The Irony of Expensive Bargain Grocery Shopping

Anyone who has read this blog or flipped through IOU NO MORE, knows that I really believe in bargains. Saving money, spending less than you earn, are mantras I've chanted for years. But I've modified one of my long held tenets, bargain groceries.

The more I study, the more disturbed I become regarding what we're putting into our grocery carts, and ultimately into our bodies. Have you read the ingredients label on a can of tomato sauce or a box of cereal lately? If you were to take a few items in your cart, sit down and google the list of ingredients, you would be horrified at what you are ingesting yourself and feeding your loved ones.

I can't help connecting the dots and finding a link between our desire for cheap food and our ever increasing health care costs. Common sense tells us that we can't fill our bodies with all these chemicals and avoid the consequences. Ever wonder at the growing numbers of colon cancer victims, ADHD in children, obesity? We're killing ourselves with food. And not just at the dollar menu (Why is fast food cheaper than fresh food? That's another story).

I don't really want to throw blame, we all, the grocery chains, manufacturers, big agra, big government, big pharma, consumers,  carry some of the responsibility. And we all can play a role in changing our diets, our health and our future. But it will have an associated financial cost at a time when many, most, families are living on budgets so tight the cash can hardly breathe.

Our cheap groceries are making us unhealthy, yet we can't afford to pay the prices for healthier choices. What are we to do? This is what you might call, a conundrum.

I am a proponent (and participant) in what's known as the 'slow food' movement. I believe in eating fresh, eating local and 'eating with the seasons'. B and I drink only raw milk, eat pastured eggs, grass fed meat and even make our own cheese and butter. We grow nearly all our own fruits and vegetables. We are on a plan to remove ourselves from the current retail food system. I hope millions will join us.

If you are on a budget, you probably can't do it all at once. I get that. Eating right, is expensive. It is a tragic reality. I recommend small changes. Every bite of something good for you means that many fewer bad things are entering your body.

Try buying a pound or two of grass fed hamburger. Maybe a dozen pastured eggs from a local farm. Support your local farmers' market. Grow a single tomato plant, or bell pepper plant. Make a window box for herbs or plant some in your flower bed. Many herbs are as pretty as they are healthy. Get creative.  One or two small changes are a GREAT start

Read. Research what you eat. Investigate. Start slowly if your budget requires, but by all means start. Drop us a note for more information if you have questions. Alternatively, check out our other blog, "Our Edible Suburb". I truly want to help you save money, but spending a little more up front on groceries, might just save you a ton of money in medical bills. Chew on it.

Sustainable, Self Sufficiency - The Third Phase of the Revolution, Part 2

During our last chat, more of a monologue, really, I described some of the thought processes that have been driving some of my decision making during the two years since the release of IOU NO MORE.  The fact is, I have changed a great deal since then.  The principles and outline for becoming debt free have not changed, my thoughts on "Life After Debt", have changed dramatically.  I will probably elaborate on that a little in my upcoming e-book, "Debt Beat Dads".  But I'll introduce the subject here, in hopes of stimulating some thought.  BTW, we always love it when you share your thoughts.

I finished the last entry, with the fact that it was my Bible reading that has changed my views of wealth building and preparing for the future.  Specifically, my new thinking comes from the first 5 books of the Old Testament.  Even more specifically, from the latter chapters of Genesis and from the book of Leviticus.

Before I go into any detail, I might as well address all my Christian friends who will say, "We're not under the Old Testament Law, anymore.  We're under Grace."  You are exactly right.  If you will stay with me long enough, you'll see that I'm not advocating a return to Mt. Sinai, but rather I'm adapting some PRINCIPLES gleaned from Joseph and Moses, that I believe give us insight into the heart of God and provide some COMMON SENSE approaches to our own times and finances.

Phase two of the Revolution most profoundly impacts the categories of 'Giving' and 'Saving'.  Ok, I'll backtrack.  In IOU NO MORE, I conclude that money is really only good for three things; Giving, Saving and Spending.  That's it.  That's the list.  You could maybe add, burning, but the coins don't do that well.  The 'Cruise Control' spending plan is divided into those three categories.  You can see the plan in the Appendix of the book and it's available as a part of our 'Complete Forms Library' in the store.

