Well, it's time to put the series to rest, but I'm very pleased with the results. I'd like to thank all my guest writers:
MlleRobillard, Sellhart53, WomanofLight, TheBigShowatUD, and TrunthePaige for doing a wonderful job. Please do visit their sites and learn from them as well. I'd also like to remind you that you are MORE than welcome to steal this idea! Do consider having guest posts, Xanga collaborations, and other link-ups with other Xangans on whatever topic you please. It's a great way to build community and introduce your friends to one another.

To conclude, I'd like to ask YOU, the reader, to be my guest columnist. Post below your own recommendations as to how best manage that time of being single and solo, without birth family or romantic family. You can talk about finance, career, relationships, friends, or faith, whatever you know about.

Also, I'll be hosting a short episode of Xanga TV tonight on here: come visit the site around 10:15 PM Eastern Time tonight, and we'll talk about what we've learned and whatever else comes to mind.

We conclude our guest writers for the "From the Dorm Room to the Altar" series with a post about relationships from an old favorite of mine, Matthew (Xanga name TheBigShowAtUD ). I found Matthew off the old Featured list some years ago and stuck around to harass him in the comment section. He writes excellent posts about relationships, work, and "That Guy", the bane of Matthew's (and everyone's) existence. Today he tackles a bias that I too have fallen for several times.

Thanks Matt! Go visit him here if you liked the post, or hit "Recommend." There may be a short post tomorrow to sum things up, if I have time (crosses fingers).

We continue our series From the Dorm Room To The Altar with  a special post from Paige (xanga name trunthepaige ). Paige is well-known for everything from her political viewpoints to her beer reviews. Like several of us so far, she is willingly sharing the mistakes she made in her 20's so that you don't have to repeat them. I hope you'll take her words to heart. And by the way, please do subscribe to each new writer if you like their material, and tell them so! It took a lot of work and courage for some of these authors to write their columns.

I leaned
so much from Susan. She would baby sit me when I was a little girl. One of
my aunts oldest girls, 10 years older than I am, she knew everything
there was to know. I idolized her and for a good reason. Susan was not
ordinary in any way.

Thanks, Paige, for that powerful story about a role model. Visit her site here if you liked the story, and tell her so! And yes, we'll have ANOTHER guest writer tomorrow. For a while he's been quiet on Xanga, but back in the day he was one of the best writers I knew on here. Just don't call it a comeback, ha. As you can tell, I'm just a little excited about this series! And please RECOMMEND the stories if you would--these writers put a lot of time into this, and they're gracious enough to let me post it on my site instead of among their usual readers.

We continue our series From Dorm Room to Altar (click to read past entries) with Brian's entry on Finance. Brian loves business and financial topics, going so far as to start some businesses of his own! He also is highly involved in a kids ministry at his church. He's an interesting Xangan that most of you don't know, and so I'm pleased to bring his writings to my site. Visit his Xanga here.

How are you managing your finances as a single?

The world revolves around
money; obtaining, spending, saving and giving it. It affects nearly every area
of our lives. Indeed, survey after survey says that money is one of the most
contentious issues in marriage. What better way to prepare for marriage than to
be on firm financial footing with good money habits in place? As a
Christ-follower, I believe we are to be good stewards of everything God has
entrusted to us. Regardless of religious beliefs, now is always the best
time to establish sound money management
practices.

See how you line up on the
Financial Health Checklist below:

1)     Do you have a
budget? A
budget is THE absolute essential for most efficiently managing your money. You want to be able to tell your
money where to go rather than the other way around. Spend and save
intentionally. There are many great systems out there. Find one that works for
you: the envelopes budgeting system, MS Money
or similar software; and for you engineers and business grads, Excel
works great too. If interested in an Excel budget template, please contact me.
A budget, or spend plan, forms the basis for being able to build financial
goals. When can I afford a new car? When will I have enough for a house down
payment? How much of a ring can I afford? It is not only a tool to use
month-to-month to see how you’re doing. It is a tool that can be used to project
into the future where you will be financially and when. I project my budget
out through 2010. It motivates me to stick to my budget, so I can see that if I
follow my budget I will be able to buy a new car for cash at the end of 2010,
for example.

