The last twenty minutes have been wasted digging through papers to find a list I needed for an article. While my desk has been de-cluttered – to some extent – the paper still remains lost. This is just one more reason to stay organized. Clutter and chaos steal your time and for a freelancer time…
Writing has been a dream of mine since I was a child. I remember (and still own) my first story – “Snoopy and the Bananas†complete with illustrations. It was a simply a rewrite of the “Boy Who Cried Wolf†but it lit the fire. High school did not improve my writing opportunities. Mostly, I…
Circumstances are usually the only reason we tighten our financial belt around here. This time is not exception. As I was digging deep into the budget to see where we could purge, I got a rude awakening. If we had just done this earlier, we would have been able to save enough money to build…
The holiday season bring lots of road travel for me and my family. Fortunately, I am one of those people that will enjoy the trip almost as much as I enjoy the destination. Whether it’s stopping at unique sites along the way or just entertaining all of us in the car, there are lots of…
My goal of being a full time writer is now within reach. I have met most of my objectives (picking up more online jobs, getting queries out, working on my novels, etc) but my blog is still a thorn in my side. Writing the material is not the problem. Most days it motivates me to…
The race is on. Christmas is now less than four weeks away. Officially, we will be surviving on my income at the first of January. My office is getting smaller as my jobs continue to multiply. But the more I face, the more I am determined to overcome. 1.     Less is more this Christmas. We…
Growing up with a big brother can be tough – especially when you are a girl. I am 3 ½ years younger than my brother. That means when he was a senior, I was a freshman. To make matters more difficult, he ran around with several of the guys from the football team. Technically, I…
This morning I re-evaluated my budget. It wasn’t planned to happen until January (I review my budget once a quarter), but with the income situation taking such a shift, and with the finances falling squarely on my shoulder, I want to know EXACTLY what I’m facing. Many people would completely panic in my position. That’s…
My blog is still not paying my rent. It isn’t even buying me a pack of gum now and then. It is one year old, and there are days when I feel like a monetized blog is as much of a myth as Jack’s magic beans. The truth may not show in the dollar signs…
Either I have completely lost my mind, or I have grown in ways even I didn’t know. My ten year old son and my eight year old son are cooking Thanksgiving Dinner (with some assistance from mom). The Plan Each of the boys will be responsible for two side dishes and one dessert – not…