Christmas Deals at Rite Aid

Merry Christmas!  If you are on a tight budget, don't despair!  Chances are you can still squeeze in a little Christmas cheer. This year Rite-Aid has been the low cost spot for Christmas decor.  They have had artificial Christmas trees for 50% off for most of the season.   We got this 4 1/2 foot artificial tree for about $12.

Rite Aid Christmas Tree and Nutcrackers

Many other seasonal decor items are also 50% off.  That's a great deal.  We bought the tree and ornaments for about $22.  The ornaments are plastic, but you really can't tell.  They look very, very, good.  Plus, they are far less fragile than traditional glass ornaments.  

On another Rite Aid run, we opted to add the large Nutcrackers for about $12.50 a piece.  For less than $50, we got a nice little setup going that really adds to our Christmas Spirit.

A Rite Aid Nutcracker

 When you add in discounts from the RiteAid rewards program, the savings really do add up.  If you want to improve your mood and add a little Christmas spirit to your home, just pop down to your local RiteAid and get some decorations!  You'll be glad that you did.

Our Other Rite Aid Nutcracker

Poor? It's Not Always You. You need to vote!

In America, we have a long tradition of blaming poor people for being poor.  Some of it is justified.  If you don't have a strong work ethic or you messed up in school, a lot of that is on you.  It's something that you can change and improve.

However, you didn't make the choice to outsource manufacturing, technical, and call center jobs to India.  You didn't make the choice to lower tariffs on imported goods and allow them to undercut American-made products.  You didn't make the choice for our nation to have insecure borders and allow hordes of desperately poor people from less developed countries to flood our labor markets.  You also didn't make the choice to allow companies to import massive numbers of H1B workers so that they could take good middle class jobs and do them for less in a manner that erodes the pillars of the American middle class.

But, you do have a choice to change all of that.  Both political parties have fueled the problem.  But, if you are flat broke now, you need to make sure you contact your political leaders and you need to make sure that you vote in every election!

Saving Money at McDonalds

Even though value menu items are creeping up in price, it is still very easy to save money at McDonalds.  It's not everyday fare for us.  However, on a recent stop at a McDonalds in the Atlanta suburbs, my wife and I bought -

2 McDoubles
2 Cheese Burgers
1 Hamburger
2 Large Iced Teas
1 Cup of Ice Water

Our entire total was just less than $9.  Our dog ate the meat from the hamburger.  That little meal held all of us pretty well for over 4 hours.  If you want to save money, don't mindlessly order a Big Mac combo.  Change it up some and explore the world of the Dollar Menu-aire!

A McDonald's Restaurant - by Bidgee (Own work) [GFDL 1.2 (http://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/fdl-1.2.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

ELF Cosmetics at Target

This tip is for the ladies.  My wife is very excited about a new line of cosmetics.  E.L.F. stands for Eyes, Lips, Face.  As a brand it brings high quality make up brushes and cosmetics to women at affordable prices.

On a recent Target shopping trip, my wife was able to find very nice E.L.F. cosmetics brushes for only a dollar each.  Slightly better premium brushes may cost about $3 apiece.  Despite the low prices, the entire E.L.F. line is displayed in a very uplifting and upscale way.  The brand is a definite win or women of the struggling middle class.

ELF Cosmetics at Target

 

If you are on a tight budget, but want to look like a million bucks, you should definitely check them out.  To get more familiar with the line, Amazon also has a complete selection of e.l.f. cosmetics

Broke? Hungry? Try Aldi Grocery Stores

Whenever our budget gets tight, we find ourselves shopping at Aldi.  It's a remarkable international chain of small grocery stores.  They manage to beat almost every other grocery store and big box chain on food prices while offering some excellent selections.

Aldi Sign photo by Julian Budke [CC BY-SA 2.5 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)]

Radio consumer advisor, Clark Howard has noted the similarity between the business models of Trader Joes and Aldi on his radio show.  Both stores offer a wide variety of house brands and few, if any, well-known national brands.  However, I've observed that while Trader Joes tends to offer a perceived health-food oriented selection of groceries, Aldi concentrates on basic food that every hoisehold needs.

So far, Aldi has proven great for bacon, premium chocolate bars, frozen pizzas, and ice cream.  In other words, for the basic food groups.  I've found their produce to be just acceptable.  But, if you are looking for ripe avocados they are a better bet than conventional grocery stores.

Before you go remember to bring a quarter for a cart deposit and your own bags.  They are a no frills store.

Money Saving Tips for Football Season.

Football season is a great season for saving money.  While lots of businesses try to convince you to spend more money during football season, my money-saving technique for the season is actually very simple.  Are you ready?  Here it comes.  During football season, you should simply sit on your ass and watch football.

