Another Market Day

Another day another dollar....

Reasonably successful day (measured by the fact I can pay the mortgage tomorrow - yay).  And apparently other stall holders said that it was a quiet day.  Will have to get some stuff together for next week which should be better I'd think being Government payday. 

Will be sitting eagerly by the phone tomorrow morning waiting for a temp call. Hows that for positve thinking?  Will it to happen.

Oregon 2010

More online revenue ideas..

Okay so I have spent a bit of time today online registering with a couple of websites that I hope will bring me some location independent income.

Elance

Rent-A-Friend

With Rent A Friend I am the only female for my area (I am only accepting female only contact) so hoping that I have some luck here.

Online revenue...is it possible??

A few months ago I signed up to ews (sort of like an online shop linked to Amazon) - originally my wesite was aimed at the cruise industry.  Today I have updated it to be called Travel Gear Pro and linked it to the products I have been researching myself lately and that I hope to own one day. (Update 26th Jan '13 - I have since discontinued using this site mainly due to the cost - $30 a month for no sales and am focusing on updating a website I already have prepaid for - more on that later too once up and running) Therefore I can also provide accurate reviews of the products from personal use.  And this still would apply to the cruise industry.

Imagine if someone were to sponsor me to use and review their products.  Sort of like the No Bag Challenge offered by Scottevest.  I already have a travel vest from Scottevest though my item is now not in stock any more - mine being a lighter version of the this featured vest.  Actually the No Bag Challenge has been on my mind the last couple of days as I have reading blogs from people who have completed the challenge already.  So a thought to tuck away for future use.

Me 'travelling lite' with a day pack and large messenger bag - 2011

 

I guess now that I have my 'shop' set up, I need to promote it somehow.  While popping it on my blog seems the obvious choice, I doubt very much to be able to survive on any income I may derive from my current traffic of 2 readers (hello). 

So on with learning about HTML and widgets and stuff.

Passion...

Travel Gear Pro - my site I set up the day after this post.

You know- after I finished my post yesterday - I realised what my funk is all or at least partly about. 

I just don't want to work for anybody else!!  I've been self-employed for 8 years and believe me, I just cannot feel passionate about going to work for someone else!!

Just by analyzing the passed weeks worth of web surfing and activities - I can tell you that my passions are

TRAVEL

TRAVEL

TRAVEL

CRAFT

And yesterday after this revelation, I decided to spend all day (see when you are passionate about something it is not a chore) sewing and making travel accessories to sell at the markets!! 

You may remember me mentioning in a previous post (if there is anyone reading my blog - hello hello?) that I have trouble actually finishing...  well... anything.  By late afternoon yesterday I had a pile of unfinished products.  My main reasoning at the time was that I needed to purchase extra materials. So I made myself think outside the square slightly and just made do with what I had! I ended up with 4 finished products - a mini travel pillowcase (stuff with clothes at night for cushioning and doubles as a stuff bag for dirty laundry or whatever),a smaller bag with zip, mobile phone cover and another wee storage bag. 

etsy.com was a great source of inspiration and I will endeavour to set myself up on etsy.com too.

With all my "research" on the web during the week it was no surprise I ended up actually purchasing something - a new High Sierra AT605 backpack.  BF is working away for a week so I am hoping it turns up while he is away - not sure how to break it to him I 'needed' a new bag.  Oh - and I also found on ebay some convertible quick dry pants that zip off to 3 different lengths!!

The reason for all my "research" lately is the forthcoming trip for 4 months overseas next year.  My best friend will be joining me for part of it and I am hoping with all my nagging that my BF will come and join me at the end too. 

While its still fresh in my memory I will start a new page on my blog about the proposed trip.

New Orleans - 2010

Feeling funky...and not in the good way

Aaaaaagh....

I cannot seem to climb out of this deep unmotivated rut I am in.  (Not sure if there is such a thing as an unmotivated rut but there you have it)

I literally have only enough money to pay the mortgage this week and then I'm out of cash.  But the thing is - I cannot seem to get motivated enough to actually want to work - well not for someone else anyway.  Although I did do over 5 hours on the gate of the local rodeo and earnt myself $100 on the weekend. Previously being broke has been the biggest motivator I need to get my act together but not this time.

