That's a great idea. I think I will avoid all technology from now on. If I need to buy something new, forget researching the best brands and comparing prices online. That's not how grandma would do it.
Don't forget: you can cook many dried beans in a pressure cooker in just a few minutes. I've taken to canning my own beans in the pressure cooker. They're incredibly simple and they cook while they process, in just 75-90 minutes, then they're ready and waiting when I want them.
I disagree with your answer to the compensation question and here's why. Having been a recruiter for 20 years and most recently the Director of Talent Acquisition for a one of the fastest growing companies in the US, I know that in the screening and interview stages of the selection process, candidates are being compared one against another. So if a job seeker were to give a specific number when asked about expected comp during the screening or interview stages, they will either: 1. Give a number that is too hight (and be KOed while the company moves on to other candidates) or 2. Give a number that is too low which will leave money on the table. It's not UNTIL AND ONLY AFTER the company has decided on a particular candidate, that that candidate should talk compensation. When the company contacts a candidate to have a pre-offer compensation discussion (or actually issues an offer) at that point the organization has talked themselves into one specific candidate and talked themselves out of the other candidates. At that point, the job seeker has the leverage to increase any offer presented by the company.
I admire your attitude, I really do. However, sometimes the pessimistic view is also the realistic one.
I work in the software industry, and although I still love being a programmer in theory, over the years I've become disappointed by the type of projects I've gotten to work on. Everything I learned in school has been wasted on my employers. It's become clear that most of the work available is boring and unappreciated. As an example: my last employer had a strategy of inventing as much work as possible, no matter how useless, in order to bill more to the client. What should have been an honest day's work often ended up being a few weeks of drudgery. The remarkable thing to me is how well this sort of dishonesty pays off.
Anyways, I've left that place and began consulting on my own. While I am happy that I did, it became underemployment. The small jobs to be had neither pay well nor provide a genuinely rewarding challenge.
Ideally I'd like to be doing some research work at a university or any setting with decent resources. I apply only to be dismissed. Without an MA or PhD though, my odds are realistically very slim. The competition in the software field has been fierce due to the negative growth since I graduated, I fear outsourcing may have permanently damaged any opportunities I had to find work I enjoy.
Here in Silicon Valley virtually all companies offer these items; large companies because they can, and small companies (even most startups) because they need to compete for talent. In keeping with the operating mode of most companies here, these are usually available to all employees, not just a select group; with car allowance pretty much only to the "Field sales" people.
I wish I knew more about making money from my hobbies and at what point a "hobby" becomes an accidental "business". I don't want to run a business so I never pursue any opportunities to make money with my hobbies because of that.
Clearly this writer had NO idea of what life was like a couple of generations ago. Vacations? Take-out? The fridge? Not my GRANDmother, and she lived in Cleveland.
well i am from romania.a litle country in S E europe.my biggest mistake was this:i took a credit of 100000euro from a bank where i have in mortgage my apartament my parents apartament and a land that i bought .it wasn't enough for me so i asked one of my colegs to take a credit for me and i will pay for it every month.this credit was about 30000 euro.this wasn't enough too so i asked another of my coleg to do the same thing.he gave m 7500euro.this wasn't enough too .i tooked from another three friends a total of 26000 euro.so now i own 163500euro.every month i have to pay 1200euro at the bank for the next 30 years.i am 32 years old working in a bank where my pay chek is 500 euro/month.after the work i am a taxi driver for about 6 hours a day making another 200euro/month.i have rented my home for another 200euro/month and the rest of 300 euro.are from my mom and dad wich are inmates,and they win 500 euro/month toghether,leaving them 2 live with 200 euro/month.shame on me.you will wonder what have i done with all tis money?well i helped a friend by giving him 50000euro.i knew him since we were kids and he sad that he is gone pay back the money,but he left the country with his wife and i don't know nothing about him since 2008.50000euro invested in a bussines a tir wash company but because of the actual crises i had to declare myself bust.the rest of 63000 euro are invested in my apartament and the land wich are both mortgaged.you might say sell all.yes but now everything that i own worth about 80000euro,and i can't sale because the bank won't let me.so i am condemned to work almost all my life to pay for this mistakes.i was married but my wife left me after 14 years 5 of them tied up becase she couldn't stand this endless presure.so i had to stand the strain of being alone too.now everything that i do is work and pay work and pay.waiting for a miracle to happend,crying 3,4 times a day were no one can see me and trying to move on.SO DO NOT TRUST NOBODY.thanx for taking the time to read this.