2)     Do you have an
emergency fund?
Have a minimum of $1000 set aside for emergencies. If you don’t have it,
get it fast…less than 30 days, work overtime, sell stuff, cut all non-essentials, whatever is necessary. With rare
exception, anyone with a full-time job can do it in that time frame. In fact,
during this month a small group of readers on my blog have entered into “Great Depression
Mode” for September to bolster emergency funds or
free up additional cash for other things. Several of my recent entries have
touched on preparing for going bare bones and blogging will continue throughout
the month on the topic. After you have $1000, aim for saving three months
worth of expenses to set aside in a separate account. Don’t be in a
situation where it’s necessary to go into debt to pay for an emergency that you
should have been preparing for all along.

3)     Do you have a
list of every debt you currently have? Lay every debt out on paper with the payoff
amount, interest rate, penalties for paying off early (if applicable) and the
minimum payment amount. What better time to pay down debt than when you’re
single! Common advice
says to pay off the lowest amount first and then snowball what was being
paid on that small debt into the next bigger debt until all the debt is wiped
out. There may be some merit in paying off the highest
interest rate debt first, but there are definite psychological benefits
to eliminating the number of people/businesses to whom you owe money. If you
have significant debt, look into ways to reducing the interest rates. If
you have paid your credit card on time for the last 6 months, call up the 1-800
# on the back of your card and ask if they can reduce the interest rate. Most
of the time they will. All it takes is a phone call. If it’s a struggle to pay
current debts, my very best advice is to run towards your creditors
rather than away from them. By calling them and showing a willingness to pay
and being honest about your current situation, they are going to work with you
and are often open to waiving fees, reducing interest rates or lowering
payments. Paying off debt is one thing, but
be sure to take care of the
cause of the debt problem (overspending) rather than just the symptom (high
interest payments) or else you’ll be back in the same boat in the future.

4)     Do you save
automatically?
Take savings right off the top rather than what’s left over at the end of the
month. The best way to do this is automate. Have it pulled right from
your paycheck if possible. Have it pulled right from your bank account
otherwise. Typically it’s best to have at least three different savings pots:
1) emergency fund build-up, 2) retirement and 3) major purchases (car, house,
ring). A high priority should be given to debt repayment, but not necessarily
to the neglect of all other
savings areas (especially if an employer offers matching
funds for retirement contributions). The best solution is typically a
combination of paying extra down on debt while addressing at least one of the
savings areas.

Crown
Financial Ministries
is a Christian-based organization I highly respect. They have financial coaches
across the country who
are trained volunteers that
are willing to help with your specific situation to help keep you on track
toward true financial freedom. If you are
interested in speaking with a coach free of charge in your area, visit this link: http://www.crown.org/ForChurch/Solutions/MMCoaching/MMCoachingMain.aspx

If you have a good handle
on each of the four areas mentioned above, you have set yourself up for
success. Personal financial management is my passion. If I can help with
specific resources or you have a specific situation or question to run by me, I
am thrilled to help out where I can.

Thanks Brian! Yes, we still have yet ANOTHER guest author for Sunday, so check for that. I'm taking a big break when this is done. Visit Brian here if you liked the post!

My Dabbling post got some great feedback, and I thought it was only fair to share some of the best comments made by people holding the other viewpoint. They either thought that some dabbling was good, or that being too narrow was not healthy or safe. I still believe more people suffer more from dabbling than from being stubborn and narrow, but I think it's important that both perspectives get some time. I'm not here to be the know-it-all 20-something, believe me; I write persuasive arguments, but I write them in search of better understanding for myself, not just for converts.

My final count looked like about 15-20 of you out of 80 disagreed with some aspect of the post. That sounds about right to me; about 20% to 25% of 23-30 somethings would do better to dabble rather than focus, and about 75-80% are better off focusing more.

One small point of clarification, before I give you their words. Note my original disclaimer paragraph: "There comes a time where each of us should commit in at least a few
things, whether that be just career, or spouse, or hobby, or
relationship. This belief that leaving all our options open is success
is nonsense." So my original intent  was not that there should be no dabbling in your life, but that instead your life should be defined by commitment in at least one major area of career, hobby, or relationship. Ok, gentle critics (and they were polite overall), have at it!

Comment #1: Put all your eggs in one basket and watch as the job is rendered obsolete by a changing economy.  Good times.

