I held the infamous party I blogged about this Saturday. I spent $51 on food and I have leftovers. For future reference, pumpkins have a lot of seeds and toasting them is an excellent party snack. I brought some left over seeds into work and you would have thought I baked a tiered cake the way everyone was reacting.
All told $51 fed $15 people. I'm kind of feeling like I pulled a Jesus there.
I was alerted today via another blog about an article on MSN called "The (Real) Cost Of Love". I realized after reading it why there was no place to comment on this article. It was one of the most sexist things I've seen lately and I'm sure the women reading this online would have ripped this guy apart(I'm assuming it is a guy). I'd like to talk a little bit about what I find wrong with this article and, like the article did, back up my article with "sources", you know, like the New York Times, CNN news, and financial journal articles. (Compare the article's sources to mine and I bet you'll see I've already out-researched him.)
First of all, I see in this article, men are the breadwinners. Yes, women make up almost half the work force...(oh wait, that figure was from 1999, but as population has increased and more women are now attending college then men, women are likely entering the skilled work force at a larger rate.) But, ladies, men are still our providers.
I feel bad for how much money men have to pay for us. Who cares that women are also paying more taxes then men; earn 1/4 less than what men earn doing the exact same job; and are still doing more housework then men. We cost men money, ladies. They have to buy us lingerie and jewelry.
So clearly, though I earn less than a man, am more likely to pay taxes than a man, and do more housework then a man, someone can still write an article about how much women cost men and make a few people nod their heads in agreement.
If we wanted to go with this articles cavemen premise, let's assume what this guy does: that men earn the money and women have traditional roles. Values have been assigned to traditional women's unpaid roles ranging from $75,000/year to $130,000+. I think that means as an average house wife, I'd "outearn" my husband. And let's not even talk about the value-added services...
But wait a minute, women work too! I almost forgot. And I also forgot that I can actually pay for dining out, entertainment, personal grooming, and a lot of the other things on this list myself.
But I tell the author of this article not to worry about taking me on an "expensive dinner to apologize" for undermining the contributions of women in our society. I'll buy my own dinner, thanks.
Two years ago, right before I was about to move to a place with no mass transit, I hit my car into a moose. I survived with no injuries but my car sacrificed itself completely. I loved that car.
So I had about two weeks to research cars and buy a car before my move in addition to getting ready to move. It was all very stressful. I hate shopping for cars no matter what and having to buy one quickly made the process even more painful. My father's friend ended up selling me a 2001 Subaru Forester at slightly above book value. It's silver and outdoorsy looking. It's all wheel drive is particularly useful in Maine winters. But I've never fallen in love with this car.
It's not a bad car but I'm not particularly attached to it. I've thought of getting rid of it since I've bought it. And with gas prices the way they are, well, going smaller is looking particularly good right now.
Thinking about new or used, hybrid or regular, car payment or cheap car I run into the ground are all making my head spin. I ran across this article at another finance blog about the cheapest new cars to own. Then I think I need to do some calculations about whether in my particular case a hybid car's fuel savings and tax breaks would be worth the extra costs up front. Then I will research how much a typical used car with 50,000 will cost me over the course of five years in maintenance, etc. Sounds like this will be a three part blog series!
And if anyone is out there reading this who knows about cars, feel free to pipe in with information and links. In the end, this may not even pan out but it's worth a little research anyway...
Looking for a way to hear new music but can't afford satellite radio? I've got the perfect solution.
Pandora (the Music Genome Project) is a great web site where you put in a favorite song or artist and then Pandora "suggests" other artists/songs like the one you entered by playing the song. (Something about how it analyzes the tempo, harmony, etc. matches similar songs up on many dimensions.) You vote the individual songs up or down when they play. Vote the song up and it will find you songs like that one to play for you in the future. Vote the song down and you will never hear that song again. The first few times you use it (you'll have to create a log-on name so the web site can find your station when you log back on), it's pretty hit or miss. But eventually this wonderful thing happens. It knows you. It picks only songs you like. I feel like if only it would give me backrubs and take me to dinner once in awhile, I would marry the Pandora web site.
