The Edge of Miraculous

That's me on the edge of West Sedona, AZ on a hike around Chimney Rock.

“We live at the edge of miraculous.”

Henry Miller

With this post, we celebrate my 200th posting! Since 2010 I’ve enjoyed sharing my ups, my downs, and my all arounds in an attempt to inspire you to consider the best within yourself, to guide you into forward thinking, and to learn from the circumstances of your life. I reflect on these things every day and have found them to be powerful influences in my life. I am making it a point to consider every day as living at the edge of miraculous.

With that in mind:

• Even though I have been blogging for a number of years, I have never stepped into the social media scene until the last few days. I can now be found on Facebook as well as Instagram and the new travel website my husband, Dennis, and I collaborate on www.damclark.com. While I will continue to post weekly on both sites, it will be fun to share my thoughts on any given day via Facebook, and photos of where I am and what I am doing on Instagram. Other than these hyperlinks noted, you may also find links in the Follow Me section of the sidebar. This is a big change for me personally, and I am looking at the social media scene as if I were standing on the edge of miraculous.
• I would also like to share with you an exciting change in the future of It Is What It Is. Once again it’s time to update the look and feel of this website and will do so in the upcoming months. Change, my word for 2016, is guiding me to the edge of miraculous time and time again this year, so it seems appropriate that this website follow suit.

I do believe we all live at the edge of something. Try considering and making whatever it is miraculous. This type of forward thinking will change your life. Celebrate with me as I embrace my 200th post with miraculous. And if you are allowing fear to slow forward thinking and miraculous days ahead, just know I am with you and I am holding your hand!

Living at the edge of miraculous in Sedona, AZ courtesy of our Clark family photos

My New Normal

Now that we are officially houseless and making our way as we live a life on the road, it is time to evaluate my new normal. Physically and mentally I know I do best when I have a sense of balance and routine in my life-most people do. While on vacation, well, I'm on vacation and the routine goes out the window. Since I'm not on vacation, and traveling is how I live now, it is probably even more important to create some semblance of balance by maintaining a routine. In other words, a sense of normal. Simple is always the best approach so here’s what I am focusing on:

• Meditate and set the pace of my day
• Make it a point to have a consistent sleep schedule and catch the 8 hours I need
• Stay hydrated, and eat healthy meals
• Keep my body in shape by continuing to include what used to be my "normal" workout routines: run/walk, lift weights, yoga, stretching, and a few laps in a pool now and then

I may have to be creative in keeping to these goals, but in creativity I may find something else I can do to help my body thrive under ever-changing circumstances. For example: I have been lifting weights for nearly 30 years. But traveling with dumbbells is obviously not possible and joining gyms everywhere we go is not the answer, so I purchased resistance bands of varying strengths. These pack into a small pouch and don't take up much room or add weight to the suitcase. While I have just started working with the bands, I am enjoying the change and know it will help me stick to my new normal and thrive.

By focusing on what I know I need to do and keeping it as simple as I can, I will be successful in keeping myself in the best of health and enjoy my new normal to the fullest. Are you thinking about making a positive change in your life? If so, keep it simple, be creative, and you, too, will be successful.

3D world map courtesy of kcp4911

Winds of Change

We hit the road the day our house closed, now officially houseless, and head to...Yakima, Washington! Isn’t that everyone’s top destination? We stayed with family, attended a wedding, and took care of a few business details. We then head south to Oregon, Nevada, and Arizona. For more details on what we are up to you might be interested to know that my husband, Dennis, and I are officially launching a new blog with the focus on traveling and our new lifestyle without a house. You will be able to follow along as we live a life on the road. You can find our travel blog life is a journey at: www.damclark.com. You may also find us by taking a look at the sidebar in this blog where I now have my travel link. When visiting life is a journey, make sure you subscribe to receive a post anytime we publish.

Oh, and don’t you worry. You will still be able to find inspiration right here with It Is What It Is. Since I will be traveling, there will be even more to share with you as I find my way on the uncertain path ahead. If you are a regular follower of this blog, you know my word for 2016 is change. And while I have dealt with many changes already this year, I know the winds of change will continue to shape my future in the days ahead for the better.

Now what photo courtesy of John Eisenschenk

Done and Done

While we have moved forward with our plotted course to move out of our home, sell it, and hit the road houseless, the last three weeks were full of the final to-do’s and extra-long days doing them. Even though everything seemed to be falling into place with the listing, selling, inspections, and the like, we had to maneuver around a setback or two, more than a few obstacles, and our share of headaches the last few months.

Our biggest headaches seemed to center on back injuries. My husband, Dennis, brought in the new year by injuring his back when we were going to need his back more than ever in the upcoming months. Fortunately, with physical therapy, massage, and a lifting brace for his back he performed remarkably. Injuring backs came to a head just days before our large furniture move on April 9. One of our friends who had helped us out moving this and that into our storage unit over the last two months, and was scheduled to help with the big move, put his back out. Then, the day of the move we found that a cousin of ours, who was scheduled to help, injured his back the night before. Fortunately for us, we have amazing cousins who came to our rescue last minute. It was like a mini family reunion with major cousin love moving us on.

The last two weeks were a combination of cleaning out this and that, boxing up the kitchen, food removal, and preparation for the next two months on the road. We held onto our mattress until a few days before closing and stayed in a nearby hotel for our last nights in town. Even with the ups and downs of the move testing our patience, all was officially wrapped up with the signing of the final papers Monday, the house officially closing on Wednesday, and the check hitting our bank on Thursday. Done and done!

During the packing process, Dennis found two dozen bottle rockets. After we locked up the house for the last time, he set up a launching tube and fired them off in groups of four to six at a time. When the final one had popped, I shouted at the top of my lungs, “Wahoo, the Clark’s have left the neighborhood.” Done and done indeed!

Fireworks photo courtesy of Epic Fireworks

Steps in the Right Direction

With the pending closing date set at April, 20, we are only weeks away from making the big move out of our home. We passed the house, well, and septic inspections with no issues to deal with, and as of last week an appraisal was done. While we are anxious to dismantle the home staging and get on with the business of wrapping up what we have left to move out, we continue to be in a limbo stage until the home buyer’s bank gives them approval of their loan. We are not expecting any problems with their loan application, but it is in our best interest to be patient and sit tight.

Waiting during this period prior to the acceptance of the buyer’s loan application has allowed us to slow down a bit and plan for our first few destinations. We really couldn’t do that before this because we didn’t know when the house would sell. Planning our initial destinations strengthened our resolve to be houseless and travel for the next few years. I know I was filled with a giddy excitement and I could tell my husband, Dennis, was feeling the same way. Anyone who knows Dennis would not necessarily put giddy and Dennis together, but I can tell you he was giddy, nonetheless!

Approximately three years ago we talked about moving. Two years ago we decided we didn’t know where we wanted to live and we knew we would be traveling extensively so why have the expense of keeping an abode. Since that realization we have aggressively laid down the tracks and set an intentional course on a new direction in our lives. While we are definitely changing how we do everything, change and this new direction have filled our lives with a knowing that we are headed in the right direction. How do we know we are headed in the right direction? Because with each step we take, doors begin to open, and life seemingly falls into place showing us we are on the right path.

Question mark sign courtesy of Colin Kinner