That’s a Wrap

As we wrap up another year, I'd like to take a moment to reflect on the past year and appreciate where I have been. My year centered on downsizing, simplicity, and traveling (you may click on the hyperlinked posts below).

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

It's a Process

A Pony Tale

Recycling Love

Shifting Sands

Someday

Unwinding Into Summer

Returning History

Back Off

Packing Your Patience

My travels included Hawaii, North Carolina, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Montana, Italy, France, and more than a few trips to Lake Chelan in eastern Washington. We seemed to be somewhat plagued by less than optimal weather, as in the wettest and coldest for whatever the time of the year we happened to be in each spot. We did not let this get to us. Living in the Pacific Northwest one learns to adjust to changing weather, have a plan B and C just in case, and dress for whatever comes our way.

While traveling I have realized I don't need a lot of stuff in order to enjoy myself. I have taken simplicity in our travels and have brought it home where downsizing is the order of the day. As I continue on my path into a new year, I know downsizing, simplicity, and traveling will follow.

Take a moment to reflect on the past year. What did it center on for you? Did you let it get to you or did you adjust along the way? As we begin a new year you might consider having a plan B and C just in case, and don't forget to dress for whatever comes your way. Join me as I put a wrap on the old year and toast the new year of possibilities ahead. Cheers!

A champagne cheers photo courtesy of Bill Masson

The Next Phase

Over the last few years my husband, Dennis, and I have been slowly moving towards making a major change in our lives. Having been homebodies at the piece of paradise we reside at currently, we are now traveling more and would like to take more time to do even more traveling. Last year you followed my posts on downsizing, this year we are making the move. After twenty-two years in our current home, we will be selling it and moving on to the next phase of our lives. But here’s the catch, we are not buying a house or condominium to move into, and we are not buying a motorhome! As a matter of fact, we are only keeping what fits in a few travel bags and a 10 by 15-foot storage unit. In other words, in the next phase of our lives we will be home-less, so to speak!

Are we excited? Most definitely. Scared? Absolutely not. Worried about the future? What’s to worry about? In case you are worried for us, don’t be. We’ll take our time and cross each bridge as it comes. We look forward to not having to catch-up on our home and yard after every trip. We look forward to having less, much less, to maintain and concern ourselves with. We look forward to seeing more of the world. And most of all, we look forward to just being.

With everything we have been doing to prepare for selling, it has been difficult to post regularly. But I will do my best to keep you up-to-date on our activities as we strive to move towards the next phase. Once we sell and move out, you’ll be able to follow us as we travel. It is what it is happens to be a guiding principle for both of us and we will need to fall back on this guiding principle as we hit the unpredictable road of travel. And for those who are not quite sure about the direction we are taking, we may have been homebodies in the past, but our recent travels have guided us to the realization that home is wherever we are.

Land and suitcases photo courtesy of Jenifer Corrêa

Catching Up with It Is What It Is

This just in...

After staying in areas with limited to no internet service and handling delays due to traveling the last 6 weeks, my book It Is What It Is was officially updated on July 10. So, for those of you ordering books for the first time or ordering additional books, you will receive the corrected cover version.

On a personal note...

While I was home recently, I delivered a copy of my book to various people that had inspired the many essays I wrote in Part II of It Is What It Is. When I had a theme in mind for a chapter, it seemingly fell in my lap the very day I was going to write about that particular theme. Many of the people I visited recently had no idea I had written a book way back when. It was delightful to spend time with friends I hadn’t seen in years. In one case, my caring mailman I wrote about in Part I had died. I felt a great sadness for someone I knew very little about, but that someone, Eric, had a major impact on my life. As I look back on everyone involved, not only in this book but in my life, I understand there’s a reason why people filter through our lives at one time or another. I am eternally grateful for having recognized their strengths that fulfilled my needs. I can only hope I've been there to fulfill their needs.

Sharing...

As I'm traveling around, I've been donating signed copies of It Is What It Is to local libraries. It puts a smile on the face of whoever I hand my book over to. And of course, I can't help feel the love in return. You may not be aware of this, but local libraries are always glad to receive donated books. Prior to downsizing our life to traveling full-time, we donated our extensive reading collection to the local library and any books of value to Seattle Children's Hospital thrift stores. 100% of the proceeds at these bargain boutiques goes to the uncompensated family care fund - for those families who cannot afford needed medical care.

Many of you have mentioned purchasing It Is What It Is for others, only to find those that have been given a book are not able to place a review on Amazon. In order to comment, you have to be a verified buyer. If you would like a comment to be available for others, you can send it to me and I will include it on my book buzz page above. See the sidebar to the right to contact me.

