The Simple Dollar

Goats aren’t yoga props or party decorations: They’re inexpensive, reliable creatures who can be a tremendous help around the yard if you let them. They’re also the most rewarding, heartbreaking portion of my farm experience. When my wife and I were first looking at a roughly two-acre historic farm amid 80 field acres in unincorporated Washington County, Ore., we were introduced to the farm’s two […]

A long time reader named Janice recently suggested an exercise to me that I tried out at the beginning of the month and have found to be really insightful and useful. I’m not sure where Janice came across this tactic originally, but here it is, in her words. Sit down with two sheets of paper. Write “do more” at the top of one sheet and “do less” at the top of another sheet. […]

I will forever remember the phone call. The stranger on the other end of the telephone line saying, “I have some bad news.” The news was that I had invasive ductile cancer. Whatever that meant, I thought to myself, as I sat listening, numb and in a daze. Two tumors. One quite large. […]

I am proud to call myself a wary consumer. I do my best to combat manipulative marketing, I recognize the value of repairing and maintaining my things, and I focus on long-term goals rather than short-term gratification. That being said, there are certain products I buy without guilt, even when I know an alternative can be had for less. That’s because I have honed in on what matters to me. […]