California Drought

Part of simple living is being aware of potentially bad situations beyond your control, but also not losing any sleep over it. As many people know, California is experiencing a multi-year drought. In a small town at central California (East Porterville), residents are experiencing life without regular water. Yes, that thing we take for granted every day, no longer coming out of the magical pipes in all houses.

Water is precious

 It's hard to understand a first world country lacking something as basic as water, but, similar to Detroit, some Americans go without running water or electricity. I don't believe in prepping for a zombie invasion...I think it's a waste of storage in my mind, and also the processing it takes to calculate unlikely variables. However, it makes sense to have basic precautions for something like water not coming out of the faucet, or not having electricity for a few days. No country or city is invincible.

I know a lot of people who are afraid to be afraid, and bury their head in the sand. Fear often causes poor decisions, but discounting any fear inducing idea produces blindness.

Okay, so the practical stuff. A great experiment is to turn off your water for two days and see how you do. If that isn't possible, then perhaps prevent yourself from using water by signs or other measures. Needless to say, it would be a good idea to prepare prior to this test so you don't get ill. The point of this is to reduce worry by increasing your ability to survive.

Here are some basic tips:

1. About 1 gallon of drinking water per person per day. The actual drinking recommendation is less but water is often used in cooking too.
2. Have water for everything else you do. This is vague, but how am I supposed to know whether you water your lawn every hour, or live out of a two gallon bucket? This is where testing is helpful. This water doesn't necessarily need to be drinking grade, but should be clean...at least enough to water plants. Hopefully you have vegetable plants if you are reading this blog. A good water plan is scaling down your consumption.
3. The water you use above that isn't consumed (drinking, given to plants, wasted on hourly watering...) should be saved for pouring down your ol' toilet. Yep, the toilet can flush just by pouring water into it. At a job I had, some houses we went to didn't have water turned on and this is what we did to flush.
4. Have extra water. Be aware that pool water isn't really the best thing for you to drink...or water plants with. Remember that for larger, open storage containers (like rain collectors) it can be wise to add a couple goldfish during mosquito season.
5. Consider having a water filter to supplement your drinking water stock.
6. Plan out your storage. Below is one of the storage cases we use. Remember to add the required drops of bleach.

Budgeting Tool Every Dollar Review

Today I would like to review the Dave Ramsey's budgeting tool Every Dollar. This video gives a good summary of creating an account, setting up the information in the account and getting started. I've used spreadsheets and have considered projects like Mint. However, this is my favorite.

I encourage you to give it a try and see if it fits your needs.

Happy Easter?

Why do American holidays often encourage greed? Christmas, whether you believe in God or not, is about Jesus coming down from heaven to earth to later sacrifice everything for all of mankind. So, where is the disconnect? Advertising says Christmas is about possessions filling an empty life. TV shows says Christmas is about finding a partner to fill the emptiness felt by lonely people (among other things. It is interesting to see how television handles Holidays as it can vary greatly). The local radio stations are about conning Santa into giving more gifts, or Christmas tunes lacking virtue to avoid offending others. Since when did America's liberty deny people the rite to express what they believe? To borrow from media I've listened to, it is useful knowing what people believe by what they say no matter how offensive it is. If someone believes black people are evil, I'd rather know about it from what they say (to distance myself from such prejudice), then not know.

I'm not an altruist. I don't believe that is an end, or even an always good means (selfish people can do good things that reflect their selfishness, rather than helping people in need. It's like the missionary friends you may have that are more interested in posting pictures about holding minority babies than quietly devoting time and effort to help others. Knowing that God is their reward should be more important than recognition). The older I've gotten, the less idealistic I am. One day I will sit on a floating rocking chair complaining about the gentle hum it produces and how wooden rocking chairs were far superior.

For now, what is the non-tainting truth that will help my child grow, love, respect and pursue the important things in life? I can't control Emma. If I give her good principles and truth, she has a greater chance of growing into a respectable adult. This needs to be balanced with memory creating fun and adventure. I'll tell her to express herself so people know who she is and she doesn't pretend to be someone she isn't.

What will I tell Emma about Christmas and Easter? Christmas and Easter was originally celebrated by pagans and is now a central Holiday about the Jew named Jesus that some people believe is God who sacrificed everything to save humanity from separation from God. Today many people are more interested in exchanging impressive gifts, singing seemingly humble songs, and making themselves look good then following a sacrificial model. A polished turd is still a turd. Okay, maybe I won't include the last part...

Finally, I'd like to tell her to be careful with want. Maybe showing an example about how people do bad things because of greed. I volunteered at a yearly company egg-hunt with my wife from a nearby restaurant that contained prizes inside the eggs. 1-2 of the prizes was a year of free food from the restaurant. Let me tell you, it got ugly. Parents would come up complaining that their kid didn't get eggs (despite a full basket), parents would shove small kids picking up eggs to snatch them up, and kids would come to us crying because of this. It was insane to watch hundreds of eggs snatched up as fast as humanly possible. When I was a kid, I remember being bad at egg hunts. I was bad enough that parents and other kids felt bad for me and pointed to eggs for me.

