Bringing the FIRE!

Firstly, I want to say thank you to those who've subscribed to my newsletter and apologise that they've been few and far between! There have been lots of changes in my life over the last few months and I'm lacking routine to say the least, and that's saying something for me! One constant in my life is ultrasound and that's part of my life I'm extremely grateful for, even if I'm living a semi-retired life. I actually learnt last week from a radiologist I'd worked with for the first time that I'm following the FIRE movement. Funnily enough, I was never aware of the FIRE movement and he was kind enough to explain it to me and send me some links so I could read up further.

For those who don't know, the acronym 'FIRE' stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. It's basically a financial movement that allows people to retire early. There are different types of FIRE to suit everyone's situation and how you want to live your life. I like to live fairly frugal with my day to day expenses so I can afford more time off work to travel and enjoy my life. Don't get me wrong, I am very blessed to love my job, but at the end of the day; work is work. I am now at the stage in my life where I desire to know who I am without the label of 'Sonographer' and be more than just my career. Not having children allows me more financial freedom and time, so what I do and how I do it is certainly not for everyone. But it's important to know that you can incorporate an element of the FIRE philosophy into your life, regardless of your situation.

As a nomad, a vagabond, a gypsy (whatever you'd like to call me); I like to live a free and flexible life without the constraints of a fixed address and a fixed workplace. I love exploring this great country of ours and meeting new people who have their own hobbies and interests and learn about their life. There's so much we can learn from those around us and I encourage you to talk to your patients, your peers and gain some insight into how others live. It's very easy to get trapped in our own ways and the 9-5 grind, but there's so much more out there and more to life if you just look around. Most of us work so hard our whole lives and if you're lucky enough these days to even be able to get mortgage, for many of us that'll hang over our heads into our retirement (well that's what the current trends are indicating). And the reason why so many struggle is due to the desire for material possessions, the best house, the best car, overpriced coffees and designer handbags. We can live with so much less and still lead a full life. When we did a lap of Australia the first time, it was in our old commodore station wagon that we bought back after hail damage for $750 cash and had over 400,000 kilometres on the clock! We then gifted it to an aboriginal family in Alice Springs.

I totally understand if you're stuck in traffic in the city every day, you want something reliable and comfortable for your daily commute. I get it. But there are many ways in which we can declutter our homes and our lives, to feel happy with less. Don't get me wrong though, I certainly know how to spend money on the things that are important to me; experiences like a helicopter flight over Kings Canyon. Memories that will stay with me forever and add enrichment to my life. The way I live certainly isn't for everyone and camping is not a glamorous way of life. There's the heat, the bugs, emptying the toilet and refilling the water and trying to find ways to escape the direct sun. It's a lot more work than people realise and certainly not for the faint hearted. At the moment I'm sitting in 40+ degrees in a shed, working on a very exciting project that I'll reveal in the near future, so stay tuned!

I met an incredible doctor at the ASUM conference over the weekend, a real trailblazer in his field. And it was great to chat to him about his life and his hobbies and what makes him thrive. I told him about how my partner and I live and how our lifestyle has enabled me to learn new skills, like my partner who's an amazing fabricator teaching me to weld! And he told me about passion for scuba diving and gave me some tips on areas to explore shipwrecks (one of my partner's passions as a qualified master diver). I look forward to the extra time in my life and being able to have my partner finally teach me to dive (something I've wanted to have the time and means since we met 15 years ago). I think turning 40 this year has made me realise even more than ever, that it's important to do all these things while we can.

Happy Scanning,

Kelly