I downsized over a year ago to travel. I do miss my stuff occasionally, but when it's cleaning day, it's a breeze. I do fight the urge to replace stuff constantly, though
The water bottles are a great idea if you don't have a problem with leaks. The bleach is to keep the water from growing algae and therefore turning green/cloudy/moldy and not shining the sunlight through it. The water is to diffuse the light. The cap cover was so the sunlight aka UV light didn't tear up the cap quickly.
As far as the earthships--great idea, except you need to research what you are putting into your walls. My hubby is a chemical engineer with a lifetime of dealing with automotive tires. Synthetic rubber has in it butadiene which will leach out into your house. It's not a good idea. Read about it here: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts28.html. Be careful of toxicity of your house because you spend a lot of time there and you don't want to breathe toxic gases or have anything that will cause cancer or organ failure down the line. You may not even be able to smell or sense some things that are bad for you.
I agree w ith what Colin says. I still have a Sony Dream Machine alarm clock that I bought for college in 1986. I still have a Gucci wrist watch that I received in 1987 as a gift from a close friend. We still have a vacuum cleaner we bought in 1996 just after we were married. We paid a lot of money for that vacuum cleaner but other than replacing the HEPA filter and a rubber belt it has served us well. I buy comfortable higher priced shoes that with care can last over 5 years. My wife shops at payless, replaces her shoes often, and complains about foot pain.
Here's an alternate philosophy which suits me great and may work for you.
Buy less, but buy the best. And by best, it doesn't need to be most expensive, it should be best for you. Like you, I love to travel and my suitcase takes a beating. In my parent's attic, they have 6+ suitcases all kind of broken. I have one, a tumi bag I bought 4 years ago with a lifetime guarantee. When it breaks, they fix it for free. As far as I'm concerned, I'll never personally need another suitcase.
Another example is kitchen equipment. I used to buy inexpensive knives but ended up with a drawer full. I now have 2 knives, a wusthoff chef's knife and a wusthoff pairing knife. They are amazing knives, and I'll probably not need to buy more knives for 10 - 20 years. I don't get sick of my stuff, because it's all great and well researched before I buy it.
I have a message in to Melissa to let her know that we are having problems viewing her site. I checked it just this morning and everything was fine. I'm sorry about the timing of this.
I'm one of those who was burned by trusting other people when I bought my house. Most were personal friends, which is why I trusted them implicitly. I think you need to trust yourself and that little voice in your head, but be wary of anyone else you deal with when buying a house. They each have their own agenda which might conflict with your own. I've been writing a series for first time home-buyers, the kind of guide I wish I had when I bought my first house. I certainly can't cover every angle but I've tried to give a good overview of the process and pitfalls. It's a 10 part series, here is part 1 for anyone who is interested:
This is a very interesting perspective. My wife and I are in the process of selling all of our stuff and moving to Australia. I wonder if we are going to feel like this in a year or so?
I actually have a pile of bricks in my back yard that I've been too lazy to get rid of, and since I order a lot of stuff online, I've always got plenty of spare boxes. When life hands you lemons...
My husband and I have decluttered and never looked back, but we still have PLENTY of stuff -- and I think most people could find plenty to get rid of without major regrets.
We could minimalize more -- and may still do so -- but I think we've found a pretty good balance. We finally have plenty of room and everything has a place. Plus it doesn't take us long to put everything in its place when we do get unorganized.
But after a certain point, I think you do have to slow down the decluttering. Throw stuff in boxes and date the boxes. Return to them in a month, in a year, whatever. If you haven't missed the contents, THEN get rid of the stuff.
The link to consumerqueen.com just shows a page advising that the domain name is up for purchase. Can you give me a different address for that blog/website?
= The deal will be different for different people. Some may not have as good experience as others. It could depend on the store you shop, region of the country, or even by the manager on duty.
Thanks for pointing out that this one could use some additional clarification!
Responsible = The best rates/programs available, so whats your gripe?
The feds bought billions of MBS to keep the rates down to a 40 year low, so we, the responsible can refi into the cheapest fixed rates...
Dont goto your loan officer that 'fudged' your stuff again, and do some homework before you lock...By the way, if you know he 'fudged' it, then you knew and let him do it anyway..Poor you.
