September and Winding Down
And so, it became September!
September has always felt like a "winding down" time to me, even though there is still one-third of the year still to come.
When I was a kid, August was always "the birthday month" in which loads of family members (and several friends) had theirs, ending with mine on the 30th. We'd roll into September, and not a single birthday in sight, and it seemed like some state of "quiet normal" had resumed.
Of course, it was — and still is — also harvest time," when we would be busy enjoying the fruits of our labor in the gardens. Around here, it is apple season, and the bulk of the tomatoes are still to come; the blackberries are reaching their peak.
I really sense the days getting shorter, too. We look out across the bay, and guage the passing of the year by where the sun sets... in midwinter, behind the highest mountains across the bay... in midsummer, behind Protection Island.
When I was little, September meant we were well and truly back in school, and moving towards the time of the year when there would be little to no daylight after we'd get home from school.
A winding down.
And what does it mean now, this September?
While numbers on a calendar definitely are somewhat arbitrary markers, it usually means that I knuckle down for the "lean time" of the year, ahead of the holidays.
Most of my online businesses are rather seasonal, whether because they center around "winter hobbies" or because they peak because they involve selling things that are popular holiday gifts... and there's always a period of "dead space" that really doesn't go away till we get a ways into November.
Meanwhile, this is often the most expensive time of the year, due to having to stock up in readiness for busier times, as well as the due dates of certain taxes and other large annual payments.
As such, this year worries me because we have eaten through pretty much all our reserves to simply stay alive.
Ironically, that means that I'm going to be entering a time period that is the precise opposite of the title of this post... a ramping up, in an attempt to keep up with what is coming down the pike.
I find myself thinking about how often the "energy" of something can be quite different from the "reality" of that same thing. September feels like a winding down, but that is not a feeling I get to act on.
It's ironic that I just turned 65, but the enjoyment of having reached something that historically meant "retirement age" has nothing at all to do with being able to slow down and enjoy the little things of life more!
But those are the times in which we live, and I accept that.
Meanwhile, the crypto world enjoyed another miserable August... and — like a growing number of people who don't talk a lot about it — I'm increasingly joining the camp of those who have come to realize that crypto is really not ever going to become the answer to anything, primarily because it has been usurped by so-called "Private Equity," just like everything else in the world is being destroyed.
The cynic in my mulls over the old phrase "and that's why we can't have nice things," because it seems fitting in this scenario.
Which leads me to think about WEF spokeshead Klaus Schwab insiting that "you will own NOTHING, and you will LIKE it!"
Whereas I admire those who keep fighting the good fight to be "off the grid," it's a sad reality that they actually are not. If you even step out your front door, you are part of the grid, in some way.
Maybe all we can do is use whatever parts of the ostensible "grid" we can find that might be to our advantage, and that might lighten our load.
At least that's the direction I plan to take...
Turning to God or wishful thinking for help isn't going to work. As the old truism goes: "God helps those who help themselves..."
Thanks for stopping by and have a great week ahead!
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Created at 2025.09.01 10:55 PST
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