The First 10 days

Where do we want to go? What should we see first?

Although we had planned to be on the East Coast first as I shared in the last blog, Florida was going to be a non-starter. So we needed to pivot and decided to stay on the West Coast. We had 4 weeks before we would head to a place we had booked in Nassau, Bahamas, so we were free to pick a spot - any spot!

I was working remotely so good, stable wi-fi was a must, and we wanted warm weather and a beach. It would be good to try and use our airline miles, too, so we decided to start with San Diego and then head to the amusement park in Los Angeles.

Tim and I decide together where to go, and then I do the research and planning to get us there. He wants me to be happy with where we stay, so it’s better if I pick the places. We knew we didn’t want to stay in downtown San Diego, so we decided on La Jolla. I was able to find a hotel that had a bit of a discount being that we were booking late, but it wasn’t on the cheap. I would learn along the way how to budget more effectively and try to find better bargains as we went along. Free breakfast and a gym also started to be a must!

We hadn’t lived with each other full time before we left for this adventure, and we knew there would be some edges we would come up against as we moved through this travel. I was hopeful we both had enough skill sets to overcome the challenges, and time would certainly tell. Being that I needed to work Monday through Thursday plus a little more time here and there, he would have his time to go explore and relax. He was still decompressing after a grind in the pharmaceutical sales industry and recently retiring from that field, and he was coming back to himself and what he really wanted to be and become in this next stage of his life. I was at the opposite end of really wanting to create and make a difference with my work and those that I serve. Both need time for thought and reflection, and we’re both good about taking space and giving it, so we felt confident in diving right in.

It turned out that there was a weird pocket of cold and clouds pretty much the whole time we were in La Jolla! I couldn’t believe it. We were almost desperate for sun, but the weather had other ideas. The start of this trip was not at all turning out how I had planned! Ugh. Food was also expensive which was eating into the budget too fast as well.

Alright - what do I need to learn here? Whenever I start to hit perceived walls, I ask my higher self 'what is the lesson here?' I couldn’t see it at the time, but I was still way too wired. I had so much to do before we left - literally dealing with 3 moves for myself and family members, renegotiating and getting refunds from Florida, figuring out where to go, working - that I was in a constant mode of get-it-done. I was caught up in the frenetic pace that is the US lifestyle, and I was needing to learn how to slow it down. That answer didn’t show up right away, however, but I did make the most out of every day. I appreciated the walks we took along the ocean, seeing sea lions, experiencing a new vibe and energy. We also saw a playoff game baseball game where San Diego won and walked around the Little Italy section of town (where, ironically, the sun was shining the entire time! Ha!).

After a week or so here, we checked out of our hotel and drove up to LA where Tim had a good friend we could visit for an afternoon, and we also made plans to go to Six Flags for a day. I had not been to an amusement park like this in decades, and we both love roller coasters, so that was a highlight for me of our time in this area. I laughed and panicked and sometimes felt out of control on those rides, and how fun! It was a healthy adrenaline rush that was just the right medicine. After that, I picked up a couple more small items I knew I would need, because after this, I would not be back in the States for over 5 months! But I also couldn’t pack too much as my bags were already stuffed and couldn’t hold any more. That was another big learning curve - what to pack, and what not to pack. More on that later…

At this point in the journey, I was still going way too fast. I hadn’t had a moment to really relax, decompress, and listen to my soul, but it was awesome to be away from the rain already. There were many logistics to still figure out, but Tim was really good about saying one step at a time! We will figure it out as we go. We were on the fast track of learning how to be with each other full time, but we had traveled together before albeit for a week or two, so we knew that was going to be a huge positive for us. Flowing in similar ways when you travel this length of time is essential for long-term stability for sure!

Our lives can often move way too fast with little conscious effort in taking the time to reflect and hear our inner knowing. I’ll be sending you a short exercise on how to bring the energy back into your body that is quick and effective.

And so ends the first 10 days. Next stop - Cabo, Mexico!

To your highest and best,

Dianna

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