Dream Save Do – Amass the cash to live your dream

I just finished reading ‘Dream Save Do’ by Betsy and Warren Talbot. Betsy and Warren spend their days meeting people, traveling the world, and trying new things. Sounds pretty fun huh?

How did Betsy and Warren become world travelers? Betsy and Warren were your basic corporate drones, who on the cusp of turning 40 stopped buying things and started saving for their dream. Traveling the world.

In two years’ time they saved $75,000, more than enough to fund their travel budget of $100 a day (read Dream Save Do for all their money saving details). Last fall Warren and Betsy packed their backpacks and traveled to South America, then Antarctica, Europe, and now Thailand. They’re living their dream and inspiring others to do the same. Very cool!

Are Betsy and Warren the real deal? Yep! A couple of years ago I met Betsy when she was stockpiling cash and selling her possessions. I thought Betsy was fun and full of interesting stories (and this is before she started traveling!).

I love reading about people following their passion because they inspire me to do the same. Reading ‘Dream Save Do’ got me thinking about my dream.

What does my ideal day look like? If I could live anywhere, where would I live? What would I do? And what can I do today to make my dream reality?

Good stuff.

You can read all about Warren and Betsy’s adventures at MarriedwithLuggage.com.

Life is short. Live your dream.

Giving thanks

A grateful heart is a happy heart. I’m counting my blessings today…

• Clean drinking water
• Warm and dry home
• Amply stocked kitchen
• Cup of coffee in hand
• Plenty of books to read
• 4 days off from work
• Hot breakfast prepared by my daughter

There’s so much to be thankful for!

I need nothing.

Black Friday deals have no luster, when you take into account what you already have.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Quatchi likes pancakes

Walking your city

I recently found an app that got me thinking. ’City Walk‘ divides your city into sectors, with your goal being to walk all the sectors in your city. There are fancy leaderboards and your progress is magically tracked by your phone and gremlins in the sky.

I think City Walk is a fun idea. I’ve lived in a Seattle suburb for 20+ years and City Walk got me thinking about walking my city. All of it. I can get a city map and walk different areas each week or month, marking off the completed areas.

Walking is a great way to learn an area. You might drive a route every day, but you see different things when you walk. You notice things that are overlooked when you’re speeding through life.

Walking has so many benefits…

Want to escape your busy life? Walk. Want to lose weight? Walk. Want to decrease stress? Walk. Want to solve problems? Walk. Want to reconnect with nature and your community? Walk.

It’s simple, free, and available to all. Walk your way to better health and well-being.

One street at a time.

How about you? Have you walked your city?

My photo blog post for today:

Blog your way to change

One of the coolest things about having a blog is how it reframes your life. I started a blog about frugality and suddenly I saw a zillion ways to spend less, save more, and minimize my footprint (yeah, I’m talkin’ carbon).

Lately (as in for years now), I’ve wanted to take more pictures. My mind would say ’you should really take more pictures,’ but my body did nothing. So to motivate myself into action, I started a photo blog. Surprise!

Kate’s 365 Photo Blog -  a picture a day!

Some days might be a little challenging. Seattle’s rain is persistent and work is, well ah, time consuming. However, so far I haven’t missed a beat. I find myself framing pictures in my head, whether I have a camera in my hand or not. So cool.

I highly recommend blogging.

Is there something you want to do? 

Get in shape?

Cook more?

Blog about it and see how your life is reframed.

Already got a blog or two? Drop the URL in a comment. I’d love to see what you’re up to. Now, blog on!

Experiences vs stuff

It’s the holiday season again; an excellent time to slow down and spend time with family and friends.

My family celebrates Chanukah and I’ve given my kids a few presents, but years from now I doubt they’ll remember these presents (I know I won’t). Instead of presents, I think my kids will remember the Chanukah parties that we have every year: latkes, candles, and spinning dreidels. Every party is a fun and unique experience.

I think most people would agree that experiences make people happier than things. The novelty of things wears off, but memories last a lifetime. That said, I hope you’ll spend lots of time with family and friends this holiday season.

Experiences are more memorable than presents.

Here’s to life experiences! Give the gift of your time – a very precious commodity in our busy world.

Related post:  No Christmas gifts this year dot com

Set a mark

After doing triathlons for five years, I didn’t sign up for a triathlon last summer. The result? I didn’t work out much and gained a few pounds around the middle (the muffin top). Without a workout goal my excuses ran rampant, but I did not.

Last week I decided to change things. I signed up for a triathlon in August. Nothing crazy. Just a simple Sprint triathlon with a hilly bike section.

The result? I’ve been swimming and running. No excuses. Now that I have a goal, it’s easy to stay focused. 

Normally, I’m not a huge fan of goals (and organization). I like the flexibility of no goals. But while swimming today, I thought about how specific goals bring results.

Once my nebulous goal of ‘working out’ changed to something concrete, I took action. 

S.M.A.R.T. goals makes things happen: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely.

So why not set a mark and go for it!

What specific goals do you have? Spending less? Saving more? Make your goals specific and you’ll get results.

1000 awesome things

Awesome things are, well… awesome. Neil Pasricha has an fun blog called 1000 Awesome Things. Neil’s posts will make you smile as you think about all the amazing things in life. There are thousands of awesome things in life. And most of them are free.