The employment agency has now registered me (I know this because I missed a call from them Monday morning about work - rats!!) so I shower and get dressed early and sit by the phone by 9am the last few days.  And then if there is no phonecall I sit at my notebook all day just researching...well...stuff!  Mainly researching travel to be honest. BF often comments that if I put that much commitment into looking for work I'd be earning by now.  Can't deny that.

So a couple of the sites that I have found and have been "researching" are

Wise Bread

The Professional Hobo

Excellent resources on frugal living, travel, independent living and everything in between.

All good

Well I am pretty happy with my market yesterday - made a $100 less market stall fee of $24.  It doesn't sound like much but I can tell you it will be very handy.

I have just finished more online tests with the employment agency so hope all goes well there and I get a call for work tomorrow.  They rang this morning to chase up the tests so hoping that means they are keen to get me on the books coz they have work.

And supposed to be (according to my own schedule) taking in a heap of recycling here for cashing in.  We get 10 cents a bottle for glass, plastic and cans. This just started here earlier this year. So I have a few friends that I collect from as they can't be bothered with it all.  And once a month I do  run and get anywhere from $50 to $80.  It all adds up I suppose.

This cute little lizard from Thailand 2009

Market Stall tomorrow.

Well... I've rang the market organisers and if I turn up at 7am tomorrow (Sunday) they will allocate me a spot for my market stall.  $24 for the day to have a stall and the markets run from 8am to 2pm.

I've spent the afternoon - doing a practice set up of my stall at home.  And I will finish the labelling, pricing in the morning and experiment with lay-out through the day to keep me busy.

For about 2 and a half years I did the markets when I first moved here.  I sold beads, jewellery, crafts, recycled clothing and bits and pieces.  Although I also worked full-time back then, the markets were my first taste of being self-employed and I loved it!!

My main aim at this stage though, is to bring in some money while having a big de-clutter before I have to fit in some inherited furniture later in the year.  And to have a bit of fun!

So the car is packed.... and I'll do an update after the markets - hopefully with good news to report!!

Cushions I made a few months ago - given as a gift. 2012

Feeling pretty pleased with myself!

Well - I feel I've done heaps this week - yay!!

My tax stuff except for say 5% is through to my accountant (2 years worth)

I have completed registration at the employment agency (just 3 online tests to do before Monday)

Again I noticed still having trouble entirely finishing tasks but thats my mission Monday coz hoping I should pick up some temp work Tuesday.

And I'm about 75% complete with organising my market stall for tomorrow - although I don't feel ready at all!!  But one of my favourite sayings when I wasn't feeling motivated is "Don't Think About It - Just Do It!!"  So thats my plan.  Just get ready, pack the car and just head off in the morning and see what happens!!

Technically, though and especially if I take the recycling in to cash it in and after the markets - I should have some money on Monday!!  Yippee...

Wild Orchid in Western Australia 2011

 

Plus check out some of my Pages - I have updated Travel Links and Travel 2011/2012



Distractions...

Singapore - save the elephant campaign 2011

 

 

Focus - I have to tell myself that all the time - I am soooooo easily distracted - I have so much running around in my head. And I try and do too many things at once without actually completely finishing anything. And so the house and outdoor area looks like a bomb has hit it - half finished market stall stock ideas, the recycling has built up and I need to cash it in, we have moved furniture out of the house and the stuff that was inside said furniture is still awaiting my inherited furniture to arrive (which won't be until at least November)  .  So today starts with a list - housekeeping first on it!

In saying that - I feel I have actually achieved something this week.  I was going to list what I had finished this week, but true to nature I realise how little I have finished but how much I started. 

So what I started this week that I need to finish:

Registration at employment agency
Tax for Accountant
Market Stall
Housekeeping


I just realised that Housekeeping ended up down the bottom of the list again - but if I finish the first 3 things on the list, it all means money in my pocket.  I am housekeeping in between paragraphs though, as I have spread out with trying to organise stock for my market stall.  

