Tag: self-sufficiency

October 13, 2023

How to Make the Most of a Winter Garden Now

Since we are now finally into the fall season, the weather has finally started to cool down. But it also means that we’ve started to notice less fresh produce at our local farmer’s markets. Since we have been actively working on creating our own garden this year, this next season will be a new challenge. Our hope is that we can make the most of a winter garden by starting it now. And in turn save us some money on food and help us eat healthier throughout the cold season.

PREPARing for a winter garden now

When preparing for a winter garden, the first thing to determine is which hardiness zone you live in. This is important because each zone has different first frost dates. All crops are organized by first frost dates, so this is important to know ahead of time.

Since each crop needs a certain amount of light, water and growing time to reach maturity, you want the crops to reach maturity before your first frost hits.

Once you have your approximate first frost date, then you should determine where you want to plant your winter crops.

Each crop will have slightly different requirements for the following:

Sunlight
Water
Spacing
Soil pH
Nitrogen content
Phosphorus content
Potassium content

Your soil will have varying degrees of vitamins, minerals and nutrients so it might be very beneficial to have it soil tested. You can send your soil off to be tested for free (I’ve done this many times before). Or you can purchase a soil testing kit to use at home instead, if that is your preference.

Since I live in North Carolina, we can send our soil off to the Department of Agriculture for a very in depth soil test. The results of these tests tend to be a lot more in depth than the in home tests, which I happen to be a big fan of. However, it does definitely take much longer to get the results back than a home test would. So this will depend upon how accurate you want to be with your garden, as well as if you’re looking at different areas around your yard to plant.

WINTER CROPS TO PLANT

Once you have determined what your soil makeup is and how much sunlight you get, choosing the crops is the next step. Obviously, don’t choose crops for your winter garden that aren’t things you would regularly eat. Unless you want to branch out and try new things (which is what we love to do!). I would suggest including crops that might be used more for seasoning and flavor enriching also, as these “spices” can certainly kill your grocery budget if you’re not careful..

After making your list of the the more common crops you like, then add in the garden potentials that you may eat more of if you had it available. Once you have your list of potential crop candidates, the next step is to narrow them down by how long they take to reach maturity.

Most seeds will tell you how long they take, on average, to reach maturity. So you want to make sure you plant the crops that take the longest to mature first.

6 – 8 WEEKS TO MATURITY

This is the time frame you should be looking for during this time of the year in order to reap the most benefits from your winter garden.

Some of the most common winter crops in this maturity window are:

Basil
Bush Beans
Collard Greens
Kale
Kohlrabi
Leaf Lettuce
Mustard Greens
Radishes
Spinach
Swiss Chard
Turnips

WINTER Garden SUMMARY

Overall, even though we are starting to see less and less fresh produce at this time of year, there are still some things we can plant. Proper planning is the best way to start any new project, and a successful winter garden is no different.

It’s helpful to determine your hardiness zone first and then get your soil tested. After that, start narrowing down the list of winter crops that you’d like to grow and where they might grow best in your yard. Once you’ve chosen your crops, make sure you have enough time for them to reach maturity prior to the first frost in your area. After that, it’s time to enjoy the fruits of your labor and hopefully save yourself some green this winter also!

Have you begun planting your winter garden yet? If so, which ones have you planted and when?

September 15, 2023

3 Easy Ways to Teach Kids About Money

As a parent, one of our big jobs is to teach kids about money. Whether we like it or not, at some point our kids will be out on their own in the world. And the last thing I want is for them to have to move back in years later because they couldn’t figure out the financial aspect of living on their own. Therefore, teaching them about money and budgeting is high up on our list of regular priorities. So, here are the 3 easiest ways we’ve found to teach kids about money, for long term retention. Hopefully!

1. BASIC money lessons

Since children’s brains process information differently than adult brains do, starting with basic money lessons is the way to go. This generally breaks down into creating information into smaller chunks. The more simplistic the concept the better, as these concepts lead to longer term retention.

One of the easiest first money lessons to teach kids is by using a simple piggy bank (doesn’t have to be a pig though!). This is due to the fact that kids are very visual learners. Just giving them something to physically see and touch begins the teaching process.