Awesome things such as…

• The smell of crayons
• Fitting every last thing in the dishwasher 
• Placing the last piece of the puzzle
• The final seconds of untangling a really big knot
• Riding home with a box of pizza on your lap

Which got me thinking about awesome spring things such as…

• Eating an ice cream cone on a sunny spring day
• Going sock-free for the first time in months
• Eating local strawberries (so sweet!)
• Drinking iced coffee in the morning sun
• Enjoying a cold beer after an afternoon of yard work
• Buying local produce at the farmer’s market 
• Receiving a homemade Mother’s Day card
• Daydreaming about summertime

How about you? What do you find awesome about spring?

What Shamu taught me about marriage

The most emailed New York Times article from 2006 was written by a journalist who spent a year researching exotic animal training techniques. The article, written by Amy Sutherland, described how she used animal training techniques on a species known as the American husband.

Animal training techniques on people? Amy received a few flame emails, but it probably didn’t bother her. Why?

After researching exotic animal training, Amy Sutherland became an altogether different person. She became less judgmental, more optimistic, more patient, a better observer, and she got along better with people - especially her husband. Amy wrote about her experience in the New York Times article What Shamu Taught Me About a Happy Marriage. The article was wildly popular and a book deal followed.

What Shamu Taught Me About Life, Love, and Marriage by Amy Sutherland

I missed the New York Times article in 2006. I was busy riding the emotional roller coaster called divorce. Recently, a book club buddy recommended the book and I stored the title away in my head. This week I saw the book on audio at the library. I picked it up, listened to Amy’s stories, smiled and laughed. Her writing is conversational and her marriage and animal training stories are fun.  

What animal training techniques did Amy use in her life?

She rewarded her husband’s good behavior and ignored the behavior she didn’t like. No more nagging. Animals can’t be nagged in to doing anything. Instead, like a progressive animal trainer, she learned to reward the small steps towards the behavior she liked, and to ignore behaviors she didn’t like. She practiced self control, and no longer responded to things that in the past would have annoyed her.

She adopted the trainers’ motto: “It’s never the animal’s fault.” When her training failed, she didn’t blame her husband. Instead, she analyzed her behavior and considered how her actions might have inadvertently fueled his. This makes perfect sense to me, since you can only control your actions.

Why was this New York Times article so popular? I think Amy had an unconventional idea about something of interest to most people – improving relationships. 

I found the book to be entertaining and interesting. And, I may even try a few animal training techniques on my kids.

Have you read a good book lately? Please share in a comment.

While we’re talking marriage… I loved Gretchen Rubin’s post this month: Five mistakes I make in my marriage

Happy people watch less tv

John Robinson, a professor of sociology at the University of Maryland, published a study that analyzed the activities of happy people. What do happy people do with their time?

The study found that happy people spent time socializing, going to church, visiting others and reading newspapers. And what did they not do? The study found that happy people engaged in one activity less often than unhappy people. Happy people watched less tv. 

Surprised? Well no Kate, we read the title of this blog. I wasn’t surprised either. And yet according to the latest Nielsen data, the average television viewer watches more than 151 hours of TV per month or 5 hours a day – an all-time high. Yikes.

Common sense tells me that most people would be happier, if they watched less tv and spent more time strengthing their relationships, and doing whatever it is they’re passionate about. While watching tv is entertaining, it’s hard to imagine someone lying on their death bed thinking - ”ya know, I really wish I’d watched more tv.” I binged (the MS version of googled) ’death bed thoughts’ and found this same sentiment in a post called Deep Death Bed Thoughts (by Stephen Mills):

“Lying on my death bed, I probably won’t remember anything or think about anything from tens of thousands of hours I spent watching TV during my life.”

So true. What do you think? Could happiness be as simple as watching less tv and spending more time socializing? Please leave a Comment.

Speaking of happiness. I enjoy reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. Gretchen researches happiness and writes about what works and what doesn’t. Her articles are definitely worth reading.

The inspiration for this post came from What Happy People Don’t Do by Roni Caryn Rabin.

Wanna be happy? Go outdoors every day

If I had a favorite season for gardening, spring might it. After winter I’m ready to get outside and reconnect with my plants. Time for me to trim remnants, marvel at new shoots, and weed, weed, weed - to the tune of Turn! Turn! Turn! by the Byrds.

Normally, my Hebes require zero maintenance. They quietly provide a splash of year-round green and require nothing from me. However, this year I found my Hebes in need of a haircut as my Mom calls it.  Each day as I waited for my garage door to open, my Hebe’s called me. “Kate?” And today I happily responded.

Before and after pictures

 

In 20 minutes time took something weathered and made it beautiful again. Gardens are amazing this way. With a little physical exertion, there is the possibility of making something beautiful. And in the process, I thrive.

Year and years ago before computers, the Internet, cell phones, social networking, and the elusive Joneses who simply can’t be caught (so why try?) - there was just nature and plenty of it. So take some time and go outdoors. Do it every day and you may notice a shift. A shift towards happiness. 

Here are some ideas for getting outside every day:

Do a small gardening task

Walk around your block and say hello to everyone you encounter

Take a 20 minute walk outside during work 

Eat outside whenever you can

Create a reading lounge outside

Take your kids, your dog, or just yourself to your neighborhood green space

What do you think? Could happiness be as simple as spending more time outside? Please leave a Comment.

Speaking of happiness. I enjoy reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. Gretchen researches happiness and writes about what works and what doesn’t. Her articles are definitely worth reading.