LIFE UPDATE! (Patreon)

Well hello!

Something a little different this month instead of a mini set I'm going to give you a life update with photos!

There have been people requesting life updates for a while now so I'm going to do my best to make sure this one is all-encompassing.

Things in my life are.....interesting? 

R.I.P Olivia

As some of you know, my car got totalled back in May. Poor Olivia was parked in my own residential driveway. My downstairs neighbors had something delivered from a local furniture and appliance store and on their way back out of the driveway they clipped my car with back end of their moving truck. 

There was damage all down the side, the rear light was dangling and the bumper was torn off completely. 

Of course, I went through insurance but my worry from the beginning was that my car was a 2007 Yaris Sedan with about 300 000km on her. With the extent of the damage, I didn't know that they would think it was worth it to fix her.....which in the end they didn't. I was banking on having her for at least another 2 years as she was really well maintained and Toyotas last forever. A car payment wasn't something that I really wanted on my plate as I'm still digging myself out of some debt caused by COVID. 

I was even more upset by the state of the market when I started looking at buying another vehicle. I'm not someone who is very impressed by cars, I don't know a lot about them, and even if I were a millionaire I doubt I'd own anything luxury/fancy. When I started looking I thought, "ok, I'll just get something used again with lower milage." 

HA! THINK AGAIN! 

Due to the market both dealerships, as well as private sales on used cars, are THROUGH THE ROOF! It ended up being that the difference between buying a used car, 3-5 years old with mileage, and a brand new factory-ordered car was about 3k. Not to mention that the interest rate on a used car was 6.99% vs a new car which was 3.5%. When you actually work that out over the amount of time you want to have a payment it's a very big difference and buying a new car was cheaper than buying something used. 

So I ended up ordering one of these:

TOYOTA CHR 2022

To be honest with you guys, I was BESIDE MYSELF ordering this car. I have never spent this much money on anything in my life. I didn't want in wanting a "new" car. Not to mention the fact that the pandemic completely "shook" me regarding finances. 

I have never been well off. I've always had to work very hard and I don't have anyone to fall back on. I have never been dual income and while I've always made my way and felt fairly secure with my ability to earn a living covid took any feeling of security away. It's not this screaming voice in the back of my head that anything can happen tomorrow, you could lose your job, your freelance gig and everything else simply NOT be able to pay your bills. 

While I know I can't live in fear like that, those thoughts are still very present within me. 

PERMANENT LOCKDOWN

To add another layer to this, since I didn't go with a used car and there were no new cars available on the lot I had to factory order this. I ordered it the first week of June and it has yet to arrive. WhicThish means that I've been without a vehicle for the entire summer. 

My favorite season. 

The season where I'm normally at the beach or hiking or laying in the sun at the park reading every single day. The season where I am completely immersed in nature and I feel the happiest and balanced. 

I live in a smaller community without public transportation. And while that small community is surrounded but a ton of nature the time it would take me to walk to the hiking trails, beaches etc doesn't make it sensible. 

So instead I've simply been working, working and working! 

I currently work from home which I love however, without a car it has ended up feeling like another extended period of lockdown that I cannot WAIT to get out of. 

The dealership said that the delivery date for my car would be mid to late August though so I'm counting down the days until she gets here. 

Everyday lockdown fit. 

ALL THE GOOD THINGS

While that is one thing that has been ruling my life lately there have been great things happening as well.

I started a new role at the company that I'm at. It's at the same pay but I like the role a lot better, I get to work from home. I am on a very small team and the only one with my specialty which means I handle everything within that realm which I like. 

The pay isn't great. I just needed a job after the pandemic and had to take what was available. I moved up within 6 months and while the pay is the same the title and experience will get me further in the long run. I'm planning on staying 2 years and then looking for something else that pays higher at another company.

I'm still freelancing on the side in order to make my monthly bills because rent is atrocious BUT - I have a place to live that I love, I live in a place that I love, I have food in my fridge and while I may be working my ass off I believe I can cover the new car. Which is better than where I was in the pandemic so I'm grateful and thankful. 

And as you guys know, I got to see KATIE WEST!!!!!!!!!

Which fills my heart with joy. I also am hopefully seeing her again in late August, or early September.

I got to have a really great family BBQ. It was SO nice to see everyone since we've been canceling Christmas and everything else over the past couple of years due to COVID. You don't get to see them but here's me while I was there.

I did a "favor" for my mom's friend and shot her backyard wedding which I was not excited about but ended up being alright. Since my mom was the maid of honor I got to babysit Bubba afterward.

There have been A LOT of TV/Movie nights at my place that look like this.
I did watch Love Island (which is on the screen there) - do  you know that one season of Love Island is 55 episodes! THAT'S INSANE! 

I have an amazing partner who comes with a bulldog who I adore. If you knew me on tumblr you know that obsession is SO real. Here she is napping at my place. 

And I'm going to cap it off with a sneak peek from a custom that I did for someone recently because I think it's pretty. 

I hope you've enjoyed this long-ass, picture-rich update!
Now....I need to get back to work!

xo

Faye