Some great ways to utilize this simple tool are:

What each coin looks like
How much each piece is worth
How many of them it takes to make $1.00

Once they have that down, a good next lesson is about sales tax. This helps kids learn just how much things actually cost, besides what just on the sticker. In order to do this, you’ll need to know the sales tax rates in your city specifically so that you can teach them how to properly calculate it.

The best way I’ve found to do this is to take my kids shopping with me. I have them pick out something they want for educational purposes only. Much to their dismay, I’m not actually planning to buy them anything for this lesson.

Teach Kids About Money EXAMPLE

If my child has $10.00 with them and sees a toy that costs $9.99, they’ll assume they have enough to buy it. This is where sales tax lessons come in.

Our sales tax here is 7.25%. Therefore, the sales tax will cost an additional $.71 on top of the $9.99, for a total cost of $10.71. Which means if they only have $10.00, they’ll still need another $.71 to afford the toy.

Even if you happen to be one of the few who doesn’t have sales tax in your area, this is still a necessary lesson to be taught.

2. SAVING money

Once kids grasp the concept of how much they actually need to purchase the things they want, saving money is up next. This can be a very difficult concept for a lot of children (and adults too!), because they want everything immediately.

I like to start with smaller savings goals, because this can help keep them on track for their larger goals. This is where the piggy bank comes in great handy. Since they can physically see how much money they’ve saved, it’s easier for them to see how far they still have to go. I typically like to have them take out all of their money once a week and count it. This not only helps them get a better grasp on what each denomination is, but also lets them see how far they’ve come.

Once this basic saving skill has been grasped, it’s time to move on to compounding. This is usually a good lesson to be taught with larger ticket items, which is all age dependent. Typically, at this point, the piggy bank isn’t the best way to save for the larger items. So, this is the time when I begin talking to the kids about moving money into a high yield savings account. The rates vary, but they will be able to save more, faster, simply due to the magic of compounding.

Compounding

Here is a great example of how compounding works with $100.00. If this is all they have to put in and the high yield savings rate is 4.35% (which is what ours is currently at), then at the end of one year they will have $104.35 in that account. This may not sound like much, but they just made an extra $4.35 without doing anything. Help them imagine how much more they could save if they add money monthly instead of just once a year!

3. make that MONEY, kids!

Now that they are more motivated to earn money, getting them to work for is up next. Getting children to do chores around the house is one good way to put kids to work so they can earn money. While this is not always my favorite way to teach them (because some kids can be so difficult sometimes), it’s a good place to start. How much you choose to pay them is entirely up to you. But I like to make the amount determinant upon how much of it they get done and how well the task was performed.

My other favorite way to have them earn money is by working for me. The perk of being a business owner is that I can outsource some things (that are age appropriate) to my kids. And most of the time, my kids prefer to do work for my business as opposed to chores. Therefore, my kids working for me helps teach them how to make some of their own money by working for someone else. Even if the someone else just happens to be their mom!

Teach kids about money summary

Overall, teaching kids about money can be as easy or as difficult as you make it. But, as a parent, it’s our job to give them the building blocks now can help ensure their long term financial literacy, and hopefully, success. To do so as efficiently and easily as possible, keep these skills in mind:

Teach them money basics its worth (Plus sales tax)
Learning how to save is crucial (Plus compounding magic)
Teach them how to earn money

Once they have these foundational lessons down, there are plenty of more complicated financial lessons on the horizon. Oh the joys of parenting sometimes!

What are some ways you have successfully taught your children about money?

November 15, 2022

How Can You Help Reduce Food Costs by Foraging

With the cost of everything rising dramatically since COVID, food costs are definitely no different. In fact, the average cost of groceries has risen exponentially since 2020. While the average increase annually over the past 20 years has been 2%, in the past year alone it has been over 11%. That’s ridiculous! So, to help counteract that huge rate of inflation a little bit, a lot of people have started to reduce food costs by foraging. And we are no different.

reduce food costs by foraging best practices

If you do decide you want to embark upon a foraging trial to help reduce food costs, there are some best practices to follow. These practices help keep you and your family safe, as well as help replenish the environment you are foraging in.

Know what you are picking before you pick anything
Don’t take more than you plan to consume before the food can go bad
Only collect foods when they are in abundance
Leave plenty of food behind for the animals and to regenerate
Don’t pick rare species, as it may be illegal
Get permission to forage on someone’s land before doing so
Don’t pick anything near highways and roads, as they are typically fairly contaminated

What to forage

Choosing what to forage will be very specific to you. What you and your family like, will have a huge impact on what you choose to forage. Another big factor will be what is available near where you live, or within driving distance. And the last big factor will be what season it is. Certain plants, berries, fruits, nuts, mushrooms, etc. can only be found during certain times of year.