I'll do a separate post on the market stall later.

Well as much as I would love to keep on about being distracted - I'd better go and do some stuff (sigh)....

Crunch Time

Its official - I'm broke!!

Soooooo....I know I should be a completely stressed out mess but I'm not.  In fact a little excited about the challenge!!

The last month of unemployment - just a few hours of work here and there - has chewed through the last of my savings.  And a month of high expenses - my notebook finally died so I had to get another so loving that, and we also travelled to Bali for the dentist (which I saved over $1000 compared to visiting an Australian dentist after flights and expenses were taken out!!). So that cost too - yeesh....

However the clarity (and therefore motivation) I have gained in Bali regarding my short term future is a relief!!  Maybe chewing through a book everyday and generally relaxing and not overthinking allowed my mind to settle.

So the plan (so far) is:

In late September I will be flying "down south" to attend to my dads estate and I will book a one way ticket.  And just stay until the job is done. Hoping not more than a month though.  Mentally and emotionally I feel I just need to get this done.

So in the meantime - get some income in - last week I registered and completed online tests and induction for an employment agency who I will go and visit.  I'll list on ebay also and if nothing comes through straight away work wise I will do a market stall this weekend.  Love it - reduce clutter and make some money! And I will just do temping until I go south.  I also am going to do my tax return for 2 years!!  Aim to have that in today!!  Whatever I get back will hopefully provide me with money for when I am away.

So all in all - a pretty good plan I reckon - not ideal but still a plan!!

I have used this particular photo - from the opening of the new Art Centre on Tiwi Islands - with the kids dancing - its all like a new era - a fresh start

Feeling lethargic...

Lack of motivation and energy seem to be the issue today, although I have left the yard to actually do some paid work.  I was only thinking yesterday arvo how busy I've been since finishing work a week ago.  Usually I try to squeeze in a 'nana nap' on the days I don't work and I haven't even been managing that, so maybe its time to slow down and maybe head back to bed with my crocheting for a couple of hours.

Yesterday I did some painting in our linen cupboard, delivered extra eggs to a friend, crocheted and then helped B grout the new tiles in his shed bathroom. I did manage to squeeze in a nana nap too.

June 2012 Update...

Wow!! Incredible that its been 6 months since I last posted.


Mid - February to present - I was offered work 3 days a week with one of my ex clients in February.  I enjoyed learning a new trade - even if just in training. And I kept 2 clients from my old business also for a little extra income.  One weekend I also got asked to work on the ticket box at a local rodeo - so earnt an extra $100 there.  My extra time after work I spent on little projects at home.  Work at this new job finished this week so back to job searching.  Being on a tight budget again re-iterated the value of money so that was a valuable lesson.

One of my projects using scraps from work.



My car has failed to sell so far and even worse got vandalised.  So I am still using it and will put it up for sale a bit further down the track.  

De-cluttering is still underway with possessions and I am noticing a difference - however slight (with construction of a shed in our yard still underway).  Most of it I have donated as my advertising of a few items went mostly unsold.  

My latest passion is to upcycle "stuff".  Mosaic above from leftover and new tiles.  Partially, a patchwork quilt has been made with my huge collection of fabric and cut up old colourful clothing.  Waiting for some more clothes to cut up for squares to complete that project.  Crocheting is back in full swing too - I started a blanket last dry season and have been working on it again plus practicing a few other crocheting stitches. Wondering whether to start a market stall on weekends for these projects??


On the homefront - my vegetable garden is going well however still not producing as much as I would like (except for chillies).  I have tomatoes, brazilian spinach, chillies, strawberries, basil etc etc in and so hoping for a bumper dry season crop.  My food dehydrator got a work out on some cheap bananas a few weeks and I sealed up a heap of packets of banana chips. (Long since gone).


So thats the update so far.... pretty much back to where I was since my last blog - looking for income....

Back to reality...

Back in the tropics

Melbourne was great and very warm. I'll post some info and photos soon.

