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By Penny, January 29, 2010 6:02 am

Here's a picture of something I've been saving for: a spinning wheel. Though I'd rather have a pretty version. What can I say? I'm shallow.

During the holiday season, we are inundated with cries to spend money.  The easier ones to ignore are the advertisements on television and in print.  However, the big, waiflike eyes asking you to buy just one thing from their fundraiser are harder to turn aside. Here’s how I manage to escape the pressure:

1. 1.       Think of your priorities.  Really consider why you are saving/conserving money.  Is buying that overpriced box of mediocre chocolates in keeping with your goals or values?
2. 2.       Be honest. Most people can appreciate goals for savings, even children.  Just say why it is that you can’t or won’t spend.  I try to buy only local foods, so most of the fundraising products are not in keeping with my values.
3. 3.       Rehearse your rejection answer.  Have a stock answer as to why you can’t.  I give the answer “I’m saving for a farm” anytime a student asks me to purchase for a fundraiser.  If you are prepared, you won’t be caught off-guard.  It makes it easier to say no when you can quickly articulate why.
4. 4.       Or just practice the art of “no.” Honestly, it’s no one’s business why you can’t spend money. These days, I generally just say no to people and leave it at that.  At first, I felt uneasy about it, but I realized that most people don’t push you beyond that. If they do push, I explain that I’m largely supporting us while my husband goes to college.  Generally, that is enough for even the most pushy of folks.
5. 5.       Give yourself permission to decline. It’s okay if you don’t want to participate, really! It’s your money and no one else has a right to it.  At my school, I belong to two different departments, each of which wanted to do a “secret Santa” exchange. I declined to participate in either because I know that I can’t afford to spend $20 on someone I barely know. Heck, I don’t even spend that much on family members, because they get homemade treats.

Only you know your financial goals and status.  You need to make decisions that are right for you and your family, not your coworkers or neighbors. Gifts should be given with a free heart, not out of a misplaced sense of obligation.

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By Penny, January 27, 2010 6:09 am

Sure, it ain't pretty, but it's pretty easy to amuse yourself... especially if you have a digital camera and aren't afraid to use it

In today’s economic climate, people need to find ways to entertain themselves on the cheap.  Frugal entertainment largely involves staying at home and being creative.  Here are just a few suggestions:

1. 1.       Invite people for dinner. You don’t have to make anything fancy.  It’s about enjoying the company of others.  Using a slow cooker would allow you to prepare the meal ahead of time.
2. 2.       Play games.  Invest in some board games that you like to play.  Scrabble and Sorry! are popular in our house. Just be warned, you might spend a lot of time with rematches.
3. 3.       Learn to play cards.  A quick, internet search with yield the rules to almost any card game.  Just print out the game you wish to play and get started.  I recommend Rummy as a starting point for beginners.
4. 4.       Watch movies at home.  Instead of going to the movie theater and spending a small fortune, make popcorn and watch a movie.  You can get movies for free from the library or just watch a movie you already own.  Forgoing cable, my husband and I spend $10 a month for Netflix, watching movies that aren’t available at the library.
5. 5.       Take up a hobby.  If you don’t already have a hobby, I suggest getting one. Be careful, though, because hobbies can become expensive.  Fishing is something we enjoy, but all the accoutrements can get out of hand, if you’re not careful. Hobbies which produce something, like quilting, knitting, or woodworking, can be a better investment of time, since they will result in a product that can be used for gifts or for making your home beautiful.
6. 6.       Read. I know it’s out of fashion, but learn to enjoy reading.  Through interlibrary loan, you can borrow about any book you’d like.  If you don’t care for fiction, choose to read about a topic that interests you.
7. 7.       Cook.   If you have the time, testing new recipes can be fun and a good use of time.  You could try to make sourdough bread or even mozzarella cheese.
8. 8.       Take a walk.  Walking around your neighborhood is a free activity that can offer a lot of entertainment.  Plus, you can get exercise while having good conversation.  Our dogs love going for walks, even if it’s just down the street.

While this is hardly a comprehensive list, I hope that these suggestions will stimulate your creativity.  The best advice I can give you is to quit expecting to be entertained.  All the entertainment you need can generally be found near or within your own home.  Use your time to enjoy your loved ones instead of to distract yourself from them.

Do you have any suggestions for entertainment for cheap?

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By Penny, January 26, 2010 5:37 am

Here's the final product in the pan.

