Unfinished Business...Cards

I've been trying to take a page out of Serena's book and de-clutter/minimalize my life. I have WAY too much stuff, and most of it is hiding under random papers that have collected over the years (making it hard to find and use said stuff). So, I've started attacking the pile(s).

Turns out I have a number of business cards from my last employer. Obviously I'm not going to be using those again for their intended purpose, but I wanted to do something with them that didn't involve throwing them away. I have a few too many to just use them as bookmarks as well. I was a little underwhelmed by most of the ideas I found on the internet, so I came up with some ideas on what I could do with them:

• write a description of what needs mending on an article of clothing, punch a hole in the card, slip over top of hanger.
• fold in half and use to clean lint out of the bathroom fan. (you know you need to)
• organize decorative bobby pins by pinning like ones together on a card at home.
• organize purse by sticking emergency bobby pins and hair elastics to a card.
• organize earrings during travel by punching them through the card together.
• create an impromptu sewing kit with some thread, a needle, and a couple pins.
• throw some in old film canisters with waterproof matches as emergency camping tinder.
• make keyholes in the cards and use them as wine glass identifiers at a party
• write notes to a loved one, hide in their jacket pocket or lunch box
• write a reminder why you shouldn't spend money, place card in front of your credit/debit card.
• etc...

While I was mostly underwhelmed by my googling, I did find a couple interesting ideas. These Swedish business cards are particularly clever:

Second hand goods anyone?

If I was to get into the consignment business, I'd totally do a riff on that design. On the other hand, I almost wish I had grabbed the rest of the box when I was cleaning out my desk; I could have made one of these:

BonnerCube

But alas, I did no such thing.

As it stands, I'll probably take the easy way out and use one of my clip magnets to hold most of them on the fridge as an impromptu grocery list note pad. I'll clip loose bobby pins to one in my makeup bag, and the rest will become shims under wobbly Starbucks tables ;)

What would you do with your old business cards?

Going Green

I'm a supporter of the green movement.

I do my best to minimize my waste, I try to buy local organic foods, my vehicle is a gas sipper, and I try to take public transportation when possible.

That being said, I'm also a supporter of frugality.

I'm trying to be better with my money, I try to buy things that will last rather than something that will fall apart quickly, I try to repurpose and reuse things rather than throwing them out, and I try to maintain the basic skills out ancestors took for granted (cooking, sewing, gardening, etc...)

So, when I came across a post about inexpensive eco-friendly style, I jumped right in.

And I was disappointed :(

The shoes for the outfit in question were vintage, and the top and pants were sale items.

So what's the problem?

Well, I'm really wondering what we're encouraging by buying the stuff on sale. Don't beat me down with the frugal broom, please hear me out. Nearly everything we buy in North America is mass produced, and as such there are certain economies of scale that go along with it. Mass produced good are cheaper to make, because less of the production set up and cost is carried by each of the individual items. These economies can not be reproduced by small independent designers and retailers, but they still have to compete on the same playing field.

Compare an organic cotton t-shirt from a small manufacturer to a Gap t-shirt (just an example). The Gap t-shirt costs less than the organic one, and is the shirt that most people would end up buying. Most of us would wait until the organic one was on a clearance rack before we went for it, as is suggested in the post. In doing this, are we actually supporting a green movement? Nobody considers that the profit margin on the Gap shirt is much higher than the one from the small manufacturer, and by waiting for it to go on sale we're not really supporting the small manufacturer.

We've been fed a the fast food equivalent of clothing for long enough that our understanding of how much clothing costs has been skewed. Has anyone gone into a fabric store lately? The stuff isn't cheap. By constantly waiting until things have gone on sale, we're cutting into small business's abilities to grow, and I don't believe we're really supporting them that way.

I don't have all of the answers on how to mesh both movements together. By all means, they are most certainly complimentary. I'm wondering though, does anyone else see the problem with only buying certain things on sale?

Foiled

I've been spending a lot of time at The Boy's house the last little while, and I can't help but make some observations. When you look at two different people you're probably going to find that they approach things differently, and in our case two of the things we approach differently are grocery shopping, and expiry dates.

While he's probably the most competent bachelor I've ever met, he leans more towards the frozen/canned foods in his shopping. I'm more likely to grab the veggies and make things from scratch. I made him a pot of chicken noodle soup a month ago when he came down with a cold. It was somewhat comical cooking for him, because he was sitting on a kitchen stool watching what I was doing with all the intensity a sick guy could muster. I know his mom cooks from scratch, but by the look on his face you'd think he'd never seen it done before.

Anyway, I went to make a cup of tea yesterday and found out that the milk had gone sour before the expiry date. Not a big deal, just kind of irritating. The milk is still useful, but I know he'll throw it out. He's a firm believer in expiry dates. Bread is past the expiry, but nothing appears to be growing on it? It gets chucked. Grated cheese in the fridge has been open for a while, but nothing appears to be growing on it? Gets chucked out. Milk soured? Chucked.