Michelle

Book photo courtesy of damclark's

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

I’m not the type of person to dwell on the past; but recently, I have found myself taking the proverbial stroll down memory lane. I have been going through boxes that have followed me since I was a child. You know, the ones you never look in that just seem to show up from place to place as if permanently tethered to you for life. Since I am intent on downsizing my life, and all things that have made up my life, I am attacking my past. Yes, I have been going through all my photos, cards saved, and personal this and that.

When was the last time you looked at your high school annual? I graduated forty years ago. I could care less about those annuals. Do I really need all of my report cards and various memorabilia? The answer is no. I am cutting the tether and getting rid of this stuff so I can simplify my life when I move from this home, and so someone else doesn’t have to deal with it in the future when I have passed. These are my memories, and if they mean nothing to me at this point, why on earth would they mean something to someone else?

But there are those saved things that do mean something, that elicit a warm, fuzzy feeling. What to do about those? Well, some items are going to go away. If I decide I am going to keep something at this point, I picture it tethered to me. I ask myself, is it tether worthy? I must say, this thought makes these decisions rather simple.

I have the intention to move in the next year or so. I have the time to go through my past and clean house like I have never done before. So I am taking the time to look at everything. I am enjoying seeing old photographs, reading old letters and cards from when I was a child, and looking at this and that. I figure since I’ve had these items this long, they deserve one more look. Will I miss having them? No. Will I miss seeing them ever again? I don’t think so.

I see my next phase of life as a more condensed way of living. If I have less, there will be less to maintain less to manage. That sounds good to me. While I may not travel down this same memory lane ever again, I will have plenty of space in my life to create new memories, and new lanes; and I know, the memories of my past are never far behind me.

Tethered photo courtesy of glasseyes view

A Pony Tale

When my niece was in high school, over ten years ago, she donated her long ponytail to the Locks of Love non-profit organization. Locks of Love take the donated ponytails and create wigs for financially disadvantaged children who have lost their hair. Being someone who wore ponytails and braids as a child, once I heard about Locks of Love, I wished I could have donated mine when I had my last pony cut forty years ago.

I was going through boxes recently, as I move forward in the quest to downsize my life, and guess what I found? Lo and behold, a plastic bag with two, count ‘em two, ponytails. Since I am getting rid of things left and right these days, these two ponytails do not need to continue to follow me into my future. I really did not want to throw them away, though. Searching the Internet I found Locks of Love is still going strong. I looked at the criteria for hair donation, and it was noted that hair cut years ago was acceptable. Yay! And, all ponytails or braids must be at least ten inches long. I measured mine and I had one at eleven and a half inches and one at fifteen inches. Yay, again!

 If you know me, or have seen my picture on this website, you will know I have very short hair. Most of the time it is two inches or shorter. I know I will never grow my hair long again, but I have an opportunity I thought would never come my way. While these two ponytails will not follow me into my future, they will be the future for a child in need.

Downsizing has pointed me in many interesting directions as I seek to donate, sell, shred, and garbage, the belongings of my life. Locks of Love is just one of the many options I have found. By getting the moving process started, even before we know where we are moving, I have the opportunity to take the time to go through everything. Taking this time has allowed me to find appropriate homes for many items. If I hadn't been taking this time, I more than likely would have tossed many items, including ponytails, while in a rush to pack. I would have missed out on a chance to improve the life of someone else in a very special way.

Ponytail photo courtesy of Corey Holmes

It Is What It Is - The Book

It Is What It Is

An Inspired Guide to Transforming Your Life

A self-help memoir, It Is What It Is tells the story of how I saved myself from the despair of my out of control health issues after my husband Dennis' stage IV cancer diagnosis. His cancer diagnosis in 2002 was the beginning of a series of changes in our lives that ultimately led to downsizing the safe and secure life we had - to our uncertain nomadic wandering as full-time travelers living in other people's homes. Now, for the first time, I'm sharing how it all began.

I started the first draft of It Is What It Is in 2004 and finished it in 2006. During this initial writing, I did not read what I had written, because emotionally I wasn't ready to revisit what I had written about Dennis' cancer journey. I guess you could say that my emotions were still a bit tender. Over the years, I've continued to edit, edit, and edit my manuscript as life evolved and we moved forward to what has been a massive lifestyle change. Last year, I spent 3 months taking time out of our travels to seriously address the edits. Recently, I was able to tackle the final book layout, and tweaked this and that for self-publishing in CreateSpace, an Amazon.com company. At this writing, I have received the author's proof - as in the real book to review before the release in the next few months. It Is What It Is will be available to you on Amazon.com to order as a soft cover book, and you, my friend, will be the first to know when I announce a release date. I've considered a Kindle version, but have decided to wait on that as it requires different formatting and I didn't want to delay publication any longer!

