I have a few questions to ask. I am going to try your forumula but was wondering if you water before or after the application???
Do you have to start this at the beginning of the spring season in order for it to work. My lawn is a mess right now is it too late to start using it????
When applying do you just get the grass wet but not puddling???
What size beer cans are you refering to???? 12 oz or 16 oz. I used your receipe with 16 oz cans of beer should I have increased the other ingredients from what you have written in the receipe???
What is the benefit of apply in the heat of the day???? Won't it burn the grass??? Do you have a temperature range for spring or fall. Does it get applied in fall as well????
Thank you for your time in answering my questions. Weebitty
I find reusing as much of my junk mail as possible curbs my irritation and gives me a cheap "thrill." First, I carefully open the envelope, remove the mail (without reading the ads) and see if any pages are blank on the back. I usually use a ball point pen to draw a diagonal line across the back so I don't mistake it for something important I want to keep. Those immediately go into the "use in the printer" pile next to my PC.
Then I remove any return envelope that doesn't have a prepaid postage stamp and put that in a second pile. Even if it has a return address or business name on it, a dab of white-out takes care of it and you can reuse it to pay bills or mail letters to your friends. They all know I'm too cheap to BUY envelopes when there are so many free ones begging for a new life.
Envelopes that have postage prepaid stamps on it go into a third pile. My kids have tons of stuff going back and forth to school and I always need quickie envelopes to throw coupons and stuff in, so I just write what it's for in magic marker and reuse.
Then, I see if there are any white areas large enough in the mail contents to cut into a 4.25" x 5.5" note paper on my paper cutter. We go through a TON of these for shopping lists, to do lists, reminder notes, whatnot. I also carefully open the original envelope and can usually squeeze one more note paper out of it.
Whatever is left over (or used for a notepaper and now beyond reuse) goes through the shredder and mixed into our soil. We have sterile, sandy soil that won't hold onto moisture, so we have a "pit" we move every year around 3 feet deep that we mix shredded paper into the bottom foot, then mix leaves and grass clippings back into the sand the top 2 feet. The paper helps the soil hold water until it decomposes, then it provides fertilizer for our garden. We also did this to lighten the soil when we lived in New Hampshre, which has clay-rock soil so heavy nothing will grow in it. Too heavy or too light ... shredded paper is a gardeners friend, and also good as a base bedding under the shavings if you have hampsters or chickens. If it's pretty and colorful, you can use color shreds as gift confetti, but NEVER use that shiney colorful paper they use for magazines in your garden as it's poisonous!!!
Thanks Citibank for all the useful free paper and, no, no matter how much more you send I will never sign up for your ripoff credit cards.
I've got that chronic pain mentioned, and I'm feeling a lack in the area of romance. While I adore my kids, they're both special needs, and that comes with its own sort of price.
But I found my 'mission' - to listen. I'm not sure how to use it to my best advantage, but it's the right skill for me. Knowing that has brought me a great deal of comfort.
i sort of think the way jen thinks. my husband has a job he works very hard at 6 days a week, and it puts the food on the table. but other people have jobs they don't do much at, and they live like rock stars.
i think america is all backwards. like idolizing celebrities...they make so much money, they could feed third world countries. and all they do is act! shouldn't doctors, nurses, daycare workers all make more than an actor? i think so.
there is so much wrong with the country these days, just read a recent poll of americans. they all say the country is going downhill fast.
i don't compare myself to third world countries when i compare the way i live. i compare myself to other americans. when i see someone making thousands of dollars more than my own husband, for playing ping pong and lounging on couches at Google.com, while my husband works his ass off, it makes me mad, and it doesn't seem right. and my husband's job is something americans need. something the country would not run, without. we could live without google!
i get what you're saying, jen.
compared to others, who work a lot less, your husband probably does a lot more and makes less. right? at least that's the way i feel.
Thank you for sharing these thoughts. The timing of your article is interesting what with the financial news today. I'm sure you had no way to plan it that way. But I headed over here to see some analysis of the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae situation and saw this instead. And remembered that I am wealthy. Thank you!
You are right that it is so easy to complain rather than be grateful. I am very wealthy in many ways- I have a great and supportive family (even if they are on another continent at the moment), fabulous friends around the world, and a truly wonderful partner.
Sadly I don't think I really appreciated all this until I was diagnosed with a chronic medical condition. I may not have perfect health but it could be a lot worse and at least I have the above to keep me going on bad days.
It's been said by a wise person: the first wealth is health. I am healthy, and no amount of money would compensate me or anyone else for a major disability, a life-threatening illness or even an illness that merely caused chronic pain.
