I keep my keys and cell phone, upstairs, by my bed is so that they're not the first thing an intruder sees, and takes, when they enter the house. The cell is nice for back-up in case power or phones go out in the middle of the night.
But the contact-with-the-chin thing? Unusual. Since the transponder is already being held in the user's hand, wouldn't that suffice? Or to close the circuit, couldn't you just also touch it with the other hand at the same time?
I agree it won't work in most urban areas. First, because people are desensitized to car alarms. Second, because the beeping car will not direct them to your home, which could be one of hundreds of apartments within several blocks of the car.
We do the meat CSA thing, from a local farm. It's more then $20 a week (closer to $40), but it's worth every penny. I get a mixture of pork, beef, and chicken, in ground meat, sausage, and roast form (the chickens come whole), with the occasional other stuff (they do great hot dogs, sometimes we get bacon, a few times I've gotten liver, and almost always we get some extra bones for soup). We actually pay by the month, and usually have some meat left at the end, so every once in a while I just skip a month and we finish emptying the freezer.
Reasons it's worth it:
I don't have to scour my fridge/freezer every time I see Yet Another Meat recall.
It's local, and we usually go to the open house every year to visit.
This one is subjective, but my grocery bill has actually gone down, because the meat tastes better. Instead of buying cheap pork chops from the grocery store, and making some complicated dish to cover up the fact that they're bland, I take the good pork chops, dust them with salt and pepper, and toss them on the grill, which comes out cheaper then the casserole in the end.
Also, because all my meat is in the freezer, I don't have to plan as much ahead. Before we did the CSA, I'd go to the grocery store with good intentions on Sunday, and buy meat for 4-5 meals. Then something would come up, I'd have to work late, we'd get invited to dinner, or I just wouldn't feel like making whatever I had in the fridge, and inevitably something would end up going bad. This way, I only pull out one day of meat at a time, and if something comes up, I just eat it a day later. It doesn't "bunch up" in my fridge.
I have nothing but good things to say about the entire experience - I can't imagine going back to buying grocery store meat again, ever.
Now I just need a local vegetable CSA to supplement it, and I'll have it made (and yes, I've looked, and I look again every 3 months - one will be available eventually).
Ian writes:
But it's funny. I'm so quick to see this in others. But I'm so slow to see it in myself. It's like people who leave long, rambling replies to blog articles. Now that's annoying. I hate people like that. What are they thinking?!!
You HATE people who write long blog replies? Really? Wow. You must be an incredibly wonderful human with no failings that you are so comfortable writing that you hate people, as opposed to their behavior that you don't like.
FYI: life is not all Twitter-length responses and NOBODY makes you read the posts, of any length.
Know what I hate? People who make comments about hating people, as opposed to focusing on their behavior and choices. Big difference.
There are people who want to borrow money to make even more money. Don't let others push you into giving up your hard earned money so that they can use it to make even more money for themselves. I believe in helping others when they are truly in need but not when they don't have CASH because it's all tied up in their assets. Same principle applies to my friends and family. Once you say yes, they'll expect it next time and get angry if you refuse. Just say NO from the beginning and they won't ask you again. Even better, to those people whose CASH is all tied up in assets and are asking for your money, ask them yourself whether you can borrow some money instead.
I usually look at things on a "per hour" or "number of uses" basis. Basically, the more I am going to use a piece of clothing, the more I am willing to spend on it.
This is why I am willing to spring for the more expensive running shoes. I know I will be using them a few times a week, so I know I will get my money's worth out of them.
I've found that applying this thinking to my clothes/accessories purchases has really curbed my spending for superfluous items.
I don’t think consumer confidence is well enough to begin splurging on things, especially housing. It’s still a struggle to make ends meet for many Americans and with increasing debt it’s harder to have good credit, let alone get financing for a new house. I think the projections that the housing market has hit bottom and things should appear optimistic is based on the coastal metro areas, especially LA where housing costs have lowered and people have that higher disposable income. Not researched, just my theory. See what you think about this video: http://tinyurl.com/kvqyww
Here's my #1 tip for bartering: Don't say a word. This principle has worked magically for me when buying a car, negotiating insurance, or buying anything where commission is involved.
Get the other party down as far as you can through negotiation. Then when they say they're at their lowest price, don't say another word. Just sit there. Let the room start getting very uncomfortable. Shake your head while you feign deep contemplation.
90% of the time, the other party will start to get nervous: No one wants to lose the sale and by not saying a word, you're not giving them a clue where you stand. More often than not, after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, the other party will start to fiddle with the numbers again, scratch their head and offer you one "final" offer--an offer lower than their original final offer.