Before you jump on the 'entitlement' band wagon, you should truly understand how this benefits you....Bottom Line- LOW RATES/ CHEAP MONEY....
Concise and to the point. I knew a few of course, but some were still stumping me since I only "go so far" with my coupon efforts. Thanks for breaking it down.
I was fascinated by this article and responses. I had never before considered the illegal nature of interview questions. I agree that many interviewers are not trained on illegal questions but likewise applicants are not trained in answering them. In the excitement of an interview I'm sure I would be the person who blurts out way more than necessary to answer the question. On this blog though I have plenty of time to respond.
As I read, I thought of some funny responses that would probably come across as snarky in an interview.
q: "do you and your new wife plan on having kids?"
a: "I don't see how that would matter for the qualifications you posted online, however some ads I have seen on TV lead me to believe their easy to make, was the company looking for some kids?"
q: "Do you have children at home?"
a: "Yeah I usually leave them at home for interviews, I'm sorry was I supposed to bring them with?"
Unfortunately with illegal types of questions the company can have good reasons for concern over any answer. Without knowing what answer they are looking for there is no way to answer "correctly".
We go through school and get evaluated by tests that have right answers. In my expereience interveiws have answers that connect you to the company and and that separate you from the company. The interviewer wants to see personality and confidence that will fit in with the environment. You were called into the interveiw because you already had qualifications.
Being funny is dangerous in an interview because there is a large chance it will not be funny and cross the etiquette line. However since the interviewer crossed the illegal line I say go for the laugh to disarm an immediate follow up question.
follup up: "I'm not sure you know that question was illegal, but I am happy to answer what you probably were trying to get at, so please be honest with me has their been a problem with (kids, age, religion) before? If I share a similar circumstance with other people who have had that problem, I can prove to you right now that I can be professional about it"
I must say that I have never seen anyone trying to PUSH so many products at any one time. Obviously you have no knowledge about any of them. You do not care wheather you sell a book, a SIM Card
Kotex, Condoms or anything else for what you get paid a COMMISSION all pile up on a WEbbbb siteeee. Next time promote TAMPAX I hear that they paid better.By the way I am a Prof at a well regarded U.
I Stumbled Upon (literally using StumbleUpon an interesting Swoopo competitor. It's called PriceDrip.com and they have a TRULY transparent model. Granted, they scam people too by making money off the bids, but in their model the price goes DOWN constantly as opposed to up. Also, like eBay, you can submit an actual dollar value that you want to pay for the product.
There IS a catch though (isn't there always?). Depending on how much you bid, you could use 1 or more "points". So if you bid near the original price, it'll cost you 10 points! That's ten dollars just to BID!
I am sorry, Ididn't mention that I am using the rotary carving tool with the stainless steel brush at high speed.the brush cost less than $3.00 The ointment about the same the pain envolved is less than shaving a stiff beard.. I do not have an original picture before I started, but I do have a couple of pictures taken recently and will be sent on request.
don
During economic recessions, when unemployment rises, you sometimes have to extend benefits. Things take time. People need time to study or retrain. Businesses need time to figure out what will rescue the business, and then start hiring.
Do we really want all the unemployed people to become homeless while they readjust? Do companies want the labor force to be homeless?
@Andrew - if everyone worked 60 hours a week, you'd have to work 80 to get ahead. How would you like that?
See, me, I have a sense of proportion. I want the work week reduced to a nice-and-lazy 30 hours a week. Then, I could continue with my 40-45 hours a week of working (not including the 10-20 I put in studying outside of work) and say I'm a real hard worker.
@Annjo - if you can make enough money on 10 hours a week, great. If others will stop working because the taxes take too much, that's fine too. This creates opportunities for other people to try and do the work you are doing.
You should enjoy your fortunate situation. Just don't assume everyone else can do what you've done.
I downsized over a year ago to travel. I do miss my stuff occasionally, but when it's cleaning day, it's a breeze. I do fight the urge to replace stuff constantly, though
Total scam. DO NOT fall for it!