The number of Groupon copycat sites has exploded in the last year. LocalDealSites.com lists over 130 Groupon-like daily deal websites and lets you filter by city so you can see which sites have offers in your area. http://www.localdealsites.com/
Quote: "I don't mean to speak ill of capitalists"... "they have a vested interest in most people choosing to get up and go to work every day"
And I have a vested interest in the garbage man showing up every Wednesday. But what if all the garbage men decided "I don't need this crap job any longer." Crap jobs are what hold society together. Its why you have running water, flush toilets, paper towels, or any other item that makes life a whole lot easier than it was 100 yrs ago in 1910 or 1810 or before that in 1710. I will concede that people buy too much "stuff" with money they have yet to earn. And I will also concede that "the man" makes it easier to do that in order to keep the money rolling in. But to say "It's bad enough that people put themselves into the position of having to go to work every day" is pretty simple minded and disrespectful of the people who do. I mean if garbage men and writers went on strike tomorrow who would we miss the most?
Hey thanks for the help! I am a home schooler but my Mom and Dad cannot live with a smelly/high maintenance/expensive/big/weird/normal pet. I am going to have to look into the hedgies! Thanks!
Our family has a high deductible insurance plan and we use an HSA. Recently my daughter came down with pink eye (really not a medical catastrophe) which needed to be treated. I knew that an office visit to her pediatrician would be about $120 so I decided to try a walk in clinic that boasts $49 office visits. I went in and explained my daughter's situation to the receptionist. She agreed that my daughter needed to be seen by the doctor and by the way did I have insurance. When I told her that we had high deductible ins. she said that she was required by law to bill our ins. and therefore the office visit charge was $160. So basically if I had lied about having the high ded. ins. or if I was irresponsible and just didn't bother to have ins. I would have saved over $100. Any comments or suggestions for getting an inexpensive office visit for simple problems like pink eye? Thanks, Betsy (North Idaho)
I can appreciate this article - MINUS the technology point. Let's face it, it is a completely different world now vs. when great-grandma was around, ok? Few peoplle had cars or tv's in her day. She was in the majority with what she DIDN'T have (I'm guessing she and great-grandpa also didn't have college degrees, either). I would love a simpler way of life - no question. However, technology is making sure that we become dependent on it - for jobs, cell phones (a complete necessity, IMO), computers, etc. I would love to dry my clothes on a clothesline. However, I don't think my Home Owner's Association would be thrilled about that idea. I follow some of the points here - we bring snacks and drinks from home when we travel; we save condiments, etc., etc. But let's be honest, saving a ketchup packet here and there will not fatten your bank account in the long run.
Actually, most of the shopping I do is outlet stores- I live about 10-15 minutes to two different outlet centers. Going to the mall or "real" stores is about a 40+ minute drive, depending on where I'm going, and I have to deal with traffic, crowds, and more expensive prices.
At many of the outlets I go to, I find the items are usually older/discontinued styles and models rather than the factory "reject" items usually described in outlet stores. Things that are really poorly made items tend to be in a special area marked down even more. Also, while items aren't always cheaper than other "real" stores, there are enough sales and coupons and discounts that do make things cheaper.
A downside is not being able to predict what will be available. If you really need a certain item, it's hit or miss.
Or, if you are going to buy a book (some of us don't yet want to go digital!), get the best guaranteed prices online with www.bargainbookmole.com - they actually guarantee the lowest price found, or they pay for the book!
To some extent I agree with the previous anonymous comment. It is under the control of the individual. If you aren't mired in a paycheck-to-paycheck life, then you can avoid falling into that state.
