Initially, we titled this post “the perfect day.” But it occurred to us that perfect takes many shapes–depending on mood, the weather, the season, and even what we did yesterday. What makes this example the one I chose to include is that this perfect day embodies the freedom to enjoy simple pleasures on our own terms. To do our favorite things without deadlines looming or workplace interruptions. Our perfect day could also be exploring a new place. Perhaps A Perfect Day will be a recurring post theme, where we can share perfect days, imagined or actually experienced, along the way to financial independence.
Living in a place that experiences four distinct seasons, our perfect day definitely varies according to the weather. But because this is an imaginary perfect day, I’m using my favorite type of weather. Autumn is my favorite season at home, so that’s the seasonal backdrop for this perfect day. The forecast calls for sunny skies, and a high in the low to mid 70s. Leaves are changing colors.
I wake up sometime between 6 and 7, without the aid of an alarm clock. I’ll linger under the covers as long as the cats will let me. The cats will get breakfast. I’ll start a pot of French pressed coffee. I’ll savor the coffee either over writing (blog or journal) or maybe some reading (social media or serious /educational nonfiction). By the time I’ve finished, it’s probably between 9 and 10 a.m. Time for a run! Let’s go for a 10km run, which gets me home around 11 a.m. Mr. Vine and I will cook breakfast together. We cook a breakfast hash with food from farmers we know. Since it’s autumn, we’re at peak harvest season, making our meal extra delicious and entirely local. Over breakfast, we talk about how we want to spend our the day. With the perfect weather, we decide to head to our favorite park for a hike in the woods. We pack a small picnic; trail mix, drinks, and maybe some sandwiches.
We hike out to our favorite spot, overlooking a beautiful lake. I’ve brought along some reading material. Probably fiction. Mr. Vine turns on the speaker and we crack open our beverages. We relax and enjoy our picnic, do a little bit of reading, maybe even nap. Then we’ll pack up and hike out, heading home in time to catch the sunset on our home patio with some homemade ice cream. If we’re hungry for dinner after our beach picnic, we’ll cook something simple–maybe a frozen pizza or spaghetti.
The last few hours before bed will be spent doing any necessary tidying up, cleaning litterboxes, feeding dinner to the cats. Once all of that is done, we’ll turn in and maybe catch up on some shows before lights out.
Although this day is imaginary, we’ve experienced many similar days. This is the kind of thing we try to incorporate into our career oriented lives. It isn’t difficult or complicated. It costs almost nothing. That sounds like a pretty perfect, perfect day to us.