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H.A.L.T.


I have four adorable grandchildren–two boys and two girls. The youngest, a girl, is 5-months-old and I have the pleasure of watching her quite frequently because she lives so close to me. So far, she has been pretty easy to read, if you know her. It has been her pattern to cry if she’s hungry, tired, or in need of a diaper change. But, all of a sudden, she gets irritated and cries if she gets BORED.

As our worldwide social distancing/stay-at-home/quarantine lingers on into yet another month, we all might find ourselves facing this feeling. And we might be tempted to spend money, especially online. We are all smart enough to figure out when we should and should not be shopping, but these are unprecedented times, and just maybe we need to adopt a new strategy so we don’t overspend.

Before you buy anything, I want you to H.A.L.T. and ask yourself if you are one of these four things: hungry, angry, lonely, and tired. We will throw bored in with lonely since they often go hand in hand. If you are experiencing any one of these feelings, I suggest taking care of the root problem before entering that credit card number. You will thank me later.

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