sure enough i found a bunch of cool sites with clothes made of hemp, bamboo, and other delicious stuff. i wanted it all.

to my credit, i was thinking of lots of gifts for my boyfriend, but it’s not his birthday for a while and i do not have the money right now. i also don’t have the money most of the time. i do have some credit card debt, and it’s a scary thing. a lot of my friends don’t even have credit cards (which is AWESOME), but i know a lot that do.

and i know a lot of people who have gone through debt, are in debt, and even people who’ve gone through bankruptcy. it’s a scary slope.

my debt started in college and since i was barely making any money it got worse and worse.

i think one of the reasons i didn’t make this order:
*************************************************
The Hempest *Men*Women *Body Care*Accessories* Bags / Wallets
your shopping cart
Remove Qty. Product(s) Total
Hemp/Soy/Organic Cotton Hooded Sweater(Marine)
- Size XS $68.00
Organic Hemp Halter Dress(Baby Blue)
- Size S $39.95
…et cetera…
Organic Girl-T (Resistance-detail)
- Size S $28.00
100% Hemp Gengy Button Down(Marine)
- Size L $59.95
Hemp Hiker Sock (mens natural)
- Size L $7.95
Livity Clutch (Black) $49.00
….et cetera….

Sub-Total: $493.59 (see, it was kind of a joke anyway)
**********************************************
is because i accidentally scheduled a student loan payment twice, and, due to other bills and horrible real-life things, it caused my one bank account to drop into the negative, thus causing fear and panic about a $39 NSF fee, and deep inside me i know that paying off debt (both credit, school, and bills) is a huge priority in my ability to move forward happily in life.

that said, it’s a big task. and i’m not making anywhere near what i’d like to be, even for the job i have.

people buy stuff all the time, we are a consumerist society, and it’s SICK how much advertising and media and BS goes into making people get so in debt and so over their heads.

my own debt scares me, especially my college loans, but i’m not too bad off because i do pay regularly and smartly most of the time (and i’m getting better) and i do have a good job. i also have a great work ethic and i keep my living expenses pretty low (besides my vice of eating out too much).

why did i share all this? (i’m scared to publish it) but not really scared. it’s important to be honest about your debt- that’s one of the steps, just like an alcoholic.

and spending is a terrible addiction.

sure, i’d love to have some nice organic, sustainable clothes. but first, i need to have a more sustainable lifestyle!

this has all been part of a boot-camp post and introspective sharing session, from a tiredtired brain.

at least i can go to bed happy i didn’t buy stuff i don’t really need!

1) Prepare/plan for school - 4 hours a day to devote to planning, preparing, setting up classroom, looking through book, or putting up curriculum outline (project I have to do before school starts)

2) Limit overt sugars and excess carbohydrates- If I keep training well (which I haven’t been doing due to excuses, stormy weather, and a bit of knee pain) I know I’ll need to keep eating carbs, but sugar makes me WHACK. And when I eat a lot of HFCS and other crap, I feel bad (mentally and physically AND emotionally!) and it makes me really tired.

3) Better Sleep Schedule – being tired reminds me I’ve had a whack schedule all Summer and I would like to start moving towards earlier bed times. I say 2 am at the latest, and moving towards 1 am next week and so on. The goal would be 12am and that would be amazing. So before 2 for now is even a good stretch. (And getting up before 10am, which should be a no-brainer, but sometimes it’s not). 9 am is the goal. 1am-9am would be awesome!

4) Keep up with training – really get into the habit of doing my runs no matter what, as scheduled. This means starting to use the treadmill both at my boyfriend’s parents’ house and perhaps even the school gym as a last resort. I need to stay focused and stretch a lot!!!

5) Getting finances in order- I want to make a budget, and figure out payments for when the school year starts back up. Look at my debt and see where I can best put in any extra money. Another big part of this goal is cooking in more, which would help with number 2 by planning meals ahead and thinking them out.

These are the big areas, and it would involve a lot of lifestyle changes. At the same time, it’s definitely not too much. It’s a lot of little things in a bunch of different areas, but if I make some concrete sub-steps, I will be on my way to a truly enjoyable and productive rest of the Summer.

August Boot Camp starts….now.

Make bags of ice.

It’s simple, really. Have your one or two ice trays, or you can steal ice from a nearby grandparent or other family member (who has an ice-maker), and combine ice gradually into bags. You can even use an old ice bag you bought at the store, or a gallon ziplock bag.

