Freedom is Calling - Page 17 of 25 - Blog about following the call of freedom

A Whiff of Summer

EW April 14, 2024

It was unusually warm last week due to a high pressure system that not only brought hot air from North Africa, but was also loaded with dust from the Sahara that hung in the air. I could feel it on my tongue and it covered everything with a yellowish coat.

The heat definitely propelled spring forward

Flowers shot out of the ground and the cherry and apple trees in my sister’s garden started blooming.

The mild weather invited to long walks in the morning. It was just gorgeous.

Paul loved the dry weather

I could comfortably work without worrying about rain.
Since every furnishing is supposed to be removable, I took everything out and reassembled it. Watch the realtime video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/-8doPG1pryA

Yes, I finally build the bed with the desired lounge funktion. In the end, everything worked out as dreamed of, as you can see on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ffl1Izc65tM

That’s it for now. More to come.

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Traveling light

GEF April 14, 2024

The slogan was catchy and the car became a hit. When Daimler-Chrysler introduced the „Smart“, everybody was curious to see what „Reduce to the max“ would mean.

And they liked what they saw: A cute looking city hopper that was stripped off all unnecessary outfits while boosting the fun factor at the same time.

The idea of reducing complexity and thereby focusing on a better result became a guideline for many product lines in different fields and the motto also entered the realm of psychotherapy.

What's the perfect minimum?

It’s fascinating what a good slogan can do. „Reduce to the max“ was created by a Swiss marketing agency and is a great example for how to put a fresh idea into magnetic words.

I wish something like that would come to my mind, especially when I think about marketing for the online business I want to start.

But even more than the words I like the principle behind it.

I like to travel light.

Big Paul is a vehicle that nudges my partner and me to do exactly this: Reduce the equipment and the luggage to the inevitable and make it most efficient and practical.

We don’t want to waste time and energy by taking care of too much stuff.

Getting to the essentials

Stuff. It’s nice to have as long as it’s in use and low in maintenance and not blocking anything important.

On the road, stuff can become a nuisance fast and the sooner you get rid of it the better. I learned this lesson well when I embarked on my first backpack trip to Scotland in my teens.

Packed like a mule, I dragged myself to the train station where I met my friend.

Heaving all the stuff aboard the train that we thought was necessary didn’t spoil the party in the first place. But when we arrived at the final train station on the coast in Belgium and had to walk to the ferry with all that luggage, we realized …

On our arrival in London our first stop was the central post office. I don’t remember how much postage we paid for the big, fat parcel to home, but it was worth every single British Pound.

From that day on, I never put more weight on my back than 13 kilos plus camera and lens when traveling.

This was good enough for trips that took us half around the globe for two or three months.
We had to improvise and find extraordinary solutions often. So, we were getting to places and had awesome encounters you would never experience when traveling the „well-stuffed“ and comfortable way.

Actually, life is very fresh and amusing with very little stuff. It’s amazing how far you can go with just a pair of Jeans, a T-shirt and an open mind.

That’s it for now. More to come.

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A little Progress

EW April 7, 2024

It has been a rainy week. I used the time to visit friends which was a nice alternative to my meanwhile routine of buying stuff at the hardware store and building our mobile office.

Nevertheless, I finished Big Paul’s storage area which will also provide the basis for the bed. You can see it on YouTube: https://youtu.be/NYq3hT0kqZw

No matter how slow, I feel quite exited about the progress as our trip to freedom draws closer.

That’s it for now. More to come.

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Staying hungry

GEF April 7, 2024

70 percent full, my Chinese master stated, would be just perfect.

I think there is a lot of truth in this philosophy. Nothing is as boring as fulfillment. Not just for stomachs …

This is one of the reasons for our blog title „Freedom is calling“.

We have achieved a lot of freedom already, we have been self-employed and independent for a long time.

But …

If we were completely free from „everything“ or there wasn’t anything new to spot or to strive for, it would be very frustrating.

So much to discover

I watched a documentary on Neandertal men the other day. And they discussed the question, why this very advanced, social and robust human species went extinct, while the much more fragile Homo Sapiens survived.

One of the scientists said it might have been for our unsatiable curiosity that was so deeply rooted in our genes. This never ending drive to explore and create. This always wanting more, going deeper, higher, faster and leaving a footprint on the world.

Well, I know it’s all scientific speculation, but it’s definitely true for myself – what makes me procede is my curiosity. When I see a bend in the road I always want to go there and take a look at what’s behind it.

Sometimes you don’t have to go far to discover something new and amazing. Springtime offers a lot of beautiful impressions to enjoy.

Sahara on your doorstep

Something rare happend last week. Whirlwinds in North Africa blew loads and loads of Sahara dust high up into the atmosphere where upper airflows drove it towards Europe.

The Sahara dust phenomenon happens several times of the year. But this one was special, because the dust stayed in a field of constant high atmospheric pressure. Usually it’s accompanied by rain and it leaves cars and window sills with a powdery beige coating.

This time the weather was warm and sunny. The air appeared kind of milky and the disc of sun looked like a large silvery moon all day long.

Just fascinating ….

Total eclipse in the US

Well, while the sun here appeared like the moon, the US and Canada are expecting an alignment of sun and moon: A total eclipse on April 8. Another awesome spectacle that we could experience in Southern Germany in the summer of 1999.

I was lucky to see several partial eclipses in my life, but no comparison to that total eclipse. It only lasted a couple of minutes, but it was breathtaking.

So, I hope for all our American and Canadian friends that you can take time off and watch it – it’s one of the most magical and touching experiences I ever made.

That’s it for now. More to come.

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