Back in 2007 (have I really been blabbering on this thing that long?), I noted that most folks don't bother to try to fix things before they toss them. We all know the drill--tossing instead of repairing is often more expensive, adds to the waste and pollution streams, and takes up space in landfills that are already overloaded.
I'm pretty good about finding replacement parts at thrift stores for the easy stuff, like replacing a broken coffee pot. But last weekend I realized that my clothes iron is on its last leg. Although Wendy Russell, host of She's Crafty, suggests that we use old irons for crafting projects, I've found that most crafting and sewing projects I do require a good, uber hot iron. Then it hit me-I know how to replace things but not necessarily how to fix them.
Enter these handy-dandy, helpful, and free websites:
How To Mend It (howtomendit.com)
Fix It Club (fixitclub.com)
eHow also has some good tips (ehow.com).
Also, manufacturers' websites often have great trouble shooting information. I found several sites with free downloadable manuals, but I didn't need anything and don't want to risk sending you to a spam-spewing site. If you have any go-to resources for DIY repair, let us know in the comments section!
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
Food Fun: Waste Not, Want Not
One of the most glaring lessons of this week's No Impact Project experiment has been the massive amount of food waste I create with all my wannabe fabulous home cookin'. So, I've decided to find a way to compost in my tiny urban dwelling that won't offend my husband. He screamed over a worm hiding in an ear of corn a few weeks back, so I don't think that city boy can handle a vermicopsting bin. He swears his squealing was for humorous, dramatic affect. I'm not so sure.
Ideally, I'd like to see my city adopt San Fransisco's city-wide composting program, but it will likely take awhile before I can convince city leaders to hop on the no-waste train. So, wish me luck in finding a solution in the interim!
In addition to composting, I need to learn how to reduce the amount of food waste I produce in the first place. Planet Green has a great article with several tips on how to do so, 50 Ways to Never Waste Food Again. Pickled watermelon rind? Making suet for birds? Who knew!
An additional tidbit from Planet Green that isn't in the list o' 50 is to puree waste into a "food scrap smoothie" and pour it on a green or garden area. Although I'm not too keen on using electricity in this fashion, it might be a good idea in an urban pinch. (Lo, how I miss the Midwestern fat yards and swathes o' land of my youth.)
In addition to using coffee grinds multiple times for multiple uses before composting them, I need to get back in the habit of freezing my veggie scraps until I have enough to make broth prior to composting them. It's amazing how easy it is to forget a life-long habit in favor of lazy trash tossing. Living with love requires a kind of viligence that the usual mindless death trap of work-consume-work-consume-leisure as consumption-work doesn't. Ah, life lessons.
I'm going to do my best to look at everything in such a fashion now: How many times and in how many different ways can I use this before sending it to the compost bin, recycling center or landfill? Do you have any tales of ways in which you've learned to get a multitude of uses out of a thing before it's sent to its death?
Ideally, I'd like to see my city adopt San Fransisco's city-wide composting program, but it will likely take awhile before I can convince city leaders to hop on the no-waste train. So, wish me luck in finding a solution in the interim!
In addition to composting, I need to learn how to reduce the amount of food waste I produce in the first place. Planet Green has a great article with several tips on how to do so, 50 Ways to Never Waste Food Again. Pickled watermelon rind? Making suet for birds? Who knew!
An additional tidbit from Planet Green that isn't in the list o' 50 is to puree waste into a "food scrap smoothie" and pour it on a green or garden area. Although I'm not too keen on using electricity in this fashion, it might be a good idea in an urban pinch. (Lo, how I miss the Midwestern fat yards and swathes o' land of my youth.)
In addition to using coffee grinds multiple times for multiple uses before composting them, I need to get back in the habit of freezing my veggie scraps until I have enough to make broth prior to composting them. It's amazing how easy it is to forget a life-long habit in favor of lazy trash tossing. Living with love requires a kind of viligence that the usual mindless death trap of work-consume-work-consume-leisure as consumption-work doesn't. Ah, life lessons.
