We have been busy bees.
Many of you received our August letter. In it, we mentioned we were going to store our things in a storage unit and head out for the road trip. Well, on a bright sunshine-filled day, we walked over to the 2 local storage unit facilities to get prices. The good news - they were very understanding and incredibly generous. The bad news - to store our stuff in a 5x7 storage unit for 4 years would have cost us $3,000. Yikes!
On our walk home from the storage facilities, we made the decision to pack very personal belongings (photo albums, letters, unique gifts, and buried treasure), and sell the remainder of our stuff (furniture, clothes, books, etc.)
So for the last 6 months, we have been vigorously selling stuff. If you have never utilized Craigslist.org before - try it! We have met some incredible folks - who we know will love our stuff as much as we have.
The moral of the story: I love the sun! Whenever you are trying to make a big decision - go for a walk in the bright, bright sun. It makes all the difference!
The first question people ask when they hear about us selling our stuff is "Isn't that hard to part with all of your things?" We must admit that it was, at first. Eventually, you realize that your stuff is just that - stuff. We look at it this way... If your house was on fire, what would you run in to save? I'd pick Richie, Willis (our dog), and some precious photos. When you look at it that way, it isn't so hard. For us, it wasn't worth paying to have stuff stored for 3-4 years - especially when someone else can use it while we are away.
Peace Corps Update:
Our last letter stated we would be departing for the Peace Corps in September 2009. Unfortunately, we, along with 3 couples in this region, have been delayed in getting placements. We expected a delay because it is more challenging to place couples. The good news is Erin, our dynamic recruiter, is resubmitting our request and the Peace Corps is hoping to have placements for couples who have been waiting for programs. If we are accepted this round, we should know our location and project by March or April, which departs in February or March 2010.
With news from the Peace Corps (Or no news... depending on how you look at it.), we have decided to extend our road trip from 6 months to 10 or 12 months. Wow - considering we only budgeted for a 6 month adventure! We've worked, reworked, stretched, and restretched the numbers... and it looks like we'll be eating Ramen Noodles for a while.
Thankfully, Richie is a phenomenal and reliable worker! His boss, Scott, was kind enough to let Richie drop to part-time for the road trip. Whew!
Our plan is to spend most nights at a national or state park. They have nice shower facilities and safe campsites. The National Park Service offers an annual pass which gets us into every national park and federal reacreation area at no-cost. We also receive 50% off campsite fees!
Every week or two, we'll stay at a hotel to take a real shower and sleep in a real bed.
And here we are - leaving in 2 weeks.
We've packaged and shipped all those sacred items we'd like to see when we return from our adventure (Thank you Mrs. Linda & Mr. Joe for storing them for us!). We figure it will be like Christmas morning - opening up a "new" toy.
We've sold almost everything.
And are currently sleeping soundly on the floor...
And cooking gourmet dinners with 1 pot, 2 sporks, a plate, and 2 mugs.
We sanded and put a UV protective coat on our kayaks...
Luckily, they will see the water this season - many thanks to our friend, James. He has vowed to keep them scratch-free. If he doesn't - we'll kill him.
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