If you want to eat during football season, McDonalds has a box meal with 2 Big Macs, 4 small fries, and 20 McNuggets for only $10.99.  You don't want to eat like that every day, but it is a great deal.  In Atlanta, it is marketed as a Falcons box.  We tried it and it was good eating.

Need Extra Money: You've Got To Hustle For Your Dreams

My favorite line in the great chick flick, Pretty Woman, is uttered by a happy homeless man at the end of the movie.

"Welcome to Hollywood! What's your dream? Everybody comes here; this is Hollywood, land of dreams. Some dreams come true, some don't; but keep on dreamin' - this is Hollywood. Always time to dream, so keep on dreamin'."

IMDB Pretty Woman Quotes

The dream is crucial.  As a guy who lived on the poor side of town once told me, "Every body has to have a hustle."  The hustle isn't necessarily illegal, it's just something people do on the side to pick up a few extra bucks.  For example. Some folks were into shoes and would buy and sell them. 

Now, with the advent of the internet, it's become easier for everyone to hustle up a few extra bucks through ebay, etsy, craigslist, writing sites, or affiliate programs.  Sometimes a hustle will turn into a full-fledged business or a viral hit that brings in big bucks.  

It doesn't take a lot of money to get started.  In fact, Chris Guillebeau has shown us the way in his book:  The $100 Startup:  Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future. So keep on dreaming and keep on trying to make your dreams come true!

How to Postpone Buying Gas

There is nothing quite like needing to buy gas at the end of the pay period.  If you need to maximize the little amount of gas that you have left, there are a few things you can do.

1.  Drive Gently.  Fast starts and heavy acceleration drinks gas quickly.  Instead, accelerately slowly and steadily.  Strive not to use the brakes.  Coast to stops whenever rather than braking heavily.

2.  Minimize Stops.  It's better to travel continuously than it is to stop.  You don't want to sit at traffic lights so take the highway.  Choose travel times when the highway is less congested so that you don't get caugt in stop and go traffic.

3.  Minimize the Number of Trips.  If you are traveling somewhere, it is better to stop along the way and get things you need instead of making a separate trip later.

4.  Don't Buy More Gas Than You Need.  If you know you need to make a 20 mile round-trip commute two more times during a pay period and that you ger 20 miles per gallon, you only need a little over 2 gallons.  Depending on the price of gas, that's probably only $7 or $8. So buy $10 worth of gas instead of $20 or $30.

5. Buy Gas With Cash. If you are low on funds, the automated card reader on the pump might not authorize you to purchase an indeterminate amount of gas.  If you plunk a $10 bill down inside and pay cah for gas, you won't have that issue.

With these tips, you should be able to make it through til the end of the pay period.  But, don't drive on fumes that may leave you stranded in a dangerous area.  When you get paid again, buy the gas you need.

Shopping the Sales

If you are operating on a shoestring budget, it's important to spend money wisely.  One of the best ways to save money is to buy items when they are on sale.

Last Friday, I heard a radio ad that Target was having a "buy one, get one free sale" over the weekend on cookies and crackers.  It was an awesome chance to stock up on snacks before football season.  We saved over $17 on cookies and crackers.

 If we had been really smart, we would have had a stockpile of coupons to use.  Then, we would have walked out with tons of cookies and crackers for nearly free.

Seven Reasons to Consider a Micro Home

Or Get a Minihouse, Tiny Cottage, Little Cabin, Miniature Log Home or Studio Condo 

The economy is getting tough. It might be time to head for a shack out in the woods. If so, here are some great reasons to consider a tiny house, microhome, small cottage, or mini cabin. If the size of your dream home has been shrinking with your portfolio, it might be time to consider a dwelling the size of a Thoreau House or Unibomber Shack. A teeny, tiny, cottage, cabin, minihouse, or microhome is an extreme measure, but it might be an affordable housing solution. A few Americans have traded traditional homes for microhouses as small as 150 square feet. Here are seven reasons to consider tiny home.

Thoreau Cabin Replica. Photo by RhythmicQuietude at en.wikipedia [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

First, microhouse designs are economical. According to CNN.com, Bill and Sharon Kastrinos live in a tiny 154-square foot house the size of a garden shed which cost them $15,000 and has utility costs of only $15 per month.

Second, to fit into a microhome, a lot of material items have to go. Typically, micro house dwellers sell excess clothing and possessions or donate them to charity. Then micro house owners have to get creative with space-saving techniques and be fanatical about getting rid of an old items when new items are brought into the home. There's simply no room to mindlessly consume.