I'm going to do my best to look at everything in such a fashion now: How many times and in how many different ways can I use this before sending it to the compost bin, recycling center or landfill? Do you have any tales of ways in which you've learned to get a multitude of uses out of a thing before it's sent to its death?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
No Impact is Full of Impact
Good lord, people! I am one gas-guzzling, trash-making, consumption hog. The No Impact Experiment is opening my eyes. Ohhhhhhhh, how I thought I was such a little gem of simple, light-impact living. It's just three days into this sucker and I've come to the horrid realization that I am more of a typical American than I ever would have admitted previously. Hello, enlightenment! Why are you such a bitch?
Day one taught me that I make more food waste than most large restaurant chains and that bits of trash flutter around me like moths to flame. Tiny half-and-half containers, tea bags, tea bag wrappers, tissues (how can I blow through three handkerchiefs to the point where I have to revert to tissue?), more food waste...it's endless.
Day one also taught me that I'm pretty good about not buying stuff, save toilet paper (I dunno what the Beaven's did to replace TP and I don't wanna know), if I put my mind to it. So, kudos to me! Oh wait, there was that $64 of craft supplies I bought prior to the experiment, but that's a once a year expenditure, so it's no big deal, right? Nevermind that I normally get that crap from thrift stores and the cost of new "on-sale" items at Michael's nearly gave me a heart attack. (So won't be doing that again!) But yeah, I can stop shopping if I remind myself that I am actually awake, alive and breathing. Which for some odd reason, actually requires effort.
Day three is all about transportation. So, what do I do? Wake up 40 minutes late and drive to work, despite my month-long love affair with the train, bus and walking. How convenient is it that I have that option? Or that I justify driving because I don't want to be late? (My boss isn't hitting the office until noon today, so I could have taken the train in retrospect.)
One of my fellow No Impact Project folks told me not to beat myself up due to today's idiocy and to feel good about making the switch to the train in one of the worst cities for public transit. (Thanks, Bill!) He's right. Wearing a hair shirt and flogging myself isn't going to do much good. But, DAYUM, PEOPLE! If I, as a somewhat-aware, trying-to-reduce-my-footprint American am consuming this much crap, what does the life of a typical American who makes no effort at all look like? That has to be a truly terrifying image.
Kim mentioned feeling like too much of a wimp to take the challenge, but I would really suggest that y'all get on board with Tyler and I and give this thing a shot. (I'm in the Simple Steps and California groups, iff'n ya need a friend.) I'm not doing it perfectly by any stretch and will likely try it again (and again and again, no doubt), but what I have learned in three days is nothing short of enlightening. I'm doing a heck of a job changing my life and have plenty of opportunity to grow. Had I not joined this ride, I'd probably still be lost in the sea of self-righteous idiocy, thinking I was far more fabulous than my actions actually demonstrate. Ah, humility. You always do such a good job of snuggling right into me.
Day one taught me that I make more food waste than most large restaurant chains and that bits of trash flutter around me like moths to flame. Tiny half-and-half containers, tea bags, tea bag wrappers, tissues (how can I blow through three handkerchiefs to the point where I have to revert to tissue?), more food waste...it's endless.
Day one also taught me that I'm pretty good about not buying stuff, save toilet paper (I dunno what the Beaven's did to replace TP and I don't wanna know), if I put my mind to it. So, kudos to me! Oh wait, there was that $64 of craft supplies I bought prior to the experiment, but that's a once a year expenditure, so it's no big deal, right? Nevermind that I normally get that crap from thrift stores and the cost of new "on-sale" items at Michael's nearly gave me a heart attack. (So won't be doing that again!) But yeah, I can stop shopping if I remind myself that I am actually awake, alive and breathing. Which for some odd reason, actually requires effort.
Day three is all about transportation. So, what do I do? Wake up 40 minutes late and drive to work, despite my month-long love affair with the train, bus and walking. How convenient is it that I have that option? Or that I justify driving because I don't want to be late? (My boss isn't hitting the office until noon today, so I could have taken the train in retrospect.)
