Getting Serious about Money

Yesterday afternoon, C and I had a conversation about money, jobs and life, not unusual when we are on a long car trip. This one was different though.

This one was less "I wish" and more "we should". It was about how other people seem to be getting ahead in this crap economy and we aren't. About how different decisions made earlier in our lives could have made a big difference to our current finances. And about how big decisions now could help change things for the better.

Basically, we both decided that it's time to pull our finger out and stop settling. Stop settling for our white- and blue-collar wages. Start focusing on how we can earn more, and sow the seeds of some future passive income.

"But it all sounds so greedy!" I said at one point, stricken with conscience because striving for more money seemed a little Wall Street when people less fortunate than us are struggling to keep the power and water on.

But hubby pointed out that there is no shame in wanting something better for ourselves, and our future family. Plus we're both totally sick of being poor. Poverty being relative of course - I am not living on the breadline, or below it. But the constant worry about money is just exhausting. And I don't want to be a billionaire. I just want to be able to buy a magazine when I fancy it and not feel guilty.

So now remains to be seen whether we will actually take action, or keep talking about taking action. I'm a very hard girl to get out of my comfortable rut, so stay tuned. Will we look at the mining sector? Will we consider 2nd jobs? Will we start up a side hustle? Who knows.

Do you want more income? Have you done any of the above and how has it turned out?

Why I Like Going to Camp

Every year, Mum and I and our scrapbooking “mob” go to Camp. Well, strictly it’s cabins in the woods (minus the horrible dying) but it’s at lovely Lake Perseverance.

  

As it’s June, it’s usually cold, so we take along electric blankets, scarves and fluffy socks. The accommodation is basic (bunk beds with foam mattresses and an ensuite) and we share three to a room but it’s clean and sufficient for our needs. When we leave, we sweep and mop the floor, though this doesn’t take long.

Because we’re not there to sleep! We’re there to scrapbook. For two nights and two days. Some ladies are there to escape their families for a few days. Some are there to socialize and chat with their friends. But all of us are there to just Get Shit Done.

Because when you’re a scrapbooker, blocking out time at home to do it can be tricky – without a dedicated space, it is very hard to get motivated to get all your stuff out, then tidy it away again afterwards.

But at camp, you get an entire table to yourself, and you can leave your stuff lying around all weekend. You can borrow other people’s tools, and walk around chatting and getting inspiration by having a Nosey Parker at what they’re doing. Sometimes they run quick talks or classes, so we can learn a new technique too.

And one of the best parts? Once every few hours, someone cooks and serves us food. And then washes up everything. Paradise.

Mum and I like to walk in the mornings – she bullies me awake at dawn and out we go into the crisp (well, sometimes freezing) morning air. The bush is quiet, the air is clean and the scenery amazing. It’s so nice, even though generally I hate walking.

So, to sum up – scrapbook camp is awesome because:

• You get to do heaps of scrapbooking with people who also love it. It’s like therapy.
• You don’t have to cook or clean up afterward
•  It’s surprisingly cheap, given what you get
•  It’s a weekend in the country, with very little mobile service

Do you ever go on any “retreats”? What for?

It's Oh So Quiet

It's oh so still...


After six weeks, our house guests are now gone. It was a long stay by anyone's standards - but a good one all the same. However, I am ecstatic about one thing - the quiet.

The house is quiet again. When I get up, there's no noise. No one talking to me. When I come home, the same, unless hubby is there and he doesn't say too much most of the time. It's pretty amazing how much the noise level goes down when the number of people in a small house decreases. Or maybe not so amazing at all, when you think about it.

It's kind of the same feeling I get when I go to the farm, where the absence of traffic and background noise becomes noticable. When you can stand under a clear sky and marvel at the stars shining above so clear and bright and absolutely silent above.

I'm not comparing my house to the silence of a still winter's night in the country, but I never realised how much I missed the quiet until the noise was gone.

Are you a seeker of quiet moments? How do you achieve it in your life, noisy or not?

Being the Older Woman

My dear husband celebrates his 30th birthday this week. He had a party on the weekend, the first since he was 21. (I'd never really thought about throwing him one before, as I dislike having people over so much!)

