Breaking Even

The Eve Of My Retirement

Tomorrow is my last day of work at the newspaper. I am throwing myself a small "retirement" party at a local bar/restaurant and invited anyone in the company who wanted to come by and send me off.

I've been getting lots of encouraging words and emails all this week, wishing me luck and asking me how I've been feeling.

Full disclosure: I'm terrified. And I'm really excited.

As a fairly even keeled person who is able to sleep most nights, it's been odd to be a bundle of nerves, tossing and turning in bed for the last week. Here are some sample thoughts:

Will I have enough clients? Will they like my work? How will Sadie adjust to me being home a lot more? Is there more I could be doing to make things easier next week? Do I know enough to do this? Is ten paces from my desk (work area) to my bed (nonwork area) far enough?

Ok you get the idea.

So I've been waking up and writing things down. One night it was a list of clients. The other it was a paragraph about the things I thought were going really well in my life. Another night it was a preoccupation remembering people's birthdays. (OK that's a weird one but I think when your brain runs out of problems, it creates new ones.)

In general I'm feeling good but nervous that the time has finally come when things are finishing while new things are beginning. And I'm having a hard time thinking (and writing really) about anything else.

As of 5:01 pm tomorrow, I will be self employed. And that is pretty cool... 

Plenty Of Fish: Works For Me

You may remember a while back, I interviewed my friend D. who had jumped into online dating. Using both paid and unpaid services, she was getting dates and meeting people. I've been watching from the sidelines, admiring her courage but myself a little hesitant.

It could be that spring is in the air but I thought I'd finally give online dating yet another shot.

I wrote my online profile on PlentyOfFish, uploaded a photo, and waited. (As a side note, turn off the photo rating option on your profile if your self-esteem is at all shaky. People apparently expect a lot these days!)

The initial response was lukewarm. I got two e-mails, one asking if I design websites (aww, using me already?) and one simply saying "yer cute" and that's it. Not quite what I was hoping for.

I looked at my profile again a week or so later with a more critical eye and realized that while I sounded really nice, I also sounded kind of boring. I tapped into my slightly wacky side and rewrote. I then got 7 responses in 24 hours. Plenty of fish indeed!

A few dates into my great social experiment, I met a nice young man that I am now dating. For the moment we'll call him John, since that is his name and he's ok with me using it.

A few words of caution from my most recent stint in the trenches:

1) There are some weird people out there, on free and paid services. While most correspondence has been nice (if gramatically incorrect), I got an email that would make most men apologize for their entire gender about two weeks ago. (It was quite graphic and inappropriate.) Just hit "block" because just like in real life, you don't have to correspond to anyone you don't want to.  

2) You shouldn't have to convince anyone to be with you. No chemistry? It's fine. I feel like I have a lot to offer and not a lot of time or energy to chase people who don't agree. Keep putting yourself out there and eventually you'll get chemistry on both ends.

3) Don't be too nice. Ok this sounds counterintuitive but everyone out there is "a nice girl looking for a great guy who likes to be outdoors and cuddle while watching movies" or "a great guy who's tired of girls who play games" (plus that last one makes it sound like you have issues with the ladyfolk i.e. is a big red flag to me).

Under interests, I put such things as "avocados", "social media", and "dogs with short legs". Yes, it's great to be nice but if you are selling yourself on these sites, you need to stand out from the crowd. Just like your high school English teacher taught you, show don't tell. "On the weekends, you'll catch me biking around Acadia National Park because I do love those hills!" says a lot more to me then "I like biking." That said, don't go on and on. A couple paragraphs should get people interested; let them ask you the follow up questions.

4) Just try it. Did you know one out of every eight married couples met online? Trust me, the stigma against this is almost completely gone. There are so many people on these sites, why shouldn't you be one of them?

Oh and if you have some good online dating stories that went bad, at least you can contribute them to this fine website that my friend Mel and I are trying to start. One way or the other, you'll get something out of online dating! 

A Video On The Importance Of The Internet

Nancy Marshall, Maine PR Maven, posted this video a month or so ago on her blog and I think it's fantastic. It's a little long but it's five minutes well spent that'll blow your mind. Anyone who thinks social media and technology is irrelavent to them, check it out!

How To Get Me To Help You Out: Part One

Yesterday, I got an e-mail about a possible blog sponsorship opportunity. This is not a huge deal; bloggers get these almost everyday, sort of like if you have an e-mail address, you get wire transfer offers from unknown Nigerian relations.

Anyway back to this link exchange offer. Top of the letter: Dear Sir...

Whoa there, cowboy! You didn't even click twice to get to my contact info and bio? Even just notice my girly headshot or the fact my name is Nicole? Delete.

Rewind to a month ago when one of my friends was having some kind of employment fiasco and telling me about it.

Friend: Well I told her to call the Department of Labor to verify it.

Me: So you told her to call a bottomless crazy huge government agency, essentially resigning her to an afternoon of being put on hold and transferred around the office?

Friend: Well, I have a contact there that I've been dealing with.

Me: Did you give her the direct extension and your contact's name?

Friend: (long pause) No...hmmm. I will now though!

Okay two unrelated situations but the same basic idea. Someone wanted someone else to do them a favor. The favor does not happen. Why?

We usually have to think that people are pretty reasonable and want to help you out. Here are a few things you can do to get someone to be more likely to do a favor for you:

1) Make it easy for me. What a letter of recommendation? Ask nicely. Give me a generous deadline and a copy of your resume. You want to show the person doing the favor that you are doing the legwork and allowing them to simply finish the job and get the credit. And who doesn't like that?

2) Do your homework. Know what you need for me, and what you have to give. I do not want to link to "three casino websites". Give me the URLs. Tell me if you want link or an ad on my site in return. Tell me how much you want to pay me (money conversations are awkward enough; I don't want to initiate it!)

3) It's not all about you. I gave a talk today to our local Rotary about promotion online and the cardinal sin of making it all about you. It really isn't and if you give someone that impression, good luck getting a worthwhile working relationship. Approach it in a way that's not just a favor to you but will help the other person out too.

Tomorrow, Part II and a fabulous example of someone who knows how to ask for a favor so well, I think she should do a class on it.

Off To New York City!

It's official, I am off to New York City!

I have scheduled a series of posts for my time away, some which are going to be surprising.

I will be checking my email and moderating comments but please give me until Monday or Tuesday to get back to you if you are expecting a reply.

Have a great rest of the week and keep reading! :^)

Financial Advice From Nonfinancial Places

I was perusing meat at the grocery store the other day when I overheard two youngish guys talking with each other (Late high school? Early college? Hard to say):

"Dude, I telling you, you buy a chicken and roast and then you can eat it for like a week. It's really cheap... I do it all the time!" (FYI: While the actual quote is slightly paraphrased due to my moderately terrible memory, he actually did say "dude"!)

Fast forward to yesterday at lunch when I'm checking out nerve.com's advice column Miss information. She usually gives, uh hum, not so financial advice. You know the advice I'm talking about: the "should I break up with my boyfriend" sprinkled with the occasional what-the-heck physical problem that could effect a romantic relationship. This week though, the leading question was financial in nature. (She even has some good tips to avoid online fraud from it. Click here to check them out.)

Even Real Simple tried to slip me some advice between its glossy pictures of well-composed food photographs and ads for cleaning products. It's kind of weird how we're all obessed with money now.

Do you find yourself hearing advice about saving money from odd places too? I'd especially love to hear stuff you've overheard!

Some Random Life Updates

Yeah, these posts are a little boring but sometimes some house cleaning is in order:

Henna Follow-up 
So after several showers and airing out my apartment on Saturday, I must say the Great Henna Experiment of '09 has been successful. (The post was also apparently cool enough to get linked on Blogher. Nice!)

My hair doesn't feel gritty but the texture is noticeably thicker. I've also gotten a few compliments on my hair, which doesn't happen normally. Oh, and the gray hair is gone. Mission accomplished, and for three dollars nonetheless.

Taxes Are Done or Nicole Outsourcing Part One
My taxes are done and my refund is essentially going to pay for my accountant. As I was sitting with my accountant, he looked at me and said "You know, you could do this yourself." but as I told him "I know I am capable of doing this, but it stresses me out so much I'd rather pay you to do it." Still, flattering that my accountant thinks I'm smart!

Web Content Migration or Nicole Outsourcing Part Two
One year and a half year's worth of blog posts to move manually plus one bad case of carpal tunnel equals a lady frustrated that her new website isn't ready to go yet. But I've sunk money and time into this thing and it's time to finish. I'm hiring one of my friends to do some copying and pasting for me while I use my energy to do formatting. Yay teamwork!

I'm Getting Out Of Town
I booked my friend Robby to visit my friend  Laura in New York City. We are going in two weeks. I am so excited at the prospect of getting out of town, even if it is for a long weekend.

Tomorrow's post: Do you actually know what your friends do for work? Neither do I! An experiment involving our perception of other people's jobs versus what they actually are. . .

Too Cute Tuesday: Easter Eggs

So both Sarah and I forgot it was Easter this Sunday and had a total other craft planned. Thank goodness Sue remembered and said something to the effect of "Um, what about Easter eggs?" Fabulous!

Materials
Eggs (white will take the dye better)
Food coloring or one of those little egg decorating kits (Sarah got it at the grocery store for seventy three cents)
White vinegar
Bowls and spoons
Paper towels
Plastic on the table, if I am crafting with you especially
Thumb tack
Needle (for poking in the egg to break the yolk)
Elastics, stickers, crayons (for decorating purposes)

Cocktail of the Week: Diet Cola (the generic stuff is fantastic), put in your favorite mixer

1. Poke a hole in each end of your egg. Use the thumbtack to start it and use a needle to make the hold a little bigger. Note: Do this slowly or you may have some breakage!

2. Blow interior contents of egg into a bowl. Put aside for omelets sometime in the near future.

3. Rinse egg if you have egg guts on the outside.

4. Fill bowls with vinegar, water, and food coloring. We got really excited about putting in the tablets! (see left)

5.Put eggs in the dye. You may want to use spoons to manipulate the egg. If you use your fingers, they will get dyed!

5a. Get fancy with rubber bands, drawing on eggs with crayons, or using stickers. You can also double dip the eggs in different colors to get a blended effect.

6. Let eggs dry. Hang them on your egg tree. (Sue and Sarah have heard of this, I haven't. Have you heard of this?)

Happy Easter, and stay cute!

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Some Thoughts On Getting Through

Without getting into it, this weekend kind of kicked my butt. I know, happens to everyone. I don't like writing when I feel like this because I think everyone can kind of sense it.