One of my fellow No Impact Project folks told me not to beat myself up due to today's idiocy and to feel good about making the switch to the train in one of the worst cities for public transit. (Thanks, Bill!) He's right. Wearing a hair shirt and flogging myself isn't going to do much good. But, DAYUM, PEOPLE! If I, as a somewhat-aware, trying-to-reduce-my-footprint American am consuming this much crap, what does the life of a typical American who makes no effort at all look like? That has to be a truly terrifying image.
Kim mentioned feeling like too much of a wimp to take the challenge, but I would really suggest that y'all get on board with Tyler and I and give this thing a shot. (I'm in the Simple Steps and California groups, iff'n ya need a friend.) I'm not doing it perfectly by any stretch and will likely try it again (and again and again, no doubt), but what I have learned in three days is nothing short of enlightening. I'm doing a heck of a job changing my life and have plenty of opportunity to grow. Had I not joined this ride, I'd probably still be lost in the sea of self-righteous idiocy, thinking I was far more fabulous than my actions actually demonstrate. Ah, humility. You always do such a good job of snuggling right into me.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
No Impact Experiment Day 1: Consumption
Today was the first day of theNo Impact Project's week-long No Impact Experiment. The experiment is based on the year-long insane lifestyle mega change made by Colin Beaven, AKA No Impact Man, and his family. Today's challenge? Don't buy anything new with an additional requirement of keeping (and toting around) all the trash we create.
I hoped that this experiment would teach me a thing or two, but assumed I'd pretty much feel like Buddha on the mountain top, since I already do most of the things the experiment asks us to do. Just as I was ready to wax poetic about how enlightened I am, the beauty of life demonstrated, yet again, that I really am a moron with so very much to learn.
On Sundays, I engage in my favorite weekly ritual: grocery shopping and breakfast out. I consolidate all my shopping into one area since I drive. Farmer's market, breakfast and then across the street to Trader Joe's for all the goodies I can't find at the market. Like a good little tree hugger, I bring my own canvas bags, etc.
Today I learned that I consume and create trash in ways I didn't even realize. The first thing I do every morning is sneeze a million times and blow through practically half a roll of toilet paper in the process. Sometimes I use old t-shirts or handkerchiefs, but most of the time I just honk into a tissue and toss it. But the experiment made me mindful and the first thing I did was cut up an old t-shirt to use instead of consuming dead trees.
At the restaurant, I mindlessly went to unwrap a straw and stick it in my glass of water. Wait, nope. Unnecessary trash. I ended up drinking out of the glass like an adult, sans straw. My breakfast resulted in small bits of trash: three half and half containers; sugar packets (I recycled the paper from the sugar packets, but it's still a type of waste); and two paper napkins.
The meal itself was also a form of consumption, but I'm okay with it. We eat out so much less these days that it has become a treat instead of the norm. However, I realized that I could cut my Sunday ritual consumption in the following ways:
-bring my own sugar and cloth napkin
-make breakfast at home two Sundays a month
-buy items at Trader Joe's in bulk so that I only go twice (or once) a month and visit the farmer's market within walking distance weekly.
Another major accomplishment of today's experiment is that I am now composting food waste. I hadn't bothered previously because we are surrounded by concrete, I didn't have a "proper" composting container, blah blah lame excuse blah. However, there is a small strip of earth next to my building where I can sneak a compost pile (I hope) and I can use a big ol' coffee bean container (organic and fair trade!) that we buy twice a month to house food waste.
Finally, I switched the brand of toilet paper we use after reading Greenpeace's recycled tissue and toilet paper guide. I had a odd brand loyalty for many years, because the rolls lasted so long compared to other brands. But after using Trader Joe's 80% post-consumer recycled rolls, I realized that my brand loyalty was misplaced. The TJ's TP lasts roughly the same amount of time, doesn't use nearly as much virgin wood, comes in a more earth-friendly wrapping, and costs about half the price of my previous brand. Ya gotta love it when the more earth-friendly option turns out to be cheaper.
