Significant Life Events

They say that, for us humans, significant life events - good or bad - cause stress.

Oh, really?

Time for a quick "life change inventory".  So, I checked the web and found the Holmes & Rahe Life Events Scale. I scanned the list, checked everything we've experienced in the last year, or are in the middle of, and discovered I'm a high achiever.  And, no surprise, so is Boris.

What's our average score?  308.

And, the interpretation of our results?

Your score means a significant amount of life change and a significant susceptability (about 80% probability) to stress-related illness. However please keep in mind that there are many variables that interact on health including positive factors such as support from family, friends or work associates. If you are concerned about your stress levels then you should seek the assistance of a qualified counsellor or health practitioner.

Us, concerned? 

Not anymore.

We know exactly what we need to do to slow down and get our stress in check.  

We'll be there soon!

Unanticipated Monday

Last week at this time, we were coping with work and planning ahead to my "procedure", which was scheduled for this morning.  After spending Sunday sipping liquids and other nasty stuff, Boris and I would be up and out early this Monday, the deed would be done and Boris would deposit my sleepy self at home for a day of rest and recuperation. 

Fast forward one week and, as it turns out, we've had quite the unanticipated Monday.  We're coping with work no more because work no longer exists.  With our corporate-provided health insurance expiring at 12:01 a.m. on Friday (Thank you oh so very much!) we weren't exactly sure when and where COBRA would kick in.  So, after several somewhat panicked phone calls on Friday afternoon, I cancelled the procedure.  After all, it's not an emergency.  I can easily get this thing rescheduled after we have COBRA up and running.

Besides, after the day we had, I just have to say there wasn't a spare minute for rest and recuperation!  Our unanticipated Monday started very early.  (Funny how easy it is to get up when there's stuff you want to do instead of stuff you have to do!) By the time when Boris would've been dropping me home to rest up, we had so much stuff going on around here, my head was spinning.  After all, it's Monday.  By now, people we've worked with are starting to hear the news.  And, they're contacting us about it.  We were writing and responding to emails and phone calls much of the morning.  Had I been recovering from "the procedure" I would've missed it all.  

So many "to-dos" were checked off today.  Finally, we feel like we're making real progress. And, we are so grateful for all the pre-work we did do.  At long last, we now have the time to get the rest of it done. 

Oh, what a difference a week makes!

Happy Monday! 

Weekend of Preparations

If it's weekend, we sure can't tell.  (Of course, every day is weekend for us these days!) We've been busy, busy, busy! 

Lots more stuff is out the door thanks to Craigslist.  (Have I mentioned how much I love that place?) And, the trash and recycling bins are filled to the brim.  It's become very obvious that there's less stuff in our house.  And, that feels great.

I've been busy doing some therapeutic quilting. It provides a welcome break from the clearing busyness.

We have a list of things to do tomorrow, which includes towing a classic car we own but never use to the shop to get it spruced up and sold.  Boris picked up a couple of FOR SALE signs to place in the windows while it's at the shop.  That Boris....he's always thinking! We have a couple more things to put on Craigslist, and there will be freshly dumped trash and recycling bins to fill up again. Now that the roof is finally fixed we'll have an interior painter stopping by on Tuesday and we need to make a call to someone to do the same for the outside.  We're lining up our guy to clean the windows inside and out and repair the screens.  Then, we call the realtors.  

And, when next weekend rolls around what we'll we do?  

We're going camping! 

After all this work around here, we'll definitely be ready for a break.  

Life is Weird

Yes, it is.

Today's headline is an excerpt from the closing line of Biloxi Blues, a Mike Nichols' 1988 comedy film based on a semi-autobiographical Neil Simon play of the same name.

How would we know?

Oh, we tuned in to the last hour or so of the movie at about 2:00 or so in the morning after we realized we were both wide awake.

(Hmmm. A little stress will do that.)

But, watching 20-year-old movies in the wee hours? Now, that sounds like a sabbatical!

At the end of the film, Matthew Broderick declares, "Life is weird, you know?" as he talks about seemingly insignificant happenings and relationships that became cherished memories of a lifetime.

We looked at each other in the bleary pre-dawn hours. And, we agreed.

Life IS weird.

Turns out, our ex-employer, of all people, has actually pushed our fulltiming dream along in the final stretch. We got what we wanted. And then some.

Of course, we had to swallow the cold hard fact that they were willing to live without us. But, you know what? A "right back at ya" applies here, too.

