246 Road Trip - The Southwest

A good thing about vacations is that it shines a new light on the life we now live and the life we may want to lead. We can lay out plans, read travel logs, browse book stores and magazine racks, and have something to dream about when we take our afternoon nap.

The bottom line remains firm. You just have to spend a bit less than you earn. You might be surprised by how much pleasure can come from a walk in the woods compared to a cruise in the Aegean.

How great are your needs? Do they expand with every paycheck or salary raise? Were we kidding ourselves about how much we loved our job and really were working for the money? I mean if we quit working and receiving a check do you suppose we would still go in every day and help out for free? We needed to answer all of those questions.

I feel like I must relate a few lessons learned on this winter trip. They might help you think about ramifications if you may someday consider taking off during the cold season.

"I Like Being Old", is the title of a book I recently came across. It is written by k. Eileen Allen. She is a 90 year old woman who is blind. She says she likes being old and I believe her.

Some of us want to know what is around the bend. We want to move on. Perhaps it is just a simple case of the grass always being greener; the longing for that which we don’t have. It might pertain to our geographical location or our tasks or work at hand.

Nietzsche advised us to step out on the edge and take a chance. He urged us to do something different with our lives. "We need to break ourselves in two," he said. And then create an even greater self.

I recently read of a Barbie Doll who is connected to the Internet via wi-fi. It hears your voice and responds similar to Seri but it remembers everything and can thus personalize each response instantly. Imagine something similar to this in the hands of an isolated senior? A new best friend and listener may be as near as Best Buy.

When retired we're allowed more time to choose different paths; to explore new roads. All we have to do is make up our mind as to which direction we want to go. We don't want to just sit in the middle of the highway and let life wiz on by.

"You never want to let the weather dictate what you do with your life". That is a line I used to recite to the kids whenever we wanted to go hiking, biking, or skiing.