I keep this poem posted next to my bed. I took a poetry class in college and we read a lot of Mary Oliver. I was looking her up a few months ago when I found this poem. I read it when I feel I'm losing focus, and I read it most every day anyway. Here's hoping it can keep you strong too.

The Journey by Mary Oliver
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice--
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do--
determined to save
the only life you could save.

The Great Henna Experiment Of '09

Many people in my life (myself included) often forget I was a science major in college. That's right, if you want to talk asymmetric boudinage or magma mixing, I'm your gal. Of course, I don't talk geology much in my daily life but my course of study is has maybe appreciate the scientific method.

I posted a couple weeks ago over my battle with grey hair and a lot of people recommended henna. And who says I don't listen to commenters! Initially I was a bit nervous about potentially making myself look bad (everyone's chemistry is different), but I found myself more excited in thinking of this whole thing as an experiment.

I know, how exciting are my Friday nights!

Materials
Henna
Coffee (apparently it helps the brown develop better then plain old water. You can also add things like lemon (to play up blonde) or olive oil (to make hair soft)
Plastic bag
Hair elastic
Towel
Paintbrush (optional but it does help get those harder to reach places)
Two short movies or one long one

Procedure

1. Make coffee. (Oh and know that you've got to start with clean hair so do that if you need to.)

2. Mix coffee with henna according to package directions. Notice the weird green color. Decide the "test portion" will be your entire head.

3. Put green gunk all over your head. Note: Make sure you are wearing an old dark T-shirt when you're doing this, or of course, you can go topless. Take your time and apply the gunk carefully with the paintbrush or your hands. Don't splatter henna all over your white bathroom. Secure whole situation with hair elastic. Cover head with plastic bag.

4. Watch a really long movie, in my case "The Women". The color needs to set for at least an hour. Tip: Might as well do all that other stuff you always mean to do like dishes or giving yourself a facial.

5. Once color is set (I waited an hour and a half) rinse in the sink, first with hot-water followed by cold water. Towel dry.

Results: Hair looks darker and grey is covered, feels gritty though (I am supposed to shower after but I'm going to wait until tomorrow morning). Smells like I've been in a pond all day.

At six dollars for a little pot of this henna stuff (I only used half of it), this is a pretty good bargain and it's all natural. But it does take a freaking long time.

Conclusion: Henna is a good way to cover gray hair if you have a lot of time and inclination to sit around your apartment with a plastic bag on your head. You may want to do some pre-color smell prevention though. Clearly though the most important conclusion is that the commenters on this blog know what they are talking about!

Shameless Promotion: The Post Toddler Edition

Over the weekend, I had two great house guests. One is my V-have friend S. The other was her 1.5 year old daughter I.

To keep my apartment from being the potential death trap it normally is, I looked around, squatting, hoping to spot the potential hazards. I took the portable potential death traps and stored them in my car for the weekend (remember my 220 square foot apartment with no closets?). The other ones were moved to inconvenient locations after which I hoped for the best.

Of course, the kiddo was pretty chill and I had the best built in toy ever: my smallish dog. Both Sadie and I are still recovering from all that energy (we slept a lot last night) so I thought it may be a good time to talk about some fun stuff I've stumbled across recently.

1 Chicken, $17 Meals, $26 Bucks, No Mayo from Cheap Healthy Good
No one can stretch a food buck better then Cheap Healthy Good. My one beef with them is they don't like mayo, which I love.

A Story Of Sucky Roommates from Master Your Card
If anyone can write a story, it's Kristy and there are several ministories in one. Makes me feel a little less indulgent for wanting to live by myself!

Do Nigerian Scam Artists Catch More Flies With Threats Of Detainment? from Wisebread
I always thought those Nigerian scam artist things were kind of interesting...and this post by Linsey Knerl really gets into one of them. 

An Amazing Video on the Relevance of Technology from Maine PR Maven
Nancy posted this video awhile back and I finally watched all five minutes tonight. Blew my mind. Well worth the five minutes it takes to watch it (and forward it to anyone who thinks this whole computer thing will pass.)

Using Google Calendar To Pay Bills On Time from Free From Broke
I've been using Google Calendar for about three weeks. It's changed my life. Seriously. And if organizing your life isn't a good enough reason, use it to remember to pay bills.

Your Logo Makes Me Barf from Give Me Back My Five Bucks
Completely unrelated to anything, this made me chuckle. (The second link on the list is funnier then the first but both will make you feel like you have serious art skills compared to some people out there.)

Happy Monday!

 

How Poor Are You? Part II

About four years ago, I did some volunteer work at a local food pantry. My job is interviewing prospective users of the pantry which included an in-depth discussion of the budget and finances. I remember one day having to look up the federal poverty rate and having epiphany that I was below it.

That's right, I could have not only been using the food pantry I volunteered at but I could have also taken advantage of some of these programs I had been talking to people about.

I thought it would be interesting to look up some of the programs I used to know well to see who would qualify for them now. Yesterday, I tackled food and health programs and today I'm talking housing.

Circuit Breaker Program
Paying 20% or more of your income on rent? Maine's Circuit Breaker program may be able to help you out. Click here if you want to read the whole post I wrote about it or download the application. (Just a heads up: You have to apply by May 1st.) Not in Maine? Check to see if your state has something like this.

Heating Assistance
LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistnce program) is regulated by states and some programs are even decided at the local level so it's hard to give some hard figures for who qualifies. Your local town office is a good place to start and a full list of contact people by state can be found here.

Low Income Housing
There are three seperate programs from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Basically, these programs seem to be for people who spend more then 30% of their income on housing. Of course, the HUD site is ginourmous but if you click on your state, you'll see opportunities for homeowners (money for home repairs, home buying classes, etc.) and for renters (directory of substidized apartments, help with utility bills, etc.).

What I thought was going to be purely curiosity research turned into an exercise of realizing my good fortune. I am glad that these programs exist for those who qualify, and I do hope if you're reading this and you find out you qualify for these programs that you pursue it. Because trust me, most of us have been there.*

*I've been thinking about people who work the system and I've certainly run across them in my travels. Once a woman and her mother interviewed with my friend and I seperately at the food pantry, each claiming the same children as dependents so they could get more vouchers. Right after this happened (I was furious having been lied to), a woman came in whose husband was in the hospital. She so clearly did not want to be there but didn't know what else to do. And you know what? I realized that helping that one person was worth losing a few vouchers to scammers. . .

Read How Poor Are You? Part I...

Why Cross Country Skiing Is Not An Expensive Hobby

I spent last weekend cross-country skiing with some buddies of mine in northern Maine. We were talking about how fun skiing is that how it can be cost prohibitive for a lot of people. And then I got to thinking if that was really true.

I've been skiing for a little over 10 years and my equipment is at least that old. I decided to break down my initial investments and continued costs and see how much skiing really has cost me. (Note: Two pairs of skis: one for classical and one for skating)

Initial Costs:
Boots (Alpina combination): $150
Skating skis (bought at a ski sale bindings included): $40
Classic skis (top-of-the-line 10 years ago): $350
Bindings for classic skis: $50
Polls for classic skiing: $80
Polls for skate skiing: $80
Wax to maintain skis (kick and glide wax, cork, scraper, cheap iron): $150
Cross-country ski gloves (I'm quite particular on the gloves): $50
Silk long underwear: $80
(All other winter gear is stuff I already own and use in other parts of my life.)

Total Initial Cost= $1030

Recurring costs:
Memberships at small local places are cheap. 10th Mountain, a world class ski facility in my hometown, charges $25 a year for membership.

So far, my equiptment has cost about $100 to own and maintain a year and it's showing no signs of wearing out in the next ten years. Not so bad when you look at it as an investment you can take care of. Of course there are some ways to cut on costs.

1) Consider how you'll use your skis before you buy them. Doing a lot of backcountry? Fishscales are fine. Groomed trails? Get a pair of racing skis.

2) Hit up ski sales. I scored a newish pair of skating skis eight years ago when my high school team was getting rid of some "old" equiptment. Call around and ask if/when your local teams hold their sales. The skis are often not even that old (a few seasons), and the money goes to a good cause. Plus if you're nice they may even change the bindings for you for free to make sure they work with your boots.

A complete side note, I get "nice skis" comments as much about my cheap-o skis as my expensive ones. Seriously, only the hardcore people can even tell the difference.

3) When in doubt go shorter. Longer skis are tougher to handle. If you need to make a choice between two not so ideal pairs, get the slightly too short ones.

4) Get a pair of combination boots. Think you may get into skate skiing? Have weak ankles? That extra detachable cuff on the combination boot is so helpful. I got my boots almost 14 years ago and they're still working for me. Oh and invest so they fit like a glove. Like any good pair of footwear, they'll pay you back.

5) Maintain your skis. It's cheaper then getting new ones. If you don't want to wax them, pay a local sports store or some kid to do it for you. Last I checked it costs around $50. They even make wax for fishscale skis. Oh and do things like store them nicely and wipe the ice off them. You know, common sense stuff!

6) Ski little. If you don't want to pay for big resort passes, look for little places that groom their own trails. Ask around. Maybe a farmer likes to maintain the perimeter of this fields or the big resort has a cheap ski day. A little research and asking around (try outdoorsy groups on Facebook if you're desperate!) will yeild much.

7) If you really love something, it's not expensive. I love to ski and I love having the option to do so whenever I want. For me, the investment in my entertainment and health is worth it.

(It's so funny because I noticed that Give Me Back My Five Bucks had a post about this same subject while I was working on this one!)

Technology In Education: A Discussion With Jim Burke

Holy Technology! week continues...

One of the most technological people I know is someone who is actually doing a lot with education. Jim Burke is the Western Maine MLTI Mentor/Coach, a position he's held for the past 4 years. He blogs about technology and education at Learning In Maine. Previous to that he was a district-wide technology integrator for 2 years. And prior to that, he was in the trenches a classroom teacher for 32 years in the Oxford Hills School District.

Jim lives in the village of West Paris, within walking distance to the general store. He two grown daughters; Jessica, a physician in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; and Melissa, a stable manager at Iron Spring Farms in Pennsylvania. When not immersed in technology, he enjoy gardening, community theater, carpentry, fishing, and being a jack-of-all-trades at my local church.

I continue to be interested in education and to think about how technology is changing it.

Your blog Learning In Maine really tackles technology in education in such a community way that I don't often run into online. How much time do you spend keeping it going? 
I think community is important, Nicole, and physical community has certainly taken a hit during my lifetime. I'm not sure online communities replace that, but they seem to be what is available and  certainly do open up the world in ways that I couldn't have imagined 20 years ago.  The concept of the LIM blog was to have a place where many writers would share their thoughts and suggestions on learning, with a focus on Maine.  While passionate writers like yourself and several others have made wonderful contributions, I've been hoping many more would jump in.  Be that as it may, I've certainly enjoyed testing my own ideas and finding connections with so many others. 