My jaw dropped the first time I watched him do it.

So this time I figured I'd use it up before he could get around to throwing it out. He has a small assortment of baking supplies, so I figured I'd do up some sort of a cake/square, or some cheese muffins while he's at work. 2 birds with one stone! yes!

The only problem is that every recipe I could find required a) eggs b) shortening or c) butter.

The Boy is overdue for a trip to the grocery store, as he currently has none of those items.

So, I've been foiled in my surprise frugality attempt *sigh* The milk will probably make it to the garbage can before I can get my hands on those ingredients.

Next time though, I'll come prepared.

2 Bucks

I mentioned a little while back that I'd be doing a post on a $2 dinner party. I was driving down Whyte Ave yesterday when I remembered a) that I hadn't done the post yet, and b) that the dinner party was this weekend and I hadn't planned anything yet! Crap.

Anyway, the $2 dinner party is essentially a cost controlled potluck where no meal component costs more than $2 a serving. The party host provides the main course, and a topic of conversation to discuss. Everyone else brings either an appetizer, salad, dessert, or something else to add onto the meal. Since the number of people attending will vary from party to party, your available funds for preparing the meal is going to vary as well.

The friend who originally came up with the idea hosted the first party in March. She prepared chicken pot pies with a biscuit topping, and rosemary focaccia bread to start. I believe she had $12 to work with, and she only went over budget slightly because she threw in a sweet potato she had on hand that wasn't actually required (there was more than enough food, trust me!). It was a tasty success.

I checked the attendee list yesterday (we organize it on Facebook), and I had 3 people attending, with 2 maybes. After asking the maybes to give me an idea if they were going to be able to make it, I had one attendee drop out, one maybe bump up to attending, and one non-response bump up to maybe. So, I'm again back to 3 attending and 2 maybes. Ah well.

I'm going to assume that 1 of the 2 maybes will actually show up, so I'll be feeding 4 people. That gives me $8 to work with for the main course. My first thought was a pasta dish, such as a carbonara, which is still my standby if need be. I can get good pasta and individual slices of bacon cheap at the Italian grocery store. However, I'm thinking more along the lines of Indian food this go around. My goal meal for the party is to do vegetarian samosas, dal (daal, dhal, dahl, etc...), and naan bread for under $8.

I'll put the price breakdown for what I end up making on here for you guys when I'm done.

If I buy something that doesn't get used in it's entirety, I'm only going to be counting that fraction of the price towards my total. I'm already planning to take the remaining tomato paste and turning it into pizza sauce for leftover naan bread pizzas anyway(Om Nom Nom). Because there are so many different spices in small quantities (does 1/4 tsp of cinnamon even register on a bulk scale?), I'm going to assume my spices/salt/pepper will cost me $0.75. That may be a little on the high side, but oh well.

So, I'm off to the grocery store this morning. Wish me luck!

How Big Is Your Footprint?

I give up blogger. You win. You can make this section all caps if you want, just leave the rest of my post alone. Okay? Thanks. Bye.

In my semi-mindless twitter reading tonight I checked out a link that Anna over at And Then She Saved posted. The website calculated your approximate environmental footprint based on aspects of your lifestyle such as climate, housing size, purchasing preferences, diet, spending habits, etc... 

I'm quite interested in that sort of thing, so I bit, and I ran my figures:

If everyone on the planet lived my lifestyle, we would need:

 

= 4.51 Earths

Ouch.

I knew I needed to make some changes, but 4.51 Earths? Yikes. 

That hurts.

I'm sorry Earth.

I tried running it again based on making some fairly substantial changes while still living in my house. ie: no car, giving up meat, adding solar panels to the house, buying all organic, etc...

If everyone on the planet lived my lifestyle, we would need:

 

= 1.03 Earths

Better. Not good, but better. 

That 0.03 of an Earth means that I am still living the high life. Their housing selections change in 500 sqft increments, and my place is at the low end of my category. Maybe that would make up the 0.03? I can hope.

Then I got thinking again (I really gotta stop doing that)

What do my former colleague's footprints look like? I know some guys who live pretty high on the hog, and couldn't care less about the environment. I plugged in some values to approximate their living arrangements, just to see:

If everyone on the planet lived my lifestyle, we would need:

 

= 15.24 Earths

*cough*

*STARE*

*cough cough*

I don't even know what to say about that.

Anyway, while I doubt I'll be able to convince a bunch of construction and oil field workers to give up their trucks, move into shoebox sized apartments and take on a vegan lifestyle, what I can do is focus on my own consumption habits and lead by example. I can be more mindful of what I use, what I purchase, and making what I have last longer.

It's like frugality all wrapped up in a nice little save the environment bow.

Pretty.

I can start by going to sleep on time. Less time awake at night means less time the lights are on. That and I can put my computer to sleep and unplug it rather than just closing the lid. 