I've had a good education in a major that interested me deeply. No economic downturn can ever take away from me the development of my own mind and the ability to think critically. I've also had the chance to travel extensively and see many parts of the world. Again, nothing except dementia can ever rob me of those experiences.
I have many useful skills that enhance my quality of life. I'm a decent gardener and a great cook. Those two skills mean that we eat very, very, very well on a very modest food budget. Aside from that, these two hobbies give me an enormous amount of pleasure.
I have friends, family, and pets that I love very deeply. They are priceless.
My personal definition of wealth has definitely begun to shift over the last few years. Despite the fact that frugality (and by extension money) is such a focus for me, frugality is just a means to an end. My eye is really on a life beyond debt that is filled with cheap and simple pleasures, not luxuries. Less and less do I want material things that come to me via the exploitation of workers, the deprivation of other people, or damage to the environment. My health, my skills, my education, and my friends, family, and pets don't deprive anyone else of anything. If anything, they are available to contribute to the benefit of other people. To me that's better than any luxury jewelry, art object, fancy car, or mcmansion.
I'm actually amazed that these credit card companies (and other junkmailing companies) have made it unscathed through the masses who are begging us to be more green. Not to decry the green movement or anything, but I guess it's a lot easier to bully the little guy into being green as opposed to large credit card companies.
I live in Edinburgh, Scotland, and I think the public transport (or "mass transit" as you call it) is pretty rubbish compared to other European countries. I've travelled extensively around Germany, Holland, Austria, Switzerland and Italy on trains and they're way, way better than the system we have here. Even the tram systems in the likes of Prague and Amsterdam seem to be more efficient. In Scotland, the bus system is useless if you live in a rural area, and the trains are horrendously expensive and usually late - it's generally cheaper to travel between Edinburgh and London by plane than by rail.
Cycling in Edinburgh is okay in the summer, but with our climate in the winter, no thanks. Holland is probably your best bet for cycling as cyclists seem to have priority over car drivers a lot more than here.
I'm just pointing out, really, that public transport isn't that great everywhere in Europe! We're a very diverse continent remember ;-)
Portland, Oregon. It's compact, has free public transport within the downtown area, and it's been voted one of the most bike friendly cities in the world (by the league of American Bicyclists!). It also has an Amtrak station.
Plus it's a really nice city. Bonus points for being so close to all those lovely Canadians. ;)
What I hate to receive in the mail is an invoice from some magazine company and it looiks like you have oredered the magazine and they want you to send them money.
I think I will start sending thenm back empty evcelopes!
I've never lived in Europe, so my experience with European mass transit systems is that of a visitor. Having said that, I've actually spent a good bit of time in a good number of European cities, and have largely either walked or made use of the local mass transit wherever I've gone. To name a few cities, I've had excellent experiences in London, Berlin, Frankfurt, Copenhagen, Toulouse, and Glasgow.
Your point is well-taken, though. On a couple of business trips to the UK (one to Reading and one to Basingstoke), I ended up making a lot of car trips to get to the various facilities that I needed to visit.
For several decades now, the pressure has been on companies to move to the outskirts of towns in search of land that was cheap enough that they could provide free parking to their employees. I think that's going change.
As fuel prices go up, employees will come to view free parking as less valuable than being easily accessible by mass transit. Where up to now employers in downtown have had to pay a premium, so that their employees could afford to rent expensive downtown parking, in the near future employers out on the edge of town will have to pay a premium, so that their employees can afford to buy fuel to get there.
It's the flip side of the housing issues I was talking about.
The one I have first-hand experience with is Champaign-Urbana, Illinois.
We've got an Amtrak station and an excellent bus system. In just the last few years, CU has made some amazing strides in becoming more bicycle-friendly, thanks to a group of dedicated activists that includes people at the University, people in government, people in law enforcement, and lots of bicyclists. The town is also small enough that it's often possible to get around on foot. (I just today walked from where I live to campus for lunch--about three miles. I usually take the bus or bicycle, but today I was planning to get a large order of fries and figured that I needed the extra exercise.)
I hope other readers can praise their own cities, or places that they've visited. (I've heard that Davis, California is good....)
$2.30 for a 30-second 411 call surprises even me. The nickel-and-diming is getting more and more ridiculous. Fortunately, there's 1-800-FREE411. We have business, gov't, and residential listings -- really no need to call regular 411 anymore.
Rich and poor are all relative terms. Stop badmouthing someone because you don't understand the conditions.
I spend a few months a year in Haiti, and I know very well what the standards of living are in third world countries. But there are some people who have no homes, jobs, or money that are wonderfully rich. They have each other and an incredible faith in God. Believe it or not, they thank him for what they have.
