{ Gloria Steinem ROCKS Seattle! }

(Awesome photo by Tom Marks, 2008)

Hedgebrook (a women's writing retreat that I am lucky enough to be associated with) will be hosting a Dialogue with Gloria Steinem...did you hear that? G-L-O-R-I-A S-T-E-I-N-E-M. Next week, July 10th in Seattle at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall. Tickets may be purchased through the Hedgebrook website - along with other really cool stuff (like custom blended tea from our own Island Tea Co!) You KNOW I'll be there! Hope you are too!

{ Gearing Up for Big Change }

As mentioned before, change is on the distant horizon in this household. We will be losing 40-50% of our guaranteed income by this time next year. Perhaps we will be able to replace it but that isn't the focus. The focus is on preparing for the inevitability of it and shifting our life so as not to not miss it. First, let me say how fortunate we are to have time and forewarning. So many people have lost their jobs unexpectedly and without savings. We have the luxury of knowing and time to plan.
We are currently spending about 85% of what we bring in. That includes long term retirement savings, maxing out IRA's, paying off short term debt before this shift happens and squirreling away short term savings. If we assume that the debt is gone and the short term savings is adequate (and by that I mean 12 months of essential payments) by this time next year the 40% loss in income will actually only require us to cut our monthly expenses by about 10%. Our intention is to not focus on cutting stuff out as much as it will be about redefining what is fun. Current forms of entertainment are eating out, hosting dinner parties and "junking". We travel 2-4 times a year to see family and take about 4 long weekends away. If we eliminate eating out to special occasions only, expand the garden capacity and have more potlucks I think that we will save about 5-7% a month. If we fly to see family only once a year and limit our weekend travel to just day trips, well, that's more than the other 3-5% right there.
But how not to miss it? Well, to be honest, we have the life we do right now because of the money that we make. In order to have the extra income, the other half of this household spends 12-13 hours a day either working or commuting. (This is an island after all, you have to get to "America" somehow!) While we can't eliminate commuting costs (the job is still "on the other side", there's just 40-50% less of it) having someone else home by 3:00 every day is a big difference than having them home by 6:30. Suddenly, food production is, well, less of a production. Garden bounties don't have to be all or nothing taking up full weekends...they can spaced out for small daily harvests. (One of the reasons we downsized the garden this year.) Errands and housework can be more evenly distributed, leaving more time for my own work. There are hidden ways that money can be saved simply by being home more. We learned that years ago when I quit my job to go back to school. This change isn't about losing anything at all. It's about gaining back time and quality of life that we have forgotten.

{ Time Waits For No Woman }

I've been reading, "The Gift of a Year" with the Women Take Wing book club and I must say it's stirred a lot up for me. Perhaps losing yet another friend to cancer, being so incredibly overwhelmed with work (not a bad problem but still exhausting) and try to create balance in my life has brought me this point where this book is a good reminder. Time is a gift and should never be taken for granted. I LOVE LOVE LOVE what I do but shouldn't be one dimensional. The things I love and cherish most have been in the background too much lately. This week I want to refocus on the following things:
My body- I will begin my walking again.
My brain - I will read each day.
My creative side - I will do something each day to re-engage the artist in me.
My love of the garden - I will spend time each day in the garden.

{ Farewell To A Friend }

This weekend we will celebrate the life of a good friend who left us too soon. Don Nelson waged a fierce battle with colon cancer, outlasting the expectations of his doctors by more than a full year. He worked - as athletic director at a local middle school - up until 10 days before he died. Cancer has won another battle, leaving us all heartbroken, yet again. But let me share with you who Don was in this house. He was the early morning joke teller, the quiet supporter in a long day's commute, the friend who was always there, next to you, even when you didn't know you needed one. We wrap our arms around his family because we love them but also because it would have been what Don did for us.

Cancer sucks.