Little steps add up the same way big ones do. One at a time.

How many Earths do you use?

Potato Proof

There is no such thing as "can't"

There are only excuses.

I find this is particularly true with urban gardening. Unless you live in an illegal apartment with no windows, you can garden. I offer my own proof:

 

Those right there are potato plants growing in reusable shopping bags. I had some baby potatoes from the grocery store that were sprouting in my cupboard; rather than throw them in the garbage, I decided to plant them.

They grew :)

Not only did they grow, they also produced potatoes which I ended up eating in the fall.

All of my gardening last year was actually done in containers. Potatoes, herbs, asparagus, tomatoes, bell peppers, lettuce, you name it. You don't need to spend a lot either, as you can see above a little creativity can go a long way towards getting started. Friends of mine grew tomato plants out of the BOTTOM of their hanging baskets. You don't have to worry about staking them that way, and they don't take up any floor space :)

I will be trying to move my potatoes into the ground this year. We'll see how that goes.

I know of at least one blogger who is planning to write a whole series on urban gardening, which I am eagerly awaiting! I'll make sure to link to it when she puts it up :)

Has anyone done any creative gardening lately?

Darn It

Over the course of about a week I realized that I had not only weak spots in both of my good pairs of jeans,  but I had holes in both of them as well.

*growl*

I had never heard the term "chub rub" until I saw Daisy over at Add Vodka write it in a recent post. I laughed pretty hard at that one, and it's exactly the cause of the wear in both pairs of jeans. I'm not really ready to let these jeans hit the curb just yet, so I dug out my grandmother's jar of assorted needles and thread colours. She gave it to me before she passed away years ago, and since then I've been able to colour match every item of clothing that has needed repair.

Repairing clothing to make it last longer - frugal.

Repairing jeans that you spent $200+ a pair on? .... Errrr, I'm having a hard time calling that frugal just due to the starting price. Call it bringing things a little closer to reality?

That being said, the one pair is almost 4 years old and is well below the $0.50 per wear point. I'd buy them again given the choice.

Anyway, I'm sure I'm not the only person out there to run into this problem before. I've never been a fan of fabric patches on my clothes, and I certainly don't need to be putting a decorative patch near my butt to camouflage a wear hole. I just want to preserve the fabric so it stays in one piece and looks as close to the rest of the denim as possible.

The first thing I did was pick a thread colour to match the colour of the denim. I'm not a fan of contrast, especially for patch jobs. After figuring out how far the weak spot went in the denim, I back stitched a border around the entire area. This was to serve as a rip stop incase the area let go on me while I was wearing it. It also gave me a defined area to work within.

After encompassing the weak area, I used the same stitch to go back and forth across the hole. You know those threads that are left holding the fabric together in one direction only? I'm stitching them back into a fabric. If your hole looks like the picture to the left, you'd be stitching up and down across the threads. Denim fabric has a rib in it, and I used the existing fabric to space my stitches. Every 2 or 3 ribs I'd do another row of stitching until I'd worked myself from one end of the encompassed area to the other. After that I worked on a diagonal and reinforced some of the really weak areas. The fabric should hold up for a few more months at a minimum. Was it time consuming? Sure it was, but so is working to earn enough money to replace the jeans. 

I got one of the pairs done last night, the other pair will have to wait for another night.

The Top 10

While work is known to be a source of stress for many most almost all all of us at one point in time or another, sometimes it's not just the money that keeps us coming back. I know it isn't for me. If I was just in it for the money I'd haul my butt back up to Fort McMurray and get a job as a heavy equipment operator. WAY more money in that line of work. That's a pay off all non-mortgage debts before Christmas and have money left over type of job.

*sigh*

Sometimes the little reminders of why you do your job come just when you need them. Like Wednesday when I got a package from APEGBC (the Engineer's governing body in BC). In it was a bunch of registration related paperwork, and a little card with the Code of Ethics on it. We're held to a high standard of professional conduct in our work, we do more than just number crunching. It's one of the reasons why I feel good about when I do for a living. Despite the inevitable ups and downs, I can sleep well knowing that I'm working toward helping people as a whole.

