the wandering blues

all this preparation for ultimate mobility has made me..well..longing for some mobility. it's great that i get to live in this city and have no rent to pay, but being in my van all loaded up with my favorite things has made the barrier to leaving very thin. yes, i need to make a certain dollar figure every month to be on track with my goals, and i will stay here to accomplish that, but the tension is building and i know when it's time, i'll be more than ready to go. i'm so excited for the day when i am free to take any offer, any adventure with only minimal preparation. my first taste of this will be in the fall when i find a warm place to winter, maybe i'll be a workamper or some other caretaking position where i can make some money, but mostly just hang out in the great outdoors for the winter. i've never been anywhere that wasn't frigid and incapable of sustaining human life for at least a few months in the winter. this year is going to be different. i have a great appreciation for the beauty of cold winters, the quiet, the snow, the barren forests and the wildlife tracks, but i want to experience something new. sunbathing on christmas is an experience i want to have and dammit, it's time.
once i'm out of debt, i figure i can live easily on 500 a month, an amount that's not hard to come up with either by saving it, or working a few hours a week. this amount would be reduced if i found a job/situation where food was included or partially included. i really want to do a stint of volunteering at Kalani on the big island of hawai'i, and they're having a "sale" on volunteering--it's half price (250 a month) from april to august. it's really a great deal, this price includes room and board with three fantastic healthy meals a day, and all the activities and ammenities of a world class resort, plus special programs just for the volunteers, and all you have to do is 30 hours of work a week in the kitchen or cleaning cabins. if i was already free, i'd do it, but i'll just have to wait. i did something similar, though more work intense at Kripalu Yoga Center a few years ago and it was one of the best and most formative experiences of my adult life. i'm eager to get back into the volunteer community, it's a place i definitely feel like i fit, which is a rarity these days.
ahhh...it feels good to dream about the future while fully enjoying my days here in the present.
om shanti