Comment #2: ...At any rate, I agree with this, but I wil
lsay it is never too late to try new things.  My teaching mentor when I
first came to Japan had been a High School teacher for 30 years before
coming to Japan, and after 3 years -- when his contract wasn't renewed
-- he didn't want to leave, and he was over 60 when he came!  Now, he
and his wife have taught in Lithuania, been to Spain and Western
Europe, and basically have loved each and every minute of their time. 
Yes, we do need to find that one career or job, just as the Book of
Proverbs says, but at the same time, don't stop trying new things.  A
couple of my goals are ot make it to the Olympics in Weight Lifting and
to try Skydiving at least once!  While weight lifting isn't new, trying
to make the Olympic Team is, and skydiving certainly is a new thing!

Comment #3:

I don't know.  I kind of disagree here.I think that advice is a little dated.  Dated to and written in an age where that actually was good advice.

I'm pleased to introduce our second guest, Lucy, aka Xanga's WomanofLight. She's fresh off her successful trip to see David Tennant live in England, which was apparently quite the experience! She has experienced being in a very long-term relationship that did not end in marriage, and has bravely consented to share how she picked up the pieces after the break-up. I think she's doing a lovely job of it and wanted to share that with you.

I
haven't been single for very long. Well, not very long in my own mind.
I was in a very, very long term relationship that ended late last year,
so for almost a year now, I've been single.

After taking some
time to recover from the fun of having to rip out my own heart and
regard it as it bled in my hand and all over the carpet, I found that I
like being single right now. Being single is not such a terrible thing
and in fact it's usually quite pleasant. Even though there are moments
of bitterness when a friend, relation, or someone my age or younger
gets married and I think "Guess it will happen for everyone else but
me." I've found, though, that isn't the most productive line of thought
to pursue.

What good does it do to be bitter about opportunities
lost? What good does it do to pursue a man, any man if the result will
be a broken marriage or family a few years down the line?

While
I was in the UK with my equally single girlfriend (who I call Olivia on
this blog) she told me that an acquaintance was telling her about a Santeria
spell that purported to snag a husband. "But the spell just gets you a
husband... it's not guaranteed that he'll be a good one or one who will
treat you well." "Well, that's no good," I said. "Who would want to do
a spell to get just any old husband? What if they end up with a cheater
or a wifebeater? That's nonsense."

As crazy as it sounds to
chant spells to snag a man, that's how crazy it seems to me to get on
dating sites, attend speed dating events, and generally conduct your
life like you're trying to find a mate. If falling in love and hitting
it off are natural, organic processes, what good does it do to put it
in an artificial environment and rush it?

Since I've been
single, I've been focusing on myself. In dating years, I'm about 17
years old, since that was the last time I was single. Considering how
old I am now (def older than 17) it's an odd feeling. I suppose I could
think about it as though I am somehow behind and I must now catch up on
all the sexual experiences someone my age has likely had. I suppose I
could get desperate and hunt down potential mates in order not to
become an old maid. And who knows, maybe I'll feel that way if I'm
single when I'm over 35. I hope not. It's been interesting discovering
who I am when I'm not part of a unit.

Once the focus was off
myself, my disappointment and loneliness, I found myself focusing on
all the people in my life who matter. My relationship with my parents,
brother, and girlfriends deepened. I began to realize that I had been
diverting my emotional energy away from these people. More attention
went into my career. I picked up a new hobby. I even began wearing my
first real pair of heels in earnest! There is of course the freedom to
flirt with whom I want, not that I really know how to flirt. I found
the usefulness and happiness in being single and that works pretty well
for me right now. Hopefully something lovely will happen, relationship
wise, while I'm focusing on myself. But it doesn't have to and I'm not
sitting around waiting for it. There's too much of life to be lived.

Coda:
Since my long relationship was a long distance one, I was going to
write more at length about such relationships, but I really only have
the following to say. Long ago, I wrote a post about being in a Long Distance Relationship
(LDR). Even though my LDR didn't work out, I stand by that post,
because I think I laid out the ground rules pretty well. The LDR I was
in fit the guideline for years and, among other reasons, broke down
because 1) there was no end date in mind; and 2) for one of us, the
other was no longer a high priority in their life, and as the
relationship wound down, that became increasingly clear. Although I
have no desire to enter into another LDR, I will never say they are
silly, "not real relationships" or claim they never work. In fact they
can and do often work. My parents were in an LDR for some time before
they married.

