From what I've read, it is still healthier to eat conventional fruit than to not eat that fruit all together. So I buy organic fruit when available and affordable, but don't worry too much otherwise. Eating conventional fruit and veggies are still healthier than missing out on them!
This is the post that helped me to really focus on my attempts to find diverse income streams both on and offline. I knew I was on the right track, but your post helped me put it all together. Thanks for not only some very good ideas, but also explaining how you have tried to diversify. Great post!
Thank you for the good tips! We sometimes cut corners with organic foods, but now we know a little better where it makes most sense to stay with organic and to still stay within our food budget.
This is an absolutely perfect example penny wise, pound foolish that so many people seem to be recommending today.
Normally, The Dave, I would agree with you but my dad found ways to make those $10 shoes last, typically for at least a year. I'm not saying that we should all go to those extremes, I just wanted to illustrate his commitment to "making the best of what you've got". And on that note, I myself bought a pair of tennis shoes at WalMart last summer and still have them. They're really ugly now and coming apart in places but they make great shoes for getting muddy in the garden and overall, they're holding up pretty well considering I only paid $20 for them.
Frankly, I think that reevaluation is the point. Whether it's shoes from Payless, returning non-sale priced items or picking up a part-time job, this blip in the economy gives each of us the opportunity to reevaluate the way we look at and use money.
>He would have never spent $100 bucks on a pair of sneakers
> not when he could get shoes that worked just fine at
> PayLess or WalMart for a mere ten-spot.
This is an absolutely perfect example penny wise, pound foolish that so many people seem to be recommending today.
My girlfriend is a believer in the $10 Walmart shoes, and in most cases ends up buying a new pair in a month because the old ones are literally falling apart.
I'm averaging about 16 months on my $80-$100 shoes, although I do drop $20 (yes, that's more then she spent on shoes) on my preferred insoles after about three months.
My $100-$120 lasts me 16 months, her $10 lasts at best a month.
Buying quality isn't always worth it, but this is a perfect example of where the overly frugal consumer wastes more money long term.
This is ridiculous, people not paying their mortgages is the reason why we got into this mess in the first place. I feel no sympathy for those who signed up for mortgages that they could not afford. Especially those who knew what they were doing yet signed up for 3 home loans so they could sell two of them for a profit of over $100,000 in the span of 3 months. This was the kind of outrage that got us into this mess in the first place, now there are people trying to get out of what they signed up for, either by looking for refinance options if those still exist or not paying and hoping the government will jump in and help them out with a bailout.
I am creating a web-forum to discuss everything in a centralized place. http://www.bailoutdisaster.com/
So that we have a place to discuss articles and news, please join.
That's so great. I know of a lot of people complaining about some of the larger cosmetic companies using pseudohumanitarian efforts as an attempt to increase sales, but this is awesome. Until the US becomes a country with a larger emphasis on preventative care, I suppose we will have to live with corporate assistance. :D
It's always good to have your money spread around into varies investment vehicles. Having this diversity in your portfolio allows you to have a safe haven especially when times are rough and the market is down. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
I agree with the husband here. I have very little brand loyalty and I routinely find that coupons knock $5-$10 off my grocery bill, usually around $80 per trip. I try to stick with store brands as much as possible however sometimes the branded stuff is cheaper than the generic. The key is to not buy something you don't need just because it's on sale or you have a good coupon. I try to plan my meals as much as possible around what's on sale and what coupons I have. The weekly coupon ritual is fun and I think it could be a good way to get children involved - have the kids categorize everything and toss the expired ones.
"This is wrong. I will, no doubt, keep paying my mortgage. But I cannot help but be angered by this whole system."
This has nothing to do with it being wrong or right and bad or good. If the principal on your mortgage is higher than the value of your house by 20% or more, the rational choice is to walk away. It does not matter if you can make the payments or not, it is an irrational choice to service the debt on a property where the market value is lower than the principal of the mortgage and likely to diminish further. It is not a reasonable proposition to maintain a property where one does not have an equity stake.
This is not personal and should not be viewed as personal. It is a rational business decision. It has nothing to do with morality or virtue, simple and clear.
Adam Smith's secret hand giveth and it taketh away. The laws of economics demand that both lenders and borrowers be held accountable for their "frivolous" and "cavalier" conduct. This is just one part of the equation.
I find that the farmers market is more often cheaper than the grocery store. More of the money is going directly to the farmer, less markup.
Talk to your farmers, more of them don't use pesticide than you would think and just can't afford the certification or are in the transitional phase between conventional and organic. It takes several years of following organic practices before they can become certified.
