Tag Archives: encore career

Life moves in mysterious ways

Posted on by
Reply

We all know the saying, “Be careful what you wish for, it might come true.”

Sometimes, we just get so mired in the muck and life seems so confusing and empty, but we keep wishing and hoping and visualizing the life we want to live.

I’ve had a dream for eons; living somewhere warm where the sea is warm too, somewhere I can afford, where I can make a reasonable living and there is good internet.

Over the years, I’ve researched hundreds of places, thought about, looked at pictures, talked and talked and talked about it. I was pretty sure the place would be Central/South America. I thought long and hard about going home to South Africa, but the more I hear from the family, the more I realize that it would be a dead end for me. Of course, I will always go to visit, but not to stay.

Then along came mymixednuts, and I thought, OK, I can work on this, stash a little cash, and when it has grown up, we can sell it and I can retire with some of the proceeds. Or I could set up the management part online so I could do it from anywhere.

Well, that is basically upside down. And it put me in a very interesting spot. Seeing as I turned 62, Social Security is available. Now I hadn’t thought about taking it early, because I believed I would be working and making enough I wouldn’t need it. Then I thought, “Hmm, why don’t I take a look at how that will change things.”

And lo and behold, the whole picture changed. Not my dream, which is now closer than I ever, but how I can actually do it.

As I searched through the countries I might go to, there were a few leaders; Panama, Mexico, Ecuador and Nicaragua. Panama has always been my first choice and that is still the direction I am heading. It has everything I want, the sun, the sea, the internet.

And why the internet? Because I am creating an income now, online!

A long time ago, I saw an ad for copy editors but when I saw how little they pay, I passed it by. Then recently, it popped up again, and being in a totally different place in my life, I took another look, and voila! it works! With the social security that I get starting next month, and working 20-25 hours a week, I can make a comfortable living. Not here, but somewhere south.

I expect at some stage, it might get boring, but right now, the lack of pressure and the freedom it allows, is wonderful. If that happens, then I can look for something more stimulating. When I am in my new country then I can write again, doing articles like I did for Country Life in South Africa. Don’t know who I will sell them to but that really doesn’t matter right now.

mymixednuts will get wrapped up, if anyone ever bothers to respond to any emails. Today, if I haven’t heard anything, I will complete the list of user names and passwords, take myself off all the accounts, change the bank info, and send the key to the warehouse and list to Brian or Annie.

Looking towards the future, I want to be out of here by October/November so no more winters.

On another note, spring MAY have sprung, my tulips are sort of flowering, the trees have a lovely soft green blush, the osprey is back and so are the Canadian geese. It doesn’t get quite to freezing at night and if the wind doesn’t blow, it’s warm in the sun. Oh, and we have a harbor seal coming visiting on a high tide, not that that has anything to do with spring.

Moving forward again

Posted on by
Reply

I think I am getting there as far as this blog goes. Changed the header, added the links etc.

So back to why I write this. Initially, it was to keep my scattered family up to speed about where I am and what I am doing. It’s been going on now for several years and at times it has been a rant, a musing, a travelogue. The last phase was as I worked at getting mymixednuts up and running. When things started out, I posted regularly, about this gray haired baby boomer lady trying for an encore career.

It was fun and a challenge. Coming from a publishing background, and having worked on the internet from it’s infancy, I was able to accomplish a lot and am very proud of that.

BUT, and there is a big but, I will never take on a project like that on my own.

Not knowing the partners, other than Ryan, it ended up being a disaster. No ground rules were in place, and no one other than myself, had any duties. Decisions were all mine even if they were fly by the seat of my pants ones. And I know I made mistakes along the way, but without a sounding board and without support, I could only do what I could do.

So in the end, although the web site is great, it’s a good little business, it still is not making money and won’t for a while. It needs constant financial feeding and that is not forthcoming. Not even to pay me, so I have had to punt.

It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. The business was like a baby to me so leaving it is like losing someone/thing you love. I battled on for too long, trying to make it work without an income, but finally I had to admit to myself that keeping it going on my own was impossible. At times it felt like I was the only one who cared, even though huge (to me) amounts of money had been invested into it.

So here I am back where I was 18 months ago, with a lot of experience under my belt but little to show for my efforts. Ryan has done so much for me, to try to keep it going so that I would have an income. But it comes down to finances and actually putting gas in the car and food on the table.

So I am looking around to find something that a 62 year old single woman can do to make a living.

My social security will kick in next month, something I had no intention of doing. But that will help and I check my pride and went and got food stamps! It’s only temporary but will get me through the rough spot I am in.

The big question for me now is – where the heck am I going to be able to live on my minute social security? Certainly not the US! And besides, I haven’t wanted to be here for a long time and have stayed – recently – because of the business and because the house is going into foreclosure so am not making any mortgage payments. If I had to pay rent, I would really be up the creek.

