This is my first blog post, so forgive me. I thought I'd start off with the name of my blog. It took a while to come up with something that wasn't already taken, that I liked and that would cover all the bases. What it came down to was Matthew and I sitting in our apartment side by side on our computers (as we are now) tossing out names to each other and blogger to see if it was already taken. He came up with Expedition Bliss, I liked it, it was available and voila!
I'm planning to record my next traveling adventure on here; thereafter, to use it as a place to record all other adventures, whether about travel or not. This will also serve as a resource for things I will learn along the way. Some will be life lessons I'm sure, and others practical lessons on how to say... tan a sheep hide (early lessons on this in a later post).
Currently we are in the process of transitioning from 'Normal' life to 'Adventure' life as I have just decided to call it. Although, yes, all of life is an adventure. For the past year and a half I have been working on becoming a minimalist. I was inspired after seeing this Ted talk with The Minimalists
About halfway through the process I met my love interest, Matthew Brewer. He is already a minimalist without having come to it the long hard way like me, he's just cool like that. He owns about 4 pants, 3 shirts, 2 coats and 4 pairs of shoes. His wardrobe made my already skimmed down wardrobe seem extravagant. And in a way it is. In the past few months I continued to cut back on clothes, and completely stopped shopping unless it was a needed item.
*LESSON ALERT* I've learned just because you want something, or think it will make you look cool does not equal a true need.
As my priorities have changed so have my desires for what I'd like the future to hold. Namely more quality of life over quantity of things. Matthew presented me with an opportunity to travel the country, in a 2000 Toyota Tacoma, for the next 6 months to however many years, depending on how things go. Prior to meeting him I was already in search of what was next for me. I have been working at a wonderful family practice as a nurse. I love working with the people and enjoy most of what I do. The reason for my search is a longing to continue to grow, I felt my learning curve leveling out and it was time for something else. So here I am. We built a platform in the Tacoma which we will sleep on and all our gear will go below. Some of our list of things to do include Primitive skills gathering (and practicing - this was introduced to me by Matthew), hiking, rock climbing, archery, volunteering, and getting my WFR (Wilderness First Responder - Safety first!) Our "Hit the Road" date is the weekend of April 16th. With 2 months to go we are excited and getting things in order. On my to-do list is more paring down of clothes, selling my beloved 2006 Honda Fit, and selling off my bed and dining room table.
Welcome, and I hope you enjoy the ride!