I have a few "stations" going: one with upbeat music when I'm in that mood, another has female jazz artists, one for hiphop when I'm channeling my inner thug. When you feel a station is pretty good, you can even share it with friends.
Of course on the site, they will attempt to sell you the service, which is very reasonably priced. What isn't reasonable are the players it's compatible with. Do I really want to spend $200 on a device that I can only listen to Pandora with? Not so much. True, you can listen on your cell phone but I don't have one, nor do I believe that many cell phones are built for music listening anyway. Plus Pandora only works with certain cell providers. What to do?
The good news is you don't have to be sitting in front of your computer to listen to your Pandora station. What I have been doing is hooking up my computer to my stereo with a cable. The music can be as loud as I want it to be and when I want to have a party, I just tuck it under the stereo so no one has to stare at my computer all night.
So endless music that you like, no commercials. You get to hear a mix of the old stuff you love and the new stuff you probably will end up liking. And with the title and artists of the songs you like conviently listed, you can figure out which album to download next.
Happy listening... Tell Pandora I said hi, and ask if it got the cookies I baked it.
I've been really hankering to have a party lately. I don't know if it's because Halloween and other holidays are coming up or because I haven't thrown one since moving here (and it's been about three months) but it seems to be the time to invite people over and be the hostess with the mostest.
As someone who takes pride in throwing a good party, I want my guests to have a good time, eat well, and have a drink on me. This got me to thinking how I could throw a great party on a budget while still maintaining my great hostess reputation. The following party will be thrown a week from today. The budget is for 8 people, though I'm sure I could make this work if a few more showed.
Purpose: Pumpkin carving/Belated Housewarming
Drinks: Not that this is the most important part but I like to have something to offer my guests when they walk in. Often, the well meaning guest will have picked up a six pack of beer or bottle of wine on the way over but I never want to assume anything. Plus, what can we drink while we wait for the brought-over beverages to chill?
Stocking a bar can really break the bank but I've found having one drink of the night has really saved me. Let's face it, a handle of medicore hard liquor and a mixer is cheaper than a round of good beer for everyone. (Plus mixers can often mask the taste of even cheap hard liquor; if you don't want people to see the bottle evidence of your thriftiness, you can just pre-mix it in a pitcher beforehand.)
I usually include the drink of the night on my invitations or when I call people. My usual script for telling people this is "The drink of the night is vodka tonics but I certainly won't be offended if you want to bring something else to drink instead." See? You're cool and accomodating, not at all a cheap bastard.
Also, the added benefit of a drink of the night is it can contribute to your evening's theme. Hot chocolate with Baileys on a cool night, cosmopolitans for the girls night in. I find vodka tonics to be my all-time standby.
A handle of vodka, some tonic water, and limes: $18
Snacks: I don't like going to parties where the main food is chips and salsa or crackers and hummus. To me, that says, "I don't want to serve you real food." I also don't think you have to serve a 10 course meal either.
Appetizers with some substance say you care and mean you don't have to worry about silverware or finding a table that seats everyone. I plan on serving some baguettes with good cheese ($10), home-made spanikopida (phyllo dough, frozen spinach, and garlic) ($6), chicked kabobs ($9), seasoned popcorn ($2), and grapes or some other fruit/veggie on sale this week ($3). I'll also be toasting some pumpkin seeds as the carving progresses (free!) and send guests home with small bags of them (free- use grocery bags).
Appetizers with substance: $30
Ambiance: Tea lights are cheap enough to buy a ton that you can put everywhere... plus you can illuminate the pumpkins carved as party decorations for the evening. I'll be creating a cool playlist on my iPod to be playing in the background (free).
