Journey & Adventure

Do you every feel you can’t move forward because your feet seem to have been cemented in place?   Well lately, I feel like most every day. Work is the biggest culprit – there have been lots of changes, lots of changes to come and until those changes are finalized, my job duties are like a revolving door – constantly changing with the winds.  Don’t get me wrong I like change, but I also would like to have a sense of where I’m going to be long term and by long term, I mean for at least for the next few years.  We are short-staffed and I’ve been called upon to take on more duties until a replacement can be found.  How can they find a replacement when they aren’t even looking?  It’s been almost 6 months with no end in sight.   I’m not one to shy away from a challenge or hard work, but I also don’t like being treated like the “fix-it” girl – especially when it won’t be recognized in any way shape or form by the “powers that be”.   By the time...

I’m so happy it’s Friday.   I’ve been working “summer hours” for the past few weeks and it’s great – work an extra hour each day and then leave at noon on Fridays.   If only we could do that year round. Our friends booked their “one-way” flights to Panama this week.   Yes, they are retiring early!   I’m sooo excited for them – a little jealous too, but mostly excited.   I know our time will come – “patience grasshopper”. We haven’t been to the beach in a couple of weeks now – mostly thanks to bad weather and prior engagements.   I can honestly say that without those weekly excursions, my “life-balance” isn’t what is should be.   I’m not at all at peace with the world at the moment. Our annual reviews are upon us here at work and let me say, what a @#%$ waste of time.   Our raises have been predetermined months ago and no matter how stellar my performance has been, I do not have the ability to earn over and above the predete...

I’m having a tough time with this blogging gig lately. I don’t have anything to say – surprising even for myself! I feel so many people have lost interest in it as well or perhaps is the Summer weather keeping everyone active and away from their computers. That’s a nice thought, but I’m thinking the fad might be winding down. I’m not giving up on it just yet, but only time will tell. Yesterday was a holiday here in Canada – Canada Day. Seems pointless to have a Tuesday off. By law the holiday could have been “moved” to the Monday. That would have made perfect sense to have a long weekend in the middle of summer, but alas NO – common sense does not prevail in matters such as these. So now today, feels like Monday all over again. Aghhh! Work continues to be a “means to an end”. I don’t love it, I don’t hate it (most days) – it just happens, I get paid, repeat. It’s progress review time here at the moment. I hate them – they are a waste of time and I suck at trying to ma...

Happy National Pink Flamingo Day! You're welcome!

I mentioned in a previous post that J and I were creating a business plan that could assist us with our post-retirement sustainability plan.  I mentioned I would continue to sell jewelry as the area we are looking at retiring to has a great cruise ship business.  Well, J is also getting in on the "crafting" experience.  Here are some of his Surfing Flamingo creations (wine bottle candle lanterns and wine bottle wind chimes).  I personally LOVE them, but then again, I'm kinda bias.  Tell your friends - we will ship with the US, Canada and internationally too!

That’s what I feel like I’ve been doing lately – slacking, procrastinating, stalling or diddlefarting – the act of doing very little, while appearing to be very busy.  Diddlefarting is an art form and I’m proud to say that I have mastered it through many years of practice. In my previous jobs, I had plenty of time on my hands, so I became creative with how to pass time while maintaining the sense of having an extreme workload.  If you want, you can read about the finer details here .  *Disclaimer:  Results may vary.  Use at your own risk. Now, I’m very busy (for real), but with that said, I’m feeling burnt out this week and with that comes lack of motivation to work on the mundane task of this job.  So, for the time being, I’ve brought out the binders and sticky notes and it’s time to practice a little diddlefarting. Tell me, do you diddlefart?

Apart from our early retirement plans, and our scuba diving/travel adventures, J and I are truly boring people. We have little to no social lives, we don’t go to many movies, we don’t go to many organized events and we don’t participate in organized sports and we are basically okay with that. I like my quiet time. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a very social person when the opportunity arises, but I don’t need to participate in social activities on a regular basis. This train of thought came about when I was speaking with The Boy this past weekend. He asked what we’d been up to since he’s been off at school. My response was “nothing at all”. To that, his response was “What’s wrong with you guys? You used to be fun.” He’s right. We weren’t always this boring, but have somehow evolved over the years. I realize age might have something to do with it, but mostly it started around the same time our 5 Year Plan came into focus. Preparation for early retirement costs money and mo...