Hello,

I've been following several of you on Twitter and I figured it was time to step in and introduce myself.  I'm Jonathan, a 30-smthng year old computer geek who's tired of the rat race.  Apparently my wife is too, as a "can I quit" conversation changed into a "let's go" conversation a few weeks ago. ;)

We've been doing the research (mostly thanks to you guys and others like you) and figured out that it won't be too much of a stretch for us to pretty much chuck it all and hit the road for a while.  We have no idea how long "a while" will be. 

We're looking to pick up a motorhome, rent the house out, put a bunch of stuff we can't bear to part with in storage and pretty much roam the country.  We're compiling a HUGE list of friends, family and places we want to see over the next year or so.  Other than that, the goals are to spend some time catching up on some computer certifications that we've both let slide over the past few years of having 9-5 jobs.  I can probably get enough small development and short term contract work from friends to keep us from eating up all our savings.

We're not really sure what we want in the way of a motorhome, so we're aiming for "cheap and in good shape".  If we find out we love the live, we'll spend enough time in it to figure out what we really want and trade it in or sell it when the time is right.  If the wife wants to settle down again, we'll just sell it when we're done.  As long as it's capable of pulling my Jeep around and we can keep it running, that's about all we need for starters.

We're both computer geeks, so I'll be figuring out some kind of GPS tracking thing to keep the family happy and let them know where we're wandering.  We're planning on using our cell phones for internet access when we're not at a site with wifi (I have unlimited and have hacked the phone a bit to let it be a wireless router).  Add cameras, computers, video, blogs, Playstation, and a pile of other electronic goodies to that mess and it could get interesting. 

I'll probably be posting up a few questions as I learn what else I need to ask. ;)

Welcome.. and congrats on moving in this direction :)  We hope to see you out there on the road sometime.  

 - Cherie & Chris

Welcome to the site - great to have you here!

You are to be commended on your wisdom of finding out the true secret before it is too late. The stress doesn't get you to where you need to be in this life, following dreams and living the way you desire is the key. My dad didn't win any extra awards for working his life away and passing away thirty days from retirement. He was saving all the fun stuff for when he was done working.

The reason we are all here is that we are not waiting for life - we are doing what we want to do. Being free of the "normal" life is liberating. While some young fulltimers may come off the road after a while, I will promise that all of them will retain what they learned about life on the road, and apply it to their daily lives.

As for getting ramped up and ready for fulltiming, there are a lot of different experiences in here - and on other sites. Ask a bunch of questions, gather up the information, and do what sounds reasonable to you. Everyone has their own experiences, but the best way to figure it all out is to jump in and do it.

Great to have you here - looking forward to hearing more about how things are progressing towards your goal.

See you on the road!


kev

Welcome!

 

We are two thirty-somethings that also quit the rat race for "awhile". So far "awhile" has been two years and we feel like we are just getting started. I doubt we will ever go back to the "traditional lifestyle" The longer we are on the road, the more we realize that we get to determine what we want our life to look like, how much we want to work, where we want to go, etc. There are a lot of ways to make a living, you'll find one that works for you.

 

Not having finite plans is way too scary for most people, but once you get past that fear, it is truly liberating. If nothing else, you will learn a lot about yourself and what is really important to you. So much of what we were doing before, (careers, house, etc.) aren't the things that make us happy. Not that things are what make people happy, but sometimes they can get in the way of figuring out what makes you happy. Strip all that away and you get to spend time doing what you want. To us, time has been the biggest gift of this lifestyle. Time to explore, time to just be.... 

 

There are so many terrific places to see and explore in this country, make sure you leave some empty spaces on your list for all the places you didn't even know you wanted to go!

 

Jenn & Dan

Welcome!  We have done exactly as you have--right down to the renting-out-the-house, buying-a-relatively-cheap-moho and putting-stuff-in-storage parts.  If you have questions, feel free to ask.  And good luck--hopefully we'll see you on the road!

Emmy & Lexie