Umi In The City

Like my mother, I have always been a tea drinker.  As a child, I enjoyed sipping tea with my mama during the early morning while my brother and father were asleep.  As a tween and then teen, I'd sit in the window with a cup of tea and a book. Reading and imagining that I was some character in one of my many novels.  I predict that my own daughter will be the same, as she already asks for tea when she sees me sipping my daily dose of liquid peace, or when she has an "ailment".  Yes, a cup of tea is the remedy for all hurts. Perhaps, I have helped encourage that, a blend of nature and nurture. I have purchased more than one mommy and me tea set, throughout the years. I always have gotten them from the collection  A Mother's Love by Amy  on Amazon. I have also acquired quite a few mugs from students throughout the years, including the one in the picture below. I am sure that has something to do with the tea stash had in every classroom I have taught in....

  I have spent most of my adult life as a single mother.   I have spent most of my adult life as a broke single mother.  I like many people thought that investing in my education would automatically mean getting ahead financially in the world.  Well, I was wrong.  In fact, I made three times as much with my bachelor's degree and virtually no work experience than I did with my master's degree and years of teaching under my belt. So I am no stranger to debt.  Nor am I a stranger to the emotional ups and downs that come with debt and struggling.       In today's world, the average person lives with debt.  It is as if becoming an adult is synonymous with becoming indebted to a company.  From debt accrued during university to becoming a homeowner to purchasing our basic needs, debt is often a part of modern day living.  In fact, many of us are encouraged to get into debt as a way of establishing good credit.  Ironical...