Third, if you are an ecologically minded, a microhome has a minimal impact on the environment, a small carbon footprint, and can be designed to be super energy efficient. If you want to power a home with an alternative energy source, the low energy demand of a microhome makes it far easier. It would be very easy to design a solar powered microhome.

Mississippi Cottage - Photo By Jennifer Smits (This image is from the FEMA Photo Library.) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Fourth, microhomes may help the poor rebuild in America after disasters. Many small, old, homes occupied by the poor and elderly were wiped out by Hurricane Katrina. The big box housing chain, Lowes, offered the Katrina Cottage series of small home designs as an affordable way for people to rebuild. In Mississippi, small cottages provided a way out of trailer life for hurricane survivors.   Even smaller microhomes may make home ownership viable for the poor without exposing them to dangerous and dishonest mortgage situations.

Fifth, many microhomes are mobile. To dodge zoning laws, many microhomes are built on a trailer chassis and are classified as campers or mobile homes. If your job moves, your home can move with you.

Sixth, microhomes make great vacation spots. The cost of prime vacation real estate is climbing as oceanfront, lakefront, and mountainside lots are snatched up. Building an economical structure makes a vacation home much more attainable.

Seventh, in the most crowded cities, some people are squeezing into ultra-small condominiums of only 300 to 400 square feet. In high priced real estate markets, tiny condominiums allow people to live closer to urban centers where they can avoid long commutes and enjoy amenities like parks, museums, and restaurants.

It's getting tough to sustain the American Dream in an era of economic instability and recession. Affording a 30-year mortgage in a time of 2 and 3-year job tenures can be daunting. For some Americans, the answer might just be to think small. If you can't think outside the box, at least, you can shrink the box.

Sources:

"Downsizing to 100 square feet of bliss," Thelma Gutierrez and Traci Tamura, CNN American Morning, 10/22/2008, http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/10/22/tiny.houses/
"The 298-square-foot condo," Melinda Fulmer, MSN Real Estate, http://realestate.msn.com/buying/article2.aspx?cp-documentid=6285435
"Move Over, McMansions: Microhouses Are on the Rise," Annelena Lobb, Wall Street Journal Online, June 14, 2006, http://www.realestatejournal.com/buildimprove/20060614-lobb.html
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=pg&p=2006_landing/Katrina_Cottage/KatrinaCottage.html

Eight Ways to Take A Shorter Shower

How To Save Money Buy Taking Shorter Showers

[I first published this article October 22, 2007 on Yahoo Contributors Network.  Today, the advice still sound.  You can still save a lot of money on water and electricity or natural gas buy taking shorter showers.]

Due to the severe drought conditions in much of the Southeastern United States, Georgia's Governor Sonny Perdue has declared that October 2007 is "take a Shorter Shower" month. But, many of us morning zombies don't wake up until we've actually been in the shower for a full ten minutes.

We often find that we have wasted plenty of precious water before we are even fully conscious. Clearly taking a shorter shower is an acquired skill. But, as Atlanta's reservoirs drain precipitously below 120 days of water, the skill of short shower taking is clearly worth acquiring. Here are eight easy ways to take a shorter shower:

1) Don't Perform Any Extra Rituals in the Shower. Some people shave in the shower. Some people brush their teeth. There are many things to do in the shower other than wash, shampoo, rinse, and get out. If you drop the extra rituals and stick to the essential business of getting clean, you are bound to save time and water.

2) Pretend You Are in the Navy. On Navy ships, water has traditionally been a precious commodity. To conserve it, sailors were advised to turn on the water, get wet, turn off the water, soap up, shampoo, and then turn on the water again to rinse off. The entire operation should only take five minutes. At least this is what my dad, a Navy veteran, always told my brother and me when we were growing up. Since I've never served in the Navy, it's entirely possible that my dad was just trying to save money on the water bill.

3) Watch the Clock. If you have a wall clock, place it where you can see it from the shower. You may have to replace your current shower curtain with one of the transparent variety. If your bathroom gets so steamy that you can no longer see your clock, it's long past time to get out of the shower.

4) Race the Timer. If a wall clock isn't motivation enough, get an inexpensive kitchen timer. Give yourself seven minutes and try to complete your shower before the egg timer bell goes off. If you are successful, try shaving a minute or two off of your time each week. Eventually, your shower should take no more than 15 seconds. However, if you get soap suds in your eyes on the way to work, you may have to give yourself more time.



5) Dance to the Music. Play a single track on an MP3 player in the bathroom. When the song is over, so is your shower. But, remember it's not fair to play Golden Earring's "Radar Love."