Now that I'm done with that little sap story, I'll get back to the card. They break the code down into 10 easily manageable bites:

1. Public Interest
2. Know Your Limits
3. Don't Fake It
4. Conflict of Interest
5. Respect Your Value
6. Lifelong Learning
7. Do Unto Others
8. Stand Your Ground
9. Be Brave
10. Spread The Word

I'd go into detail on each one, but let's face it, it's kind of wordy (otherwise why bother with the short form?), and 99% of you would never read anything I write ever again if I did. Seeing as knowing that people do read this is keeping me accountable, I figure I'd like to keep you guys around ;)

The 10 ideas, in their most basic form, can be applied to the concepts of personal finance and frugality, as well as to my work. Think about it:

1. Public Interest - Reducing energy consumption, keeping excess "stuff" out of landfills, growing our own vegetables and not wasting the things we purchase... These not only help ourselves, but are in the interests of the community as a whole. Think of more than just self gratification. 
2. Know Your Limits - Besides the obvious example of credit limits? How about transaction limits? Or drink limits? Or stress limits? Or the limit of your budget? How far can you go before you lose control, whether it be financially or otherwise? Recognizing your limits, and working within them, is crucial to success in all walks of life. 
3. Don't Fake It - You've got it made. You're out in the work world, you're an adult, you should look the part right? High end clothes, condo downtown, brand new car, eating out every night at restaurants, international holidays.... Or should you? The short answer, if you can't afford it in cash after you've stashed some away, is no. Don't fake it. 
4. Conflict of Interest - How does your financial advisor get paid? Do you pay them up front? No? Well they're making money off you somewhere, make sure you know how. Otherwise you'll never know if that awesome fund they're recommending is great for your account... or theirs. 
5. Respect Your Value - You work hard for your money, shouldn't your pay check reflect that? Know what you're worth, and go for it. If your employer isn't paying you what you're worth, they may not respect your value. Show them they're wrong, and get the pay check you deserve. 
6. Lifelong Learning - You are never too old or young to learn a new skill. No one in today's job market can afford to stay stationary and rely on "how things have always been done". Get out there and sponge up every new skill and piece of knowledge you can. You never know when it will come in handy. 
7. Do Unto Others - Be good to others, and they will be good to you. This piece of advice has come in handy more times than I can count. 
8. Stand Your Ground - Store not honouring their return policy? Someone wants to drive after having a few too many? Credit card trying to charge you unreasonable fees? Dealing with a bully? Stand your ground. If you don't, there may not be someone else there to do it for you. 
9. Be Brave - Whether it's going back to school, starting a new job, or *gulp* going without a job, change is scary. Be brave, you'll make it through. 
10. Spread The Word - As all of my fellow PF and lifestyle bloggers are doing, spread the word. You never know if that little nugget of advice you take for granted could be the switch that helps someone and finally sends them in a positive direction. Whether it's a savings tip, an explanation of confusing financal jargon, a cheap dinner recipe, or just a way to deal with stress, you never know who you might help. Likewise, you never know when someone might just reach out and help you.

Who knew work could be so applicable?

My Two Cents

I never expected anyone would ever read my blog, let alone go out of their way to tell other people about it! Yet it's happened a couple times this week. Thank you to The Asian Pear and Saving for Travel, I appreciate the shout outs. I feel all warm and fuzzy now :)

I picked up a couple pennies at the LRT station. One last night, one this morning. You can't actually buy anything with a penny anymore, I'm pretty sure that even penny candy is all five cents and up now (can you still get candy for a nickel?) Those of you in Canada probably remember the announcement back in December that the Bank of Canada is considering abolishing the penny due to the fact that inflation has eroded it's buying power to the point that it's nearly worthless. It costs more to produce them than their face value.

So why am I picking up a couple dirty coins on my way to the train? Other than because I always have?

Future value.

No, I'm not holding on to them in the hopes that they become rare items and make me a millionaire. They're going in my coin box, the one that goes towards my extra mortgage payment. Those two pennies will save me seven pennies over the life of my mortgage, and that's just assuming that my interest rate doesn't go up. If my rate after renewal went up to 6% and stayed there for the rest of the mortgage, those two pennies would save me about eleven cents. That's eleven cents I don't have to fritter away on my own.

Is seven, or even eleven, cents really going to make a difference on a two hundred and forty some-odd thousand dollar loan? Not really. But if I do it enough times it will. These pennies are my little snowflakes.

Hence the coin jar.

It doesn't take any time, and it doesn't cost anything, so why not?

Staple Soup

Kelly over at Almost Frugal did a post recently on the 6 key ingredients she uses in her day to day life to make quick easy meals. It's good to have fall back stash of multi-purpose foods you can rely on in a pinch when you need to make a quick, easy and cheap meal.

Reading through her list I realized a) I don't bake as much as I should, and b) I'm running out of my staples at home and need to stock up! Haha. It got me thinking though. While initially I looked at the list and thought "Yep, those are my staples too", I realized afterwards that they really weren't anymore. My staples have shifted.

These are Kelly's 6 Staples:

1. Flour
2. Baking Powder
3. Salt
4. Oil
5. Milk
6. Eggs

These are my 6 Staples:

1. Tea
2. Milk
3. Sugar
4. Bread
5. Eggs
6. Pepper

That's not to say that I don't use the other items, because I do, it's just that these are the 6 I use most frequently and almost always have on hand. I'd be lying if I said I never skipped meals and just had a cup of tea instead because I'm busy or on the run. I almost did that tonight :s Add on some squash, onions, garlic and canned tomatoes to this list and I'm pretty content for quite a while.

