SRKindredSpirits

"Whenever you want to add to your life.... take away something instead.  You'll find that the more you take away, the more you have. And even better, you'll find yourself buried down there at the bottom somewhere." - Rhoda A Kindred

A Former Monk’s Financial Guide to Becoming a Little Bit Wealthy .... and Why That’s Okay Anyone that knows me, knows that I am not good with words... especially big words. I have trouble saying them, reading them and understanding them. I enjoy reading (and writing) as much as the next person, but when a book is written using big words, is hard to comprehend, or goes too deep, I zone out. Most financial books have me never finishing them. But not this one, - this one I got!  This book is good. I love the way the author provides easy to comprehend words, sound practical advice, and a down to earth, relate able, and compelling story.  The author makes a strong ethical case for striving to be "a little bit wealthy" by stepping off the treadmill of mindless consumerism (excessive unnecessary spending) and managing money more effectively to accumulate wealth over time. After all, it's up to us to take care of our financial health, which ultimately is a p

In today's time, we often overlook the importance of dressing up... just look around you the next time to go to the doctors office, grocery store, or even a church activity. I mean, I'm all for being comfortable, but people often take it too far. Think about it, most people dress like bedraggled slobs. Have you looked around? Men might be in T-shirts with coffee stains, holes, or in ratty, baggy jeans, ugly shorts, and showing off their britches. Women are wearing stretch leggins, sweats, halter tops, super short shorts, and, yes, underwear in public. If our clothes are a means of self-expression, we clearly loathe ourselves. How does it make you feel, when you see someone at the checkout with uncombed hair, baggy sweatpants, slippers, and an unpleasant smell? My guess is you probably don't think very highly of them. Let me insert here, if that's truly all someone can afford, I'm OK with that, but seriously, if you have money to get your nails don

I grew up in the 80s and 90's. I loved big hair, teal mustangs, pointed shoes, and ladies in skirt suits with shoulder pads.... when it came to my clothes and decorating my house. Everything had to match!  But here's the problem....  I could never get my house to look good.. it seamed something was always missing... or just not quite right. Over the years I've discovered a few things.... Teal cars are no longer cool, big hair doesn't work on everyone, comfortable shoes is better, shoulder pads are just yucky, and matching is way over rated. When it comes to your home, forget the matching - here's the secret to making your home look great! USE WHAT YOU LOVE Don't keep things you don't like. That means that stool you really don't like, or the ugly mug your Aunt Betty gave you, or the picture frame that's been in the family for years and you cant get rid of it, or someone will be upset.... let it go... if it doesn't bring

Dishes in the sink, toys throughout the house, stuff covering every flat surface; this clutter not only makes our homes look bad, it makes us feel bad, too. Walk into any middle-class home in the U.S. and you will come face to face with stuff—toys, trinkets, family photos, furniture, games, DVDs, TVs, digital devices of all kinds, souvenirs, nick-knacks, food, and more. We put our stuff anywhere in the house, every where there's room, or even if there's no room. We have Clutter-strewn garages, abandoned yards and families who are too busy to actually enjoy the possessions they work hard to acquire.  George Carlin famously observed that "a house is just a pile of stuff with a cover on it." Buy stuff. Keep it. Get more of it. Keep that, too. Store it. Display it. Spend time on it. Spend money on it. Worry about it. Stress over it. Repeat. We are a clutter culture, and that, my friends is sad. When clutter takes over, the home, can become a large cont

  Dressing Your Truth is a makeover and beauty system that is about expressing and honoring your authentic nature. Dressing your truth is based on the idea that our personality, features, energy and strengths or weaknesses can all be used to categorize each of us into one of four types. Type 1: The Bright and Animated – Extroverted, ideas-person. Fun. Type 2: The Subtle and Soft – Introverted, nurturing. Blended. Type 3: The Rich and Dynamic –  Extroverted, entrepreneurial. Loud. Type 4: The Bold and Striking –  Introverted, perfection-oriented. Direct. Each type is associated with a specific energy pattern and certain traits about how they move through their world. The overall theory is that by coordinating how you dress with your energy type, you can look your very best. Each energy type is reflected in nature. Type 1: Nitrogen Think of the energy of air (upward, light). The type 1 person is bright, animated and has a gift for new ideas and possibilit

YOUTH Lash Revitalizing & Conditioning Mascara is a 2-in-1 lash conditioner and mascara that lengthens, volumizes and lifts to help create longer, fuller, and healthier looking lashes. Are you looking for a Mascara that feels as good as it looks? Do you want long, beautiful lashes? Do you have sensitive eyes? Are you confused by the clutter of mascara in stores? This one checks all the boxes.   Why I love it: Specifically formulated with our unique Lash Protection Complex: patent-pending Muscadine Grape polyphenols & multi-patented Vital Repair+ to help strengthen lashes, and protect lashes and roots against environmental / free radical damage. Made from naturally derived mineral pigment to provide a glossy looking black finish. Features an innovative 2-sided brush to help create a natural, elegant look: Shorter bristles grab close to the root, boosting volume and lengthening beyond belief. Longer bristles create definition and lift even your t

We've lived in this house for over 13 years and while making over the pantry has always been on the to-do list, it never quite got to the top......  Up until now, my food storage consisted of: Kitchen cupboard - snacks, drink mixes, and cereal China hutch bottom - Shaklee Life Shakes , protein bars, and vitamins A big boxy thing on one side of a coat closet - dry goods and canned food Shelves in the garage - home canned food and extra canning jars Garage floor - pop, and water bottles It was all use able.... just not ideal.  The problem was that I had food in 5 different places, and I couldn't find anything in the big boxy thing, because everything always fell over and I couldn't see what I had. It was frustrating. Here's a pic of the closet/pantry before. It also had the sweeper, cleaning things, coats, shoes, hats and other random stuff in it. I wanted to make the whole closet into a pantry, so I could have all the food in one place,

Sometimes you just have to say goodbye to toxic people. To detach. A family member, who is a toxic person, will take advantage of the fact that you are family – a bond that is supposed to be enduring, loving, and respectful – to manipulate and hurt you, because we are conditioned to believe that if we end relationships with them, that we are “bad” and no one wants to be or feel like they are an inherently bad person. Toxic extended family members cause a lot of stress. It is hard work just to be around them. Many times you are always on edge, cautious, trying to live up to their ideals, yet always failing. Their manipulation, drama, neediness, criticism, jealousy, and other negative traits drain you emotionally and make you feel bad about yourself. All of these things affect your health both directly and indirectly. We spend years sacrificing our mental and emotional health in abusive relationships under the notion that we “have to” because these people are our fam

“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.”  -Thomas Merton It seems so often in life, things get out of balance. Health, finances/money, relationships, work, play, decorating, time, church, social media, electronics, etc. Most of us live a life that is far out of balance – putting the things that are not as important first, or letting them tip the scales too far in one direction. And like I tell my kids, "Too much of a good thing is not a good thing!" Everything is good in moderation and balance. The definition of what balance means to each of us is different, but there are some universal truths. For instance: each us needs a healthy work and life balance to be truly healthy and happy, and our mind, and soul must be in balance to truly be at peace, and to live a life of harmony.  "Follow the laws of Nature and you’ll never go wrong"  - Dr. Forrest C. Shaklee  Living in Harmony with Nature means bringi