Well, here's my first #optout blog post. This is a dream that's been a long time coming, with lots of challenges and personal adversity to overcome. Over the coming weeks I'll dive into the nuts and bolts of what #optout is to me. But with most good things, a little back story is important.

I've always been wired a little differently, and while in the past I was generally quiet my “thinking” tendency was towards free thought. In 2009 my thoughts started drifting towards how to remove oneself from the societal construct. In 2010 I took my first leap, quit my job and tried taking on a personal business venture. Almost immediately it failed. But instead of running back to work I decided to stay “free” and live off of some meager savings I did have. I lived in a wall tent in the bush for a little under three months, right into mid November where I broke camp and returned to society. It was a great experience, one where I learned how rewarding a simple life was. Barely getting by, cutting my own wood or else I'd freeze, gathering my own food or else I'd go hungry and being as independent of public infrastructure and financial constructs as one can be. I discovered how little one needs to live and how there's more then one solution to every problem. Even to this day I look at those three months as the most amazing stretch of my adult life. I didn't realize it at the time, but this was the foundation of #optout.

After the three month tent experience I returned to work and kind of resigned myself to a life of selling my time for paper. I moved into a small cottage, fell in love with a sweet and caring woman and lived a decent normal life. But, deep down inside this feeling of being trapped festered. Over time my thoughts swung towards taking a leap once again, but this time I would be in a better position. 2014 was a big year that saw my relationship end due in part to these dreams, and me taking a leap into film making as a career. 2015 saw financial hardships that led to “ruin” and a return to work so I could get my feet back on the ground. But, those years also saw me create a viable plan so I could as free of a life as possible. One year after returning to work I'm now in a position to take that leap. I'm free of debt, have a rent and mortgage free home and have built up most of the equipment one “needs” to optout. I've also found my soul mate who's more then willing and ready to take the leap with me. I have a plan, but have the understanding that things do change so plans must be flexible. The plan is over three years, and a slow removal from many of the societal and infrastructural constructs that bind us to a life of selling time. It's not going to be an easy life where I pay the cost of convince like most do, but it's one that will be the change that I want to see. There's more then one solution for every problem faced, and optout will present that. We'll get into that more as I blog more.

Thanks for coming along, this is going to be an awesome ride.