In 2007, when I released IOU NO MORE, I promoted the traditional concept of giving 10% (tithe) and saving 10% (to 15%) of income.  I still believe that's a great place to start. My Bible reading, however, has caused me to raise the bar. Note: If you are trying to get out of debt, I still recommend saving up a $1,000 emergency fund and putting all other saving on hold until after you're debt free.

As I was reading through the Old Testament last summer, as part of my daily devotional time, I was struck by the fact that the Israeli's gave much more than a 10th of all they had.  While it's true that the tithe was the starting point, by the time you add up all the various offerings and sacrifices, the Israeli people were giving a minimum of 20% of their resources to God.  How interesting.  Most of us are not aware of that, because we rarely read the book of Leviticus.  I freely admit, it's not a page turner, but it sure was an eye opener this time through.

Similarly, the same book, affected my views on savings.  In several places, Moses describes the "interest rate" for buying back property, etc. as being 20%.  That made me go, 'hmmmm....'  The real kicker, though, for upgrading my views on savings came from the story of Joseph.  In Genesis 41(first book of the Bible), Joseph, of 'Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat' fame, after a series of dramatic events, becomes a prominent leader in Egypt.  He advises Pharoah to 'tax' the people 20% of their harvest for 7 years to prepare for disaster.  When the disaster (famine) came, Egypt had enough for her people and surplus to sell to neighboring nations. 

The implications of all those Bible passages was not lost on me.  Common sense, a rare commodity in the 21st century, said that 20% saving and giving was not in the Bible by accident.  God doesn't work that way.  To me, they have come to symbolize wisdom and generosity.  Wisdom, by saving 20% in order to be prepared for whatever comes our way, and to build wealth.  Generosity, by giving 20% to relieve the suffering of others and to advance the Kingdom of God.  I got very excited about it.

Here's how Brittan and I are working out phase 2 in our lives:  We began by increasing our giving.  We raised our weekly contributions to our local Church and we are giving to other causes, as well, mostly Christian Mission organizations.  Our goal is to raise our giving to 20% of our income.  We are at approx 15% now.

As for saving, we're doing that two ways.  1.  We are saving from our income via 401k and a money market account.  Our goal is to have at least 6 months living expenses in a money market account with easy access.  This is not an investment, it's insurance.  We're not trying to get rich off of the emergency fund, we're trying to make sure we have some security in time of crisis.

Additionally, we are storing up a minimum of 6 months (eventually, 1 year worth) of basic household supplies, like dried beans, rice, soap, toilet paper, etc.  We don't make a big deal about it.  We're not 'survivalists' or doomsayers.  We're trying to be wise.  We are not doing it all at once.  We buy a few items each time we go to the store.  We only buy things that have a long shelf life, and we buy basic or generic brands for our 'emergency store house'.  We also have a 'rotation' plan that uses up things that are getting close to shelf life and replacing them with fresh.  Again, our goal, through various methods of saving money and storing goods is to save 20% of our income.

I know it sounds crazy; give 20%, save 20% and live on 60%.  But you'd be surprised what you can do when you are DEBT FREE.  Can you imagine how the world would change if the debt free revolution really catches fire.  Just think about how much cash would flood the economy, how much money would be out there for charitable causes and how much less stress would be felt by the average family.  The pressure taken off of Government agencies would be enormous. I believe.  Oh, yes, I believe.  And I'm doing my best to live out my convictions. 

Coming up:  Phase 3, "The Road to Self Sufficiency".  Stay tuned.

Budgeting 101 - Part 6, Transportation

So far, we've completed 3 sides of our perimeter; God, Food and Shelter.  The West wall will complete the circle.  The final side of our perimeter is, transportation.  You have to be able to get to work, school, church, grocery store, etc.  So figure it into the budget. Plan for it so you're not surprised:

• car payments (though, these will be temporary)
• gas and oil (including oil changes)
• insurance
• license and registration
  

Later on, we'll budget for maintenance and repairs, but for now, we're taking care of the basics.

As you can see, I'm only describing BASIC transportation.  I highly discourage automobile loans.  They are not necessary. If you've read IOU NO MORE, you know I've outlined a plan so that you'll never have to make a car payment again......ever.