Tea lights: $2/bag
Other supplies: Newspapers and knives to carve pumpkins (free). It'll be BYOP. Some home-made ribbons for the best and most ridiculous pumpkin (free- markers and paper!). If you have a good friend at the party, get them to start a game of charades, bullshit, or some other group game if you find people aren't talking or mingling. Whatever you do, don't be the hostess/martyr in the kitchen or doting on everyone. If you have a good time, so will everyone else.
Party on!
When I think about it, almost everyone I know who is underemployed has some way that they make money on the side. I know people who rent out buildings they own, do free lance photography, write, and design web sites.
Even while I was preparing to move to my current location, I was thinking of ways I could make money on the side but still have time to write and do the other things I like to do with my time. Enter Adult Ed.
My boss hooked me up (he teaches adult ed courses and I expressed an interest) with the director of our area adult ed. I decided to start out teaching one night a week to see how it would go. Within a week, I was signed up to teach two, four week long courses (3 hours each- hello 11 hour workday!). The first course was Microsoft PowerPoint, which I found to be fairly straight forward. This second session, which began this evening, I began teaching Microsoft FrontPage, a web design class. Tonight, I taught them everything I know about the program but I'm too tired to panic about this right now. I have a feeling that I can figure out enough to make a majority of people satisfied with the class. But not tonight. Tonight, I enjoy that the first class went well and everyone upon leaving said "See you next week." Few! I hope I don't disappoint.
I, of course, don't think adult ed alone will be entire plan of making money on the side. I hope to try out other "gigs" and write about them on this blog. I'd like to encourage others who make money on the side to share what they do as well so we can all get more ideas.
Gig At A Glance
Gig: Adult Ed Teacher
Pay: $17/hour, though I have no idea how this was determined.
Qualifications: Know about something: there are adult ed classes on everything! Friendliness. Infinite patience for the slower learners or general crazy people.
Pluses: Get to work with people who think you're a genius, realitively easy and painless. Well paid for what it is. Looks great on a resume.
Minuses: Classes are often at night. You will have at least one student who knows next to nothing and constantly struggles and one who is so advanced they know as much if not more than you do- Can you deal? Not compensated for preperation time spent outside the classroom.
Overall: Great for the money if you already know a lot about the topic and are on the patient side.
About a month ago, when I really wanted to rent a Lindsay Lohan movie but couldn't bare that anyone see me rent it, I rented a documentary about credit instead called Maxed Out. I kicked myself all the way home, thinking I had went too far in the wrong direction but it ended up being a very interesting movie that made me want to order a copy of all my credit reports finally. Apparently the average consumer has lots of errors in their credit report and since I've never checked mine, I figure now is the time to find any errors and start disputing them.
All three credit companies Transunion, Experian and Equifax all want to sell you something, whether it is your score or fraud protection. You are entitled one free credit report a year so as you go through automated phone menus, listen for "free credit report as mandated by legistlation" or something like that.
I've decided that Transunion is the least evil because from this phone number, you can get a credit report from all three companies: 1-877-322-8228 (I of course ended up calling this one last so I only needed the Transunion one anyway!). You can also apparently get a free credit report from all three bureaus here: www.annualcreditreport.com. Why Equifax and Experian were not so forthcoming is beyond me. (Of course when I called Equifax and Experian directly, they did give me a confirmation number while Transunion did not).
I am supposed to be recieving my credit reports in 5-15 business days. I'm a little nervous but relieved I've finally done this.
What I wanted to do tonight: Order out some Chinese dumplings for dinner and buy a new glossy magazine to flip through. Total theoretical cost: $10
What I did do: Ate leftovers and downloaded a free TV show on iTunes. (This feed let’s you know what free downloads are available from iTunes. Very handy.) Total actual cost: $3
Once a month, in an effort to save funds, I like to not go to the grocery store for a week and really clean out the fridge and pantry. The results are usually bizarre and can result in small portions of random dishes. I find though that I waste less food this way as I find, for example, some corn that has migrated its way to the back of the fridge or a can of beans I forgot I had.
