Posted on 07/24/2009 3:37:21 AM PDT by nw_arizona_granny
Weekly Roundup - Living On Nothing Edition Category: Roundups | Comments(15)
Did you hear about the guy that lives on nothing? No seriously, he lives on zero dollars a day. Meet Daniel Suelo, who lives in a cave outside Moab, Utah. Suelo has no mortgage, no car payment, no debt of any kind. He also has no home, no car, no television, and absolutely no “creature comforts.” But he does have a lot of creatures, as in the mice and bugs that scurry about the cave floor he’s called home for the last three years.
To us, Suelo probably sounds a little extreme. Actually, he probably sounds very extreme. After all, I suspect most of you reading this are doing so under the protection of some sort of man-made shelter, and with some amount of money on your person, and probably a few needs for money, too. And who doesn’t need money unless they have completely unplugged from the grid? Still, it’s an amusing story about a guy who rejects all forms of consumerism as we know it.
The Frugal Roundup
How to Brew Your Own Beer and Maybe Save Some Money. A fantastic introduction to home brewing, something I’ve never done myself, but always been interested in trying. (@Generation X Finance)
Contentment: A Great Financial Principle. If I had to name one required emotion for living a frugal lifestyle it would be contentment. Once you are content with your belongings and your lot in life you can ignore forces attempting to separate you from your money. (@Personal Finance by the Book)
Use Energy Star Appliances to Save On Utility Costs. I enjoyed this post because it included actual numbers, and actual total savings, from someone who upgraded to new, energy star appliances. (@The Digerati Life)
Over-Saving for Retirement? Is it possible to “over-save” for retirement? Yes, I think so. At some point I like the idea of putting some money aside in taxable investments outside of retirement funds, to be accessed prior to traditional retirement age. (@The Simple Dollar)
40 Things to Teach My Kids Before They Leave Home. A great list of both practical and philosophical lessons to teach your kids before they reach the age where they know everything. I think that now happens around 13 years-old. (@My Supercharged Life)
Index Fund Investing Overview. If you are looking for a place to invest with high diversification and relatively low fees (for broader index funds with low turnover), index funds are a great place to start. (@Money Smart Life)
5 Reasons To Line Dry Your Laundry. My wife and I may soon be installing a clothesline in our backyard. In many neighborhoods they are frowned upon - one of the reasons I don’t like living in a neighborhood. I digress. One of our neighbors recently put up a clothesline, and we might just follow his lead. (@Simple Mom)
A Few Others I Enjoyed
* 4 Quick Tips for Getting Out of a Rut * Young and Cash Rich * Embracing Simple Style * First Trading Experience With OptionsHouse * The Exponential Power of Delayed Consumption * How Much Emergency Fund is Enough? * 50 Questions that Will Free Your Mind * Save Money On Car Insurance
>>>Whenever you see anything in the grocery store which is greatly reduced from its original price and you know you will actually use it, be sure to purchase it in quantity.<<<
LOL, I even carry it a step further on some items...
I dearly love Apple Wood Smoked Thick Sliced Bacon..... So when I see that they have gotten in a whole case of it at the Wally-mart, I make note of the expiration date and try to check it about 3-4 days before expiration. Usually it is well marked down - Usually get it for about 40% to 50% of regular price (which was way too much). I buy all they have and freeze it (have even canned some). Either of which stops the expiration from progressing.
“...open a can of refried black beans”
Why, oh why have I never thought of this? When I’m big fat and pregnant(which seems to be all the time) I will do anything to skip a step or two in my cooking. I love this! I wouldn’t have to mash half the beans. Thanks for that tip!
I will often add hamburger to the veggie soup but I love the idea of doing it just for him. That would be a huge money saver! Great idea!!
It's my feeling that veggie soup can last for MANY days -- just so long as it is all heated to a boil every other day or so; however, I don't like the taste & texture of the re-boiled hamburger in old veggie soup, so I only put it in one bowl, or in one separate portion which I carefully keep separated from the "Mother Pot" of soup, LOL - such a tightwad!
Another extremely inexpensive way to doctor up your hubbie's Italian Soup is to take a about 5 Italian MEATBALLS out of your freezer and gently nuke them in the microwave, plop them into his soup bowl, and then ladle the soup into it and stir well.
Some cream soups, such as cream of mushroom become almost fancy by the edition of smallish homemade Swedish Meatballs.
And as you point out, since you're only doing to do this for one bowl of soup, it won't be at all expensive!
Yes, thanks, that’s the movie.
Indeed, they taste SO good that I was motivated to learn how to make refried black beans from scratch.
I was horrified to discover how EASY it is -- "r.e.f.r.y." actually refers to boiling down cooked beans and mashing them all up -- it really doesn't have anything to do with either frying or with re-frying -- EXCEPT that the boil down is done using a frying pan, with a pretty high heat, to help evaporate the bean cooking water.
