Back in the real world....

A few thoughts to share about what's going on outside this adventure and my life back in Atlanta...

A nice young married couple has been renting my house since June, but they are only renting there through January '09. As of today, that's about 4 weeks until that cashflow stops for me, so things are getting a little tense about finding new tenants.

I've posted my house on craigslist, hoping like last time that I could find tenants on my own instead of through an apartment agent. Tough part is, I just looked for the ad I posted a couple of days ago and it's about 45 pages down on the search through Atlanta! (I think people are abusing the free posting on craigslist....)

If all goes as I want to, I'll have a new lease signed and tenants set for move-in February 1st. Still, that might mean that I have to come back to Atlanta to empty out the furniture that remains, as the new tenant might not be willing to live with the remainder of my stuff.

But I'm in the middle of this trip, so how do I get back to Atlanta? Well, there's about a 10-day period coming up where we have to ship the bikes from Panama to South America, and instead of just riding on the boat with my bike, I could in fact get back to Atlanta. (Hate to think about that added cost, but I might need to tend to these things and I'd love to see some of my friends!)

Speaking of that, Peter is talking with some of his connections, and it sounds like could be getting a really good deal on shipping to South America. It might have to be to Chile, meaning I'd be skipping Columbia, Ecuador, and Peru for now. But I could always come back and see those countries later in 2009, as I'm planning on finding work in Chile/Argentina to get me through this year. Also, timing is getting tough for me to make it all the way to Ushuaia this season. It will be snowing down there in just a couple of months, and this might be a bit of a stretch for me to make it all that way seeing how I'm only in El Salvador right now on January 2nd!!! I don't like the idea of just twisting the throttle, and hustling through this trip. Taking the time to see places and meet people is what makes this all worth while....

I'm having a blast with this trip, and it's an adventure and experience of a lifetime I cherish every day. But getting my house re-rented is a major issue in making my plans continue, so my thanks to anyone and everyone out there who has ideas that may help.

It's tough to be away from the U.S. right now too. My heart goes out to my Grandma (Shushie) who broke her ankle on Christmas eve with a fall. Sure hope things are getting better up there, and that you're feeling better!