Self-publishing It Is What It Is has been a complicated process. The writing was the fun stuff! I even enjoyed the editing process to some extent, but it's everything else that became a journey unto itself. Beyond the rules of language and sentence structure, there have been many things to consider such as formatting every single element on the page while working through the steps of the print on demand (POD) publishing world. Friends and family members helped review the manuscript, and I was fortunate to know a very talented graphic artist who helped bring my vision of the cover design to life.

For those who don't know me, I'm a resistant tech geek, of a sort. Dennis is the true tech geek and he makes sure we are up to date on all the latest devices and technologies. I considered traditional publishing, but even a resistant tech geek doesn't necessarily follow traditional ways. So, it seemed more to my way of thinking to do this on my own with the new, at the time, print on demand publishing. POD works this way, you order a book and they print it out just for you. There's not a stockpile of books held in a warehouse. It's your own personal copy! How cool is that? I've always pictured It Is What It Is as a soft cover format with a matte finish - my favorite style of book to hold in my hands. When I began this undertaking, matte finish was not available in the new POD publishing world. Maybe it's a good thing I took this long to publish because matte finish is now available.

This blog began in 2010 as my attempt to continue writing while striving to work through the publishing process. It has taken time away from the forward progress of the book at times, but it's helped me hone my voice and improve my manuscript. From its conception, It Is What It Is had a purpose and became my mission. That purpose was to share with others how I found a way to take control of the circumstances of my life, and see that life in an entirely different way. I knew my story could have a positive impact on anyone at any time they may read my words. I can't wait for you to read It Is What It Is!

Michelle

Photo courtesy of damclark's

Returning History

One never knows where the road ahead will lead.

In 1805 and 1806, Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery passed through what would eventually become Fort Benton, Montana Territory, on the Missouri River. My husband’s Great, Great, Great Grandfather, Sergeant Patrick Gass, was a member of the expedition, published the first journal, and was the last member to die in 1870.

In 1868 my Great, Great, Great Grandfather, John Peter Carolus, traveled the Missouri river by steamboat from St. Joe, Missouri, to Fort Benton, Montana Territory. In 1870 his son Jacque (Jacob) made the same trip with his brother George.

On March 13, 1993 my husband purchased an antique book binding press with the markings: Wells Fargo, Fort Benton, Montana Territory. We have since found that Wells Fargo was in the community of Fort Benton from about 1866 to 1870.

In the fall of 2013 my husband and I took on the mindset - we are moving! Those three words became great motivation to purge and clear a path forward as noted in my post Puzzling Moves. Since then, we have made major headway by donating, selling, giving, recycling, and tossing. What we have enjoyed the most on this part of our journey is the donating and giving. Thus, what to do with the book press?

“For it is in giving that we receive.”

St. Francis of Assisi

On July 16, 2015 we arrived in the community of Fort Benton, Montana, to return the book press. We met with historians from the Fort Benton/Great Falls area who were thrilled to receive the press, and to meet with a descendant from the Corps of Discovery. With the guidance of the Executive Director of the River and Plains Society, Randy Morger, we toured the heritage complex: old Fort Benton and the Starr Gallery of Western Art, Missouri River Breaks Interpretive Center, Hornaday Smithsonian Buffalo, Museum of the Northern Great Plains, Museum of Agriculture, Homestead Village, and the Museum of the Upper Missouri. While in Great Falls, we toured the Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center and were guided to various landmarks from the expedition by Don Peterson, a Lewis & Clark Foundation member, author, and historian. For anyone familiar with the expedition, we saw Decision Point, Great Falls, Great Springs and several of the Lewis & Clark portage sites.

Our recent experience in Montana was a trip of a lifetime for us both. Although we were returning history, our family history was brought home to us. While we continue in the process of downsizing our past to create a better future for ourselves, it has been remarkable what we have experienced, and look forward to wherever the road may lead.

I would like to personally thank Ken Robison, author and historian at the Overholser Historical Research Center in Fort Benton for introducing us to Randy Morger and Don Peterson. With all the history and new friendships, we hope to return soon.

Photo courtesy of Ken Robison