I think you would agree that to grow a site, you have to  post often. I average about a post a day.  Sometimes that translates into several a day.  Sometimes when very busy with other work, I might miss several days.  Nevertheless, it is important to try to keep it current.  Again, the idea is to connect people with what is happening statewide and beyond.

What's one technology that teachers you work with seem to be really embracing? 
I firmly believe that a tool used by busy teachers needs to be simple and user-friendly.  There are many of them out there!  When the tool gets in the way of learning, then it should be reconsidered.  Many teachers are now using wikis to open an online presence.  Many are using  online web 2.0 apps such as Voicethread.  I encourage the use of Google apps even though many schools still block those sites.Teachers are pragmatic . . . they'll use tools that they can depend on.

If you could make every teacher and student try something out, technologywise, something that you think would change their lives, what would it be?
Gosh, Nicole, there are so many possibilities.  There are some extremely powerful tools on the MLTI laptops, such as GarageBand, Sketch-Up Pro, and iMovie.  As far as online tools, my personal favorite at this moment is the Ning make-your-own social network.  I think it could be a "killer-app" for the classroom!  I certainly would be making use of it if I were still a classroom teacher.

Some older teachers must be reluctant to use technology in their classrooms. What are some ways you help them come around?
There has to be a good reason to use a new technology.  It has to serve a purpose, be dependable and engage the teacher and students.  Like just about anything else in education, it is important to connect at a personal level.  In my work with teachers, that is what I try to do.

What do you see as the next big thing in technology and education?
I'm not much of a prognosticator, Nicole.  Lots of magic out there.  I see incredible developments almost every day.  I see the multi-touch tablet notebook/netbook to have great possibilities.  Imagine being able to sculpt the screen.  Seems to me that adds a whole new level of participation.  The semantic web, what some call web 3.0, will certainly take us to a new level as well.

Will we become enslaved by technology or empowered by it?
This question occupies my thoughts perhaps more than it should.  Perhaps it is because of my age, but I have a love/hate relationship with technology. Where is it taking us?  I think we all need to keep asking questions and not just accept blindly what comes down the road. Neil Postman explained better than I can in "Informing Ourselves to Death" http://www.frostbytes.com/~jimf/informing.html and Jason Ohler gives us some sub-questions to ask http://www.jasonohler.com/resources/handouts.cfm.

Adventures In (Free) Online Dating

A friend asked me last week about being ready to date again and to be honest, I don't think I really am. I do know someone, however, who's really putting herself out there in an admirable way on free online dating sites.

Because I want her to be candid with her answers, I'm interviewing her anonymously.

Which dating sites are you using?
Match, Yahoo Personal, PlentyofFish, OKCupid, DowntoEarth

Which one is working out best for you?
PlentyofFish has been good, but once I was on that it seemed that Match started to work too.

Have you ever used any of the pay sites before (like Match, eHarmony, etc.)?
I am on both Yahoo Personals and Match, mostly because i was unaware of the newer free sites. A few years back when I was last single I used Match so that's what I knew about. There is also LavaLife but that site is not a good for this part of the country.

How do the free sites compare?
I like them, I actually think that I like them better. But when I was online earlier today I found out that PlentyofFish has a paid aspect too.... called a Certified Member. Paying to have your membership prominently displayed can help get people's attention (it works like any featured listing).

What are some "green lights" that you're looking for when you see a profile? Green Lights include people who state that they have what I am looking for. Some big things are people who I find attractive, age, location, family, wants children, non-smoker, and people with the similar interests.

What about "red flags"?
Smokers, people with partial nudity in photos, people who don't want kids, people with no photos.

What advice would you give to someone who's considering online dating?
Do IT! its a good way to get to meet people. Be open to meeting people. If someone asks you out and you are somewhat interested.... GO! If you are uncomfortable meeting someone go to a place you are comfortable, like your favorite restaurant or coffee shop where you know people and meet for lunch during a work day. This way you can keep it short and simple, and if you click then make plans to meet again.

Ah, technology, making our lives more interesting everyday!

Shameless Promotion: The Long Weekend Edition

My fourth post in this week's special Holy Technology! series.

Ah, long weekends. They sure do sound like fun but they involve a lot of preparation.

I'm headed northward skiing with a few friends (and seeing some family and friends at the same time) and since I am headed out tomorrow, I've had lots to do tonight (in addition to my usual French class). So pardon me while I have a glass of wine and share a few cool technology-related links in a relaxed fashion:

"I Married The Eiffel Tower"
Got to love the top ten Google search terms. I don't usually lead with the random but I couldn't resist this time. I saw this was the top term earlier this week and had to click on it. I was preparing for something lame but it was an interesting article about why people feel attachments to and have relationships with inanimate objects.

Some Funny Software Development Quotes
One of my coworkers found this site and it's actually pretty funny, even if you're lowish tech like me. Among my favorites: “A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any other invention in human history, with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.” - Mitch Ratcliffe
(Don't just read the thirteen quotes, the comments are pretty great too.)

How To Build Your Own Treadmill Desk for $40
If I didn't live in 220 square feet of space, I would totally consider doing this. Actually, I obsessively researched it for a couple days but couldn't figure out a way to make it work. Here's the best link I found for those of us who can't pay $1,000+ for a desk. And interesting idea at the very least!

Unclutterer reminds us all of RSS readers
If you don't know what an RSS reader is and you have to keep track of more then a couple websites, you should give them a shot. Seriously. They'll change your life if you let them.

Leave it to the New York Times to give everyone something to talk about, this time...
Managing your email and Sex, Lies, and Photoshop (ladies, watch this video. You'll feel a lot better about fashion magazines!)

And in case you really want to feel behind the ball, Maine second graders know how to Twitter. *Gulp*

Stay tuned tomorrow and Saturday from some cool insights into the world of digital art and online dating from some of my very smart friends...

How Friendly Do You Get Online?

The second post of my Holy Technology! series this week only.

I'm always happy when I hear from far-flung friends and they say that visiting my blog is like talking to me. They feel they are able to keep up with my life through it, which is also really nice to hear. I like that my blog is something that people who know me or don't know me can enjoy and that it does seem really personal. You'd think my life is quite an open book right? Well, not exactly.

Here are some things I never write about, which you may or may not have noticed before:

1) My job. Sure I work at a newspaper website but I bet you would be hard pressed to think of anything else you know about it. Interactions with coworkers, clients, and even my feelings about my job are all privately held, and rightly so. The same goes for my online business.

2) My friends. All friends and photos of friends on this blog are used with their permission only. I respect people's right to privacy and just because I live a public life doesn't make my friend's lives automatically public. This is why sometimes only initials are mentioned.

3) My romantic life. Details about my relationships are my business only. I did mention moving out of my boyfriend's house six months ago because that really shifted my personal finances (which is the general subject of this blog). As a single person maintaining a professional online presence, I am barely comfortable discussing this subject with my friends and family, let alone the world.

4) Negativity. Other then an occasional post last year about dealing with death (which I still struggle with), you don't hear about my personal problems on this blog. We all have issues to deal with and those are for conversations with friends or a paid shrink.

That said, I have used this blog to talk a bit about death and mental health because I think our culture is so insular about both these subjects. I hope I have shown that dealing with death is an ongoing process and that perfectly sane people can seek mental help.

5) The Grandmother-Boss Rule. Anything I'm not sure of posting, I think of my grandmother and my boss reading it. If it passes both tests, I put it online.

So while my communication style is open, there are some things that I draw the line at talking about.
 
What lines do you draw?

Skittles: Cutting Edge Marketing or Lame Stunt For Attention?

 

The first post of my Holy Technology series this week only!

I heard on one my favorite blogs Nerve's Scanner that Skittles has fully jumped on board with this whole social networking thing. On the "chatter" portion of their website for example, there is a feed that displays every time someone twitters (or tweets) with the word "skittles" in it. (To get past liabilities of potentially racy content, you have to enter your birthdate and aknowledge Skittles' lack of responsibility for content before entering the website.)

I mean the landing page for skittles.com is a Wikipedia page. At first I thought I typed it wrong but then I realized that they did this on purpose. Interesting. You can read all the social networking details here.

So on one hand it's a great idea. Skittles gets a bunch of overly connected people like myself to mention this on blogs and websites and gets me to tweet to my network of followers. But aside from being an interesting concept...Will anyone visit the site more than once? Will this translate into increased sales or is this just a brand building project for Skittles? And is anyone even going to be talking about this next week?

It's certainly hard to tell. Mars is a privately held company so we can't look at the stock ticker to see if Skittle's value has gone up or down recently. Evidence would be purely anecdotal.

So what do you think of this marketing plan? Great idea or just something that'll pass? As socially networked as I am, I find myself moderately annoyed with this campaign.

Battling The Gray Area

Ahhh! I'm Aging!

It is something about our company bathroom's combination of natural and fluorescent lighting... okay, scratch that. It's something about the way I look in any light, or more specifically how a certain part of me looks.

My gray hair is really starting to come in and it's kind of scary.

Genetically it was bound to happen. My father was salt-and-pepper on his mid-20s. I was lucky to have held out this long, as in two months shy of the big 2-8. (Related but unrelated, my boss found an article about gray hair being a build up of hydrogen peroxide. Now what can I do about that?!?)

Whether chemical or genetic, I'm not quite ready to let it all grow out yet. I'm looking at some options, some of which I've tried:

Tried: Professional highlights(beauty school $10-$15, everywhere else $40 plus)
Highlights seem to have the added benefit of changing the chemistry of gray hair by making it lie flatter. But unless I take an afternoon off every 6 to 8 weeks to go to beauty school half an hour away, I cannot afford to maintain them.

Tried: Glaze ($8-$10)
Glaze is an over-the-counter method to tint and deep condition your hair. It works alright but it washes out, is a little messy to apply, it takes at least three minutes to soak into your hair whenever you use it (ie each time you shampoo). If I don't rinse off the walls of the shower well, it looks like I murdered someone in there when I'm done. Coverage is light to moderate at best.

Tried, though not recently: Boxed haircolor (around $10)
Most people I know in my situation just end up dying their hair. I personally never trust myself to pick out the correct color; I usually instead end up picking the woman on the box that I want most to look like. A more permanent solution than glaze but less maintenance than professional highlights.

