Lifestyle Choices
For over a year, we have chosen to live between our camper van and caravan. We do have a flat in Edinburgh, but we are not there often enough to call it home.. We did rent a 3 bedroom place in Cardiff for many years for work and family commitments, but life changes – and you either stay with the ‘status quo’ and feel unfulfilled with your choice, or you can make change in your life and just do it!
We travel to many different places for our work – all over the UK, USA and Europe. We are performers and storytellers. Mario is a magician and teacher. We are also purveyors of magical items, handcrafted jewellery, coaches, readers and self development circle and event organisers.
My most favourite things about our last life change and living more simply follows –
1. Downsize and get rid of stuff!
Time to get rid of stuff! It can be hard at the beginning, but the more you do it the easier and more fun it becomes. It’s liberating to get rid of clothes, books, furniture and all the bits and pieces that gather over the years. I also found it surprising how little I actually do need to be comfortable and happy. Making decisions on what to wear in the morning is so much easier as I now only have my favorite clothes with me.
It is also good to recycle and to give things away. However, you can, of course, sell any things you no longer need either at your local car boot sale – go with the intention of not coming back with anything and reflect that in your prices, or sell your more valuable things online.
We found local Facebook Marketplace to be a winner – but also used Gumtree and eBay. Read my blog The Story of Stuff here to find out a little bit more about how we did it.
2. Only pay for where you are staying
When we lived in bricks and mortar house, regardless of whether we were there or not – the rent still had to be paid, as did the council tax, utilities, wifi and everything else. This was frustrating as we were often away from 3 days to 3 months with work commitments and trips.
When we are not on the campsite with our caravan or parked up in another campsite somewhere else, we simply don’t pay! Sometimes that place is on the edge of the world with just the sea in front of you! We have discovered and stayed for free in some amazing locations.
Our free parking rules to ourselves are – always leave the area cleaner than how we found it, don’t park in front of someones house, don’t stay longer 2 days, don’t bring our your barbi and chairs unless its a welcome campervan place (they do exist), find beautiful places not car parks (when we can help it)!
3. Discover amazing places on your doorstep
Simply because you can. We have discovered amazing places to park up in our camper van close to our respective home cities – that we may have heard about, but never had the time to visit.
I found that living in one location and you when I had time off, the reality was, that I wanted to go somewhere different. Now, we have the time and inclination to find nice places close by to our home cities or where we work and we have discovered some beautiful local nature spots so close to familiar locations. Often rural country parks, quirky camper stops and lots of lovely places.
We are very lucky to have got to know the amazing people who run Coed Hills – a beautiful, sustainable community only 10 miles from Cardiff. When we have time – we buzz in (they call us bees) and stay on a fair energy exchange. I absolutely love this land and the community there and I am learning a lot as well. This would not have happened if we still lived in our bricks and mortar house in Cardiff. Discover amazing places on your doorstep!
4. Get more creative
I didn’t know how much time I spent pottering about the house – pretending I was cleaning the house and the kitchen but in realily just spending a lot of time moving things from one place to another. I could spend hours in the day doing this, convinced I was doing something really worthwhile! When in fact, I was just procrastinating and not doing the work that I could have been doing in order to be able to do the creative things I really wanted to do!
Now, with so little distractions, it’s easier to be motivated to get things done – things like working on websites, future shows, finding bookings, travel arrangments, keeping our busking online shop up to date, getting ready to launch another online shop and business… so many things to do and now I feel I have the time to do it.
I now have time to do things I love to do – writing, studying subjects I love, creating my tarot practice, taken up drawing and other creative hobbies, as well as spending a huge amount of time in nature.
5. Simplify your life.
Life is just more simple, less stressful, fewer worries and I am much more present. Cutting down on things that I own has made me feel less weighed down. Although we are not minimalists – I have cut out SO much out of my life that it feels that I am!
Freeing up time!
I have freed up time, so I can enjoy the more creative things l love to do, I no longer have mountains of paperwork – I get rid of paperwork that I don’t need to keep instead of just ‘filing’ them away – making my head feel less full, I have time listen to the birds and so many other things. I no longer feel bogged down things I must do. I still have things to, but now manage them into fitting into our lives in the van.
6. Choose where to spend time
We have stayed in so many beautiful locations in Wales and South West England through our work and travels – never feeling that we have to rush back to accommodation that we are paying for elsewhere. This gives us the freedom to explore!
January past, after working for 7 weeks in Winter Wonderland in Cardiff and stayed with friends, we then spent 3 weeks in Southern Spain with Mario’s family, 4 days in Blackpool for a magic convention where we are dealers, 2 weeks in Edinburgh at our holiday let apartment – I will write how to turn your home into a business and run in remotely in another blog – and 3 weeks in Las Vegas.
Freedom to choose where you want to be.
7. Happiness
My level of happiness has zoomed through the roof. I am living the life I want to live now, whilst I have my good health and able to do this. I am more productive and creative. I have less worries – about life, health, finances and no am free from worrying about what others may think! . My relationship with my soul mate and husband Mario Morris is richer and fuller then ever before. I spending more time in nature where I am naturally at my happiest and I get to meet the most interesting people and see the most amazing places.
Don’t wait until tomorrow, what you want to do today.
If we can be of help through coaching, inspiration or readings – get in touch here
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