For us, personally, our big focus tends to be in the fungi family. We have a lot of edible species that grow wild around us, so we take full advantage. Overall, here are some of our favorite things to go out and forage for:

Chicken of the Woods (Mushroom)
Hen of the Woods (Mushroom)
Lion’s Mane (Mushroom)
Chanterelle (Mushroom)
Shaggy Stalked Bolete
Wild Dill
Wild Green Onions
Burdock
Purslane
Dandelion
Blackberries
Blueberries
Raspberries

For us, we are lucky in that we live in the piedmont area of North Carolina that gets a lot of rain and has tons of foliage regularly. If you aren’t sure what might be available near you, there are plenty of foraging groups you can get involved with. Most of these are on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. But, one of the best sources I have found to take with me when I forage has been the Wild Remedies book. It not only gives me a wide variety of plant life to look for, but also scientific identifiers to make it easier to not choose the wrong species on accident. And, as a bonus, it gives me some delicious ways to cook what we’ve foraged.

where to forage

Once you’ve nailed down what you plan to forage for, then you just need to figure out where the best spots are. A lot of the crowdsourcing groups can help with this. We are a part of a couple of them that post where they find some of their foraging bounty and when. If you aren’t sure where to start though, there is a great website, Falling Fruit, that gives a ton of in depth information about specific species, when and where to find them. It can be a bit difficult to weed through though, so be patient. Here is another good source of information to find some more sources that may be more local to you, as well.

We typically forage at some local parks and hiking trails that aren’t too far away, as well as our own yard since we follow organic practices. One thing I want to caution you about is choosing what you are foraging wisely. A lot of less wild spots will spray herbicides and pesticides regularly, which you don’t want to ingest. And if you are foraging near a roadside, you are bound to get highly contaminated food instead of clean sources. So, the further you can get away from the beaten path, the better.

And when you are foraging, make sure you leave an ample amount of your “prey” behind so that it can feed the wild habitat it thrives in, as well as regenerate. This is especially true of the fungi and algaes. If you take all of them, instead of leaving some, you are diminishing the crop down to nothing and directly impacting the environment negatively.

reduce your food costs by foraging summary

Ultimately, foraging is a great way to reduce your food costs and increase your diet’s biodiversity. Plus, you’ll be getting outside to get some exercise and fresh air, which is also great for your health. We’ve been able to reduce how much fresh fruit, mushrooms and herbs we’ve had to buy from the store vastly. And by doing so, we’ve cut our food costs, because these things can get pretty pricey. Plus, they taste so much better when they are freshly picked. So it’s a win-win all the way around.

Have you ever tried foraging to help reduce your food costs? If so, what has been the best thing you’ve found so far?

August 15, 2022

21 Awesome Ways Children Can Earn Money

Making money as a child was a lot trickier for people in my generation than it is for kids today. But, because of the strides people in my generation made, it is so much easier for kids today. And because of these strides in evolution, children can earn money with much less effort today.

Along with my children being able to make money at a much younger age, I also want my children to be more financially savvy with their money. These two things go hand in hand when it comes to how I teach them about work and finances. Therefore, I have introduced them to as many different ways to earn money at a young age as possible. This helps them diversify, but also see the things they really like to do to earn money.

children can earn money in-person and online

Earning money in person isn’t quite what it was when I was a kid, but there are still plenty of opportunities. But, that’s not they only way for them to earn money these days. There are also a ton of ways for them to earn money online, which might end up being an even better fit for your individual child. However, not all of these suggestions will be appropriate for all ages.