Not tried: Henna (around $4)
According to the Internet, I can use henna to cover gray. It seems nice and natural but I found one article that said it would take up to 6 hours(?!). Now that's dedicated vanity!

Do I have other options here folks? Clearly I'd like something inexpensive that won't ruin my hair, bonus if it isn't terrible on the environment. Thanks for any help you can give!

Too Cute Tuesday: Mardi Gras Beignets

Too Cute Tuesday was bound to eventually fall on Mardi Gras. We really wanted to make something festive but masks seemed so one-time-use-only. King cake with its hidden baby would have been ideal, only all the recipes that Dorrie found took 4 hours from scratch. There were some shortcuts (like using refrigerated cinnamon dough) but using the shortcuts would have made everything too short.

So tonight, we're saluting the French (my people) in general with some classic beignets. That's right ladies and gentlemen, no need to wait for your next visit to New Orlean's Cafe du Monde to enjoy this treat!

I personally never fry things at home because I'm afraid once I find out how easy it is, I'd fry everything. But Mardi Gras and Too Cute Tuesday means that all my personal rules get thrown out the window.Laissez les bons temps rouler! Check out the original recipe at Allrecipes if you want the instructions without my ridiculous commentary and additional dough making tips.

Materials

• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 7 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup shortening
• 1 quart vegetable oil for frying
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Cocktail of the Day: Salmon Run Reisling (a Dorrie favorite)

0. Heat water but don't boil it. Yeast works in water temperatures between 100 and 110 degrees F. Sarah Tip: You can get water hot enough from the tap!

1. Put two eggs, salt, sugar, and evaporated milk in a large bowl and blend well. Bonus: Mooch off your cool friend's nice Kitchenaid mixer. 

2. Add four cups of flour and blend again. Sarah Tip: Don't cram the flour in the measuring cup. You are supposed to have some air in there when you measure.

3. Add shortening, blend. Add the remaining three cups of flour, blend.

4. Sarah Tip: You should need dough when everything is combined so if you have too much flour, you can try to knead it in. Also knead with the base of your hand not your fingers. Use this time to add flour if it's liquidy and add liquid if it's too floury.

5. Put the bread in the freezer to chill since you don't have time to wait for it to work overnight. Cross your fingers that it works to be a slacker.

6. In the meantime, have a lovely bit of riesling. Ahh. Happy Tuesday.

7.Roll out the dough in a round and cut it into little pieces. Heat oil to 360 degrees F and fry baby fry. Tip: Make each piece really thin, otherwise they won't cook all the way through. ]

8. Dust with powdered sugar and enjoy!

Too Cute Tuesday: Putting the "gras" in Mardi Gras...

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Shameless Promotion: The Slowly Roasting Chicken Edition

I bought myself a small organic chicken earlier this week thinking I'd roast it up and ave tons of leftovers for fun things like soup and enchiladas.

I turned on my oven at 5:45 last night immediately after getting home from work and took the chicken out of the fridge. 20-25 minutes per pound at 350 F. Works for me.

Then I looked at the weight of the chicken, which I assumed to be a couple pounds. Nope, it was 4.5 pounds. Ugh.

So the roasting began and I looked for things to do around my apartment besides cleaning. Trying to ignore the awesome smell of the roasting chicken (I covered it in butter... yum.), I started to gather up some of the cool things I've been reading. Enjoy!

The Washington Post made up a pretty graphic about the stimulus bill (from Grow Smart Maine). The military circle looks pretty small compared to the health/education circle. No matter how you feel about it, at least there is a plan for where the money is going, right?

And the girl who came to the office selling Girl Scout cookies reminded me, it seems to be the time of year for school fundraising. If you can't buy one more tub of cookie dough or tacky jewelry without screaming, check out this post from Frugal Upstate about her school fundraising philosophy. It has the potential to be quite liberating for those of you who have kids or just feel pressure to buy things from them.

Got seven hours to dedicate to your finances? Check out this fabulous series of posts at No Credit Needed.

An interesting question posed at Get Rich Slowly this week: Is it unethical to work a second job? I clicked on it because I thought it may be written from the primary employer's point of view (as in lower productivity) but it was about taking jobs away from people who could really use them. As usual with GRS, the comments are as interesting as the post.

And a reminder from Kristy at Master Your Card we can't do it all and there are some ways we don't set an example. I buy $6 juice, she eats out a lot. It happens.

As you can see lots of good reading out there in InternetLand.

Update: The chicken was finished and cool enough to deal with around 9:00 pm. My dinner last night turned into lunch today.

That's Expensive, Huh?

Why Do Cashiers Comment On My Purchases?

I'll preface my story by saying that strangers talk to me all the time. I get why: I seem friendly and wholesome, I look harmless, and I have a vaguely familiar face that makes me look like someone you may know. Am I so-and-so's old college roommate? Do I know your granddaughter? I've heard it all.

People randomly talking to me is not something new, though recently I've noticed something interesting in what strangers are saying to me.

The other day, I was buying my usual Odwalla Superfood juice which I sometimes drink for breakfast.

"Wow, that juice is expensive huh?" the cashier said.

At multiple grocery stores, I've had cashiers comment on my expensive purchases of, say, organic produce or in this case slightly overpriced spinach/fruit juice.

Now if I was a smoker, would the person cashing me out have said, "Wow, this carton is expensive huh?" Of course not. Yet for some reason, when I buy something healthy, I get comments.

I know we are in hard economic times and my $6 gallon of juice may seem frivolous but why? My food and drink are an investment in my health. Why would someone, especially a stranger, share with me that they think it's expensive? 

Has this ever happened to you? And if so, have you noticed others stating opinions your purchases more lately?

On a related note, I found a recipe to make Odwalla juice at home for a third of the price. Hmph

Why My Adult Ed Class Is Ginormous

Those of you who've read the blog for awhile know that I teach adult ed to make a little extra money. I haven't written about it in awhile because, well, there wasn't anything to write about. Enrollment for my courses was too low for them to run the classes so I had lots of free nights the last few months.

I got an email earlier this week that the French class I offered to teach months ago has way more then enough people. The first class was tonight and I had the most people I've ever had in a course. A sudden interest in intermediate level French? I'd like to think so but I somehow doubt it.

Maine community colleges have had huge increases in applications and I'm sure if I compared numbers with other adult ed programs they would also be up. Less expensive professional development in a cruddy economy? Unemployed or underemployed people with time on their hands?

No matter, I admire the adults in my program. It takes a lot to work a full day and show up to learn something which is completely out of your element.

Are there training programs you're farmiliar with seeing these increases in numbers? I'm curious if my French course is a fluke or a sign of the times...

Too Cute Tuesday: Felted Mittens

What a special Tuesday it is! Barack Obama is now president and I raise my TCT cocktail to his successful presidency. I'm so glad I took an early lunch to watch the whole thing live.

Tonight is a craft involves both 1) less work then it looks and 2) recycling of things you may have lying around. Both things I love!

Materials:
Felted sweaters (You can do this with an old sweater, a wool one you don't like or one you've accidentally shrunk. See instructions on how to felt below.)
Scissors and/or fabric cutter and board
Thread and needle (or sewing machine)

Cocktail of the Day: Mango Margaritas (I love both food and drink leftovers from Mexican-food themed potluck parties!)

1. Get an old sweater and felt it by the following process:

Agitation + Heat = Felted

I've accidentally done this to multiple sweaters but washing in hot, drying on high, and washing/drying with stiff articles of clothing (you know to pound the fibers) all apparently work well. You can even agitate by hand to get the desired consistency. In my case, the sweaters had been preshrunk.

2. Once your sweater is dry and felted, cut out a mitten shaped half on the sweater using a template made of cardboard. Depending on the size of the hands you're making them for, you should be able to make at least one mitten (two sides remember) from each sleeve and a pair from the body of the sweater. That's two pairs minimum. Tip: Make the template way big for your hand; you'll be sewing the edges and lose some of that extra material.

3. Cut four equivalent mitten shapes from other parts of the felted sweater as suggested in step 2. Using the same template for each will make sure the mittens look uniform.

4. Make mango margarita with some mix, tequila, and ice. Yum. Raise your glass to change, and cute mittens.

5. Line up two mitten halves and stitch (except for the opening of course).  Watch bad television or Wii while waiting for your turn to sew at the machine. You can also hand stitch while watching bad television. Realize how much you love things like infomercials and CW sitcoms and feel slightly ashamed. Tip: Sew carefully to avoid the dreaded claw and other weird lumps in your design.

As you can see, we had an additional crafter S join us tonight. (I forgot to ask her permission to use her on the web so I cropped her. Next time, I'll ask and maybe you'll get to see her!) S made a matching hat to go with her mittens with the leftover part of the sweater.

*Remember how I talked about shrunken sweaters during my Fashion Friday post? Maybe you can pick up a nice cashmere shrunken sweater on your next trip to the used clothing store and make your loved ones cashmere mittens!

All in all, quite a cute and historic Tuesday. Happy crafting!

Eight Necessary Objects To Be Ready For Winter

You may have heard or even experienced yourself the record cold in the northeast United States. Bar Harbor set a record on Friday and I've experienced my own personal cold  as well.

The furnace in my apartment is randomly shutting off. It happened three different times this week. My landlord has been trying to fix the problem, including last night when I called him around 10:30 after getting home from a friend's house. At 3 am, I finally woke up and felt the heat on again.

If it's one thing I've learned this week, it's that having a few things on hand is really helpful.

For Snow

Shovel
A plastic shovel with a flat blade is most useful in removing snow in that it's light, easy to stow, and picks up more snow faster then its garden-y cousin. On snowy days, I bring it with me in my car in case I happen to get snowed into my parking spot. Also handy for when the plow has left a big pile of snow at the bottom of the driveway that you can't quite drive through. Cost: $5-$10

Salt
Rock salt, which is just really big crystals of sodium chloride is cheap enough by the bag to keep on hand. You can share a big bag with a friend or two. If you're in a pinch, you can also use table salt which does the same job of lowering the melting point of water as the fancier rock salt, it's just a little more expensive. One town actually recently used expired garlic salt to deice their roads! Cost: $5 for a big bag

Car brush
A plastic brush with a scraper and a brush is necessary for both the ice and snow aspects of winter. You want a long enough handle to be able to reach half way across your windshield. Tip: Access the brush on the passenger side of the car, that way when you open the car door the snow falls on the passenger seat, not where you need to sit to drive. Cost: $1

For Warmth

Mittens
Putting your hands on cold steering wheels or door handles is not the way to stay warm in the winter. I keep one pair of mittens in the car at all times just for this reason. Get them from your favorite thrift store or knitter! Cost: $5

Candles
I have a working fireplace but since I'm scared of setting fire to things, for the moment I only have a pile of candles in there. Sometimes I light them for ambiance but have to blow them out soon after because of the amount of heat they throw off. Friends joked around that I should start burning furniture but hopefully it won't get to that! Cost: $10-20 for a bunch of candles

Wool Blanket
Last night, the wool blanket over my head kept things toasty until the heat came back on. I've had this blanket for years and say what you want about wool being a little scratchy but that blanket is warm and durable! Try an army-navy supply store for a cheaper version. Cost: $80 retail, but you'll have it forever

Wool Socks
I have one pair of SmartWool socks and last night, they were on. If your hands, head, and feet are warm, I think it is possible to sleep when it's cold. You can go the homemade route if you are talented or know someone who talented in the knitting department. Cost: $8-10 (for SmartWool)

Heat Pack
Back in the day, people used to go to bed with a warm brick. Now we have more comfortable options. My grandmother made us all heating packs for Christmas and I threw mine in the microwave for a few minutes and brought it to bed with me. Alternatively, you can drag your dog into bed with you. Another warm body does help things out...

