"A pretentious, showy life is an empty life; a plain and simple life is a full life"
Proverbs 13:7 (translation from The Purpose Driven Life)
In honor of this passage and my current life experience as a minimalist (not to mention a woman without an income), I thought I would share this article that I read in Mother Earth News while standing in line at MOM's Organic Market. I am not going to publish all of his ideas, because there are 75 of them, but will publish ones that I myself (or one of my dear family/friends) do and can testify work!
Read entire article on: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/2007-10-01/Live-on-Less.aspx
My sidenotes are in pink!
On paper, my wife and I are poor. How poor? In 2005 we made $4,303.84 combined; in 2004 we made half that. We’re in such a low tax bracket that I have trouble convincing the government of our tax return’s accuracy; they simply can’t believe Americans can live on that kind of money
Yet in many ways, we’re better off than a Wall Street banker: We’ve saved enough money to buy land without a mortgage, we have no credit cards or monthly bills, I work 20 flexible hours a week from home, and my daughter has two stay-at-home parents.
Simply put, we never want for anything, and we have a lot of fun.
We’ve arrived where we are now through a decade of daily financial decisions. Because we didn’t want to spend our time earning money at jobs we didn’t like, we instead focused on how to stretch our money. We found that by controlling our day-to-day expenses, we could save a lot of money without sacrificing our quality of life. Neither my wife nor I will ever be confused for financial wizards; there’s nothing we’ve done that you can’t do if you’re serious about saving money. Here are 75 money-saving tips to consider, drawn from our own experiences. Find what works for you and enjoy living on less!
1. Buy raw ingredients instead of prepackaged foods. If you don’t know how to cook, learn. You’ll save on food bills, and your body will thank you for it in the long run.
2. Buy in bulk from a local health food store, or place bulk orders directly with mail-order companies. If you can’t meet their minimum order size, go in on an order with another family, or organize a larger food buying club.
4. Eat fruits and vegetables in season, when they are least expensive. (Once, we found organic watermelon for three cents a pound!) Stock up when they’re cheap and freeze or can any excess for later use.
5. Keep up with what’s in your refrigerator and make sure nothing spoils. Once a week, make soup or casseroles to use up vegetables and other leftovers.
7. Don’t overeat. When you do, you’re flushing money down the drain. (I try this one esp. while at a restaurant - left overs rock, but when you only have that little bit left on your plate it feels purposeless)
26. Unplug any unused electric items with lights, clocks or timers. They use an amazing amount of power just sitting there. You can plug multiple items into one power strip to make shutting them all off faster. (Mike is BIG on this)
37. When buying new, choose high-quality, durable items. It’s often cheaper to spend more upfront if you won’t have to replace the item in the near future.
41. Try sewing. Look for cheap material in thrift stores, or try reincarnating your outfits into something new (I have a few friends that do this and make such hot items out of $3.00 vintage pieces)
45. Do preventive maintenance on your body. Exercise and eat well. Try yoga to reduce stress. Quit smoking.
46. Campaign for a national health care system!
54. Rediscover the radical notion of the library. Imagine Internet access and thousands of books, CDs and DVDs for free!
55. Volunteer to usher for concerts, plays and other events. (I haven’t paid for a play in years.) (My grandparents did this for years and loved it, they saw everything they wanted to. Mike and I recently started doing this - our biggest bargain we went to a posh $200/ticket event for free! He was bartender/valet and I was a chef assistant and mover)
56. Find low-cost fun in your local paper. Take full advantage of free concerts, events and movies. (Groupon, Washington Post Going Out Guide, etc. all come to my phone)
58. Take turns entertaining with friends holding parties, potlucks or music nights.
67. Buy food at local supermarkets when traveling. It’s much cheaper than eating at restaurants. (my mom is awesome at this - she can make any hotel room feel like home)
68. Choose a vehicle with fold-down seats if you’re renting a car or truck. Find a safe place to sleep for the night, and you have instant, snug lodging. (My uncle Todd and Aunt Renee used to do this at the beach and had the best times of their lives - I definitely can't wait to try - God knows that Mike and I've beached out all day and used the car as our changing area and the woods as our restroom)
73. Give homemade gift certificates for a home-cooked dinner, massage or babysitting time. (Love this idea - Christmas gifts for loved ones!)
MY OWN TIPS: I cannot help, but put a plug in for Mama Stone and her coupon cutting. She saves so much money it's ridiculous. She is either using coupons or shopping in bulk. It's no joke.
P.S.S. REITERATION - COOK AT HOME. Boy, eating out is expensive and many times you are eating unidentifiable stuff (even if it's "healthy" food) - like what's really in that cream sauce? So when you think of sicknesses and expenses - eating at home is such a better bang for your buck.
P.S.S.S Go shopping in your closet - start to put together new outfits with your clothes - I know sometimes I get a shopping bug, but find simply scavenging through my closet and combining different clothes items together gets me just as excited. Also try going to Target and grabbing some clothing tape and start playing with the shape of your clothes, tie die white shirts, and cut boring jeans into shorts. It's old school but such a fun revamp.
P.S.S.S Ride a bike or walk to local places - no need to drive EVERYWHERE! Gas prices are no joke.
Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/2007-10-01/Live-on-Less.aspx?page=5#ixzz1OXviya00
In honor of this passage and my current life experience as a minimalist (not to mention a woman without an income), I thought I would share this article that I read in Mother Earth News while standing in line at MOM's Organic Market. I am not going to publish all of his ideas, because there are 75 of them, but will publish ones that I myself (or one of my dear family/friends) do and can testify work!
Read entire article on: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/2007-10-01/Live-on-Less.aspx
My sidenotes are in pink!
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If you live in a forested area, cut your energy costs by heating with wood. And wherever you live, never skimp on insulation — you’ll save money and energy.
BRIAN ORR
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On paper, my wife and I are poor. How poor? In 2005 we made $4,303.84 combined; in 2004 we made half that. We’re in such a low tax bracket that I have trouble convincing the government of our tax return’s accuracy; they simply can’t believe Americans can live on that kind of money
Yet in many ways, we’re better off than a Wall Street banker: We’ve saved enough money to buy land without a mortgage, we have no credit cards or monthly bills, I work 20 flexible hours a week from home, and my daughter has two stay-at-home parents.
Simply put, we never want for anything, and we have a lot of fun.
We’ve arrived where we are now through a decade of daily financial decisions. Because we didn’t want to spend our time earning money at jobs we didn’t like, we instead focused on how to stretch our money. We found that by controlling our day-to-day expenses, we could save a lot of money without sacrificing our quality of life. Neither my wife nor I will ever be confused for financial wizards; there’s nothing we’ve done that you can’t do if you’re serious about saving money. Here are 75 money-saving tips to consider, drawn from our own experiences. Find what works for you and enjoy living on less!
1. Buy raw ingredients instead of prepackaged foods. If you don’t know how to cook, learn. You’ll save on food bills, and your body will thank you for it in the long run.
2. Buy in bulk from a local health food store, or place bulk orders directly with mail-order companies. If you can’t meet their minimum order size, go in on an order with another family, or organize a larger food buying club.
4. Eat fruits and vegetables in season, when they are least expensive. (Once, we found organic watermelon for three cents a pound!) Stock up when they’re cheap and freeze or can any excess for later use.
5. Keep up with what’s in your refrigerator and make sure nothing spoils. Once a week, make soup or casseroles to use up vegetables and other leftovers.
7. Don’t overeat. When you do, you’re flushing money down the drain. (I try this one esp. while at a restaurant - left overs rock, but when you only have that little bit left on your plate it feels purposeless)
26. Unplug any unused electric items with lights, clocks or timers. They use an amazing amount of power just sitting there. You can plug multiple items into one power strip to make shutting them all off faster. (Mike is BIG on this)
37. When buying new, choose high-quality, durable items. It’s often cheaper to spend more upfront if you won’t have to replace the item in the near future.
41. Try sewing. Look for cheap material in thrift stores, or try reincarnating your outfits into something new (I have a few friends that do this and make such hot items out of $3.00 vintage pieces)
45. Do preventive maintenance on your body. Exercise and eat well. Try yoga to reduce stress. Quit smoking.
46. Campaign for a national health care system!
54. Rediscover the radical notion of the library. Imagine Internet access and thousands of books, CDs and DVDs for free!
55. Volunteer to usher for concerts, plays and other events. (I haven’t paid for a play in years.) (My grandparents did this for years and loved it, they saw everything they wanted to. Mike and I recently started doing this - our biggest bargain we went to a posh $200/ticket event for free! He was bartender/valet and I was a chef assistant and mover)
56. Find low-cost fun in your local paper. Take full advantage of free concerts, events and movies. (Groupon, Washington Post Going Out Guide, etc. all come to my phone)
58. Take turns entertaining with friends holding parties, potlucks or music nights.
67. Buy food at local supermarkets when traveling. It’s much cheaper than eating at restaurants. (my mom is awesome at this - she can make any hotel room feel like home)
68. Choose a vehicle with fold-down seats if you’re renting a car or truck. Find a safe place to sleep for the night, and you have instant, snug lodging. (My uncle Todd and Aunt Renee used to do this at the beach and had the best times of their lives - I definitely can't wait to try - God knows that Mike and I've beached out all day and used the car as our changing area and the woods as our restroom)
73. Give homemade gift certificates for a home-cooked dinner, massage or babysitting time. (Love this idea - Christmas gifts for loved ones!)
MY OWN TIPS: I cannot help, but put a plug in for Mama Stone and her coupon cutting. She saves so much money it's ridiculous. She is either using coupons or shopping in bulk. It's no joke.
P.S.S. REITERATION - COOK AT HOME. Boy, eating out is expensive and many times you are eating unidentifiable stuff (even if it's "healthy" food) - like what's really in that cream sauce? So when you think of sicknesses and expenses - eating at home is such a better bang for your buck.
P.S.S.S Go shopping in your closet - start to put together new outfits with your clothes - I know sometimes I get a shopping bug, but find simply scavenging through my closet and combining different clothes items together gets me just as excited. Also try going to Target and grabbing some clothing tape and start playing with the shape of your clothes, tie die white shirts, and cut boring jeans into shorts. It's old school but such a fun revamp.
P.S.S.S Ride a bike or walk to local places - no need to drive EVERYWHERE! Gas prices are no joke.
Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/2007-10-01/Live-on-Less.aspx?page=5#ixzz1OXviya00
