No doubt this is me...except it would be Charles and Abs staring.
(thanks much for sharing, Louise Maughan James.)
Now if you want to try being a cat-- you can!
Warning: I have this uncomfortable thought of furries, and an even creepier memory of a guy on Boulder's Pearl Street Mall who enjoys pretending he's a dog. Like barking, playing dead or trying to rub up against you. (He's big, too, so it's even more threatening.) Real dogs will have nothing to do with him, by the way.
This starts a monthly feature that makes me PROVE I'm doing what I urge you do: Live frugally!
For us, it's out of necessity. The Brick's pension rings in right around $1500, including paying for incredibly expensive health insurance. We intend to try to do something about that this month. We are tired of paying WAY too much for health insurance that only starts covering when we've shelled out $12,000 from our own pockets first. (Yes, you read that right. 12,000 smackeroos. When the Brick's hospital expensescame due, the hospital rep said, "You still owe this much...and you actually have insurance?") Brickworks, my business, has paid for many an extra bill -- but I am finding myself wanting to take fewer gigs, and do more stuff here at home. Maybe it's called 'needing a rest.' (Last year was rough.) Maybe it's 'retirement.' (The Brick started his retirement about a year ago, so I'd be in good company.) Maybe it's wanting to try things and go places I haven't been able to. I'm not sure. I just know that the idea of judging, teaching and appraising regularly for the next twenty years is not an appealing one. After all, I've been doing this since 1984 -- 32 years and counting.
So, if you're living on a $2000-or-more budget -- and normally I would think that was modest -- it's still hundreds of dollars more than what we've got to spend every month.
That's the reality. But there are positive sides to this, as well: *We can go anywhere we like, live where we want -- and the pension still comes in. *The Brick has the freedom to indulge in projects he likes, and turn down the ones he isn't interested in. *We sleep in when we want to, and stay up when we want to. (Unless I have an appraisal appointment or gig...or we have another commitment.) This is wonderful for the writer's side of my life -- I don't have to go to bed, if the creative juices are flowing. He doesn't, either. *I suddenly have a partner who has more time to help out. The Brick cooks Monday suppers now. He vacuums. (I hate vacuuming.) He runs interference on how-to jobs, vet appointments and car repairs. *Our house is paid off. I'm grateful now for the many months we put a little extra toward retiring the mortgage. It would have been almost impossible for us to live now, without this.
We have extra savings, thanks to several 401(k) plans. Engineers often have this option, including matching funds -- but it stops when their five-year contract runs out, and everybody gets laid off. That's not uncommon for engineers working for government contracts, by the way. And here in the Denver, CO area, it happens a lot.
So there's money we could use -- but both of us want very much to keep that for 'later.' Can we live on just what we're making now? So far, in spite of some near-scares (and God's grace), we are.
So what helped (and hurt) this past month or so?
*When Daughter #2 and her partner went to Michigan to tell family about their engagement...we didn't go. (We were supposed to, but the extra funds for gas just weren't there. It was hard to say 'no.')
*We picked berries and ate eggs. Our raspberries provided several bowls of fruit, and the chickens gave us enough to sell three dozen eggs a week, as well as for our own use. The egg sales more than paid for the chickens' feed; the chickies also took care of leftovers or wilting vegetables.
The green beans are just starting to bear -- so those go on the menu next. I love fresh green beans.
*We were careful on food purchases. Basically, if it wasn't on sale --I didn't buy it. (By the way, just found an interesting series by The Prudent Homemaker on eating for 40 cents a day, from snacks to meals. Her suggestions don't add up to 40 cents in my book, but they're helpful, anyways.) *We ate at home. A lot. Honestly, I didn't mind that much. Even when we ate out, it was $5.95 Little Caesar's Pizzas, or Red Robin, from gift cards we'd earned via Swagbucks. If you're not in this program, you really should -- we earn at least a hundred dollars each year in Amazon and restaurant gift cards this way. Go here for more.
*Birthdays were already covered. As mentioned, August -- especially early in the month -- is tough. But I'd purchased gifts earlier in the year, and bought groceries for birthday cakes and general celebrations. (I bought flowers discounted, too.) The Mama's natal gifts are modest this year -- but I'll be sending a whole line of birthday cards, instead of just one. (Purchased for 25 cents each, on half-price day at the local thrift shop, by the way.) She'll get cards, all right -- from us, dogs Charley and Abby, the chickens, etc. etc. And she'll love it.
*No big doctor visits. Primarily for the Brick. A root canal for me that dental insurance covered some of, at least. (sigh)
*We stopped spending. June and July's bills were horrendous, thanks to car repairs, travel, renewing our passports and birthday purchases. (Both girlies are August babies, as is The Mama.) Since our credit card payments come due in the beginning of each month, then we generally held off making purchases until the next billing cycle had started. (We pay our credit cards off each month -- without fail.No matter what.)
That made August's bills half the amount of the previous month's. (Whew.)
Now if we can do the same in August, so September is easier... *I had extra income from appraising. In fact, quite a bit of extra work. Normally I do very little during the summer months. Was this a God thing, to help cover bills? Sure seems like it.
*We made a mistake -- but were able to fix it. Mostly. A math error contributed to four checks bouncing in a single day this month. And at our local credit union, that means 4 x $30 penalties. Fortunately, we were able to point out that the first 'bounce' came because the largest bill was paid first -- and the succeeding penalties gobbled up money that could have kept nearly all of the others from bouncing.
Also, we emphasized that this was unusual, we were good customers (we are), and the money was replaced promptly. (Which it was.) The manager saw it our way, and cancelled three of the four penalties. (Whew.)
Lesson learned:It doesn't hurt to ask. Politely. *We didn't get a lot of extra work done. Too much time was spent lazing around on the internet, watching movies and just hanging out and talking to each other.
