Day 1
/By Jason
Monday. The day of dread. Early mornings, groggy meetings in the kitchen. Fart around on Facebook, Reddit, Marketwatch, Google News. Chat with coworkers about the weekend. Anything to delay the inevitable. There are potentially panics waiting for you in that report, in those emails. Something went wrong over the weekend.
Something always goes wrong over the weekend.
The project you so glibly tossed to yourself Friday afternoon is now half a day behind and you've got to get it done. Past You is a dick for sure. That guy didn't do his job, drank too much this weekend, played too many computer games, wasted his time.
You always waste time.
Now you're over-tired, stressed out, got a headache, and disappointed in yourself.
So grab a Cliff Bar, get your second cup of coffee, and buckle down. You've got to get this week going so that you can get to the weekend.
Stop.
This Monday is different. I'm enjoying an americano out of the hugest cup I've ever seen in a little bank-turned coffee shop, having just had a hour long conversation with my best friend who isn't my wife. He's just about to go to bed (time is different in Germany, I guess). We talked about politics, and privacy, and PRISMs. It's part of a 16 year conversation we've been having, the end of which will only happen when we either A.) Fix the world or B.) Get too old to care.
My best friend who is my wife still has a week of work left, so I'm pretty certain she's not going to love this post. Don't worry, love. It gets better. Way better.
Ok, if you're still with me, here's the Cliff Notes version of what's going on:
- We took some great trips, saw how big and small the world is at the same time.
- We decided to uproot ourselves and drift in the wind, seeing what we could see.
- We fantasized that we could determine a whole different way of living this life outside of what we like to call "The Plan".
- We saved up enough dough to do it.
- I quit my job last week. She quits her job this Friday.
- As soon as we get the house wrapped up (rented or sold) we're on our way.
I can (and probably will) talk at length about my opinions on The Plan, but suffice to say that I've become pretty damn skeptical about American Dream Trifecta of Nice Stuff, Nice Family, Nice Job. Having been fortunate enough to achieve these goals at a young age, I discovered that they don't carry with them the enlightenment and contentment I thought they would. The thought of just building up my pile over the next three decades is pretty stifling to me, so in characteristic fashion I decided to toss it all out and see where we land.
So that's what we're doing. Planning to see how folks are living. Getting off The Plan, getting on the road.
Thirty is the new twenty, right?