This has been an interesting week. No two days were the same. Come to think of it, the routine and boredom that were part and parcel of the days occupying a seat in a cubicle farm are long gone. I also don’t miss working for people I couldn’t stand.

That’s not to say that life always comes up roses in the free agent economy. August began with a great deal of optimism and the herald that things were trending in the right direction. Then, a major car repair on Tuesday chewed up a week’s worth of income and I was reminded once again that life (at least the life of a freelancer) is always going to present a bumpy ride now and then.

This is what I tweeted on Tuesday.

A successful #freelancer becomes comfortable with ambiguity, is able to juggle/prioritize, remaining the same during feast/famine.

I felt like I captured 2015 from my perspective in less than 140 characters. Twitter-rific!

Learning to take adversity in stride is a good skill to have. So is being thankful for the blues.

Actually, August was shaping up to be the first month in awhile that would allow me to salt a few dollars away under my mattress. But alas, JBE1’s brakes began squeaking two weeks ago and the thing I feared—that the rotors, pads, and all that fun braking equipment was shot—came to fruition. Not going to complain. This was the first major repair I’ve had on a seven-year-old car with 165,000 miles.

Happiness is a good mechanic.

Fortunately, the good people at Lee’s Tire were able to get me in on Tuesday and do most of the work. I spent Tuesday morning and the early afternoon camped at Starbucks, writing one of my trade articles, and tending to some of my project work. I had to return to Brunswick yesterday afternoon after an Aging Excellence assignment and prior to heading to Lewiston for an evening meeting, so the mechanic could install a wheel speed sensor on my ABS braking system that had to be ordered.

The big lesson for me in 2015 has been recognizing that life doesn’t always have to come up roses. I think managing our adversity and not becoming a victim is part of a valuable skillset to cultivate. Also waiting for “what comes after the blues,” as the late Jason Molina sang.