6) Shower with the Dog. You could always try locking your dog in the bathroom with you. If your dog has been sleeping all night and has to go out, he'll let you know. You can probably count on him barking at you within two or three minutes. The thought of your dog using your bathroom as a bathroom should provide extra motivation to get out of the shower and let him out quickly. Make sure you wear a bathrobe when you let your dog out. Otherwise, the PETA protestors outside your door may see you naked.

7) Have Your Spouse Make it Cold. If you have been cheating with these other methods and giving yourself a little too much extra time, you obviously need someone to stage an intervention. Have your spouse sneak in and turn the water to cold after five minutes. Fear can be a powerful motivation to take a quick shower.

8) Keep it Cold. Nothing makes you move quicker in the shower than running out of hot water. If you start your shower cold and keep it cold for the entire shower, you will find yourself showering at a frenetic pace. By using the polar bear alternative, you will be in and out in no time and you'll be sure to take the shortest possible shower.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, showering accounts for about 17 percent of all indoor residential water use. So, if these tips don't work for you, go out and find a low-flow showerhead!

The Importance of Having A Piggy Bank

Almost every child is given a piggy bank for saving change and allowance money.  It helps kids get into the habit of saving money.  However, having a piggy bank is not a bad idea for adults either.  If you throw all of your coin change into a change pot, piggy bank, or coin jar automatically at the end of a day, you will soon accumulate enough money to come in handy.

I find that in just a couple of month, I will accumulate $20 to $40 in change.  That change can come in handy if there is an unforeseen emergency or if you fall a little short in a pay period due to an unexpected expense.  Sometimes a piggy bank can provide enough money to pick up a few groceries and make it to the end of a pay period.   On a more positive note, it can also provide a little extra money for something nice:  a gift or a meal at a restaurant.

Many grocery stores offer change counting machines like CoinStar.  These machines make it convenient to turn your change into dollars.  However, there is a 9 or 10 percent transaction fee.

Managing Credit Cards - Budgeting Your Credit

If you have credit card debt, it can be hard to scrounge up the money you need for an emergency fund.  Financial advisors want you to have enough cash in savings to cover three to six months of expenses.  I want that too.  We all want that kind of financial reserve.  But, in the real world, we all have bills to pay.

One thing that is helpful is to dedicate your credit cards to specified emergency expenses only.  For example, you could pledge to only use your Sears card for car repairs and tires.  Your Visa could be reserved for veterinary bills only.  Then, as you pay down your balances, more and more credit becomes available for emergency use only.

Once you've paid a card way down, you can shift money into savings for that fabled cash reserve.  But, by pledging that your card will only be used for a few purchases, you'll avoid running it up unnecessarily.

Treasure in Junk Mail

Not everything in your junk mail pile is junk.  You can get some good deals.  For example, you can get coupons.

My junk mail regular provides buy one, get one, milkshake deals at Steak and Shake.  You can also get coupons for automotive service and repair.  I usually can find a good discount on an oil change or twenty percent off of any car repair.  These are always good to have in case of a car problem.

I usually ignore the rest of my junk mail, but sometimes neighborhood coupon mailings have good deals at restaurants.  If you have a special occasion coming up, they can be worth saving.

Fuel Yourself: Buy Groceries and Gas First

When you are in a tight pay period, make sure that you buy the fuel you need.  You have to fuel yourself with decent food and you have to fuel your car with gasoline to make t back and forth to work.  Buy these things early in the pay period so that you have enough to get through the week.

Bread for Less Bread: $1 a Loaf

Need to make lunch for the week?  No bread in the pantry?  Hardly any bread in the wallet or purse?  Don't worry!  Dollar Tree has you covered.  They have loaves of bread for only $1.  Yup, you can get some bread for only a dollar!

I generally buy whole wheat Nature's Own Bread there.  It has no high fructose corn syrup.  However, the also usually have Nature's Own white wheat bread and honey wheat bread among other things.  You'll also find some other brands of bread.  They won't be as good as these artisan breads, but you'll be able to make a sandwich!

Photo by Peggy Greb, USDA ARS [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Now, you do have to use a little caution.  Usually, the best buy date on Dollar Tree bread is only a day or two after you buy it.  I usually get one loaf and use it immediately.  Otherwise, I will freeze a loaf in the freezer and thaw it out the night before I need it.

Another place to buy bread cheap is a bakery outlet store.  Most big cities have one. However, they are not always convenient. To be honest, it's been awhile since I've been in one.  The other place I get bread cheap is Publix.  They often have buy one, get one free sales on bread.  If I'm lucky, I can get bread for $2.00 a loaf at Publix.

Of course, if you have the time, you can always save money by baking your own bread at home.

Cheap Summer Snacks - Smores!

