My friends, over the years have always laughed affectionately at the way I “make do” with what I have. I always must improvise. Most of my life has been lived making do with what cards I was dealt, i.e. an unhappy marriage, a shack on the beach, not having a job, etc.
When I bought my shack on the beach, it was sturdily built, but was pretty much gutted on the inside. I shopped thrift stores, discounts on appliances, put down press on tiles to cover the gaps in the floor (you could see through to the ground), bought remnants of carpet, etc. I was a high school teacher and could afford the loan for house, but not the remodeling. So, I improvised. You would be amazed at some of the improvisations.
When a close friend visited, she brought me an embroidered hanging for my front door – “Welcome to Make-Do” is what it said. She said if she had heard me use that term once she had heard it a hundred times. I proudly placed it by entrance. And I still have it.
Yes, I do tend to improvise when money is tight. And now that I am 70, money is even tighter. I improvise all the time with groceries, the occasional night out, etc. And today, I took it even further.
I am invited by my apartment complex to “black and white” event. We are dressing up and management is throwing us a party. As I was figuring out my wardrobe for the evening, I finally picked my shoes and they needed polishing. I cannot remember when I last had polish. I started looking for something to “substitute” for polish.
I found some Pledge polishing sheets, I figured that if they were good enough for my wood furniture, they should be able to handle leather shoes. And they did. The shoes look wonderful. Leather looks cared for, etc.
Ok, all of my old friends out there, please note that Peggy can still pull off a “make do” when she needs to.
When I bought my shack on the beach, it was sturdily built, but was pretty much gutted on the inside. I shopped thrift stores, discounts on appliances, put down press on tiles to cover the gaps in the floor (you could see through to the ground), bought remnants of carpet, etc. I was a high school teacher and could afford the loan for house, but not the remodeling. So, I improvised. You would be amazed at some of the improvisations.
When a close friend visited, she brought me an embroidered hanging for my front door – “Welcome to Make-Do” is what it said. She said if she had heard me use that term once she had heard it a hundred times. I proudly placed it by entrance. And I still have it.
Yes, I do tend to improvise when money is tight. And now that I am 70, money is even tighter. I improvise all the time with groceries, the occasional night out, etc. And today, I took it even further.
I am invited by my apartment complex to “black and white” event. We are dressing up and management is throwing us a party. As I was figuring out my wardrobe for the evening, I finally picked my shoes and they needed polishing. I cannot remember when I last had polish. I started looking for something to “substitute” for polish.
I found some Pledge polishing sheets, I figured that if they were good enough for my wood furniture, they should be able to handle leather shoes. And they did. The shoes look wonderful. Leather looks cared for, etc.
Ok, all of my old friends out there, please note that Peggy can still pull off a “make do” when she needs to.
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