I'm not going to put up a recipe for my top 6, because I'm pretty sure most of you can figure out what goes into an omelet or french toast yourself, but I will put up one I did recently with squash and garlic. Actually, I do it frequently. It's stupid simple.

Basically:

= 

You take a medium sized butternut squash, cut it into chunks that are similar in size to a golf ball, and put them in a roasting pan. Then take the papery peel off ~8 cloves of garlic, and throw them in the roasting pan with the garlic. Drizzle with olive oil, wrap top with foil or lid, and put them in the oven at 350F/175C until they're softened and toasty (about 45 minutes). Let them cool enough to handle, and take the peel off the squash (you're supposed to do it first thing, but I find it's easier this way). Put the squash and garlic into a pot, and cover with either stock, or water with bouillon cubes/powder. Simmer on medium-low for about half an hour or so, then remove from heat. Either transfer this to a blender, or use an immersion blender, and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste, reheat if necessary.

It's really easy to make, and super forgiving. You can put the stuff in the oven and walk away to do something else while it's roasting. Ditto when it's simmering. It's really adaptable too, you can add all sorts of seasoning to it. I usually like mine with just salt, pepper, and a dollop of either yogurt or sour cream.

Anywho, I have homework calling my name. Have a good night everyone. Happy eating :)

Frugal Health Remedies

As you may be able to glean from the title, I'm coming down with a cold/the flu. I'm right miffed about it too, because I managed to stay healthy in the weeks leading up to Christmas when everyone else around me was sick. *grumble*

I for one am not a fan of over the counter cold remedies. For the most part I find them to be mostly slick marketing. Do you have bottles of both Tylenol Cold and Tylenol Flu in your cupboard? Look at the active ingredients, you'll notice they're identical. The cold and the flu are both viruses that evolve over time; the products don't target the virus, they help with the symptoms. Kudos to whoever came up with that marketing scheme. Ditto with NeoCitran. Make a cup of honey lemon tea, then take a tylenol (or generic equivalent) and an antihistamine. NeoCitran is the same thing, only weaker. Look at the back of the box and see for yourself!

My mom used several home remedies when I was younger, mostly because they worked well, but also because they were cheaper/safer than over the counter medications. I had some gallbladder issues as a kid (tmi?), and the doctor wanted to put me on some heavy duty steroids for it. My mom took me home and gave me Watkin's strawberry extract, the same thing she was giving our goats, and it cleared right up. I'm not saying you should never listen to the doctor, or that all medications are bad, it's just this was a more frugal option that would cause far fewer serious complications. It worked well.

On that note, I'm going to throw a few of my usual cold remedies out there. Mom, if you're reading this, let me know if I've missed anything. If you have any of your own, PLEASE put them down in the comments section. I want to kick this thing as quickly as possible!

For Sore Throats:
Thinly slice an onion, and put it in a pot over low heat with a couple tablespoons of water. Cook the onion down until you have lots of light brown liquid. Stir in some lemon juice and a tablespoon of either brown sugar or honey, then drink the liquid.

I'm not entirely sure why this works as well as it does. I know the sulfuric compounds in onions and garlic are great for tackling bugs, but I was under the understanding that they were fragile compounds that broke down when heated. That and they're neutralized by citric acid as well. It may just be the sulfur in it, I don't know, all I know is that it works. The dose of vitamin C helps too.

For Throat Congestion and Sore Throats:

This is kind of a no brainer. Put the kettle on to boil and pour yourself a mug of hot water. Add a generous squeeze of lemon juice, and sweeten to taste with honey. Drink it as hot as you can stand it. Repeat.

The fluids help flush mucous and irritants out of your throat, and the heat helps kill off bugs. The lemon hits you with a decent dose of vitamin C, and also helps kill off bugs. The honey has anti-viral/anti-bacterial/anti-fungal properties, and makes it a little more palatable/easier on the throat. The less processed the honey, the better.

For Upset Stomach:

Same as above, just reduce the lemon and add sliced or grated fresh ginger. Ginger is well known to naturally calm nausea. Church & Dwight (parent company that makes tonnes of well known products) actually uses it to make a natural version of Gravol.

For Sinus Congestion:
I have some pretty wicked seasonal allergies, and I picked up this trick from a coworker while I was in university. You need some Vicks Vapour Rub. Rather than putting it on your chest or back, rub it under your nose and across your cheek bones under your eyes. Your eyes will be watery for a bit, but shortly after you'll feel a popping sensation as the pressure in your sinuses is relieved. You'll want a tissue, as your nose will likely start running after. For some reason putting it on top of the sinuses works better than just putting it under your nose. I have no idea why.

*Additional Tip: One of my friend's suggested putting it on the bottom of my feet. WOW does that work well! I don't know if it stimulates the nerves like refexology does or what, but it works*

Anyway, hopefully that will help someone else out there. Please help me and post your own home remedies?

