7WB5- Take 3

Where are you and where are you going?
7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

@IlliniDave:

Agree. However, I am usually the type who jumps off any given S-Curve too quickly, rather than too slowly. So, I have been been stuck trying to somehow triangulate my "jump!" instinct with my resolve to stick-until-completion. I almost signed up to drive an Americorps bookmobile in some blighted, rural area of Vermont yesterday- lol.

Doing the quick version of the exercise classical_Liberal suggested above was helpful because it re-focused my perspective on where I want to be, and what I would be best served having in place, at next juncture. Also, caused me to realize that I could integrate some of my tentative future plans into the here and now. For instance, the grandma-cottage valuing part of me will be able to enjoy hostessing holiday events this year with the facilities available at my mother's residence.

Also, although I believe that humanity must be heading either towards something like the eco-technic future and/or series of very unfortunate events, it is very short-run net expensive to attempt to model that lifestyle in the here and now cusp-of-decline-of-affluent-industrial-peak world. For instance, the time and life-energy I have been spending on growing my own potatoes rather than selling my most-market-valued skills at the margin, is clearly inhibiting my direct ability to sock away funds in alignment with metric such as SWR in the short-medium run. I would still prefer to arrive at a multi-dimensional unique systems solution by my goal-date, but the universe is clearly informing me that it is time to travel some alternate nodes.

IlliniDave
Posts: 3845
Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2014 7:46 pm

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by IlliniDave »

Ha, okay. I guess I'm unusual for an analytic-minded planner-type in that I can easily shed all that when I step back to look at the "big picture" and let things be simple and happily use that simplicity clear a path when I dive back into the weeds. IRL I feel like a weirdo. Here, I feel like even more of a weirdo. :lol:

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

8/1/17-8/28/17 = Life-Cycle-System (6/13)

I have decided to switch over to a personal calendar system based on 7 year cycle= 91 (28 day) cycles. This entry covers the 13th 28-day cycle of the 6th 7-year cycle of my life as independent-striving person. I am semi-arbitrarily declaring my life career as adult human being to have commenced at approximately age 15, since I attempted to drop out of school/self-educate and seduce my first lover at that juncture. Also, leaves rather even division of 7 years X 2 for infancy and childhood.

EXPENSES:

Food-$127.80
Communication/Technology- $100
Shelter/Utilities-$88.46
Girl Stuff/Clothes/Grooming-$4.76
Transportation-$9.40
Social/Entertainment-$2.12
Erudition-$0
Health-$4.31
Misc.-$0

TOTAL= $336.85 = approximately $12/day

INCOME:
W2 (Other Employed) Earned Income: 0
Self-Employment (Schedule C) Investment/Overhead/Expenses:-$262.91
Self-Employment (Schedule C) Income: $800
Found Money: .01

TOTAL=$537.10

HOURS WORKED= approximately 10
HOURLY WAGE=approximately $53.71/hr. (this is not realistic since $800 gain represented work performed in prior cycle also)

NET SAVINGS=$200.24

Food and Communications/Technology could have been much lower. Shelter, Girl Stuff, Transportation, and Social/Entertainment were low due to non-taxable loose-contract barter of service for real goods with my mother and BF. This type of inner social circle barter could be differently accounted for as either work-for-money or by assigning myself membership in multiple households, including one which consists of only me. But, since the code of the Internal Revenue Service and the code of ERE seem to be in agreement that I am my own household, and service for household goods barter within context of close relationship does not constitute taxable earned income, etc. etc. etc...I will not choose to attempt such a tedious exercise. Basically, I helped my mother a little bit with housework and mobility issues when I stayed with her, and I helped my BF a little bit with his northern land development project when I stayed with him (not very safe to be alone operating a chainsaw where nobody can hear you scream), and everybody is happy with the trade. However, I think I should have 5 currently viable options for covering shelter expense for less than $100/cycle before I can firmly project my spending at that level.

PINS IN MAP

1) Mom's luxury apartment in affluent University center.

2) BF's bare bones apartment in suburban location.

3) BF's undeveloped wooded acreage with lake access near resort town. My old camper now on site.

4) My perma-culture project on 3 vacant lots I own in the city.


INCOME FLOWS/PROJECTS

1) Substitute teaching- currently registered with 4 different districts and 2 different agencies. Waiting on some bureaucracy.

2) ESL-tutoring-applications accepted-live@distance interviews to be scheduled with 2 different agencies.

3) Used/rare book business- in the middle of total liquidation/restructuring.

4) Permaculture project- entering into legal partnership towards co-op structure with one of my former polyamours (the Permaculture Manager.) He is going to invest in materials for some structures on site, and we will come up with plan inclusive of financial yield. I will retain rights to some sort of residence on site in future. Details to be hammered out.