It takes a little effort, sure, but it could save you like 22 dollars by the end of the Summer.

the most important part is the cost = minimal

i received some as a gift for christmas and really liked it. my sister wasn’t going to tell me at first (because she didn’t want me to think less for her only spending like 7 dollars on my gift), but she told me they say that eyes, lips, and face is going to change their name or they’re going out of business. a mighty good ploy if you ask me.

she also told me the code “carolina” which worked for 1/2 off my order up to $15. so i ordered a ton of stuff, and got a gift card for a friend, and the total was very little. i think i got all the makeup pictured below, for less than $15 (shipping included)

it was so good i had to order again. the makeup remover does not bother my face, the makeup was all quite awesome. one small complaint- i got a waterproof mascara and it was kind of dry. but it was only a dollar, so i didn’t complain. i do not recommend the mascara, but other than that i recommend everything. get one of everything.

i’m not huge on makeup, but with prices so low and quality so decent i am upping my look, and, as you well know, if i’m going to be a famous dj hiphop performer comedian, i might want to look real good for the cameras.

If there’s any hope:

1) Give it up – Stop the addiction, and you won’t have to pay for it anymore! Your best bet here is getting more sleep, and a more regular schedule.

For those of us who could never dream of such a thing:

2) Stop buying quad venti soy vanilla lattes at Starbucks – they are a great coffee establishment, and I will admit that more of my favorite coffee drinks come from there than from other establishments (I love a good mom and pop latte, but only if it’s high quality espresso!). But they’re expensive! I’m often a soy drinker, and that adds another 40some cents onto your drink. So switch it up- try other places, or switch to regular coffee instead of lattes. Try an Americano- that’s a good caffeine boost for less money!

3) Use more of your own stuff from home – Buy a bottle of your favorite flavor of sweetener and add it yourself. I know it’s not likely for some people who might think that sounds ludicrous, but it could work for you (and it could save you another 30some cents off your order). Get coffee and add warm milk at your house to make a delicious cafe au lait (aka cafe con leche in Spanish-speaking countries)

4) A tried and true money saver (again using simple home supply) – Get a cheap hot coffee and (you can even just get a small or medium because you’d be surprised how it spreads out when you…) make iced coffee/latte-like things at home. I get a hot coffee and come home, pour some into a cup of ice and add my milk. Then you have a few more cups. So my next tip is:

5) Don’t buy iced coffee. Make it yourself – But please don’t go into Starbucks, order a small hot coffee, ask for a large cup of ice, and do it right in front of them. That’s an insult and it is rude. I know I always felt insulted, like they didn’t think we’d notice or catch on. Bonus tip- If you get some hot coffee that tastes not so good, making it iced will help the taste. Seriously!

6) Speaking of making things yourself! Make your own coffee – This is an obvious way to save money. I know some people don’t have the know-how or the time, but that’s just what they think! This could save you hundreds, possibly even thousands of dollars a year- no joke. So splurge on a nicer coffee machine or even an espresso machine (they are not that hard to use. anyone can learn) and make it at home. And then you have complete control over your drink!

7) When all of this fails, think of moderation! – If you spend $3/day on coffee, that’s over $1,000 a year. If you’re drinking lattes or those sugary mochas and frappuccinos regularly, you are asking for some serious cash flow problems. Try to just get a regular coffee some days, or go for 2 or 3 days without your latte. Switch it up people, otherwise you’ll have to keep coughing it up!

I told a friend, which felt mostly good, besides being a wee bit embarrassing. It’s the truth, though, and I’ve really started to think about saving over spending, and how I can moving on paying off all this debt (some credit card and monstrous student loans mostly).

They suggested that instead of going out and spending, I read up on money-saving blogs.

It is feeling wonderful, and I found myself going from page to page and link after link of great information. I even found a good sight that has a site “The Simple Dollar” that has a 31-day plan to fix your finances (it costs $2 to download, which I can totally respect, so as I get around to really making this happen, when I find $2 I have clearly saved, I will purchase it)

Here are some of my favorite tips I found:

1) The most obvious- getting out of debt first - come up with a plan that focuses on paying off debt efficiently so you can get to saving. This plan must be strategical, involving GOALS, and REASON FOR PAYING OFF PROCESS (for instance if you are going to pay off a credit card, which one first and why).

2) Think before you buy- Sometimes I just get the “urge to splurge” and there are certainly reasons behind it. Recently a friend “froze” my credit cards for me. I told my family about this and they were like- “What! How did they have the power to do that?!” And I realized they thought I was saying froze in a legal way, but it was very literal- he took my cards and put them in a container with water in the freezer. That way, if I want to use them, I have to wait several hours for them to thaw. This has really helped me cut back on spending. So often I just want to buy something that I definitely do not need.