I have to say, it feels great to find more ways in which I can change my life for the benefit of all. I'm looking forward to what else I'll learn over the course of this week. If you haven't signed up, give it a try! If you do join, please feel free to add me as a buddy. My page can be found here.
I hoped that this experiment would teach me a thing or two, but assumed I'd pretty much feel like Buddha on the mountain top, since I already do most of the things the experiment asks us to do. Just as I was ready to wax poetic about how enlightened I am, the beauty of life demonstrated, yet again, that I really am a moron with so very much to learn.
On Sundays, I engage in my favorite weekly ritual: grocery shopping and breakfast out. I consolidate all my shopping into one area since I drive. Farmer's market, breakfast and then across the street to Trader Joe's for all the goodies I can't find at the market. Like a good little tree hugger, I bring my own canvas bags, etc.
Today I learned that I consume and create trash in ways I didn't even realize. The first thing I do every morning is sneeze a million times and blow through practically half a roll of toilet paper in the process. Sometimes I use old t-shirts or handkerchiefs, but most of the time I just honk into a tissue and toss it. But the experiment made me mindful and the first thing I did was cut up an old t-shirt to use instead of consuming dead trees.
At the restaurant, I mindlessly went to unwrap a straw and stick it in my glass of water. Wait, nope. Unnecessary trash. I ended up drinking out of the glass like an adult, sans straw. My breakfast resulted in small bits of trash: three half and half containers; sugar packets (I recycled the paper from the sugar packets, but it's still a type of waste); and two paper napkins.
The meal itself was also a form of consumption, but I'm okay with it. We eat out so much less these days that it has become a treat instead of the norm. However, I realized that I could cut my Sunday ritual consumption in the following ways:
-bring my own sugar and cloth napkin
-make breakfast at home two Sundays a month
-buy items at Trader Joe's in bulk so that I only go twice (or once) a month and visit the farmer's market within walking distance weekly.
Another major accomplishment of today's experiment is that I am now composting food waste. I hadn't bothered previously because we are surrounded by concrete, I didn't have a "proper" composting container, blah blah lame excuse blah. However, there is a small strip of earth next to my building where I can sneak a compost pile (I hope) and I can use a big ol' coffee bean container (organic and fair trade!) that we buy twice a month to house food waste.
Finally, I switched the brand of toilet paper we use after reading Greenpeace's recycled tissue and toilet paper guide. I had a odd brand loyalty for many years, because the rolls lasted so long compared to other brands. But after using Trader Joe's 80% post-consumer recycled rolls, I realized that my brand loyalty was misplaced. The TJ's TP lasts roughly the same amount of time, doesn't use nearly as much virgin wood, comes in a more earth-friendly wrapping, and costs about half the price of my previous brand. Ya gotta love it when the more earth-friendly option turns out to be cheaper.
I have to say, it feels great to find more ways in which I can change my life for the benefit of all. I'm looking forward to what else I'll learn over the course of this week. If you haven't signed up, give it a try! If you do join, please feel free to add me as a buddy. My page can be found here.
Friday, November 13, 2009
When Stupid Gets Expensive
The Wall Street Journal has an interesting article about how folks are surviving post lay offs-- Life on Severance: Comfort, Then Crisis. The author was a good journalist, refraining from relaying any judgement at the feet of people she profiled. Since I am not a journalist and enjoy ranting and complaining, I'm going to get all judge-y.
My mouth was on the floor while reading this article. Granted, we ALL do stupid stuff with our money at times and most of us have gone through periods of being complete and utter morons with our financial lives. If you're anything like me, you've been through multiple bouts of mind-numbing idiocy. But the bulk of my dumb behavior occurred (oh God, please let it be over) during my twenties when I was learning how to navigate the murky waters of personal finance and personal responsibility. The folks profiled in the article are all adults, many of whom have children. In other words, they're too old for this kind of behavior.