So I am thinking Mexico, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Belize (see my blog about Susan and my trip years ago). Or maybe back to South Africa, but I am hesitant being that far away from my boys, that I might end up stuck there. There are numerous factors to consider and it is not something I will jump into.

First is cost of living, then climate (it has got to be warm, no more of this Pacific Northwest shit), internet access because I am pretty sure any additional income I generate will be online, and then language. Although it would be fun to learn Spanish.

For a while I think this blog is going to be my sounding board as I figure out what my next moves are going to be.

Winter in April

Posted on by
Reply
Sheesh! I thought we were done with all the miserable winter weather, but noooo! Yesterday blew those hopes away.
I woke up to a howling gale and torrential rains, which quickly turned into snow. Not just little snowflakes but big, fat, sticky ones that hung around for half the day! They were flying sideways across the deck, mixed in with flower petals from the fruit trees that really took a beating! Even the kitties, who always dash out in the morning, refused to go out and stayed inside the entire day.
And then, even though it stopped snowing, the rain and wind continued to torment us until it blew the lights out around 5. Bam! Everything off! So much for a quiet evening watching a movie.
But I actually enjoyed it. Fired up the airtight stove and got the house all toasty warm, and I was really glad I had bought a quarter cord of wood in the fall, just for emergencies. Set a pot of water on top for tea which came to a boil really fast! Without the constant electrical hum, it was absolutely silent except for stove crackling and the wind gusts, which finally settled down.  And candle light is so relaxing. I had planned to go to bed early anyway, so took several candles upstairs and read for a while before nodding off in the silence.
This morning everything is back on, so have been going around setting the clocks – looks like the power was off for about six hours! 
Kangen WaterI spent most of yesterday working on my Kangen Water business, which was quite productive and I am convinced that this is the way to a retirement for me. Not only will it generate a good income, but I can do it from anywhere in the world, which is SO important to me. I actually don’t like using the word “retirement,” I don’t think I can ever do that, at least not like generations before me. I love being busy and having a challenge, which is what this and the nut business is. 
And talking about nuts, the media blitz will start soon, and the pitches to all the tv, radio and magazines hopefully will generate a lot of business. I had to write a bio on me the other day so wicked-pr can send it to AARP – ha! never thought I would be so old that old people would be interested in me! But time marches on, so might as well get on the ride!

This is all wicked stuff :)

Posted on by
Reply
Well! They say keeping your mind active keeps you young! I think I am 20 again :) Maybe my mind, the rest? Well, we won’t talk about that. 
Working with the wicked_pr guys is really interesting. It is SO good to get a different take on the site, getting more eyes on it. I’ve mentioned before that I have felt like I am working in a vacuum, with very little feedback, and I know from writing and editing, after you have looked at something, whether it’s text, images or a web site, after a while, you become so familiar with it, that you don’t see what is actually there and glaring mistakes or missed opportunities get by you. So all the suggestions and input is wonderful.
Now I am working through the doc Charles did and distilling it down to make sure I understand what it is that we are going to do and have both Charles and Brian go over it. Then I will work with the group in India who will make the changes. 
It’s all good stuff!
I love yoga! But I had no idea how stiff I am! I’ve never been a limber person. I think that all my swimming in those early years lengthened my muscles but did nothing for flexibility, so I am really having to work at some of the poses! Or should I say, contortions! But pretty soon I will know the basic poses and be able to do them correctly so will feel more comfortable doing them at home without hurting myself. 
It’s also really good to get the hell out of here those two days. As beautiful as it is here, it is so far off the beaten track, I might as well be living on an island. So yesterday was fun, as Mardelle from Chicago was in town and Susan and I met her at Undertown, a very cool cafe in Port Townsend. It literally is under the town, under one of the old streets of Port Townsend and it also serves as an art gallery, with frequently changing exhibits. The seating is wild too, everything is different, as if they got the furniture from the thrift store! But it fits with the old brick walls, exposed electrical and utility fittings. Oh, and they have great coffee too.
Dr. Jadin got back to me about the meds and I have to have more tests to find out if I need to continue with the treatment. I hope I don’t! But will set up with the local clinic where I can order the tests myself and then email the results to her in South Africa. It will be very cool if I can just handle this all through diet and exercise. Just means I have to be even more diligent about it, forcing myself out every day to walk my 3.5 miles, but I draw the line at walking in the rain! That’s another reason I must get good at the yoga poses, then on rainy days I can still get the exercise I need.
Philosophers Notes are awesome! I am really enjoying them and getting so much out of them. Especially reading as many as I am to catch up, it really immerses me in a positive mind set, there’s no room to get depressed or anxious about anything. Very cool. This Einstein quote really sums up what the notes are all about: 
“The problems we face today cannot be solved from the same level of thinking that created them.”  Albert Einstein
Your thoughts become things, so choose the good ones.