5) Independent study towards tech skills/certificate in order to re-market my B.S. in math. Research phase.

6) Riding shotgun on my BF's woodland development project. Whittled an oak walking stick, identified bear poop, and bathed in very cold lake water.


HEALTH

1) I am getting old. It takes me a very long time to loosen up in the morning lately, and I need a 20 minute nap in the afternoon. Luckily, I never seem to have to work very much, so not too much trouble fitting the stretch and nap time into my schedule.

2) My BF and I are sort of like Bert and Ernie relative to each other, so we decided to have a semi-open relationship. So, I "dated" a 26 year old man last week. I fretted that I might be a bit skeeved out due to relative youth, but turns out 26 is still full-grown even if you are now 52. Sort of like a very clean-cut, not quite so buff, more fuzzy, yet less bearded version of Colin McGregor. Perked me up a bit.

READING LIST

1) "Private Life"-Smiley
2) "The Orphan Master's Son"-Johnson
3) "The Systems View of Life"- Capra, Luigi
4) "Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Sustaining Open Relationships"- Taormino
5) "Killing the Competition: Economic Inequality and Homicide"- Daly
6) "The Self-Taught Programmer"-Althoff
7) "Introduction to Networking"-Severance
8) "Algorithms to Live By"- Christian, Griffiths
9) "Reading the Woods"-Brown
10) "Michigan: A History of the Great Lakes State"-Rubenstein


All told, a reasonably fun and productive cycle-period, with gentle upward swinging tendency.

enigmaT120
Posts: 1240
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2015 2:14 pm
Location: Falls City, OR

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by enigmaT120 »

"(not very safe to be alone operating a chainsaw where nobody can hear you scream)"

You mean like I do every time I use my saw? My imagination isn't good enough to let me be afraid of many things.

Don't say you're getting old, I'm a year older than you. Split and stacked a cord of firewood yesterday. OK, today I feel a little old.

26 year old, huh. I could see trying that.

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

@enigmaT120:

Well, maybe my BF is just keeping me because he hasn't fixed the propane heater yet. It's already down to the 40s at night.

I betcha you would like to try 26-lol. I can now report with very minimal anecdotal assurance that all men varying in generation from Silent to Millenial and melanin production of 0 to near maximum possess thug-like qualities, likely to be triggered in certain sexual or inequity of resource distribution contexts. Of course, my interest in this topic is secondary curiosity about the rather wide-spread female "pathological" desire for rough sex and attraction to displays of dominance. When I was sipping my lemonade, rather nervously awaiting the arrival of my younger date, I spotted him approaching across the expanse of the public space, and the calculation in my temporal lobe was instantaneous and went something like; muscular shoulders, beard, tall, military posture...and then I flipped from social nerves due to possibility of having to signal rejection due to distaste to sexual nerves. I'm a self-aware submissive, so I usually prefer older men because usually signals more dominance, up to the point of enfeeblement.

enigmaT120
Posts: 1240
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2015 2:14 pm
Location: Falls City, OR

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by enigmaT120 »

I don't think I'm dominant, but I'm pretty sure I'm not submissive either. I don't pay nearly as much attention to that stuff as you obviously (from your posts) do.

Did you really think his youth would be a turn-off? I can't imagine I would think that about younger women, at least not until way below the age of legal consent.

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

@enigmaT120:

Well, I sort of stumbled into an interest in the topic at one point in my marital-divorce therapy overlapping with dating phase, and now I can't "unsee" it. The words dominance and submission carry connotations, and I am usually just referring to a very subtle set of behaviors. For instance, if a man places his hand firmly at the small of my back, it is not my natural reaction to mimic his behavior by doing the same. If/when I allow him to guide me forward from that gesture, that drop of armor and assumption of follow is a gesture of submission. Since I am self-aware that I like that sort of thing, I sometimes choose to overtly signal submission first.

OTOH, most humans, myself included, are at least a bit switchy, and able to dial in the odd midnight channel on their sexual radio on occasion. Also, it's not like every interaction in any relationship takes on some variation on "pas de deux" or tango formation. Sometimes it's much more casual and free-style, more like hip-hop.

Anyways, yes, I really was fretting about his relative youth. My fretting was likely partly due to the fact that I am sometimes afraid of being disowned by my own adult children, and the fact that I am not quite completely post-Freudian in my analysis. I must also admit that I likely vibed a bit more Mumsy/managerial than I usually do in such a context. It kind of reminded me of when I used to hire ambitious young men for my team when I was corporate employed, and was happy that they were eager to work very hard in order to get promoted right over my head while I lounged about in my cubicle reading gardening magazines. I hope I don't get kicked off the forum for typing true things in polite company, but what happened is that I didn't really relax until he pinched one of my nipples kind of hard, and I could tell from his eyes that his brain was all soaked in testosterone. Then I stopped feeling responsible for taking advantage of him, and I sent him a nice bread and butter note the next day, so all possible guilt assuaged.