Some received massive severance packages, others smaller, but still substantial, payouts. Yet every person featured behaved like an absolute moron with their finances. They continued to spend as if they were employed and assumed a new gig would magically appear despite the current economic climate.
I wrote a how-to for those recently laid off awhile ago, but did not consider the possibility of a severance pay out, because so few of the folks I know who have lost their jobs received any such package. Apparently, a hefty payout of cash gave these folks a false sense of security.
However, given their spending patterns and deep denial (well, until their accounts hurtled closer and closer to zero), I suspect these people have a long history of behaving stupidly with their finances. I would normally call this ignorance, but ignorance can be fixed. Stupid? Oy. Unfortunately, that condition is forever.
Each of them refrained from making immediate, significant changes, and continued excessive spending, per the usual. One high-paid executive turned down several job offers despite his dwindling cushion, because they didn't pay as much as his last position or would have required relocation.
I found the level of denial in this man's decisions, as well as some of the others profiled, most shocking. We are in the worst global economic crisis of our lives, yet this man believes he should be paid the same salary as before, as if nothing in our economic climate has changed. Business as usual is the motto for these folks, despite the fact that the business has burned to the ground.
One woman actually justified her excessive spending as a sanity-saver:
How sane do you think she's going to feel if she has to apply for food stamps because she's blown through all her savings and has exhausted unemployment benefits?
The lesson of this article for those paying attention is clear: Don't stick your head in the sand if you lose your job. A severance package is a lovely thing, but it does not equate continued employment. The keys to survival are pretty simple: cut your spending drastically (for spendthrifts: understand that this is a temporary situation and you can survive virtually anything for a short period of time); understand that job hunting will take longer than you expect in the current climate; understand that the landscape has changed and you may have to accept a smaller salary at your next gig; and for the love of all that is holy, do not equate excessive spending with security. It's quite the opposite.
For those of us still employed, another lesson is available: Don't assume you're safe or that you'll receive a fat severance. Saving a hefty chunk of our salaries is always important, but even more so in this new economic terrain.
My mouth was on the floor while reading this article. Granted, we ALL do stupid stuff with our money at times and most of us have gone through periods of being complete and utter morons with our financial lives. If you're anything like me, you've been through multiple bouts of mind-numbing idiocy. But the bulk of my dumb behavior occurred (oh God, please let it be over) during my twenties when I was learning how to navigate the murky waters of personal finance and personal responsibility. The folks profiled in the article are all adults, many of whom have children. In other words, they're too old for this kind of behavior.
Some received massive severance packages, others smaller, but still substantial, payouts. Yet every person featured behaved like an absolute moron with their finances. They continued to spend as if they were employed and assumed a new gig would magically appear despite the current economic climate.
I wrote a how-to for those recently laid off awhile ago, but did not consider the possibility of a severance pay out, because so few of the folks I know who have lost their jobs received any such package. Apparently, a hefty payout of cash gave these folks a false sense of security.
However, given their spending patterns and deep denial (well, until their accounts hurtled closer and closer to zero), I suspect these people have a long history of behaving stupidly with their finances. I would normally call this ignorance, but ignorance can be fixed. Stupid? Oy. Unfortunately, that condition is forever.
Each of them refrained from making immediate, significant changes, and continued excessive spending, per the usual. One high-paid executive turned down several job offers despite his dwindling cushion, because they didn't pay as much as his last position or would have required relocation.
I found the level of denial in this man's decisions, as well as some of the others profiled, most shocking. We are in the worst global economic crisis of our lives, yet this man believes he should be paid the same salary as before, as if nothing in our economic climate has changed. Business as usual is the motto for these folks, despite the fact that the business has burned to the ground.
One woman actually justified her excessive spending as a sanity-saver:
Ms. Patterson sometimes wishes she had cut her spending earlier. But the money spent networking and socializing, she says, has "helped [me] keep sane."
How sane do you think she's going to feel if she has to apply for food stamps because she's blown through all her savings and has exhausted unemployment benefits?