And now I only have about 2 weeks left in my current business and I will be looking at getting other income - sell my car and today start listing on ebay (is the plan).

I also spent a weekend working on my little renovation project caravan.

So more details soon...

Friday...

Photos: ponypics Khao Lak Thailand 2009


I love Fridays!!! In the same way I dislike Mondays - well working on Mondays anyway...


Sort of weird when I think about it - but those days of the week wouldn't matter if you are doing something you enjoy.


My diary is telling me I have about 2 hours work at a clients this morning and while I don't want to go and would rather spend the time gardening or writing, I need the money - Rats!!


My "Flea Market" ad didn't run yesterday - there must have been too many to fit them all in. But I had a bonus with the dentist as my health insurance covered the whole lot so I spent $100 getting some new seat covers, dash mat and floor mats for my car to spruce it up for sale. Which I realised I can't advertise until my return from Melbourne.


While I think of it, my first experience with a Virtual Assistant didn't turn out as I expected - pretty much they provided me with a list of websites - something I could have done just in Google - I thought they would research the websites (after all the job title was internet research). And some of the information wasn't relevant - providing me with details of companies on the other side of Australia. Next time I will ask for a Personal Assistant or someone in admin perhaps.

Sell sell sell... money money money....

Thats the mantra for the day.

Clothing

Today my "flea market" ad will run however I have some concerns that I may not get many calls - maybe everyone is broke after Christmas OR (and this is the way I hope it works out) everyone will call as they have Christmas gift money to dispose of. I have advertised 5 lots of clothing but thinking if I get my act together I should rustle up some more lots ready for when people arrive and offer more choice (and thus more sales).

Car

After I clean the car up (today!!), I will photograph and complete my "For Sale" advertisement in the local paper. This is a slightly more expensive option than another company offering a 12 week run of ads for a better rate but in the recent years has gone to on-line only. And I will do up a big sign for the car to advertise as I drive around. Once I have advertised it will force my hand to finalise the detailing (to be honest - START the detailing)!!

Ebay

And since I don't have to be at the dentist for a few hours I will list something on ebay. That dentist is using up all my earnings at the moment!!

Other Income

Savings

Unfortunately today I have to send off a letter to my investment fund managers authorising a withdrawal of some funds to pay back BF for IOU's (bless him). That will leave about $1000 in my emergency fund - crikey....


Self employment

One of my clients paid me last night (thank goodness otherwise have no idea how I would have paid for the dentist!) and I have a few hours of work today that I will definitely get paid for tonight. Fridays however is the day that all my automated payments come out for the week so I may have to juggle a bit of money around a bit but I should scrape through. On a brighter note - I have 3 full days of work booked next week with possibly Monday to fill if I can (or want to - I have this weird aversion to working Mondays).. Friday I fly to Melbourne.

Subscriptions

Today I am also posting out 3 notifications to companies cancelling subscriptions, however that will not take effect until end of Feb when I officially close my business. And I think if I was serious I still have one or two more I could whittle off as well. It would save about $400 a month!!

Medicare

Australia has Medicare where we receive about $30 back on a doctors fee. I have been saving one in my purse for an emergency cash injection and today is the day!!

Actually that was a good exercise - I can see that I will be okay (more next week than this week) but I will scrape through!!

Getting Serious!!

Photo: ponypics Holmes Jungle Dec 2011

So I'm getting broker by the day - BF has a big running tab of IOU's - bless his little cotton socks, but I need to think hard!! I just updated my Resume - I've been self-employed for 7 years so not even sure what "the go" is these days with presentation etc.

Anyway its done and I've just then sent it out to a temping agency. Yesterday I started listing on Ebay and today I will rifle through my spare room and back garden shed and pull out anything that I haven't used for yonks and sell it in the local papers Flea Market this week. I'm sure I will be surprised with what I pull out.

And I will advertise the car for sale by the end of today (that's my goal anyway)- after I have given it a bit of a detail (luckily - or unluckily - I have some experience in this having given it a go for about a month).