User avatar
C40
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Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by C40 »

7Wannabe5 wrote:
Tue Aug 29, 2017 1:06 pm
... It kind of reminded me of when I used to hire ambitious young men for my team when I was corporate employed, and was happy that they were eager to work very hard in order to get promoted right over my head while I lounged about in my cubicle reading gardening magazines. I hope I don't get kicked off the forum for typing true things in polite company, but what happened is that I didn't really relax until he pinched one of my nipples kind of hard, and I could tell from his eyes that his brain was all soaked in testosterone. Then I stopped feeling responsible for taking advantage of him, and I sent him a nice bread and butter note the next day, so all possible guilt assuaged.
I absolutely love this paragraph. I wish I could read the note you sent him.

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

Well, since the year is 2017, not 1887, my "bread and butter note" was actually a brief, courteous text message. Perhaps you will be able to read it someday if it is accepted for publication in the Journal of Unnecessary Communications. I will reveal that the first line of his reply was "No problem."

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

8/29/17-9/25/17= Life-Cucle-System (6/14)

PERSONAL EXPENSES:

Food-$90.22
Communication/Technology-$78
Shelter-$6
Girl Stuff/Grooming/Clothes-$8.47
Transportation-$0.50
Social/Entertainment-$0
Erudition/Education-$.99
Health-$12.78
Misc.-$0

TOTAl=$196.96= approximately $7/day


INCOME:

W2 Earned Income: $0
Self-Employed Expense/Loss/Overhead: $225.60
Self-Employed Income:$140
Found Money:$5.48

TOTAL = -$80.12

NET SAVINGS = -$277.08

Food could have been much lower. Barter lowered other expenses, particularly Shelter. Negative Self-Employment Income due to shortness of accounting period. Also, I did start earning some W-2 income this month, but tracking simple cash flow, and I have not been paid yet. I decided to drop the metrics of hours worked and hourly wage, because too tedious to track given my odd lifestyle.

PINS IN MAP

Same as last period.

INCOME FLOWS/PROJECTS

Same as last period.

HEALTH

Determined that I was suffering from peri-menopausal anemia. Added sublingual b-12 and more red meat to my diet with good results.

READING LIST

1) "Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal"-Roach
2) "The Transformation of Intimacy"-Giddens
3) "Cheap Sex"-Regnerus
4) "Kicking Ass on the Road"-Davison
5)"History of the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan"-Blackbird
6) "The Art of Non-Conformity"-Guillebeau (re-read)
7) "Princess Bitch"-Leigh (re-read)
8) "Field Guide to Native Oak Species of Eastern North America"-Stein
9) "Lake Huron Coastal Dune Plants Guide"-Peach
10) "Michigan Ferns"

Species/Varieties Noted/Indentified

1) Ursus Americanus- (scat and print)
2) Pteridium aquilinum
3) Pinus Banksiana
4)Huckleberry
5) Low-bush Blueberry
6) Showy Goldenrod
7)Eastern White Pine
8) Bearberry
9)Russula emetica
10)Spotted Knapweed
11)Common Milkweed
12) Scarlet Oak
13)Linaria vulgaris
14)Horsetail
15)Banded Tussock Moth (caterpillar)
16)Great Blue Heron
17)Bushy Aster
18)Eastern Paper Birch
19)Common Loon
20)Staghorn Sumac
21)Northern Leopard Frog
22)Norway Maple
23)Canada goose
24)White Oak
25) Red Maple
26) Pileated Woodpecker
27) Begonia x semperflorens cultorum
28) Tomato-Cherokee Purple

Pictures to Follow.

I have decided that my new core metrics to track for my old lady semi-retired lifestyle will be species/varieties identified/noted and worthwhile books read. Remaining Lifetime Goal being 10,000 of first and 5,000 of second.

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Fun with Nature!

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

I am having fun with my new rogue amateur naturalist hobby. Maybe those of you with more knowledge and experience can help me identify some of the below. Also, feel free to second guess any of the identifications I have made.



Image

Banded Tussock Moth Caterpillar

Image

Scarlet Oak Acorns

Image

Genus: Vaccinium
Species: ?

Image

Species?

Image

Pileated Woodpecker

Image

Ursus Americanus (scat)

Image

Russula emetica

Image

Northern Leopard Frog

Image

Horsetail
Genus: Equisetum
Species: ?

Image

Lake Huron

Image

Rough Survey Work

Image

New Home for Camper

Jason

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by Jason »

Looks like those scarlet oak acorns were happy to see you.

