There’s a line from the Shawshank Redemption movie where Morgan Freeman’s character says something along the lines of “get busy living or get busy dying.” It’s time to get busy living. We’ve dealt with COVID-19 for the past year. I’ve done what I was asked to do – worn a mask, kept my distance, washed my hands until they’re raw, and shown up for work every day at the germ infested waters known as my elementary school. As I listened to the CDC and Dr. Fauci offer “updated guidance” this week – which is essentially more of the same for the next several months – I realized:

I’m done.

Vaccines are available. It’s your choice whether you roll up your sleeve and take it or not. Personally, I chose to get vaccinated. As of May 1st, I will be considered fully vaccinated.

I don’t plan to go crazy, but I do intend to resume limited travel, F2F therapy dog visits and enjoy activities outdoors. People can give me all the side-eye they want, but I will not be made to feel guilty because I am OUTSIDE without a mask.

I will no longer worry about hugging students who need a hug.

I will no longer worry about teaching sewing classes or attending sewing events at my usual quilt shop without a mask.

I will continue to avoid large gatherings and will shop when stores aren’t as busy.

I will continue to observe enhanced cleaning protocols.

I will continue to observe my personal space bubble.

I will trade my mask for a decidedly more comfortable face shield while at work.

If the research confirms that the 2 shot vaccines do prevent the spread of the virus to others, then I am done with masks unless I am visiting a medical facility or am around someone who is medically fragile. Those are the folks who need to be isolated and protected, not the entire US population.

The longer this drags on and the more mixed messages we receive, the more it seems like we the people are being played.

It’s going to be really interesting to see how many remote employees balk at having to go back into the office in the coming months.

I’ve been listening to the audiobook, Your Money or Your Life (updated version) during my daily commute. It’s a personal finance book that’s been around for close to 30 years now. The updated version has a forward by Mr. Money Mustache – just in case you want to make sure you’re getting the most updated version of the book!

Today’s listen involved a discussion on the difference between work and paid employment. The author mentioned that we need to separate the idea of work from paid employment. Work, she explains, is something you choose to do and would continue to do even without a paycheck. This is generally something you feel called to do or are passionate about. Paid employment, on the other hand, is where you exchange your time for money to move closer to a goal (usually financial independence). Occasionally, work and paid employment come together in a job, but it’s not the norm.

My day job of a school librarian used to be a situation where work and paid employment merged, but not so much anymore. COVID brought about a number of changes, as did a change in work flows and areas of responsibility. This school year has certainly been interesting to say the least! I’ve been able to dip my toes back into certain parts of the job I hadn’t touched in 5 years. It’s been a welcome change, as well as a confidence booster. Libraries and children’s literacy are important to me and I will continue to be involved in these areas (library board and therapy dog volunteer) even after paid employment ends.

My sewing biz is what my financial advisor refers to as my passion project. I fully expect to be busy teaching, technical editing and running the online retail portion of my biz for many years to come. I’ll make quilts to donate to charity, mentor young sewists and probably volunteer at the quilt museum once I leave the hallowed halls of public education.

But I won’t have to be there at 7:10 a.m. every day! Come on May 2024 (or sooner)!

You can turn your hobby into a business…and turn that business back into a hobby. It’s perfectly okay!

A talented friend recently announced that she’s ending her long-standing quilting podcast. This comes on the heels of her and her business partner closing down their pattern/sewing biz last summer. I listened to her farewell episode tonight. She’d lost her love of sewing because she was always sewing for business and had no time to sew for pleasure. She didn’t set foot in her sewing room for over 6 months. She said her husband was even worried about her.

I can so totally relate! My day job directly impacts the amount of time and energy I have to devote to my business. That is one reason I stopped making t-shirt and baby quilts. I was busy and enjoyed creating the quilts, but I when I looked at the numbers, I wasn’t making any money after I accounted for all the time spent making those quilts.

So, I looked at my options:
(1) Teach from home. I did this for about a year with weekly after-school sewing sessions. Everyone had a great time, but having strangers in my house was just a little too unnerving for me. Occasionally, I have a group of neighborhood kids or children of co-workers in studio for a private lesson, but that’s about it.

(2) Rent space outside of my home to teach classes. Available, but too expensive with just 4-6 students.

(3) Affiliate with a local quilt shop. This has been the best solution. One shop marks up my fee per student and I suggest sell products for her. Another shop took 30% of the class fee and expected me to fill the class. I offered classes through Parks and Rec, but their class minimums were so high that the class never made. A local business offered use of their classroom space for free during biz hours. I was very grateful to have this option available. I am hopeful that I will be able to do summer camps this year.

(4) Technical editing. This has consistently been the BEST option as it is a service that is location independent.