On Clearing

Ask yourself: What am I tired of putting up with?

A car that is constantly in the shop? The mismatched set of wine glasses? That stupid wagon wheel coffee table? (bonus points if you can name that movie)

Name it. Change it. Get rid of it. Fix it.

Replace, fix or buy what you love. Ditch the rest.

What are you tired of putting up with?

Martinis and French Fries

What do you want? Let me ask that again. What do you want? Think hard about this.

Restauranteurs will tell you that people order their entree based on the sides. I’ve ordered many a sandwich in my lifetime because it came with french fries. I wanted a salad, but I wanted fries so I got the sandwich. Of course I could have ordered a salad with a side of fries, but I didn’t. Why, I cannot tell you.

I am self-proclaimed late bloomer and recently discovered the joy of a martini. Hendricks please, shaken, with three olives. If they are freshly stuffed with blue cheese even better. Sacrilage to some, but that’s what I want. And french fries. A perfect combination of hot, salty, crispy fried carbs with a refreshingly cool beverage to wash it down with.

Sometimes I don’t need or want the sandwich, the veggie burger, the steak, the chicken. I just want the martini and fries, so that’s what I get.

If we took all the things we do out of habit, or because we think it’s the norm, or because everyone else does it or because we could be teased about it (french fries and salad, really?) or because because because a myriad of other things – and really chose in a new and fresh way, how much more fulfilling would our lives be? What might we discover?

Choose. Choose again. And choose wisely.

On Planning

A thought about budgets.

They are not as helpful as they should be.

The word itself evokes a restrictive feeling. I can’t do this, I can’t do that. It’s not in my budget. And there is an unspoken sense that only ‘poor’ (another word I dislike for another time) people need them.

If you have a budget you are trying to avoid failure.

I prefer plan. We set a plan. A plan can breathe. A plan can change. A plan is elastic and moves with me and my life. Wealthy people have plans.

If you have a plan you are setting yourself up for success.

Why would you try to avoid failure when you can set yourself up for success?

On Buying

Quote from the elderly aunt of a friend:

“I am not a wealthy woman. I cannot afford to buy cheap things.”