So what happened to that Year of Living Frugally you might ask.
Before I continue with my next year, I feel I must provide a belated ending to my first year. I have many excuses for not writing sooner, but all of them are lame. So rather than elucidating, I’ll get to the point.
Here is a slightly shorter version of my original April 2011 post with updates of what happened.
Is the glass half-full or is the plan half-baked?
In March, I turned 64; on April 20 I quit half my job.
Who deserves my time?
I hope it wasn’t the half I needed. I trust that decreasing the hours I spend working will add quality time to my life and lighten my existence, not just my bank account.
My first question in deciding to do this was, “Who or what deserves my time?” This question was originally posed by my minister in a sermon. Am I spending my time in a way that is life-renewing or life-draining? In my case, although my job as a nurse-midwife is often fulfilling, it’s exhausting and I spend much of my free time sleeping or otherwise recovering.
Will I end up in the streets?
My second question was, “Can I afford to do this?” I have been planning for years for my retirement and I know I’ll be okay by the time I’m 65, but will a year of earning and saving less jeopardize my future? Will I end up on the streets in later life?
After months of evaluating this question, then having a younger friend die and miss the retirement years she’d been saving for, the question changed to, “Can I afford not to do this.”
To make losing half my income more interesting and engaging than simply feeling deprived, I presented myself with the following challenge.
Without dipping into savings, I will continue to contribute 10% of my net income to my church and other charitable organizations plus tithe to myself by saving 10%. Whew! Can I do this? We’ll see. This one is hard to determine. I met the contribution goal, but my new frugal lifestyle turned out to be expensive, so I didn’t save 10%.
Here are the steps I taking to meet this challenge.
Step 1. I will pay off my house this month. Done!
Step 2. I will cook and eat at home and take my lunch to work. Ugh! This part will be hard. I rarely cook. I’m a huge fan of eating out and carryout, so this is a big change. Unsuccessful at taking my lunch, my habits took the lead. Rather than admit defeat, however, I quit my job. Problem solved. Done!
Step 3. I will exercise and improve my health. Postponed. Okay, so this didn’t happen by April 23, 2012, but it’s happening now.
Step 4. I will use things I already have. Clearing out stuff always feels good. My closets, cabinets and garage are a testament to the Buddhist principle of impermanence of desire. Once I can find whatever it is, I promise to use it or get rid of it. Who did I think I was kidding?
I will share this process.
Step 5. I will write and share this process. I enjoy writing and the creativity involved will help keep my glass half full. During the coming year, I’ll keep you posted on how this plan is working out, including the details of the steps and when I backslide. Oops, big 10-month backslide!
Was my plan half-baked? Perhaps. Is my glass half full? It’s more than half-full most of the time and I can afford to spend my time in life-renewing ways. That’s good enough for me.
My deepest apologies dear reader for leaving you hanging so long. I hope I haven’t lost you. I commit to do better in the coming year. My Next Year of Frugality continues to include steps 2-4 with a new, improved step 5.
5. I will write and share this process. I enjoy writing and the creativity involved will help keep my glass half full. During the coming year, I’ll keep you posted once a week on one or another of my blogs.
Please stay tuned.
My Year of Living Frugally 