Day: May 9, 2018

A Dozen Of My Favorite & Simple Ways To Save Money!

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Like most moms, I want to be home as much as possible. Thanks to some money saving habits that we’ve adopted, my husband and I have been able to bless our family with a full time mom that only has to work part time! With the current state of the economy and money becoming a hot commodity, I’d like to share our biggest, easiest money savers!
1. Homemade Laundry Detergent
I have been making my own detergent for years now. According to my calculations, I am able to make 10 gallons of detergent for under $2! Yep, that’s less than 20 cents per GALLON! There are numerous DIY recipes, but the video below is closest to the one I use. It only takes 3 simple ingredients that can be found at most grocery stores. We have a high efficiency (HE) washer and dryer. This detergent is perfectly safe for your machines.
I prefer to use 1 cup of the washing soda instead of 1/2 as seen in the video. Also, I do not let my detergent sit for 24 hours before transferring half to the 2nd 5 gallon bucket. With space in the garage, I store the 5 gallon buckets with a funnel, an old whisk, and a cup used to pour. I fill by detergent bottle as needed instead of filling bottles when I make the batch. Because the solution does thicken, I use the whisk to stir it up.

2. Meat Is Expensive. Buy It On Clearance.
Most grocery stores have a set day/time that they reduce the price on their meats. Go to the butcher section and ask! When possible, shop right after they reduce the meat. Our preferred grocery store marks the reduced meats with a noticeable sticker, so the deals are easy to spot.

Worried about germs and bacteria? Freeze it. Bacteria that could survive cooking are not likely to survive freezing. Freezing the meat before cooking it gives you double protection against any possible microorganisms lingering around!
3. Coupons. Extreme or Not.
Coupons have gained in popularity with “extreme couponing;” however, I fear some avoid coupons because it looks like so much work when one is looking at what’s involved in the extreme version of coupon use. If extreme is your thing, great, go for it! I have a sister-in-law that can fill a car with goodies for a few bucks. She’s amazing, but I just can’t get that into it. When I’ve tried, I found myself often confused, frustrated, and felt like a dog chasing my tail. That’s okay. One can coupon without being extreme and still save a few bucks.

If someone handed you a dollar, would you throw it away? No way, right!? Treat coupons like money. You are often handed coupons for things that you already buy. Check packaging on the products you are purchasing! Things like pet supplies, feminine hygiene products, razors, etc often have coupons in or on the packaging. That’s like being handed money! How about your grocery store? Do they give you coupons with your receipt? If so, these are likely generated from your purchases, so make sure you check them out!

Keep the coupons handy, especially for things you know you will buy. Mine go in my wallet where I keep my cash and bank card! It’s a great reminder to hand them to the cashier before I pay.

4. Valued Customer. Take Advantage Of It.
Most stores have some type of preferred, return, or valued customer program. Use it! Let’s face it, we are creatures of habit and tend to shop at the same places. Don’t like all the key fobs on your key chain? There’s an app for that! I use Key Ring for android. Check your app store to see what is available to you.

Added bonus – this becomes a little game of achievement. I thoroughly enjoy giving my discount card at the end so I can compare what I would have paid to what I actually pay.

If you have storage space, take this one step further – only buy what’s on sale. When it’s on sale, stock up! (This works with buying clearance meat too!)

5. Gas Prices Are High. Kill Two Birds With One Stone!
I live in a rural area. Typically, when I need to run errands, it is in a town 20 miles away. When the occasion arises that I need to make a drive, I do as much in that trip as I can. For example, when taking the car for an oil change, I considered what else was close by. I did not need pet supplies for another week, but since I would be a couple miles from the pet store, I used my trip to tackle two tasks instead of one. Another example, I have a friend I love to visit that lives about 25 miles away. When I go to visit her, I pass a discount grocery store that sells milk for almost $2 less a gallon that my usual grocer. I always pick up a gallon or two of milk on my way home from her house. Obviously, it doesn’t pay to drive 25 miles to save $2 on milk, but if I’m already in the area, I should take advantage of the opportunity!

Before heading out, always ask yourself, what will I pass on the way and what can I accomplish in this trip to avoid an additional trip later?

“Living Wage” – Is The Wage The Problem?

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I’ve heard a lot of talk about a “Living Wage” recently as an argument promoting the increase in minimum wage. Supporters of a minimum wage increase cry out, “Everyone deserves a living wage!” My question is, is the wage the problem or the definition of “living” the problem?

I’ve been poor. Dirt poor. We supported a family of 3 on a single income of $6 per hour without government assistance or bailouts from family. We lived in a 46×10 foot trailer. We ate cereal and Ramen noodles on a daily basis because they were cheap. Our other food consisted of items I could find at a local “bent & dent.” We did not have internet, cable, or cell phones. We had one car. We did not have central air, a dish washer, or a big screen tv.

Hunger was our motivation. I went to school to earn my nursing degree. Now, I’m told that everyone deserves to have the same standard of living I do without the sacrifice or the work that I went through to get here. You’ll have to forgive me if I don’t agree.
Simple math, economics, and history all prove that an increase in minimum wage only increases the cost of living. It’s called a budget. Businesses must maintain a budget. When the cost of labor increases, the cost of goods increase. When sharing my experience, I often hear, “But you paid less for a gallon of milk and a gallon of gas back then.” That’s correct and only proves that an increase in minimum wage does not improve the quality of life for those attempting to make a career of these entry level positions. I’ve seen minimum wage almost double in my work years. Those on minimum wage are no better off now than they were then. Why? Because as the supporters of minimum wage increase point out, things cost more now than they did then. Hmmm, coincidence? No. Cause and effect.