My sister and I have considered bartering our services/products but never actually done it.
We have taught piano lessons in the past and considered trading piano lessons for handyman services or yard work. We've also considered offering free pet clothing and horse costumes in exchange for a modeling/photo session with someone's dog or horse for our business product photos.
For some reason, it just doesn't feel quite as "real". Maybe that's why we've never actually tried it.
It's a decent idea, but in no way would I consider it a replacement for a home alarm system. First, it requires you to be home to hear the intruder and activate the alarm. Second, it requires someone else to hear the alarm and actually do something about it (identify the intruder, call the police, etc.) if it doesn't scare away the perp on it's own.
Besides, most modern home alarm systems also help detect fires and carbon-monoxide gas.
We used to wear our jeans until they were unwearable and unusable for most projects.
So they became crocheted rugs.
Simple.
Carefully cut off the seams, waistband, fly and pockets.
That leaves you with four long pieces of denim.
Tear or cut those into 3/4in. strips.
You can do that individually or daisy-chain them by not cutting through at the end of each strip.
Sew the strips together, end to end, and roll them all into balls.
With a Size K hook, using just single crochet, you can work back and forth making rows or design squares, rectangles, rounds. Alternate colors or add in strips made from old curtains or sheets.
I takes about 8 pair of old jeans to make a good sized doormat.
Practically indestructible.
And you can wash them in oversize washers at the laundromat.
My husband is a mechanic and he does work for trade as often as possible. He's gotten tattooed that way and there is an electrician out there who owes us. It's a great win-win situation. In talking to our tattoo artist, I've heard of some really great deals. One of our artists actually traded the outline of a sleeve (worth about $600) for a 1950's pickup!
Our babysitting co-op is the greatest. About 20 families with young kids participate. We all know each other well, the kids think they're just having playdates, and it's easy to get a sitter on a Saturday night.
We earn/spend points, so we don't have to do direct sitting swaps.
Mainly plants and root cuttings, and cookies, and artwork. I'm a big fan of the barter process. Benefits both parties, without having a pesky middle-man money to get between the exchange. I understand hte necessity of credit/cash for larger or distant-trade commerce, but local 2-party bartering is much more efficient when the services/goods can be shared and have unequal "commercial costs" unrelated to the personal value placed on them.
I was recently trying to book a hotel room to accommodate our family of 6 using 'points'. Booking online would not allow me to choose a room large enough so I called the hotel directly. The front desk manager advised me to call the corporate customer service number to request an upgrade certificate. Upon calling, I was told that they no longer issued upgrade certificates but that I should call the hotel directly and "BARTER" with them to see if they would just go ahead and upgrade me. I NEVER expected the b-word to be used by such a large and well know hotel chain. They were great though! I called the hotel again was able to get an upgrade without using additional points! It was the best thing ever! In fact we called and did the same thing 3 weeks later. LOVED THOSE GUYS!
I've traded almost obsolete electronics for baked goods recently. A friend upgraded to Blue-ray and gave me his old upconverting DVD player. I, in turn, traded my old DVD player for a batch of homemade cookies.
Not long after that I upgraded my digital camera. I traded my old one to a young college girl for a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies and a loaf of homemade wheat bread (wheat home ground) that her mom makes. I think she felt that her price the price was too low, which it possibly was. I suggested that she could make up whatever difference she felt by offering free babysitting for a single mom in our church.
Unfortunately, I'm now out of old electronics and almost out of cookies. :(
I've also traded physics tutoring for lawn care...which I think my student farmed out to his younger siblings for a couple of bags of candy.
...I did say "probably." Most people own at least one car. And alarms are standard on the cheapest new cars these days. But you're right, it's not for everyone.
We have a large four-legged early warning device that has a bark that rattles the windows. But if that's not enough of a deterrent, I love the idea of the car alarm. With two cars in the garage, it would set up quite racket. We'll start keeping the car keys on the night stand right next to the Glock.
I bought a home security system with a central panel, a couple motion sensors, and a couple door magnets. It costed two hundred bucks but my home insurance was lowered by one hundred per year. Therefore, it was already paid off after two years.
I keep my keys and cell phone, upstairs, by my bed is so that they're not the first thing an intruder sees, and takes, when they enter the house. The cell is nice for back-up in case power or phones go out in the middle of the night.
But the contact-with-the-chin thing? Unusual. Since the transponder is already being held in the user's hand, wouldn't that suffice? Or to close the circuit, couldn't you just also touch it with the other hand at the same time?