Eating from the pantry, a la LifeasMom, does not need to be a misadventure in taste.  As far as I know, I just created this recipe.  We had leftover ham and a lot of whole wheat lasagna noodles.  I decided to try a ham and cheese lasagna.  Here’s the recipe:

Ham and Cheese Lasagna

Cheese Sauce (see below)

1 to 2 cups of ham pieces

1 to 2 cups of peas

1 cup of shredded cheese, cheddar or Monterey Jack.

10-12 cooked lasagna noodles

breadcrumbs (optional)

To the sauce, add ham pieces and peas. Layer three or four lasagna noodles on the bottom of your 9×13 pan. Cover with a layer of the ham and cheese mixture. Repeat layers until the pan is full.  Cover the top with the cheese and then sprinkle breadcrumbs over that, if desired.  Bake at 350 degrees until everything is hot and the cheese is melted. 

Sauce:

1/2 cup of fat (I used 1/4 cup butter and a 1/4 cup lard)

1/2 cup of whole wheat flour

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 onion, chopped

4 cups of milk

1 cup of cheddar or Monterey Jack, shredded

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

In a large saucepan, melt the fat at medium heat.  Sauté the onions and garlic until soft.  Stir in the flour until a thick paste is created.  Add the milk, stirring constantly.  Add the cheese, salt and pepper.  Keep stirring until cheese is completely melted.

This recipe can be quite flexible and even made under financial or other emergency,  using powdered milk and canned versions of the veggies. I imagine that this recipe would be just as tasty if you used bacon instead of ham. Then, you could call it a Loaded, Baked Potato Lasagna.  It’s all about good publicity, you know.

I probably should have waited to cut it to make a better picture, but look at that! Who could have waited?!?

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By Penny, January 25, 2010 6:09 am

The friend who borrowed the money brought two thirds of it back.  He did not end up needing all of it, so he brought what he hadn’t spent back.  Interestingly, the reason he cited for bring it back was that he didn’t want to trust himself to come up with the entire sum. He seems to know himself well enough to figure out how to do damage control. While I desperately want to help them with the budgeting aspect, there is really little I can do, other than recommend books or websites. I will offer them suggestions when they ask, but I will really endeavor NOT to give advice unless asked.  It’s terribly hard, though, when there are so many things they could change if they so chose.  However, ultimately, it’s none of my business, and I will try not to be a busybody.  This resolution applies to other folks as well.  Today, I learned that other people may surprise you when you’re thinking the worst.

Comments (2)

By Penny, January 22, 2010 4:45 am

(I posted about this on the Down To Earth Forums for advice)

My husband asked me if he could loan a friend,money with a hunting firearm as “collateral”. I was reluctant, because I didn’t want it to be about DH spending $300 for yet another hunting implement. DH said that the intent was for the friend to buy the gun back as soon as he got the money. He and his wife are in a tight spot because they have three children, and he lost his more lucrative job in construction, having to take a job that paid considerably less.

I don’t mind helping, but his wife,told me that they were planning to go to a bar/restaurant tonight and invited me to go. I said that I appreciated the invitation, but I didn’t have the money to go. She replied that she wouldn’t say they had the money, but they were going to go anyway. I feel so angry that they would continue to mismanage money, even though they owe us $300 and know that I work a full time as a high school teacher and part time as a teacher in an adult high school on two nights a week. I feel guilty that I am angry at them.

I have learned a few things from this situation. 

1. Make sure you have clear terms. I should have come up with a repayment plan instead of a “when you have extra.” With their spending habits, they are probably never going to have “extra.”  If I had given terms of repayment, perhaps that would have given them more motivation.

2. Think about it for a lot longer that four minutes. I wish I had really considered the situation and their money habits. I have had  long conversations with the wife about their spending and budget woes. Had I spent time really considering it, I would have either said “no” or resigned myself to the possibility of never being repaid.

3. Consider if you could afford it if it didn’t come back. I should have determined whether our budget could afford the dent put into by giving someone else a “loan.” If I had done the math, I would have realized that it was one third of our savings at the moment, considering that we have had a few actual emergencies lately, which constituted dipping into our emergency savings.

4. Try to remove emotion from the equation. I was manipulated, and that is too strong a word, by their situation, having three young children to care for.  Motivated by emotions and the desire to help others, I may have put us in a worse situation.