Thanks Lucy! Go to her site for more of her writings.

I grew up realizing just how un-well-rounded I was. My idea of a good time when I was younger involved burrowing under a dining room table with a 400-page book and not coming out. When I became a teenager, my parents, perhaps frustrated at my lack of balance, started shoving me into various extracurricular activities. Since I had read all the books in our house by then, I grudgingly crawled out from under the table and got involved in sports, camping, academic challenge-type games, and drama.

Those experiences were great for me. I learned that I had many skills besides reading large books rapidly and spouting off trivia answers. So for much of my 20's, I've spent time trying to be even more well-rounded, constantly selecting activities I am not good at so that I could improve my skills or learn more about the opportunities out there. Sounds like an excellent strategy, isn't it? Except...it's not.

A web acquaintance brought to my attention an essay by Andrew Carnegie offering advice to young men. One of his lessons was as follows:

Having entered upon work, continue in that line of work. Fight it out on
that line (except in extreme cases), for it matters little what avenue
a young man finds first. Success can be attained in any branch of human
labor. There is always room at the top in every pursuit. Concentrate
all your thought and energy upon the performance of your duties. Put
all your eggs into one basket and then watch that basket, do not
scatter your shot...The great successes of life are
made by concentration.

I started to realize that I had it all wrong, and that I needed to change my perspective on life. I am convinced that way too many people are dabbling away their 20's. Our refusal to commit for the sake of "leaving our options open" is preventing us from beginning our adult lives. Take a look, for example, at our post-college careers. We try 3 different majors, and then hurriedly graduate with a junk degree just so we don't have to pay any more loans. Then we work for 1 month somewhere, decide we don't like it, and then quit. After all, we're pumped up for 4 years in college about how great we are, how in demand our careers are, and how full of potential we could be...and then we find out that it's a lot harder out there, and we quit and try something else.

Why not instead pick one career, go after it full force, and make a name for ourselves? Sure, quit if you don't like it...but do that only after you have enough money to afford to be without work or go back to school again. Don't just float from job to job to "see if I like it"; you should be doing that exploration in high school and college, not when you're 30 and wearing out your parents' patience.

Or, take dating as an example, which I'll describe from the guy's perspective. There are only a few basic types of females out there in terms of personality. Why can't we seem to narrow down what we want and just go after that? But no, the ordinary, decent girls don't seem to satisfy us. "How can I settle down if I have yet to date a Russian-Kenyan artist?" the fickle young man says.  And so we go from exotica to phenomenon to completely crazy, still no closer to any type of relationship that would be lasting and foundational. We just date as some sort of hobby, postponing any thoughts of marriage until the first gray hair or hernia hits. After that, I suppose the male strategy is to foist oneself on the first unsuspecting, also desperate girl until both of you realize how much the other is falling apart? ha. It seems much better to enjoy the prime of life of your spouse instead of wistfully looking at photos of her in college and wondering what happened...

Finally, what about hobbies? Yes, hobbies are supposed to be for entertainment, but they also should be fun and help us develop skills. I know just enough politics, sports, and entertainment news to make conversation--but quite honestly, the time spent collecting that knowledge isn't worth the few moments of shared experience it gives me. And (HERESY ALERT!!) what good is it to have a Xanga if I hide it from most of my friends or they don't care about it? Or how does it help me to play pickup sports if I play a new person each time and never really form any friendships or continuity? Why not pick something I can be good at and practice it until I have some skill truly worth sharing and making conversation about? Or why not pick a hang-out or organization where you can make many friends and build a network if you just stay with it long enough? But instead it seems like we flit from group to restaurant to park to vacation, leaving just as things were about to get interesting. Whatever happened to "giving to get"...instead of "taking to go"?

Ok, the mandatory disclaimer paragraph, a star of nearly every post I write, should make its appearance. We all need to try new things and stretch our figurative wings. But I believe the time for that should be the years between 16-23, not the years between 23-30. Life is too short to have an uncertain adolescence of trial and error for 15+ years. There comes a time where each of us should commit in at least a few things, whether that be just career, or spouse, or hobby, or relationship. This belief that leaving all our options open is success is nonsense. Yes, if you are terrified of change, or becoming more stale than the bread your roommate left out last week, you should reconsider your decisions. But I think the vast majority of us single folk instead suffer from not allowing ourselves to age like fine wine or sharp cheddar. And so, perhaps it's time for you to consider saying no to many inconsequential things so you can say yes to the things in life that really matter.

