Garden: Year One

In years past, I have cavalierly planted tomatoes. Dug a hole, put up the wire cage and enjoyed a measly harvest of 2-3 tomatoes from 2 plants. Not much of a success story.

This year it's gonna be different. This is not an empty promise.

Method
Container and square-foot gardening is the way for me. This is the method that was showing up everywhere as the urban farmer method, in a window, on a balcony. It's loft hi-rise alley gardening. Here is a link to an amazing new wave of large-scale farming that may actually work and may actually be healthful and not unsimilar to this method or it's philosophies.

We have a small landing strip of grass in the back that luckily gets the full sun of day, if we were on the other side of the street, I could only imagine...the rest of our backyard is dominated my a massive two-level deck, half of which we barely step foot on. I can use a lot of the upper deck for containers and maybe even a cabana. The reason we barely ascend to the upper deck is lack of privacy, we can see the neighbors can see us, hence the cabana. So dreamy...

One of three planned beds


Money for Nothing
Much is owed to my devout return to frugality. I swear! I want affordable organics for the fam. If it turns out I can produce something edible, I will then can them, perhaps even trade or sell some of my harvest. Not only will I save on groceries, I will not have to get in my car, go to the store and wander around. I'd prefer to wander around my veggies actually.


Learning for Earning
It has been super enjoyable to bring my garden up from seed, observing every minute transformation, actively building a new skill set and so on. I feel like a scientist or sorcerer when I pour over my gardening manuals, print spreadsheets from the internet and mix soils. Vigilant against every pest, I fend them off with various potions or manual eradication via squishing.

I am totally that person that needs to make some of the mistakes herself to really understand what's going on, i.e. mixing the subsoil with the topsoil producing rock solid clay clumps - done it, not that bad. Sorta like a sub-prime brownie. I now get soil structure, drainage and the power of fertilizing. Trial and error is the essence of any good scientist paired with a drowning dose of curiosity.

Expense and Revenue
I have a rough and running tally going of the money spent and, loosely, where it's going. There exist plenty of sunk costs and disbursements to get this garden in the green. Many things will only have to be bought once or at the very least last me a decade to two decades long - providing we don't move. We bought the house big enough for a few more. We could stick around for a while:)


Initial Costs: The Seed and Incubation
I started with one 4 ft shop light (had an extry laying around) and one 72 unit seed starter with peat pots ($7.50), organic seed starter soil to fill those cups ($3.50), heating pad ($16), salsa kit with 36 units ($7.50)(kind of an extravagant purchase, not that it cost much more, but kits always jack up the price and are usually very easy to replicate on the cheap) and a few ceramics ($12) for the herbs 'cause we like to give them attractive homes. My aunt is an amazing ceramicist, wonder what she has laying around...

Expansion
After an Easter visit with my country mouse cousin, my garden had to expand. She turned me onto heirlooms and gave me some seeds. Enter another 72 unit seed starter, this time with peat capsules ($7.50) (to compare with the peat pots), a new shop light ($10.50) and new and improved home in the attic with the only well sunned window in the hizzy. We repurposed a hand-me-down desk, covered it with plastic and hung the two shoplights at varying heights. So happy!



The Land
Now the grounds needed to be planned, plotted and prepared. Upon seeing the seriousness of my efforts and not so pitiful results, I have gained the respect, support and assistance of my husband. He insisted on new wood for the boxes since he was the builder (even though orthodox frugality would have me scouring forgotten corners of the city for wood). He was wise. So, wood was bought along with a strawberry plant and 2 evergreens. He built the boxes and we hand-tilled. Back-breaking work, I tell ya, but worth it.

The Dirt
To ensure long and bountiful harvest my soil has to be top-notch. For a while, my head was spinning from the dizzying array of inorganic and organic matter that one must add to the soil in differing amounts according to each plants specific needs at ABC time by moonlight but only on this weekend in june.

