The Problem With A Bright Future
October 15, 2023: 989 Days Remaining
So we’ve discussed why we want to homestead, how we’re going to get there, and what hurdles exist along that path. However, we now face an unexpected hurdle that I personally was completely unprepared for… We are now fully prepared to start the homestead, we have all our capabilities developed enough to start, and we still have 989 days until we begin. I thought that would be motivating (and sometimes it is) but I’m finding it highly frustrating to be so close (compared to the 7,300 days we started with) and not be able to begin or accelerate the process. I must stay in the full 20 years in order to get my retirement but we are ready NOW!
Don’t get me wrong, I love my job. It’s the best job in the entire world and I’ll write a tribute to it once I retire and can be more open about what I do/did. I can’t imagine doing anything else to be honest and I enjoy the impacts I make on a weekly basis. I am incredibly thankful for the opportunity to be paid to do something that truly matters and I’m lucky to have found it when I was 18 years old. However… the homestead life is so ridiculously motivating and exciting that the “light at the end of the tunnel” is downright blinding. I couldn’t be more distracted from my job than I am right now. Every single tiny inconvenience makes me think of the Lodge and the lifestyle waiting for me there. I’ve even googled “how to wait 1,000 days for something” and found almost no help.
I am a realist and I understand that days turn into weeks which turn into months and before I know it I’ll be loading up the truck and trailer at my last duty station, going to my final out processing appointment, and beginning the incredible journey. I know I will be there soon, and I know I will read these words someday and smile knowing that I made it, but right now… I’m frustrated and tired of waiting. I’ve been writing these entries every 200 days (or so) so I only have the 799, 599, 399. 199, and retirement post left before this story gets to the moment I’m waiting for… not that long, a few thousand words, less than a thousand days, and still I am distracted.
Ok so you get the point and so do I. What am I going to do about it? Well, obviously I need to focus on making a difference in the moment, spend time with the kids, and teach them to increase their capability. Anything else would be a (ironically) a waste of time. Today for example I need to put a new control arm on the 2012 Mini Van because I bent it looking for apples last week. We’ve decided to sell both vehicles here in Germany because we have enough options available sitting at the lodge that we don’t need to go through the trouble of shipping cars across the world. Especially aging daily drivers. A big upcoming time killer is a potential assignment to Tyndall AFB in Florida. I have already gotten the assignment notification but there are complications with the timeline that won’t be resolved until next week. Anything could happen at this point and my next post will likely clear it all up but it’ll suffice to say that there’s a very good chance that my last duty station will be at Tyndall so I can be closer to Dad and help him with his house down there in Jay. Moving the entire family one last time (not counting the homestead launch) is going to eat a lot of days so that’s good, plus we truly do miss the United States right now.
I’ve been out of country for over three years now and I miss being somewhere where we can read the road signs and where every store has someone who speaks English. America has a lot of problems right now and in many ways the country has disappointed me but I still miss living there. We truly do have more freedom and opportunity there than we have here in Europe or the Middle East (my last two homes).
So how do I wrap up this post? I guess I go forth and continue to prepare for the homestead launch. Build capability with the kids, post another video on youtube (389k subscribers right now) and burn some time waiting for the inevitable.
Oh and a note to future me: Yeah, I know I’m whinny right now and that to you all of this waiting is a memory but don’t forget the price we paid to get where you are now. In fact, you owe me for setting you up with the life you have now so I want you to pour a nice drink for you and Tealah, go sit on the porch swing, look out onto the homestead, and give me the GOD DAMN TOAST I DESERVE YOU LUCKY BASTARD! Congratulations and you’re welcome!
-Past Travis.