Babysit – Babysitting is something I started doing at the age of 12. And parents are always in need of good babysitters. If you have any friends or family that could use your child as a babysitter, just to try it out, this is a great way to start.
Create a yard sale – Have your kids help you go through their old clothes, shoes, and toys. Then, have them set up a yard sale and run it, while you oversee. They can keep whatever money they make.
Employ your kids – If you are self-employed and have any tasks your children can help you with, then you can pay them to do so. My younger kids help with things like shredding mail and picking up dog poop. Anything that’s business related counts.
Organize people’s stuff – If any of your kids have an eye for organizing, then this may be a viable money earning opportunity for them. This is another one you’d have to oversee, of course.
Peer product flipper – One of my kids likes to flip candy, shoes and trading cards at school. This is a really good way that children can earn money if your child has a good eye for a deal.
Selling t-shirts – Designing and selling t-shirts all in one fail swoop is extremely simple to do today. Some of my kids love to create designs, so this is a good way for them to make some money on their hobby. A few good websites to check out that cater to this market are: CafePress, Shopify, Teespring and Zazzle.
Walk dogs – Walking dogs is something that most kids love doing, and most adults could probably do more of. So this activity could be a threefold option to spend more time together, get some exercise and earn money at the same time.
Wash cars – All of us need our cars washed, probably more often than not. Not only can you pay them to wash your car, but they can help with your friends, family and neighbors also, if they are willing.
Water plants – Helping your child find families that are vacationing, work long hours, or are elderly that need help taking care of their plants is another great option.
Yard work – Yard work is something that a lot of families would love help with. This option is another one that gives them some good exercise while earning money.
App tester – There are quite a few places your child can begin earning money playing with app. Two of the best places to get started are TesterWork and UberTesters.
Create games – Similar to being an app tester, your child could get paid to create games. If this sounds like something your child might like, then it may be time to investigate creating their own game and monetize it.
Create illustrations – If your child likes to create illustrations, then this is a fantastic option for them. All they need is a decent illustrating tablet and intuitive software (Clip Studio Paint Pro is a good one). A great website to have them set up a portfolio on is Deviantart.
Make crafts or jewelry – If your child loves to create jewelry and crafts, then selling them online may be a great way for them to make money as a kid. The most popular website for things of this nature currently is Etsy.
Making music. If your child has a musical ear, then this may just be the money-making genre for them. One of the best places to get started is Soundtrap.
Make YouTube videos. Kids can be product testers and make videos of them testing out products from different companies. Even if your kid just wants to make videos talking about particular subjects (video games, how-to-videos, etc.), they can place ads in their videos to start generating income. As a parent, however, you should be closely monitoring them.
Selling digital goods. Creating an eBook or a course is a great way to begin selling digital goods with very little overhead.
Sell their old stuff online. There are many different platforms for your kids to sell their old stuff online. Some of our favorites are Amazon, Craigslist, eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Poshmark.
Start taking photographs. Taking photographs can be a great way to put your child’s hobby to good use. Some of the best sites they can check out are: EyeEm, Foap, Pexels and Scoopshot.
Streaming. If your child is already big into watching streamed live content, then it may be time for them to start creating their own. Live streaming through Twitch is a great way to get them started.
Take online surveys – Since the kids are on their devices more often than not, they might as well be making some money and have fun at the same time. Some good online survey sites to check out are: MyPoints and Swagbucks.

how children can earn money summary

Overall, there are so many different ways children can earn money these days that it could make ones head spin. I personally prefer for our kids to try all of the in-person options first because it gives them more social skills also. Which is a huge bonus. But, going through the list of all the money earning opportunities have helped us as parents see where our kids interests and skills lie. Which has ultimately helped us learn more about what they might really thrive at as adults in the work world. And this knowledge will only help them more financially in the future also. Even bigger bonus!

What are some of the best ways you have found that your children can earn money on their own?

May 13, 2022

7 Ways to Help Your Teen Build Credit

When it comes to having teenagers, there are a lot of things we as parents need to teach them. And nowhere is this more important than when it comes to to their financial education. Teaching our teens about money, finances, credit scores, etc. is extremely important to do before they leave the nest. There are many different ways we can go about this, of course. But, one of the most important things I feel that we can teach our teens is what a credit score is and how it impacts every aspect of their future financial lives. Therefore, before they leave the nest to fly on their own, helping a teen build credit is high up on my list of important lessons.

1. Get a job

One of the first things I told my teens when they turned 16 was that getting a job would be a good first step into the adult world. Not only does this give them some idea of what to expect in the work world, but it also gives them a first taste of managing their own finances usually. As a bonus, getting a job helps a teen begin to build their own credit.

