all, in fact if you go to some trailer parks, there are people who leave their trailer there (still continuing the payments) during the winter months and go to their other trailer in the south and then move back up in the winter. This is where my friend got the idea to do it too (long before I did, actually!) I have an aunt and uncle who live here during the summer and then during the winter they go live at their cabin in Arizona. I wish they were my parents so I'd have some support in this My parents both have siblings out of state and they never go visit them. I don't want to be like my parents, they're so stuck! Job-wise and how they live their lives. I think I am like this because of how they are, actually. They both live such boring uneventful lives stuck in the same town and at the same job forever. (My dad just retired but my mom still works there-yeah, the same place, also the same place I worked at until I got laid off). I think I've just been forced to be like my parents and that's why I have this strong desire to be different.

And yes, getting two new jobs every year will eventually look very bad on your resume. Especially if you're in a professional type career. The only way to "combat" this would be to find a job you could work from anywhere (by either starting an online business or working somewhere where you can work from home, that doesn't matter if you travel or not). That would be the obvious solution to your dillema. That way, you aren't going through jobs like people go through clothes, but you still have the flexibility to travel.

I am working on my two websites, hopefully someday I'll earn money off those, and I've also been checking into sites that pay you for writing for them (two of which i've joined). But the jobs I'd apply for would be like working in a bookstore or cleaning hotels or babysitting, small stuff like that. There are also some people that charge NO rent in exchange for housework and/or babysitting their kids.

I think this is a case of "**** or get off the pot" honestly. You're going to discover that you can't have the best of both worlds and that you can't ride the fence forever. You're also going to discover that it's not going to be easy finding places to live (both here and there). I think you need to decide what is more important to you: family and friends or your own personal happiness.

I don't see why it has to be one way or the other. Like I said, other people do this.

At the end of the day you need to do what would TRULY make you happy. I think you'll discover that your discontentments with where you live might be rooted in other issues that you haven't talked about here, and that if you deal with THOSE issues directly you'll have a clearer idea of what you want to do.

If you have to cycle through this process of moving away and coming back a couple of times to figure this out for yourself, then so be it, it'll be a much stronger lesson than just taking my word for it. But yeah, you need to make a decision and go with it.

I already know where my discontentments are...I can't stand winter, I can't stand the stress of worrying about how I'm going to make over $1000 a month for the bills and rent I have right now, and I can't stand this feeling that my life is sitting still with no excitement, nothing new ever happens, I'm always in the same area, I always know the same people...every time I see a movie where somebody is traveling I always wish I could do that.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by BitterFlower

You can be a carnie, in a way (no offense to carnies). If you have good sales skills, you can acquire some cheap products and sell at festivals across the south. I always wanted to do that but my husband is not on board...yet You can stay in cheap hotels (or get a hotel with reward points) for a week in each town. Plus, you can keep a main address at home for all of your mail.

Most places put up festivals a few months in advance, and the festivals run the same weekend every year (usually). There are even some websites for specific festival types (like arts and crafts) across the nation or regionally.

Just putting that out there. HTH.

Sue.

That's a great idea!! I have never been good at selling or anything but I've often thought about making things to sell, creative artsy stuff but never followed through. Thanks for the idea!

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by Angela

I love the idea of being a nomad. Go for it, if it inspires you! And it sounds like it does.

Now that my career is location independent, Danger Man and I have been talking about how much fun it would be to take on a nomadic lifestyle. Wouldn't it be nice if someone gave us an Airstream Trailer? I love those things.

Yeah you should go for it if your career allows for it! An Airstream, ahhh!

I think this is why I've had so many problems deciding on a career...I'm not meant for a career, I'm meant to go with the flow and dabble into whatever I want whenever I want! Wow, it's amazing how much you learn about yourself just by posting on here! I've felt like I had a good breakthrough just by these last few posts!

[BitterFlower]

No problem. Another idea popped into my head too:housesitting I don't have websites off-hand because I researched it a few months back, but that's also a way to live somewhere for a few months for cheap/free.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by BitterFlower

No problem. Another idea popped into my head too:housesitting I don't have websites off-hand because I researched it a few months back, but that's also a way to live somewhere for a few months for cheap/free.

Yes!! I've looked into that, I've been on 3 different websites! I'd LOVE to do that! There was actually one in my town but it involved taking care of a pool which I knew nothing about and it was also for 2 whole years and that's a bit of a commitment.

