I am not good at spontaneity.

Anyone who knows me well just laughed out loud and said “ya think?”

I am a planner, through and through. I like to stay ahead of things. I like to plan out every possible scenario in my head so that even when things go wrong, a plan B, C, and D exist to ward off disaster. And yes, sometimes an E. And an F. Because of counseling, there is now rarely a G.

So as I embark on this mid-life gap year, that will begin, officially “soon”,* I am realizing that the only way this will work is if I can be spontaneous. My trip to Paris could become a trip to Canton, Ohio and a trip to New York could become Venice.

Because of 2 kids in college, most trips will need to be budget conscious (with a few notable exceptions where I will literally be spending our kid’s inheritance). Therefore taking advantage of last minute deals will be my friend.

I envision a scenario where I wake up and find an amazing last minute special in my inbox (provided by Expedia or Travelocity or even my own travel agent) and go hey, why not?? And then head to the airport.

This will be part of why I am doing this in the first place. I need to flex the part of my brain that embraces uncertainty fully and with faith. Faith that things will work out, and that sometimes they won’t. Faith that I really can just go with my gut and jump in the car or get on a plane and figure it out when I get there. We live in the technological age, for heaven’s sake – I can plan an entire trip to Europe ON THE WAY TO EUROPE, using the plane’s wifi and my mad internet skills.

Will things go horribly wrong from time to time? Oh my, yes. Absolutely. I am, in fact, counting on that because a year of well planned, expensive and well thought out travel just seems . . . BORING.