2. open a checking account

Once your teen has a job, opening a checking account for them is the next best step to help them build credit. Most banks won’t let a child open a checking account on their own, so you’ll need to be a co-signer on the account until they are 18. This is also helpful when it comes to monitoring their spending, as it gives you a way to see everything that’s happening with their money. And it gives you good talking points to discuss with them about budgeting, when they get off track. Which my teens have done more times than I’d like to admit!

3. open a savings account

Whether your teen has a job and/or checking account, they can still get a savings account. We started savings accounts for our kids when they were much younger, just to put money into for them that relatives gave them for holidays. Having a savings account is a good way for them to watch a nest egg grow. And we have found it’s also a good place to put excess money they earn from their jobs is a savings account. This has helped rein in and regulate their excess spending on random junk they don’t need and help them save for bigger goals at the same time.

4. Open a Roth ira

When our kids started working for me, I opened Roth IRA accounts for them. These types of accounts can only be funded by earned income. So they can’t be opened until your teens have earned income that will be taxed. But, once they have some earned income to work with, you can open a custodial Roth IRA for them that will roll over directly into their name solely once they turn 18. This not only gives them a good first taste into investing, at much lower risk than when they do it as an adult, but also helps your teen build credit.

5. get a prepaid credit card

The next option is to help them get a prepaid credit card in their own name. Typically, you’ll have to be a co-signer on the account, as with all of the other accounts. But, with these types of credit cards you determine how much is put on the card to begin with, so that is all they have to spend. This works out really well if they have a job already also. You can tell your teen to set aside $100 – $500 to put onto the prepaid card and then use this card for all of their purchases. This way they are building credit while only spending the money they already have.

6. credit card authorized user

As another option to the prepaid credit card, you can add your teen to one or more of your existing credit cards as an authorized user. I did this for my two older teens just recently with one of the credit cards we never use that also has a high credit limit. I chose to put them on this one since we don’t use it because it’s easier for me to track who is spending what. Plus, since it has a really high limit, it helps boost their credit that much faster due to the amount of credit used versus the credit available. So far, they’ve both been paying off what they spend before the bill even closes, which is awesome!

7. teach them about credit scores

After all of these other options, the most important thing to teach them about is their credit score. Since they are trying to build credit, understanding how their credit score impacts their financial future is integral to overall financial health. If they have any of the aforementioned accounts opened, they can begin to see how their saving and spending are affecting their credit score. Which is a fantastic way to give them an early taste of how the whole system currently works. And don’t forget to show them how to pull their annual credit report each year so they can run through it for any discrepancies.

Teen building credit summary

Overall, there are a lot of great ways to start helping your teen build their credit score early on. While I don’t use the prepaid credit card method, I have used every other option to help my teens build their credit now. And, they’ve been doing awesome so far with the learning curve. So my hope is that by the time they are out on their own, they won’t have nearly as many issues as a lot of young adults do with their first taste of financial independence.

What are your favorite ways to help your teen build credit early?

February 15, 2022

Is a Gym Membership Really Worth It?

At the beginning of every new year, gym memberships soar. And while they have typically dropped off significantly by now, there are still plenty of gym goers all year long. As someone who has been a member of a few different gyms in my lifetime, I’m no stranger to the circuit. But, in all reality, is a gym membership really worth it for most of us?

Why?

First and foremost, you should be asking yourself why you want to join a gym. What do you think you will get out of it? Both in the short term and long term. Is this something you can realistically stick with as a routine, or do you have a history of new things fizzling out? And what is your main goal of joining a gym? Is it to lose weight, tone up, get rid of baby weight, look good for summer or a wedding? The list can be endless. But, no matter what your why is, you should first tease that out before making any commitment.

Gym membership Actual costs

A lot of gyms will get you in the door with extremely low advertised monthly rates. I’ve seen some as low as $5 per month, which is crazy! But, I’ve also learned that those rates don’t last for life, but a generally just temporary to get you in the door. Once they have you signed up and inside their domain, then it’s time to start throwing add-on’s at you.