I'm just glad we aren't bombarded with seven "refinance your mortgage now to take out a home equity loan!!" commercials every break on every TV show anymore.
I took your advice and stopped by sears yesterday, bought couple of workout t-shirts (NordicTrack) and casual shorts for 99 cents each. It's a great deal. This got me thinking... Sears is definetely NOT making a loss on these 99 cents items, they definetely have some profit margins. The Original price on the shorts i bought was 14.99, then marked down for 4.99 and then it was finally sold for 99 cents. They must have sold atleast a few of these items at regular prices and marked down prices and made significant profits on those.
My only argument would about the timelines of the investing time horizons, I'm not sure that 6+ years is a 'long time' horizon. There have been periods in the past much longer than 6 years where the real rate of return for equities was near zero.
Personally I think the 'long term' investor should be thinking about 15 year+ or even 20 years +.
The EWG list is great - especially if you are shopping in chain grocery stores. I have found that many of the farmer's in my area use organic practices but aren't certified (due to the cost of certification in some areas) so if I am unsure I usually ask. If it is a local farmer selling to individuals at a market the chances are he produce hasn't been doused in pesticides.
Early in the ownership of my current home I regularly made an additional $250.00 per month payment towards my mortgage. I did this for seven years on a 30 year term loan and then refinanced the loan to lower interest payments about eight years ago. The results were that my mortgage balance before the refinance would go down monthly. I could actually see the difference it made by comparing it to a amortization schedule for the loan. Having the amortization schedule which broke down the payments on a month by month basis was motivating to see. There were many times when business was tight were we considered cutting back and skipping the additional mortgage payments. But after seeing how much your mortgage reduces by making these payents you get really focused on looking at cutting in other areas. I continued to make additional payments with my new loan increasing it to $500 until two years ago when my business really started to tank.
From what I've read, it is still healthier to eat conventional fruit than to not eat that fruit all together. So I buy organic fruit when available and affordable, but don't worry too much otherwise. Eating conventional fruit and veggies are still healthier than missing out on them!
This is the post that helped me to really focus on my attempts to find diverse income streams both on and offline. I knew I was on the right track, but your post helped me put it all together. Thanks for not only some very good ideas, but also explaining how you have tried to diversify. Great post!
You are so right! Mcd's monopoly game is truly a waste of money.
Thank you for the good tips! We sometimes cut corners with organic foods, but now we know a little better where it makes most sense to stay with organic and to still stay within our food budget.
Normally, The Dave, I would agree with you but my dad found ways to make those $10 shoes last, typically for at least a year. I'm not saying that we should all go to those extremes, I just wanted to illustrate his commitment to "making the best of what you've got". And on that note, I myself bought a pair of tennis shoes at WalMart last summer and still have them. They're really ugly now and coming apart in places but they make great shoes for getting muddy in the garden and overall, they're holding up pretty well considering I only paid $20 for them.
Frankly, I think that reevaluation is the point. Whether it's shoes from Payless, returning non-sale priced items or picking up a part-time job, this blip in the economy gives each of us the opportunity to reevaluate the way we look at and use money.
invite please
>He would have never spent $100 bucks on a pair of sneakers
> not when he could get shoes that worked just fine at
> PayLess or WalMart for a mere ten-spot.
This is an absolutely perfect example penny wise, pound foolish that so many people seem to be recommending today.
My girlfriend is a believer in the $10 Walmart shoes, and in most cases ends up buying a new pair in a month because the old ones are literally falling apart.
I'm averaging about 16 months on my $80-$100 shoes, although I do drop $20 (yes, that's more then she spent on shoes) on my preferred insoles after about three months.
My $100-$120 lasts me 16 months, her $10 lasts at best a month.
Buying quality isn't always worth it, but this is a perfect example of where the overly frugal consumer wastes more money long term.
Another great edition Andrea!
I especially liked that LA Times story. :D
This is ridiculous, people not paying their mortgages is the reason why we got into this mess in the first place. I feel no sympathy for those who signed up for mortgages that they could not afford. Especially those who knew what they were doing yet signed up for 3 home loans so they could sell two of them for a profit of over $100,000 in the span of 3 months. This was the kind of outrage that got us into this mess in the first place, now there are people trying to get out of what they signed up for, either by looking for refinance options if those still exist or not paying and hoping the government will jump in and help them out with a bailout.
