The Exit Plan :(

The "I"s are dotted and the "T"s are Crossed!

It's hard to believe that we have been on the road for 9 months! Unfortunately, we are at the point we need to start making decisions on the opportunities we have in front of us. The debate for the past few weeks has been where to land in the spring of next year. If you're a regular reader, you know that we have committed to spending winter in Tucson, AZ. Laura has a temporary job with a drug treatment facility in Tucson. She has committed to 6 month's, from October through March.

We love Salt Lake City and have a great bunch of friends already in place. However, we also love the Denver area and I have a great job opportunity there. After much debate, pro and con lists, discussion with family and friends; We have made a decision.

beginning in May 2007, the Bag-it-Tour will officially end in Denver, Colorado! More precisely, we hope to be in Boulder, CO. Boulder reminds us so much of Ann Arbor, MI but with the addition of mountains! We love college towns and everything they have to offer! The price of housing in Boulder means we will be getting something smaller(under 2,000 sq ft), older(pre 80's) and in need of some TLC (read: will need updating). We've done the big house on a huge lot thing and we don't want to do it again. Too much work and expense to keep up; We want to spend our free time playing in the mountains!

For our RV friends, yes, we will look for a place with an RV pad with hook-ups ;)

In an interesting coincidence that we just found out about; The real estate agent that we dealt with back in Michigan, and bought and sold our last 2 homes through, has a sister that is a real estate agent that lives in....You guessed it.....Boulder! We plan on heading back to that area in early September (to coincide with the Mountain Wine Festival :) to meet and explore some areas with her, give her our time table of moving to the area and showing her what types of things we are looking for.

On to the job front. I have accepted a Business Development Manager position with Maverick Ranch. I have represented this company as an independent broker for 5 years. Since my Coca Cola days, I have vowed NEVER to return to Fortune 100, big business corporate America! Maverick Ranch and the Moore family is the pinnacle of the "anti-corporation". They have the necessary "sense of urgency" that you need in business, without forgetting what comes first; quality of life and family!

The exact definition of my job is determined by what I make of it. How great is that! I will be developing new business, primarily in the Pacific Northwest, managing new and existing brokers (since I was one for 5 years) and helping out in the marketing department. Who knows, I may even grab a knife and help out in the processing room! (OK....Not really that far!)

Anyway, if I sound excited, it's because I am! The opportunity here is unbelievable and the growth of the Organic grocery segment is off the charts. The Moore family has been extremely supportive of the Bag-it-tour. They know and are willing to work around the fact that Laura accepted the position in Tucson for the winter; I'll be telecommuting during that time! Plus, living in mountains is something we have both dreamed of since leaving Michigan!

The end of the Bag-it-Tour is a sad thought. It's been a wild and crazy ride! We are extremely grateful to have been able to enjoy a taste of this wonderful lifestyle in our mid thirties. Most people don't have the ability to try something like this until they retire or have dreams of trying it but are fearful for stepping outside of their comfort zone and taking a chance!

One thing we know for sure; We'll be returning to this mobile lifestyle someday in the future. Between the places we've been, the people we've met and the challenge of the next adventure it is too intoxicating not to! However, we're not done yet! So we hope you'll continue to follow the adventure through to end. Thanks to all of our faithful reader's; Those that have sent words of encouragement, ideas for places to visit and those that just lurk in the background as we move about the country!

-Rich-