The lesson of this article for those paying attention is clear: Don't stick your head in the sand if you lose your job. A severance package is a lovely thing, but it does not equate continued employment. The keys to survival are pretty simple: cut your spending drastically (for spendthrifts: understand that this is a temporary situation and you can survive virtually anything for a short period of time); understand that job hunting will take longer than you expect in the current climate; understand that the landscape has changed and you may have to accept a smaller salary at your next gig; and for the love of all that is holy, do not equate excessive spending with security. It's quite the opposite.
For those of us still employed, another lesson is available: Don't assume you're safe or that you'll receive a fat severance. Saving a hefty chunk of our salaries is always important, but even more so in this new economic terrain.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Free Financial Literacy Resources (for parents and teachers too!)
Every North American should read Your Money or Your Life: 9 Steps to Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin. In my humble, yet ever so correct, opinion, it is the best personal finance book out there. Unlike other books that focus on only particular aspects of personal finance, this book takes into account the whole of our financial lives, from global impact to self-identity. If you haven't read it, get thee to a library (or wait until December, as I'll be giving a couple of copies away!).
Yes, I've mentioned this book a gazillion times on this blog, and I'll mention it a gazillion more. It's that good. It's mind boggling that one little book could have such an impact on my life, but it has. I finished reading it for a third time and went hunting to see what was new on the website, as it's been several years since Joe passed away and a new edition of the book was released last year. And yes, I've had to read it three times because I've fallen off the wagon of simple and sustainable living many times. Thankfully, age and a frugal spouse seem to be calming me down quite nicely, making for an easier time of pulling my head out of my ass.
Joe and Vicki started the New Roadmap Foundation to help others learn how to gain control over their financial lives and achieve financial independence. The website is now called Financial Integrity, and they offer several free resources. Although I would suggest reading the book, you can learn the nine steps via the website and can even download the program guide for free. There are also group study guides available if you'd like to build a study group around the program. (Magical things happen when people work collaboratively toward a common vision, people!)
Viva la open source sites!
New American Dream has a great list of downloads to help simplify the holidays, building an alternative gift fair, and greening the back-to-school buying frenzy, among others. One catch-you have to sign up on the site to get the downloadable goodies, but you can opt out of email updates.
Stowers Innovations has several free resources available, including budget spreadsheets and estate planning guides. They also have a separate site called Yes You Can! (this was pre-Obama, people!) that has resources for parents and teachers, including a curriculum to help teach financial literacy to chilluns. Again, you have to register for the Yes You Can! downloads, but the info at Stowers' main site doesn't require any hoop jumping.
Most of the financial gurus like Dave Ramsey, Suze Orman and David Bach have some resources on their sites as well. However, I tire of the endless sales pitches and the lack of disclosure. I particularly don't like Bach's insistence that we need financial planners. Most of us don't need these sales folks. And at some point, I have to wonder where these folks' "enough" buttons are. You can pay for a lifetime membership to Ramsey's website, yet most of what he teaches is available for free throughout the web (he does offer free resources like budgeting worksheets, etc).
Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin found their "enough" points and stopped taking money for their work and offer the majority of resources for free, because their genuine focus was on helping people. How much money does Ramsey actually need, for the love? Particularly given that his is a God-centered program?
Not to leave my sisters out--Orman has a partnership with a FICO parent company, but she never discloses this (which is probably why she never critiques the broken and discriminatory FICO system) when she's screaming at us to clean up our credit reports to repair our FICO scores.
I'm not saying these folks are bad people or that they shouldn't make money. I've learned a great deal from each of them and appreciate that they have built careers around educating people. I just wonder why they don't tell the whole truth and don't seem to have an "enough" point when it comes to material gain. Hence, my tremendous respect for the honest and holistic Your Money or Your Life program and its creators.
Yes, you're right. I can't seem to open my mouth without bitching about something. Just be grateful you don't have to live with it like my dearly beloved.