I was not badmouthing her, I was being blunt. After reading what she wrote, I was angry enough to say much worse.
Telling someone they should appreciate what they have and consider themselves lucky should not be construed as an insult. It's a reality check.
Sure, rich and poor are relative conditions - in case it wasn't immediately obvious, that was my whole point. It's a little much to whine on about how you can barely afford to pay your cell phone bill when there are people dying in the streets of places like Mumbai, Darfur, and Port au Prince.
To rich Americans Jen is poor. To the other 95% of the world, Jen lives like a princess.
Cell phones are not a necessity. A twelve-pack of beer on the weekends to "chill out" with the neighbors is not a necessity. Pets are not a necessity. Cars are not a necessity. Neither is a place "close to nature for the kids"...or the time to "stroll along at the carnival"...these are *luxuries*, not necessities. It irritates me to hear people complain about stuff like this when there are people who don't even have enough to feed or clothe their kids, much less spend time with them.
Yes, I DO understand the conditions. I've been at her level of poverty before and considered myself lucky to have what I had. And if you really spend a few months a year in a third world country, hearing someone complain about having any kind of home to live in should make you indignant too.
I agree with Erin. If Jen really feels badly about her husband's wellbeing, she should take on a night job, sell something, do *anything* but sit around and complain that she has no skills. Because this is America. If you have no skills or education, it's not because the opportunity wasn't available. It's because you didn't take advantage of it.
The American dream isn't the right to prosperity. It's only the potential for a better life. This country is full of amazing opportunities. But that potential can only be realized through hard work, discipline, and sacrifice.
Can anyone suggest some US cities that are compact, cycle-friendly, have good public transit, and an Amtrak station? For those considering relocation, a few ideas about where to go would be very helpful.
I have a few questions to ask. I am going to try your forumula but was wondering if you water before or after the application???
Do you have to start this at the beginning of the spring season in order for it to work. My lawn is a mess right now is it too late to start using it????
When applying do you just get the grass wet but not puddling???
What size beer cans are you refering to???? 12 oz or 16 oz. I used your receipe with 16 oz cans of beer should I have increased the other ingredients from what you have written in the receipe???
What is the benefit of apply in the heat of the day???? Won't it burn the grass??? Do you have a temperature range for spring or fall. Does it get applied in fall as well????
Thank you for your time in answering my questions. Weebitty
If my wife complained as much as Jen, I would work all the time too.
I find reusing as much of my junk mail as possible curbs my irritation and gives me a cheap "thrill." First, I carefully open the envelope, remove the mail (without reading the ads) and see if any pages are blank on the back. I usually use a ball point pen to draw a diagonal line across the back so I don't mistake it for something important I want to keep. Those immediately go into the "use in the printer" pile next to my PC.
Then I remove any return envelope that doesn't have a prepaid postage stamp and put that in a second pile. Even if it has a return address or business name on it, a dab of white-out takes care of it and you can reuse it to pay bills or mail letters to your friends. They all know I'm too cheap to BUY envelopes when there are so many free ones begging for a new life.
Envelopes that have postage prepaid stamps on it go into a third pile. My kids have tons of stuff going back and forth to school and I always need quickie envelopes to throw coupons and stuff in, so I just write what it's for in magic marker and reuse.
Then, I see if there are any white areas large enough in the mail contents to cut into a 4.25" x 5.5" note paper on my paper cutter. We go through a TON of these for shopping lists, to do lists, reminder notes, whatnot. I also carefully open the original envelope and can usually squeeze one more note paper out of it.
Whatever is left over (or used for a notepaper and now beyond reuse) goes through the shredder and mixed into our soil. We have sterile, sandy soil that won't hold onto moisture, so we have a "pit" we move every year around 3 feet deep that we mix shredded paper into the bottom foot, then mix leaves and grass clippings back into the sand the top 2 feet. The paper helps the soil hold water until it decomposes, then it provides fertilizer for our garden. We also did this to lighten the soil when we lived in New Hampshre, which has clay-rock soil so heavy nothing will grow in it. Too heavy or too light ... shredded paper is a gardeners friend, and also good as a base bedding under the shavings if you have hampsters or chickens. If it's pretty and colorful, you can use color shreds as gift confetti, but NEVER use that shiney colorful paper they use for magazines in your garden as it's poisonous!!!
Thanks Citibank for all the useful free paper and, no, no matter how much more you send I will never sign up for your ripoff credit cards.
I've got that chronic pain mentioned, and I'm feeling a lack in the area of romance. While I adore my kids, they're both special needs, and that comes with its own sort of price.
