Our upcoming move to la isla del encanto has been one heck of a journey, and we haven’t even moved yet! It has come to mean so many things to us that it really is difficult to explain to others without a lengthy conversation that challenges commonly held beliefs. For this reason we normally leave it to simple things that we all understand; nice weather (no snow), growing plants, playing in the ocean, and achieving a goal. When we first started down our path and looked at properties in Puerto Rico we were simply going to get a mortgage and move. That was the extent of our planning. No idea of how we were going to make money or what we would be doing.

First Property We tried to Purchase

Through the process of discovery which unfolded in front of us on our path we found solutions to all the big ‘problems’. How are we going to buy food? How are we going to PAY OUR BILLS!? Do I need a corporate/cubicle job down there? I was obviously still thinking in the box.  A box I had forgot existed even though I am in it everyday.

I didn’t realize what actual freedom entails or that I was even in a system that doesn’t promote or teach it, which is odd because we live in the ‘land of the free’. I didn’t even realize I wasn’t free! I like to use the movie “Matrix” as an analogy to the realization of what we were actually up against.

The answers came over time.

One essential thing was to cut our bills to a manageable size (no mortgage, very little in the way of consumer goods and NO SUBSCRIPTIONS). It’s pretty easy in the U.S. and totally normal to spend $1000/mo or more on just a spot to sleep. And that seems…I dunno…Kind of ridiculous. When you are first starting out on your own, that consumes a lot of your money. That money that you traded your life’s energy for.  Then add on cable, phone, utilities and all the other modern conveniences of life I haven’t ever been without for long.

Why do I have to spend money simply to exist?
A> Because that is the way it was decided long before me.  It is that simple.

The meaning behind this became profound.  Debt is the basis of American lives and is what our economy is built upon.  We as a nation rarely if ever mention this and certainly the paid for advertising of our mainstream media isn’t going to let it be known.  It isn’t taught in public school, or discussed on the television.  The debt based consumer mindset opened my eyes to how the things I buy hold me down. Everything I purchase has associated costs.  The concept of less is more started to appeal to me and also gets me closer to our end goal.

This is a huge consideration in my life now. Want that shiny object?  Would you trade your life for it? Is it worth 2-10 years of my life to have a new Corvette Z06 that will continue to consume more of my life’s energy (in the form of money for gas, licensing, insurance, tickets, repairs and worry)? No. I have struggled with this as an American male.  I started to question it. Where does that consumerism seed get started? Is it just an exploitation of a hard-wired evolutionary biological mechanism?  Is it installed into me by society and advertising? I think it’s a mixture, but it is deeply rooted in our culture and taught to us as children.  Want.

This poster was in MANY of my classrooms

You see. This decision to walk a different path, even if just slightly,  from the standard has spawned an introspective thought process.  This is where true freedom begins, with our choices.  Not just the choices of what to buy, but the choice of how to think.  How to operate this human machinery.  It has allowed me to see more clearly and be more aware of my surroundings, motivations and beliefs.  All of this came from a simple goal to move to an island.

Creating the lifestyle that we envisioned is now on our doorstep. We are both looking forward to a life without the rat race. No more waking up everyday at 6am to shower, eat, commute and work towards someone else’s dream and someone else’s freedom. We get to work at our dream and our freedom.  At the age of 34 I’d say that is one hell of an accomplishment and we are only getting started.

Today marks my last day of work and entrance into wonderland.