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Financial power to live our values and change the world // Blog by Tanja Hester, author of Work Optional and Wallet Activism

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‘Mountain-Granite-Pines’

OurNextLife.com // Early Retirement Blog, Financial Independence Blog, Documenting Our Journey to FIRE in a Mountain Town

OurNextLife.com // Early Retirement Blog, Financial Independence Blog, Documenting Our Journey to FIRE in a Mountain Town

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Wallet Activism, a book by Tanja Hester

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✨August in the garden✨ I’ve been enjoying just being in the garden this summer, not taking and sharing pictures all the time. And this strange, unusually cold summer has meant that the garden has been super slow, even for here (6000 feet elevation in the Sierra, in the shade of big jeffrey pines). Of course, strange weather years are our new normal with climate change very much upon us, so gardening has become even more an act of going with the flow, and rolling with whatever nature brings. But here’s where things are as of today in my jumble of a garden. Everything is intermixed, both because that is healthier for the garden and because I tend to just stick things wherever there is a little patch of soil available. And everything is still damp from the inch of rain we got from the artist formerly known as Hurricane Hilary. As usual, the kale is the biggest and happiest thing in the garden, and that makes Pico, the kale eater, the happiest little dog. If you are curious what anything is, feel free to ask in the comments! 💜 [images: lots of messy but happy plants. At the end, me holding a kale bunch so large that I have to tilt it down to get the whole thing in the picture, and Pico, a six lb. black mostly-Chihuahua, grabbing a nibble from the kale bouquet.]

I think I am going to do @threadsapp, y’all. I miss Twitter, and it’s close enough. Come chat over there! Same as IG: @our_nextlife. Also… After a slow start, the garden is finally starting to look like a garden. My happy place has returned. 🌿🥰🌿 [images: lots of pictures of various flowers, mushrooms and vegetables in the garden]

I'm excited to share that I'll be speaking along with @bernadebtjoy and @financiallyintentional at the inaugural @finconexpo women's event, west coast edition (there's also a great east coast edition), for writers, journalists and content creators. Is the event for you? Learn more at FinConExpo.com/WomenInMoney

Current Tahoe snow situation ☃️ (image: Mark, who did all the work to clear all this snow, standing in front of a snow bank much taller than him) #mountainlife

When @moneymag told me they were naming me one of their 50 people changing finance, I did not expect to be named alongside incredible folks like McKenzie Scott, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Lil Nas X, Bad Bunny and many more. But I'll take it! 🥂🥰✌️ Link in stories. [images: screenshots of Changemakers story on @moneymag]

The only upside of a sudden massive drop in temperatures, and the end of most of the garden, is that the house is now full of flowers. 💐 These are all from my picking frenzy on Friday, before the cold front hit. Now just waiting to see if the cold hardy vegetables like kale and broccoli will perk back up, or if the garden is totally done for the year. I’m hoping hard that some things held on! (Image: many different vases of flowers inside the house) #zone6garden #zone6b #highaltitudegardening #mountainlife

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Best New Personal Finance Book and Community Builder 2019

Best New Personal Finance Book and Community Builder 2019

Blog of the Year 2018

Our Next Life, winner of Blog of the Year at the 2018 9th Annual Plutus Awards

Best FI/FIRE Blog 2017

8th Annual Plutus Awards Finalist

Disclaimer

Everything on this blog is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only and is not intended to substitute for obtaining professional financial advice. Nothing contained here or in the book Work Optional implies a consulting or coaching relationship. Please consult a licensed financial or legal professional for advice on your own situation.

Copyright and permissions

All photos are original and copyrighted by Our Next Life unless clearly noted. All rights reserved.

Linking encouraged with brief excerpts only, but posting photos and/or full content allowed only by express written permission.

Copyright 2015 – 2020 Tanja Hester / Our Next Life. All rights reserved.

Our Next Life income policy

The books I recommend include affiliate links, and the revenue from them ($.50 or less per book purchased) covers a small fraction of the out-of-pocket costs of providing ad-free, unsponsored content to you at no charge. In any calendar year in which affiliate income fully covers the cost of web hosting, photo editing and email list maintenance (currently $150/month+), I will donate all earnings above and beyond expenses to charity directly or to our donor advised fund for charitable giving, for the remainder of that year.

Affiliate link fine print

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. (These fees cover blog expenses only, and do not net a profit for us.)

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