Hi, I promise I’ll stop obsessing over the way our community keeps showing up for us soon, but I’m not there quite yet.
When we began the month of March by finding out that we were suddenly without any kind of reliable income, I began making a list. It wasn’t a fun one.
It was a list of bills and financial obligations that we could theoretically pause while we scrambled to come up with a plan to make sure we could feed our kids and put gas in the car. I was gearing up to begin making phone calls (one of the things I hate most in the world) so I could beg for more time.
Gas bill.
Electric bill.
Car bill.
Internet bill.
All of those things and more, I was prepared to get my non-confrontational ass ready to take my best shot at negotiating.
But.
I never had to.
Between local friends saying “heck yeah, bring me dinner for monies”, the uptick in paid monthly subscribers, and the UNBELIEVABLE amount of people who have donated towards the cause of me keeping my chin up so my creative well doesn’t dry up in the name of survival; we made it.
All the bills were paid for March.
Every single one of them.
Big kid had lunch money.
Big girl will be able to continue at her school through pre-k graduation.
Little man will continue to have diapers to poop into.
We were even able to take the kids out for a treat on a hard day where they really needed to feel seen.
I know that in the grand scheme of everything that’s wrong with the world, helping one family stay standing when the rug’s been pulled out from under them isn’t a huge deal.
But to us, it has been EVERYTHING.
We’re still in the weeds a bit, but I can report that things are beginning to slowly pick up with Hippie and co’s new catering venture, so hopefully relief from the uncertainty is on the horizon.
I can also confirm that I am again taking on writing clients on a limited basis. I am still mom and full time caregiver to 3 wee humans, and teach other teeny humans one morning/week. I am currently working with 2 clients this month on some very exciting projects, and have room for 2 more! If you need a webpage written, or have a nebulous sort of something you need written that you’d like to borrow my brain about? Let me know before someone else does.
Thank you all so much, readers. You’ve helped us not only stay afloat, but stay encouraged. We love you more than we can say.
Hi there, April. Let’s do this.
Until next time, dear readers.
-XOXO,
Jess
PS. It is once again the time in the blog where I ask you for money. It’s not my favorite thing to do, but in the words of my favorite TV dad; it’s gotta be done.
This blog is free… mostly. The vast majority of what I write is accessible to anyone with an internet connection, because I don’t love gatekeeping access to important conversations or amusing anecdotes about my life. However, this is also how I financially support my family, and we rely on paid monthly subscribers and the occasional generous donor in order to meet our monthly financial obligations.
Paid subscribers have access to all the recipes from the Hippie that I share here, as well as chapters of the fantasy book I’m working on as I get them edited and fit for reading. If you want in on that action, here’s a button that will let you upgrade to a paid subscription.
If committing to a paid monthly subscription isn’t a thing you want to do, but you’d still like to contribute financially? Here’s a button that will allow you to leave a “tip” for the author. In exchange, I’ll send you a PDF of the most recent recipe that I shared with subscribers.