I should feel guilty about this. The basement especially should have been cleared away.
But I don't.
Goals for this month: *Keep food expenses to a bare minimum. Other than the birthday celebrations, probably not going out to eat much. It's okay -- our freezer is full. The garden is producing. I can handle it.
This will include a month-end trip to Palisade, for several bushels of peaches. We buy them at roughly a quarter of the price locally, eat all we can, and freeze some for winter's use. (Several friends and neighbors get cheap peaches, as well.)
But we also get to go camping this way. Nice. *Finish the certification requirements for my personal property appraising membership in ASA. (American Society of Appraisers) My experience is still there. So is the certification from AQS. (American Quilter's Society) I have found, though, that I've been doing a lot more than just quilts for a decade now. It's time to capitalize on that. *Give at least ten hours to organizing and cleaning out the basement area. If we're going to put the house on the market in the spring, I need to get cracking on this. *Find out if the neighbor down the street is going to use those luscious-looking apples on the tree in her front yard. They're small. She didn't last year. Maybe I'll luck out. *Put at least five items up for sale on Ebay or Craigslist. Ditto. *Beef up our emergency fund. The math mistake cleared that out, sadly. (On the other hand, thank God we had an emergency fund.) I have a large gig coming up, judging and appraising for the Cheyenne Heritage Quilters, that will help. So should any sales. (Possibly a garage sale the end of this month, too.)
After all the heat, we've had a few blessed days of cooler temperatures, and a little rain. Best of all, in spite of a busy few weeks (one birthday -- and one coming up; picking people up at the airport -- three times; social commitments and a bunch of appraising), we've had a chance to quiet down and rest. Our favorite way to do it: popcorn and a movie that depicts anywhere but here. Spy and adventure movies that travel to multiple countries are especially prized. They let us 'travel,' work out puzzles...and just be together. Refreshing. Meanwhile:
Photos of her latest quilt, If I Can't Catch A Butterfly (I Can Always Catch A Seagull)
"It is a quote from my grandson Aiden," she says, "when he was playing with his butterfly net birthday gift. He was five.
I just love the childhood thinking that nothing is impossible."
"I used a couple photos of Aiden when I designed this quilt. The face on the original was not in enough contrast to paint it well. So I had to use my math to make the head and the body fit -- then blow it up to quilt size."
"I started this quilt in August 2016 and finished the end of April...just a few days before they came in and loaded my whole studio out to make repairs and paint, after a roof leak. Four hundred boxes and two semi-trailers later, I am still trying to put it back together (and of course get rid of stuff that I don't need anymore). "When they called [to load everything up], I just kept saying, 'NOOOO! I HAVE DEADLINES. YOU CAN'T.' But they did."
(Hey, I can relate, after our basement flood five years ago. We still don't have everything back in place.)
"This is what happens," Sharyn says, "when your husband retires, and decides to farm out some work around the house..."
If you're headed to the International Quilt Festival in Houston, TX this fall, you can see this quilt in person -- it's been juried in.
Take a look at Sharyn's bonafideshere...this is just one in a series of applique quilts she's been turning out in recent years.
I was busy by the garden beds when the Brick came down the hill. He picked up something from the ground, near my foot.
Snakes -- two of them. Their heads were both caught in garden webbing.
The big one had toothmarks along its side. Charley, no doubt. (He throws them up in the air, jump rope-style, until they stop wiggling...then he loses interest. Freaks The Mama out big-time. She absolutely loathes snakes, and Charley likes to bring them to her as presents. )
I don't dare tell her about these. Even I got a bit of a chill, staring at them.
How in the world did they both get tangled up in the same webbing scrap? Were they trying to eat each other?
The biggest snake looked like a rattler, at first.
It was at least four feet long -- big, but notterrifying. No rattles. (Some rattlers now don't have them. Go figure.)
We finally figured out it was a ratsnake or bullsnake. The other was a garter snake.
Too bad -- I would have appreciated them hanging around doing their jobs in the garden. (We still have a problem with mice now and then, and garters will eat bugs, too.)
A couple with three young children decide to go into missionary work in Japan. They work hard, raise support (which is not easy -- I've seen several cousins and friends go through this), and get ready.
Jamison and Kathryne Pals, along with their kids, are headed to Palmer Lake, Colorado for a final training seminar before leaving --
Because a semi driver was "inattentive" and "distracted by outside influences."
Another person died as well, in a vehicle their van hit. And several others were injured.
Why? Why would this happen to good people who obviously were doing their job?
It is the same question we ask when someone we love gets cancer...and dies. Or cities are hit with earthquakes or floods. And destruction comes.
One of the hardest things in the world is to trust that the Master of the Universe has a plan for us. And it's not always the plans we have for ourselves. I do NOT believe that God causes evil. I DO believe that He allows bad things to happen sometimes, because He knows it will make us stronger, and yet realize that, in our weakness, we must rely on Him more. Certainly, it helps us help others who are going through the same struggles.
Look at Job.
Or David.
Or Paul.
They trusted God, in spite of enormously difficult times. So did the Pals.
Jamison mentioned this quote in one of their recent newsletters:
“Life is not a straight line leading from one blessing to the next and then finally to heaven. Life is a winding and troubled road. Switchback after switchback. And the point of biblical stories like Joseph and Job and Esther and Ruth is to help us feel in our bones (not just know in our heads) that God is for us in all these strange turns. God is not just showing up after the trouble and cleaning it up. He is plotting the course and managing the troubles with far-reaching purposes for our good and for the glory of Jesus Christ.” – John Piper, in A Sweet and Bitter Providence
We can -- and I am not saying this lightly -- We can trust Him, too.
