Working remotely is officially a thing. Everyone is doing it. COVID forced the issue and managers and companies that had refused to entertain the idea had no choice but to embrace it. Home offices are taking over guest rooms. She sheds are turning into backyard work spaces. Kids and pets pop into virtual meetings (oops!)
What does that have to do with travel? Well … if you can work from home, why can’t you work from anywhere? We’re going to give it a shot.
Greg still has a full-time job. In fact, even though we live in Arizona, most of his colleagues are based on the East Coast, so his daily work schedule skews very early in the day (he sometimes at his desk by 5 a.m.!). He has a laptop and a desktop computer, two monitors,two phones and … well … let’s just say he’s VERY wired. If we can do it, anyone can.
Here’s the plan: We’re going to map out a week-long trip. We’ll leave mid-afternoon, when Greg’s workday ends and drive for about four hours. It’s a great time of the day to do it as the heat of the day abates, colors take on new vibrancy in the fading light, and the sun sets signaling the end of the day.
We talk, we listen to the stereo, but we mostly talk. We’ve spent our un-won lottery prizes dozens of times. We’ve planned trips to hundreds of places. We’ve pondered the origins of the roads and towns we’ve passed through. It’s a great time to shake off the work stresses of the day and look ahead to the future. It’s just about the right amount of time to hit the road without getting bored.
When we get to our hotel for the night, we can pop into a local restaurant and meet new people. We can enjoy the lights of new towns and cities.
The next day — while Greg puts in a day “at the office” — I can explore the town and its tourist attractions. If there’s something he really wants to see that is only open during “business hours”, he can take a couple of hours off to see it and resume his work day.
You may have noticed that kind of day requires a VERY late checkout! We’re lucky enough to have status with our hotel chain of choice and that enables us to request a 4pm checkout. We’re going to take full advantage of that perk. It’s one of the reasons brand loyalty can pay off. However, if we’re at a place where that’s just not possible, he’ll just relocate somewhere quiet to get his work done … a coffee shop, the hotel lobby, a shady park. Years ago, Greg and a colleague built an entire presentation while on a business trip, sitting on a bench in front of the lake in Celebration, Florida on a sunny day with some coffee, a pad of paper and some pencils.
I may even use some of the time to make notes for future blogs … and even write one or two.
Occasionally, we’ll stay more than a day in one place and spend some extra time exploring, but for the most part, it will be something of a potpourri of places and scenes – leapfrogging from town to town and city to city. It may not work, but we are excited to give it a try and I’ll let you know along the way.
There’s a whole world out there waiting to be explored. Why not find a whole new way to explore it?
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