Hello out there
Is 4 am way too early to start something?
It’s almost 4am. This site is dark and the page is blank. I am here to admit that I don’t know what I’m doing. Well, not exactly. I do know that a long time ago, I stopped writing for myself. I wrote for work. I wrote for social media posts. I wrote in long form about work. I wrote in short form about my life.
Then, 6 months ago, I stopped working. I was laid off from my corporate job, and to be honest, I couldn’t have been happier. I have done traditional work since I was 16. It produced money. It was a means to an end. I can’t say it was all bad; but when I think back on my career, I have trouble remembering the work. I mostly remember the people, the connections I made and how those people made me feel, how they helped me evolve as a person and still do to this day.
That said.. Did I mention 6 months? Where did that time go? I have been constantly busy. Whether it’s been enjoying time with my husband and 13 year old son over the summer and as school started again or traveling to Paris with my daughter, the time has been full. I have finally gotten my break, and I have not wasted it.
But always in the back of my mind is this voice saying, shouldn’t you be working? I admit. I have been doing all of the traditional go-back-to-work things. I apply for positions and network, and I’m outwardly disappointed when I don’t get a “call back”, but I’m secretly pleased that I have eked out another day of “freedom”.
So now it’s 4am. I don’t know what I’m doing. But maybe I do.
This is my first post under the umbrella of Strawflower Design. Bear with me. It’s complicated. I created Strawflower Design a long time ago as an idea to live a life of gardening and flowers, to make money creating gardens for people, schools, etc. Then, you guessed it, traditional work got in the way. Today, I’m bringing it to life as a sort of portfolio of crazy ideas. It’s meant to be a place/concept where if you want to know what I am interested in, go here. There is a creative through line, but it is something I hope to evolve, hopefully with your engagement. You can check it out at strawflowerdesign.com.
Domestic Experiments is a part of that portfolio. It is the writing part. Maybe it will become more. Above you’ll see tabs with various work I have tried on Substack, but I have tucked those away for a second to start fresh. To write about a journey that I don’t have fully mapped out. If you want to come along with me, all you have to do is subscribe. It’s free, and if over time, you feel like it’s worth something, you can upgrade, leave a tip for the performer, leave me a comment on this quiet dark page.
If you stick with me, I promise I’ll tell you more. But now, my coffee is cold. You know how it is.