Hopefully my heat stays on but if not, I have a few tricks to stay warm!

Saving Money When You Can’t Stock Up

Living Small Forces Means Thinking Different About Saving Money

When I lived in a house (or really a multi-room dwelling). I was a big fan of money saving practices like buying in bulk, making food ahead of time, and holding onto things for future use.

Moving from 1,500ish square feet to a new space that’s 220 square feet was quite a reality check. (To those of you who doubt my fifth grade math skills of figuring this out, ask anyone who has visited. It’s that small.)

I have some limited basement access where I can put things like my bike and skis but most everything I own is within twenty paces of where I sit writing this now.

The biggest change for me was my galley-style kitchen that has a half fridge (aka a dorm fridge). That means either the whole thing can be a freezer or a fridge. Guess what I picked? Though having all my food encased in ice may cut down on the amount of food I eat…Hmmm…

What my new apartment means is a few things:

1) I can’t buy things in bulk; there is no place to store them.
2) I need to choose carefully what stuff I surround myself with as I will be looking at it a lot of the time.
3) I have to go to the grocery store more often then once a week.
4) No more composting.
5) Less space to craft and otherwise spread projects out.
6) I have to store a gallon of ice cream at each of my friend’s houses that I frequently visit; it is the only time I can eat ice cream or anything frozen. (This is probably a good development.)

A few things I am doing now to save time, space, and money in my new place include:

1) Underbuying food at the grocery store. I’ll have to go back later in the week anyway and throwing away food is wasteful.
2) Sticking to the list at the grocery store has taken on a whole new importance.
3) Getting rid of a lot of stuff. Charities and friends as recipients made more sense then slowly selling stuff, not to mention gave me more satisfaction then, say, selling a nice shirt for $5 on eBay.
4) Setting up my apartment for me. Example: I have sweaters on the bookshelf near my door and books in the cupboards above my bed. It probably would look way cooler to my guests if I put out my “thinky” books near the door but I access my sweaters often and only look at books when I’m done reading my latest one. In short, I’ve set up my life for me, not for potential visitors. 
5) Recyclables are stored in a basket in the backseat of my car and emptied weekly. This keeps bulky stuff like newspapers and cans out of my living space.
6) Too Cute Tuesday crafting has moved to a larger location most of the time: my friend Dorrie’s house. She has a large table, good ideas, and is super-enthused about it all. Perfect!
7) I have to leave my house to eat ice cream, among many other things. This forces me to get out of my little space, be social, and try new things.

So a different approach but an equally valid one I think. Living smaller is definitely something I can live with.

Some other articles about living small/living with less:
Some Thoughts on the Small House Movement: Is It Something Worth Considering?
Book Review: The Power of Less
Sell or Donate? From Unclutterer

Shameless Promotion: The Zonked Sunday Night Edition

My Saturdays have become full in the last few weeks, which is good from the standpoint that I am making more money and in general growing my little business. On the other hand, by Sunday I am completely exhausted and ready for my day of rest.

And if you're wondering why the heck bloggers like myself do lists of cool links about once a weekish, check this out. It pretty much explains the logic, and I did write it so I think it's good!

At Breaking Even

This week, I participated in the Carnival of Personal Finance hosted by CleverDude. (And if you are wondering what the heck carnivals are check out this post.)

Some Great Links

For those of you like me who need their protein, it's getting harder to find cheap sources isn't it? (Not to mention that eating a lot of meat is not good for our planet either.) Enter imitation crab meat, which you can actually do a ton with. (via Wisebread)

Hard times give people new insights. Blunt Money lets us in a little on her personal life and reminds us that in life's difficulties are opportunities. At least, I hope so...

Could you live without spending any money for a year? This guy is trying to. I'm not hardcore thrifty enough to ever try anything like this but it's always interesting to live vicariously through people who are. (from Give Me Back My Five Bucks)

On the same note, these people are eating on $1 a day. (from Portland Psst!)

And I feel let in on a big secret: how you know Sam's Club pricing is as low as it'll go. And it's not even complicated or hard to remember. (from Spending Less 101)

This woman is living one of those crazy exciting lives those with dogs and cherished kitchen gadgets can only dream of (that would be me folks). I'd like to travel more but could I ever travel this much? The adventures and costs of full time travel. (from Wisebread)

Free Stuff

Suze Orman's latest book- Oprah's queen of personal finance. I'm not a huge fan (something about her I can't quite put my finger on) but, hey, if it'll help you make better financial decisions in 2009, that's great? (from BudgetsAreSexy)

Vowed to manage your money better in the new year? Quicken is now free but so is Mint.com. (from Mrs. Micah)

Ordering your credit reports yearly is a good idea, and free. And how to do it online. (from CleverDude)

Weight loss podcasts that could keep you motivated. My fat-looking Wii will only do so much for that I suppose! (from No Credit Needed)

Captain Obvious Links
Common sense, sure, but some links to back up the statements.

Library use is going up.

United States living standards still among best in the world.

Walking like a penguin will help you walk on ice. (Check out the animation...hilarious!)

Greyhound has lowered their fares to get people to travel.

People who are in jail for embezelling will try to get rid of anything they have of worth rather then have it get taken by the government.

Happy Sunday! And if you have any good links, feel free to let me know about them. I'm always on the lookout!

Champagne and Corndogs: A Look At 2008

What a lovely year it's been, 2008, but I must say, I'm happy to see a new year come. Here's a look back:

In Februrary (on the 17th actually), Breaking Even became a daily blog. A commitment yes but one I've never regretted.

In April, I turned 27, three days after my father would have turned 52. I celebrated both of our birthdays.

In May, I met my friend Mel at a small business conference. She's been so encouraging abut my writing and web projects that we eventually teamed up for our own, which is still in progress.

In June I launched Too Cute Tuesday, my midweek craft and cocktail. I realized that people liked series because then they knew what to expect at least once a week. Ah-ha! While the crafts tend to be a little girly, a couple of men have admitted to me they secretly enjoy TCT. Ah-ha again!

In July, I had a popular couple of posts: Lame Things That Your Friends Do That Cost You Money in Part I and Part II. I realize that I don't have to talk about just intellectual things or just personal things... I can do both! Cool!

In August, Sean had an emergency operation and I developed carpal tunnel. J Money at Kelly stepped up with guest posts to keep my blog going. To them, I'm ever grateful. It is at this time I realize that I have actual friends in the blogosphere. Oh, and I start my very long term project to connect Maine-based bloggers.

In October, I went to Las Vegas and thought about life. I broke up with Sean and moved out of his house. I slept on a friend's couch for two weeks until I found my current apartment. And Breaking Even turned one year old. Sarah C. stepped in with a couple of guest posts to get me through a terrible weekend.

In November, I moved into my new apartment and it was the one year anniversary of my father's death. There was a lot of crying and a big cell phone bill but I got through.

In December, my freelance work and personal happiness have ramped up. Coincidence? Probably not. And my Small Business Series was the most popular set of posts I've had besides my fashion series, the highest single day traffic I ever got. As of this evening, I have 99 subscribers, so close to my year end goal of 100. What a great note to end on.

And what's up with the champagne and corndogs headline? Well that was my dinner this New Year's Eve. I'm perfectly happy with it and realize just now that the metaphor is what I'm trying to do on this blog which is have it both ways: personal and personal finance, freelance and fun, long posts and short quips. I love the big and little things of life and I hope you do too.

So I raise a glass and a corndog to your health and mine. Best wishes in 2009 and thanks for reading this blog, for commenting, for passing around a link. I wish you could know how much I love writing Breaking Even. Happy New Year, and may you more then break even in all your projects!

Merry Christmas!

I hope you are having as good a day as I am. I'll be back tomorrow as usual but for now, it's time to play with my new toys. Merry Christmas!

New Years Resolutions For The Easily Overwhelmed

One Resolution A Month Works For Me!

One thing that's always bugged me about how January 1st falls on the calendar is how it doesn't feel like the new year. Really one winter snowy day blends into the next. It makes much more sense to me to have the year change at some point that actually feels transitional, like the first day of spring or the start of a school year.

That said, of course I'm not impervious to marketing. I'm thinking about what I want to do differently in 2009.

Like most Americans, I'm also a total slacker in that I start out strong and forget by March what it was I wanted to do anyway.

I came up with a concept on my drive home today: what if I only had to think about one resolution a month? Wouldn't I feel so much more focused and happy when I accomplish something? I'm just putting this out there as something I'm doing that may work for you. Here's my year:

January: Make a one page list with everyone's birthday on it so I stop forgetting.
Februrary: Make a one page document with all my financial information.
March: Launch my new website.
April: Learn to hip hop dance.
May: Fix everything in my sewing pile.
June: Host a great outdoor party.
July: Spend a long weekend somewhere I've never been. 
August: Submit three pieces of writing for publication.
September: Write a thank you note a day and actually send them.
October: Learn enough Spanish to have a basic conversation.
November: Try 25 new recipes.
December: Relax.

A mixture of having fun, tackling piles that need tackling, and trying new things. Most importantly, only one thing to think about at a time (I have the right to rearrange these at a later date).

So am I jumping the gun on this New Year's resolution thing? Do you have a resolution (or two or eight) you think could inspire people? Comment here as a way to increase your accountability to yourself. And yes, I will check up if you like!

Image from www.nationalcalendars.com

Shameless Promotion: The Avoiding Wrapping Christmas Gifts Edition

I've been done my Christmas shopping for over a week but the chore of wrapping still looms over me. The good news is there is plenty of fun things online to keep me nice and distracted!