I am not saying that loaning money to people who need it is a bad thing all the time.  I just think I should have been more wary about the whole endeavor. I wish I could shake this feeling of bitterness, but I am having a hard time. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to deal with this situation?

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By Penny, January 20, 2010 4:00 am

Lacking a picture for the topic, here's a gratuitous picture of my mom's dogs.

I once heard someone on an inane decorating show say that curtains are the eyebrows of a room. *Snort, polite cough*

Far be it for me to argue with the champions of home décor, but I find I must in the name of practicality and frugality.
Curtains are practical tools in regulating a home’s temperature, or at least they were up until the latter part of the 20th century. Somewhere along the way, it has become far more fashionable to use them as accessories to impressing guests instead of their original purpose. Now, folks just crank up the air conditioner and heater as the weather demands, paying the inevitable bill for such largess, all the while bemoaning high energy costs. However, you can buck this trend by taking your curtains by the rods, as it were.

Invest in some lined curtains, preferably of brocade or other heavy fabric. Lose the miles of lace and gauze, as they are about as useful as a drink umbrella in a hurricane. Yes, lined curtains will be expensive, but note the use of the word “invest.” If you use them properly, you will recoup the cost of them fairly quickly. Furthermore, you might be able to sew them yourself, depending on how fancy you want them.
Make sure you are able to open and close them. The mobility of the curtains is absolutely crucial to their purpose. It is important that they are on a rod, able to be opened and closed as necessary.
In the winter, leave the curtains open during the day. Doing so will allow the sunlight to heat the room. At night, close them so that the heat is not dissipated during the lower night temperatures.
In the summer, close the windows and the curtains in the morning before the temperature begins to rise. It seems contradictory to leave the windows closed in the heat, but, with the curtains drawn, the temperature will not rise too much. Use fans to circulate the air. In the afternoon, once the outside temperature is cooler than the inside temperature, open the windows and the curtains. Use box fans to draw in cooler air. In the event you are not quite ready to forego air conditioning, just follow the instructions for the curtains.
Be creative about their placement. Sometimes there are doorways to spaces you don’t use too often in your home. Why pay to heat the laundry room if you don’t have to? In my home, we don’t use the upstairs overly much during the cold winter months. As such, we hang a heavy curtain over the doorway to the stairs, removing it once the weather becomes warmer.

Most assuredly, I will never win any awards for my home decorating skills. However, my home is comfortable year-round with little excess use of energy. Eventually, the pennies that I save on energy will help us to buy our little farm, which is a far more satisfying than being a home décor diva. Besides, in keeping with the analogy of eyebrows, the room would have to have eyes and that’s just creepy.

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By Penny, January 18, 2010 8:14 pm

I have been a very busy girl. Instead of posting, I decided to take this long weekend in order to get my house straight. I caught up on all the laundry, washing seven loads, though quite a bit of it is still hanging up either downstairs in the basement, on the air dryer in the living room or on the line outside. I probably shouldn’t count it done until it is folded and put away. I did quite a bit of canning, which you can see on my Preservation Challenge page. I also took the venison that didn’t seal and turn it into a cream-based lasagna, a tomato based lasagna and chili. Saturday, I started my redecorating of the bathroom, which is coming along nicely. I’ll post pictures once my DH returns with the camera from his latest hunting jaunt.
Today, I managed to bake a loaf of bread and make four calzones. Oh, and found time to fit in a stop at AC Moore to get more yarn… It’s an addiction…
Did I get everything I wanted to get done? Nope. I never do, though. I wonder if anyone else makes grossly unrealistic goals or is that just me?

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By Penny, January 15, 2010 4:00 am

We noticed earlier this week that one of our ducks had a limp.  After orchestrating a grand round up, my husband took her to the vet.  My decision would have been to wait and see if it got better after a while. If it didn’t, it would have been a duck destined for the freezer. However, my husband wanted to take her to the vet, so off she went.  Turns out she just had a sprained ankle.  She will recover, but the vet wanted her to be isolated for about a week. The vet also recommended that she be allowed to swim.  Considering that all outside water is frozen, the only logical place seems to be the bathtub.  Ah, another entertaining development on the Copperwyre Homestead. 

Here’s a video:

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By Penny, January 14, 2010 3:51 am

Some of my homemade bread. Not the prettiest at first, but it keeps getting better!

Learning new skills is important for frugal folks, particularly those interested in homesteading.  However, many people seem to have the mindset that if they don’t know how to do something, they can’t ever do it.  That’s just ridiculous and, oftentimes, an excuse.  There are so many different ways to learn a new task, particularly with today’s technology. 