My favorite argument is that you need to look at the “average” cost of rent, groceries, and utilities. Those on minimum wage can’t afford the average. Do you know how to obtain an average? You take all the values from the minimum to the maximum and add them together, then divide by the count of those numbers you just added. So, why would a person making the minimum in this equation suddenly think they deserve the average living? Refer to my story above. The average two bedroom home at the time cost $400 – $600 per month in our area. Did we have the average home? No. We had the minimum, a trailer that wasn’t much more than a shack and cost $200 per month. You see how that works? Minimum wage meant minimum living, not average.
The problem we have here isn’t wage. It’s the definition of living. Too many include luxuries in that definition. How many minimum wage earners have smart phones, computers, internet, cable, big screen televisions, manicured nails, expensive salon hairstyles, new name brand clothes, gaming consoles, and the latest electronics? I lived without those things on a meager wage with a family. Was it easy? No. Since when is life guaranteed to be easy? A little struggle and sacrifice gave me things that can’t be bought – determination, character, and appreciation.

Pardon the old cliche, but life isn’t fair. If it were fair, I wouldn’t be working while able-bodied individuals receive handouts paid for by the working class and the top earners that they vehemently hate. Yes, the top earners that have ignorance spewed against them from those dependent on social programs are the very ones that are paying for those programs, but I digress.
Here is the simple, hard truth, even if the minimum wage is raised, those receiving it are and will remain on the bottom. No law or regulation will change that, but a new mindset will. Stop demanding “solutions” that do not solve the problem at hand and start prioritizing, budgeting, working, sacrificing, learning, and most importantly, accomplishing.

Dobri Dobrev: Never Judge A Book By Its Cover

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Meet 99 year old Dobri Dobrev, better known as Grandpa Dobri. He has been called a saint, a hermit , a man who doesn’t take money, an angel, a divine stranger, a traveler from the past, a beggar. But he is far from a typical beggar. Although he lost most of his hearing in the second world war, he is still a contributor to his community in ways unimaginable.

Every day Dobri walks 25 kilometers from his village in his homemade clothes and leather shoes to the city of Sofia, where he spends the day begging for money. However, there is more to this beggar than meets the eye.
Dobri has become a well known fixture around several of the city’s churches. He is known for his gratitude and thanks to all, but it isn’t his appreciation that makes this man remarkable. Recently, it was discovered that he has donated every penny he has collected — over 40,000 euros — towards the restoration of decaying Bulgarian monasteries and the utility bills of a local orphanage. He has not kept anything he has received through donation, living instead off his monthly state pension of 80 euros.

Dobri has always been a giver, spending his younger years working construction and farm labor, and donating his weekly salary. To save money, he has lived in a small shack on the outskirts of town and eaten simple meals. He has only ever kept what he needed to survive from his earnings and given the rest to orphanages and churches his entire life.

It is no wonder that the story of such a remarkable man has spread over the internet. His story is so incredible, it earned a place on Snopes.com, an Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation, where doubters can confirm that his tale is indeed true.
It is no surprise that tribute videos for Dobri Doprev have also made their way to the well known video sharing site Youtube. Here is just one example:

BREAKING Iranian Military Base Just BOMBED… Look Who Did It!

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Source: https://goo.gl/55ohZC
Syria on Tuesday said Israel carried out an attack on a military base south of Damascus, which was used by Iranian forces. According to reports, Israeli fighter jets entered Syrian airspace and struck Iranian missiles aimed at Israel, Haaretz News reports.

The attack happened in Kisweh, according to the official news agency SANA, about an hour after President Trump’s announcement that he would be pulling the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal, Fox News reported.

The military said it identified what it said was unusual movements of Iranian forces in Syria, and it believed those forces were preparing for an imminent retaliation against Israel.

At least nine people died in the attack, Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights in Britain told AFP.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Israeli military ordered communities in the Golan Heights, bordering Syria, to open public shelters. Intelligence officers and other specialized forces have been called up, though reserve combat units have not been drafted. Israeli military bases were preparing for a possible Iranian attack.

High tension between rivals Iran and Israel have prompted an increasing number of strikes as of late. Iran has promised to hit back against Israeli-led attacks aimed at Iranian outposts in Syria.

The military said any Iranian strike against Israel will be met with a severe response, even as the working assumption is that Iran is has limited capabilities to engage in conflict with Israel.
Earlier, the U.S. Embassy in Israel issued an alert warning all U.S. government employees not travel to the Golan Heights unless they obtain an approval in advance.

“Due to the recent tensions in the region, until further notice, U.S. government employees are required to obtain advance approval if they wish to travel to the Golan Heights,” the warning on the website read.

U.S. government employees were asked to “maintain situational awareness” and monitor media to be up to date with the situation on Israel’s Northern front. They were further encouraged to visit the website of Israel’s Home Front Command for guidance.

Among those include an attack on Syria’s T4 air base in the Homs province in April that killed seven Iranian military personnel. And on April 30, Israel was accused of attacking government outposts in northern Syria, which left several pro-government fighters, some of whom were Iranians, dead.

It’s time to blow these scumbags to hell.

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