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

9/26/17-10/23/17 = Life-Cycle-System (6/15)

PERSONAL EXPENSES:

Food-$140.95
Communication/Technology-$65.09
Shelter-$0
Girl Stuff/Grooming/Clothes-$0
Transportation-$38.94
Social/Entertainment-$46.58
Erudition/Education-$0
Health-$0
Misc.-$0

TOTAL=$291.56= approximately $10.41/day


NET INCOME:$1337

NET SAVINGS:$1045.97

I realized capital gain on the sale of one of my vacant lots, small proceeds from continuing liquidation of my rare book inventory, and some earned income from part-time substitute teaching this period, so not indicative of any trend.

I did much better on the new species identified than the books read list this period. Autumn in Michigan is beautiful. (Pictures to follow)

I keep traveling from my mother's apartment in the lovely University center (where I have either lived or worked most of my adult life) to my BF's apartment in suburb (near city where my perma-culture project is located) to my BF's northern lake property. This is working so well for me, I have decided to create a permanent range based roughly on these 3 points on the map (not barring occasional journeys much further afield.) My perma-culture project is also located within biking distance of the hospital where I was born, and within walking distance of the house where my maternal great-grandmother lived when first married. My BF's property is located within biking distance of the area where I have frequently vacationed with my family since early childhood, which is also quite near the area where my paternal great-great-grandfather farmed.

I consolidated my perma-culture project by selling off the third vacant lot which I hadn't developed yet. I also made deal to trade half ownership in remaining property for cash/sweat equity investment by my perma-culture partner. He will provide the materials to finish construction and care-take/lawn-mow etc, while/when I am not in locale. So, my overhead is now reduced to less than $100/year for my share of property tax bill moving forward.

During the week I help my mother out and substitute teach part-time, and on the weekend I help my BF with his Northern property project. We discovered that a very rare bird favors some of the trees located in his micro-climate, so we are veering our amateur forestry towards creation of mini-preserve. His property is located at the very southern edge of summer breeding realm, so sort of like last stop at 7-11 before hopping on migratory expressway.

Changing the venue in which I teach has given me the perspective to realize that I have gained a good deal of competence over the last few years. I have also been working with small groups of special needs children lately, and I find that quite rewarding. So, overall I am feeling pretty useful, and I am having a good deal of fun : )

Jason

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by Jason »

7Wannabe5 wrote:
Mon Oct 23, 2017 1:49 pm
So, overall I am feeling pretty useful, and I am having a good deal of fun : )
Can't ask for much more than that.

J_
Posts: 883
Joined: Tue Nov 01, 2011 4:12 pm
Location: Netherlands/Austria

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by J_ »

7Wannabe5 wrote:
Mon Oct 23, 2017 1:49 pm
(near city where my perma-culture project is located) to my BF's
Take X : or shorter "my (s)perma-culture project"
(sorry Wannabe)

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

@Jason:

True. Content for the moment without desire to lock-down or escape.

@J_:

S'okay. My sperma-culture project collapsed under the weight of its own success; like what happens 3 months after you go stupid in the brain for five minutes and plant a whole packet of zucchini seeds.

Kriegsspiel
Posts: 952
Joined: Fri Aug 03, 2012 9:05 pm

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by Kriegsspiel »

7, can you talk more about substitute teaching? Are you able to pick a specific school that you'd sub at, or are you liable to be sent off to a school across the city?

7Wannabe5
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Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

@Kriegsspiel:

The absence system is centralized on internet, so the process works the same in every school district. Generally, open jobs are offered to everybody who is qualified (previously vetted by corporate employer) and available that day in the system. You choose if you would like to accept a job as it pops up. If you limit your availability to just one school, you will have fewer opportunities for work, unless the staff at that school starts specifically requesting you for openings. Usually the school secretary is the key-keeper, so a teacher might text me to inquire about my availability, then ask the secretary to fill me in for the absence rather than floating the opening to the general substitute population, or there is a "preferred substitute" function that allows the teacher to send me an e-mail alerting me that she will be floating an absence to the general population.

I can also add filters to the system which would, for instance, prevent me from being offered jobs at the middle school level, or at any particular school which is out of easy city bus range. I can also black out my availability completely, or just in certain districts, for any given time period. So, I can pick up jobs in the district where my mother lives one week, and jobs in the district where my BF lives another week. In the larger districts, it is also fairly easy to pick and choose between half-day and full-day assignments. So, very flexible once you jump through some minor hoops to become registered with corporate employer(s) and various districts.

enigmaT120
Posts: 1240
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2015 2:14 pm
Location: Falls City, OR

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by enigmaT120 »

What is the rare bird?

Nice pictures.

I can't see the leopard frog in the picture. Does he have really good camouflage?

7Wannabe5
Posts: 9375
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:03 am

Re: 7WB5- Take 3

Post by 7Wannabe5 »

@enigmaT120:

The leopard frog is just right of center. This is the bird:

https://www.fws.gov/Midwest/Endangered/ ... index.html

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