400-ct Acetaminophen Extra Strength (500 Mg), Rapid Release Gelcaps / Compare to Extra Strength Tylenol Rapid Release Gelcaps
Celestial Seasonings Herb Tea, Lemon Zinger, 20-Count Tea Bags (Pack of 6)
Handy Solutions Vicks VapoRub, .45oz. Packages (Pack of 8)

Mmmmm Chai...

This morning's bus ride was filled with sweet visions of Chai Latte as I read the post over at Fabulously Broke about Starbucks' 1/2 price Tea Latte promotion. *drool* It most certainly helped with the fact that I had to wait 15 minutes for a bus in -25 weather. Thanks FB!


This right here ladies and gentlemen is Chai Porn. Mmmm...

 Unfortunately I can't make it to a Starbucks today between 2-5pm, and frankly in this weather I really don't want to go outside any more often than absolutely necessary. So, I used up the last of a gift card and bought one after class. The spot has been hit, I am now happy(er). When I was working in a camp job, away from civilization for 3 weeks at a time, I would pack boxes of concentrate in my luggage to mix with milk and ice in my water bottle. Needless to say, I was the recipient of more than one jealous stare (and yet no one else just brought the concentrate with them...)

I could wax poetic for a while, but I think that's enough for now. Anyone who loves them as much as I do, and I know there are a lot of you, knows that the cost of them adds up over time. You can get Tazo Chai concentrate in Starbucks and at the grocery store, but you'll probably notice it isn't quite as strong. According to my barista former roommate, the concentrate they use is MUCH stronger. Even after adding water it's still stronger than the store stuff. It works nicely in a pinch though when you have a ridiculous craving, and it's a fair bit cheaper too. The cost of 2 grande chai lattes is approximately the cost of 1 carton of concentrate. Following package directions you'll get 4 lattes out of it.

However, last winter my mom got me a milk frother for Christmas. I have a little too much fun with that thing... I got into making Starbucks style drinks at home for a while. I was making a pretty awesome Cinnamon Dolce Latte that was similar to the one you get in Starbucks. Very similar actually. I've tried making my own copycat Chai Lattes at home as well, though I've never tried to copy the Starbucks one. I think it's time I do try to though. *evil grin* There looks to be some interesting looking recipes here as well. If I come up with a good taste-a-like, I'll post it.

Sometimes it seems like a bit of a shock looking at the sugar contents in these recipes, mostly because we don't know what goes into our drinks when we buy them. According to Starbucks their grande Chai Tea Latte has 42 grams of sugar. This is approximately 10 teaspoons, or little under a 1/4 cup. Suddenly I don't feel so bad for using the occasional teaspoon in my tea at home! lol. That right there is why it's a treat, not a daily indulgence. It's also why a lot of people lose weight when they start cutting out the extra drinks. Oh well, what's the point in living if you can't occasionally enjoy it? I certainly do, and I'm now staring longingly at my empty travel mug. Soon my friend, soon.

Excuse Avoidance

Yesterday morning should have been a Monday morning. I got up early to catch an earlier bus than usual, then realized as I was brushing my teeth it was in vain because it was the wrong bus. The right bus had already gone by 15 minutes earlier. Then as I was walking out the door to catch the next bus, I looked down at the peanut butter sandwich I had packed myself for breakfast and realized the bread had gone moldy. How did I miss that last night? As I got on the bus and sat down I realized my cell phone was sitting on the table by my front door. Then after popping into work, I went down to the university and found out that my instructor had started the seminar sessions before he had the first class, and I had already missed one.

Does this sound like a Monday to anyone else?

Anyway, the whole point of this post was avoiding excuses, specifically in the food department. When I realized my packed breakfast wasn't going to do, my first urge was to stop off at Starbucks on the way to work. Old habits die hard. But, I didn't do it. Why not? I had back up. In my desk at work I have a plastic container of Raisin Bran, a small bag of quinoa puffs, dried miso soup, almonds, pistachios and tea. I've also kept oatmeal, dried fruit, other dried soups and chocolate in there in the past, as well as a frozen container of homemade stew in the lunch room freezer. I tend to get hungry throughout the day, so having food available is a must. Instead of grabbing a morning latte and scone, I grabbed a banana out of the company fruit bowl, had a handful of almonds out of my desk, and made a cup of tea. Not exactly a hearty breakfast, but it certainly calmed the beast growling in my stomach. Thankfully I had also grabbed a couple containers of pasta out of the fridge for lunch, but even if I had forgotten those I would have had lunch as well. As the Girl Guides say: Be Prepared.

