Our story.
How we got here.
I’ll start with the basics. My name is Sally. Yes, it really is! I am originally from a small town in Wisconsin that is located on Lake Michigan.
If you’re curious about where I grew up, you can watch this video.
I used to work in nuclear as a “Technical Specialist” which was just a fancy term they used on their org chart as a placeholder for my job. Basically I sat behind a desk, looked at data, and dreamed about the day when I could leave office life behind. Though I never told my boss “Take this job and shove it, I ain’t workin’ here no more,” I did fantasize about it. A lot in fact! When the company closed down the facility where I worked, I finally got to leave the drudgery of that world behind.
Venice Beach, Florida
Now self-employed as a YouTube creator, I am my own boss – I travel, research history, explore small towns, discover places off the beaten path – all the things I dreamed about when sitting at my desk. Ok, maybe I just really dreamed about being a beach bum, but hey, I’ll get there eventually! 😜
Some fun facts about me:
- I love dogs!!!
- I have a Bachelors in Psychology.
How I got from nuclear to YouTubing is another story. To make things simple, I’m going to jump ahead a few years in time. Maybe one day I’ll write a blog post and spill the tea ☕️ about what happened in my life prior. For now, I’ll say that there were a few twist and turns, maybe even a couple of dead ends along my life’s journey to becoming a YouTuber.
Salton Sea, California.
Fast forward to late October / early November of 2016: Marty and I were getting ready to leave on the cross country trip that ultimately changed my life. At the time he was into playing the video game Grand Theft Auto V, which if you didn’t know, takes place in a fictional version of the Salton Sea. Marty found the game’s version of this area in California so intriguing that he wanted to see it in real life.
Since I wanted to share this amazing adventure with all our family & friends, I started a blog. Given my name is Sally, I thought it would be cool to come up with a new name that described the essence of what we were doing. After some brainstorming and a few Google searches, SightseeingSally seemed the perfect choice!
Did you know…
- Sightseeing, adj. “devoted to seeing sights”
- Sally, n. “venture or excursion off the beaten track”
Put them together and you get America’s favorite sightseer, SightseeingSally!
The best part about the trip was that when we left, we didn’t have a set plan. We just winged it. We didn’t even know where we were staying once we got out to California. We left on a true, go where the wind blows kind of road trip. You know, the kind that everyone dreams about. The only thing that made things a bit more complicated for us was that we were traveling with FOUR dogs!!! Crazy, I know.
Believe it or not, I always wanted to be a writer! After we got on the road and I started blogging; however, I learned I was more in love with the “idea” of being a writer than actually doing it. This discovery initially caused me a lot of grief because I felt guilty about not always posting updates to my blog.
Then Marty came up with a brilliant idea!💡
“Start making YouTube videos,” he said.
AND so I did.
There is something very apocalyptic about the Salton Sea. Yet, in the same token it can also be quite beautiful. Out of everywhere we traveled, this site is one that still resonates with my soul. So much so, I consider it to be the birthplace of SightseeingSally. Even now as I write this, I can feel it calling me.
If you want to know more about the Salton Sea becaming the birthplace of my channel, watch this video.
There are some days when I think to myself what the hell am I doing? Maybe I should go back to a regular 9-5 job where the headaches quit the moment you walk out the door at the end of your day. Then I look at everything I’ve done since starting SightseeingSally and realize there is no way I would ever go back.
Marty
On my social media posts I often refer to Marty as elusive. Though we pretty much go everywhere together, he prefers to stay in the background. Occasionally I am able to get him to open up on camera. Otherwise, he is content with being my personal security guard.
And last but certainly not least, our much loved pups.
I like to call them the SightseeingSally Bunch because when we first got together Marty had 3 dogs and I had 2 dogs, plus my daughter had this one-eyed cat. We were like the Brady family – only with 5 dogs and a one-eyed cat.