If you are looking for a fun and inexpensive treat this summer, try making S'mores at home.  The ingredients are dirt cheap and taste great.

Photo By Codeman125 (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

At Dollar Tree, they have graham crackers for $1 per box.  Dollar Tree also has mini-marshmallows for $1 per bag.  Our local grocery store has bags of chocolate chips for $2 to $3 depending on the brand that you choose.

All you do to make them is crank up your toaster oven to 450 degrees or so.  Take small squares of graham cracker and stack marshmallows and  chocolate chips on them.  Then, put them in the oven for about 5 minutes.  Watch them and you'll see the chocolate chips melt and the marshmallows begin to brown slightly.  Remove them and flip one square onto another so that it looks like a sandwich.  Voila, you've made S'mores!

Make sure your S'mores are cool enough to eat and eat.

Saving Money Around Your Home: Saving Money Behind The Scenes

You can save a lot of money behind the scenes at your home. All you have to do is distinguish between public facing household expenditures and private facing household expenditures.

• Have you ever noticed how the landscaping around your apartment complex is nicest at the entrance and near the demo units? 
• Have you noticed how the buildings often have a brick facade in the front, but cheap vinyl siding around back? 

It's not surprising. Businesses want to put their best foot forward towards potential customers. However, they control costs by saving money behind the scenes in less visible areas. In your life, you can do the exact same thing.
When you examine your personal spending, you can also spend more money to put your best foot forward and less money on private facing behind the scenes expenses. When it comes to spending money on your home, it makes sense to buy nice comfortable furniture. You'll use it every day and guests will see it. However. no rational person will ever judge you by the brand of toilet cleaner you use. That is one reason that I like to buy basic cleaning supplies and cleaners at dollar stores like Dollar Tree. There is only one caveat: each product has to work.

No one can see and no one would care that we use a wide variety of Dollar Tree toilet cleaners, glass cleaners, multi-surface cleaners, and dish washing soaps. We also like Dollar store scrub brushes and sponges. If we use a national brand name product, we use it because it has proven itself to work better on an important function than any generic substitute. For example, when funds are tight, we will use Sunlight brand dish washing detergent from Dollar Tree. But, when funds are available, we prefer to use Cascade because the results are visibly better. Similarly, we've tried various store brand laundry detergents, but we usually return to Tide.

Behind the scenes in our home, we use Ajax dish washing soap from Dollar Tree on the few pots and pans that need to be hand washed. For kitchen counter and table surfaces, Dollar Tree offers Spic and Span Multi-Surface cleaner. In the bathrooms, we use Dollar Tree's Jonny Fresh toilet bowl cleaner and Home Store Bathroom Cleaner. The Home Store Bathroom Cleaner is a close substitute for Scrubbing Bubbles. We even use Dollar Tree toilet paper. When we are done, we use SoftSoap hand soap from Dollar Tree. If it is allergy season, we use Scott brand tissues from our Dollar Tree, too. Unless they read this article or snoop beneath the counters, people visiting our apartment won't know what brands of cleaners we use or where we got them. However, my wife and I can predict our budget for cleaning products because everything is $1.


Dollar Tree is great for controlling your cash flow with predictable pricing. However, if you have more storage space or a larger family, you may achieve better savings on a cost-per-unit basis by making bulk purchases from a warehouse store. The key is to minimize your spending on basic behind-the-scenes household supplies that aren't visible to the public. Even when you go out in public, no one will know that you used Barbasol shaving cream from Dollar Tree.

Dirt Cheap Hobbies: Darts

The Inexpensive Sport and Pastime of Throwing Darts or "Darting"

If you are looking for a cheap way to pass the time, you might try the traditional bar game of darts. The entry costs (at home) are low as all you need to get started is some darts, a dart board, a wall, and about ten to twelve feet of open space. According to a study cited by the American Dart Association, nearly 10 million Americans play darts on a regular basis.

DART EQUIPMENT

There is something very satisfying about having your own set of darts for use in competition at home or in a league. They typically come in a nice leather case with three darts and one or more sets of colorful flights. The flights are the fins that stabilize the dart as it flies towards the dartboard. Dart sets can start for as low as $10. For example, amazon.com was recently selling Fat Cat Copper Steel Tip Darts, 23 Grams at an inexpensive sale price. These entry level darts even come with extra shafts and a carrying case. Some "darters" will pay more for various precision darts. But, as long as your darts are in good shape, the sport is really about developing a repeatable throwing skill. There are two kinds of darts: soft tip and steel tip. The soft-tip darts work with electronic dart boards while the steel-tip darts work with traditional bristle boards.

DART GAMES AND RULES

There are many games that you can play with darts, but two dart games are the most popular 301 and Cricket.