On a side note, I can't even begin to describe how much I loathed the recent "Cash for Clunkers" program.  The memory of it, still makes my blood boil.  Millions of Americans now have new debt they can ill afford.... Ok, Sam, relax.  Have a coke and a smile.

There are still a few things we can do to save on transportation costs.

1. Sell your car and buy a 'cash car'.  It's the only kind I drive.  I rent nice ones on vacation, but I drive paid for older ones for every day.  It saves, by eliminating payments and reducing insurance
2. Increase your deductable on your insurance
3. Car Pool 
4. Whenever your job allows it, work from home one day a week
5. Walk, or ride a bicycle to things that are close enough to do so.  This saves money and improves health at the same time.  I love multi tasking.
6. Change your oil every 5k rather than 3k miles.  Many studies have shown that this is optimal.  But, DO change it.  Changing your oil costs a little at the time, but will save on costly repairs in the long run.
7. Put a little thought into your excursions so that you accomplish multiple tasks on a single trip, rather than taking multiple trips out.  
8. Use public transport whenever possible.  When I lived in the United Kingdom, I used bus and train services frequently.  There are places here in the States where this is still a valid option.  Take advantage of it.  It could save you a bucket full of cash.  

Saving money on transportation is not as easy, or as sexy as some of the other boundary items, but it's critical.  Transportation costs can be real budget busters, so plan carefully, write it down and stick to the budget.  Your wallet and your future will thank you. And remember, we'll happily provide you with a FREE Basic Spending Plan.  We're here to help.

Budgeting 101 - Part 5, Shelter

We have two walls of our budget perimeter in place, God and Food, so now we turn our attention to the East boundary, which we call, 'shelter'.

Again, without trying to become too repititve, the walls of our perimeter come before ANYTHING ELSE.  We budget and pay these things first, regardless of who screams, calls, threatens or postures.  We're going to pay ALL our debts, to be sure, but one of the fundamental behavior modifications in Recession Proof Living, is correcting our priorities and sticking to them.  It will be hard, sometimes, especially if others are hounding us for payments, but if we do the right things, and do the right things right, everything will turn out right. 

Ok, back to the East boundary.  We want to keep a roof over our heads, we want to keep the lights, on, stay warm and dry, etc. so our third priority is, shelter.  Under shelter, I include, electricity, heat, house payment and basic phone service.

Let's take them one at a time:

Electricity:  We are fairly dependent on Ben Franklin's discovery these days, so paying the light bill is high up our priority list.  We use electricity for light, running appliances, powering our telephones (in most cases) and sometimes even for heating our residences.  Therefore, I recommend staying current on the electric bill.

I also recommend doing all we can, to keep the electricity bill as low as is reasonable.  There are many things we can do to save on electricity:

• as light bulbs burn out, replace them with the new energy saving flourescent kind.  They are more expensive to buy, but consume only a fraction of the power and last for years.  You will start saving the very first year
• turn lights off when you leave a room
• use window air conditioners rather than central air (where practical) and only cool the rooms you're in.
• set air conditioning at something like 78 rather than 68.
• open windows and use electric fans when weather permits.  It's much cheaper.  Besides, I'm sure you're mother told you, "Fresh air is good for you!"
• lower the thermostat on your water heater
• run dishwashers and clothes washers and dryers only with full loads.  Better still, air dry (when possible and practical)
• unplug computers, televisions, printers and other non essential appliances when not in use, to save on 'electricity leak'.  I don't recommend unplugging the refrigerator.  I'm just sayin'.....

Hopefully, these tips will get your creativity cranking and you'll think of other ways to save.

Now, let's look at heat.  The best way to save on heat is to set your thermostat lower.  Brittan and I are famous now, for setting ours at 62 degrees in the winter.  People think we're crazy.  We think we're crazy like a couple of foxes, when our heat bill is a fraction of those of family and friends.  We do turn it up when we have guests, because not everyone is acclimated to our world.

We stay warm with layers.  It's a little trick I learned living in Scotland, where frugality has reigned for centuries.  Americans want to be able to run around the house in our gym shorts in January and be comfortable.  And that's ok, if you have piles of cash somewhere, but most of us don't, so we shouldn't act like we do. 