Yes, I've mentioned this book a gazillion times on this blog, and I'll mention it a gazillion more. It's that good. It's mind boggling that one little book could have such an impact on my life, but it has. I finished reading it for a third time and went hunting to see what was new on the website, as it's been several years since Joe passed away and a new edition of the book was released last year. And yes, I've had to read it three times because I've fallen off the wagon of simple and sustainable living many times. Thankfully, age and a frugal spouse seem to be calming me down quite nicely, making for an easier time of pulling my head out of my ass.
Joe and Vicki started the New Roadmap Foundation to help others learn how to gain control over their financial lives and achieve financial independence. The website is now called Financial Integrity, and they offer several free resources. Although I would suggest reading the book, you can learn the nine steps via the website and can even download the program guide for free. There are also group study guides available if you'd like to build a study group around the program. (Magical things happen when people work collaboratively toward a common vision, people!)
Viva la open source sites!
New American Dream has a great list of downloads to help simplify the holidays, building an alternative gift fair, and greening the back-to-school buying frenzy, among others. One catch-you have to sign up on the site to get the downloadable goodies, but you can opt out of email updates.
Stowers Innovations has several free resources available, including budget spreadsheets and estate planning guides. They also have a separate site called Yes You Can! (this was pre-Obama, people!) that has resources for parents and teachers, including a curriculum to help teach financial literacy to chilluns. Again, you have to register for the Yes You Can! downloads, but the info at Stowers' main site doesn't require any hoop jumping.
Most of the financial gurus like Dave Ramsey, Suze Orman and David Bach have some resources on their sites as well. However, I tire of the endless sales pitches and the lack of disclosure. I particularly don't like Bach's insistence that we need financial planners. Most of us don't need these sales folks. And at some point, I have to wonder where these folks' "enough" buttons are. You can pay for a lifetime membership to Ramsey's website, yet most of what he teaches is available for free throughout the web (he does offer free resources like budgeting worksheets, etc).
Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin found their "enough" points and stopped taking money for their work and offer the majority of resources for free, because their genuine focus was on helping people. How much money does Ramsey actually need, for the love? Particularly given that his is a God-centered program?
Not to leave my sisters out--Orman has a partnership with a FICO parent company, but she never discloses this (which is probably why she never critiques the broken and discriminatory FICO system) when she's screaming at us to clean up our credit reports to repair our FICO scores.
I'm not saying these folks are bad people or that they shouldn't make money. I've learned a great deal from each of them and appreciate that they have built careers around educating people. I just wonder why they don't tell the whole truth and don't seem to have an "enough" point when it comes to material gain. Hence, my tremendous respect for the honest and holistic Your Money or Your Life program and its creators.
Yes, you're right. I can't seem to open my mouth without bitching about something. Just be grateful you don't have to live with it like my dearly beloved.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Pumpkin Delights
We all know that cooking from scratch is tastier and cheaper than purchasing pre-made foods. Despite being privy to this well known fact, I have always purchased pumpkin puree in cans. My mother occasionally complained about being sold a "cooking" pumpkin that was anything but, so I assumed purchasing and cooking a pumpkin was a complicated process. As usual, I was wrong.
Trader Joe's came to the rescue with its small $1.99 sugar pumpkin, safely labeled as a great variety for pumpkin pie. I decided to compare it to their $1.99 canned pumpkin. Although most recipes I've seen boil peeled pumpkin, I opted to roast mine because I prefer the flavor of roasted veggies. I also purchased a significantly larger pumpkin (check out dude gave me a deal! I got a big $6.99 one for the price of its smaller, $4.99 counterpart. Nice, eh?) that a blogger said made good eatin'. (Sorry, can't remember where I found that tip or I'd link it.)
The small sugar pumpkin gave me slightly more puree than found in the canned variety, but also had the bonus of provided a TON of pumpkin seeds that I happily roasted and am chomping on at this very moment. The larger pumpkin is a much better deal, as it provides about four times the puree for half the cost of the equivalent in sugar pumpkins. Not to mention the yummy seeds galore.
