Well, the idea has been brewing for some time but in the last couple of months the universe has been giving me increasingly pointed signs that it's time.
Time to get out there and enjoy life while I'm still "young" enough to do it. (and I use the term "young" in a manner that is probably strange and new to most people.)
Assuming that those who say "You can't take it with you" are correct...I'm in a position to see me out without needing to work.
Being single and childless (by choice) I have no responsibility to leave an inheritance so I might as well enjoy the fruits of the past 45 years labour. (okay, there was a couple of "starting over again" moments in there too).
Funny how "You'll end up living in a van, down by the river." used to be a threat but is now a life goal...
Sent my manager the big e-mail last week and in 10 business days (incl today) I will be leaving the permanent workforce. I'm not ruling out any part-time or casual work in the future, but the Mon-Fri grind ends in approx 70 working hours.
So, current plan is to lease out the house, buy a campervan and live the "grey nomad" life. Going to start with a lap of this country (Australia) which can take between 6 months (barely scratching the surface) and a lifetime. For those that don't realise, Australia is very similar in size to "the lower 48" of the USA, close to 3 million sq miles.
18 months to 2 years is a reasonable look around and I have seen some of the out of the way places already.
After that I'm planning to head back across to New Zealand, where I'm originally from, and do the same thing there but with a view of finding some place to "settle down". The ideal place would be in, or within 1/2 hour drive of, a small town that is just big enough to have supermarket, medical centre, post office etc etc. I'm done with cities.
This means that I have to MASSIVELY downsize my life as I need to empty out the house from 30 years worth of accumulated "stuff".
Seeing that I freely admit that I'm a borderline hoarder, this is a monumental task.
Yes, a lot of it can go to landfill, the likes of a length of timber that "might come in useful one day" etc.
But I've always been one to regularly change hobbies and as a result have a large amount number of things that are far to good to be thrown out. R/C planes, helicopters and drones plus accessories, electric guitars and amps, computers, laptops and parts, tools, garden equipment, furnishings etc etc... you get the idea. Most I'm happy to sell at "pennies on the dollar" and some to just plain give away "free to a good home". But I HATE the idea of it going to waste.
I can probably store a small amount at my brother's house but basically, if It doesn't fit in a van and leave me enough room to live... it's going.
One category that will be of interest to the MTO community is my "not a collection" of SAKs and multi-tools.
Over the last 15 years or so I've accumulated a number (a quite large one) of mainly SAKs.
Some are plain vanilla models, others are rare/vintage and some are mods I've built.
There is a small handful that fall into the "bury me with this in my pocket" pigeonhole, but hundreds more that face liquidation. Oh, and then there's the flashlights... but that's another story.
I spent most of last Saturday researching online "asking" and "sold" prices on the items I have, and even taking a conservative estimate, I was surprised and alarmed at the big number that came at the bottom of the spreadsheet.
Over $18,500 Australian. Or 11,000 freedom bucks.
Some of the old and/or rare knives that I am lucky enough to own have increased in "value" multiple times over in the time I've had them. A few have gone up by an order of magnitude over what I paid.
Seeing their high "value to volume" ratio the rarer items can come with me and be sold at my leisure. The more common gear will be cashed out at bargain prices in the shorter term so watch this space... well, the for-sale board, not this particular thread.
It still seems a bit surreal, one moment you have your whole life ahead of you then suddenly "most" of it is behind you and rather than the grind you're looking at permanent vacation.
I do look forward to making many posts in the "Photo's of your SAK outdoors" thread. I'll pick one knife, probably birth year Soldier and document its travels.
Right at the moment however, it's all about winding up working which is a job in itself. I currently work from home as the east coast service rep for a medical equipment company based 4300km away on the other side of the country. One of my bedrooms is set up as a workshop and most of the special tooling and equipment will be shipped back to Perth. Other bulky or less expensive things like workbenches or office consumables would cost more to ship than they are worth so will be "disposed" of here. (as if I don't have enough of my own crap to sell...)
All in all it is likely to be a busy time ahead before I can sit back, crack a beer and watch the sun set on my career.
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