It slowly started to sink in. I took notes and cross-referenced, just like I would in school. Greens need nitrogen, carrots like sandier soils, phosphorus gives maximum bloom and thusly fruit.

A dear friend rides horses competitively and for pleasure. Her barn accumulates plenty of composted manure, or black gold in gardeners currency. One day, in between rainy spells, I borrowed the mr.'s truck and rounded up all my available 5 gallon buckets (7 plus 3 3 gallon). The drive to get there was beautiful, postcard worthy, so worth the price of gas and my time (50 min drive). There was such an abundance, my 44 gallon capacity seemed paltry! The act of shoveling sh*t was even enjoyable. To the manure, I add equal parts vermiculite and peat and stir.

Onto growing monster tomatoes...upon further research, I stumbled across the secrets of growing a bumper crop of tomatoes. 1 fish head (or shrimp shells or crab shells), 2 heaping handfuls of bone meal (phosphorus)(24 lbs $37), 2 crushed aspirin (or shredded willow bark), 3-4 eggshells and 1/2 tsp. mycorrhizea powder (1 lb $13.72). It also recommended worm casings and worm tea, which I couldn't find readily (odd 'cause my garden shop spot had everything else imaginable - including hydro). In the future, I would like to have a worm hotel and generate my own worm goodies.

Finally, in deciding on a good organic, all purpose fertilizer, I was drawn to the "Fish and Poop", stinky and powerful. At $37 a gallon, I'm hoping it will last through 1, if not 2 summers. A little goes a looong way.

What can be had for FREE
I was able to accumulate many of my requirements free! With a little creativity and courage, I managed to acquire 13 5 gallon buckets from work($2.97/ea at Home Depot) that I use for composting, rain catchment and manure hauling soon to be used as veggie beds. They were headed for the trash! They regularly throw away high quality plastic containers, as do restaurants by your house, I'm sure. I even got the dishwashers to wash them:) They felt good about not throwing them away, even though it further cements my reputation as being "unique", thank-you-very-much! I transplanted seedlings into containers headed to recycling, even plucking some out of bins at the recycling center (make sure to poke holes in the bottoms), the manure, of course. I also collected this list of ingredients from my job: 13 5 gallon buckets; 3 gallon bucket of shrimp shells; 3 gallon bucket of crab shells; countless egg shells and coffee grounds; orchids, leaf lettuce, and edamame shells. My general manager even commented on how it would save on garbage costs and trash bags. Victory!



I've never had time, until now, to give a garden it's proper treatment and respect. I've long left behind my partying heyday and am thinking about the baby days. I would never have had the time to devote to gardening with the enthusiasm and care I give now. The sprouts are the first thing I want to see upon awakening and the last thin I want to see before sleep. I have a staring problem. They'll grow better under my loving gaze, right?!

Irregular Posting

So I haven't been posting regularly. It's not that I gave up! I have been instituting cheap livin standards, up and down, that completely absorb me and leave no energy for writing, especially after spending 4 hours digging the earth. I am not inspired to type words, much less complete sentences - I just want a long hot soak!

I'm trying to integrate writing into my life gently. Part of the problem is a compulsion to research and active accomplishing, leaving little time for explanation. I sift daily through postings on other personal finance blogs I follow. Only now, have I began posting comments to participate in the larger discussion. I've stacked up some books on gardening and investing, my latest obsessions. It would be prudent to read, take notes and then get a description and analysis up, but I am just go-go, going.

I have been taking pictures of my garden experiment as it sprouts and grows and researching banks, interest rates and CD's to better serve as the recently appointed CFO of this house. I take a bow. All of our accounts are non-performing, meaning not gaining a cent, actually losing money to inflation (they didn't lose much to inflation when there wasn't any money!). I let that piss me off so I would take action and gain control of the situation. All of this is being documented in charts, graphs, diagrams, illustrations and film to share later. It also helps when making a case for certain financial allocations. I want to have plenty of information to make the decision, just like tracking my daily spending, I want to
know "where's the beef!" and where's the pork...