301. In 301, each player starts with 301 points on the board and subtracts each point scored by throwing one to three darts. The first person to reach exactly 0 points wins. If a player's score would bring him or her below 0, then the player has "busted" and reverts back to the score he or she had at the end of prior turn. The same game can be played with electronic darts, but then it is called '501.'
Cricket. In the game of cricket, the object of the game is for a player to hit each number on the dart board three times. A player can get a single, double, or triple for each dart thrown. According to American Dart League rules, " Additional marks on a closed number will score points if the opponent is still open on that number." To win the game, you have to close out all the numbers and the bulls-eye. If both players close out on the same turn, the player with the highest score wins.

Most games are played on a standard English dart board. However, there are alternative dart boards and alternative dart games.

DART LEAGUES

There are three national governing bodies that set rules for darts and govern dart leagues: the American Darts Organization, the National Dart Association, and the American Darters Association. The American Dart League The National Dart League governs soft-tip darts. The American Darts Organization is affiliated with the World Dart Federation. The American Darters Association is a for-profit association that works with businesses to promote darting and dart tournaments. Of course, your journey into organized darting can start with a simple internet search for dart leagues in your area.


Sources:
Amazon.com
American Dart League
American Darters Association
The National Dart Association
American Darts Organization

Transcending Your Stuff - Adopting a Minimalist Lifestyle

One of my favorite lines from the classic movie, Cool Hand Luke, is said by the prisoner Luke after he bluffs his way to victory in a card game.

Dragline:  Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me - with nothin'.
Luke:  Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
(IMDB Movie Database Cool Hand Luke Quotes 

It's a pretty deep line.  Sometimes, the world deals you a pretty bad hand.  But, no one says how you have to play the game.

What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate scene - Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke

 You can rebel.  One way that some folks rebel is by adopting a minimalist lifestyle.  They intentionally rid themselves of excess stuff and adopt a lifestyle of owning only the material possessions they feel add value to their lives.

It's an interesting thought.  In a world that often judges success by who has the most toys, choosing not to play is an interesting alternative.  Minimalists save a lot of money and avoid a lot of debt by simply NOT buying a bunch of stuff.

For an interesting blog on the subject, check out The Minimalists.

The bloggers, Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemu, walk the walk and live with a minimum of personal possessions.  They find that it frees them to do more and live in a manner that they want to live.

They've written an interesting book that is available on Amazon.

Dirt Cheap Hobbies - Birdwatching (or Birding)

Even if you are flat broke, it's important to have hobbies, interests, and passions.  It's important to maintain them to relieve stress.  Unfortunately, many hobbies require expensive equipment.  However, one hobby is practically free - Birdwatching.  Some serious hobbyists call it birding.  No matter what you call it watching birds is cheap.  To learn more, here is the run down on what you need to get started on the cheap:

Dirt Cheap Hobbies - Birding

You can spend hours looking at birds, taking notes on their behavior, and checking them off of your list of birds that are native to your area.  If you have a camera with a zoom you can take pictures of them.  If you have a few crumbs or just a few dollars for birdseed, you can feed them.  You can improve your environment buy setting up a birdbath or making sure that plants grow to sustain your local bird population.  But, best of all, these things cost little or no money.

Here is a basic pair of binoculars to get started:

Conquering Negative Self-Talk - Building Self-Confidence with Affirmations

Being broke is a pretty negative feeling.  You don't have the money you need to do things to feel good about your self.  When negative things happen to you and you dwell on them and beat yourself up about them, you are talking yourself into a negative self-image and diminished self-confidence.  It can lead to a defeatist attitude and a spiral of self-doubt. 
 

But, you can break out of that vicious cycle of negative self-talk.  No matter what your economic status may be, you have skills, experience, and value as a human being.  Of course, when you're broke you sometimes need a little pep talk to remind you of these facts.  You need a little something to boost your self-confidence.  You need that self-confidence to go out and make things happen for you in the world.

You need to build a vision of yourself as a successful, confident, person by using a creative visualization technique called affirmations.  You're good enough, your smart enough, and people like you.  Read this article to learn more --

How to Build Self-Confidence Using Affirmations

Saving on Fast Food - Just The Burger Please

Fast food restaurants are always trying to increase the average ticket price.  They want to sell more food to each customer and get more revenue.  But, you can subvert their efforts.  You can bring your own beverages and you can bring your own side item.  For example, if you bring your own chips and a soda or a bottle of water, then all you need is the burger.  That saves money. 


If you are on a diet, you can also save calories.  A couple that uses this strategy might spend $6 to $8 at a fast food window instead of $12 to $15.  If you stick to the value menu, you could save even more.
 

