Spending Money to Travel
I just checked my credit card statement, and had to take several deep breaths. Once I was sure I wouldn’t hyperventilate, I opened my eyes again to look at the carnage: Amazon, Apple, Expedia … repeat. Whoa.
How naive I was, thinking we’d just stuff a backpack with some bathing suits and a camera, and head off into the sunset. Turns out our packing list is LONG, and we actually don’t own half the shit we need.
In the past 3 weeks, Rob and I have been spending a LOT of money. It feels really weird. Forbidden, taboo, and counter-intuitive to our previous scrimping.
Over the last 2 years we’ve been saving like crazy to quit our jobs and go on this sailing voyage. I can count on one hand the number of times I went out to lunch in 2012. I rarely order a second beer, and refrain from buying a mid-afternoon cookie at the local bakery. I shopped far and wide for new homeowners insurance this year to save a whopping $150/year.
Then, quite suddenly, we went from being penny-pinchers to high-rollers. Our spending spree started before Christmas, when we took advantage of holiday sales to start buying necessities. The good news: we’ve done it all online! Since I hate shopping, this seems like a miracle. In fact, I almost want to write Amazon.com a thank-you note for how easy they’ve made our prep work.
It was inevitable that we’d start spending money for our trip — that’s the point of saving, right? — but I’m still a little overwhelmed at the quantity of random stuff we need.
Like what, you ask? Here’s a record of a few items we’ve bought. ADDED BONUS: if you see something you like, buy it from the link below and we get a small percentage for our sailing kitty! (NOTE: email subscribers will have to click the link to our website to view the slideshow.)