32 Things You Can Do With Beer @ Men's Health
This link accidentally happened to me but whether you get stuck with a six pack of beer you don't like or just enjoy random information, some interesting reading.

A New Way To Make Money By Taking Online Surveys @ Sense to Save and Counting My Pennies
I always pass on via this blog ways to make extra money when I hear about them and, while I haven't done this program, I trust these ladies who have. It may be worth a look to make a little extra cash.

Good Wines At A Great Price @ GRS
Whether you are looking for a hostess gift or a Christmas toast, check out these tips to picking a good wine. Or do a Nicole standby with a Polka Dot Reisling or Bully Hill red.

Tips For Traveling This Holiday Season @ Intelligent Travel
If you are looking for last minute travel deals (or just ways not to get screwed over while traveling), there are some good ideas here. Me, I have one option to get where I need to go and that's driving. .. using tips for good gas mileage of course!

(And if you are traveling to a major city this holiday season, this blog also has an in-depth look at celebrating the holidays at places like Paris and New Orleans.)

An Economics Christmas Poem @ WSJ
A little nerdy but festive and applicable to current events. It's the WSJ, what do you expect?

Seven Lessons Learned Working Retail @ Wisebread
As you become a crazed shopper, remember not to take it out on your poor cashier. In my only retail experience, I just remember people being disappointed by my wrapping job (we offered free wrapping). I wanted wanting to say out loud "well, it is free, lady!" but instead smiling politely and rewrapping.

The Best and Worst of The Credit Card Industry @ Master Your Card
If you are thinking of shopping for a new credit card, like myself, check out this comprehensive list from Consumer Reports, compiled by this fantastic blog.

Christmas Gifts For Foodies @ Cheap Healthy Good
Food is always a good gift. Here is a guide to food and food prep gifts.

Wrapping Gifts Without Wrapping Paper @ Squawkfox
Hmm... maybe I can avoid wrapping all together...

Happy Saturday night to those of you who are having tons of fun or getting way more done then I'm avoiding!

Secret Millionaire: What Do You Think?

I watched Secret Millionaire on Fox last night. Sounds like a guilty confession, doesn't it? Well, it did involve mooching off my friend Jen's cable television (and convincing my friend C to watch it too since he was staying over there) but I did it. And I loved every minute of it.

(Aside: My taste for "bad" television is well documented. My favorite thing to watch is infomercials at 2 am. Whenever I can't sleep, I make myself a toast with peanut butter and watch an infomercial. The more ridiculous the product, the better. Heaven.)

So when I saw the preview to this show, I knew I wanted to watch it. The premise is simple: Rich people get plopped in poor America for a week. They have to live on minimum wage and at the end of the week, they give $100,000 or more of their own money to someone or something they deem worthy.

C and I both agreed on certain aspects of the show. First of all, a week is not very long, and one show not a long enough time to portray it. There was lots of oversimplification.

But then came the question of how to help people in need. Is writing a check and leaving really helpful? Is it difficult enough to really impact these millionaires for the longterm? Should the money be used to set up programs?

As you remember from earlier this week, it is almost a proven fact that when given money we don't earn, most of us are likely to blow at least part of it. Think about what you did with the stimulus check you got this year (or even cash you got as a gift). Now multiply that by thousands. It certainly begs the question...

I was thinking that along with the gift of a check from a millionaire, each recipient should also get face time with a financial planner to help them make good decisions with new found cash. C thought what they spend the cash on should be more regulated (this much in savings, etc.). I thought that in the end, the decision should be up to people getting the money but that they should have the tools they need to make good decisions. 

But it's no coincidence to me that this show is coming out now, at a point when charitable giving is at a low and people need to be reminded that despite cutbacks to their budgets 1) someone's holiday season will be worse then theirs and 2) that we all can give something, even if it's not $100,000. In short, a simple message, some voyeristic rich people watching, and the warm fuzzies for half an hour. Cha-Ching.

So I want to know, if you saw it or read about it or even are just thinking about it now, what did you think of the show? How do you think is an effective way to help people less fortunate then yourself? And why can an almost 40 year old woman with five children have a better body then I ever will? Ok, maybe don't answer that last one...

The Baltimore Sun (where the first millionaire lives for real) discusses Secret Millionaire...

Image from realitytvmagazine.com

Test-Drive Your Dream Job With A Vocation Vacation

While listening to the Satellite Sisters podcast today (it was an encore performance), one of the sisters was talking about her plans to go on a vocation vacation, which is where you get to test drive a career for a few days. She was going to be a chocolatier to have fun and learn some good truffle techniques. Interesting...

Ok, a vocation vacation may seem like a frivolous use of money and vacation time but here's a little Nicole story to illustrate why this may be a great investment.

I spent a year and a half getting my teacher certification (high school physical science and French if you're curious). The student teaching experience came at the end of the program. After a few weeks in our teaching phase, a few people in my program told me in whispered panic that they had discovered they hated teaching. Having invested a couple years and thousands of dollars into a program only to find out they didn't like the actual job stinks. I wonder if in the end they ended up trying to teach anyway, only because they had put forth all that effort and resources. (On a personal note, I tried to get a teaching job when I moved to this area but to no avail. Never did find out why.)

My point is, why not spend a little time and money to job shadow someone in a career you are thinking about going into? I didn't see anything about Internet Marketing or Web Communications on the list at vocationvacation.com but there were some other interesting choices I would consider: interior decorator and travel writer among them. Here's a link to their complete list.

I'm seeing that packages start around $500 for a day (two day interior designing was $800), which sounds steep but if the person actually has to spend a lot of time mentoring you, I can understand the cost of them missing part of or all of their work week. The fee is comparable to what you'd spend on a college class or attending a several day long seminar really.

Of course, you could be inspired by this general idea and set something up on your own locally for a lower rate. (This does take lots more personal initiative though.) On a really small scale, I'm a big fan of taking people who have jobs you admire out to lunch, which I did last week with one of my favorite local businesses owners (more on that next week). 

Whether you set it up on your own or book a vacation on the vocation vacation website, the idea is intriguing. Have you ever had a vocation vacation? If so, what was the most valuable part of your experience? The networking facetime with an established person in the field? Deciding to finally give your dream job full-time billing in your life?

Listen to an NPR story related to vocation vacations...

Image from Wikipedia Commons

Shameless Promotion: The Silver Lining Edition

The week began crappy enough but seems to be finishing strong. Among the good developments:

1) I found a rocking t-shirt at a thrift shop and crafted with it.
2) I got an article published in a newspaper (unrelated to personal finance but related to my French heritage).
3) Gina from Best Buy refunded my money and apparently mailed me a $50 gift card for my Best Buy fiasco. (Ah the power of the internet...and if you want to read another story about using the internet to get what is rightly yours, check this out.)
4) Last night at 7:30, I got home internet access for the first time in over a month.
5) I've been hearing from lots of far flung friends words of encouragement both in writing and life.

I've been bookmarking great online blogs and articles for the past month for future reading. Here are some of the things that made me smile:

Today while Googling someone, I came across this article about three guys being stabbed outside a strip club. The premise is ridiculous enough but the comments are the hilarious part. One of them: "... I am sick and tired of seeing naked women with stretch marks, bullet holes, and C-section scars..." Bullet holes?!? (from Victoria Advocate)

Did you know our nation needs a haircut? Apparently it's Nancy Pelosi's new favorite metaphor. (from WSJ)

Spanx came out with a male version of their shapewear product. It's about time men worked as hard as women to look hot! (from Give Me Back My Five Bucks) 

A cute picture of a puppy. Need I say more? If dogs aren't your thing, just scroll. There are lots of small animals, like a pygmy hippo. I know, random. (from Holy Cuteness)

An imaginary conversation between "The Big Three". Funny stuff, because everyone needs a laugh about the automotive bailout, right? (from Master Your Card)

Can Men Be Trained To Understand Women? I love these gender issues and interesting research and this post has both. (from Wise Bread)

Do You Say "Soda" Or "Pop"? I've always had this secret ambition of mapping the country linguistically. Where is the line dividing where people say "really good" and "wicked good"? How about "pop" and "soda"? Apparently, someone has beat me to the punch (and put in the hard work and mapping skills) to do the latter. (from My Corner of Maine)

So whether you have a soft spot for cute animals, search economic humor, or just have a sick twisted mind, I hope I made you smile with a link. Happy Almost Friday!

Listen to the fabulous song "Silver Lining" by Rilo Kiley...

Image from free-background-wallpaper.com

Best Buy Update: Money Back For Being A Squeaky Wheel

I'm really a non-confrontational person. I don't like to use this blog to push a particular agenda (you know, besides be financially responsible and happy). And this is the last time (hopefully) I'll blog about my Best Buy fiasco.

After posing my blog about Best Buy (and peppering it with key words so search engines would pick it up), I got a reply from Gina, who works for Best Buy as some kind of internet relations person. She asked me to email her some information, which I did. This afternoon, my credit card was reimbursed for the game I didn't buy.

It was definitely some vindication but at the same time, I realized I wasn't upset about $31 so much as standing at customer service being accused of stealing. I felt my face getting red as I could see the girl didn't believe me. I think about the throngs of Christmas shoppers standing behind me, probably thinking I was trying to pull one over the girl waiting on me. I thought of how not wanting to yell or otherwise make a big deal got me no attention while an obnoxious blog post did. Mel who was with me during the questioned purchase even blogged about it.

It makes me wonder: if I didn't have a high search engine ranking and a blog, what could I have done? The standard routes (calling the store, then corporate, explaining in person to custmoer service, asking they review video) had gotten me no where. I think of those people who could find themselves in this exact same situation who couldn't stick it to the company. And that stinks.

All the more reason to buy locally and check reciepts carefully. And if that doesn't work, use the power of the internet to get the word out. I found it certainly worth being the squeaky wheel if only to have my dignity and my $30 back.

Best Buy Update: Terrible Customer Service

Here's a followup to the Best Buy fiasco yesterday.

On my lunch break, I called the Best Buy store in Bangor Maine (where the transaction occured) and got no answer, then the corporate headquarters of Best Buy to resolve my issue. Apparently, I have to go into the store to resolve this dispute.

That's right, people. I paid Best Buy to mess up my computer to the point now where I can't plug in the original power cord. In addition, I am a theif, and a bad one. I should have at least "stolen" something I could actually use since I don't even own a Nintento gaming system.

Am I going to drive an hour in each direction? No. Should I have to? Definitely not. But this doesn't end here. 

I'm going to contact my credit card company and report fradulent charges, since I never recieved the merchandise. Friends have told me that nine times out of ten, your credit card company will go to bat for you. I am also filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau about this.