By Ildar Sagdejev (Specious) (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

If you want more than a burger, Steak-n-Shake has lots of meal deals that omit a drink and cost only $3.99.  That makes your fast food costs predictable and affordable!  Plus, you get fries!

Saving Money with Receipts!

Everyone knows that fast food restaurants provide the most food for your money outside of the grocery store.  You can eat pretty well as a McDonald's "Dollar Menu-aire."  You don't want to eat McDonald's every day, but in a pinch they will do.

I think the Quarter Pounder is called the Royale with Cheese in France

 

Lately, I've been noticing customer satisfaction surveys on the back of fast food sales receipts.  If you take the survey, McDonalds gives you a code to turn your receipt into a coupon.  Currently, McDonald's offers "buy one, get one free" on Quarter Pounders or Egg McMuffins.  If you bring your own bottle of water, you can eat really well or serve two people for the price of one.  It's just one more trick for eating cheap.




Photo by:  Fritz Saalfeld (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

Selling Stuff

When times are tight, you may have to sell some of your stuff.  It can be hard to part with treasured possessions.  But, you have to meet your financial obligations, you have to eat, and you have to have gas or bus fare to get to work.  The key thing to remember is that it is "just stuff."

When you need to sell some of your personal possessions, you can sell them at consignment shops, on ebay, in garage sales, or via craigslist.  If you have firearms, you can sell them at a gun shop.  Sporting goods can go to Play It Again Sports. Each route to market has drawbacks.  Consignment shops sometimes take a large percentage of the proceeds from your sale and can be a slow way to get your money.  Pawn shops can low ball you on the price.  EBay can nickel and dime you with small fees that make it unprofitable to sell low cost items.  Craigslist respondents may show up to rob you.


Despite all that, each way of selling can provide you with some money when you need it most.  They all have ways in which they also make selling convenient.  For example, if you sell a gun through a gunshop, you don't have to deal with convicted felons who are trying to buy a gun on the black market.  The gun shop will run a background check on any future purchaser of your firearm.

It's no fun selling stuff when you need cash.  It's more fun to sell when you don't need cash, but want some for a splurge.  But, no matter what, just remember that anything you sell is "just stuff" and you can't take it with you.  Also remember to counter any offer from a pawn shop with a slightly higher amount.  You might get an extra $20 out of the deal.  If you feel bad about selling your stuff, just go look around in Goodwill.  Everything that your grandmother's generation once prized will be on the shelves for about $2.00 per item.

Dollar Tree Cleaner Review: Spic and Span Forest Fresh Multi-Surface Cleaner Spray

For this post, I put Spic and Span Multi-Surface Cleaner spray to the test.  I'm a big advocate of using dollar store cleaning products whenever possible.  To put it plainly, most people don't see the brand name of your kitchen cleaner.  So, if you are going to save money, you can save it behind the scenes at home without suffering any social stigma from wearing cheap clothing or brown bagging your lunch.

To test Spic and Span, I just took one look at the filthy balcony railings at our apartment.  They were absolutely nasty with at least three years worth of pollen, bird droppings, pine tar, and probably pollutants from a nearby highway.  They were positively black.  I simply sprayed the railings with Spic and Span Forest Fresh Multi-Surface Spray Cleaner from Dollar Tree and wiped it up with paper towels a few seconds later.

Spic and Spain Forest Fresh Multi-Surface Cleaner Defeats Dirt and Grime

Here is a picture of a section of railing before I cleaned it using Spic and Span.  It is very filthy.  I couldn't rest my hands, a coffee cup, binoculars, or a camera out on that railing in it's untouched condition.  That's at least three years worth of nasty dirt on the railing.

Dirty Apartment Balcony Railing Before Spic and Span

Much Cleaner After Using Spic and Span

 To conquer the railing, I just sprayed the cleaner liberally and wiped it up with a paper towel after a few seconds.  I didn't have to use a lot of elbow grease.  The cleaner did most of the work.

The Railing Is So Clean It Actually Shines!

For a one dollar bottle of cleaner, my results were impressive.  The cleaner worked well and smelled good.  I heartily recommend Spic and Span cleaners from Dollar Tree.  They are a dollar well spent!

If you want to save money on other cleaning supplies, check these Spring Savings Deals out through April 29th on Amazon:

How to Survive a Tight Pay Period

Sometimes you just know that it is going to be a really tight pay period.  When it's a tight pay period, you've got to make every dollar count.  Don't panic.  Here's what I think you have to do:

1.  Figure out how much money you will have.
2.  Figure out how much you need to live.  You have to eat.  You have to have money for food.  You have to have money for gas or bus fare to get to work.
3.  Subtract your living expenses from you available money.  The money you have left can be used for bills.

