State of the Savage: April/May 2019

The last couple of months have been quite the change in the life of Traveling Savage. Working full-time at an office while continuing to write here and provide trip consultations has proven to be taxing, not to mention the myriad tasks and responsibilities of simply being alive that now get crowded into our evenings and weekends.

After eight years of self-employment, I think Sarah and I had taken for granted my freedom to manage the house at will. We will adjust, but the recent past has been an exceedingly time-scarce period. I’ve dedicated my Traveling Savage time to catching up on posts from my pair of 2018 trips which took me through Glasgow, Angus, Aberdeenshire, Speyside, and Argyll, and I have enough material to keep me writing well into 2020.

That’s probably a good thing because I don’t have any trips planned at the moment. The one that pops into consciousness when I have a moment to daydream involves finally getting out to the Outer Hebrides. There are bits and pieces of the Scottish mainland I’ve yet to lay my eyes upon, but the Western Isles remain the last significant portion of Scotland beyond my grasp.

I have my itinerary sketched out, with entry and exit points being Oban and Ullapool, respectively. This ferry-heavy trip would take in Barra, the Uists, Benbecula, and Lewis & Harris, with additional time in the west highlands. Such a trip maxes out the complexity factor as there are many ferries to arrange and the ferry schedules are never straightforward, even in the summer season. This will be a beautiful trip and a suitable capstone to many years touring Scotland. I know I don’t want to do it alone, though.

It is comedic how fortunes change. For the last eight years I’ve been time rich and money poor (so to speak), and now that I’m back in the corporate world the tables have turned. It’s now time that slips through my fingers while Sarah and I enjoy increased prosperity.

This development has forced me to reevaluate how I spend my time, and I’ve come to a decision. Starting May 1, 2019 I will suspend bespoke itineraries and trip consultations for the foreseeable future. I will continue to review itineraries, but at a reduced volume. I have so enjoyed working with many hundreds of you around the world on your Scotland itineraries, and hearing how life-changing these trips were for you are memories that will endure forever.

Following this freeze on services Sarah and I may begin work in earnest on Traveling Savage’s first e-book. The idea has been in our heads for some time, but the bandwidth to work on it has escaped me. I can’t make any promises on this front, but I would really like to package new and existing information in an easily digestible format!

Life is full of twists and turns, ups and downs, and for that I’m thankful. It’s in the contrast that we find life’s richness.

Until next time,

Sláinte