Yes, to ride a motorbike from Germany to Central Asia. At some point during the trip, the website I run became profitable enough to live from, so I'm extending that break until it's no longer possible.
I've won the lottery. There's no other way to describe it. Every day is Saturday. I wake up on most days deciding what I want to do. It rekindled my passion for programming. I travelled more, went on more bicycle rides, cooked more, and spent more time messing in the garage. I always have time for friends too.
The downside is constantly feeling that I am squandering that time, that I'm not adding enough bullet points to my life resume to justify my lifestyle. It's trivially easy to do things "next Saturday" when I have 7 times more of them, but I end up feeling like I should still use every single one of them.
Digital detox is extra important. I keep an eye on time spent on the computer. It's too easy to browse mindlessly for hours, instead of doing something rewarding and meaningful. The Internet is the biggest threat to my goals, and I try to keep it tamed.
Another problems is that my friends are still at work. They're busy, then tired. They're also not super interested to hear about my weekday adventures, obviously. It's a little lonely in that sense.
Career-wise, I am still writing code (an average of two commits a day), but not in a team context. My skills are still fresh. I'm still running a website too. I often get job opportunities through contacts, so I don't think I would struggle to find work.
Great that you are extending your break, congrats!
"Every day is Saturday"."It rekindled my passion for programming". "...constantly feeling that I am squandering that time". "I end up feeling like I should still use every single one of them".
All very valid feelings that I expect to have. Thanks for elucidating this. I think the best we can do is be aware of them, and any amount of planning is not going to mitigate these. The point about friends being busy is also very valid.
Moving to another city leads to a few necessary purchases. I help people find the right services and get a commission. That includes things like health insurance, a bank account and an apartment.
It's just good ol' affiliate marketing, except that I don't build the content around monetisation. I built the sort of honest website I wanted to find when I moved here.
I've won the lottery. There's no other way to describe it. Every day is Saturday. I wake up on most days deciding what I want to do. It rekindled my passion for programming. I travelled more, went on more bicycle rides, cooked more, and spent more time messing in the garage. I always have time for friends too.
The downside is constantly feeling that I am squandering that time, that I'm not adding enough bullet points to my life resume to justify my lifestyle. It's trivially easy to do things "next Saturday" when I have 7 times more of them, but I end up feeling like I should still use every single one of them.
Digital detox is extra important. I keep an eye on time spent on the computer. It's too easy to browse mindlessly for hours, instead of doing something rewarding and meaningful. The Internet is the biggest threat to my goals, and I try to keep it tamed.
Another problems is that my friends are still at work. They're busy, then tired. They're also not super interested to hear about my weekday adventures, obviously. It's a little lonely in that sense.
Career-wise, I am still writing code (an average of two commits a day), but not in a team context. My skills are still fresh. I'm still running a website too. I often get job opportunities through contacts, so I don't think I would struggle to find work.