It isn't actually that hard to do, you just have to actually think ahead to do it. Even if you don't have a desk at work where you can stash a bunch of food, you can stash a full meal in your purse if you think about it! The space it takes to throw a dried soup packet and a tea bag or instant coffee packet is about the space of a make up compact. Add some nuts, dried fruit or a granola bar and you're around the volume of a small wallet. Lets be honest, most of us have enough room in our bags for that. Throw it all in a sandwich bag and you don't have to worry about digging through your bag (as much) to find it. You could add reusable cutlery and a collapsible bowl and mug if you want to or if work doesn't have anything in the coffee room/your situation calls for it, but you can usually get a container and some hot water from a food court vendor for anywhere from 25 cents to free.

A little bit of forethought can save a lot of money in the long run.

Progressive International Collapsible Prep Bowl Set, Blue and White

Sea to Summit X Mug,Orange

Kikkoman Instant Tofu Miso Soup (Soybean Paste Soup with Tofu) - 9 Packets (3.15 Oz)

New Year... New Beginnings?

Remember that post I wrote a while back about cheap dates?

http://diggingoutandup.blogspot.com/2010/12/cheap-dates.html

It was definitely mistimed. My boyfriend and I broke up 4 days later. Merry Christmas to me.

I've done a reasonably good job of not letting my blahs go to my wallet (my waistline may be another story), though to be honest having it happen during the Christmas season I'm not sure whether I should file certain expenditures under "Holiday" or "Bah Humbug".

So, this brings me back to "First Date" territory rather than just "Date" territory. I was looking over the list, and some of the things on there I can't really do right away. Sit at home and watch a movie with someone I just met? Maybe not the smartest idea. Going to have to rethink that one. Also, I've been on very few formal dates in the past few years, I'm not entirely sure I have anything to wear.

So, this is more of a question to all of the financially savvy women in the blogosphere: What would you suggest for a frugal cold weather first date, and what would you wear? I'm giving my wardrobe a critical eye right now, trying to figure out what to do with it. I could really use the help right now!

I'm Dreaming of a Green New Year

It's -20 outside, with a solid layer of snow on the ground, and yet all I can think about is the garden I plan to plant this spring. We always want what we cant have, don't we? Hahaha. Come summer I'll be wishing I could be skiing, but that's beside the point.

I spent the past spring fighting off the influx of weeds that was pretending to be my lawn. The place I purchased had been sorely neglected for 5 years by the previous owners, more than enough time for dandelions, crab grass and thistle to take root and choke out the actual lawn. Tackling them gave me a good idea of what kind of soil I'm dealing with when it comes time to plant an actual garden.

Absolute crap.

For whatever reason, builders here are allowed to put a layer of sod down on top of the clay and call it good. No top soil, nothing. So, I have to figure out how to make a wad of clay into a passible environment for vegetables to grow in, and I have to do it as cheaply as possible. I'm suddenly glad I started thinking about it now, rather than waiting for spring to figure out a solution.

My plan basically comes down to adding sand to loosen the material up, some cheap topsoil to give it a bit of a starter, and adding as much organic material as possible to try and enrich the soil. Friends of mine have a farm I could get some manure from, but I'm not sure I could handle a 5 hour drive in a Smart car full of manure. I'm fine with going out of my way to grow organically, but I think that well exceeds my limits. Maybe I'll do it if my allergies are really bad and I can't smell anything.

I remembered that Starbucks has a program where you can get free 5lb bags of used coffee grounds for your garden, so I figured I'd check that out.

http://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/environment/recycling

I went to a couple of stores and was told that while they knew about the program, they didn't do it. Talk about wind out of my sails; I was quite disappointed, but not entirely deterred. Thankfully, Starbucks isn't the only place that makes coffee. I took an empty yogurt container into work and emptied the used grounds from our floor's coffee pot into it. I'm going to need to take bigger containers in to work, as the yogurt container was full before the end of the day. The container is currently sitting on my back porch frozen solid waiting for spring, and will soon be followed by many others. I've also been saving my used tea leaves as well to add to the mix. Egg shells and vegetable peelings will round things out until I can get my hands on some manure. I'll have to talk to some of the farmers at the local farmer's market about that. Perhaps trade a load of manure for an afternoon of shovelling?

The other half of the mix, the sand, is going to be a little more difficult. If I was up north near my parents it would be much easier because a) they have a truck to move it with, and b) there are public sand pits where you can go to get free sand. Here, not so much. I've heard there are places in town you can go to get free sand to put on your walkways during the winter while it's icy, but I'd want to make sure I wasn't leaving people with slippery sidewalks so that I can have an inexpensive garden. That wouldn't be fair to them. The other thing I'd have to check is whether or not they've mixed any salt into that sand. It would kind of defeat the purpose of mixing up healthy soil if I throw salt in there as well.

Topsoil, unless I can find some somewhere that's been screened, will probably be coming from Canadian Tire. I can get 10lb bags of the no name brand soil for $2. Seriously, using brand name soil is like drinking brand name water: pointless. I'd like to remove the cost of this one, but it's going to be difficult.