The bottom line remains the same. We're really outta here. Soon!

In the last 24 hours or so, we've started "spreading the news" of our very future plans. People who didn't know are excited. People who did, including you - our loyal readers - have provided much appreciated words of encouragement.

Thank you.

Let the Sabbatical Begin!

We stepped one gigantic step closer to our fulltiming dream today: We got laid off.

Both of us. And, we couldn't be happier.

Really!

We must admit that we've kept a few things about us just a little vague since we started this blog - all in an effort to keep our future plans from going too public.  One of the little details is that we both work (or, I guess that's "worked") at the same company. And, given the state of economic affairs, said company decided to let us go...together.  

How very romantic!  The one nice thing is while the laying off was happening, I knew there was one person in the room who loves me! 

The bigger nice thing is that we are now free to get this show on the road.  We have just a taste of the freedom that's ahead of us.  And, if this is just a taste, we are in for one heck of a treat. 

Let's all raise a toast to the beginning of one beautiful sabbatical.

Cheers!

The Three S's

Happy Easter! We are relaxing after a very active weekend of selling, shredding and sewing -- The three S's!

Just about everything we put on Craiglist this weekend is gone. The biggest payoff was several dozen new high-dollar golf balls Boris acquired at his previous employer. They've been sitting in the garage for the last couple of years, until Boris thought he'd take them for a spin on Craigslist. All I can say is cha-CHING! This is the best way to sell your stuff, hands down.

We also made a sweep of the place and gathered stuff for a charity pick up that's scheduled for Tuesday. The boxes of books will go, along with a couple bags of clothes and about three moving boxes of housewares. What fun to clear our kitchen of stuff we no longer need that can serve a good cause!

Boris and I setup camp (so to speak) in our home office for a good part of the weekend. Boris spent hours shredding old financial documents. That shredder was (almost literally) smokin! Between shredfests he also managed to finish our taxes. (Thanks dear!) We've been Turbo Tax users for nearly two decades, but for the first time ever Boris decided to file our returns electronically. Taking our returns to the post office on or around April 15th has been a long-standing tradition at our house. We'll just have to find a new pasttime. (Can you say "fulltiming"?)

While Boris was shredding and taxing, I was at the sewing maching working on the quilt for our bed in Bullwinkle. When I bought the fabric a couple of weeks ago, I told myself I wouldn't start on this one until "The Quilt" was finished. But, I couldn't resist. Once I had washed all of those luscious fabrics, they tempted me to begin cutting and sewing. I caved and made great progress on our fulltiming quilt. Turns out it's a welcome creative break from the multi-year project. Could be just what I needed to get jazzed about that old project once again. I'm close to finishing it....really close.

Needless to say, things are feeling a lot more spacious 'round here. With many of our belongings gone, we're beginning to get the sense that we might just be packing up and moving out of here in a couple of months.

Yahoo!!

A Day Off

We both had the day off, so our weekend started early. We can't remember the last time we spent a three-day weekend at home. Our storage place is closed on Easter. So, if we were going to camp we'd have to stay out until Monday, and our work calendars simply wouldn't accommodate that. Besides, we have way too much to do to go camping. And, we made the most of our extra day.

We were out and about earlier than most workdays, as we had a date just after eight with a genius at the Apple store. With our old and new laptops in tow, the plan was to transfer data from one to the other. When our genius told us we'd have to check both computers in and come back to pick them up in 24 to 48 hours (!) we started looking for alternatives. She introduced us to a nifty piece of software and a cable that can do the trick. (It's probably what they use!) We stopped by Best Buy later in the day and picked one up. Within 4 minutes, our tunes were transferred. After Natasha does a bit of picture and document cleanup, we'll grab those, too. And, something tells us it won't take anywhere near 24 hours to make that happen. (We can't imagine going two days with no laptop!)

Back at home, we spent the morning getting several things ready to post on Craigslist - just in time for the weekend rush. Our old guest room has become our "Craiglist showroom". Once everything was photographed, we placed it all in that room. As the closest room to the front door - and the emptiest - it makes a perfect spot for Boris to close our Craigslist deals. Already our mini fridge is spoken for by a young woman who had one just like it in her music studio, but blew it up when she tried to defrost it with a something sharp. We just love the stories about our buyers. It makes us feel like we're doing a wee bit of good as we part with our belongings.

Natasha managed to make time for some little one-minute breaks to play Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook. It's amazing how much time you can waste one minute at a time! It's a fun new addiction.

Happy weekend!