Doing nothing to accomplish something...

Doing nothing to accomplish something...
                                                  -- Ancient Chinese Wisdom

I've always loved that saying.  You know when you are in a bind, and don't know what to do, and you're afraid if you make the wrong choice, there will be no going back?  And the other choice will be lost forever?

Usually when I don't know what to do, I think of that saying and do nothing for a while.   Then I revisit the situation at future time. Sometimes things work out and that's the end of it.  Sometimes I still have choices and make a decision.  Sometimes I again decide to do nothing.  For a while.

It might feel like an excuse to do nothing, but I believe it's a valid choice.  You can do A or B or nothing. Sometimes doing nothing is the right choice at that time.

On the other hand, that saying is also valid on a day like today, when I just don't feel like doing anything.  So, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  I am accomplishing a "rest day."

Doing nothing.  : )

JIC versus JIT

Do you know what JIC and JIT stand for?

I was watching a TV program, probably Oprah, and saw Martha Beck talking about JIC versus JIT.  I’d never heard of those concepts and they really hit home at the time.  I still think about JIC pretty often, usually when I’m shopping.

If you don’t know what those acronyms mean:

JIC – Just in Case   An inventory strategy in which companies keep large inventories on hand. This type of inventory management strategy aims to minimize the probability that a product will sell out of stock. A company practicing this strategy essentially incurs higher inventory holding costs in return for a reduction in the number of sales lost due to sold out inventory.

JIT – Just in Time    An inventory strategy in which companies keep minimal inventories on hand.  This is a newer inventory strategy where companies try to minimize inventory costs by producing the goods after the orders have come in.  A good example would be a car manufacturer that keeps low inventory levels, relying on their supply chain to deliver the parts they need to build cars. The parts needed to manufacture the cars do not arrive before or after they are needed, but just as they are needed.

Martha Beck was using those acronyms to refer to personal buying habits.  “What are you?” she asked.

I am a JIC. 

Those of us who are are JICs and are planning to fulltime in the next few months or years will need to undergo a transition from Just in Case to Just in Time.  RV Fulltimers have to be JITs, you don’t have room to keep large inventories of anything in your rigs.

My kitchen is so stocked with anything I need, might need, and sometimes will never need.  But JIC, I have it on the shelf.  Remember, I live alone.  But still, I always have a large jar of Best Foods Mayonnaise in the fridge and a spare in the cupboard, just in case.  Cereal, rice, soup, spices – so many duplicates (and triplicates).  Just in Case.

I could never understand people “stopping on the way home from work” to pick up something for dinner.  Whatever I wanted, I HAD, either in the freezer, refrigerator, or pantry - and I wanted to get home.  But in the last few months I’ve become a JIT and (pretty much) only buy things as needed.

I was surprised the first time someone said something about how much food I had in my cupboards or fridge. I thought everyone was as well stocked as I was.  Then when I heard Martha’s explanation of JIC versus JIT, I understood why I had so much “inventory.”

So…  Now I am becoming a Just in Time.  I have to admit it IS nice to have extra room in the kitchen when I come home from grocery shopping.  I know exactly what’s where, and can find stuff easily. My fridge isn't this neat, yet, this is from an ad.



But I'm getting there.

And when I’m in my RV, I’ll have so much less space in my fridge and cupboards, I’ve got to get used to having much less available. This is from an ad I found for RV refrigerators.  So Small!  This may be my biggest challenge when fulltiming.  I know some of you have larger units, but I'm going to have a small Class C - I won't have many options.



Look at the difference in the size of these two refrigerators!

The rest of my condo, outside of the kitchen, isn’t too bad.  I used to overshop for clothes, but stopped that a few years ago.  Now I just have a lifetime of accumulating things, but I’ve moved so much, and each move I got rid of things.  So my Craig’s List sales and upcoming garage sale won’t be too bad. 

I like being a Just in Time.  It really is so much easier.  And Cheaper!

Want to see my new office?

WELCOME to my new Follower, Karen!   Thanks for coming along with me on my trip preparing to RV fulltime!  And thank you also for your comment about the bird seed and my dog eating it.  You and Marikay both offered suggestions on what to get instead (either "Sunflower Chips" from Walmart, or Hulled Sunflower Seeds), and I am going to do that.  It looks like I can get either one at Walmart.  I thank you both, and so does Katie!

Well, about work.  We have a new office as of last Monday.  When our lease ended this year, my employer bought property and built it out to work for us.  He's been working on it for months, and isn't done yet, but last Friday we packed up the last of our things, and over the weekend he moved the last bit to the new address.

When we arrived at work on Monday morning, everything was in place.  Our IT guy had all our phones and computers, printers, scanners, etc. set up, the kitchen area was stocked, and we were ready to go.  It's nice to finally be here in this brand new office.  The kitchen and bathroom are beautiful, new carpet, new ceilings, fresh paint on all the walls, new doors, new lighting.  He really did a great job.

This is my work space.

Looks like I need a picture on the wall.  We have lots around the office, I need to snag one.  The bookkeeper is on the other side of the partition.

And this is the kitchen area.

