16 Weeks and A Million Things To Do

16 Weeks Until Departure: An Update

We leave to travel the world in 16 weeks.  16 weeks! 16 weeks is nothing.  16 weeks is so totally almost here.  

Emotionally, I’m in a really great place.  I do worry and stress and second-guess sometimes, but 98% of the time I’m just plain excited.  Whenever I stop and focus on it, I can actually feel an aura of joy inside of my chest.  It has a weight to it and a flip-floppy feeling, similar to falling in love. 

Mentally, I feel crazier than a shit-house rat.  I make dozens of to-do lists every day.  I make lists of my lists.  I wake up at 3am and scribble notes into the tablet next to my bed:

Shimla, India!     wool socks?     read Little Bee    AAA membership?  

Such are the scattered thoughts that roll through my head at all hours of the day and night, a scrolling marquee sign that I can’t turn off.

But you know what?  It’s fun.

This isn’t my to-do list, but it could be.  Photo by koalazymonky, Flickr creative commons

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To give you a glimpse into our life at the moment, below is an incomplete inventory of the balls we’re juggling:

Car Talk’s Got Nothing On Us

Our 17 year old car is undergoing some serious maintenance in hopes that she’ll survive our 10,000 mile road trip.  In the past month she’s received new tires, windshield, muffler and CV joints.  Up next: brakes, radio and electrical work.

Event Planning

Our going-away party is beginning to feel just a tiny bit like a second wedding.  We have to apply for a park permit and a liquor permit.  We need to send invitations and make music playlists.  We’re even already crossing our fingers for nice weather.

But I Eat an Apple Every Day!

In the past weeks I’ve been poked and prodded in places I’d prefer not to think about.  I’ve had my blood drawn, my eyes dilated and my freckles studied.  Ensuring that we are in tip-top shape is non-negotiable, especially since we’ll be taking off into the great unknown with an insurance deductible so high it might be mistaken for somebody’s college tuition.

Speaking of…

We still need to purchase an insurance policy.

Revealing Our Travel Plans at Work

Just last week, Brian told his job about our travel plans (my job has known all along).  I’ll write about this in more detail later, but the impending reveal was causing a lot of stress in our lives, and it was a huge weight off of both of us, especially Brian, when it was over.

The Devil is in the Details

And then there’s the details to think about: moving out of our apartment, forwarding our mail, selling the rest of our stuff, applying for backcountry permits, determining what to pack, figuring out when we need VISA’s, researching what we don’t want to miss in each of the South American countries we’ll be visiting.  On top of all of that, we’ve begun to plan the insane and exciting third leg of our trip (first leg: U.S. road trip, second leg: five months in South America) which I will tell you more about in the coming months.

Moneybags

We’ve reached 97% of our savings goal and anticipate we’ll hit 100% by mid-February.  After that, all extra savings will just keep us on the road longer.  I still can’t believe we finally made it.  Years and years and years of work and now we’re at the starting line.  We are thrilled and blessed.

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Tagged as: RTW planning, The Beginning