The water bottles are a great idea if you don't have a problem with leaks. The bleach is to keep the water from growing algae and therefore turning green/cloudy/moldy and not shining the sunlight through it. The water is to diffuse the light. The cap cover was so the sunlight aka UV light didn't tear up the cap quickly.
As far as the earthships--great idea, except you need to research what you are putting into your walls. My hubby is a chemical engineer with a lifetime of dealing with automotive tires. Synthetic rubber has in it butadiene which will leach out into your house. It's not a good idea. Read about it here: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts28.html. Be careful of toxicity of your house because you spend a lot of time there and you don't want to breathe toxic gases or have anything that will cause cancer or organ failure down the line. You may not even be able to smell or sense some things that are bad for you.
I agree w ith what Colin says. I still have a Sony Dream Machine alarm clock that I bought for college in 1986. I still have a Gucci wrist watch that I received in 1987 as a gift from a close friend. We still have a vacuum cleaner we bought in 1996 just after we were married. We paid a lot of money for that vacuum cleaner but other than replacing the HEPA filter and a rubber belt it has served us well. I buy comfortable higher priced shoes that with care can last over 5 years. My wife shops at payless, replaces her shoes often, and complains about foot pain.
"Buy less, but buy the best. "
Here's an alternate philosophy which suits me great and may work for you.
Buy less, but buy the best. And by best, it doesn't need to be most expensive, it should be best for you. Like you, I love to travel and my suitcase takes a beating. In my parent's attic, they have 6+ suitcases all kind of broken. I have one, a tumi bag I bought 4 years ago with a lifetime guarantee. When it breaks, they fix it for free. As far as I'm concerned, I'll never personally need another suitcase.
Another example is kitchen equipment. I used to buy inexpensive knives but ended up with a drawer full. I now have 2 knives, a wusthoff chef's knife and a wusthoff pairing knife. They are amazing knives, and I'll probably not need to buy more knives for 10 - 20 years. I don't get sick of my stuff, because it's all great and well researched before I buy it.
I have a message in to Melissa to let her know that we are having problems viewing her site. I checked it just this morning and everything was fine. I'm sorry about the timing of this.
Linsey Knerl
I'm one of those who was burned by trusting other people when I bought my house. Most were personal friends, which is why I trusted them implicitly. I think you need to trust yourself and that little voice in your head, but be wary of anyone else you deal with when buying a house. They each have their own agenda which might conflict with your own. I've been writing a series for first time home-buyers, the kind of guide I wish I had when I bought my first house. I certainly can't cover every angle but I've tried to give a good overview of the process and pitfalls. It's a 10 part series, here is part 1 for anyone who is interested:
The First Time Home Buyer - Introduction
This is a very interesting perspective. My wife and I are in the process of selling all of our stuff and moving to Australia. I wonder if we are going to feel like this in a year or so?
Check out this site:
http://officeofstrategicinfluence.com/bulkmailer/
I actually have a pile of bricks in my back yard that I've been too lazy to get rid of, and since I order a lot of stuff online, I've always got plenty of spare boxes. When life hands you lemons...
Wow, that really is minimalist!
My husband and I have decluttered and never looked back, but we still have PLENTY of stuff -- and I think most people could find plenty to get rid of without major regrets.
We could minimalize more -- and may still do so -- but I think we've found a pretty good balance. We finally have plenty of room and everything has a place. Plus it doesn't take us long to put everything in its place when we do get unorganized.
But after a certain point, I think you do have to slow down the decluttering. Throw stuff in boxes and date the boxes. Return to them in a month, in a year, whatever. If you haven't missed the contents, THEN get rid of the stuff.
The link to consumerqueen.com just shows a page advising that the domain name is up for purchase. Can you give me a different address for that blog/website?
Sort of the same thinking that went into solar cookers. I love this kind of stuff, making something from nothing.
= The deal will be different for different people. Some may not have as good experience as others. It could depend on the store you shop, region of the country, or even by the manager on duty.
Thanks for pointing out that this one could use some additional clarification!
Linsey Knerl
See Previous comment
Responsible = The best rates/programs available, so whats your gripe?
The feds bought billions of MBS to keep the rates down to a 40 year low, so we, the responsible can refi into the cheapest fixed rates...