However, the measures that you have to take to avoid it vary greatly from region to region, and jobs in the US today pay less and less value to workers where value is measured in their ability to feed, clothe, shelter, and educate themselves and their dependents and save for emergencies and times when they can't work. Add in the meteoric rise in health care costs over the last 30-40 years, and no one's, absolutely no one's financial future is safe in the US.
Slowly but surely we're regressing back to the robber-baron age. To mitigate that you have to be willing to step away from a lot of the things that define our material-rich lifestyle and pull the rug out from under the plunderers by simply not needing them all that much. Alas, that course is a death sentence if you manage to come down with an expensive life-threatening illness or permanent disability.
So while there is some personal responsibility involved, the greater balance of fault lies in our economy and its ultimate objective to make some people as rich as possible and bleed the rest rather than further a healthy and sustainable environment for all.
There's a furniture store doing just that (the non-going-out-of-business sale) right now in our town, and every night I see the TV ads about how they have only a "matter of days left" till the store closes. Ha! We went and looked - outrageous prices, barely marked down at all - and that was more than a week ago. Now I get that if they won't actually name a date, it's so ridiculously bogus. I was sorry we wasted our time.
...and she also didn't work 60 hours a week outside the home while her husband is in grad school to change careers after the financial industry imploded.
I try to plan my weekly menu so that I use the oven once. While I'm baking the chicken I'll use for 3 days' of meals, I will also bake my bread, whip up a batch of breakfast muffins, make a dessert, bake some sweet potatoes to use now or freeze for later...
About the only things I've ever found at outlet stores that was any good was refurbished items, and that was many years ago. Now it seems like the vast majority of items are basically the manufacturer knocking off their own designs.
That's a great idea. I think I will avoid all technology from now on. If I need to buy something new, forget researching the best brands and comparing prices online. That's not how grandma would do it.
Don't forget: you can cook many dried beans in a pressure cooker in just a few minutes. I've taken to canning my own beans in the pressure cooker. They're incredibly simple and they cook while they process, in just 75-90 minutes, then they're ready and waiting when I want them.
I disagree with your answer to the compensation question and here's why. Having been a recruiter for 20 years and most recently the Director of Talent Acquisition for a one of the fastest growing companies in the US, I know that in the screening and interview stages of the selection process, candidates are being compared one against another. So if a job seeker were to give a specific number when asked about expected comp during the screening or interview stages, they will either: 1. Give a number that is too hight (and be KOed while the company moves on to other candidates) or 2. Give a number that is too low which will leave money on the table. It's not UNTIL AND ONLY AFTER the company has decided on a particular candidate, that that candidate should talk compensation. When the company contacts a candidate to have a pre-offer compensation discussion (or actually issues an offer) at that point the organization has talked themselves into one specific candidate and talked themselves out of the other candidates. At that point, the job seeker has the leverage to increase any offer presented by the company.
I admire your attitude, I really do. However, sometimes the pessimistic view is also the realistic one.
I work in the software industry, and although I still love being a programmer in theory, over the years I've become disappointed by the type of projects I've gotten to work on. Everything I learned in school has been wasted on my employers. It's become clear that most of the work available is boring and unappreciated. As an example: my last employer had a strategy of inventing as much work as possible, no matter how useless, in order to bill more to the client. What should have been an honest day's work often ended up being a few weeks of drudgery. The remarkable thing to me is how well this sort of dishonesty pays off.
Anyways, I've left that place and began consulting on my own. While I am happy that I did, it became underemployment. The small jobs to be had neither pay well nor provide a genuinely rewarding challenge.
Ideally I'd like to be doing some research work at a university or any setting with decent resources. I apply only to be dismissed. Without an MA or PhD though, my odds are realistically very slim. The competition in the software field has been fierce due to the negative growth since I graduated, I fear outsourcing may have permanently damaged any opportunities I had to find work I enjoy.
Would you have any suggestions for me?