But I found my 'mission' - to listen. I'm not sure how to use it to my best advantage, but it's the right skill for me. Knowing that has brought me a great deal of comfort.
i sort of think the way jen thinks. my husband has a job he works very hard at 6 days a week, and it puts the food on the table. but other people have jobs they don't do much at, and they live like rock stars.
i think america is all backwards. like idolizing celebrities...they make so much money, they could feed third world countries. and all they do is act! shouldn't doctors, nurses, daycare workers all make more than an actor? i think so.
there is so much wrong with the country these days, just read a recent poll of americans. they all say the country is going downhill fast.
i don't compare myself to third world countries when i compare the way i live. i compare myself to other americans. when i see someone making thousands of dollars more than my own husband, for playing ping pong and lounging on couches at Google.com, while my husband works his ass off, it makes me mad, and it doesn't seem right. and my husband's job is something americans need. something the country would not run, without. we could live without google!
i get what you're saying, jen.
compared to others, who work a lot less, your husband probably does a lot more and makes less. right? at least that's the way i feel.
Thank you for sharing these thoughts. The timing of your article is interesting what with the financial news today. I'm sure you had no way to plan it that way. But I headed over here to see some analysis of the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae situation and saw this instead. And remembered that I am wealthy. Thank you!
Your banana idea sounds amazing!!!!
I just throw bananas straight in the freezer and then take them out , peel them and eat them as they are.
You are right that it is so easy to complain rather than be grateful. I am very wealthy in many ways- I have a great and supportive family (even if they are on another continent at the moment), fabulous friends around the world, and a truly wonderful partner.
Sadly I don't think I really appreciated all this until I was diagnosed with a chronic medical condition. I may not have perfect health but it could be a lot worse and at least I have the above to keep me going on bad days.
I'm also very fortunate to have great health, the love of my life, and a dream job/career! Everything else is gravy!
It's been said by a wise person: the first wealth is health. I am healthy, and no amount of money would compensate me or anyone else for a major disability, a life-threatening illness or even an illness that merely caused chronic pain.
I've had a good education in a major that interested me deeply. No economic downturn can ever take away from me the development of my own mind and the ability to think critically. I've also had the chance to travel extensively and see many parts of the world. Again, nothing except dementia can ever rob me of those experiences.
I have many useful skills that enhance my quality of life. I'm a decent gardener and a great cook. Those two skills mean that we eat very, very, very well on a very modest food budget. Aside from that, these two hobbies give me an enormous amount of pleasure.
I have friends, family, and pets that I love very deeply. They are priceless.
My personal definition of wealth has definitely begun to shift over the last few years. Despite the fact that frugality (and by extension money) is such a focus for me, frugality is just a means to an end. My eye is really on a life beyond debt that is filled with cheap and simple pleasures, not luxuries. Less and less do I want material things that come to me via the exploitation of workers, the deprivation of other people, or damage to the environment. My health, my skills, my education, and my friends, family, and pets don't deprive anyone else of anything. If anything, they are available to contribute to the benefit of other people. To me that's better than any luxury jewelry, art object, fancy car, or mcmansion.
You guys can keep your 8 hour days. I'm happy to work 12 hours a day. See you in the boardroom.
I'm actually amazed that these credit card companies (and other junkmailing companies) have made it unscathed through the masses who are begging us to be more green. Not to decry the green movement or anything, but I guess it's a lot easier to bully the little guy into being green as opposed to large credit card companies.
I live in Edinburgh, Scotland, and I think the public transport (or "mass transit" as you call it) is pretty rubbish compared to other European countries. I've travelled extensively around Germany, Holland, Austria, Switzerland and Italy on trains and they're way, way better than the system we have here. Even the tram systems in the likes of Prague and Amsterdam seem to be more efficient. In Scotland, the bus system is useless if you live in a rural area, and the trains are horrendously expensive and usually late - it's generally cheaper to travel between Edinburgh and London by plane than by rail.
Cycling in Edinburgh is okay in the summer, but with our climate in the winter, no thanks. Holland is probably your best bet for cycling as cyclists seem to have priority over car drivers a lot more than here.
I'm just pointing out, really, that public transport isn't that great everywhere in Europe! We're a very diverse continent remember ;-)
Portland, Oregon. It's compact, has free public transport within the downtown area, and it's been voted one of the most bike friendly cities in the world (by the league of American Bicyclists!). It also has an Amtrak station.
Plus it's a really nice city. Bonus points for being so close to all those lovely Canadians. ;)
What I hate to receive in the mail is an invoice from some magazine company and it looiks like you have oredered the magazine and they want you to send them money.
I think I will start sending thenm back empty evcelopes!