A lot of these include fees for things such as:

Towels
Lockers
Sauna
Pool
Steam room
Personal training sessions
Dietary plan
Spin classes
Zumba/Dance classes
Private classes with smaller numbers

These additional costs can really add up over time. And even if they don’t, the average cost of a bare bones gym membership runs approximately $60 annually (depending upon where you live, of course). This equates to approximately $720 per year, which can easily be a week long vacation for us. And if this is something that I’m not sure I’m going to fully commit to, or have the time to do, then I certainly don’t want to throw a week long vacation away.

other options

It’s also entirely possible that your budget doesn’t have the extra wiggle room for this kind of extra fee. I know that mine didn’t for a large part of my adult life. So, instead of joining a gym, you could consider some other really great options that don’t cost anything (or very minimal) to participate in. Some of my favorite alternative options to a gym include:

Hiking (one of my long time favorite go-to’s)
Biking
Speed walking
Yoga
Trampoline (Yes, we have a big one for the kids but I’ve also used it for workouts)
Workout at home with free weights, jump ropes and a heavy bag

One of my regular workout options at home is to walk around the pool in the backyard with some free weights. I do different arm exercises while I weave around the many dogs that are with us for boarding or doggy daycare. The dogs love it too!

group environment

While I am typically very good at doing things all by myself, a lot of people need a bigger support system. This type of network can help to create positive change. This is where a gym membership can really shine if you fall into this camp.

People who work out at the same gym have a tendency to create gym relationships that assist with their individual goals. When we feel the societal pressure to be accountable to others, we have a higher rate of success, because we don’t want to fail those in our accountability groups.

In fact, just having somebody to be accountable to, increases our level of success by 65%, according to a study ran by the American Society of Training and Development. That’s huge! And if this is what you need to help you create the change you want, then figure out a way to make it work.

Gym Membership summary

Overall, whether a gym membership is worth it all depends on you. The biggest questions to ask yourself before signing on the dotted line are:

Do you have a strong why for wanting to join a gym?
Is this a long-term or short term why?
How much is it going to cost you monthly to join a gym?
Will your budget allow for this increased cost?
Are there FREE alternatives you could use instead?
Do you need a group or network in order to achieve success?

Once you have the answers to all of these questions, then the decision should be pretty clear.

For somebody with my crazy lifestyle and lack of any regular time, it is simply not worth it. I would be one of the 67% of the gym membership population who is paying for something that I’m not using. And since I don’t like setting my money on fire, I opt to use the free options available to me instead.

Have you joined a gym and found the costs to be exponentially worth it for you? If so, why?

November 15, 2018

How to Teach Kids to Make Some of Their Own Money

Having our kids do chores is one way for them to make some of their own money. But, we always want to get their creative juices flowing thinking about other ways to make money also.

After all, part of our job as their parents it to teach them to problem-solve and how to survive in the world without us. So, when my 10 year old daughter came to me with an entrepreneurial idea to make some money, my ears perked up.

September 17, 2018

How We Are Teaching Our Kids About the Value of a Dollar

As our two oldest boys are 13 now, it seems like a great time to really help them figure out the world of money. Since we have 5 children, at all different ages, teaching them about money can get tricky because they are all at different stages. That being said, we are working diligently to teach our kids about the value of a dollar. Read on if you want to hear more about our most recent adventure with kids and phones! Read more

January 25, 2017

7 Ways to Get the Most out of Your Garden This Year

Gardening is not just a fun hobby – it can be a powerful, money-saving, life-saving skill. Back in the pioneer days, if you wanted to eat, you grew a garden. There weren’t mega stores in every town, filled with lush, ~~3-week-old~~ fresh greens to fill your tummy. No, if you wanted food, you had to grow it yourself or work for someone who did. The thing about gardening though, is that learning to do it well doesn’t happen overnight. The blessed skill of gardening, once a must-have skill for every person, is now mostly a lost art. Most people don’t know how to garden – or to preserve the food that grows in the garden. Never fear, though, because today we’re going to share with you how you can get the most out of your garden, even if you’re a beginner gardener. Read more

February 5, 2016

Finding My Frugal Farmer in Spain

Finding Love and Farming Joy in Spain

Greetings, my frugal friends! Today we’re featuring a fun and heart-warming post from life coach Lisa Hoashi. Lisa shares about the hard work and also the inevitable joys of living life on a working farm. Her words will bring a smile to your face and warmth to your heart. Enjoy!

How I Met the Love of My Life

I didn’t set out to find love. Truly.

The reason why I quit my job and gave away most of my possessions was because I’d long had the dream to travel for at least a year, unfettered and carefree. Sure, as I talked about my plans with my other single friends, they often looked at me with a twinkle in their eye. “You’ll be sure to meet someone when you’re traveling,” they said. Read more