I also ask you to share your bad customer service experiences. If someone did you wrong, I'd love to boycott them with you.

In the meantime, I'd like to go on record as saying please do not go to Best Buy for your tech needs. I certainly won't again.

More stories of Best Buy terrible customer service...
Still more stories of Best Buy terrible custormer service...

Why I Won't Ever Shop At Best Buy Again

Panic set in this morning as I began to work with my friend Mel on an online project. As we were beginning, my laptop died. It seemed to be an issue with the power cord so we decided to go to Best Buy and pick one up while I had access to a computer store. (I was visiting Mel in the Big City for the weekend.)

I was shocked to see that the charger I needed for my computer cost $150. Since my computer is a tool they use everyday (and I'm apparently not smart enough to just have an extra power cord), I bit the bullet. Spending that money stressed me out but it had to happen.

To make sure that I had the solution in hand before driving over an hour away from the store, I visited some friends and plugged the new charger into the computer. It charged, we socialized. As I got ready to go I noticed that where the power cord made contact with the computer, there had been some melting. Oh, and I couldn't pull the cord out of the computer.

I bought the whole thing back to Best Buy in hopes that they could help me out. The customer service agent commiserated with me about the uselessness of the power cord and took my computer out back behind the partition where the geeks hide out, probably discussing ridiculous customers like myself.

The customer service agent came back with the solution; basically they did not have what I needed in stock. So they refunded me $120.

When asked what happened to the other $30, they told me that I had to return the computer game I also purchased before they could give me my money back. (Full disclosure I do not play computer games and do not even own a gaming system of any kind.) I explained to the customer service person that I hadn't bought the item. I did offer to get my friend Mel on the phone who as a witness could vouch for my story. Sure, if I would have examined the receipt I would've seen that charge but since I thought the product cost $150 to begin with, the amount matched my expectation.

They talked to the cashier, who apparently remembers me buying a computer game (!?!). By this point, I was frustrated that my computer may be broken due to melting faulty power cord in addition to being furious about essentially being called a liar.

Tomorrow, I'm going to call the store and ask to speak to a manager. In the meantime, I thought I would take my complaint to the blogosphere. Has this ever happened to anyone else? Is there any way that this transaction could be the cashier scamming me?

Apparently in this world, the old adage the customer is always right is no longer true. I was happy that I didn't get mean to customer service but upset to know that nicely walking away may have cost me $30. For the moment, Best Buy has not heard the last of me and I will never buy one of their products again. And it's too bad for them; I was going to buy a new computer after Christmas.

The California Women's Conference: It's On Video

Welcome to my week-long women's series. It's no secret that one issue that I'm passionate about is female empowerment. I used to answer a domestic violence hotline, coach cheerleading, lead a girls technology club in my local middle school, and met with a monthly girls book club. I'm currently on the board of our county's domestic violence program and doing some writing for the Maine Women's Fund. My point is it's certainly been a common thread in my life no matter where I am or what I'm doing.

So this week, it's about the ladies, and of course money (as usual). Enjoy!

Last week, 14,000 women gathered for California's Women's Conference which was organized by Maria Shriver, first woman of California.

There were some great speakers on hand discussing their views on women's issues (which are really everyone issues but you understand what I'm saying) as well as the role of women in the future of America and the world. It was a pretty inspiring lineup which included Bono (keynote), Warrent Buffet (talking the economy as well as putting a sexistly pandering Chris Matthews politely in his place), Jennifer Lopez (talking with young girls about body image), Oprah (duh) and lots of other gifted speakers and accomplished women.

While it certainly would have been cool to be there, the great news is they have a great online presence.

Click here to get streaming video of the different speaker sessions (and not just two minute clips from Youtube here, actual hours of video).

You can also get more involved by keeping up with their blog and discussion board at the California Women's Conference's official website.

I'm thinking of this time listening as a combination motivational pep talk and professional development session. Hope you do too!

Lobster Becomes Affordable: How Being Aware of Food Prices Pays Off

I've had every intention of starting my own price book for when I go grocery shopping (to help keep track of the lowest prices on items I buy regularly). Truth is, I haven't really needed one because I have a mind to remember trivial things like that. (I still remember my 7th grade boyfriend's phone number for God's sake!) When I'm trotting down that grocery aisle, I know what to grab.

While most food prices are getting higher, that is not the case across the board. For the past few weeks, lobster prices have gone super low. Prices got to around $2.75 a pound wholesale about a month ago and are remaining low. Don't get me wrong, the grocery stores are still selling them for way more then this but the wholesale price is ridiculously low. And lobstermen are really feeling the effects.

Lots of possible solutions to this problem are being discussed, with some people already cutting out the middle man and buying direct. Grocery stores and other distributors are being pressured to lower prices so hopefully that'll happen soon. Otherwise though for just a little more hassle, I can get myself some good cheap lobster and help out a local industry at the same time!

Despite current low prices, there is still the prevailing idea that lobster is a luxury food that normal people can't afford on a regular basis. Also, people only know of one way to cook lobster (boil and dip in butter) and therefore don't see it as really versatile. So while prices are low, the culture keeps people (at least many people I know) from buying them.

Since I normally don't follow waterfront news very closely, it's the fact that I knew $3 a pound was a good price for lobster that made me reevaluate my buying habits. While we may be in a recession, it appears prices for some things (like lobster) are going down.

Have you noticed a lower price phenomenon yourself due to your awareness of what prices usually are?

How to freeze lobster (it can last over six months)...
Some more information about getting involved in this cause...
Some yummy lobster recipes...

Spending By Percentages: The Average American

 So I have this list of links that I maintain and use as a go-to whenever I want to highlight a resource or even if I have a little writer's block (which happens on occasion when one has a daily blog). I realize tonight I've been saving a few of these links since May.

Yup, apparently I wasn't very blocked writingwise this summer, but also I thought that now more then ever, we're all doing number crunching of our own budgets.

The New York Times had a great chart it created back in May showing the spending habits of the average consumer:

"Each month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics gathers 84,000 prices in about 200 categories — like gasoline, bananas, dresses and garbage collection — to form the Consumer Price Index, one measure of inflation... The categories are weighted according to an estimate of what the average American spends..." Check out the original graph here. It's really fun and interactive.

I put the percentages of the largest items in. Interesting huh?

The other aspect of the graph besides being voyeristic about people's budgets is how it examines inflation.The darker pinks and reds are things we're spending 20-40% more on then we did in 2008. Gasoline, fuel oil, and propane are all expected though eggs was kind of interesting to see. And we're spending 10% less on computers, televisions, and video equiptment (dark blue).

So are you average? I'm not quite but more on that in Part II: Your Spending Versus The Average American. But in the meantime, head to the New York Times and enjoy the graph!

Read the Get Rich Slowly analysis of the same graphic...

Putting Things Into Perspective

I did some shopping in a large retail store tonight (rhymes with mall fart) preparing for the weekend (see tomorrow's post) when I had the following exchange with my cashier.

Her (remarking on the pack of Special Dark bars): Wow, I love those.

Me: Yeah, they are pretty fabulous.

Her: Yeah, they stopped selling them in the break room vending machine so I can't get them for fifty cents anymore.

Me: Well, I guess there is the large pack option but then that means a lot of self discipline to not eat them all at once, which I certainly don't have.

Her: Yeah, but I can't afford the pack though. I've just got this dollar in change on me. I've had like four crackers today so I'm famished right now. My house has no food in it. I have mac and cheese but no milk, cereal but no milk again... (I'm making her sound like she's talking a lot but this was a lot of back and forth conversation and no one was behind me in line to be pushing the transaction to end).

Me: Try apples, they're not too expensive and really good for you. (oblivious to the fact there are no apples, or anything fresh really in this particular store)

Her: I just wish I had a rich grandfather or something, you know? Wouldn't that be great?

This whole conversation took place in a matter of fact tone, that normal tone you would use to tell a coworker a story of something that happened to you. She was not feeling sorry for herself, or at least not any more so then anyone else I know.

So I'm standing there, in my cute graphic print dress from work, buying about $100 worth of stuff. Talk about perpective. I may have to budget and save but I'm not existing on four crackers a day, going to work hungry.

I asked her if I could slip her a Special Dark bar without getting her in trouble. She let me. I wished I could have slipped her something more nutritious or adopted her on the spot.

Hopefully, she got to buy an apple with that dollar in her pocket. I certainly got some much needed perspective in that transaction.

Photo from http://mike.creuzer.com.

DNTO and Freakonomics Tackle Money Vs. Time

The old money/time adage goes if you have one, you don't have the other. The money vs. time issue is one felt strongly about by many and can be debated for hours. I've seen a couple interesting and fresh takes on this seemingly-tired arguement recently, both on the New York Times Freakonomics blog and at DNTO, the CDC radio show.

At the Freaknomics blog, Daniel Hamermesh summarizes a paper that recently came out about money and well-being. (It's clever title: "Stressed Out On Four Continents: TIme Crunch Or Yuppie Kvetch?" The title is really all the creativity academics can have with a paper so might as well make it fun!) The major findings of the paper include that while American salaries have tripled since the 1950s, life expectancy has only increased by 10%. The reason is that higher wage workers are spending more time working and that additional wealth means taking more time to spend it (those goods don't acquire themselves!). If you want to read the whole paper, there is a link at the bottom of the post to it.

In related news, DNTO recently did an episode about outsorcing. Mostly, it was writers and contributors to the show experimenting with outsourcing everything from traditional chores like childcare and housework to non-traditional ones like arguing with their spouses and managing their love lives. I was surprised to find that the host of the show Sook-Yin was able to have a piece written that roughly takes up 3 minutes of the show for $20. As someone looking to make an eventual income from writing, I've calculated that I have to make roughly $50 an hour during my billable hours to maintain my standard living, meaning pay all my bills and buy myself health insurance. And those who know me know my lifestyle is far from extravagant. Yikes.

While it was sobering to know I couldn't compete in the global market, it was nice to see in the end the contributors realizing what they were missing in their lives by outsourcing things like reading to their kids. It made me realize how valuable my time is, even whan I am at the grocery store or paying bills.

While I've sometimes felt like a slacker for not climbing some kind of corporate ladder by now, these findings from Freakonomics and DNTO are encouraging. Maybe I've been subconciously avoiding doing the corporate thing for the very reasons of not wanting to be stressed out or lose my leisure time. And even if I was able to outsource the time I spend doing the dishes or answering my email, I know I'd be missing out on some subtlties that really do enrich my life.

In the time or money debate, now more than ever, I'm picking time. What about you?

