52+: Living in a 52Nudges State of Mind
How have you used 52Nudges? Have you done each nudge along with me? Picked and pursued your own? Read about my adventures purely for the entertainment value? Something my friend Amy said recently intrigued me, so I asked her to elaborate. Here’s what 52Nudges has inspired her to do.
When Amy Morrell was first furloughed from her job in mid-April, she spent some of her time helping her daughter, Rowan, adjust to virtual schooling. Otherwise, she wasn’t particularly motivated to be productive. “It was so easy to sit on the couch and play videos all day,” she said, echoing how many of us felt in those early days of COVID-19 quarantine. “It was enough for me to keep the home semi-clean.”
Then she got inspired by Nudges. Although Amy doesn’t really have a Bucket List or Nudges of her own, she took a fresh look at how she wanted to spend her relatively free time. “What the blog does is it inspires carpe diem: don’t set aside for tomorrow what you can do today, don’t wait to try something new,” she said.
Sheltering at home, then, seemed like the perfect opportunity to do things she hadn’t yet had time for, such as painting, organizing the crafts room, resuming knitting projects, cracking open kits she’d purchased online, baking and trying new foods, and learning basket weaving.
“We started with hydroponic gardening,” she said, “growing our own food, like herbs, squash, peppers, and zucchini.” With that project thriving, she turned to acting on fulfilling another dream: providing a home for a menagerie of beloved pets. Amy had pets growing up, and she and Rowan already had cats and a couple of birds. The COVID furlough provided Amy with the time and energy to expand and manage what they now call “Morrell Zoo”.
Today their zoo includes thirteen birds, butterflies, two guinea pigs (Carrot and Apple), three cats (Jenks, Nemo, and Winnie), and a foster dog (Kody). With each, Amy and Rowan have learned and experienced something, like the importance of bird diapers, how removing nests puts a stop to aggressive behavior, how baby finches hatch, and the importance of cuddling. “Sunny (a cockatiel) loves to snuggle,” Amy said.
“It doesn’t have to be any big expense,” Amy said, giving a nod to 52Nudges rules. Finding a “cheap” hobby, though, wasn’t a priority. “We didn’t save a lot of money, but it’s good for our state of mind,” Amy said. “The birds just make me happy.”
Amy has been back at work (from home) since early July, and Rowan is now attending 2nd grade virtually, from a safe and socially distanced space provided by her dance studio. As their zoo continues to thrive, both gals continue to pursue new interests and activities. “When I want something, I do it,” Amy said, when asked to sum up her efforts to make the most of this time. “I live my life in a 52Nudges state of mind.”