Ideas are coming to me all the time. They are collected on a motley assortment of paper products. Responsibility and precision are high priorities for my posts. So I want to do my best due diligence. The written expression, however, will take a some time to perfect;)

Change Can Be Overwhelming

Pioneer girl is a little shell shocked by all this transition! Trying to beat tax due dates and frost dates has got my hair in knots.

File a tax extension

This is a very simple process and allows you an extra 6 months to file. It also gives you a chance to make your IRA contributions later and still get the most tax benefits. Although, it would be nice to just get the taxes out of the way, this would give my brain more space to decide the proper investment vehicle for my savings.

Getting your spouse on board

All these changes affect my husband and our plans. I'm urged to develop a plan together that benefits us both, today and in the future. Discussing these things now and without too much emotion, ensures that our goals will be met and we can be good counsel to one another. We both have very different styles when it comes to money management. Balance and communication is essential! It forces me to be on top of my game when discussing the merits of any steps I want to take. If I can't persuade my husband with the facts, I should carefully consider my understanding.


Money has an Emotional Quotient

Money can't buy happiness, but it can make you cry! You put in valuable life energy in a work setting to obtain the resources to fund your survival, aka a paycheck. You want that money to be accessible, there when you need it most. You also want control and order over this resource. You have to be able to pay your bills and store it safely. Plus, you don't want to be obsessed with all the variables of saving and earning so you can actually enjoy the fruits of your labor. With so many of life's activities and for many, self-worth, tethered to one's earnings, our relationship with money can't be underestimated. Once we make our decision, after carefully researching all our options, I think we'll just sit tight for a while. The best situation would end in all our transactions becoming automatic i.e. bill payment, investment deposits, direct deposit and even scanning in checks, from home, to deposit.


CD's vs. MMA vs. High-Yield Checking/Savings accounts

I've found some good CD rates and even better high-yield checking accounts. Most require direct deposit (DD), virtual banking or online everything except ATM use, and 10-15 debit card transactions. As a waitress, often our checks are blank. We are paid an hourly of $2.62 and that is gobbled up in taxes. DD is not an option for me. But, I do have a small business. I need to investigate whether I can do DD through my business.


Today's Economic Climate is in Flux

Then there are things we have no control over. Who wouldn't want to take advantage of such low prices on many great stocks. Many economists would say the time to strike is now. In the words of Warren Buffet, "...be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful." But a small investment could be wiped out quickly, not strong enough to weather further shifts.

Free Money!

Get thee to Chase National Bank and get paid!

I ran past one at Meijer's and got the scoop. Additionally, for those of you who just can't get out of bed Saturday morning they are open until 4pm and 7pm on the weekdays (probably only at in-store locations).

If you have a business, meaning you are registered and have an EIN, you can open a checking account through Chase with $500, the printed voucher and 2 pieces of ID and they will graciously deliver a $200 bonus! What?! They must have a fancy printer in the back;)

You have until April 22nd.

Disclosure: I will be opening an account and possibly closing it after any required length is fulfilled, while keeping my other biz account active. I get no perks for sending business to them, but you will!

Thanks Frugal Dad!

Free Name Brand Aluminum Foil

Reynolds wrap is offering a rebate for up to $3.99 to purchase their 100% recyled aluminum foil roll in honor of Earth Day! Register here. Saw it on a commercial last night while washing the dishes and soiled foil...

My first quilt!

I'm designing a window display on Woodward Avenue in anticipation of the Final Four coming to Detroit. My team has 3 windows. Of course, I'm using mine to promote the glamorous life of thrift! The beauty of coordinating my window with my return to frugality and simplicity is that everything will be reused (can't wait to stuff my precious cashmere in the cedar lined hope chest!), recycled (I will re-roll the wrapping paper covering the floors and walls and make dresses from the curtains!) or returned (items from the thrift stores will go right back).

