writing - Surviving and Thriving

Declaring my freedom.

February 29, 2016July 5, 2012 by Donna Freedman

On Wednesday I read “A message of freedom” over at DailyWorth. It pointed out that “happy Independence Day” could also be read as “happy freedom day,” i.e., the freedom to live the way you want if you take responsibility for your finances.

“Happy freedom to dream differently, choose carefully and slow down a little right now day,” wrote site founder and CEO Amanda Steinberg.

“Declare it. What is your freedom?”

Steinberg’s statement jibed pretty well with what I’ve been mulling over for the past few days: Frugality made me independent and it keeps me that way.

Quarreling with blessings.

April 22, 2012 by Donna Freedman

I am at war with my body. That was the thought that came to me toward the end of the massage I had on Friday. Sometimes the oddest things come to me when I’m not focusing on a dozen things at once.

Oddest, and usually the most apt. When my defenses are down, the truth sneaks up.

My words, elsewhere.

March 22, 2012 by Donna Freedman

Write what you know, right? Thus my most recent post at Get Rich Slowly was called “Prepare to get sick.”

In it I explained how I stay relatively ready year-round for illness or injury, from having basic foods and OTC meds on hand to figuring out a way to telecommute in case of a longish period of immobility. Specifically, I noted that one reason I could have surgery on really short notice was that I already had most of my ducks in a row.

I also got to work in a reference to the exchanging of body fluids. This pained one reader, who left a comment asking if this were truly necessary. My reply: “Yes.” After all, it was Valentine’s Day when I got sick.

The latest from elsewhere.

January 24, 2016March 7, 2012 by Donna Freedman

After two full weeks of writing the Frugal Cool site for MSN Money, I’ve learned that a five-times-a-week deadline can be less intimidating than a once-every-10-days deadline.

I’d been writing a biweekly personal finance column since spring 2009. Initially I thought this would be easier than my previous job at MSN Money, the three-times-a-week Smart Spending blog. It wasn’t.

My first half-million.

April 18, 2018November 5, 2011 by Donna Freedman

At some point on Tuesday, Nov. 1, this site achieved a milestone: 500,000 page views. To say I was surprised would be putting it mildly. To say that I’m happy would be stating it precisely. That’s because 18 months ago I wondered not just whether I could sustain a personal website, but whether anyone would care if I did.

If writers are the most insecure people on Earth, bloggers are proof that self-doubt has a sub-basement. Like the 2 a.m. disc jockey a whole lot of us wonder, “Is anyone even listening?”