Okay - I have a plan!!! For today anyway.....

oh yeh - I have decided to go to Canada at the end of the year maybe for a few months hence the panic for money to start coming in.

2011 - The last day

Photo: ponypics Samoa after the tsunami in 2009

Quite frankly this year has been the worst of my life and right now I'm having a hard time, I'll be glad when we move on to 2012!!

The Virtual Assistant is paid ($50 for 10 hours) on the job - while I am here being an emotional wreck - so far that is working fine for me!!

Getting it out there

Although my Virtual Assistant (company) was late in reply - I have sent off 2.5 hours of instructions for research. 10 hours for $50 - gotta be happy with that!!!


I can use my time listing on Ebay to get some money coming in - my car mechanic bill is $1300!!! Crikey!! Will have to list heaps in Flea Market paper next week and advertise my car for sale - yeesh!!

And now - off to the dentist appointment I was a week early for and the whole car saga began... More money going out...

Beer Bread

The concept seemed perfectly reasonable when I thought of it and as I combined ingredients in the bread maker (a can of beer to replace some from the packet of powder yeast spoiled in the humidity). I googled beer bread
after I pressed the start button on the bread machine and found it to be an Irish Recipe and IT IS meant to be firm and moist!! Thats how mine turned out anyway and it tastes okay toasted with Vegemite and Butter. BF not so sure and leaving it up to me to finish the rest!!


My Homemade Bathroom Cleaner (Recipe from Down To Earth Blog) turned out great (as far as the Simple Living concept goes) - half a cup of bicarb soda and slowly dribble in small amounts of liquid laundry detergent, stirring until it is like a thick custardy texture. I used a toothbrush to get into awkward areas and was really impressed!! I took photos which I will add later - we had been on holidays for 4 weeks and the house-sitter hadn't done much with the wet areas so it was great to experiment on.

So I expect to know the financial damage for the car repairs tomorrow and I will send out some invoices for my work last week hoping someone is floating around their offices during this Christmas break. Today I launched another blog which will hopefully lead to some interesting opportunities in the next 3 months. I also contacted a Virtual Assistant agency for information on their services and have been working on a very detailed "To Do List" for my first use of my Virtual Assistant. I have been spending every waking hour the last few days researching income opportunities when I could be paying someone else to do all that while I try to drum up some income!! Thats the plan Stan!! I STILL have not even listed one item on Ebay and missed the local flea market listing today as I was in "my zone" on the net and forgot the time and hence the deadline today. Rats!! Banning myself from researching until I hear in the next few hours from VA.

Money money money...

Okay - I have been avoiding this issue for a few days (especially after my car was towed)...I'm good at sticking my head in the sand where finances are concerned, leaving mail unopened for weeks and sometimes (just a couple of times) for a few months. Did I mention being responsible is not one of my strong points?!

However as part of simplifying my life I need to dissect my finances. Firstly I need to see where my money is going to then be able to streamline it. Basically I need to do a budget! For the income I do earn I need to sit it somewhere safe and earn as much interest as possible. And I would like to reduce my assets by about 80% and using any funds gained from the sale towards volunteering somewhere. And most importantly I need to be earning income from different sources so as to support me in a roof over my head, food in my belly and some travel funds for my wanderlust.

So I have just signed up for Adsense on this blog to see what that is all about and to report on it - I am finding blogging quite time consuming at the moment as I get everything set up. However I am enjoying it so much it doesn't feel like work at all. Writing seems like an interesting job (hence this blog - I'm practising)....

But... I need to get some money together to pay for those car repairs (which will then lead to income after I sell it).

So Ebay is going to be my tool to start selling off the smaller items - National Geographic collection, CD's, DVD's, Clothes and basic excess personal items. And on Thursdays our local newspaper has free listing for a flea market advert. The latter is seeming like the best option so far, as I need to raise some money quickly.

Volunteering is surprisingly expensive (I have been exploring the free options too) both locally and overseas. Although some organisations provide Fundraising information and training - like how to do a press report and raise awareness for the trip.

Photo - ponypics June 2011