New Life Plan

Indecisive.

If this word could better describe anyone else on the face of this earth than yours truly, I would sure like to meet them. Whether it be my field of study in undergrad, my career path which has yet to be decided, or even where I choose to live, one thing seems to be consistent in my life and that is the consistency to be inconsistent. Call it being overly eager or too impatient, but I never have seemed to be able to settle down or remain content with whatever I'm doing. That's not to say I don't enjoy what I've done or where I'm at, but I'll admit to having the desire to go out and try new things. Andy Grammer said it best in one of his songs:

"I was born with a compass in my hand and a restless soul"

Much to my excitement, I think I have found my solution to this characteristic of mine. To the credit of my first ever international trip I took this past summer [you can read about it if you click this link: The (1st) Trip to Europe], it inspired me so much that I have decided to plan the next portion of my life doing just that: traveling the world.

After the conclusion of my summer internship in South Dakota, I hadn't really any idea what I was going to do next. This is nothing out of the ordinary for my life though. I really do live by the saying, 'wing it,' so when I returned home from Europe it only seemed fitting that I go for this newly developed desire to explore our world.

After being a broke college kid for a number of years, I had mastered the art of living frugally. If that hadn't taught me completely, this summer during my paid internship (paid being under the minimum wage mark mind you) definitely refined that skill. I knew if I could find adequate housing at an affordable price that was within a doable drive from a major airport and if I could lock down a good enough paying job while giving me maximum flexibility (preferably with tip money involved also) I could do it. I could spend the next year traveling the world.

So I packed my bags and moved back to North Dakota. Here I am able to live cheaply, I'm close enough to a major airport (Minneapolis/St. Paul), I am functioning on the bare necessities, and I'm making adequate money the right way. Let me explain further.

1. Live cheaply - It's quite simple actually. I do my best to not spend money on things that aren't directly related to my goals of travel or my survival in the real world (i.e. bills, food, etc.).
2. Proximity to major airport - One of the most important things to consider when wanting to travel is where you will be traveling from. Typically, the larger the airport/metropolitan size, the cheaper it is to fly out from. When I was in South Dakota, Denver International Airport was the closest (6 hours) major airport to utilize. Relocating to North Dakota, I am now closer to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (5 hours) and it is also, at times, a cheaper airport to travel out of. Two birds, one stone.
3. Bare necessities - Generic brands are now my new best friend. Cable: goodbye. Netflix: see you later. Entertainment: surfing the web trying to find the cheapest flight deals. Eating out: what's that? I am committing myself to the bigger picture of taking as many trips as I can rather than spending what would seem like a few buck here or there on coffees or movie nights, etc. It's all about discipline.
4. Income - As it turns out, delivering pizzas is an excellent job for the eager traveler. You get to drive around town in your own car, listen to music, and explore the city in which you live. Nothing is ever the same, and you get to meet and interact with new people every day. Not to mention the tip money is the key player in all of this. I made sure that I could cover my expenses (bills: car, rent, student loans etc.) with my hourly wage that I see in the form of my paycheck. A vital thing to keep in mind here is the workload. I am working well over 40 hours per week to achieve all this. My original intent was to work 7 days a week, but I quickly lost all human function with that method. Find your threshold and work right below that. Where my trip money comes in stems from my tip money. Lucky for me, so far (knock on wood), tips are fairly consistent here and I am able to put that money away immediately and start planning. Another massive benefit to this type of job is that there are very little strings attached. My particular situation for example allows me to walk into work, go up to the calendar in the back, and write down my name on the days I will be gone. Simple. Done. I plan my trip, I write my name. 

Now this of course is just the temporary, short-term plan, but who knows where it might lead me. I can say this much though, I don't regret this life decision of mine yet at all. If you found any of this useful, I encourage you to keep checking out The Roaming Colt for more tips, advice, and stories for all things travel!

Do what I do,

Just wing it.

-C