I agree it won't work in most urban areas. First, because people are desensitized to car alarms. Second, because the beeping car will not direct them to your home, which could be one of hundreds of apartments within several blocks of the car.
But for suburbia, it's a good idea.
We do the meat CSA thing, from a local farm. It's more then $20 a week (closer to $40), but it's worth every penny. I get a mixture of pork, beef, and chicken, in ground meat, sausage, and roast form (the chickens come whole), with the occasional other stuff (they do great hot dogs, sometimes we get bacon, a few times I've gotten liver, and almost always we get some extra bones for soup). We actually pay by the month, and usually have some meat left at the end, so every once in a while I just skip a month and we finish emptying the freezer.
Reasons it's worth it:
I don't have to scour my fridge/freezer every time I see Yet Another Meat recall.
It's local, and we usually go to the open house every year to visit.
This one is subjective, but my grocery bill has actually gone down, because the meat tastes better. Instead of buying cheap pork chops from the grocery store, and making some complicated dish to cover up the fact that they're bland, I take the good pork chops, dust them with salt and pepper, and toss them on the grill, which comes out cheaper then the casserole in the end.
Also, because all my meat is in the freezer, I don't have to plan as much ahead. Before we did the CSA, I'd go to the grocery store with good intentions on Sunday, and buy meat for 4-5 meals. Then something would come up, I'd have to work late, we'd get invited to dinner, or I just wouldn't feel like making whatever I had in the fridge, and inevitably something would end up going bad. This way, I only pull out one day of meat at a time, and if something comes up, I just eat it a day later. It doesn't "bunch up" in my fridge.
I have nothing but good things to say about the entire experience - I can't imagine going back to buying grocery store meat again, ever.
Now I just need a local vegetable CSA to supplement it, and I'll have it made (and yes, I've looked, and I look again every 3 months - one will be available eventually).
Guess Amazon has finally proven how what the article is trying to say. Attack them too much, and they will move away.
I like that way of thining about it, ninjarice. I think it would definitely help curb spending--if it's not useful, don't buy it!!
Ian writes:
But it's funny. I'm so quick to see this in others. But I'm so slow to see it in myself. It's like people who leave long, rambling replies to blog articles. Now that's annoying. I hate people like that. What are they thinking?!!
You HATE people who write long blog replies? Really? Wow. You must be an incredibly wonderful human with no failings that you are so comfortable writing that you hate people, as opposed to their behavior that you don't like.
FYI: life is not all Twitter-length responses and NOBODY makes you read the posts, of any length.
Know what I hate? People who make comments about hating people, as opposed to focusing on their behavior and choices. Big difference.
There are people who want to borrow money to make even more money. Don't let others push you into giving up your hard earned money so that they can use it to make even more money for themselves. I believe in helping others when they are truly in need but not when they don't have CASH because it's all tied up in their assets. Same principle applies to my friends and family. Once you say yes, they'll expect it next time and get angry if you refuse. Just say NO from the beginning and they won't ask you again. Even better, to those people whose CASH is all tied up in assets and are asking for your money, ask them yourself whether you can borrow some money instead.
I usually look at things on a "per hour" or "number of uses" basis. Basically, the more I am going to use a piece of clothing, the more I am willing to spend on it.
This is why I am willing to spring for the more expensive running shoes. I know I will be using them a few times a week, so I know I will get my money's worth out of them.
I've found that applying this thinking to my clothes/accessories purchases has really curbed my spending for superfluous items.
I don’t think consumer confidence is well enough to begin splurging on things, especially housing. It’s still a struggle to make ends meet for many Americans and with increasing debt it’s harder to have good credit, let alone get financing for a new house. I think the projections that the housing market has hit bottom and things should appear optimistic is based on the coastal metro areas, especially LA where housing costs have lowered and people have that higher disposable income. Not researched, just my theory. See what you think about this video:
http://tinyurl.com/kvqyww
Here's my #1 tip for bartering: Don't say a word. This principle has worked magically for me when buying a car, negotiating insurance, or buying anything where commission is involved.
Get the other party down as far as you can through negotiation. Then when they say they're at their lowest price, don't say another word. Just sit there. Let the room start getting very uncomfortable. Shake your head while you feign deep contemplation.
90% of the time, the other party will start to get nervous: No one wants to lose the sale and by not saying a word, you're not giving them a clue where you stand. More often than not, after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, the other party will start to fiddle with the numbers again, scratch their head and offer you one "final" offer--an offer lower than their original final offer.