Isn't the point of Holidays to celebrate the finer virtues of life by modeling them in front of skeptical family? When did greed become a priority that superseded this? I've lived with just a backpack on my back relying on the kindness of others...matter is a fleeting thing. If I didn't get an excellent prize, maybe someone needed it more than me. Before I had no where to live, I won a sweater at a contest. This sweater became one of my most prized possessions because it kept me warm on cold nights inside lobbies, etc.

Since when did Holidays become the celebration of vice? I don't know, but I think changing that starts at my own household. Thanks for reading this.

Little Chicks and Random Thoughts

 Living in the country has certain spoils, like being able to purchase chicks and raise them for eggs. Over the past few weeks, we and the in-laws have been talking about raising chickens for eggs. Over the last year, egg prices have gone up, and we eat about a dozen eggs a week. The in-laws eat maybe 8 eggs a week...it is hard to count when I'm not home for breakfast.

Also, an advantage of "home grown" eggs is that you control the setting of the chicks. Want them to roam the earth in search of bugs? Set 'em free! Want to put them in the coop so they don't get eaten? Save the chicks!

The amount of money we will save from this is not huge. If 24 organic eggs from Costco cost $7, and we have to pay for grain/time spent watching them, we probably only save $20-30ish a month on eggs. But who doesn't want fresh eggs?

As I grow older, I'm continually impressed by the good life not coming from possessions but experiences and trying new things with companions. I get more satisfaction out of our family joking about the chick named "nugget," than making a few bucks from fixing troublesome technology.

Part of exiting the rat race is replacing it with something. How should I spend time instead of keeping up with the Jones's? I listen to podcasts to and from work to help keep me sane from traffic. What I listen to is budgeting, technology, economy and general side earning business concepts. It helps me refresh before I get home and enjoy the wife and kid's company, rather than being in a grumpy mood due to kamikaze drivers (I'm looking at you Subaru Impreza driver!)

This is definitely the "talk about whatever I feel like" blog post, but the point is that you should use your strengths to your benefit, but not at the expense of ridding your life of what is really important. When I sit on my deathbed, I'm going to think about the family, volunteer work, God, and has my life been spent well. Investment advisors will often tell you to start investing at a very early age so the interest will yield a high retirement savings. What if I treated my life like that? I'll do what is important at the young stages of my life and won't have to catch up as much when I'm a crotchety old man. This is one of the reasons I'm always looking to get slightly ahead financially. Not so I can be a rich guy, but so I can be a content old guy not anxious about income/family relations (assuming I get old. A bus could take me out!).

Quick Guide to Save Money

Cutting costs makes my wife uncomfortable. However, I believe it is key to living simply. Every situation is different.

Pre-req's
1. Make a budget.
2. Compare to your income

Comparison Items:

1. Housing is usually the most expensive budget item. Simply, is your living in an extremely expensive place? Do you own or rent (renting is much more appropriate if you living lease by lease and want the option to move)? Do you have more house and property than needed? How much could you save by downsizing? This is often the hardest thing to adjust. Currently, I live in a multi-family setting for a very manageable amount of rent.
Savings:
$600/month lower rent
$50/month utilities (split)
-$60/month extra gas

2. Cars are another large budget item. Do you pay monthly payments on a car? What if I told you that most people don't need a newer vehicle? My wife's car is 18 years old, with 231k miles on it, running strong. I paid $3000 for it and have done minimum repairs on the about 40k miles put on it. No monthly payments, low insurance cost and cheap parts. The value of the car isn't going to fall with a small new scratch. This is the easiest thing to quickly save on. Do be careful when buying a used car though as many people who do no maintenance try to overprice their car. Use kbb.com. Stick with an inexpensive, reliable car. My wife had a Saturn when we met and spent about $100/month on it for some random repair. Sometimes reliable vehicles are not in good condition. Have someone you trust help you choose a vehicle. The people who are braver than me ditch 1-2 cars and go bikes. That is the ultimate way to save, but you need to have transportation worked out.
Savings:
$500/month no vehicle payments
$100/month lower insurance from older vehicle
$50/month high mileage vehicles (mine gets 35 average per gallon. Not bad for a $2.5k car)

3. Health insurance is a sore spot due to new regulations. This I don't know as much about since you have to comply with new rules and coverage not always accepted. Remember that the purpose of insurance is risk management. A Dr. visit isn't a risk. Large overpriced medical bills are a risk. Somehow, I ended up with a job including benefits. This is harder to calculate how much we save, but comparing it to when we were on another plan it is about $100/mo
Savings:
$100/month lower monthly (lower deductible)