Dont goto your loan officer that 'fudged' your stuff again, and do some homework before you lock...By the way, if you know he 'fudged' it, then you knew and let him do it anyway..Poor you.
Before you jump on the 'entitlement' band wagon, you should truly understand how this benefits you....Bottom Line- LOW RATES/ CHEAP MONEY....
What does "your milage may vary" mean?
Concise and to the point. I knew a few of course, but some were still stumping me since I only "go so far" with my coupon efforts. Thanks for breaking it down.
I was fascinated by this article and responses. I had never before considered the illegal nature of interview questions. I agree that many interviewers are not trained on illegal questions but likewise applicants are not trained in answering them. In the excitement of an interview I'm sure I would be the person who blurts out way more than necessary to answer the question. On this blog though I have plenty of time to respond.
As I read, I thought of some funny responses that would probably come across as snarky in an interview.
q: "do you and your new wife plan on having kids?"
a: "I don't see how that would matter for the qualifications you posted online, however some ads I have seen on TV lead me to believe their easy to make, was the company looking for some kids?"
q: "Do you have children at home?"
a: "Yeah I usually leave them at home for interviews, I'm sorry was I supposed to bring them with?"
Unfortunately with illegal types of questions the company can have good reasons for concern over any answer. Without knowing what answer they are looking for there is no way to answer "correctly".
We go through school and get evaluated by tests that have right answers. In my expereience interveiws have answers that connect you to the company and and that separate you from the company. The interviewer wants to see personality and confidence that will fit in with the environment. You were called into the interveiw because you already had qualifications.
Being funny is dangerous in an interview because there is a large chance it will not be funny and cross the etiquette line. However since the interviewer crossed the illegal line I say go for the laugh to disarm an immediate follow up question.
follup up: "I'm not sure you know that question was illegal, but I am happy to answer what you probably were trying to get at, so please be honest with me has their been a problem with (kids, age, religion) before? If I share a similar circumstance with other people who have had that problem, I can prove to you right now that I can be professional about it"
I must say that I have never seen anyone trying to PUSH so many products at any one time. Obviously you have no knowledge about any of them. You do not care wheather you sell a book, a SIM Card
Kotex, Condoms or anything else for what you get paid a COMMISSION all pile up on a WEbbbb siteeee. Next time promote TAMPAX I hear that they paid better.By the way I am a Prof at a well regarded U.
I Stumbled Upon (literally using StumbleUpon an interesting Swoopo competitor. It's called PriceDrip.com and they have a TRULY transparent model. Granted, they scam people too by making money off the bids, but in their model the price goes DOWN constantly as opposed to up. Also, like eBay, you can submit an actual dollar value that you want to pay for the product.
There IS a catch though (isn't there always?). Depending on how much you bid, you could use 1 or more "points". So if you bid near the original price, it'll cost you 10 points! That's ten dollars just to BID!
Anyway, just throwing it out there.
If it works the way you described-- WHAT A SCAM!
Just goes to show you-- Necessity is the mother of invention . . .
Its quite interesting to know how the recession period has lead to sleeping recession according to the survey. The tips are useful indeed.
I am sorry, Ididn't mention that I am using the rotary carving tool with the stainless steel brush at high speed.the brush cost less than $3.00 The ointment about the same the pain envolved is less than shaving a stiff beard.. I do not have an original picture before I started, but I do have a couple of pictures taken recently and will be sent on request.
don
During economic recessions, when unemployment rises, you sometimes have to extend benefits. Things take time. People need time to study or retrain. Businesses need time to figure out what will rescue the business, and then start hiring.
Do we really want all the unemployed people to become homeless while they readjust? Do companies want the labor force to be homeless?
@Andrew - if everyone worked 60 hours a week, you'd have to work 80 to get ahead. How would you like that?
See, me, I have a sense of proportion. I want the work week reduced to a nice-and-lazy 30 hours a week. Then, I could continue with my 40-45 hours a week of working (not including the 10-20 I put in studying outside of work) and say I'm a real hard worker.
@Annjo - if you can make enough money on 10 hours a week, great. If others will stop working because the taxes take too much, that's fine too. This creates opportunities for other people to try and do the work you are doing.
You should enjoy your fortunate situation. Just don't assume everyone else can do what you've done.