Those Feelings Again…

Posted on by July 25, 2010

I can’t help it.

Every so often I get those feelings again.

Those, I want to live in the woods and super simple and just live feelings. With a garden, and big simple open living space, with woods around me and big full pantry of whole simple foods and just live. Simple. Without all the stuff that seems to be cluttering up life.

I think it happens when I start to feel like all I do is work to sustain all the stuff in my life. Even down to utilities and internet and fixing cars and fixing homes and buying all the stuff that makes up life. The stuff you get used to having around and then you have to keep buying, because, you’re used to having it around.

Maybe I’m not making much sense, but then, well, I dunno, maybe I am.

I read about people who just ditch everything, leave behind maybe a little storage unit of super personal things, or maybe leave a dozen boxes in a friend’s basement and then hit the road in a van or maybe a little trailer, and live free. Free to just eat snacks for dinner or to bum food off friends as they travel around and visit. Just take them where the wind blows them. FInd internet hot spots here and there in the world. Park in Wal-Mart parking lots or stealth park behind truck stops or in alleys. Free to just take naps when they want to, or to wander the back roads and just explore.

I would love to do that but I’m too afraid to even try it. I mean, what about my girls? Take them with me? What about the pets and the garden? What about work? It just seems that you can’t really live in both worlds very well. You either have to take the plunge or not… there is no in between. At least as I see it.

But still, I plot and plan, and I feed though feelings through all the blogs that I read… I live vicariously through these kind souls on their journey. Like the gypsy artists in an old horse van in the UK, or the crazy hippy kids in their VW bus wandering about. Even the couple that just gave it all up and got a nice little RV and just travel around. Shesh, I would love that. I think I would.

But I would hate to give up my gardens and my little moby… and not to mention my band and the commitments of that, as well as my involvement in the Opry, and other things, like I can’t see taking my girls away from their Dad and friends for long periods of time. And of course, there is the expense as well, driving around aimlessly is kind of expensive and I doubt that I could carry both a vagabond spirit as well as a stable homestead.

So. Where does that leave me?

I don’t know.

If I try to make my business more successful, as to create more income, to then allow me to wander, that seems to be a problem, because then I have more work to do, and thus can’t leave to wander!

If I cut back on my expenses and live super meagerly in my moby life, then maybe I could save up enough to be able to wander here and there for part of the time, and then come back to moby life and stash up a little more cash… kind of rotate through the two lifestyles.

And what if I don’t like it, this gypsy lifestyle? Then what?

Sigh.

I hate when those feelings come along.

Well, I think that after all day of pondering this whole situation, again and again… the fact remains that at this point of my life, I can’t just ditch it all. And I don’t want to. I can recognize that I’m at the 2 year point of living in my Moby and to be honest, in the last 20+ years of my life, every 2 years seems to either mean moving or changing something drastic in my life. At least the last 10 years have been true to that. So I want to ride out the itch and stay put. At least a couple more years.

And I do want to keep striving for a simpler and simpler lifestyle. Green, sure, but mostly simple and content. Keep thinning down possessions so that I am the person in charge of my possessions, not the other way around. I have a few more plans… I want to get personal things cut back. Just go through all my collections of this and that, and whittle it down to what I really need, love and want.

I spent a day last week going through my books. Really weeding them out. I am not a big re-reader of books. Never have been. Yet I will read a book, find it fairly entertaining and then think I must now forever keep it near and dear to me. No… I’m changing my mind about that. I’ll write a big post about my feelings on books and such soon, but basically, I think you need to keep a decent library of how to books, because if for some reason you lose electricity or the internet, you’ll need to know how to do things. Grow things, make things, preserve things, cook things. Reference books are a good thing. And a few of your very favorite reading books, yes, those are important. And of course, a few that are gifts, or that have some special meaning, yes, those get kept. But just all these one time fluffy reads, they need to go. I got all my books down to a nice cabinet with glass doors to keep them safe and not all dusty and all. (Added savings of no extra housework!) And I feel super good about it. I really do.

Next stop is my crafts and then all my audio/media junk and lastly, the kitchen and it’s trove of stuff that I hardly ever use. I’m going to be brutal. If it’s not being used or cherished for some reason, it’s going to be boxed and labeled and taken to the storage unit with a date on it. If it doesn’t get recalled and opened within a year, it’s going away for good. I’ll pretend that I’m going to become a gypsy soon, and that I’m starting the procedure of limited and scaling down my “stuff” and that will feel good. Maybe even start to make some of those “feelings” calm down a bit.