I like to wear sweat pants, or similar, on winter evenings.  I complement those with comfortable slippers and a nice ankle length house coat that Brittan bought me some years ago.  And I promise you, I am never cold.  Brittan, dresses similarly.  She accessorizes with some nice throw blankets that we have on our sofa and chairs.  She usually has a dog or two sitting in her lap as well, which helps. 

The point is, we are comfortable and save a bunch of money.  Anyone can do it.  It's all about common sense and behavior change.

If you have a wood burning fire place, use it.  But don't buy wood.  Go out to the woods and pick up your own.  Spend some time in the summer splitting logs and letting them season.  You need the exercise, anyway.  You know you do.

We close the vents and doors in rooms we don't use, to avoid wasting heat on empty spaces.  Again, there are lots of ways to save on heat costs. 

House payments.  Really, the only way to save on these is to make sure you don't have 'too much house'.  If you're a home owner, your payment should not exceed 25% of your take home pay.  I know that some lending institutions will loan higher, but that's because they have their own best interests, rather than yours, at heart.  You should have a fixed rate mortgage.  Any other kind will do you more harm that good in the long run.  If you're renting, make sure you look around and get the best deal possible. 

Keep in mind, that being a home owner also means things like, property taxes, water bills and etc. that must also be budgeted.  I recommend using the same formula that we do for everything else.  Using property taxes, take the annual tax bill and divide it by your number of pay days.  In my case, that's 26.  By doing so, you'll know how much to set aside in each pay period.  Use a simple money market account or savings account for this.  It's not an investment.  It's merely a place to set the money aside to pay it when it's due.  I don't recommend wrapping your insurance into your mortgage payment.  All that does is loan the money to the mortgage company.  I'd rather pay......ME.  I don't get much interest from my little savings account, but at least I'm in control of it.

Next is, basic phone service.  We need to be able to stay in contact with family, friends and emergency services.  These days, most companies offer unlimited long distance in the basic service for a pretty low price.  In fact, telephone service is cheaper now than it was when I first got out of college many years ago.

Don't go crazy with a bunch of add on services that you don't need.  And you'll notice I said nothing about cell phones, unlimited text messaging or premium cable.  You don't NEED any of those while you're trying to save money.  That is poor stewardship of your resources.  The key word is BASIC.  Sometimes, often, in fact, cable companies have some great deals on 'all in one' serivces for phone, cable and internet.  Shop around.  Do the math.  Make good choices.  The best financial choice may be basic phone, no cable and dial up internet..... for a while.  When you need high speed, go the the public library.  It's only for a while.  I'm not talking forever.

In our case, we were able to maintain a great rate on an all in one package the whole time we were in our 'get out of debt' phase.  So you might not have to go too spartan.  But we were, and are, prepared to go that route to win.

We also got rid of some cell phones.  While you are trying to gain control of your finances, some cell phones and certainly premium services, need to go.  If you're on the road and need a phone, get a phone.  Not a hand held computer/social networking connectivity recepticle, a PHONE.  Consider a pay as you go phone.  Remember, you're trying to win.  Cool can come later.  Besides, I think winning is cool.

Shelter is important.  Be wise about it.  Establish your perimeter.  Victory is in sight.

Read Em And Weep

Just read an article describing the bad and the ugly that is coming out of the new regulations for Credit Card Companies. Notice, I didn't add, 'good' to bad and ugly. There is no good. Sure, the CC companies will have to be more transparent in disclosing their fees and rates, but many of them are using the opportunity to raise those newly clarified fees. Yeesh.

There is a level on which I don't care what they do, because I haven't had a Credit Card balance in years. They could raise the rates to 300% and it doesn't change my world.

One interesting thing that came out of all this, though, is I found out I still have an open Credit Card account I didn't know about. I got a letter from a particular bank saying my cash advance limit had been reduced. Oh, darn. I thought I closed that with the rest of my Visa an Master Cards years ago. I certainly haven't used it. Oh well, it's closed now.

The first rule in the IOU NO MORE revolution, is "STOP BORROWING". That means Credit Cards, too. Don't give me the 'for emergencies' line, either. The emergency will be trying to pay the darned thing off.

Gotta get ready for work now. You can read the article HERE.