Hi:
Here in Silicon Valley virtually all companies offer these items; large companies because they can, and small companies (even most startups) because they need to compete for talent. In keeping with the operating mode of most companies here, these are usually available to all employees, not just a select group; with car allowance pretty much only to the "Field sales" people.
Regards
I wish I knew more about making money from my hobbies and at what point a "hobby" becomes an accidental "business". I don't want to run a business so I never pursue any opportunities to make money with my hobbies because of that.
@Guest - What a neat personal challenge to only use the oven once per week! Good for you. Let us know how it goes!
Clearly this writer had NO idea of what life was like a couple of generations ago. Vacations? Take-out? The fridge? Not my GRANDmother, and she lived in Cleveland.
Money is THE BIG ILUTION ever.
All humanity are in deep sharing ilution. And is imposible get out.
Cheers.
Ken
you could have gotten those boxes for free on freecycle or craigslist. i would like to hear if you can manage to sell them.
well i am from romania.a litle country in S E europe.my biggest mistake was this:i took a credit of 100000euro from a bank where i have in mortgage my apartament my parents apartament and a land that i bought .it wasn't enough for me so i asked one of my colegs to take a credit for me and i will pay for it every month.this credit was about 30000 euro.this wasn't enough too so i asked another of my coleg to do the same thing.he gave m 7500euro.this wasn't enough too .i tooked from another three friends a total of 26000 euro.so now i own 163500euro.every month i have to pay 1200euro at the bank for the next 30 years.i am 32 years old working in a bank where my pay chek is 500 euro/month.after the work i am a taxi driver for about 6 hours a day making another 200euro/month.i have rented my home for another 200euro/month and the rest of 300 euro.are from my mom and dad wich are inmates,and they win 500 euro/month toghether,leaving them 2 live with 200 euro/month.shame on me.you will wonder what have i done with all tis money?well i helped a friend by giving him 50000euro.i knew him since we were kids and he sad that he is gone pay back the money,but he left the country with his wife and i don't know nothing about him since 2008.50000euro invested in a bussines a tir wash company but because of the actual crises i had to declare myself bust.the rest of 63000 euro are invested in my apartament and the land wich are both mortgaged.you might say sell all.yes but now everything that i own worth about 80000euro,and i can't sale because the bank won't let me.so i am condemned to work almost all my life to pay for this mistakes.i was married but my wife left me after 14 years 5 of them tied up becase she couldn't stand this endless presure.so i had to stand the strain of being alone too.now everything that i do is work and pay work and pay.waiting for a miracle to happend,crying 3,4 times a day were no one can see me and trying to move on.SO DO NOT TRUST NOBODY.thanx for taking the time to read this.
The number of Groupon copycat sites has exploded in the last year. LocalDealSites.com lists over 130 Groupon-like daily deal websites and lets you filter by city so you can see which sites have offers in your area. http://www.localdealsites.com/
i found this one to be very useful http://dealdebate.com
Quote: "I don't mean to speak ill of capitalists"... "they have a vested interest in most people choosing to get up and go to work every day"
And I have a vested interest in the garbage man showing up every Wednesday. But what if all the garbage men decided "I don't need this crap job any longer." Crap jobs are what hold society together. Its why you have running water, flush toilets, paper towels, or any other item that makes life a whole lot easier than it was 100 yrs ago in 1910 or 1810 or before that in 1710. I will concede that people buy too much "stuff" with money they have yet to earn. And I will also concede that "the man" makes it easier to do that in order to keep the money rolling in. But to say "It's bad enough that people put themselves into the position of having to go to work every day" is pretty simple minded and disrespectful of the people who do. I mean if garbage men and writers went on strike tomorrow who would we miss the most?
Hey thanks for the help! I am a home schooler but my Mom and Dad cannot live with a smelly/high maintenance/expensive/big/weird/normal pet. I am going to have to look into the hedgies! Thanks!