Yes, it’s easy and fun to go out to eat. But it’s expensive. My average meal at home costs about $3 while even my inexpensive dumplings would be double that.
So I think it’s good to do some small thing that’s a little annoying or hard. It’s not about self deprivation but about thinking ahead. Think of it as saving money for something more important like Christmas gifts, your retirement, or that trip to Budapest.
Skip the gourmet coffee and just get a small regular one, decide to walk to work and not use gas, print local grocery store coupons… whatever saves you a little money and doesn’t in the end make a big difference in the grand scheme of things.
Now how did that feel? Good. So pat yourself on the back and enjoy some of that slightly bizarre yet nourishing stirfry made from items in your fridge. Pretty soon, you'll be on that plane to Budapest...
I moved to my current location a few months ago and accepted a job that pays $7,000 less a year then my last job. While it may sound crazy to some, I think most would agree with the statement "Money isn't everything". Because it isn't. I love my current job. When I am there, I'm happy. I like the people I work with, I find my actual work interesting, and I feel needed and appreciated. I leave it at the end of the day and never think about it after I drive out of the parking lot. But did I mention I barely make above minimum wage and have bare bones health insurance with a $5,000 deductible?
So I have decided to use the last two months to figure out my budget, which I need to stick to pretty closely. Here is what I've figured out so far:
My Monthly Budget
Rent: $350, electricity, heat, and phone/internet included (my boyfriend=my landlord, though I think any roommate would work out to a similar situation)
Retirement account: $200
Insurance (car): $100
Gas (car): $75
Groceries: $125
Dining Out: $100
Coffee: $10
Dog: $50 (did I mention I have a geriatric beagle mix?)
Gym membership: $25
Personal care (clothes/toiletries): $75
Entertaiment: $80
Gifts: $200
Total Money Earned every month: $1,420
Total Money Spent every month: $1,390
This means I have $30 net. Of course, there are areas you can see where I can cut into if I say, have to have $400 of work done on my car to pass inspection (which happened last month).
Making a budget is not so bad. I'll be honest, I thought it would stink. It doesn't. Really. I've found it really helpful to see where my money goes and when I finish the month in the black, it is a real sense of accomplishment as I have been actively working towards it all month.
Making a good budget requires writing everything down, even a coffee. (Commit to doing this for two months because after awhile, you'll get into a routine after that point and may no longer need to do it anyway!) Once a week, I go through my receipts and enter them into a spreadsheet to track my expenses.
Do I have time to write a blog and check Myspace everyday? Yes. Do I have time to make a pretty looking spreadsheet? No. But it is more motivating to put information into a good looking and well set up spreadsheet. Microsoft has some good, ready-made budget templates.
If you do end up trying this, let me know how it goes and if it works for you.
Money is boring.
I think many people think it is. It seems elusive to some and in too much abundance to others. But money effects us all in profound ways. It affects the way we see the world, who we interact with and how we interact with them, what we do and don't do with our time. Whether we want to think it or not, economics drive our lives, determine our opportunities , decide our material comfort level and if our basic needs are met.
I am a young person. I don't make a lot of money. Actually, I make a little less than $10 an hour. I'm trying to pay my living expenses, plan for my future, and have fun. I think many other people are in this same position, too. Sometimes I look around and wonder how a lot of us are even making it. But we are.
I don't think this is a problem unique to young people. No matter how much money we make, I think we all know what it feels like to deal with what we feel is a shortfall.
I am not an economist but I like to read, write, research, and talk to people. I find economics facinating yet practical. I think it is important for everyone to know about money and how to make it work for them. Knowing more is empowering and can save a lot of time and effort. Also, I don't think there is much information out there for people like me. So I've decided to create it. I hope you find it useful and interesting. Your communication is welcome and your readership appreciated.
Now let's bring home some bacon...
Recent Comments