Once I've got that under control I'll be putting in potatoes, carrots, squash, lettuce, beets, peas, rhubarb and possibly asparagus. I'd like to put in onions and garlic, but they need to be put in the ground during the fall to grow to any appreciable size, as we have a fairly short growing season here.

What do you guys think, am I missing anything important? If you have any cheap tips or ideas for rehabilitating clay soil I'd love to hear them.




  

Exceeding Expectations

I had close to a 6 figure salary at my last job. Very close actually, after benefits I was only a couple hundred dollars away from making $100,000 a year. This year I will be making approximately $55,000. Don't get me wrong, it's still a very good living, but it's almost a 45% reduction from what I was making a year ago.

And a year ago I only owed money on my car.

I kick myself, because I've taken on $15,000 in consumer debt in a year. And really, it was for no good reason. It will take me longer to get back out of debt than it took me to get into it in the first place. I know how to live within my means, my mother did a lot to teach my sister and I how to be self sufficient and make do. So what happened? Long story short, I got used to a certain standard of living. When my income contracted, my perceived standard of living didn't contract with it. I can see how two income families who quickly go to one income, whether due to layoff, illness or birth of a child, can find themselves getting into trouble financially. I basically went from a two person income to a one person income by myself.

We're creatures of habit, and habits take time to change. Life however, doesn't always want to give us that adjustment time. That's why a budget is so important; it allows you to see, on paper, when things aren't adding up. Putting my own finances on paper helped spur me into action, and even then it wasn't right away.

I know I'm not always the most frugal person, and I have a long way to go, but I'm glad that I have the room to make those adjustments. it's a long road ahead, but the only way to go down the road is by taking the first step.

Cheap Dates

My boyfriend came home Saturday :)

He's been gone the better part of a year and a half doing training for the military.

It got me thinking a little while back about what we could do in terms of cheap dates. I don't have a lot of money to spend, and I seriously doubt he's okay with paying for everything we do together. That being said, he did take me out to eat this weekend. It was enjoyed and very much appreciated.

What else did we do? We went for a long walk in West Edmonton Mall (not to shop, it was -18 plus windchill outside so we needed somewhere we could walk without freezing), we watched movies at home, we went to the gym together (using passes I get free from work), and just relaxed. All free.

I have a pair of free movie passes at home, and a $100 gift card to one of the nicer steak houses in town. I'll probably save the movie passes for later in the month, and possibly organize a double date with friends of ours at the steak house. I think there might be a couple winter festivals coming up that we could check out reasonably cheap, if not free, and I believe they have free outdoor skating and hot chocolate at the legislative grounds right now. I'm going to ask about borrowing my dad's snowshoes; my boyfriend can borrow snowshoes from the military, and there is a park across the street from my house we could trample around in. Lululemon offers free yoga on Sunday mornings, but I'm not entirely convinced we could get out of bed early enough for it. Other than that, I'm not sure what we could do right now.

What are your favourite things to do for free/cheap with a significant other? Any ideas for cold weather dates?

Frugal Blog Bone to Pick

I like reading blogs that teach me a thing or two about how to stretch a buck. I even subscribe to the daily mailings of one such blog, and read the entire e-mail religiously. I love reading about how I can repurpose my items that would otherwise collect dust, use the last of my milk up before (or even after) it's starting to turn, and get new ideas for saving money on my utilities. However, I'm thinking about stopping. Specifically, I'm thinking about stopping reading the ones about how to save money on groceries. Why?

They aren't realistic.

Admittedly, most of these blogs come out of the US, and for where they are the prices they're writing about may be reasonable. For me however, they're not. For example, I recently took the unit prices from the recipes of one blog, and decided to compare them with my trip to the grocery store today:

Their prices:
2L organic milk - $1.28
1 dozen organic eggs - $0.90
1 lb butter - $0.80

My prices:
2L regular milk - $2.89
1 dozen regular eggs - $2.35
1 lb butter - $3.99 (On Sale)

This is not from a high end grocery store, it's from an average one. These are not top dollar prices, in fact they're store brand. These aren't organic items, they're regular ones. If you want to go organic the price for the milk hits $5-6, and about the same for the eggs. I'm scared to look at the price of organic butter. Don't even get me started on meat and vegetables, because they're worse than the staple prices.

The suggestion that going to the farmer's market will lower my grocery bill is laughable. If anything, it's more expensive than the store. I go for certain things so that I can support the local farmers, but $5 for a dozen eggs hurts my wallet. I would love to go 100% local, but it just isn't realistic. Ditto for organic. We don't have clearance stores and I've never seen a double or triple coupon day (ever, in my life). Most of the coupons I've come across have "cannot be combined with other offers" written on the bottom of them, and they are a pittance off of pre-made foods that I don't use.

So to all those bloggers out there who come up with solid meat and potato meals for under $5... good on you. To those bloggers/commenters who look down their noses at those of us that can't meet your arbitrary dollar figures.... bite me.