Author Archives: gmayeaux

So, like all good wannabee decorators, I watch a fair amount of HGTV and I’ve got a number of Pinterest boards. In fact, I’d probably be happy if HGTV was the only show on TV. Regardless, I got myself a hankering for a church pew. It seemed to be all the rage. Every time aContinue reading “We bought a pew!”

I remember attempting to write a fiction novel once and the opening scene was of a rambling white farmhouse set fairly close to the road – perhaps 20 feet from the road – with a gravel driveway on the right side leading to a rather rickety two stall garage. The two worn paths of theContinue reading “Slowing down…”

We must cultivate our garden. For a couple of yuppie homesteaders, a French phrase with the double-entendre of taking care of a physical garden and the garden of one’s soul is right up our alley. My husband first introduced me to this phrase when he sent me one of the first emails after we met.Continue reading “Il faut cultiver notre jardin.”

When I was working full-time, I would often get the “Sunday Blues,” which is how my sister and I defined Sunday evening. Depending on the day or the week ahead, the Sunday Blues could hit the moment you woke up or they could creep in slowly over the day. It didn’t matter, by 8 p.m.Continue reading “The Sunday Blues…”

No, that is not a signal that this is about to be a racy post. Quite frankly, that’s not your business. Instead, it piggy backs on living a more natural life. We have four spice barrels just outside our door. One contains basil, easily summer’s most perfect herb. Competing with the basil for top honorsContinue reading “Spicing things up… .”

So, before the pandemic hit, I signed up for one of those “Brushes and Brews” classes that our local arts council sponsored. It was at our local brew pub where you paint while drinking beer. Essentially, the more you paint, the more you drink and the more you drink, the better your painting looks. It’sContinue reading “Keeping it simple”

When I first envisioned slowing down my life, I had all sorts of idealistic images. I imagined baking Christmas cookies, canning everything from beans to zucchini, sewing my own curtains, remodeling the house by hand, lovingly strolling the antique shops for this one particular glorious find that I can bring new life to with thatContinue reading “The view from the exit ramp”

I sometimes refer to myself as a travelling salesman. I travel enough. And in the end, consulting is about selling your expertise to organizations that have found that they need it. Now, many consultants would disagree with me about the selling part – and I have to admit that I understand where they’re coming from.Continue reading “Making home a soft spot to land”

So, simple peace. I guess for me, a lot of my personal transformation started out with that mantra. Like all homesteaders, I do yoga. Okay, another weak joke. I’ve been doing yoga for nearly 25 years. It’s amazing how much better you feel when you actually stretch your muscles and work on core strength. ItContinue reading “Achieving a Simple Peace”

So, this is the story of our life… or at least my blog. I guess the first place to start is how we came to be “yuppie homesteaders” or maybe even before that, what it means to be a yuppie homesteader. Basically, we are wannabes that cannot handle the real homesteading lifestyle. Instead, we liveContinue reading “The Trials and Tribulations of a Yuppie Homesteader”