Nothing is more comforting than...

FOOD IN THE CUPBOARDS!!!! Our family sits in this crummy Michigan economy with a business that is auto related. With the down turn in the auto industry on top of the recession, our business isn't even recognizable from a few years ago. We have spent the year in some what of a sabbatical. Jason has done some work but mainly we have been living off of selling things around the house.

I have been really stressed out lately by the money issues. I can handle not making much money, but when I can't see the next time it is going to come in, I get un-nerved. So, after a big deposit from ebay, I went grocery shopping today. Mind you, I didn't get anything special, but we have the staples. I dropped a whopping $270 on bulk items from Sam's Club and Gordon Food Service. I know that I can make that last many weeks. That feels very good and will let me relax for a few weeks at least.

Jason found a cheap shop space in Mattawan and we are giving it another go. This time it will be more like a place to work than a full fledge business. He spent the summer working out of our garage but it wasn't very practical. We will be leaving this residence in March, so it was going to have to come at some point. If this doesn't work, we are going to be moving into our motor home. So, you would think that moving into the motor home means failure...but it doesn't. I kind of want to move into the motor home. It sounds so liberating. BUT, it would be much easier to have a successful enough business to where we could just travel more and always have a home base.

So, just in case, we are selling as much of our "stuff" as possible that we don't really need or want. Either way, it will be a lighter load when we move. Part of me just wishes I could sell it all, but that isn't feasible. I have a lot of family antiques that I just can't see parting with. But a lot of the other "stuff", it can go!

Where do I like to sell stuff? Craigslist! Ebay works for those specialty items that need a wider audience. It is just that they take such a large chunk of change. Craigslist is where the easy sales are really at. Like tonight, I sold Westin's old twin bedroom set. I listed it Sunday night and later that evening I got my first call. Craigslist is popular enough that there is plenty of traffic for some items to sell fast. Does everything sell that fast? NO! But it is free to list and it is fairly easy to relist it every month. (The listings last for 30 days unless you delete it-which I highly recommend when an item sells.)

In anticipation for the possibility of living in the 1984 motorhome that we picked up last month, I have started making some changes with the interior. When it is done, I will have to post pictures. First, the carpet is coming out. It was in good shape but it doesn't seem practical to keep clean. We ripped it out this weekend. Of course, when I say "we" I mean "Jason" ;) We will lay some laminate flooring in it's place.

I also have plans for some paint, new curtains, some extra storage, etc. The interior has great cabinets and a lot of brown. I plan to just throw in some ice blue or baby blue accents and it will modern it a bit. Kind of fun to have a "home" project...just happens to be a motor home project :)