The Feel Good Factor

Because it's International Womens' Day I have made another micro-loan on Kiva to an enterprising woman who lives in Bolivia - a teacher who wants to start a business to work on in the evenings to help her family afford to get their own house. When I made my loan this morning, I saw that only 8% of the loan she needed was funded. Now I am really pleased because I've just checked again and it is up to 100%. I must have started a trend! I like lending via Kiva because I can relend the repayments over and over again. My portfolio tells me that the $200 or so that I have deposited with Kiva over the last few years has contributed a total of over $800 to over 30 different loans. This makes me feel so good. Most people can do this, as you only have to put in $25 for each loan and can make a small extra donation towards the Kiva admin costs if you wish.

Meanwhile the dogs are keeping themselves comfortable.

It has been rather good to snuggle up to them, because for the last six days - the coldest ones of the year, our boiler has been on the blink and we've had no central heating. We had to rely on heating individual rooms with very inadequate mobile electric heaters. Fortunately, with a few hundred pounds out of my pocket, and after a few false starts, it seems to be ok now and we are gradually thawing out. Something else to be feeling good about, finally.

On Sunday, though, it was Mothers' Day here and I was made to feel very good and spoilt rotten. I got cards, flowers and chocolates, and was taken out for a slap up meal. I even got a card to a StepMum, which was a first, and another to a Grandma from Eryn.


I have lots of reasons to count my blessings.