[Angela]

Cirque du Soleil has set up their tent right next to my apartment. They were looking for people to greet and photograph visitors and then sell the photos to them, and if you work out, they take you on the road with them. Doesn't that sound like fun?

There's also Club Med -- you sign on for a stint (you don't get to choose your club, though) and you can re-up if they like you. I think that would be a blast.

Neither option pays well, but what a fun adventure!

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by Angela

Cirque du Soleil has set up their tent right next to my apartment. They were looking for people to greet and photograph visitors and then sell the photos to them, and if you work out, they take you on the road with them. Doesn't that sound like fun?

There's also Club Med -- you sign on for a stint (you don't get to choose your club, though) and you can re-up if they like you. I think that would be a blast.

Neither option pays well, but what a fun adventure!

I'm not familiar with what Club Med is, I thought it was a gym, am I right?

That Cirque du Soleil thing sounds cool!

[Angela]

Club Med is an international all-inclusive vacation company, with sun and ski resorts staffed by fun, adventurous "camp counselor" type people. They have jobs of all kinds, some that are highly visible, front-of-house entertaining and sports types, but also behind-the-scenes tasks, too.

Club Med: holiday resorts worldwide, clubmed gym, clubmed world and all other clubmed sites

[selma]

Why don't you make minnesota your home base, get rid of all the big stuff or give it to your parents or other family/friends to have, move the important stuff into a corner of your parents closet and then volunteer...

idealist.org -- its a great place to find volunteering jobs, you can go to warmer different parts of the world, usually they pay for your tkt, boarding, etc. Its fun and I know tons of people who really enjoy the work of improving lives of other people.

I also live between two countries, my situation is different, but we have homes in different countries and just travel all the time... ITS TIRING, but its an adventure... not sure when my kids start school though.... have 3 years to figure things out.

Good luck and have fun! You only live once.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by Angela

Club Med is an international all-inclusive vacation company, with sun and ski resorts staffed by fun, adventurous "camp counselor" type people. They have jobs of all kinds, some that are highly visible, front-of-house entertaining and sports types, but also behind-the-scenes tasks, too.

Club Med: holiday resorts worldwide, clubmed gym, clubmed world and all other clubmed sites

This sounds like an awesome job, but everything I've clicked on so far requires experience. Ugh, I'm all too used to seeing that door slammed in my face.

[Rockchick26]

Originally Posted by selma

Why don't you make minnesota your home base, get rid of all the big stuff or give it to your parents or other family/friends to have, move the important stuff into a corner of your parents closet and then volunteer...

idealist.org -- its a great place to find volunteering jobs, you can go to warmer different parts of the world, usually they pay for your tkt, boarding, etc. Its fun and I know tons of people who really enjoy the work of improving lives of other people.

I also live between two countries, my situation is different, but we have homes in different countries and just travel all the time... ITS TIRING, but its an adventure... not sure when my kids start school though.... have 3 years to figure things out.

Good luck and have fun! You only live once.

I'd love to be able to volunteer but I'll need money SOMEHOW, I'll check out that website in the meantime!

Wow living in two countries would be way cool. I'd love to live in New Zealand or England.

[spirit4711]

Originally Posted by Rockchick26

This sounds like an awesome job, but everything I've clicked on so far requires experience. Ugh, I'm all too used to seeing that door slammed in my face.

Don't give up too quickly! If you sincerely think you can do some of those jobs, call them anyway and win them over with enthusiasm and passion. Nothing to lose!

[carenkh]

Originally Posted by selma

not sure when my kids start school though.... have 3 years to figure things out.

Joyfully Rejoycing - Joyful Living and Unschooling Unschooling - I highly recommend it!!

[edith]

RockChick -

I think it's awesome that you're becoming the creator of your own life. There are so many ways to scratch an itch! If you don't have obligations like children or a spouse, why not live frugally and travel? It's your life - live in whatever fashion you want! Really! Fast-forward 10 years - would you really want to have given it over to people who want you to live as they want you to? Do they live their own lives? (Yes) You should, too.

There was a book out years ago (might be a little dated now) called Your Money Or Your Life. How to re-think your relationship to money and what you want out of life.

I remember years ago, too, reading the travel author, etc., Rick Steves, talk about putting his money in a new couch or into travel. Make choices that give you what you want.

I'm guessing there are loads of other books out there, too, that talk about living simply and frugally in order to get something out of life that might not otherwise be possible. Fill up your bucket with all that inspiring stuff and go for it!