What’s Next? (The Sheli Update)

Thanks for popping over to my blog (or Facebook page…or wherever it is you are finding me).

2022 has been a year of change for many of us, in big and small ways.

Many of you probably saw (on Facebook) that I quit my job in April 2022. After 26 years with Alaska USA FCU, it was time to move on to new adventures.

And yes, that has been a big change. I actually popped over to my old office to drop off some cookies and say hello a few weeks ago, and a former colleague remarked that I looked 10 years younger and much happier.

So yes, it was the right decision.

I’ve been doing some freelance consulting work to keep me busy, so the reports of my ‘retirement’ are sadly inaccurately. (That will all change immediately as soon as I win the lottery, of course!)

Quitting my job was just one of many big changes. Bigger, dare I even say ‘monumental’ changes are in the works…

I’ll be closing my business, Desiderata Bed & Breakfast, which I’ve operated since I joined airbnb in 2011.

After hosting hundreds of guests and travelers from around the world, many who became friends, I’m sad to be closing the chapter on that part of my life. (Whether that is permanent or short-term, I don’t know… my future is uncertain!)

In other news, contractors and friends have been helping me knock out some needed house projects as I get my home ready to sell.

Yes, you read that right. Sell. On July 15, 2022, my house goes on the market. I’m selling my house and preparing to leave the state.

Selling my home and leaving my amazing neighbors and community is one of the hardest decisions I have ever made (even harder than the decision to quit my job). I won’t wax on about that because… frankly it makes me tearful and I don’t type very well when I cry..

(Want to buy my house? Contact my realtor, Amy Mackey-Hornak.)

Where are you going, Sheli?

I get that question a lot. Folks are really surprised by the answer.

I DON’T KNOW.

I don’t know what’s next… at least, not in the long-term.

I can tell you what I *think* I’ll be doing and where I *think* I am going to be… for a portion of the last quarter of 2022.

I’ll be out and about, on land, sea & air and I know that those adventures are going to be FANTASTIC.

Even better, they are just the beginning of the fun and adventures that are yet to come.

I’m looking forward to reconnecting with friends from across the country and around the world.

At some point, I’ll jaunt up to/over to Canada to visit two of my besties– Stephanie (in Edmonton) and Kelsey (in B.C.)

I’ll be celebrating the nuptials of an old friend from high school (Erica O.) on my first trip to Colorado.

I’ll bee-bop my way to the Spokane/Cheney area in Washington for some hang time, wisdom gathering and quality time with my dear friend Marcia, her husband (Randy) and mom (Lauren).

I’ll spend some time with my friend Paul as we sail from Florida to the Bahamas.

And then…

After that, I’m not really sure.

Right now, I am thinking about buying a travel trailer and finally really seeing the ‘Lower 48’ in all its glory.

After all, I’ve never taken an extended road trip as an adult.

In 1979 my family (dad, mom & two other sisters) drove in our wood paneled station wagon from Ft. Dix, New Jersey to Ft. Richardson (now known as JBER), Alaska when the military transferred my dad to Alaska.

We repeated the drive up the Alcan in 1983 when we moved (another military PCS) from Ft. Ord, California back to Anchorage, Alaska.

Those are the longest road trips I have ever taken, and I’ve never done one on my own for any significant distance. . My *only* solo road trips as an adult were to visit my grandmother, and involved short drives from Salt Lake City, UT to Las Vegas, NV.

We drove the Alcan again (this time in our motorhome) from Ft. Ord, California to Anchorage, Alaska in 1983.

And my grandparents took us on road trips from Florida to Alabama dba Virginia to Alabama in our youth.

But my upcoming travels will be my first real cross-country road trip as an adult.

And I’ll stopping at every labyrinth I can find along the way, of course.

Image by Miriam_die_Taenzerin from Pixabay

I hope to connect in person with all the lovely ladies from my bible study group who’ve become supporters, prayer partners, confidantes and and friends. They are scattered across the country (and around the world!)

Right now, the possibilities are endless.

My dear friend Jerri told me it’s time to stop working for other people and time to start working for myself. I’ll be exploring what that looks like as a consultant, but doing work that is different from what I’ve done in the past.

I’ll be diving deeper into my writing, and exploring various business ventures.

And I’ll be digging deeper into myself on a voyage of self-discovery, faith and whatever else God has planned for me.

It should be (mostly) fun.