Learning a traditional skill, such as sewing, can have numerous money-saving and -accruing benefits. I could dedicate more than a few posts to this subject. It's all about learning for earning.

Dressing windows is really fun and I'm lucky to find opportunities to do it. In Detroit, there are so many barren and forgotten windows. I think it would be prudent to get more artists, small businesses, non-profits, school classrooms, etc. to use the windows to display their talents. Let's improve the streetscapes. We'll sign the liability forms, we'll clean up our mess (and theirs!). They're just sitting there, waiting for someone to love them!

Clean Slate

I just paid off all my non-mortgage debt, $800, down from $6,000 earlier in 08. Kinda scary. After steadily building a savings/emergency fund, I wanted to keep it above a benchmark number. It made me happy, to see it there, growing. Earlier, I thought I would pay the debt in installments while reaching a savings goal. I surpassed the goal and still owed on this balance. Nonsense. I'd rather not pay a fee while they hold my debt.

Reading a few personal finance blogs was all the motivation I needed. It's great to celebrate and relish in an accomplishment, but I needed to detach myself from the importance of maintaining this account balance and take action. It requires courage. The end result was as satisfying as the monetary goal!

If it's on the card, it wasn't my money to spend. Sure the promise of miles seemed sweet, I managed a trip to Portland for my friends wedding. But when calculated, I received only 1 stinking percent, of what I spent, back! It's just a weapon of mass consumption! Try spending only cash for a week and see if you notice a down tick in accumulation. And don't buy online. It's too easy to click a few buttons. There aren't enough barriers, psychological, physiological, whatev's.

The card will be relegated to exceptional situations or when I plan to quick pay. Now, I can focus on getting the savings back and not be throwing pennies at my debt. Gone. Poof. Hooray! Back in black.

Make your own toothpaste

Using these simple household items will give you a happy mouth! When we ran out of toothpaste as a kid my mom would pull out the baking soda. Just wet brush, dip and apply. When you really need to pinch go with baking soda. It probably costs less than a penny per brush. The taste will take some getting used to. The mild abrasion power of baking soda will leave your teeth feeling good and scrubbed. Worries about lack of flouride should be nil as research confirms, again and again, that flouride actually damages your teeth and is a suspected neurotoxin! Read here for more disturbing information about flouride...

Peroxide makes a good gargle. Mix with an equal part water. Make sure not to swallow any by exhaling slowly as you gargle. It is a strange sensation! Used in tandem, your teeth will be whiter and cleaner. Peroxide not only whitens, but kills odor causing bacteria. You may want to use the peroxide only once a week to see how your mouth reacts.

Notice there is only a speck of toothpaste on the brush. When using store bought toothpaste, that is all you ever really need! Never the amount shown in commercials to get you to overuse product and keep production levels up, up, up. I find myself foaming to capacity halfway through and having to spit and continue.

I could never bring myself to floss regularly until my husband was given a Reach brand dental flosser from a dental hygenist friend. You will become addicted!

Sound eerily familiar...

The Main Causes of the Great Depression. (click for a link, dah-link)
Choose to thrive. It's a cosmic casino, man.

Free Plastic Surgery...

...without the plastic or the surgery!

Touch your tongue to the roof of your mouth. Try it while placing a finger at the point before your chin meets your neck. Can you feel a muscle contract?

If you do it on the daily, you'll keep that muscle active and tight and prevent chicken neck jowls!

For a more advanced workout, contract all the muscles in your face. Mush your face in every which way, puff out your cheeks and suck them in, roll your lips over your gums and teeth, furrow your brow. This will keep your many, many face muscles in good, youthful shape.

And keep out of the sun peach skins...

Saving Karyn by Karyn Bosnak: Book Report

Do you only pay the minimum balance on your credit cards? Do you know what your interest rate is? Do you have spending amnesia? Do you charge it now and conjure a way to pay later? Do you make excuses why you need, deserve, require a thing? This book might give you some hope, some direction, some peace. It's time to get off the merry-go-round, woman!