And I’ll work hard to get my finances back in order. The last month has been a doozy on me and wrecked most of my pantry stash and my cash stash. It’s starting to rebound a teeny bit, and that has lifted a bit of my stress of late, but still, it’s not where we were two months ago. Some hard work, continued tight budgeting and a few extra jobs on the side, I think I can build the “kitty” back up and feel a little more content. If anything, it’s shown me that even my nice content life can get shaken up a bit without toooo much to get it shaking. That’s scary. I want to fix that.

I think these steps will help a bit, and in the meanwhile, I think I’m going to try and start planning a few little trips… like packup the girls and the dogs and head out for a few days and just wander a bit. See how we like it. We can use hotels instead of our camper, if we stay cheap, it’s probably about the same cost as dragging a big old trailer around in gas! I’ve seen $35 at Red Roof Inns, that’s not too bad for a bed and hot shower. Sure we have a tent, but after a day of traveling and wandering, and a campsite that will cost you $20 and then having to set it all up and tear it all down, I think a little cheapo hotel is EASY. (at least for now!) The point will be, can we actually do it? Can we actually just say, we’re going to be gone for 4 days and we’re just heading that way, and just go. Without hyper planning and all that “vacation” stuff. Can we just cut loose and wander? I don’t know. I guess we need to find that out.

Well, “those feelings” are not going away, I know. But for now, they have to just lay in the background for awhile, because it’s just not time.

But it’s sure time to plan and to make a few preparations and “train” for it. Why not? Sounds good to me. I think that come September or October, we need to have a bit of time set out for a rambling wander. And I know where I want to go. Up the western coast of Michigan. See the colors change, the fall roll in on the waters, ride a ferry, fish, gather rocks, take pictures and just sit and watch the world go by.

And I think every month or two, we need to do that. Pack a bunch of sandwiches and cookies, and minimal gear, cameras and maybe a laptop for check ins and just go. Where ever we want. North, south, east, west. I hope it will help to quench some of those feelings for a while, keep them alive until maybe it is time to act on them completely.

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Top 10 Solo-Business Blunders that Sabotage Success

Posted on by July 21, 2010

by Christine Kane
Whether graphic designer, author, or coach – there’s NOTHING better than having a business that provides freedom and an unlimited potential for income!

However, many solo-business owners get quickly burnt-out and disillusioned on this path. If that sounds like you, don’t feel bad! It’s probably because no one ever taught you how to run a business AND be creative all at once.

But it IS possible! (I am living proof! So are my clients!) It’s just that you might have to let go of a few old habits that are holding you back and blocking your success.

Here are the Top 10 Solo-Business Blunders that Sabotage Success:

1 – Not scheduling Vision-Time.

If you don’t take time away from your business for visioning and thinking, it’s easy to become a reactor, not a creator.

A business is dynamic and organic. (So are you!) Shape and create your business by taking time out for planning and visioning your desires and new directions.

2 – Too much Vision Time!

Some people are forever analyzing and planning, afraid of doing the wrong thing or of failure. At some point, you must take action. Just know that failure is only failure if you give up!

3 – Waiting for rescue.

Book deals. Hit records. Getting on Oprah. A huge IPO.

Hey, great things can and DO happen all the time in life. However, waiting for something to “sweep you away” is a surefire path to frustration.

Having a business is an on-going relationship. It can be remarkable! But like any relationship, it requires attention and action. Hoping for rescue is a sign that you’re afraid of the potential of your own power!

4 – Living in the “Field of Dreams.”

Remember these amazing words?

“If you build it, they will come.”

Really? I can do that, and everything else will be taken care of?

Well, sort of. There IS truth in that famous line.

But too often, people think it means, “All I have to do is hang my sign – and the world will rush to my door.”

This can lead to disillusionment. That’s because “building it” is not a one-time thing!

Here’s another way to look at it:

“If you build it they will come. But if you build it and market it, they’ll pay you!”

5 – Making problems a problem.

Donald Trump advises something that contradicts every positive thinking tenet out there. He says to expect problems.

Yes, even if you’re a mindset junkie!

Glitches, hiccups, snafus. Hey, they happen. Too often, we let problems paralyze us, and steal our time and emotions. Successful people expect “problems,” and always put their focus on finding the solution!

6 – Taking numbers personally.

Much of business is a numbers game. Sometimes the numbers are low. Sometimes they’re high!

Numbers are just numbers. (They’re not the Universe’s way of telling you that you should give up and get a job at The Gap!)

7 – Waiting to “feel like it.”

Creative types often don’t market themselves until they “feel like it.” Which – let’s face it – is never!

Marketing works best as a system. Robert Middleton says, “Marketing is not only about being known, it’s about not being forgotten.” In other words, learn how to market so you won’t have to dread it!

8 – The Cycle of Reactivity And Panic

Is this you?

