Journey through life... one glass of wine at at time.
Do you speak multiple languages? I unfortunately only speak English fluently – although not from lack of trying! I’m just not one of those people who picks up languages easily regardless of how much I study. I started out in elementary school learning French, but […]
So if you haven’t noticed this yet, I’m a planner. It’s both a curse and an advantage. I like to prepare as much as possible, researching and reading reviews on where I should stay, what to do when I’m there, and most important of all […]
I had all these plans… but I didn’t follow through. Do you you even feel that way? I let life get in the way of my plans. Back in January I wrote this post but never actually published it: “ I’m already having trouble keeping my New Years Goals. Why you ask? Not because I’m lazy or even crazy busy, but more because I’m already feeling overwhelmed with life. Do you ever feel like that? So overwhelmed and stressed that you can’t even make one decision, let alone the hundreds you will need to get to your goal? Worried that one wrong decision will forever impact your path. I do all the time. How do I motivate myself to continue then? I keep reminding myself that I only need to take one step at a time.
Someone once told me that you don’t need to know exactly where you are going or even what your perfect end goal is, you just need to take a step. Make one change and you will find that others will follow. Sometimes all it takes is one step forward to make the next few clear or for new opportunities to present themselves. So today, I may not know exactly how to get from where I am to where I want to be, but I’m going to take one step.
So my one step today, is to press publish. Then I’ll work on all the other posts floating around in my head.
You read those stories about the people who saved tens of thousands of dollars or paid off x amount of debt in a year or less… but is that real life? A common theme I find in those is that they make extreme life changes […]
Several people have asked me why I was going to Tuscany and Rome AGAIN… With all the many places in the world, why wouldn’t I visit someplace new? I have already been to Cortona and Florence once and I’ve visited Rome FIVE times (I had […]
So I’ve been planning a 2 week trip to Italy in late May/Early June since last summer. This is going to be a big trip, not just because it is for 2 weeks, but because I’m going with 9 other people. Yes, you read that correctly. No, it’s not with a tour. It’s with my family. Yes, family. Specifically, it is me, my mom, 1 uncle, 3 aunts, 2 cousins and their significant others. This should be interesting…
The only other time I’ve helped organize a trip that large was also to Italy, back in 2014, but that was a group of 11 girlfriends – not family. Plus, we were all going to an area we had never been before (Amalfi Coast) and the villa we rented came with a with a wonderful Concierge named Vincenzo who helped plan everything (www.grottadeifichi.com)! This time, half of us will have been to Rome and Tuscany before, and the other half has not even been to Italy before, creating some issues with what to do and where to visit. Luckily, it isn’t my job to arrange everything for everyone. I’m happy to help plan, but really I’m focused on 5 things for this vacation:
Why those 5 things you ask? Well the first one is self explanatory, it is pretty much my modus operandi no matter where I am. The second one is necessary because I love wine. And I love learning new things about wine and trying new types of wine. Plus, I wanted to make sure something was arranged with a driver so we could all enjoy ourselves and not have to worry about how much we were drinking or driving directions (like I did last time I was there). Now you may wonder how I managed to NOT see the David or the Uffizi the last time I was in Florence with my sister back in 2008, well let’s just say that driving in Italy is not easy, and there might have been a situation where we drove around Florence in circles for 3 hours trying to find our hotel before giving up, parking miles away and hiking to the hotel. It was so bad that we almost skipped Florence altogether and went straight to Cortona. Due to this, all we wanted to do the next day was shop (and drink). Which meant we missed the David. As for the Galleria Borghese, I attempted to go the last time I was in Rome 2 years ago, but I didn’t buy the tickets far enough in advance – a problem I am NOT going to let happen again.
So our amazing itinerary is listed below, and then I’ll dig into more of the details in future posts, and yes, while I tried not to plan EVERYTHING, I am clearly a planner:
What would you do in Tuscany or Rome? Have you been there before? Would you see the same thing multiple times? (I’ve toured the Colosseum 3 times!)
Wine fascinates me. There are thousands of different wine grape varieties – Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, Riesling, Chardonnay, Sangiovese, Pinot Grigio, Malbec, Vinho Verde, Pinot Noir… the list could go on forever. And each is impacted by climate, soil, terroir, viticultural approach, growing season […]
Location independence can mean something different for everyone. For some it is simply being able to work from home, for others it means they can explore a new cities every other day, and then there are those who want a bit of both. For me, […]
People don’t actually work from anywhere, right? Many of my friends and family members have never heard the term “Location Independent”. Have you? Similarly, people who can work from anywhere are often referred to as “digital nomads”. Those who have heard of either often conjure up a picture in their head of someone lounging on the beach with a mojito in one hand and laptop the other. Doesn’t it sound wonderful? That is the glamourous side of it. One of the possibilities. But there are many other sides to consider, so you have to try not to romanticize it too much.
The term “digital nomads” has been around the longest, but many associate this only with techy people who code or build websites, or perhaps creative minds focused on writing or editing. Alternatively, “location independent” was coined in 2007 by Lea Woodward when she created the website with the same name. Lea and her husband, Jonathan, didn’t agree with the term “nomadic”, so created their own term to better explain the way they wanted to live life – running their business online wherever they were travelling.
The popularity of both terms has grown exponentially over the years. The world is slowly changing, allowing for even more opportunities to earn a living remotely, from entrepreneurial options to e-commerce to simply working remotely within a typical brick and mortar company. The trick is finding the right one for you. And me.
Remote work is becoming more common. One of my previous employers was somewhat skeptical of working remotely. They didn’t quite trust that work would actually get done as efficiently. But then Hurricane Sandy hit. And the buildings were closed for weeks. Somehow, when the dust settled, we came out okay. Because people had successfully worked remotely. Light bulb moment. Now, as real estate becomes more expensive, working from home is a way for companies to SAVE money. I predict that remote work arrangements will only continue to grow more popular in the future.
I’ve done the typical 9-5 (or more), working in an office every day, but also have experience working remotely. It’s not necessarily easy to work alone, but the pros can often outweigh the cons, especially with the rise of co-working spaces around the globe allowing you to work in an office with other people. It’s not for everyone, but it is well-suited to people who can self-motivate and don’t need to be surrounded by teammates to thrive.
What do you think? Would your company ever let you work remotely? Would you ever want to?
New Year’s Resolutions… How do you feel about them? I’ve never been a big believer in resolutions (probably because I can never seem to keep them up longer than a week!), but I do support writing out goals. What in the world is the difference […]