Saturday, August 6, 2011

Artful Living on a Budget




Photo taken on First Thursdays in Austin.

Howdy from Austin, Texas! 512 Chick was born from my personal need to have my strawberry cupcake and eat it too – on a budget ... and in this awesome city. You see, I'm a freelance writer, but I didn't start out that way. I used to be an arts and entertainment newspaper reporter/ healthy living magazine editor in Louisiana. I got regular paychecks, much of which I spent on gas for my hour and a half (round trip) commute and a wardrobe to look all fancy schmancy at the office. I loved the work, but I wanted more autonomy to do what I wanted, when I wanted. And I also wanted to write whatever I felt like without being censored.(Aside: That happened a lot.)


So, with my husband on board, I hatched a plan to get free from my job. This entailed selling a freighter-load of our stuff and saving nearly every dollar we could. About a year later I was on my own – officially a freelance writer. This is what I do today. I'm also a portrait artist. It's not always easy to live life on your own terms, especially as a creative person, and when you're just starting out, you sometimes have to make sacrifices. Total disclosure here, but I make less money than I did as a salaried writer. Regardless, I'm happier than ever, and I'm excited by the challenge of stretching my dollars – having fun and living artfully on a budget in Austin.

Hello there. Pleased to meet you. I'm Monica & this is my hubs, Trey.

If you are a creative person living on a budget, or if you have thoughts you'd like to share, I would love to hear from you. What do you find most challenging about your lifestyle? What do you love about it? How do you stretch your budget and still live artfully?

Hugs and blissfulness to you from your humble writer.

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