EDIT Thanks for the feature, Xanga! To you new readers, this post is part of a larger series on life from the "Dorm Room to the Altar" as a single person. Click here to read more entries written on this general topic.

EDIT 2: A lot of pleasant folk pointed out some situations and times when dabbling might be better. You can read their good points here and add your own.

We kicked off our "From the Dorm Room to the Altar" series yesterday. I'm pleased to introduce my first guest writer, Jess (Xanga name MlleRobillard ). She's a loquacious lady from Louisiana who combines cooking skills, history tales, and guest columnists into a very interesting Xanga site. Did I mention she also posts audio clips to go with the posts? Recently we've been glad and thankful to read that Hurricane Gustav apparently did no lasting damage to her house or irrepressible blogging pets. Please feel free to also meet this talented lady at her site after reading this article. And PLEASE RECOMMEND as well-- my guests took a lot of time and effort to write these articles!

Being an old maid is like death by drowning, a really delightful sensation after you cease to struggle. (Edna Ferber)
 
In
the past ten years I have been a bridesmaid seven times. It's still an
honor to be asked, and I've gotten used to wearing ugly dresses, but
lately I've begun to wonder; are the rehearsals, dinners, showers and
ceremonies practice for my own big day, or are they the closest I'll
ever get to being a bride?

In my teens and early twenties I was
quite certain that marriage was something that would just happen, like
the weather. I'd meet HIM. He'd propose, we'd marry, have babies, and
there I'd be. People pair off. It's the expected course of things.

It
hasn't happened. I've been busy with family, my church, my career, and
my writing and I didn't even notice it not happening until a few years
ago when family and friends started applying pressure. That's
delightful. The invitations ("We've also invited Joe's friend Eustace,
he's the nicest guy. Please don't be put off by that little problem of
his"), the well-meaning reassurances ("It's okay, dear. My cousin
so-and-so didn't get married until she was almost your age") all leave
me somewhat cold, but I understand that they are well meant.
 
Quite
simply, I haven't met a man with whom I'd care to spend my life. I have
met wonderful and dear men, but so far, not the one. I seem to be well
on my way to a glorious spinsterhood. I thought I'd share a few of my
thoughts and a little advice about being a cool, desirable but not
desperate single woman.

Many of the terms used for an unmarried
woman are derogatory, old maid, for instance, or my least favorite "a
sex and the city girl". Many of these terms suggest a preference for
mullets, comfortable shoes, and the Indigo Girls,
if you know what I mean. Nothing against my lesbian sisters, but it is
inappropriate to be categotized by people who can't be bothered to
consider the idea that a woman might be enthusiastically heterosexual
and just (for whatever reason) not married. I prefer the word
"spinster".

To be a successful spinster you should live alone,
if possible, because you need to be able to be alone in comfort. The
cliché about lonely and alone is very true; they are different and you
need to decide which you are. You can have pets (cats, dogs, anything
with fur), but no more than 2 of anything and 3 total. Anything more
than that, you become the creepy animal lady and your house smells like
a pet store. If you do get a dog, it should be a bigger dog – at least
15 lbs. Nothing Paris Hilton would coo over should be allowed in your house. No lizards, snakes, or
birds. Fish are okay, but they should be completely decorative and
un-named; simply a hobby.

You can't live in a scary
neighborhood. No rundown apartment buildings with a convenient meth lab
one floor down, nowhere that you are afraid to walk home at 2 a.m. Your
furniture can be a little ratty with aspirations towards bohemian, but
you need to throw out all furniture that your parents gave you. A couch
from the Seventies is not an antique. At least some of the furniture
should be pre-assembled, not the kind where you sit for four hours on
the floor with a screw driver struggling to put bolt G into the bottom
right hole on panel C while reading directions translated by an angry
Swede into broken English.