Every now and then, you realize you have no clients. You react. You go on a marketing/cold-calling binge. You fill your schedule. And for months, you panic – you can barely breathe, let alone hire someone or continue marketing.

Sure enough, it shifts. The projects end. The clients are gone. Suddenly, your calendar is empty. The cycle begins again.

I call this the Cycle of Reactivity And Panic. (C.R.A.P.) It is one of the unhealthiest habits out there. You must set your business up so that the flow is constant and automated! (And yes, this IS possible!)

9 – Status-before-Spotlight Thinking.

All too often, we wait to “deserve” the spotlight. We hope for enough status, letters after our names, or training before we’ll make the slightest move toward a bigger opportunity.

News Flash: No amount of outside status can create worthiness. Success happens when we take chances and play bigger, regardless of outside status.

10 – Not investing in yourself.

Every successful entrepreneur invests time and money in herself and her business. She attends workshops and teleseminars. She hires coaches.

Too many of us go it alone. This leads to limited thinking, isolation, and burn out.

When an opportunity arrives, don’t ask: “How much does it cost to do this?” Ask instead: “How much will it cost me NOT to do this?” This simple question has changed my life!

___________________________________________________________


Christine Kane is the Mentor to Women Who are Changing the World. She helps women uplevel their lives, their businesses and their success. Her weekly LiveCreative eZine goes out to over 12,000 subscribers. If you are ready to take your life and your world to the next level, you can sign up for a F.R.E.E. subscription at http://christinekane.com.

I absolutely love this woman and her writings and inspiration. Every time I’m feeling a little down and out about my business, life, etc., she seems to have a post at her blog that so directly speaks to me. Very bright and wise lady, she is… And this article really spoke to me… been thinking that I’m doing a few things wrong, or well, not right about my own business, and I’ll admit… I’ve done all these blunders!!!! Now to stop doing them!

-Sherri

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Pickle Time!

Posted on by July 19, 2010

Aren’t they beautiful?

Why is it that when I see a counter with 10 beautiful jars of homemade garlic dill pickles that I just sigh and have to take a picture, they are so pretty? Is that weird? I dunno.

I think it’s because we took $10 worth of cukes, and 2 bucks worth of vinegar, garlic and spices and we made 10 quarts of pickles, that would have cost at least $30 to $40 dollars in the store. But it’s not just the money. We used all local cukes and garlic… and water too! (g) The vodka and the vinegar were from around here… Actually, both from Pennsylvania. (Weird) Still, it’s not even the local thing, it’s just knowing how to do it and knowing that they will taste fantastic in a week, hopefully. And that WE MADE THEM… I think that’s really the kicker there. They are handmade and watched over. Very very cool.

We even added about 10 cukes from our OWN garden… yes, hand grown by US. I wish there were more, but we have a lot on the vine, just not ready yet. But don’t worry, we’ll be making MORE pickles soon because we love to share and I have a few friends hooked on them already. It’s so much fun to make and share goodies like this.

Next week we are doing jams and fruit butters… can’t wait. I hope we can actually go picking our own as well. That would be even cooler.




Here is the recipe that we tried today. We’ll know in a week how they took.


Vodka Pickles

About 10 small pickles or 5 larger cukes
2 cups of water
1/8 cup of salt
1/4 cup vodka
1/2 cup white vinegar
6-10 cloves of fresh garlic
3-6 tablespoons of pickling spice mix

Sterilize your jar and lids in boiling water, set aside to cool slightly. Wash and cut cukes how you wish… slices, chunks, halves or wholes. Pack in the hot jars being careful not to handle them too much. Use a sterilized fork or tongs to pack the jars. Smash or press garlic into each jar, your choice. (We did two cloves per jar) and add pickling spice as well, a heaping tablespoon for smaller jars, two for quart jars. Boil together the liquids, bring to a boil and then take off the heat and allow to cool. It’s best if you allow it to cool enough that it’s still hot, but not so hot that you can’t touch it. Pour warm brine into each jar, covering the cukes and allowing 1/2 headspace in each jar. Seal up tight, give a little shake to mix up the garlic and spices and then allow to cool completely. Store in the frig, one week and test. Should be READY TO EAT!!! Yum!

Part of the fun of canning is trying different old family recipes and then making our own favorites out of these treasures. You can dink with the recipes a bit, alter them to become your own! Since this is only our second year experimenting with canning and all, it’s still a lot of fun to test things out. After we do jams and butters next week, we want to try and make good old bread and butter pickles and actually can/process them! Got a recipe to try out.

And considering my 41 tomato plants are growing like beasts outside… I think we are going to be putting up a LOT of tomato sauce, my sweet pepper salsa and ketchup as well as stewed tomatoes too!!! Going to be a fun summer of canning!

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