3) Be happier about not spending- use rewards (that are of little or no financial cost) and re-focus. I like the idea of making posters or pictures of what you are saving for around your house and even their simple suggestion of keeping up your personal appearance. When they showered, shaved, and put on some cologne they felt life to be much more manageable. I like that idea and have also felt that way after simply showering (which is sort of odd to me). Similarly, I like earning more in pleasant ways (even though my full-time job is more than full-time), and I am thinking of ways to trade and barter instead of buying things I need- freecycle!

4) CUT YOUR FOOD SPENDING! This is a huge one for me, and I really like the beans and rice blog I found. I have cut back on dining out and it’s made a difference. At this age (mid-20’s) it’s so easy to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars a month on food. I do love to eat healthily and organic, and spending at Whole Foods can equal Whole Paycheck. Limiting eating out, and shopping at several different stores for different things has really helped. Getting a food budget and sticking to it, as well as eating more rice, beans, and vegetable dishes could really help.

5) JUST DO IT. Take a look at this awesome job this blogger did on sprucing up an old wood table. Amazing! There are so many good ideas out there. I have to start adding more to my life and enjoying the process.

One I can think of is making Christmas gifts for people. Because I didn’t go shopping on Black Friday, I really wanted to buy gifts for people today, and I am in a tight situation. Instead, I could really start implementing some of these tips, and perhaps make some soap? Print out my own pictures and make gifts with those? Crocheting? Lots of good ideas.

Blogging is a really fun and free activity that makes me feel better. Organizing my digital photos is also a good idea.

I am a saver! (I do have an ING direct savings account which I love, but right now there is not enough in there to make me happy). Day by day. I started off tonight on the right foot, by not going and shopping for no reason, fueled by false values.

Take that, excessive consumption monster! Reminds me of when we interviewed people at college for a project for an environmental science class and only 3 out of like 50 people said anything about thinking about the environmental impact on all the shopping and wrapping involved during the holidays.

Please browse my “For Sale” page (coming soon folks) and you can either purchase through paypal, or we can arrange a meetup if you live in the area.

Sincerely yours, and trying to get an apartment,

A-doo

1) Use Compact Flourescent Lightbulbs
2) Get a Reusable Water Bottle instead of wasting plastic bottles
3) Use more hand towels instead of paper towels, and maybe consider line-drying your clothes if you can
4) BRING REUSABLE OR PAPER BAGS BACK TO THE GROCERY STORE WITH YOU (some places will give you money back!)

All simple enough, and some of them if you start doing it, it can become a habit.

Now enjoy the beauty of the earth by looking at these photos “The Sky From Above“, and keep that in mind as you make your evil dent on the environment less of an issue- we want our children, our future to have some amazing natural beauties to look at, right?!

I know I need to do all these things and more, and really think about the impact I have. My ecoprint is probably way too high still, and I try and do a lot of good things for the environment. Every little bit counts!

The Worst:

4) PNC Bank: After waiting in line for over 10 minutes because there was only one teller open, I got the bad news. I had thought- “Well at my bank maybe they’ll do it for free because I have an account with them!” NO! When I told him how much, he said “5.00 dollars” (which is way more than 10% even!). I guess $5.00 is their starting fee!!! He even suggested I go to Giant. BOOO!!! Your bank might do something like this to you too.

3) The Post Office: The post office isn’t the worst place, but my local post office is, because there are always long lines and only one poor post office worker. And I sort of forget, but last time I think the charge was like 1.50 (I’ll check on this) but it wasn’t as cheap as the followings…..

The Best:

2) 7-Eleven: usually going to be a pretty quick transaction, and the flat fee for a money order anywhere up to $500.00 is $1. One dollar. Not to mention the banks and post offices are only opened sometimes and grocery stores are usually open later and 7-elevens…could be all night!

1) Giant, Superfresh, or any other grocery store: If only it could have been as simple as getting my first money order and addressing it right- it was only 59 cents fee at Giant. Since Giant’s wasn’t working, after several FAILS, I got it at Superfresh- 75 cents fee at Superfresh. Not bad compared to annoyingness and upwards to $5.00.

The Best Place To Get A Small Money Order Is Your Local (Larger) Grocery Store! Seriously, ladies, and gents, save a buck or two!