Earlier in the winter I was wondering how to improve my winter snowbird lifestyle. The term 'snowbird' only implies a change in geography. That isn't good enough. The intent was to build a lifestyle in the winter that is -- not deliberately the opposite of -- but complementary and independent of the summer lifestyle.
I'm happy to report that I think this worked: more social, no moving from place to place, and built around road bicycling with a club, rather than the summer lifestyle of nomadic and solitary public-lands-camping and mountain biking with my dog. Even my dog has adjusted to short daily walks in the desert, because she gets to romp with her fan club.
In the past I might have resented the relaxed contentment of a lifestyle with more routines, would have wanted to keep things shaking, and even looked down on plugging into a "system." But now I happily snuggle in to the security of routines built around cycling with other people, afternoon siestas, and reading thousands of pages of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin (Master and Commander) novels.
It was a real pleasure to hit this paragraph in the book:
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People who leave the "System" -- whether to retire early, move to a rural area, take on self-employment, kill their television sets, home school their kids, or live on boats -- take on quite a responsibility, quite a load onto their own shoulders. They might not even be consciously aware that this extra burden is digging into their shoulders. It's a burden that is well worth it. But it is still enjoyable to take a sabbatical from it, in the winter.
I'm happy to report that I think this worked: more social, no moving from place to place, and built around road bicycling with a club, rather than the summer lifestyle of nomadic and solitary public-lands-camping and mountain biking with my dog. Even my dog has adjusted to short daily walks in the desert, because she gets to romp with her fan club.
In the past I might have resented the relaxed contentment of a lifestyle with more routines, would have wanted to keep things shaking, and even looked down on plugging into a "system." But now I happily snuggle in to the security of routines built around cycling with other people, afternoon siestas, and reading thousands of pages of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin (Master and Commander) novels.
It was a real pleasure to hit this paragraph in the book:
"Far out into the Atlantic, long tack upon long tack, every day having the same steady routine from swabbing the decks at first dawn to lights out, its unchanging succession of bells, its wholly predictable food, nothing in sight from one horizon to another but sea and sky, both growing more agreeable, and the habit of sea-life exerted its usual force; cheerfulness returned to almost its old carefree level; and as always there was the violent emotion and enthusiasm of the great-gun practice every evening at quarters..." [p. 4196 of "The Thirteen Gun Salute."]That pretty much sums up my lifestyle this winter in Yuma, AZ.
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People who leave the "System" -- whether to retire early, move to a rural area, take on self-employment, kill their television sets, home school their kids, or live on boats -- take on quite a responsibility, quite a load onto their own shoulders. They might not even be consciously aware that this extra burden is digging into their shoulders. It's a burden that is well worth it. But it is still enjoyable to take a sabbatical from it, in the winter.
Comments
But you were just using that as an example of your more general point, so we'll cut you some slack.
Jim
The burden that sits on the back of somebody who has opted out of the system lies in the fact that he can't shift the blame to anyone else. If he is having a worthless day, it is HIS fault.
He must also provide all of his own get-up-and-go.