He hasn't really confided in me whether this milestone and the start of a new decade of his life bothers him, but it did serve to remind me that I am 33. 

Yes, I'm the Older Woman. Cradle-snatcher. Cougar. Ha! 

Which doesn't really bother me at all. It's never been an issue really, except for when that measley 3-year age gap means he can't remember things like Fraggle Rock or I have no cultural reference for kids tv of the early 90s. Or I remember that my little brother is older than him. 

What other people think of it I have no idea. Perhaps I have been lucky in that friends and family have offered no unsolicited opinion!

Are you the eldest in your relationship? At what point does the gap become odd or creepy?

Procrastinate for Australia

Last night as I brushed my teeth, I glanced over at my shower caddy and thought, just as I had every night for the last 6 months, that it was looking a bit shoddy. 

I made a promise to myself (for the hundredth time) to buy a new one. 

But I know I probably won't get around to it. There will be some excuse - I'm never at the shops, I don't have the money to spare this month, I can't find one I like...

Yet even when all excuses are rendered invalid I still won't buy one. Know how I know? Because two weeks ago I was standing in the $2 store looking at the same shower caddy that I have, had money in my pocket and still didn't buy it. I can't even remember the excuse I gave myself. Probably that I was in a hurry or something equally idiotic. 

I am a world-class procrastinator. I could procrastinate for Australia. Doesn't matter what it is; housework or bill-paying or present-buying, I will usually find a way to put it off in favour of something else. Sometimes for no logical reason!

As you can imagine, this impacts my life in ways that cause me stress later. I need to take a leaf out of Nike's book sometimes and just freaking do it. 

After the frenzy of Getting Things Done, I will give myself a pat on the back and them go back to being the Great Put-Offerer that I am. 

Do you procrastinate? How do you break the habit?

Sportsball

How about that game of sportsball on the weekend? You watching the sportsball match tonight? Man, I really love that sportsball team. 

You ever feel left out when it comes to sport? Recently I've been wondering if I'm missing something because I don't barrack for a team or player. Everyone else seems to, why aren't I even remotely interested?

When I was at school, I played the mandatory sports - netball, volleyball, tennis, athletics. I even remember kind of enjoying softball in the winter at primary school. But I never was particularly good at it, nor interested in pursuing it. 

Now as an adult, I don't "follow" a particular sport. I was raised in a rugby league family so I can watch a match and carry on a passable conversation about it, but left to my own devices I couldn't care less who wins the NRL premiership. Similarly I'm not remotely interested in any of the more popular sports here in Australia - AFL, cricket, soccer, golf, tennis, V8s. My husband is the same though as a car guy he will watch a few laps of Bathurst every year. 

I asked C the other day if he thought perhaps we should pick a sport and team to barrack for and follow, as other people seem to get so much enjoyment out of it. We toyed with the idea before deciding if we weren't passionate about it to start with, why should we fake an interest?

Tonight is the first match of the arguably the biggest League series of the year - State of Origin. My parents-in-law, who are rabid Qld supporters, will watch every minute, alternatively screaming and moaning at the tv. 

I haven't decided if I'll watch yet. I'm tempted to dismiss it as yet another game of sportsball - but somehow I think I'll get caught up in the excitement. 

Do you follow a sport and have a team? Tell me about it!

Knowing the Words

I've known my husband for 7 years now but yesterday on a long car trip I discovered something new about him: he knows all the words to just about every Elvis song. 

This is apparently the result of childhood osmosis, being brought up in the household of a fan of Mr Presley. I thought it was funny until I realised I probably know every word to Air Supply's Greatest Hits. 

It's funny what our brains decide to remember when it comes to song lyrics. For example, I know I can still rap every word to DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince's "Boom Shake The Room". And probably have a good crack at Salt 'N' Peppa's "Shoop". Neither of these songs are my favourites but somewhere along the way my brain decided to burn the words into my memory. Probably in an area I could have used to remember login passwords and PINs but there you go. 

The other thing I've found is if you've ever performed anything, such as a musical, you tend to remember the lyrics forever. And this is why is why I sing bits of "The Mikado" in the shower. 

What do you know all the words to?