I need to clarify my work/life stability, how I determine what to weblog about every day, and the way my mind works. In the event you’re questioning the place that is coming from, it’s coming from feedback that I are inclined to get frequently. These feedback go one thing like this. “I don’t care about this info. Simply present me what you bought performed in your closet.” Or, “Are you able to simply end a venture earlier than you progress on to one thing else?”
I’ve been running a blog for 17 years now, and for many of these years, I’ve been running a blog about my DIY initiatives. My DIY journey began once we have been residing in our tiny little apartment positioned by Baylor College in Waco. Throughout these first years within the apartment, I additionally had an inside adorning enterprise and was adorning for shoppers. That was my full-time job, and like most individuals who’ve full-time jobs, my very own DIY dwelling initiatives have been performed on evenings and weekends. After which Matt’s well being began to say no to the purpose that I may now not preserve scheduled conferences with shoppers, or I might get a frantic cellphone name from him in the midst of an set up in a consumer’s dwelling, and I must rush dwelling to assist Matt. Life was traumatic then.
So I ultimately stopped working for shoppers altogether, and I turned my DIY initiatives and my weblog into my full-time work. It was handy because it allowed me to remain dwelling, and I cherished the work I used to be doing, however that was my life. My whole life was engaged on initiatives and serving to Matt. That was it. I had no life exterior of our apartment.
I don’t know what number of of you have been round again then, however sooner or later, I took on a significant DIY venture for a pair who needed to rent me as a decorator, however I defined to them that I used to be now not doing that. So as an alternative, they mainly handed over their home to me (a home that they weren’t residing in) they usually let me DIY the heck out of their home. I fully DIYed their bed room, toilet, household room, and kitchen. I cherished that venture a lot. It was enjoyable and difficult, and since it was a non-standard adorning venture, with them residing out of city, I had free reign in that home. I may work after I may (when Matt’s well being allowed it). I may come and go as I happy. I may work so long as I wanted to, even into the evenings. And I may drop every little thing and go dwelling at any second if Matt wanted me. It was type of a dream job attending to DIY by myself schedule with free reign and with different individuals’s cash.
However once more, that was my life. All my life consisted of was engaged on that home and caring for Matt. And since the toll of Matt’s MS on his well being was all new to us again then, it was traumatic. However as a result of his MS wasn’t as superior as it’s now, I may spend lengthy stretches of time away from him. So I used to be working about 10-13 hours a day. Like I stated, it was my life.
I bear in mind throughout that point, I challenged myself at one level. I had a “one venture a day” aim. In different phrases, my problem to myself was to start out and end one venture each single day. Throughout that point, I cranked out the initiatives. They usually weren’t small initiatives, both. For instance, I constructed a manufacturing facility cart-style espresso desk in at some point, begin to end. After which the subsequent day, I might do the same venture begin to end. And the subsequent day. And the subsequent day. So throughout that point, as I used to be cranking out the initiatives, I used to be additionally cranking out the weblog posts, with one model new DIY venture after one other.
That was actually a good time for my weblog. All of these initiatives in such fast succession actually helped to construct my weblog, construct my viewers, and get my weblog “on the map”, just about talking. Nevertheless it was completely exhausting. And I can not even stress this sufficient. It was my life. I had nothing exterior of labor and Matt. Residing that manner was very isolating.
Once we purchased this home, I continued with that schedule for a very long time. And it grew to become much more difficult and extra isolating as Matt’s well being and his skill to do issues on his personal continued to say no. As an alternative of engaged on another person’s dwelling for lengthy stretches every day, I used to be engaged on our home for 10-13 hours a day. And once more, that’s all my life consisted of. So as soon as once more, I used to be in a position to get initiatives performed comparatively shortly. I did a full down-to-the studs demolition and rebuild of a kitchen virtually fully on my own in 5 months, together with transferring/widening doorways, eradicating a wall, and many others. And I adopted that with a whole down-to-the-studs-and-floor-joists demolition and transform a WC virtually fully on my own in about the identical period of time, together with transferring and widening a doorway and doing all the drywall and concrete board myself. It was my life. Matt and work. Work and Matt. That’s it.
