My next goal

A few things came together last week which quickly launched me into a plan to accomplish my next goal. That goal is to have two cars, two pets, two people and the contents of a four-bedroom house packed up and transported to Illinois before the end of the summer. And no, I’m not running there. Although that actually seems less daunting.

The logistical plan has to factor in a few challenges: a dog and a cat that aren’t on good terms, a teenager who at times can be less than cooperative, and several inflexible calendar items like a wedding in Ireland, a college freshman orientation, and tickets to Panorama in New York and Lollapalooza in Chicago about a week apart.

I started by creating a calendar and plugging in all the inflexible dates. Then I added everything else, moving and shifting to make it all work; an intricate puzzle that fit together with remarkable precision. I drew on my years of experience managing fundraising events and other projects. When my fabulous, infallible plan was complete, I presented it to the teenager, who didn’t like it one bit and sent me back to the drawing board.

Thankfully in the spirit of cooperation and compromise we came up with a solution. I changed my perspective around her “demands” and saw a way that her ideas could work for me. Having her in New Jersey a little longer while I set up the new place in Chicago (read: do it my way), will be tremendously beneficial. Considering and learning from past experiences, having that time to myself will keep me sane. I recall when I first moved into my current home, I was moving my mother in with us as well. To save on the moving van, I had them pick-up all her stuff, and then our stuff and we all moved in at once. It was chaotic. The added expense would have alleviated lots of stress.

Secretively, I CAN NOT WAIT to have a bathroom to myself and to not have my efforts to keep a clean house instantly undermined. I’m having a tough time relating to the empty nesting parents in tears at college drop off. I’m going to be cranking Bob Seger and sliding along the hardwood floors. Yeah, the new place needs to have hardwood floors.

So, the plan is in place. The road trip in the convertible with the dog. 14+ hour Spotify playlist. A week of boyfriend-dog bonding while I venture back east to tie up lose ends and get a flight to Ireland for the weekend. A cat-sitter. A few more flights to book; a few nights in a hotel. The only hole in the plan is the new place, my destination. Working on that next.

I’m counting on my now big, long to-do list to keep me busy and my mind off the nervous anticipation that comes with a big transition like this. While I am sincerely looking forward to this new chapter in my life and embracing the adventure that lies ahead, I am also leaving behind what is so familiar; a life I could lead with my eyes closed. But I have been dreaming of being someplace else since I came back after college over 30 years ago. And having one’s eyes wide open certainly makes it easier to get things done!

In the last year, my dream became a goal. And now the goal is becoming a reality. Dreaming. Goal setting. Manifesting. Planning. Doing. Ultimately, it always comes down to “doing.” So, back to my to-do list I go. More on manifesting to come next month.