 

Check out the floor.  

Isn't it pretty?  My boss did it himself - first time he's tried a design like this and it turned out really well.

Close up of the floor.

So...this is where I spend my time at work.  Until I'm RETIRED and FULLTIMING it.

Update on Craig's List sales:  I sold my piano today!  It is a Yamaha Portable Grand Piano and was in perfect condition.  I just never learned to play it, and am happy to have the money.  A college student learning to play the piano bought it, and he was really excited about it.  He had money ready for me in his pocket, I think he was going to try to negotiate, but when he saw the piano's condition, he pulled out his wallet and added $50 to make the full asking price.  Nice!

That was a big listing - now I have three more large pieces to sell, dining room table and chairs, baker's rack, and an antique platform rocker.  For now that's all the furniture I'm selling.  I hope the dining room set sells soon.  Then I'm going to put a table in the dining room and put all the smaller things there with prices on them.

Where I live, they have a community garage sale every year in October.  You sign up, they give you the signs and put you on the "map," and on the day of the sale you put your stuff out on your driveway or in your garage or carport.  I've never done it, but this year I SURE AM!  (And probably next year, too, if I'm still here.)

I'm starting to gather things now and marking them with prices so I'll be ready when October comes.  Anything that's left at 3:00, AmVets brings a truck and picks it all up for you, so then you have a tax deduction (and don't have to haul it away.)  That's a pretty nice deal.  For everyone.

My credit card balances are going down, down, down.  This month I'll knock off another large chunk.

Take care, everyone - it's the weekend!  : )

Wii Fit Plus

First, WELCOME to Sam and Donna!  Thank your signing up to be a Follower of my Blog.  I appreciate it, and hope you enjoy my daily posts - or almost daily. : )

I've had a Wii Fit for a while - at first I made sure I weighed in and did at least 20 minutes a day using the different types of activities.  Then I started skipping days, and now I hardly use it.  I guess I was a little bored doing the same "favorite" things every day.

A while ago I got the new program "Wii Fit Plus."  It has lots of new things that really looked interesting.  I haven't tried them all, but one that I love is the "Rhythm Parade."

The  Rhythm Parade has a Drum Major, and guess who it is?  ME!  Or I should say Mii! 

This is what the activity looks like.   (This is not me, got it on You Tube):



It’s so funny… the first time I did it I found myself really feeling like I was in a parade.  You just march and wave your arms, so you're doing more than just marching.  You look around at the cheering crowd - how could you not love it?

I actually did march in a parade in San Francisco - the St. Patrick's Day Parade.  I was in grammar school, a Lieutenant in my Catholic School's drill team.   That's how I learned to turn sharp corners.  : )  Our Drill Team marched in other parades, too, but I don't remember where they were.

As well as having fun while getting many different kinds of exercise, working out with the Wii Fit Plus is something you can do in a small space, in any kind of weather.  I plan to take it with me in my RV.  Do you have one?  Do you use it in your RV?   If so, do you have enough room for it? 

I need to use my Wii Fit Plus LOTS more than I do - starting tomorrow.

Cool Window Bird Feeder

WELCOME to my new Follower - Life with Luci and Loree!  Thanks for joining me in my Blog, I hope we meet up during our travels with our dogs some day.

A couple of months ago I clicked on one of the "Ads by Google" that looked interesting on one of the blogs I was reading, and ended up buying a Wild Bird Feeder that I thought would be great when I'm traveling in my RV.  Well, actually when I'm parked with my RV.  I've been trying to get a photo with a bird in it but haven't gotten any good shots.  It has suction cups to hold it on a window, and you can watch the birds from inside your house (or RV).

I put it on my patio window and it's so much fun to watch the birds!  My birds are all pretty plain little critters so far, but there were two that were coming around briefly that were a beautiful yellow - I think yellow cardinals?  Something like that.  Anyway, I'm tired of trying to get a GOOD photo, so am settling for these two:

If you click on the second one, you'll see more detail.  He's looking out the opening - probably ready to scare off any intruders.

Pretty lousy photos, but every time I started near the window, they flew off.  But you get the idea.

When I put the bird seed out, I felt bad that only one bird at a time could eat, so I put seed in one of the planters I have hanging on my low fence, and some doves come by and sit in it to eat. Usually there are two, one sits in the bottom ( the planter is empty) and eats, and the other guards.  They are such pretty birds I love it when the doves come by.

This photo is taken from my couch, with the Zoom lens - through the screen door.  Not super clear, but again, if you click on it, you can see them better.  This guy above is standing guard for his mate - you can barely see her head behind him.

Here they are just sitting, enjoying the view.  Sorry they are such poor quality, but I love my doves!

The only problem with this whole thing, of course, is all the birdseed on the patio.  What a mess!  And Katie tries to eat the seeds, too.  Hasn't hurt her yet, so I guess it's okay.  The seeds are only from the feeder on the window, though, and it is pretty small.  One of the reasons I put seed in the planters is all the cracked seed shells stay in the planter.  I just keep adding more seeds on top of the empty shells. 

That's it for now.  Have a good evening, everyone!