            Talk to people. I cannot stress enough the importance of talking to others.  Offer to trade lessons with someone else for a skill you do not possess.  Sometimes, someone you know will have connections with someone else who has the skill you desire.  It’s not always apparent who has what skill and others don’t know your needs if you don’t voice them.

            The library is an amazing resource. Not only can you get how-to books, but many libraries offer videos about skills.  I learned how to French braid hair from a VHS tape from the local library.  Don’t forget about the community events board.  Local clubs may post about meetings, ranging from quilting bees to public speaking.  And all of this for free!  (Thank you, Mr. Benjamin Franklin).

            Visit or volunteer at a local museum.  Museums often have groups attached to them that practice the “old arts.”  The agricultural museum in my city has a spinner’s guild which meets once a month on the premises. Even visiting for special events would give you at least a cursory understanding of a skill and someone to contact if you wanted to continue to learn about it. 

            The internet is one of the most useful tools, provided you don’t spend too much time reading the celebrity columns.  If you are discriminating about whose advice you take, you will find that the internet has a wealth of knowledge.  A skill typed into a search engine will give you a plethora of websites by both professionals and hobbyists.  I particularly enjoy blogs, as they are personal and often feature stories about failures and snafus that other websites won’t.  You’re able to learn from the comfort of your own home and at your own convenience.    

            Attend an event thrown by historical enthusiasts.  I belong to a Renaissance re-enactment group which has members all over the globe.  Sometimes, our events are open to the public, in order to demonstrate the various arts such as spinning, weaving, leatherwork, and many others.  If you feel strange about attending an event, you could probably contact a local historical group for more information.

            While it can be difficult to learn a new skill, the rewards for learning are well worth it.  If you learn to bake bread, you can save nearly $3/loaf, if you typically buy whole wheat bread.  Your new found sewing skills will save you from throwing away clothes or paying to have them mended or tailored.  A fifteen minute oil change can save you ten dollars, making your time worth $40 per hour, a hefty hourly wage.  More importantly, you’ll have the knowledge of how to it, something no one can ever take from you.  So, be brave and start learning something new.

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By Penny, January 13, 2010 5:13 am

Time is money. The cliché has some truth to it. Generally, a sizeable chunk of our days are spent waiting for something to happen. These wasted moments add up to a considerable amount of time, time which could be spent saving you money. I often find myself waiting for something to happen, just staring into space. If I were to channel that time, I’m sure I could accomplish much more in a day. Some tips to help you manage your minutes:
1. Carry a notebook and pen with you. When does your brain chose to remind you of the different things you need to do? If you’re anything like me, it will shout reminders at a moment when you can’t do a darned thing about it. For instance, when standing in line at the bank, I will remember that I need to call the oil company. If I have my notebook, I can just write it down and forget about it until I am able to call.
2. Keep phone numbers for businesses in your cell phone. This hint actually relates to the first one. Important phone numbers might be your pharmacy, doctor’s office, natural gas company or cable provider. If the numbers are in your cell phone, you would be able to quickly make a phone call while on your lunch break or waiting in the car. If you don’t have a cell phone, just keep a list handy.
3. Take work with you. In many professions, some duties are portable, meaning that you can carry your work. While waiting for a meeting to start, you may be able to tie up loose ends. As a teacher, I always carry work that needs grading, so I can work on it anywhere.
4. Don’t stand idly if you can help it. In the kitchen, I am notorious for staring off into space while waiting for the microwave to beep or for water to boil. Try to wipe down counters or put away dishes while you’re waiting. You can actually accomplish quite a bit in the few minutes it takes to make popcorn.
5. Multitask…within reason. Multitasking can squander time, causing you to spend more time doing a few tasks at once than you would have, had you just done them one at a time. However, if you are careful, you can get plenty done without sacrificing quality. For instance, when I’m waiting for a sauce to thicken or biscuits to bake, I’m tied to the kitchen, but the task at hand doesn’t really require my full attention. During that time, I can wash dishes or wipe down the microwave and refrigerator.
6. Take up a portable hobby. Learn to knit, crochet, sew or anything that is portable. While you’re waiting for the doctor, you could be working on Christmas or birthday presents.
You can’t create more hours in the day, but you can make more of the time you do have. By using your time wisely, you would free up more time to work on all the money saving ideas