In The Trenches - Networking

When the regular checks were coming in and I wanted to buy something I did. It was that easy. Sometimes cash and sometimes credit but either way it was a process almost like a wishing on a genie. Point and get. Of course there were some limitations but generally most things could be purchased on minimum monthly payments.

In The Trenches is different. Much different. Instead of point and get it’s more like search and rescue. It was wonderfully fun because I had many friends who were doing the same thing.

As we visited over morning coffee we would discuss everything from the seeds we wanted to plant, to the painting we planned to do, and the books we wanted to read. We each had our wish lists and we would act as scouts for one another looking for the perfect light fixture, back door, or anything better than we had. We shopped at garage sales, thrift stores, and always let one another know if we were getting rid of something.


I traded couches with a friend because she liked my new stuff and I liked her 1930s vintage because it matched my dining room furniture and old house. Everyone thought she got the better deal but I was happy as could be with my mohair chairs that older people had to be pulled out of because of the broken springs. I looked forward to the day they would be recovered and would look perfect in my living room that the ladies came over and helped me wallpaper. I learned what a plumb bob was that day.

There is a funny thing about happiness. It’s more about laughter, friendship, and community than about what a person has or how much it cost. Sometimes I think we forget in our quest for improvement but every once in a while I look back and remember, and smile.