by Bill on February 26, 2014
Seth Godin has some really good posts often; and I found one from 2011 that is no exception. As usual it stuck to a point I can relate to. It’s about being stuck and how to find a way out of it.
Which of the four are getting in the way?
You don’t know what to do
You don’t know how to do it
You don’t have the authority or the resources to do it
You’re afraid
Once you figure out what’s getting in the way, it’s far easier to find the answer (or decide to work on a different problem).
Stuck is a state of mind, and it’s curable.
I want to add that “stuck” also comes in various levels and difficulties. Different issues can lead to being in a state of mind. At this point in time, at least today, the state of mind is real and the cure isn’t visible yet. I have some thinking to do to find that cure. I know it’s out there. I’m sure of that. And that is the one thing I wanted to get across, the answer is out there someplace.
Anybody got ideas? Did you ever get stuck?
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by Bill on February 17, 2014
Worried Over Basic Needs
How bad is it when you actually worry about your dog chewing up a nickel deposit bottle? I mean all the pup wanted was something to chew on. At first I saw the bottle and took it away thinking “damn it I need that nickel”; but do I? Did I really need that bottle so damn badly that I would take away joy from somewhere else? Yes it was from my dog, but still. I panicked over loosing a nickel. And yes I did give the bottle back to Bella.
I’m always complaining there is never enough. I get upset when something gets lost, broken or wears out because I cannot replace it right away; I don’t know when I will replace what I’ve lost over the years. And that’s my problem. I continue to need replacements for little things like books, movies, clothing and such.
I found myself recently debating if it was a good choice to recycle all those little cans of tuna or cat food after the food is gone. I remember people using them for cigarette butt cans, coin holders, soap containers, and one person who used to keep them to feed the cats with as dishes. I almost thought aloud how this reminded me of the 1930s and the Great Depression. Back then I’m not sure if we, as a country, had a hording problem. But there is the problem. When you debate on keeping something because there might be yet another use for it, are you a hoarder, a survivalist, or just frugal to the point of being really odd?
When you are not used to having much you tend to make due with lots of things that you wouldn’t ordinarily. Butter tubs are my best example when they become food storage containers; they’ve also doubled as mixing bowls for everything from pet food to egg salad to pancake batter. Old socks become either rags for cleaning up a mess to toys for the dogs when they want to play tug-o-war. I buy the large 2-quart or gallon size drinks so I can use the containers as pitchers later on. Currently I have two in use.
But for some reason when one of those butter tubs, juice containers, the odd spatula or the still useful sock gets the attention of one of my dogs I get upset. Its not that those things cannot be replaced sometime; or that they are so important as to be vital to survival. It just upsets me because, when you are as low on cash as I am many days, replacements seems far off. Stress over little things is common when you can’t figure out the little things like how you will replace socks or mixing bowls.
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