Adjusting to the Slower Pace

It's a little harder than I thought to adjust to my "new life." By new life I mean not having a daily routine. I was at the restaurant every day and that pretty much defined my life for six months. Before that I mystery shopped on a full-time basis.

I don't think I want to go back to full-time mystery shopping; I'd rather be picky and just do the shops that interest me or those that pay well. Last Saturday I earned about $130 but that was just from 5 shops - really easy shops (2 drive-thru restaurants, a sushi place, a home improvement store and a pool store). I'm trying to decide whether I can live off my rental income and just do mystery shopping on the side to fund my discretionary purchases. For example, we are planning a vacation to Las Vegas and Phoenix at the end of August. I'd like to earn enough from mystery shopping to pay for the trip.

The only problem with all this is dealing with all the free time I have. I know how bad that sounds - a lot of folks would love to have a break from their hectic lives. It's sometimes hard to avoid the temptation of getting out of the house, which inevitably leads to wasteful spending.