Best Laid Plans

As a Type A planner, accepting the reality that even the best laid plans can be foiled by unexpected circumstances is tough. I like to know what outcomes to expect. I am a plan a, b, and c -er. Seldom do my plans include giving up on something. I generally work hard, and work out the kinks. I do not quit easily. Quitting my marriage last month was hard. Devastating really. Why couldn't I be stronger, better, more patient, more loving, more kind? Isn't love suppose to conquer all? Love is patent. Love is kind. Right? Love endures all. Or does it?

Marriages do not always break up because you fall out of love. Sometimes they fail despite love. In fact, sometimes love clouds judgment. Sometimes loving causes us to compromise our values, and ourselves. Love may be kind, but it can also be blind.

So here I am at age 57 - weeks away from 58 - single and having to rethink my Two Star Retirement.

My two star retirement was a good plan. (If you don't know what is was all about - go back to 2017 when I started this blog and read some of my early posts). I spent a lot of time thinking it through, sorting out the details, organizing, planning. I spent years working hard, and saving. I just did not plan for a marriage break up at age 57 - three years into the plan! If you have been through a divorce or separation, you know that it can be financially devastating - difficult at the least. Well, for me, that is not the problem. I can actually live on less money as a single person than as a married person. No, the difficult part is the part about not having someone to share that latte with in the morning. Oh, and not everyone is a good travel partner...that's real important when a large part of your retirement plan was about travel. So I am now without a travel partner.

Yes, I know I can travel with other single woman - but group travel is not me. I hate group travel. I am a non-conformist. An adventurer. I chase tornadoes for Pete's sake...not too many single women in their fifties want to do that! I want to stray off the beaten path. And I am frugal...I can always plan a bigger, better trip for less than booking through a tour company. I have perfected the art of luxury travel for less. That is what this two star retirement has been all about! Now I am alone...and it will all look a little different. Not terrible - just different. A man at my side has been very useful for my personal security. Travelling alone is definitely less safe. I have done a fair bit of solo travel - and it has its advantages for sure - but it also has its disadvantages. I am verbal - and saying, "oh my gosh, look at that, that is SOOOOO beautiful, is just not possible when you are alone. That is sad. My love of adventure and appreciation for all the world has to offer is share worthy.

This year, Covid19 has done a good job of screwing up my winter travel plans anyway - so maybe by next year I will have it all sorted out, but for now, I am feeling a little lost, a lot sad, and well, maybe a little less confident than usual. Having said that, I am strong and focused, and do look forward to a complete rethink of my two star retirement - so stay tuned. It most certainly will involve lots of travel, lots of learning, lots of adventure - probably a little more storm chasing - and likely, lots of practical tips on how to live a full and exciting life alone and on less than you think you need!