I am creating a web-forum to discuss everything in a centralized place. http://www.bailoutdisaster.com/
So that we have a place to discuss articles and news, please join.
Also I have my blog which is tracking articles related to all this mess.
http://www.tranharry.com/
That's so great. I know of a lot of people complaining about some of the larger cosmetic companies using pseudohumanitarian efforts as an attempt to increase sales, but this is awesome. Until the US becomes a country with a larger emphasis on preventative care, I suppose we will have to live with corporate assistance. :D
Thanks for the information.
It's always good to have your money spread around into varies investment vehicles. Having this diversity in your portfolio allows you to have a safe haven especially when times are rough and the market is down. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
I agree with the husband here. I have very little brand loyalty and I routinely find that coupons knock $5-$10 off my grocery bill, usually around $80 per trip. I try to stick with store brands as much as possible however sometimes the branded stuff is cheaper than the generic. The key is to not buy something you don't need just because it's on sale or you have a good coupon. I try to plan my meals as much as possible around what's on sale and what coupons I have. The weekly coupon ritual is fun and I think it could be a good way to get children involved - have the kids categorize everything and toss the expired ones.
"This is wrong. I will, no doubt, keep paying my mortgage. But I cannot help but be angered by this whole system."
This has nothing to do with it being wrong or right and bad or good. If the principal on your mortgage is higher than the value of your house by 20% or more, the rational choice is to walk away. It does not matter if you can make the payments or not, it is an irrational choice to service the debt on a property where the market value is lower than the principal of the mortgage and likely to diminish further. It is not a reasonable proposition to maintain a property where one does not have an equity stake.
This is not personal and should not be viewed as personal. It is a rational business decision. It has nothing to do with morality or virtue, simple and clear.
Adam Smith's secret hand giveth and it taketh away. The laws of economics demand that both lenders and borrowers be held accountable for their "frivolous" and "cavalier" conduct. This is just one part of the equation.
Best regards,
Econolicious
I find that the farmers market is more often cheaper than the grocery store. More of the money is going directly to the farmer, less markup.
Talk to your farmers, more of them don't use pesticide than you would think and just can't afford the certification or are in the transitional phase between conventional and organic. It takes several years of following organic practices before they can become certified.
I'm just glad we aren't bombarded with seven "refinance your mortgage now to take out a home equity loan!!" commercials every break on every TV show anymore.
I took your advice and stopped by sears yesterday, bought couple of workout t-shirts (NordicTrack) and casual shorts for 99 cents each. It's a great deal. This got me thinking... Sears is definetely NOT making a loss on these 99 cents items, they definetely have some profit margins. The Original price on the shorts i bought was 14.99, then marked down for 4.99 and then it was finally sold for 99 cents. They must have sold atleast a few of these items at regular prices and marked down prices and made significant profits on those.
A concise practical list. Now, I just need to get organized and get this in my coupon file . . .
Thanks, Carrie.
Pretty good post!
My only argument would about the timelines of the investing time horizons, I'm not sure that 6+ years is a 'long time' horizon. There have been periods in the past much longer than 6 years where the real rate of return for equities was near zero.
Personally I think the 'long term' investor should be thinking about 15 year+ or even 20 years +.
What about when budget is not low... when money is not tight? :P
Nice post .
The EWG list is great - especially if you are shopping in chain grocery stores. I have found that many of the farmer's in my area use organic practices but aren't certified (due to the cost of certification in some areas) so if I am unsure I usually ask. If it is a local farmer selling to individuals at a market the chances are he produce hasn't been doused in pesticides.
I didn't even know such a list would exist. That's great to know. I should try and find one here in New Zealand.
P.S. Today was the first time I never made it to the market since I started going and I have been gutted all day! I love it there.
my IQ just dropped 5 points.... Thanks everyone.
BB=best buy
Early in the ownership of my current home I regularly made an additional $250.00 per month payment towards my mortgage. I did this for seven years on a 30 year term loan and then refinanced the loan to lower interest payments about eight years ago. The results were that my mortgage balance before the refinance would go down monthly. I could actually see the difference it made by comparing it to a amortization schedule for the loan. Having the amortization schedule which broke down the payments on a month by month basis was motivating to see. There were many times when business was tight were we considered cutting back and skipping the additional mortgage payments. But after seeing how much your mortgage reduces by making these payents you get really focused on looking at cutting in other areas. I continued to make additional payments with my new loan increasing it to $500 until two years ago when my business really started to tank.
You can read about my struggles dealing with mortgages and debt by going here http://moneyfinanceswealth.blogspot.com