I’m
not sure what’s more painful, the surgery (which is plenty painful!) or the
cost. Medical costs, even with
insurance, are insanely expensive.
I’m
not sure how 20 minutes of anesthesia can cost over $500, or how the physical,
x-rays, anesthesia and extraction of four wisdom teeth can carry a cost of
approximately $2500.
I’m
happy to have some insurance coverage, but as a part-time employee, I must
cover more of the out-of-pocket expenses on my own.
Yes…yes…so
grateful to have any medical insurance, but very frustrated to have to pay so
much money for medical coverage.
Ah…perhaps a topic for another blog entry.
Garage
Sales
I
love garage sales. I happen to live in
an area where garage sale-ing is almost a religious practice. From late spring time through the end of
October, every Friday, Saturday and some Sundays, one can find a plethora of
garage sales.
There
are many people who go to garage sales as, or for their livelihood. They are freelance buyers of “collectables”
and are in the search mode for that "je ne
sais quoi" thing they can put on EBay for $400 million. We’ve happened
on a couple of things that we’ve been able to make a little money from, but it
isn’t as though we were really looking for something to buy and resell.
Maybe we’re all a bit nosy – there is something kind of fun
about going through somebody else’s junk…even if it’s just to say “Oh I have (or had) that exact
such-and-such…!”
Aside from that garage sales are a great way to both get rid of
things you no longer want and need and to find bargain treasures. We’ve had numerous garage sales and have used
them as a means of fund raising. I think
having a collective garage sale, where friends and/or neighbors come together
in one location with their “stuff” is a great way to celebrate community, a
great way to put everyone’s treasures in one spot and enjoy the outcome (both
in a monetary and community spirit sense).
From
Garage Sales to Gardening
Yet
another way to nurture community and self.
There is nothing more rewarding than planting a garden and both
figuratively and literally reaping the benefits. Not to mention all the money you can save
from growing your own food!
When
we think of gardening, we might conjure up different images and words, such as:
vegetable gardening, space, soil, seeds/bulbs, effort, tools, etc.
Gardens
can be about veggies, or herbs, or flowers, or hops; while you need space, you
don’t need much; soil is an important factor, as are seeds, starts or bulbs;
yes there’s effort and there’s tremendous rewards; yes – some tools are
necessary, but mostly it’s about the human effort.
Recent
studies have shown both the emotional and physical benefits of gardening:
http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/07/08/why.gardening.good/index.html
Not
to mention all the wonderful health and environmental benefits!!
My
favorite story about gardening is the story of Ron Finley and his tactics at
“guerilla gardening” in South Central Los Angeles:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzZzZ_qpZ4w
And
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the unique and beautiful Woodbury, New Jersey
Community Garden, conceived and founded by my sister in 2005.
http://www.woodbury.nj.us/recreation/community-garden/
Going local may not, on the surface, seem related to living within one’s means. But it can, and furthermore allows for community involvement and interface. Going local can mean trading, bartering, supporting one another and feeling part of community. The Center for New American Dream has put out a great Guide to Going Local:
When I think of “generic” I think of something either not protected by trademark (such as “cola” versus “Coke”) or a product packaged without a brand. Buying generic is a great way to save money, especially when it comes to medicines.
We’re
huge Trader Joe fans and just about all the non-perishable food items we buy
there are the generic “TJ” brand. To
learn more about which items you might wish to consider buying generic:
And the final “G”…is “NOT GET RICH QUICK”.
As I began to write this blog “Living on Golden Shoestring” about doing a lot with a little (money) a reader had mentioned ideas about earning more money. Granted, earning more money is always an option and since beginning this blog, our income has increased -- not substantially, but it has increased. However, at the same time, we have more expenses forth coming and that seems to be the way it is. Earn more…spend more.
I
want to emphasize the point that as alluring as it sounds to make “X” amount of
money doing something that seem effortless, I advise walking away from it. I’ve tried a couple of times to get involved
with business opportunities that seemed very real. Except that not only did it NOT work for me,
it also never felt right for me.
Granted,
I’m not a sales type of person. I loathe
giving a sales pitch on some particular product or service, just for the sake
of selling (earning a commission). I absolutely hate it when someone tries to
hard sell me on anything. I like to take
my time…do my research…mull it over…read reviews…compare prices. So naturally I want to afford that same
process to others.
That’s
not to say that I wouldn’t mind earning more money…but it has to be something
that feels right to me. For me, there
are a lot of ethical considerations. If
I am earning a salary, or involved in a business prospect, it has to meet the
criteria of sustainability. What this
means for me is that it has to be good for the Planet, it has to be good
for the well-being of People, and Profits derived have to benefit
the majority.
----------------------------
Next
week we have company, so I’ll be taking the week off from writing a blog
entry. The following week I’ll tackle
“H” for handmade, homemade, hand me downs, helping hands...
It's time for a
disclaimer:
I’m not a financial
planner, nor am I a business guru. What I am is a very practical person with
(as my mother always said) “a good head on her shoulders”. I have good common
sense and am old enough to trust my inner core and follow my instincts.
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