Settling In
We have settled in to our new place (Cascais). It is a bit over the top with a pool and a door man.
We have gone back and forth having and not having a car. With a car I am able to surf and we can make a quick run to large grocery stores, etc. Without a car, there is a surprisingly well-equipped, small store a block away, but it is a bit pricey. The walk/bike path along the water is great and takes us for miles in either direction. Getting into the center of town takes about 20 minutes on foot.
The weather has slowly been improving, although people keep commenting that it is unseasonably cold. Beach and pool days are becoming regular.
Friends
A few days ago we spent the afternoon with friends at their retreat house. It is a beautiful house in a rural valley in the middle of nowhere. A year ago it was probably lush green, but the fires last year burned miles and miles of trees in the area. This picture doesn’t do it justice (I took it while driving). As far as you can see is burnt trees, in every direction.
I can’t imagine the worry our friends had during the fires! Luckily, their house came through just fine, even though most of the trees on the property burned.
Life is great, but…
There are some challenges to this lifestyle. We had great aspirations to work on websites, health, fitness, and traveling. Amazingly, life consumes you quickly even when you don’t have a job.
The last couple of weeks have had a bit more bickering than usual. We finally hashed out the source of the frustration: it comes down to a lack of progress on our goals. Or to put it another way, we have been busy living instead of growing. Our goals have been a bit muddy lately.
After lots of discussion, I think the fears of bleeding money and living an unsustainable life have been hampering our motivation/excitement for progress.
Recognizing the fear is really going a long way to help us out. It shows us how our fears are limiting our potential. Knowing and understanding is the first step. Doing something about it while we still have time is the challenge (and next step).
We are heading to Paris for a few days of museum exploration. When we return we are going to dive into websites, real estate possibilities, startups, and, of course, more exercise.
In the end, it will not be about what we accomplish. The true feeling of accomplishment will come from the effort put into our goals.
Off to Paris!
The best part of this post (the end) was poorly written. I have updated it in attempt to capture my thoughts, hopefully it helps!