Not sure if this qualifies as Badassity but it feels good and I just need to share it...
DW found out a couple weeks ago that she is getting laid off. We knew this might be coming eventually as we expected her boss to retire/semi-retire at some point in the next couple years. But then one day he announces he's sold off most of the business and the deal is closing in two weeks. There's some continuing work for her part time for another month but then that's it. In reality she's probably won't be out of a job because someone involved in the sale is asking her to come interview for a position they have and we just found out that the new owner may actually want to hire her too, although that's probably not realistic because of the commute.
But the important thing is she and I talked and I told her to take her time finding something. If the opportunity in front of her doesn't materialize then she should just take the rest of the year off. She's been taking some classes and she could focus on that for the fall and take a breather in life to figure out what she really wants to do next. Even if she does get one of the positions in front of her she should tell them she's taking the rest of the summer off. She works hard in life and deserves the time to decompress and spend time with the kids.
In the grand scheme of things its not much I suppose but it sure does feel damn good to be in a position to not have any time or financial pressure to find a job. This is the power of the MMM mentality to me. In the past we could have done this also, but we would have been nervous and stressed regardless because we would have lacked clarity and confidence in our financial position. I'm more focused on FIRE than DW but it was very easy to help her see how this is no big deal - we have control over our expenses, we're saving lot's, and we have a good long-term plan. The lack of financial pressure is very liberating!