Next time, I'll be sure to check the farmer's market, because veggies are usually cheaper there. I'm also going to check out U-pick patches to stock up on this fall delight, so that I can enjoy it year round without resorting to the store bought canned variety.
Actually, this is a long term goal of mine while I'm living in the city--locate as much produce as possible via U-pick sites (it is significantly cheaper) and prepare and store it for the year. Baby steps.
So, what will I be making with all this pumpkin delight? In addition to my standard pumpkin muffins (will put recipe in comments section later today once I find where I've stashed it), I'm going to try these delights from the PBS show Caprial and John's Kitchen: Cooking for Family and Friends (other recipes for the show can be found here.)
If you're a cheap bastid like me, you'll likely leave out the wine and quite possibly the sherry. I know people rave about how it adds flavor, but I just don't see the point in using good booze in food when I could drink it. Remember children, alcohol is your friend. Why burn most of it off on the stove top?
Do you have any pumpkin recipes you'd like to share?
Trader Joe's came to the rescue with its small $1.99 sugar pumpkin, safely labeled as a great variety for pumpkin pie. I decided to compare it to their $1.99 canned pumpkin. Although most recipes I've seen boil peeled pumpkin, I opted to roast mine because I prefer the flavor of roasted veggies. I also purchased a significantly larger pumpkin (check out dude gave me a deal! I got a big $6.99 one for the price of its smaller, $4.99 counterpart. Nice, eh?) that a blogger said made good eatin'. (Sorry, can't remember where I found that tip or I'd link it.)
The small sugar pumpkin gave me slightly more puree than found in the canned variety, but also had the bonus of provided a TON of pumpkin seeds that I happily roasted and am chomping on at this very moment. The larger pumpkin is a much better deal, as it provides about four times the puree for half the cost of the equivalent in sugar pumpkins. Not to mention the yummy seeds galore.
Next time, I'll be sure to check the farmer's market, because veggies are usually cheaper there. I'm also going to check out U-pick patches to stock up on this fall delight, so that I can enjoy it year round without resorting to the store bought canned variety.
Actually, this is a long term goal of mine while I'm living in the city--locate as much produce as possible via U-pick sites (it is significantly cheaper) and prepare and store it for the year. Baby steps.
So, what will I be making with all this pumpkin delight? In addition to my standard pumpkin muffins (will put recipe in comments section later today once I find where I've stashed it), I'm going to try these delights from the PBS show Caprial and John's Kitchen: Cooking for Family and Friends (other recipes for the show can be found here.)
Pumpkin Cookies
Makes 3 dozen cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup flour
2 cups old fashion oats
1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
1/2 cup chopped dried cherries
Heaping 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pre-heat oven 350 degrees
Place the butter, sugar, brown sugar and pumpkin puree in the bowl of a mixer. Mix well. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until smooth. Add the flour, oats, pecans, cherries, spices, salt and baking soda and mix well. Spoon onto a well greased sheet pan and cook until golden brown about 10 minutes. Let cool about 3-5 minutes then remove from the pan. Eat or store in an airtight container.
Caprial said that the recipe would work just as well with raisins or other dried fruits.
Pumpkin Soup with Five Spice
Serves 6
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon curry powder
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 cup sherry
1 cup mirin wine
4 cups roast pumpkin
6 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
Salt and black pepper
2/3 cup crème frache
To prepare the soup, heat the olive oil until very hot. Add the onion and cook until they start to brown about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, curry and ginger, sauté for about 1-2 minutes. Add the sherry and mirin wine and cook until about 1/2 of liquid remains about 6-8 minutes. Add the pumpkin and the stock and bring to a boil. Puree with a hand blender and simmer for about 20 minutes. Serve warm garnished with crème frache.
If you're a cheap bastid like me, you'll likely leave out the wine and quite possibly the sherry. I know people rave about how it adds flavor, but I just don't see the point in using good booze in food when I could drink it. Remember children, alcohol is your friend. Why burn most of it off on the stove top?
Do you have any pumpkin recipes you'd like to share?
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