(Sigh...) In my wildest dreams... LOL
:)
I completely agree with Scott. SHRED them! Then use the shreddies for packing material :) That way you aren't wasting anything.
It's way too easy for someone to open a card in your name w/out you ever knowing it anymore. Why take chances??
@Jim:
I've never lived in Europe, so my experience with European mass transit systems is that of a visitor. Having said that, I've actually spent a good bit of time in a good number of European cities, and have largely either walked or made use of the local mass transit wherever I've gone. To name a few cities, I've had excellent experiences in London, Berlin, Frankfurt, Copenhagen, Toulouse, and Glasgow.
Your point is well-taken, though. On a couple of business trips to the UK (one to Reading and one to Basingstoke), I ended up making a lot of car trips to get to the various facilities that I needed to visit.
For several decades now, the pressure has been on companies to move to the outskirts of towns in search of land that was cheap enough that they could provide free parking to their employees. I think that's going change.
As fuel prices go up, employees will come to view free parking as less valuable than being easily accessible by mass transit. Where up to now employers in downtown have had to pay a premium, so that their employees could afford to rent expensive downtown parking, in the near future employers out on the edge of town will have to pay a premium, so that their employees can afford to buy fuel to get there.
It's the flip side of the housing issues I was talking about.
The one I have first-hand experience with is Champaign-Urbana, Illinois.
We've got an Amtrak station and an excellent bus system. In just the last few years, CU has made some amazing strides in becoming more bicycle-friendly, thanks to a group of dedicated activists that includes people at the University, people in government, people in law enforcement, and lots of bicyclists. The town is also small enough that it's often possible to get around on foot. (I just today walked from where I live to campus for lunch--about three miles. I usually take the bus or bicycle, but today I was planning to get a large order of fries and figured that I needed the extra exercise.)
I hope other readers can praise their own cities, or places that they've visited. (I've heard that Davis, California is good....)
$2.30 for a 30-second 411 call surprises even me. The nickel-and-diming is getting more and more ridiculous. Fortunately, there's 1-800-FREE411. We have business, gov't, and residential listings -- really no need to call regular 411 anymore.
Jay
You thought it was a MacBook Air, didn't you.
The person that got no benefit for going slower, I cannot see how you did that, unless you had terrible gearing on the car.
Wind resistance is the biggest fuel guzzler after hitting 50 mph.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1510
Oh and for those who don't want to "hypermile", by being a more careful driver and slowing down, you are doing the #1 thing TO hypermile!
Smile at those passing you by on their way to the pumps, again! :)
Rich and poor are all relative terms. Stop badmouthing someone because you don't understand the conditions.
I spend a few months a year in Haiti, and I know very well what the standards of living are in third world countries. But there are some people who have no homes, jobs, or money that are wonderfully rich. They have each other and an incredible faith in God. Believe it or not, they thank him for what they have.
I was not badmouthing her, I was being blunt. After reading what she wrote, I was angry enough to say much worse.
Telling someone they should appreciate what they have and consider themselves lucky should not be construed as an insult. It's a reality check.
Sure, rich and poor are relative conditions - in case it wasn't immediately obvious, that was my whole point. It's a little much to whine on about how you can barely afford to pay your cell phone bill when there are people dying in the streets of places like Mumbai, Darfur, and Port au Prince.
To rich Americans Jen is poor. To the other 95% of the world, Jen lives like a princess.
Cell phones are not a necessity. A twelve-pack of beer on the weekends to "chill out" with the neighbors is not a necessity. Pets are not a necessity. Cars are not a necessity. Neither is a place "close to nature for the kids"...or the time to "stroll along at the carnival"...these are *luxuries*, not necessities. It irritates me to hear people complain about stuff like this when there are people who don't even have enough to feed or clothe their kids, much less spend time with them.
Yes, I DO understand the conditions. I've been at her level of poverty before and considered myself lucky to have what I had. And if you really spend a few months a year in a third world country, hearing someone complain about having any kind of home to live in should make you indignant too.
I agree with Erin. If Jen really feels badly about her husband's wellbeing, she should take on a night job, sell something, do *anything* but sit around and complain that she has no skills. Because this is America. If you have no skills or education, it's not because the opportunity wasn't available. It's because you didn't take advantage of it.
The American dream isn't the right to prosperity. It's only the potential for a better life. This country is full of amazing opportunities. But that potential can only be realized through hard work, discipline, and sacrifice.
Jen complains too much, methinks.
The American Dream is alive and well. That doesn't mean everyone can figure it out.
Can anyone suggest some US cities that are compact, cycle-friendly, have good public transit, and an Amtrak station? For those considering relocation, a few ideas about where to go would be very helpful.