While on my sickbed the past 3 days (called off again so I wouldn't backslide), I managed to get in some reading. I picked up some cheap paperbacks at the corner Salvation Army. For this post, I'm reviewing Saving Karyn by Karyn Bosnak purchased for $.59, not bad. You can get it for a penny on Amazon but the shipping costs would put it at almost $3.

This is an actual account of Karyn's experience with out-of-control revolving debt (credit card with interest charges's, we all got em). Sound familiar? Midwestern girl moves to NYC to find herself. Gets in over her head trying to keep up in a status driven world, ends up slumming in Brooklyn with rats and roaches, subsisting on tortilla chips and pickles at one point, while trying to maintain employment during the 9/11 tumult.

You may have heard of her story a while back. She made headlines around the world for launching a website asking people to send money to help pay off her debt. And would you believe, it worked! If only it were that easy! You come to see that it totally sucked and gave her mad stress. As I read, I couldn't help but feel sick as you followed her into a chasm of careless spending. She feels the all to real consequences in less than 1 year in town. Karyn is so ashamed of herself she keeps it hidden under her "chipper attitude". An attitude that, although, allows her to keep a job and the book interesting, eats away at her self-respect and confidence that all those shoes and purses could never replace. Which she, ironically, hawks on ebay.

At first, her voice is a little gosh, shucks. Also, she comes off as gullible and non-confrontational, all very midwesterny traits I must say;) I mean the makeup counter guy totally sized her up. He subtly digs into her insecurities to heap endless products upon her under 30 skin, that she diligently protects. When the final tally hits $600 she doesn't have the guts much less incredulence to pull out. Meanwhile her debt is at a staggering $15,000 within 4 months! I'd break out in hives if I paid more than $5 for a mascara.

Before each chapter, we get a peek at her unrelenting credit card bills. She buys a couch with store credit. If you look closely within the 5th month, 1 month after the no-interest falls off, her late first payment only covers the interest and late fees. Aurgghhh! She makes complex calculations while trying to stay ahead of her American Express card debt, even giving it an acronym worthy only of the financial sector. She could just as easily applied her mathematical wizardry to saving money under no duress whatsoever.

Her accounts of people's charity and goodwill is a welcome testament to the humanity of people, of which, she humbly points out. Luckily, it takes the edge off the death threats and mean-spirited copycats! There is a happy ending, but this is a cautionary tale. Her website SaveKaryn.com is still up and running. Make sure to check out the original website for her greatest hits.

It was a quick and breezy read. I wish I could say I can't relate. I've seen it happen to people close to me and in my own life when a business went bust. It is no fun and unnecessary! As we watch our economic system capitulate, we see the absolute folly of spending more than we earn - on a global level! In an intoxicating race to live some imaginary lifestyle, as seen on tv, we cashed out the future. By some accounts, we are earning just as much as we ever did, but our value system has morphed.

Cheers to the simple life!

*I'm offering this book, free-of-charge and free shipping, to my first subscriber!

Sick days : What to do when your down...

I'm a little sick. I had to call off work on a Friday night, I may have to tonight (*update: just did. So glad!). The weekends mean big money in waitressing land. Now I can't enter income on my budget worksheet. Waah! Until yesterday, I've not called off at this job. I hate calling off. It gives me anxiety. I had to give myself permission to call off. I had to get advice and encouragement from my friends and hubby. Who, by the way, is a fine nurse. I take pride in my work ethic. I fairly enjoy the work and my coworkers. I just got put on both weekend nights and I can't even be reliable, but I feel like absolute crap! I'm sure they can handle it without me...

However, the sickness has not affected my brain - it was already this way;) So, it is my laptop, me and the couch. This is a great opportunity to write about the budget worksheet in action. Once you see saving money as spending money on yourself, you might find a little more excitement in it all. Stacking dollars, pennies if you got 'em, is a great pastime, woo wee!

