Saturday, March 25, 2023
I spent much of the day watching webinar videos from Life at Sea and doing more research. I still can’t believe I signed up for a three-year around-the-world cruise.
I was able to save the itinerary on my laptop and study when we’re going to be where. That really matters to me because of the weather. It’ll let me know what kind of clothing to bring. I’m happy they’re sending us a pod (which is like a portable closet). We will use it to pack everything we want to take on the ship. This means we won’t have to take lots of luggage.
If possible, I’m thinking about only taking a small carry-on bag,
CLICK HERE (ad). In the bag, I’ll put my laptop, Kindle, iPad and chargers, so I can keep them safe with me. I’ll stuff any medications I need for the few days between leaving LA and arriving aboard the ship into that suitcase as well.
My goal is to not bring anything else to the airport, except my coat and purse, of course. I’m going to let the airlines know I need a wheelchair at LAX and later upon arrival. That should make life easier in both airports. That’s important because of the back injury I suffered three years ago. I have two compression fractures in my spinal vertebrae. They still hurt. So, a wheelchair will be helpful. A side benefit is we can skip lines. I always tip the people pushing the wheelchair well. They’re angels who make it possible for me to travel.
I also need to let the airlines know that I have this disability. If my little carry on won’t fit under the seat in front of me (it usually does), it will need to go into the overhead. I can’t lift it. It might cause another fracture, even though it is small and light weight. When I’ve asked for aid in the past, airline personnel have not been helpful. Luckily, there was always a male passenger nearby, and when I asked him to put it in the overhead for me, there was no problem. So that’s my fallback, if airline personnel refuse to help.
Much of my day was spent thinking of things I need to do. Since I live alone and won’t be keeping the house that I’m renting during the three years I’m gone, I had a decision to make. What to do with all my stuff? Well, I’m going to lighten the load. I’m only going to keep the things that I really love. The rest will go to an estate sale or be donated to charity. That’s the plan for my furniture. It could include the television as well.
All my knickknacks, and the pictures that are currently hanging on walls will go into storage. Some of my clothing might as well. I’m going to use this as an opportunity to get rid of anything I haven’t been wearing. Who needs to have it hanging in the closet? I think I’m going to dump a lot of shoes too, maybe all that I don’t take on the trip. Decisions, decisions, decisions.
In the evening, I made a list of things that are going to cost me money while I'm not in the United States. That includes insurance, cell phone, Prime, storage, virus protection for my computer and two software services I use to keep my Etsy business running. I plan on selling my car. My goal in making this list was financial. I wrote down how much I pay each month/year for each of these items. I need to know because handling money is a balancing act when you travel.
In fact, the use of money itself is a balancing act. You must balance what you need to spend and what you want to spend with what you have coming in. I also intend to continue saving money even though I’m traveling. I’ve been saving each month since I retired.
My goal is to not bring anything else to the airport, except my coat and purse, of course. I’m going to let the airlines know I need a wheelchair at LAX and later upon arrival. That should make life easier in both airports. That’s important because of the back injury I suffered three years ago. I have two compression fractures in my spinal vertebrae. They still hurt. So, a wheelchair will be helpful. A side benefit is we can skip lines. I always tip the people pushing the wheelchair well. They’re angels who make it possible for me to travel.
I also need to let the airlines know that I have this disability. If my little carry on won’t fit under the seat in front of me (it usually does), it will need to go into the overhead. I can’t lift it. It might cause another fracture, even though it is small and light weight. When I’ve asked for aid in the past, airline personnel have not been helpful. Luckily, there was always a male passenger nearby, and when I asked him to put it in the overhead for me, there was no problem. So that’s my fallback, if airline personnel refuse to help.
Much of my day was spent thinking of things I need to do. Since I live alone and won’t be keeping the house that I’m renting during the three years I’m gone, I had a decision to make. What to do with all my stuff? Well, I’m going to lighten the load. I’m only going to keep the things that I really love. The rest will go to an estate sale or be donated to charity. That’s the plan for my furniture. It could include the television as well.
All my knickknacks, and the pictures that are currently hanging on walls will go into storage. Some of my clothing might as well. I’m going to use this as an opportunity to get rid of anything I haven’t been wearing. Who needs to have it hanging in the closet? I think I’m going to dump a lot of shoes too, maybe all that I don’t take on the trip. Decisions, decisions, decisions.
In the evening, I made a list of things that are going to cost me money while I'm not in the United States. That includes insurance, cell phone, Prime, storage, virus protection for my computer and two software services I use to keep my Etsy business running. I plan on selling my car. My goal in making this list was financial. I wrote down how much I pay each month/year for each of these items. I need to know because handling money is a balancing act when you travel.
In fact, the use of money itself is a balancing act. You must balance what you need to spend and what you want to spend with what you have coming in. I also intend to continue saving money even though I’m traveling. I’ve been saving each month since I retired.
My plan for this nest egg is to cover any help that I might need once I get old. Yes, people might think I’m old now; according to the calendar, maybe I am, but I don’t look at it that way. Old is when you can no longer take care of yourself. That could happen to anyone in their 30s or 40s or, in my case, much later than that.
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I'm so excited for you! This is going to be fun!
ReplyDeleteYes, it sure is!
ReplyDelete