An Abundance of Awesome

Well this week has been an epicemotional roller coaster, and its not even goddamn Wednesday yet.So thats going to give me five new gray hairs at least. (If you didnt read the update on Mondayspost, all the farmland around me went up for auction, and the purchase price ended up being overmy max spending limit.) But, you guys are so hilarious/awesome/supportive about all of the things Ido that it was worth all the crazy this week just to feel all the encouragement and good vibes fromeveryone. If I havent said it enough yet, thank you.

When I get put in situations of intense pressure Im pretty good at focusing in on what needs to bedone, and shunting off anything else that I would normally give time and attention to. So for the lastmonth all of my energy has been focused on: 1.) my job (because I work with awesome people that Iwould never want to let down, and, you know, it also pays the bills), 2.)getting the pergola built forthe TV shoot(because no one wants to look like a complete ass on camera) and 3.) getting all of thefinancing/planning in place for buying that farmland. And, seriously, thats it. On the list of things Ididnt worry about? Oh, you know: eating, sleeping, taking care of the house, seeing friends, laundry,existing projects, new projects, or taking care of myself in any way, shape or form. ugh.

That kind of hyper-focus is amazing for making a push to get some shit done, but its not sustainablefor much longer than a month (unless you like getting sick because not taking care of yourself is nogood for the immune system, guys) but Ill say this it works. And, even more than that, while itstotally exhausting, I also find that when Im in the zone like thatIm actually stockpiling energy andmotivation for, well, whatever comes after.

If the auction had gone in my favor, I would have used that energy for figuring out financing, first-year cash flow, planning, networking, and working through a massive learning curve about runninga farm as a business, and just about everything else that isnt essential would have been put on theback burner for the next year.Financially, all of my money would have gone into the new business, sothere wouldnt have been new projects or new tools, Id have pushed back non-essential maintenance(on the property and on myself), I would have held off on adding to the orchards or apiary (anddefinitely no new animals like goats or sheep.) Life would have looked very different for the next twoyears.

And you know what, at the right price for the land, all of that would have been worth it. I ran thenumbers and knew exactly what I was signing up for both from a financial and a time/effortperspective andI also knew the pointat which it wasnt going to make financial sense, and stoppedthere.

So heres what Im left with today:A whole bunch of time, energy, and financial flexibility that Idalready mentally sacrificed and holy shit, am I ready to roll on some things. For example:

1.) The Guest Bedroom I always feel a little ugh about having friends stay in this room which Ibasically tossed a mattress and some old furniture into at one point and havent done anything elsewith since.

Oh, yes. Thats awesome.

The fact thatoneof my very favorite internet friends is coming to hang out on the farm next week(there is going to be so much beer and shop talk its going to be awesome)was enough motivation tojust DO SOMETHING ALREADY with this room. 24 hours post-auction and Ive already got a newbed, linens, and room accessories lined up, and I put a coat of paint on the walls tonight.

I was not kidding about that I have a shitload of extra energy thing.

2.) Honey Harvest

I am so, so excited for this. One of the bigger sacrifices I was going to make was going to be onbeekeeping equipment. I knew that it would be a few years until I could put money and effort backinto beekeeping, but now Im researching extractors and all kinds of things to get ready for myupcoming harvest, plus a few new hives next year.

AND Ive been brushing up onhoney recipes in anticipation cant wait.

3.) Projects for Friends

Enough about me already. Sometimes theres so much more joy in building stuff for theawesomepeople in my life, and thats what I have, by the way and abundance of awesome. My family,friends, coworkers, and everyone who reads this website completely awesome. I dont take that forgranted andI dont want to spoil any surprises, but I have a few ideas that have been brewing for theawesome people in my life that Id like to knock out in the next couple of weeks and Im excited tohave the time and means to do that for them.

So, yeah, Ivegot things on my plate, but its a whole lot of awesome things things that make me feelenergized and powerful and like hell yes I have a vision for this part of my life and Im going to makeit real. That doesnt mean Im not a little melancholy about the way the auction turned out I am fullyacknowledging my less-than-happy feelings about that, but Im also embracing all the other things Ilove to do in life, and I feel like thats a good balance.

We dont always have to justify or explain-away things that are uncomfortable in life. I think its goodto acknowledge and accept them, but also not to let those feelings hold you back from all of theother badass things you can do either.

http://diydiva.net/2015/08/an-abundance-of-awesome/