Permanent Itchy Feet ?

Do I fight it or go with it?

Up to you.

I certainly would not classify myself as a traveler or adventurer, but at 59, after living in five foreign countries from two to eight years each (not living in my home country for the last 21 years) - I still have the itch for a new place, but the wife is wanting to make a permanent home.

For me, I think it is a matter of new stimuli, new things to see and do, a stimulus rich environment maybe. My home country is fine, but oh so predictable. I am not quite ready to give up the challenges of a new locale, the excitement of discovery, the wonder of solving problems that wouldn't even be problems "back home".

It is okay. We will make a permanent home where we are (SE Asia), but I will probably do more traveling by myself, have longer visits with friends in other places or travel with friends rather than the wife. Or maybe even have a second home somewhere that is mostly for me. Lots of options that don't fit in the regular box that most people keep themselves in.

Fortunately my wife doesn't want to fit into any standard boxes either, so it will all sort out happily one way or another.

Weren't you posting this same thing a few months back?

You got some good advice then (from me!), did you consider it?

To some degree maybe you'll never be completely satisfied. Part of being human is compromise. But you need to sort out for yourself what is most important to you. Is it non-negotiable that you need to be near family and friends? If so then suck up the itchy feet, find a job in the UK somewhere and keep enjoying your summer holidays. If you want to consider living overseas then (as I advised before) think of making a switch that will enhance your career and provide proper income while you do it. You'll still have months of holidays each year and there's nothing to stop you returning each summer to the UK to spend a chunk of time with family and friends as well as enjoying nature etc there.

Do I fight it or go with it?

As zzark said, it's up to you. But don't spend too long considering the question would be my advice. If you decide to stay, commit to that and make the most of it. If you decide to go, get planning. Just vacillating doesn't make for good mental health. (Not saying you can't change your mind in a few years but I think the worst thing you could do would be to stay where you are while constantly thinking you should leave).

I'd recommend moving to Bristol if you want to stay in the UK, it's near enough to be close to your friends, but far enough away to be, well away!

There is also quite an international feel to the city, particularly as it has lots of foreign students and it almost quenches the thirst for being overseas as it just has that air about it!

It also has great employment prospects too.

I'm in a similar boat. I've been a traveler for many years, I came back to Canada about 6 years ago, started a small business and bought a house. But I've been wanting to leave here for the past 3 years or so. I left my business in the trust of a friend about 5 months ago while I went back to Cambodia for a small vacation and to visit a friend .While I was gone my friend decided that he did not want to work so I lost my business. I was very pissed off and angry at first but then I took it as a blessing, my decision has been made for me, that was the push I needed to get out of here. Not the best timing because the housing market here sucks right now so I won't get as much for my house but you can't win them all. So now I have liquidated most of my belongings and my house is up for sale. I'm not going to make much on my house so finding work overseas would be great but the outlook doesn't look good for that. Things should work themselves out somehow, they always do. Maybe i'll take the money I have and buy a small business somewhere warm or start something up myself. Time will tell. So, the point to this little story is, go for it!! Get out there and get that itch off your feet!! I'll be out there doing it as soon as this house sells. Starting in Mexico and heading south from there!

So, the point to this little story is, go for it!!

Hate to tell you but it seems to me that the point to that little story is 'don't mix friends and business'.

Can you not rent the house out rather than sell it? Selling a house at a loss is not a great idea.

OK, looks like my story had two points. I didn't say I was going to lose money on my house, just not make much on it. I would rather sell the house, renters have a tendency of wrecking houses. Plus, I don't want to receive an e-mail while over seas saying there's a problem with my tenants. I did the rental thing a few years back and I will never do it again, they destroyed my duplex and didn't pay any rent, I lost my shirt on that deal. I'd rather sell everything and have no worries. True freedom from possessions. This way if I find work or something to keep me out there, I can stay, no schedule and no time restriction is one step closer to what little freedom we have left.

Thanks for the responses so far. I see the message in your message as
"my decision has been made for me, that was the push I needed to get out of here."
Sometimes I think that things like that happen. I have been in the same situation this year, suspended from my teaching post, falsely accused of gross misconduct and my head used the situation as a tool to oust me from my teaching post and ruin my teaching career.
I came out on top , career intact and my pride and head held high. It was however the universes way of giving my the push I needed!
What have I done so far? Well I went back to work and am waiting for a good opportunityt to leave.
With respect to your house situation, cant you get a letting agency to take the house on for you, for a small fee they will take care of everything.
Good luck in your choices.

Well it's getting cold up here and I have no income so if my house doesn't sell soon I might just have to do that. I would rather sell but the market is real bad right now. I have my house listed for $25,000 below it's market value and there is still no interest. Not a good sign for the economy. My money is going fast living up here in Canada so I might have to rent it out and go soon. For every week I spend up here it's like four weeks down south or in Asia. I need to stretch my money out further. I want to stay out there for as long as possible!!!

planethopper,
Like you used to I too own and run my own business and to me the most obvious and significant point about your story has to do with the mistake you made about how you ran your business. You made a bad decision; you had your friend run it and he ended up ruining it. More specifically the bad decision had to do with character judgement and trustworthiness; you trusted the wrong person.

But I would go back even further to a more fundamental point. Is entrusting a friend to run a business you own a wise thing to do under any circumstance? I know I would never do such a thing. There are countless aspects of the business where I would obviously know what to do but there is just too much accumulated wisdom to convey to anyone in a limited amount of time. Having a defined partnership agreement or a clear employee relationship is one thing; picking a friend for a favor so you can go off on vacation is another matter entirely. That does not mean you cannot take a vacation. In my previous business where it was absolutely necessary to be home to run it, as it was a retail business, I shut it down so I could travel.

As purpletreefrog says, friends and business often don't mix. You may lose a good friend because you weren't compatible business wise and lost a significant amount of money because of decisions she made with which you were critical. Then there is the opposite. I had guy with whom I decided I never would socially mix, but he made a very good business partner. He was honest, had his skills and limitations and once I found out that I had to be in the driver's seat for most decisions, we rarely had any problems.

You had put in significant time, money and effort into your business which failed because of a bad decision you made. You can choose to see the bright side or to call it a good thing. But if you choose to go on life without realizing that you needed to learn a lesson here, then you may well be doomed to repeat them. The next business you buy, in the tropics of your choosing, may end up costing you all of your savings because the person you trusted for the deal ended up defrauding you.

Btw, you may also want to take a close look at your friends again. Someone who ruins your business simply because he decided he didn't want to work, does not sound like someone I would want to call my friend.