Our family has a high deductible insurance plan and we use an HSA. Recently my daughter came down with pink eye (really not a medical catastrophe) which needed to be treated. I knew that an office visit to her pediatrician would be about $120 so I decided to try a walk in clinic that boasts $49 office visits. I went in and explained my daughter's situation to the receptionist. She agreed that my daughter needed to be seen by the doctor and by the way did I have insurance. When I told her that we had high deductible ins. she said that she was required by law to bill our ins. and therefore the office visit charge was $160. So basically if I had lied about having the high ded. ins. or if I was irresponsible and just didn't bother to have ins. I would have saved over $100. Any comments or suggestions for getting an inexpensive office visit for simple problems like pink eye? Thanks, Betsy (North Idaho)
I can appreciate this article - MINUS the technology point. Let's face it, it is a completely different world now vs. when great-grandma was around, ok? Few peoplle had cars or tv's in her day. She was in the majority with what she DIDN'T have (I'm guessing she and great-grandpa also didn't have college degrees, either). I would love a simpler way of life - no question. However, technology is making sure that we become dependent on it - for jobs, cell phones (a complete necessity, IMO), computers, etc. I would love to dry my clothes on a clothesline. However, I don't think my Home Owner's Association would be thrilled about that idea. I follow some of the points here - we bring snacks and drinks from home when we travel; we save condiments, etc., etc. But let's be honest, saving a ketchup packet here and there will not fatten your bank account in the long run.
Actually, most of the shopping I do is outlet stores- I live about 10-15 minutes to two different outlet centers. Going to the mall or "real" stores is about a 40+ minute drive, depending on where I'm going, and I have to deal with traffic, crowds, and more expensive prices.
At many of the outlets I go to, I find the items are usually older/discontinued styles and models rather than the factory "reject" items usually described in outlet stores. Things that are really poorly made items tend to be in a special area marked down even more. Also, while items aren't always cheaper than other "real" stores, there are enough sales and coupons and discounts that do make things cheaper.
A downside is not being able to predict what will be available. If you really need a certain item, it's hit or miss.
Or, if you are going to buy a book (some of us don't yet want to go digital!), get the best guaranteed prices online with www.bargainbookmole.com - they actually guarantee the lowest price found, or they pay for the book!
Check eBay first before you make that long trip....
To some extent I agree with the previous anonymous comment. It is under the control of the individual. If you aren't mired in a paycheck-to-paycheck life, then you can avoid falling into that state.
However, the measures that you have to take to avoid it vary greatly from region to region, and jobs in the US today pay less and less value to workers where value is measured in their ability to feed, clothe, shelter, and educate themselves and their dependents and save for emergencies and times when they can't work. Add in the meteoric rise in health care costs over the last 30-40 years, and no one's, absolutely no one's financial future is safe in the US.
Slowly but surely we're regressing back to the robber-baron age. To mitigate that you have to be willing to step away from a lot of the things that define our material-rich lifestyle and pull the rug out from under the plunderers by simply not needing them all that much. Alas, that course is a death sentence if you manage to come down with an expensive life-threatening illness or permanent disability.
So while there is some personal responsibility involved, the greater balance of fault lies in our economy and its ultimate objective to make some people as rich as possible and bleed the rest rather than further a healthy and sustainable environment for all.
There's a furniture store doing just that (the non-going-out-of-business sale) right now in our town, and every night I see the TV ads about how they have only a "matter of days left" till the store closes. Ha! We went and looked - outrageous prices, barely marked down at all - and that was more than a week ago. Now I get that if they won't actually name a date, it's so ridiculously bogus. I was sorry we wasted our time.
...and she also didn't work 60 hours a week outside the home while her husband is in grad school to change careers after the financial industry imploded.
Love the article!
I try to plan my weekly menu so that I use the oven once. While I'm baking the chicken I'll use for 3 days' of meals, I will also bake my bread, whip up a batch of breakfast muffins, make a dessert, bake some sweet potatoes to use now or freeze for later...
My kitchen is such a mess after baking day!
About the only things I've ever found at outlet stores that was any good was refurbished items, and that was many years ago. Now it seems like the vast majority of items are basically the manufacturer knocking off their own designs.