4. Internet and cell services can also make quick savings. My wife used to be with Verizon because we lived in a remote location. Now she is with Republic Wireless (reseller of Sprint, roams on Verizon). For unlimited texts and calling we pay $10 a month. We had to buy the phone for about $200 but have no contract. Meaning, we can have the phone last as long as we want and not be forced to pay for it via subsidized phone price in monthly cost. In 2 years, she will have spent $440 on phone service on Republic Wireless, compared to $1060 on Verizon. In 3 years if the phone lasts, she will have spent $560, compared to $1540 on Verizon. She also now can use her phone on WiFi for internet, with a much better phone. Internet service is more tricky due to different providers. Research what is local to find savings (without bundling! Stay away from that!)
Savings:
$26.67/month

5. Cable. Trade your cable in for Netflix (or Hulu). Go from overpriced to $8/month and have no commercials.
Savings:
$12-92/month

6. Cut your local landline. You can just use cell phones, or set up a new telephone number via Google voice and use that. Last I checked, that could be used to have off-time to prevent sales calls at inconvenient hours.
Savings:
$20+-/month

7. Taxes. The tax code supports tax avoidance (legally finding ways to avoid paying taxes). Tax evasion is illegally lying or not paying what the tax code determines you should pay. Collecting your donations, mortgage interest, student interest, Hope/American Opportunity Credit and dozens more can help you have a refund. If you don't care about knowing taxes, perhaps ask your accountant what will give you the best return on your time.

8. Find new ways to save. Make it like a contest or something you do to enjoy yourself. Do you really both need 2 Macbooks? What if you had 1 Macbook and 1 tablet/Chromebook? That could save $800 on a one time purchase.

9. Get buy-in from yourself and family, otherwise extra purchases will replace savings. Perhaps you are saving for a down, or trying to get debt free. The important thing is to get the entire team on board. If you are married to a spender, provide limited amounts of credit. Sure, this person may max out the credit card, but if they have a credit limit of $200 or less per month, that is manageable.

10. My wife cooks naan bread from bulk ingredients instead of buying bread. We also grow some vegetables. A quick estimate says we save a few bucks per month, but it is much more healthy so that is a quality of life increase for less money.

If you add up all of the saving minimums, it comes to about 16.7k a year. That is quite a bit of savings for minimum sacrifices. Be sure to somewhat regularly compare to your budget and make sure you are spending within it. Lean more to asking if you need it, rather than you want it. Dear reader, what have I missed? What are some things you do to save extra money and what do you save it for?

Ignoring Alternatives

"You can find anything on the Internet, if you try hard enough" so says Kyle from Last Man Standing. I think it works the same in the regular world. This is how people often operate. I am drawn to people I agree with and don't give the time of day to listen to people I disagree with. The possibility of being wrong makes me uncomfortable. When I was young, Republicans were good and Democrats were bad. Kind of like in Star Wars where the was the light and dark sides. Growing up, life has taught me that things are more complicated than that. Good and bad people are in all cultures and sects. It isn't like Lord of the Rings where Goblins and Orcs are universally bad.

Sometimes I internalize my thoughts without giving people the opportunity to state why they think what they do. This makes me narrow minded, rejecting ideas that make me uncomfortable.

When I at one time managed people, I quickly discovered I had to listen to employees who had different experiences and ideas. It was mentally exhausting to work out every detail without help.

What I'm saying is to leave yourself the freedom of being who you want to be by at least listening to other people and cherry-picking aspects and ideas you like, while entertaining things you don't like. Be brave. Many great ideas make you uncomfortable.

Intro to Satisfaction and Random Thoughts

Everyday when I drive to work, I chuckle. The rat race continues day after day. The part I noticed today is that it prevents people from not only being happy, but from pursuing their dreams. When people are buried in debt with many commitments, it is hard to take risks. If you ask most people if they are pleased with what career they are in, they will grunt and say yes after mulling over the regular paycheck.

I'm not saying that people are wasted in the workforce, but that people don't take risks due to commitments and may not fully realize their potential. The difference is that someone can have more than one talent and ability that is not always marketable to employment. So, maybe I want to post every other day about denying indulgences and finding satisfaction in life itself, but have difficulty squeezing the time to do it.

So, rather than let myself feel bad about circumstances and depressed, maybe a unusual solution exists. I was thinking, I spend hours driving during the week, what if I went podcast style and talked while driving? I don't think there's a law against that and there are parts of the road where relatively fewer drivers are trying to bump me off. Also, it may help determine who is at fault if my last words are "why!! Why would you cut me off"-BOOM!

My dream in life is to find something to do that can help people. Legally, I have to limit how much advice I give people, and how specific it is to save money. Also, there are many blogs telling you how to save money, make money and invest money.

I guess my point is that this is 2015. People can post blogs, make podcasts, make websites, use a variety of online tools for many purposes, write books, self publish, apply for online work, find work online for unique talents and so much more. We aren't stuck with a limited unintegrated internet consisting of slow speeds. We have so much potential but limit themselves due to priorities and not having a good enough idea. Our economy is very interesting, you can hire a couple guys to make a single purpose app, give or sell it to thousands of people, and then be bought up by a large company wanting to integrate your app with their existing services.

Are you waiting for someone to give you permission to use this new economy? If you have an idea, pursue it. If you don't have an idea, listen and read sources that will give you inspiration.