It's like magic. :)
haven't bartered much, but would definitely not rule it out. it seems like a great way to increase your credibility with mutually beneficial results.
one web development project I had at work was part of a trade agreement--we develop and maintain the website in return for radio advertisements
My sister and I have considered bartering our services/products but never actually done it.
We have taught piano lessons in the past and considered trading piano lessons for handyman services or yard work. We've also considered offering free pet clothing and horse costumes in exchange for a modeling/photo session with someone's dog or horse for our business product photos.
For some reason, it just doesn't feel quite as "real". Maybe that's why we've never actually tried it.
It's a decent idea, but in no way would I consider it a replacement for a home alarm system. First, it requires you to be home to hear the intruder and activate the alarm. Second, it requires someone else to hear the alarm and actually do something about it (identify the intruder, call the police, etc.) if it doesn't scare away the perp on it's own.
Besides, most modern home alarm systems also help detect fires and carbon-monoxide gas.
Great ideas!!
We used to wear our jeans until they were unwearable and unusable for most projects.
So they became crocheted rugs.
Simple.
Carefully cut off the seams, waistband, fly and pockets.
That leaves you with four long pieces of denim.
Tear or cut those into 3/4in. strips.
You can do that individually or daisy-chain them by not cutting through at the end of each strip.
Sew the strips together, end to end, and roll them all into balls.
With a Size K hook, using just single crochet, you can work back and forth making rows or design squares, rectangles, rounds. Alternate colors or add in strips made from old curtains or sheets.
I takes about 8 pair of old jeans to make a good sized doormat.
Practically indestructible.
And you can wash them in oversize washers at the laundromat.
My husband is a mechanic and he does work for trade as often as possible. He's gotten tattooed that way and there is an electrician out there who owes us. It's a great win-win situation. In talking to our tattoo artist, I've heard of some really great deals. One of our artists actually traded the outline of a sleeve (worth about $600) for a 1950's pickup!
Our babysitting co-op is the greatest. About 20 families with young kids participate. We all know each other well, the kids think they're just having playdates, and it's easy to get a sitter on a Saturday night.
We earn/spend points, so we don't have to do direct sitting swaps.
Mainly plants and root cuttings, and cookies, and artwork. I'm a big fan of the barter process. Benefits both parties, without having a pesky middle-man money to get between the exchange. I understand hte necessity of credit/cash for larger or distant-trade commerce, but local 2-party bartering is much more efficient when the services/goods can be shared and have unequal "commercial costs" unrelated to the personal value placed on them.
I was recently trying to book a hotel room to accommodate our family of 6 using 'points'. Booking online would not allow me to choose a room large enough so I called the hotel directly. The front desk manager advised me to call the corporate customer service number to request an upgrade certificate. Upon calling, I was told that they no longer issued upgrade certificates but that I should call the hotel directly and "BARTER" with them to see if they would just go ahead and upgrade me. I NEVER expected the b-word to be used by such a large and well know hotel chain. They were great though! I called the hotel again was able to get an upgrade without using additional points! It was the best thing ever! In fact we called and did the same thing 3 weeks later. LOVED THOSE GUYS!
I've traded almost obsolete electronics for baked goods recently. A friend upgraded to Blue-ray and gave me his old upconverting DVD player. I, in turn, traded my old DVD player for a batch of homemade cookies.
Not long after that I upgraded my digital camera. I traded my old one to a young college girl for a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies and a loaf of homemade wheat bread (wheat home ground) that her mom makes. I think she felt that her price the price was too low, which it possibly was. I suggested that she could make up whatever difference she felt by offering free babysitting for a single mom in our church.
Unfortunately, I'm now out of old electronics and almost out of cookies. :(
I've also traded physics tutoring for lawn care...which I think my student farmed out to his younger siblings for a couple of bags of candy.
...I did say "probably." Most people own at least one car. And alarms are standard on the cheapest new cars these days. But you're right, it's not for everyone.
Good if you have a car with an alarm system on it. Not so much if you don't have a car.
We have a large four-legged early warning device that has a bark that rattles the windows. But if that's not enough of a deterrent, I love the idea of the car alarm. With two cars in the garage, it would set up quite racket. We'll start keeping the car keys on the night stand right next to the Glock.
You can also buy a few ADT stickers at eBay.
I bought a home security system with a central panel, a couple motion sensors, and a couple door magnets. It costed two hundred bucks but my home insurance was lowered by one hundred per year. Therefore, it was already paid off after two years.
Check with your insurance agent.
My fruit stand guys give me semi-old bananas and when I make banana bread I give them several loaves. :) Works out well.