After ceasing to worry about the money I was not making this weekend, I was able to find strength from my budget worksheet. Seriously. Since keeping track and putting my all into saving, I created a nice cushion, or emergency fund, to protect me in times I couldn't count on making money or a crisis came up. Getting sick is exactly what this should allow for.

Additionally, I can look through past expenditures to see where I can cut spending to maintain a fairly decent savings total at the end of the month.

I recently splurged on a 25 lb. bag of rice for $11.99, that's $.47 a/n lb (I did just spy a 20 lb bag for 8.99 which brings the price down to $.45 a/n lb). Long grain white because it stores indefinitely. This contradicts the high priority I place on health through diet, but I digress. I could slice spending on groceries by making a lot of rice and beans meals and spice them up with veg and herb. Rice makes a good, filling brekky too. Cutting into my grocery bills won't be too hard because I have been making some bulk staple purchases. I am just starting to keep track and build my price list (more later), while experimenting with recipes from the depression, albeit with more health promoting ingredients.

I can also say no to nights out. Lately, I enjoy seeing my friends in the day, when I can see and hear them. Besides being waaay cheaper, it is much more efficient. I know, I know, what a soulless way to look at it, but loud, smoky bars just aren't cutting it. Stopping by to dish over a few cups of teas is definitely more rewarding. Although, I have less hilarious drunk and stoopid stories to tell. Ha!

Now, if only I could cut down on my cell phone bill...it doesn't hurt to dream. Maybe if we all banded together we could make the phone companies stop ripping us off! I'm going to look more into their feckless pricing scenarios. The New York Times recently did a story on how text messaging costs next to nothing for phone companies but, oh, how they charge. I have been able to lower my cell phone burden by texting more therefore enabling me to move to a cheaper plan. Alas, I am still not satisfied! Considering adding my mother to my family plan, is that a mistake?

*I'll post a link to the article soon-soon. I know I posted it to my facebook.

The nurse just brought me my blueberry waffles. Gotta nosh!

Begin at the Beginning: Your Budget Worksheet!

It's fine, really. I've come to terms with being a little obsessive about saving money. It's kind of my hobby. The more I talk about it, the more people I meet who want in.

In the past, I've kept track of my spending in calendars that we're gifted to me. For two years straight I entered anything costing a $1 or more. This was back when I was going out religiously. So I wasn't shocked at the tally's rung up under "entertainment". Truthfully, I was the cheapest of the bunch regardless. I just got to a point where I wanted to see where all that hard-earned money was escaping to!

As a waitress working towards bachelor's degree, I also wanted to track what days and months were particularly flush and take holidays and cram on the not so flush. With my new found frugality, I pursued a system that didn't require so much work. I was crunching all the numbers myself. So last week, I learned excel. Online. For free. I downloaded free office software, OpenOffice, and set about creating my personalized budget worksheet. It adds everything up AUTOMATICALLY! Yeah, didn't major in computer science, as an artist I focused more on graphics programs anyways.

My latest challenge, has been getting my husband to use the budget worksheet. I will blog about using charm to slay your mates financial defenses. I do not know yet why he resists so much! He probably doesn't want to know!

I am posting my blank budget worksheet that you can personalize! Break it down as little or large as you need. I recommend rounding to the nearest dollar and then half-dollar with more experience. Don't worry if you miss a few. Just start getting acclimated to the idea. You might even start writing expenditures on scrap paper to keep track. So much can happen in a day. I can't emphasize enough how powerful this tool is for understanding your individual spending habits and how to establish discipline. Just knowing that every purchase you make has to be entered causes a pause before buying. Discovering where you really spend money can be eye-opening. Once you have a little history to work off of, you can start slicing into each category. With a little more history, you can set realistic spending caps in each category and stop yourself from going over.

For a good time, imagine ways to add more categories to your income section...

Download Budget Worksheet HERE! Enter the Captcha, Click "Download Now", wait 40 seconds and click "regular download. Copy the file into your own excel software if it opens read-only. Let me know if and how this helps or if you have any problems!
Enjoy!