Being single does not mean giving
up. You still want to be hot. Not hot like Pam Andersen hot or Angelina
Jolie hot, but the hottest you you can be. Avoid plastic surgery, as it
smacks of desperation; instead, invest in attractive, age-appropriate
clothing, a great haircut (not the same one every time!) and awesome
shoes. Shoes will always fit, even if you gain 10 lbs. or lose 15. They
will make you feel sexy and cool. You don't need $500 Jimmy Choos. Just
find some that are hot and that you feel good in. They don't need to be
uncomfortable, just stylish. It does matter what you look like. It's
great if you are all about inner beauty and wear men's polo shirts
and no make-up. Good for you. Just know that no one else is about inner
beauty. We ("we" being the whole world) are about outer beauty. If you
have chosen to be single, you are already cool, and secure, and
interesting enough on the inside. Pluck your eyebrows already, throw on
a hot outfit and make sure they wonder what they might be missing.

A
few sacrifices may need to be made on your way to becoming a modern
spinster. Assess your current group of friends. Have any of them ever
uttered any version of the following phrases? "Don't worry, you're so
pretty; you'll meet someone some day," or "I just don't know how you
stay so strong. I would be lost without (insert boyfriend/husband's
name here)." These people, usually women, are not your friends. They
are spectators, watching your life, trying to make themselves feel
better by comparison. Forget them.

It's a good idea to make a
few financial sacrifices and save a little money, in an account
separate from your checking account and your debit card. Two months'
salary is about right. You never know if an illness or our current
economic woes will strike, and you want a cushion to land on if you
fall.

You probably can't afford to eat out every day (especially
if you need to work on the aforementioned savings account). Oreos and
ramen noodles are unwise to eat regularly, so here's my solution.
Designate one or two days a month as "cooking days". Make several of
your favorite meals, divide them into one-serving disposable containers
(I save margarine tubs for this) and freeze them. A decent meal is only
a few minutes in the microwave away.

Faith matters. I know not
everyone is a Christian, but it helps to believe in something other
than yourself. Alone and awake at 4 a.m. on a Saturday can be a
miserable experience otherwise. Try meditation, prayer, spiritual
reading. Keep an open mind.

Don't be afraid of change. Meet new
people, dance with a stranger. Do something for charity, maybe
volunteer one day a week. A surefire cure for loneliness or situational
depression (as opposed to a clinical diagnosis of depression, which may
need therapy or medication to control) is to help others.

Remember
to wear old underwear and not to shave your legs for first dates. There
are precious few of us who can't be talked into something, sometime, by
someone. Why risk your self esteem, your health, and your reputation?

Be
safe and remember: no one is going to take care of you but you, so
don't sacrifice your freedom on any terms but your own. You don't need
to become a different person to be worthy of love. If God has someone
in mind for you, that person will be there in the right place and time.

Thanks, Jess! Check back here for a new essay tomorrow--GP.

As schools are opened across the country, I decided to launch a new Xanga series. I realized recently that when I was younger, planning life was relatively easy. When  I was in high school, I knew to get good grades and get involved in a wide range of activities to become more well-rounded. College was more of the same for me as I prepared for my chosen career. But then I turned 22, graduated college...and realized that suddenly, good advice was nowhere to be found.

Yes, I still believe our country doesn't know what do with single people who no longer live with their birth families. Not only is there no plan for us, but there are not even many materials to help us know where to start. Take sexuality/dating/marriage, for example. Are we supposed to be dating as many people as possible to find out what we like? I have yet to date a Lithunian-Indonesian artist, so how in the world can I be sure that my current date is the best I can get? (Yes, I'm being a little sarcastic).

What about our careers? Should we major in what we love or what makes us wealthy? Does anyone really get to do both? 

What about religion? How should our 20's help us attain spiritual peace and comfort?

And what about finances--who is this "401K" fellow who I should be giving my money to? How much should I give, and do I ever get any back? 

Because people are afraid of offending, or perhaps because they don't know themselves, I have never received less feedback in my life than I have since turning 22. I have invited several of my favorite Xanga writers to help me in sharing with you some ideas for managing your single life. Many of you may never reach the altar (and we have an article about that you'll want to read). Others are simply temporarily single and may already be engaged coming out of college. But I liked the title, because singles truly find themselves in transition between places. There's the friends of our youth and the new friends we make when we move for the first (second, third, 50th...) time after college. There's the values of our family and culture, and the new information we receive by coming in contact with different ways of life. I could go on and on, but it's tough to put down roots as a single person. But I believe that unless we do put down some roots and make some firm decisions, we'll never be able to grow and make the most out of this period of life. More on this topic tomorrow before I turn the blog over to my guests.