Sunshine Blogger Award!

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Our blog was nominated for the Sunshine Blogger award by the bloggers over at Ditching the Daily Grind! Thanks for the nomination guys, I’ve been enjoying reading your blog! It’s nice reading about other families out there on the same path, and how their kids have/have not affected their FIRE goals.  We really appreciate getting nominated for that award! Now, let’s get to the fun stuff!
The Rules:
Thank the person that nominated you
Answer the questions from the person that nominated you
Nominate some other bloggers for this award
Write the same amount of questions for the bloggers you have nominated
Notify the bloggers you have nominated.

The Responses to our set of questions:

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

These are really different answers from Mrs. SSC and I. Our family dynamics and priorities were pretty different  growing up, as reflected in SO many ways in our lives. This is just one of those instances.

Mrs. SSC: She wanted to be a scientist or professor when she grew up. She’s done pretty well meeting those goals too, between being an actual rocket scientist for a bit, teaching some in grad school, and science-ing it up at her current career in the oil industry.
Mr. SSC: I wanted to be a long haul trucker. Yep, the guys on the road in the big-rigs hauling the 54’ trailers. I thought it would be fun, I’d get to travel a lot, see the country, and have a lot of freedom. Plus, you get to drive the biggest trucks out there! Woohoo! I’m a geologist instead and those dreams are in the rear-view mirror of life, and thankfully not the rear view mirror of my big rig.

What is the coolest/most memorable place you’ve visited

Aaahhh.....
Aaahhh…..

Mrs. SSC: Yosemite National Park. It was breathtaking and also one of the first times I ever went camping and hiking by myself. It was one of the first times I was able to take everything at my own pace, observe nature around me, and just get to be introspective and not have to deal with anyone else’s time table or schedule. It was awesome!

I really took this. It's so beautiful even at night.
I really took this. It’s so beautiful even at night.

Mr. SSC: Le Mont Saint Michel in Normandy, France. It’s an island commune and monastery that is just offshore, like ~600 meters. Besides being stunningly beautiful, an amazing thing is the tidal range of that part of the coast. When the tide goes out, it goes out 15 miles from the shore and drops nearly 40’!! When it comes in again, bam! The monastery is again an island surrounded by water. We got to take a 7 mile hike across the tidal flat at low tide, and it was awesome as a geologist, getting to see all those tidal features first hand. If you’ve never seen it, google it and check out the images, amazing! My picture doesn’t do it justice.

If money was not an issue and you could indulge in one thing, what would it be?

Mrs. SSC: My one thing would be land. I would want to buy an amazing plot of land with great views, mountains, fruit trees and more, and build a small but luxurious house. That and a Disney Cruise for the kids. Our friends say “it’s great!” and “the kids would love it!”, just like a 50’s tv ad, but it just seems SO expensive, so probably that too.

Mr. SSC: I’d go to the moon and spend a few hours bouncing around in my astronaut suit and riding one of those moon buggies around. That just seems like it would be a LOAD of fun, and it was literally the first thing that popped out of my mouth when I read this question. I mean, who could afford that nowadays? Not even NASA right, and you did say money was no issue. That would be my indulgence for sure.

What is the best compliment you’ve ever gotten?

Mrs. SSC: I don’t respond well to compliments, so I avoid them, and can’t think of a best compliment I’ve ever gotten. Sorry…

Mr. SSC: My best compliment was um, well, yeah I don’t know either really. I’ve been scouring my brain, but nothing jumps out. Sorry…

What legacy would you like to leave?

Mrs. SSC: I feel that if I can get the kids to grow up and be true to themselves, that would be good for me. I want them to be who they want to be, and not try to be someone that they think they should be because someone else wants them to be that way.

Mr. SSC: My legacy – with visions of being a trucker, I can’t say I’ve thought too much about a legacy that I would like to leave. When I was hiking the Appalachian Trail, I decided that I wanted to do something that would help the environment and not just take, take, take. Ironically, I ended up switching from Environmental Science to Geology and ultimately landed in the oil industry. Since I’ve had kids, I’d like for them to be adults that aren’t self-centered and self-serving and are empathetic to helping those who need it. Like Louis C.K. put it, “You should never look into your neighbors to bowl to see if they have more than you, but rather to see if they have enough.” If I can raise my kids to have that mindset, I’d feel good about that.

What do you prefer: beach or mountains?

Mt. Hood. We need to get back out there soon.
Mt. Hood. We need to get back out there soon.

Both: Mountains for sure! Our relocation spot for our Fully Funded Lifestyle Change has to include a few things and mountains is one of them. We grew up near the Appalachians, so we like the feel of those mountains and are looking forward to being back there. I also love the Rockies, and could be there too, but as long as there are mountains and 4 seasons I’ll take it any day!

Our nominees for the Sunshine Blogger Award are (in no particular order):
Their questions:
        • What did you want to be when you grew up?
        • What is your favorite superhero and why? If you don’t have one, why not?
        • Who is your favorite author?
        • What person has had the biggest influence on your life?
        • What’s your favorite comfort food when it’s a chill night at the house?
Thanks again to Ditching the Daily Grind for the award nomination!