First a Look Back on 2023
Before looking ahead to the new year it seems appropriate to look back on the year. We have a ton to be thankful for. DJ continues to progress well at Thomas Jefferson High School. We did a ton of hiking, including our 6,250 ft hike of Volcan Baru, and spent a month in Panama.
Our health continues to improve, with important blood markers (Homa-IR, Trig:HDL Ratio, Inflammation) and body composition (visceral fat levels) looking better and better. All despite eating lots of meat and saturated fat. And my uric acid is the lowest ever!
We also sold the cabin — a major step necessary for a future of travel. Add in cooking experiences in butchering, Afro-Panamanian and, separately, Philippine cooking, and we’ve had a ton of fun and learned a lot. Realistically, I don’t think we could have asked for a better year. So what’s ahead?
So Much Planned for 2024
We have a ton planned for 2024. We’re also thinking about the biggest changes in 2026 when DJ heads to college. At that time we’ve been thinking we would go to Asia to slow travel a while — but we are also thinking of walking the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Spain. It may seem like a long time till then again. However, unwinding nearly 30 years of accumulation takes lots of time. This is especially true if you consider a month plus in Ecuador this summer, with luck a 4 day hike of Havasu, learning Spanish (using the amazing resource of Dreaming Spanish), listing the business for sale, needed repairs at the house, and many other odds and ends.
The over-arching themes continue to be 1/ optimizing our health 2/ experiences (especially with DJ while we have him) and 3/ de-accumulation for our multi-year, self-directed, humanities education. In that vein:
Optimizing Health
By all accounts a very low carb, real food focused, zero vegetable oil (and minimal olive oil) diet is working very well for Hillary and I. As mentioned, blood markers and body composition continue to improve. I plan to go closer still to pure carnivore with World Carnivore Month to see what else can improve. I’m also going to see if I can quit caffeine – something I’ve had in my life for 40’ish years. And having, nearly quit alcohol entirely last year we plan to continue this.
Why quit caffeine? Two reasons — I still get periodic headaches that I haven’t been able to attribute to anything else. And… Having ready access to (good) coffee/tea on long term travel is unlikely.
On the low-carb note, I’m super proud of one set of our parents who agreed to give this lifestyle a try and have reported lots of lost body fat and increased energy! Loving the willingness to give it a try.
I do plan to find a workout pattern that would allow me to stop using Anytime Fitness this year. Not that I feel a huge need to do so but expecting access to a gym is inconsistent with long term travel. So… I plan to spend the year finding a good strength routine with bands we can carry with us. I also plan to continue working on Zone 2 outside (e.g. running very slowly). Finally, its clear that stretching and mobility is critical so I need to build a pattern to support that too — without Hinge Health from an employer.
Experiences in 2024
There are really two major things for 2024. First, Havasu. If we are lucky enough to get permits, and this might be a big if, we’ll fly to Las Vegas, rent camping gear, and hike from the rim of the Grand Canyon down to the Havasupai Village to see the waterfalls and perhaps even the confluence.
Then, similar to last summer in Panama, we plan to spend a month in Ecuador. DJ will be 3 weeks with Amigos International learning Spanish and doing service projects. Simultaneously, Hillary and I will explore other parts of the country to include a 4 day, 3 night hike on the Quilotoa Loop.
De-Accumulation
Last but not least, the continuing saga of de-accumulation. Who know it was so hard to divest oneself of decades worth of accumulation? I’m talking two homes, a business, and all the stuff inside them. We took care of the cabin in 2023 – selling to a family we think will get great use of it — similar to the time I spent at my grandmothers cabin on Lake Ozonia when I was a child.
Next up is the sale of the business which got listed today (January 1, 2024) and eventually the home we live in. This year is mostly about repairs to the house. However, we still need to digitize important records and get rid of the rest, figure out what we want to keep and how to pack it for long term storage, and identify a storage location, probably in Florida, where we will declare our “residence”.
Best wishes to everyone for 2024!