Let's get thirfty together, baby!

It just hit me the other morning. I very much enjoy being thrifty. I extra love sharing any bold new tip or success had with my adventures in accounting. Sometimes I get the occasional strange or disbelieving look. I brush it off, determined to stealthily undermine their consumer habits that prevent them from maximizing their paychecks. Being cheap can be quite the coup. There are raw deals everywhere - overpriced this, hot scam that. I loath both. If you're like me, you don't like being played for a fool.

Most of my life has been spent on the frugal side, my mom was very clever with very little. She found cheap housing in great school districts, filed reams of paperwork to get us scholarships for summer camps (partially to have a break herself!), accepted hand-me-downs and shopped resale. I never felt ashamed, more an observer and player in a great economic theatre. To not be beholden to those who wish to part you and your money and keep you in perpetual debt, is very liberating and self-validating. And some of us have no other choice because we are, financially, hanging on by a thread.

There also exists green and political motivations towards this type of lifestyle that we must investigate. This blog is to inspire you to look for alternatives and define your own path to financial freedom and independence. We'll be skipping all the way to the bank.

And I DO enjoy life even if I don't buy into the latest fad (unless it's about living on the cheap, duh!), eat out at every chance or giddily join gyms, clubs and subscriptions. I endlessly hunger for more tricks, tips and hints. The thought of thoroughly calculating and researching variables to decipher the lowest cost of living with the highest standards puts honey in my cup. I value my health, humor and experiences and am determined to live long and prosper like a any good daughter of Spock who only makes rational, logical decisions. Well...some of the time anyways;) Therefore, I am going public and taking anyone, who's game, along.

I carefully considered the name of my blog to capture a feeling and my particular circumstance. Frugality is a way of life that most would associate with drudgery and blandness, but I find it to be an interesting challenge, a great comfort and full of indulgences.

Additionally, it is never too early or late to begin this process. Yesterday would've been better, last year, phenomenal, but since we cannot reverse the clock, today will do. In the spirit of having fun and being carefree I think it's best not to act like misers and spinsters but enjoy lives as a darling Miss, not mess! I have great plans for my granny days. They usually involve a villa, the mediterranean, martini's and paintbrushes. That's why we must begin NOW

My blog will focus on things that interest me most and pertain to my readers and I. Health - diet and fitness, fashion, travel, entertainments, mortgages, energy costs, maintenance and repair, crafting, DIY, beauty, charity and fun. Not all of these may or should be implemented at once, more so gradually merged with your current lifestyle. It's hard not to feel deprived or overwhelmed by a sudden, major overhaul. You can glory at each small gain and make improvements and innovations as you go along.

This summer, I plan to volunteer in my friends gardens (we don't have much sunny garden space at my house) and learn to can together. I have a wish list to support my newly embraced pioneer girl lifestyle, that I plan to collect at estate and yard sales, resale and barter. I've amassed a good stock of durable plastic 5 gallon buckets (currently used for composting and grain storage) and smaller food storage units (storing dried beans and homemade ricemilk) from my waiting tables job, just as much to prevent them from going straight to the landfill.

Ultimately, I am a city girl for all that is great about a city - the culture, the diversity, the density, the economies of scale, the freedoms, the styles, the noise and grit, the skyline at night, the intrigue and drama, and, oh, the freaks! All this can be had for relatively cheap, I promise. I find many correlations to a life lived in the country, but I'll save that for when my nightlife dies down. As for my suburban ladies, short of having you move downtown, you may have to be more covert in your tactics. Suburban areas are notorious for their use of suppression and conformity to provide a greige existence check out some predictions for the future of suburbs. My husband once got a ticket for his grass being too long! Though I can sympathize, there are plenty of arguments against obsessive lawn maintenance, unless you're tending to your fledgling crops.

That being said, welcome to my first post of what I hope to be many more!