Thursday, December 9, 2010

Day Two Hundred One

Wonderful day today, from stem to stern.  Amid my usual schedule of working both for my occupation and doing the things that need to be done as a mother and head of household I fit in some meaningful experiences.  The swamp cooler on my roof has been problematic for a while and a while ago started leaking.  The water was falling in little drips off the roof in the backyard right outside my bedroom window.  My son made a very solid effort at fixing the problem but in the end it was more than his limited experience could handle.  Then yesterday evening the thing really burst open and the little drips turned into something akin to a waterfall outside my bedroom window.  The sound proved to be an all too intrusive reminder that this problem would now need to be handled more definitively and probably expensively and kept me from sleeping.  I moved out onto the couch.  


I woke up early and worked for a couple of hours and pondered the situation in the back of my head. The fear of ladders and heights that I've had forever kept me from going up there to take a look even though I was pretty sure I could figure out the solution.  I had made up my mind that I was going to bite the bullet and just get on a ladder and do it.  This decision wasn't as brave as it sounds; behind the bravado is the reality that I'm doing all I can to keep my little boat afloat financially in tough circumstances and I simply didn't want to throw a plumber's bill into the mix.  My friend (who often saves me from doing the wrong thing) suggested I just find a handyman on Craig's List to solve the problem at a reasonable price and skip the whole potential to fall off the roof.  I saw the wisdom in her reasoning.  So out to my house came a couple of guys who didn't look like your typical plumbers.  Tattoos and a certain rough-around-the-edges air about them told me they these guys had been around the block a time or two.  I immediately liked them.  They knew very little about plumbing.  Both were terribly afraid of heights and ladders.  They flipped a coin for who had to go up the ladder onto the wet roof.  The other guy and I yucked it up down below and we collaborated on the solution and eventually stopped the leak.  Over the course of our shared experience it was revealed to me that these guys were recovering addicts working for a ministry that reaches out to people struggling with substance abuse.  They were wonderful and when they left I gave them both a hug, something I would likely never feel compelled to do with a regular plumber.  They invited me to a revival this weekend.  Hallelulajah!


Back to work for the rest of the day and then I met a friend for dinner and went to a book signing with Chris Guillebeau, who blogs here.  It was interesting to hear how the fascinating enterpreneur, in the span of three years became a professional blogger, writer, and trainer in the art of world domination.  The thing that he said that really struck a chord with me was about "selfish generosity".  He and his wife changed their lives radically; they volunteered with a medical organization and moved to Sierra Leone for a couple of years.  He said people were often commending them on the generosity of their sacrifices and that they were very uncomfortable with that dialog.  Their experience was that they received in proportions at least equal to what they gave.  So, I state here again that I am striving to live a life wherein I travel the country spending time with and doing things for people I love.  My payoff is that I will selfishly soak up the love they have for me.  Selfish Generosity.



Here are today's five blog items for today:
1.  A folding travel alarm clock (who needs it with an iPhone?)
2.  An electric pencil sharpener
3.  A terra cotta dish planter
4.  A ceramic planter
5.  Another ceramic planter

2 comments:

  1. Brava, Kimmie! I applaud your dedication and generosity in paring down your superfluous possessions! I also loved the info about the "selfish generosity", as I have also experienced that in my life of volunteering. Just think what a world we could have if EVERYONE pitched in to help others! We'd all be so happy and fulfilled and content. So, here's to selfishly improving our human condition! Mary T.

    ReplyDelete
  2. And I appreciate the T. after your last name!

    xo

    ReplyDelete

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