Immediately, issues are very totally different. There’s no manner I may have gone on like that eternally. The weblog was doing nice. Constructing my viewers was nice. The revenue was nice. However the work was exhausting, and the isolation was sucking the very life out of me.
In 2020, the world modified. The isolation grew to become much more pronounced, and I made up my mind to make a change. I noticed that there needed to be extra to life than work. My life wanted an outward focus. I wanted to seek out my individuals. My neighborhood. So I made it my willpower to do precisely that.
And in the previous couple of years, my life has modified drastically. My focus has gone from work and Matt to Matt and different individuals. That’s to not say that my work isn’t necessary. I nonetheless spend numerous time working. However issues take longer now, and I don’t crank out these completed initiatives as quick as I used to. Today, if I’m in the midst of a venture, coated head to toe in mud and caulk, and I’ve a aim of what I need to end by the tip of the day in order that I can weblog about it the subsequent day, however then a good friend calls and invitations me to dinner, I’m going to decide on dinner with a good friend over ending the venture simply in order that I can have progress to share in a weblog publish the subsequent day. Time with a good friend comes first. Sharing progress on my venture can wait one other day.
And that’s my life nowadays. My initiatives don’t get performed as quick, and I’m okay with that. Rather than working 10-13 hours a day, I attempt to get just a few hours in every day and prioritize time with individuals. I’ve pals I really like dearly. I’ve my household who I prioritize two days per week. And as at all times, Matt is my prime precedence every day. I nonetheless attempt to get as a lot performed on initiatives as quick as I can, however I’m only one particular person, and I can solely accomplish that a lot. And other people will at all times take precedence in my life over initiatives.
However again to 2020. Throughout that yr, like hundreds of thousands of different individuals, I actually struggled. Not solely did I wrestle to get issues performed, however I struggled with my weblog as properly. I struggled to indicate up on the weblog often. After which I obtained an e mail that basically shook me out of my self-focused mindset. I don’t bear in mind what it stated precisely, however the particular person mainly stated, “Kristi, the place are you? We’d like you proper now! We’d like your weblog posts proper now!”
And in that second, I noticed that sure, individuals want slightly little bit of trip of their hectic lives and the craziness of this world to deal with one thing enjoyable and perhaps even frivolous. In order that’s what I’ve decided to supply — just some minutes in your lives every day the place you possibly can put the craziness of the world and your hectic lives out of your thoughts for a bit and examine a enjoyable venture or a enjoyable (or loopy) thought I’ve. I have a look at my weblog nowadays as not solely academic (I hope) when have a venture to share, but in addition as a couple of minutes of leisure in your lives the place you may get a glimpse into my mind the place I at all times have a few thousand concepts swirling round in there.
So I received’t at all times have initiatives to share. I received’t at all times have progress to share. Feeling like I can solely ever share progress on my present venture is strain I refuse to tackle anymore. I can’t reside that manner. However on these days after I actually don’t have any progress to share, I at all times have concepts or ideas I can share a few future venture or another random thought I’ve swirling round in my mind. That’s what I can present, together with just a few moments out of your day to get your thoughts off of your hectic life and be entertained by the initiatives or ideas or plans of a loopy DIYer in little Waco, Texas.
However for these of you who solely need to see progress on my present venture, right here it’s. I obtained the island prime painted white and able to marble…
And I obtained a lot of the drawer slides hooked up to the drawer packing containers…
That may have made a really boring weblog publish all by itself. And why did I not get extra performed? As a result of Wednesdays are about household and neighborhood. Individuals over initiatives. However when I’ve sufficient fascinating progress to share on my present venture, I’ll at all times prioritize sharing that info over the rest. After I don’t have sufficient fascinating progress to share, you’ll get one thing else that’s presently swirling round in my mind, however that doesn’t imply that I’m not targeted or that I’m leaping round from venture to venture. I simply signifies that I’m just one particular person, I can solely accomplish that a lot, and I simply want extra time.
Addicted 2 Adorning is the place I share my DIY and adorning journey as I transform and embellish the 1948 fixer higher that my husband, Matt, and I purchased in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do bodily work, so I do nearly all of the work on the home on my own. You possibly can study extra about me right here.
