March 17, 2020
For everyone around the world the start of what was not yet called a pandemic will be remembered differently. The world changed early for some, but it took a while for what was happening to sink-in for others. For us, there will always be a distinct date and a very vivid memory of how the pandemic changed the course of our day-to-day location independent life. That day was March 17, 2020 – the day that Nevada Governor, Steve Sisolak, ordered the closure of all casinos and all non-essential services at midnight.
We had been in Las Vegas since March 1 with the plan of staying until April 1 but when we woke up on March 18 and saw sheriffs outside every casino door we new that our plans needed to change. That night (March 18) as the sun set the streets were eerily empty, most casinos had turned out the lights and our only food option was a Walgreens across the street. Our hotel asked us to move our car out of the underground parking for better ventilation and so they could sanitize the parking garage. By Thursday morning March 19, we were one of only a hand-full of rooms still occupied.
2020, The Year That Was
After our drive back to Canada, quarantine in Winnipeg, our drive across Western Canada, and self-isolation in Osoyoos we have remained in BC. Our location independent lifestyle was a bit challenging during these strange times, as we had to keep looking for what is considered ‘long-term’ accommodation for us, of a month or more. Our work-life was busier than ever as the golf industry experienced a season like nothing since the early 90’s. Our company expanded (another new CK Golf Associate) and we worked A LOT, which made the lack of available activities almost a non-factor to us. We are grateful that Dr. Bonnie allowed golf courses to remain open and also allowed us to continue to dine out, which we still do at least once a week. Given the challenges that so many people faced we are very grateful to have had an uneventful 2020. While it was not the year that we expected, or planned, we know that we had it easy compared to so many others, and for that we are thankful.
March 17, 2021
Yesterday our parents were able to book their vaccine appointments in Manitoba. This week BC moved to bookings for age 80. While we know that the vaccine is not the ultimate solution it does make us comfortable enough to start planning our travels outside of BC for 2021 and outside of Canada for 2022.
Back to Location Independence
We have been location independent for almost 5 years. No furniture and no fixed address. We have been in the same furnished rental apartment in Kelowna, BC for 85 days with three weeks to go. And yes…we cannot wait to pack up. Our spring looks much like our fall – 2 weeks in Vancouver, 2 weeks in Whistler and back to Kelowna until the end of June (in a different apartment). This summer, fingers crossed, we will be taking a Western Canadian Tour of our client courses on the way to and from a visit to Winnipeg to see our families.
Future Trip Planning
For those who like to plan a trip…start doing it now. The cancelation polices are as lax as they are going to get, and the pricing is still low. We have been trying to book a secluded timeshare at Embarc Zihuatanejo in Mexico for early 2022 and are looking at cruises to add to out late 2022 European adventure. We are not looking at U.S. travel just yet, as we wait to see what a third U.S. pandemic wave looks like.
The travel books and podcasts that were put away for a year are back! 🙂
We, Jeff and Tara Ciecko of CK Golf write two blogs, one is our 19th Hole Blog where we share personal experiences and the other an Industry Blog where we comment on general business and internet marketing best practices, sales strategies and give golf industry related opinions. We have owned CK Golf  for 14 years and provide business services to the golf and other industries. As of July 31, 2016 our life and our business became ‘location independent’. Our 19th Hole Blog is about the places we visit and the things we do. If you have any questions or comments, or happen to be in the same location as us please reach out and contact us anytime.
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