3 Thoughts from 3 Months

I just looked back on our last published post... it was in the beginning of August. So, for that I apologize.

That being said, I wanted to fill you in on things that have happened in the mean time.

It's been quite a change. We're finally getting to sit, to unwind and to actually write on the blog. We're in the Azores at the moment. Yeah, Portuguese islands somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic.

It's beautiful, it's relaxed. And it's really the first time we've had a chance to settle down and reflect on what we've been up to.

So what has happened since we last wrote?

• We left LA and drove across the country in a little over two weeks, visiting friends and family along the way.
• Went to FinCon 19 in Washington, DC. Had a blast catching up with old friends and making new ones.
• Spent some time with Mr. Wow's family on the East coast.
• Flew to Europe.
• Spent a week in each Brussels, Amsterdam, and Porto, with a quick stop through Oktoberfest.
• Meet up with some fine FIRE folks for a week of FIRE related discussions in the Douro Valley of Portugal.
• Spent 4 days in Braga, Portugal.
• Then meet up with some friends from LA in Porto, and drove to Lisbon over the course of a week, stopping in some fantastic places.
• And now we're here:

That's a lot. It's great to spend time with friends and family, but there's something to be said about finding your own space, and being with yourself.

I was asked by a friend:

"What is it that you've learned over the first 3 months of not working?"

There's a lot, but I wanted to highlight a few things that really stand out.

Some people just need some time to unwind.

I left my job as a data engineer, and in the previous 3 months, I haven't had a desire to do much of anything. Mostly I've been reading the news and become infatuated with the goings on in the nation's capital.

But, after working for almost 20 years straight, I just want to sit around and do nothing for a while. I think that's a big part of the lack of productivity on the blog. I don't know that I will be able to sit idle for an extended period of time, but for the time being I'm content just sitting around and not doing much of anything.

Oddly, Mrs. Wow isn't going through that same process. My belief is that since she's been running her own company and setting her own schedule for some time now, she's used to it. When she wanted a day to relax, she took one. And that is a huge benefit to the shift to this new life style. For her, it was a incremental shift, for me, it was a huge difference. And I think that's why she's transitioning better. She's also still involved with her company, so it's kind of business as usual.

Travel is Stressful

Everyone thinks traveling is easy. There's a romanticized vision of gallivanting around world and taking Instagram worthy pictures at every turn.

That's vacation, that's not traveling. That's going to an all inclusive and turning your brain off while people just wait on you hand and foot.

When traveling, that's just not the case. Everything becomes a production. That inevitable discussion about what you want to eat for dinner becomes a full on ordeal. What do you want, what's available, where is it? And that's just before you get to the place to eat. Then once there, can you even understand what the food is? Can you order from the staff, as they speak a different language?

All these things in and of themselves are not a huge deal. But, compiled over time, they start to build.

I tend to be the one that plans our trips and figures out the details. And as such, I end up making a lot of decisions. Decisions take brain power and effort. It is exhausting to constantly be battling different options.

Just the other day, we found our way to a super market and while walking around, Mrs. Wow turns to me and says:

What do you want to eat for dinner?

I shut down, I couldn't answer. I just got snappy back and said, "I don't know, I don't care. I don't have any decision power left."

Luckily, she took the reins and figured out that we were going to have pasta for dinner, instead of us just having a huge fight in the middle of a Portuguese super market. Juvenile? Maybe, but that stress adds up, and it's something to be aware of.

There's a lot of time to think

We just got back to our apartment from one of our current favorite pass-times, a walk. We like to go for a walk along the shore and just talk. It gives us a chance to grapple with some other parts of our lives.

We've made it a point to stay at least a week in every place, so we aren't forced into cramming as much into every day as possible. It allows some space, which was the exact reason for this trip in the first place.

An interesting outcome from those talks is the realization that I don't have any particular passion.

They say you need to "retire to" something. And I am starting to realize that's truly the case. I find myself sitting in these various places getting antsy and anxious. I need something to sink my teeth into, something to work on.

This blog is fun and all. It's something that I want to start up again and continue, but it's not exactly something that lights my britches on fire. I don't know that I will ever be a maestro of the written word.

The fact is that the Mrs. has a passion and is working on it. I just well... don't. I was never super passionate about my job, and never really had any true hobbies to speak of.

And now, I've had the time to just sit and stew. I think part of my original plan was just hitching my wagon to the Mrs. and have her passion spill over. That means that I'm fully dependent on her for my happiness.

That's not fair to her, and it is certainly not the best thing for me. I don't know. I think this is something that I need to figure out. So, where does that leave me?

It leaves me with a lot of things to think about.

Do you know what you plan on doing once you're done with your job?