Photo: I'd pick relaxing over an extra few bucks any day of the week. Photo taken by my friend Brad.

Independence Day

You know when you spend an hour wriitng something really good (in my case a blog post) and then your computer freezes and you lose everything?

Yeah, that just happened to me.

I can't bear to recreate it now; it's time to barbeque and remember the terms under which the country was founded, which were much more difficult then having to rewrite a blog post. Much more significant then my little blog.

If you want to read something cool today, check out The Declaration of Independence, and then think of having to come up with those ideas with a group of people (and having to write it all out neatly by hand).

Have a safe and happy Fourth of July.

Book Review: Nickeled And Dimed

"That's the kind of book that old people read." -12 year old girl I know

I finished Nickeled and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America in a record time of five days. It was less then 250 pages and a remarkably quick read for the subject it was about: "case studies" of poverty in America.

When one of the middle school girls I work with saw my book, she immediately could not believe I was reading it. Maybe I seem too young and hip (my words, not hers) to be reading something that seems so boring. But to be honest, it was quite interesting. Heck, they even made this book into a play.

The premise is Barbara who spends a year trying to live on minimum wage jobs (or close to) in different parts of the US. I bought the book even before I knew part of it took place in Portland, Maine (she becomes a maid with an agency similar to Merry Maids). Her detailed accounts reminded me of people I know and made me look about the people who wash my dishes, serve my food, and cash me out at the grocery store in a different way.

The evaluation stopped me dead in my tracks. A study shows that the minimum wage to pay for a basic standard of living with a home, a reliable used car, childcare at a liscenced day care, etc. should be $14 an hour. And she was using numbers from 1998-2000. Those making $10 an hour or under are part of the "working poor". My salary translates to about $10 an hour, and it's 2008.

Now until this moment, I didn't think of myself as poor. I have three college degrees and work experience that would put me in the "professional" category. This book made me a little sad and a little inspired at the same time. And more importantly (and beyond looking at my own situation), it made me see the world in a different way then I was seeing it: as a bunch of hardworking people who will one day get to the point where they can't take it anymore and do something about it.

Just a reminder that I'm giving this book away as a prize to the winner of the June Blood Drive. So check out that page for details to enter (it's easy!).

Image from http://www.hoardedordinaries.wordpress.com.

June Blood Drive

You may remember a few months ago that I gave blood at the Red Cross and thought the whole thing was a pretty good use of my time. This month alone, I've gotten two phone calls and one postcard from the Red Cross asking for another donation.

I remember my Dad getting a lot of phone calls for blood donations because he was AB negative, which is fairly rare. But I do know the Red Cross needs blood of all types all the time. In light of recent events and due to the drop in blood donations during the critical summer months, I thought I'd launch a challenge with this blog: The June Blood Drive.

The goal is 50 pints of blood for the Red Cross by the end of June. Can you give a pint? 

To let me know you've donated, comment on the blog or email nicole @breakingeveninc.com and let me know that you have. If you want to take a picture of your "I Donated Blood" sticker or you showing Oreos in your mouth moments afterward to prove your story, go for it. I could always use cool blog art! I trust in your honesty because what sick person would lie about a blood donation?

The prize is a book I picked up in Boston, pre-windshield incident. "Nickeled and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America". It's a fascinating read (I'm half way through in two days) and interesting from both a personal finance and anthropological perspective.

Ready, set, give! Contest ends June 30.

Nicole's State Of The Economy Address

I'll be the first to admit that I have little to no-pull in terms of making people think one thing or the other about the economy. I do, however, come to a point where I have collected some cool links that just need to be shared.

I'll cover the economy in seperate sectors of the agreed-upon needs of all people: Food, Water, Clothing, Shelter, and Love (and I'll throw in Government just for fun!).

Food

Food price inflation may not be as bad as we thought (check out inflation explained at Debt-Free Revolution). I also read a completely hilarious blog about media mass hysteria about food prices meanwhile the average barbeque meal only cost $1.65 more than last year... if you know who wrote this post let me know, because I lost the link! Even the Wall Street Journal has reported rice futures going down.

Water

My friend Sarah sent me this fabulous SIGG water bottle for my birthday. It is amazing. It keeps my water cold and crisp and does not leave a plastic aftertaste in my mouth...and, of course, it's refillable. I don't normally endorse products but here's the store if you want to buy one.

Clothing

Apparently, the New York Times is having a hard time believing that Sarah Jessica Parker's newish Bitten line of clothes is so wonderful. They seem to think that attraction towards inexpensive clothes is a phenomenon in these economic times. Those of us who love women's magazines though have seen a "Bitten" example in every issue for at least the past year. Ok slight exaggeration but SJP (and women wanting cute cheap clothes) is here to stay.

Feeling left out menfolk? Please don't: LL Cool J has got your back! (from USAToday.com)

Shelter

If you want to understand how this whole housing debaucle happened, listen to this hour-long program from This American Life. Great storytelling, which you can expect from TAL but makes this whole thing way more understandable.

And if you're a renter, feel free to get angry. Read this fabulous post by Baglady to see why this housing crisis will effect us all whether we rent or not.

Love

Ah, poor Anne Heche. She may love her kids but can't afford to pay child support. OK, if she can't afford it, I think that pretty much lets everyone else off the hook, too. (I have no sympathy for celebrities who make more money in one day then I have in five years then waste their money. Where I'm from we call that gaspilleuse!)(from People.com)

But in the good news bin about love, people apparently love and appreciate small businesses enough to actually pay in a pay-as-you-wish situation. (from Freakonomics blog)

And according to a recent Gallup poll,almost 50% of us are happy and thriving. How happy? People are working on an index for that! (from Freakonomics blog)

Government

Haven't spent your new government stimulus check on a new Wii or a crazy night in Vegas? Good for you! Here are some more productive things to do with it. (from Mighty Bargain Hunter)

And guess what? The government is doing something about credit card companies (from Debt-Free Revolution).

Need even more government fun? Now you can actually prove if you could do a better job then your Congress people. Balance the federal budget...it's a new game called Budget Hero. (Freakonomics blog)

To summarize: things may or may not be as awful as we thought, but we certianly can't control everything. Might as well smile and wave...

Image from www.shorpy.com.

 

Getting Up In My Business

SMBIZ4ME Governor's Regional Business Conference Was Interesting, Worth A Day Off

I took the day off work Wednesday to attend the SMBIZ4ME Conference for a few reasons: 1) It was only a half hour's drive away. 2) I heard it was going to be good from a few people. and 3) It only cost $25 and one day off to attend. As someone who has already heavily invested in my brain but knows little about business, I figured the price and the opportunity to network with people in the area would be invaluable. It was.

The vendors set up over breakfast and gave me something to do when I first walked in and was getting my bearings. (I can be social; I just sometimes need to ease into it). I made a few good connections with some Maine publications that were at least theoretically interested in my writing as well as met the guy behind Mainecreates.com. Mainecreates is a social networking site for Mainers involved in the creative economy. (I got on the site to set up a profile when I got home but I see I will be charged for it after a year, which I'm not really down with. But it is a good idea so I set up my own account there.)

In my first seminar, I met Melanie Brooks, who just got hired at MaineBusiness.com. It's a division of MaineToday (another newspaper) but it's focused on business content. She's a blogger, I'm a blogger. She suggested I crosspost on their site. So I'm trying that out to see if that'll be a good use of energy. (Really I want to end up as one of their featured bloggers, I'm competitive like that.) Melanie was fun, energetic, and into blogging; she seems like the kind of person I'd hang out with if I lived closer to Portland, though though the blogosphere can at least be a virtual friend.

All this happened in the first two hours. Did I mention there was all the free coffee I could drink and croissants I could eat? (Out of restraint, I had one croissant, ladies and gentlemen, with an apple chaser).

Meeting a lot of people who are all either thinking about or running their own businesses and having to give my "elevator speech" about my blogging consulting/web content creation business allowed me to not only realize that I actually did have a good, original idea but that I do really believe that I can do it.

As with any event of this nature, there is some golf clapping, boring speech listening, corporate sponsors to thank profusely, and a couple snotty people but that was all minor. (One PR woman in my last seminar seemed ridiculously jealous of me and conducted herself in such a way that I wondered, is she actually a PR person?)

Overall though, I met some wonderful people and got some great ideas. I left feeling energized, even though being nice and civil to people you barely know all day can be fairly exhausting.

Have you had a rockin' professional development day recently?

It's My Birthday

I'm taking off today from blogging to celebrate my turning 27. Feel free to use it as an excuse to celebrate!

I'll be back tomorrow for the usual fun. Have a great day.

Photo from istockphoto.

Happy Easter

Because it wouldn't be Easter without a few fun pictures (would love to give photo credits but these are out of emails I've gotten so I have no idea). Have a great day!

Depends On Where You Start From

Peep Show

Is It Getting Hot In Here Or Are We Playing The Stock Market?

I'm In A Couple That Knows The Meaning Of Romance

Some young couples buy their first piece of furniture together, or buy land to build a house. Sean and I have gone an even more romantic route and bought stock together as our first jointly owned item.

I've long wanted to enter the stock market game. But buying stock in some small unknown company or just a company I couldn't get excited about never seemed interesting to me. Yet that was precisely what I could afford.

I've talked about wanting to "own Google" frequently enough. At work, we use a lot of their software and I like that they are a company who treats their workers well. (I also think they are going to figure out television on the internet before anyone else but that’s just my hunch.)

When I inquired at dinner one night whether one could buy half a share of stock (GOOG was approaching $600 at that point), Sean offered to go in on it with me. We submitted money to eTrade and waited while it cleared. (Unlike their Superbowl commercials that promised instant stock purchasing, there is a nine business day waiting period on new funds.)

Meanwhile, Sean became interested in a company called Luminex that he likes and uses a lot at work.

As of two days ago, we are proud owners of 1 share of Google and 4 shares of Luminex (Sean has less expensive taste in stock than I do). We have a romantic dinner wager on which stock will do better, which we will evaluate six months from now.

And while I’ve always felt cheated that I couldn’t play the stock market game in high school economics class, I get to play it now.

Of course Google tanked and Luminex slightly tanked yesterday. I’ve decided for personal sanity reasons to take the little stock graphs that update every 15 minutes off my Google homepage. While I’d love to think I’m going to get rich off GOOG, I think this will just be a fun way to hopefully grow my money in the long run and allow me to learn more about markets firsthand.

I’d love to know how you’ve played the stock market game and how much you enjoyed or didn’t enjoy it.

Image from: http://btr.michaelkwan.com/2007/10/09/google-stock-breaks-600-will-anything-stunt-its-growth/