In between days

Mo:

Wow, it´s difficult to combine work and holiday in the way I´m doing right now. Some days work - and some days off work. There has been a lack of continuity lately, and adding to the schizophrenic feeling is the fact that I´m leaving for London on Sunday. I´ve just come back to some sort of normality today, after returning from Croatia and Sunday sees me leaving for 5 days - again. This time, I´m the one having time off, whilst P is working.

Coming back from London I have 1-2 days at home until it´s re-packing the bags to go to Dalarna for 3 days... working 1 day on my return and then I´m booked for a convention in Florence.
We talked about traveling to Florence together and stay for 3-4 nights extra. I have to admit, though, that I felt fed up with my suitcase already in May, which meant I´m flying to Florence on the same day as the event and going back on the first best plane the next morning.

Since my work has taken me several times around the world in the last 12 years, traveling produces mixed feelings in me. It is not enough to love traveling in my line of work, you have to LIVE it.

Unless you have tried the lifestyle for a couple of years, it is difficult to understand what it is really like, packing your bags for the 1.000 time, dealing with morons at check in/airport security, eating unhealthy airport/hotel food, arriving and leaving for flights in the middle of the night/Godforsaken red eye flights, traveling alone, eating alone, sleeping alone, getting driven around by dodgy taxi drivers - convention employees, getting booked for dinners at 10pm and finally having the food arrive on the table around midnight (with your first class starting at 8.00am in the morning), arguing with hotel staff whilst trying to get them to understand that you do not want a smoking room/broken toilet seat/no heating-no air-conditioning/pets in the shape of ants/cockroaches/creepy crawlies, etc etc

What makes it worth it?

Being my own boss.
Doing what I LOVE to do. And getting paid for it.
Meeting phenomenal people/new friends from all walks of life.
Having cappuccino in Rome, Greek Salad in Athens and fish´n´chips in London.
Seeing the world and learning from other countries/nationalities.
Decide what I want to do next.
...plus a million more things!...

NOT having to

- endure a 9-5 job
- worry about dress code
- live through the 10am gossip
- deal with office politics
- listen to people daily who do not like their jobs
- ask for a salary raise
- ask for more holidays
- take sick leave when it´s 30 degrees outside
...oh, this list could go on FOREVER...

Until the space time travel capsule has become a reality, I will have to live with the physical part of traveling...

Now if somebody could just tell me how to find my work focus on the days in between?