Skip to main content

Stopping Point

Figuring out the next step is hard. I planned and researched and wrote a general idea of my travel route. I even bought a few supplies for my car! But a nagging voice kept telling me that this wasn't my path. This wasn't going to be my time. Something was off. Maybe it was the timing (Winter is Coming) or maybe the people telling me I'm crazy (thanks mom). Telling me they would prefer I not travel by myself; it's not safe. Take someone with me. Do I even have enough money? What about my apartment? Am I going to leave my roommate to cover the rent? What about my furniture? 

All valid questions. 

I decided I wasn't going to quit my day job and travel the USA. At least not today. I'm still on a mission to find my peaceful place, a place to bring me joy, contentment, and feelings of home, but the discovery of said place must (hopefully) be accomplished through quick weekend trips. Hop on a plane, take a short drive, maybe jump on a train. 

Am I the only one that feels like something is missing from life? Does family and love bring the contentment that I'm missing? Does satisfaction from a job provide this contentment? Do close friends and physical activity disguise itself as contentment through brief moments of bliss? 

I'd like to have it all (who wouldn't, right?). Job, love, friends - 100% satisfaction from all areas of life. 

So, make a move says the inner voice. Stop standing still. Fight, swim to the surface. Can't you feel yourself drowning? 

I've been applying for jobs in Colorado, Arizona, Washington (state), Iowa, and Texas. Of course no one responds. Silence. Do you hear those crickets? So what now? 

These feelings of hesitancy are foreign. Where's the decisive girl who knew what she wanted out of life and how she was going to achieve it? I'd like to see her again. 

For now, my main focus is on meeting that girl again. Of taking control of my life and making plans that actually come to pass.  Maybe finding happiness in one of these areas will allow me a stopping point, a point that will eventually lead to contentment in all areas.  

Wish me luck! 

Comments

  1. Good luck!

    If you're not getting happiness from your job (which is understandable, as most don't), try creating something. Whether it's a book, a well-curated blog, a podcast, short stories, whatever--that may give you some internal satisfaction and happiness. If I can help in any way, let me know!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Big Bend National Park: A Stargazer’s Paradise

Living in Houston, I don’t often look up at the sky. Maybe if I realize it’s a full moon, I’ll find time to sit outside and enjoy the beauty. But the other days of the month? Stars don’t exist inside the 610 Loop of Houston. Which made our venture out to Big Bend even more spectacular. A perk to working for myself is that I’m able to schedule my days off whenever I want. So, when a nurse friend tells us she has 10 days off and wants to travel somewhere, we decided to go big. We narrowed down our destination to either northern Arkansas or Big Bend National Park. Then when vacations days were settled for the other 2 friends to take 6 days, we decided on Big Bend. You don’t happen to drive nearby or randomly decide to detour to Big Bend. The only reason you’ll  travel anywhere near the park is because you purposely decide to make the trek to west Texas.  It’s 9+ hours from Houston (not including stops for gas, food, or detours to Del Rio for scenic routes), or 200+ miles if you decide t

All Roads Led To...Houston?!

One year ago today, I hopped on a plane to Phoenix, Arizona, to begin a life of travel. I had just quit my parks and recreation job (3 years, 10 months…new record!), put all my possessions in storage (after selling/donating/trashing over 60% of it) and was jobless, homeless, and ecstatic about the unknown future. So, what made a 31 year old woman quit her job, vacate her townhouse, and say good bye to her friends and the life she’d known for the last 7 years? Maybe it was my navy brat childhood and moving every year. I developed a love to travel, to explore new places, meet strangers. Luckily for my addiction, my 20’s were all about traveling...working on cruise ships for two years, backpacking through Western Europe, visiting Central America, taking monthly trips when I settled down at a 9-5 job. I entered my 30’s and was content with a flexible job, recreational soccer/softball, and a good friend base. Work was great, but wanted more responsibility. So, I applied for

My Lightweight Pack

I’ve never bought and returned so many items in my life. Trying on clothes, trying to find those perfect sandals, the best dress. The most lightweight shampoo and conditioner that doesn’t make me itch.   Luckily, I had a lot of backpacking supplies from when we trekked down to Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon and when I backpacked Europe in 2009. Oh! Forgot to mention that…we’re backpacking. It’s like a flashback to my 20’s. Why am I doing this again?  ;) The name of the game is Ounces. I need all supplies that enter my backpack to be as light as possible but of the best material so that it can withstand being worn often. The Camino Powers that Be recommend carrying only 10% of your body weight and since water weighs 2.2 pounds per liter, I’m not left with much room to carry clothes and supplies. Plus we have to account for all weather possibilities: hot, cold, rain, potentially snow. And cold weather gear takes up so much space/weight.  Truly, my main concern is the first two d