When it comes to paying bills, you'll need to keep a roof over your head and pay your utilities.  Then, you can attack the credit cards and other bills.  If your money is going to be tight, just make the minimum payments.

When you are done paying bills, go put gas in your car and get some groceries.  When you get groceries, be sure to buy cheap foods that will help you get through the pay period.  For example, toaster waffles are cheap.  You can have them for breakfast with peanut butter.  For more examples read my article -

Five Super Cheap Foods for a Recession 

Good luck!  You can make it!  We have for too many tight pay periods.

How to Save Money on Magazines

Have you ever perused the magazine rack in a grocery store, found a weighty magazine, and then discovered that it costs $9.99 or even $12.95.  It's possible to spend $60 and walk out with only a half-dozen periodicals.  if you are on a tight budget, that's not cool at all.

Here are a few ways to save money on magazines:

1.  Subscribe.  If you subscribe to magazines, you'll save a lot of money over the newstand price.  Sometimes you can get a whole year of a magazine for $10 or $12.  To save money right now, you can easily subscribe to Amazon magazines and handle your whole subscription process online without those annoying little insert cards.

2.  Use the Public Library.  Magazines at the library can be read for free.  You'll also find music on CDs, movies on DVDs, and plenty of books.  All of these resources are cheaper than magazines, bookstores, or Netflix.

3.  Read on the Web.  Lots of magazine content is available online.  Plus, there are plenty of bloggers who are writing magazine-like articles.  It's all free with your web connection.

Need to Make Extra Money? Try Rewarder.com

Do you need to make a little extra money?  I just found out about a new service called Rewarder.  Rewarder members offer small cash rewards for answering questions.  From what I've seen, rewards are typically $2 to $8 or so.  You may be able to answer many questions simply based on your own life experience.  However, only the best answer wins a reward so it is a little competitive.  Still, you can answer many questions quickly and it might be worth your time.

To sign up, simply follow this referral to Rewarder.com

So far, I've picked up  a few extra dollars using this site.  Good luck!

Slow Down the Velocity of Your Money and Slow Down Your Spending

According to Investopedia, the "Velocity of Money" is defined as -

The rate at which money is exchanged from one transaction to another, and how much a unit of currency is used in a given period of time. Velocity of money is usually measured as a ratio of GNP to a country's total supply of money. 

 

It's a term that I remember from Economics 101 -- a valuable course that continues to help me explain being perpetually broke.  While the velocity of money is an obscure term that economists use to measure how quickly money is being circulated in an economy and the health of an economy, I just think about slowing down the rate at which money leaves my personal bank account.

 

 Do we really have to spend our money so fast?  If you put off a purchase until tomorrow, then your money gets to stay in the bank for another day.  Tomorrow, you might not still want to make that purchase or an emergency might crop up and divert that money to a more important end.  My thought is that if you can keep postponing purchases, some of the money might not ever leave your account.  You might even save some money.

Every pay period, we pay our bills and try to live on the meager amount that is left.  Every day that money is in the account and is unspent is a day that we aren't broke.  Every day that we don't spend puts off the day that we have to rely on a credit card or a line of credit.

The moral of this story:  Don't buy today what you can buy tomorrow or next week or next month or never.

Cutting Back on Expenses

In America, it is hard to cut back on expenses and save money.  We are constantly bombarded by commercial marketing messages and we constantly see seemingly affluent people sporting the latest gadgets and driving the latest cars.  When you try to keep up, you can easily find yourself on a never ending treadmill of purchases and payments.

Fortunately, we are not alone.  There are plenty of Americans who are trying to forego silly spending, retire debt, build up retirement nest eggs, and build wealth.  I recently read a good article on Yahoo Contributor's Network by Damon Malcom who outlines ways to cut spending and build wealth:

6 Ways to Cut Back on Spending and Save Money

Saving Money on Exercise and Fitness Equipment

Happy New Year!  The "eating season" is over!  Now, it's time to get serious about all those weight loss New Year's Resolutions.  Of course, it can be tough to buy a gym membership or outfit a home gym when you are paying down Christmas bills. 

Fortunately, there is an alternative.  I should probably call it "Thrifter-cize!" You can find everything you need second-hand at your local thrift store!

Every exercise fad eventually ends up at the thrift store.  All you have to do is go down to your local Goodwill and dig the second-hand fitness gear out:

Low Price Exercise and Fitness Equipment to Find at Thrift Stores

Remember the Ab Rider?

Here is a Weight Stand

Get on the Ball and Start Exercising!

Equipment and gear won't stand in your way this year!  Grab what you need and start exercising!