If you've never made them from scratch, I really encourage you to do so -- they are sinfully DELICIOUS when freshly made, just indescribable, LOL -- so much better than the commercially canned, although they are quite good, too.
Less is indeed better on the pocket book. I don't use but just a couple tablespoons of liquid laundry detergent.
LOL, thanks!!
When I want some in soup, I simply nuke one package for each bowl.
I won't put wild rice in a pot of soup -- it would boil away and disappear into nothing; by adding just a bit to the bowl, you can actually SEE it and TASTE it.
Some people think that wild rice costs way too much money -- but the way I use it, it really dresses up some plain boring foods into real respectability, LOL.
Perhaps your husband would enjoy this, too.
You enjoy so many Mexican dishes, that I am certain that you would really like Lime Rice. There's LOTS of people who've tried to duplicate the Lime Rice served at Chipotle's. I've made it without the cilantro -- once using dried parsley flakes, and the other time dried chives -- I think they are just for something GREEN to fleck the LIME-tasting rice.
Like other online posters occasionally mention, Minute Rice works VERY well to make Lime Rice.
You know more than enough about cooking to play around with the recipe; it's really GOOD, you'll be surprized.
Chipotle's Basmati Rice
Recipe #183541 | 30 min |
By: ZinaMae
Aug 28, 2006
Great recipe to go on or with any Mexican dish.
SERVES 4 (change servings and units)
Ingredients
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2/3 cup white basmati rice
1 lime, juice of
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons fresh cilantro, chopped
I’m in full agreement.
La Mesa Man Sentenced For Racist Threats To Kill Obama
[San Diego, California]
A La Mesa man convicted of two counts of making racially charged threats to kill
President Barack Obama during last year’s election campaign has been sentenced,
10News reported.
MORE DETAILS: http://www.10News.com/tu/5KOMhOgGR.html
http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=49841
Disaster Preparedness Costs Little, Saves A Lot
Release Date: October 26, 2009
Release Number: 1858-054
» More Information on Georgia Severe Storms and Flooding
ATLANTA, Ga. — Just as every home should have a smoke alarm, every home should have an emergency supply kit packed and ready. And being prepared doesn’t have to cost a lot of money.
While emergency preparedness is ongoing at the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), it’s also an individual responsibility.
“You should be prepared to take care of yourself and members of your family for the first 72 hours – that’s three days – following a disaster such as a hurricane or the September flooding across Georgia,” said GEMA Director Charley English. “A big part of disaster preparation is knowledge and the state has developed a comprehensive disaster preparedness guide that is available online.”
The GEMA Web site – www.ready.ga.gov – includes an emergency kit checklist, interactive games for children and information for businesses on how to prepare for a disaster. The GEMA site includes a Google Translate link that will translate Web pages into other languages.
“Emergency preparedness is a matter of priorities,” said FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer Gracia Szczech. “A family first aid kit typically costs less than dinner for two at a restaurant. It’s worth cooking at home one night to keep your family safe.”
An emergency preparedness kit needs to include food and water for each member of the family for three days, a battery-powered or hand-crank radio, flashlight, spare batteries, first aid kit, non-electric can opener, local maps, moist towelettes, toilet paper, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation.
Other items to consider include sleeping bags or blankets, paper towels, books, puzzles and games for children and pet food for family pets. It’s helpful to have cash in case banks are closed and ATMs are not operating.
The emergency supplies can be stored in an easy-to-carry plastic storage container or duffel bag, making them easy to grab and go when an emergency forces people to leave their home.
Putting together an emergency kit isn’t expensive. Many of the items usually can be found in the home.
More information on emergency preparedness, including how to put together a family communication plan, can be found at FEMA’s emergency preparedness Web site www.Ready.gov or http://www.listo.gov/
FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.
Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic status. If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362). For TTY call 800-462-7585.
Last Modified: Monday, 26-Oct-2009 14:49:52
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm187949.htm
Mars Snackfood US ISSUES ALLERGY ALERT ON UNDECLARED PEANUTS In Dove Caramel Pecan Perfection Ice Cream
Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:54:00 -0500
Today, Mars Snackfood US announced a voluntary recall of its Dove Caramel Pecan Perfection ice cream with the lot number 931AB5YN07 because it may contain undeclared peanuts. People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to peanuts run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products. No related illnesses have been reported to date.
Firm Press Release: FDA posts press releases and other notices of recalls and market withdrawals from the firms involved as a service to consumers, the media, and other interested parties. FDA does not endorse either the product or the company.
October 26, 2009
Past clues to the present jobless recovery
By James A. Cooke
Why is this nation headed towards a jobless recovery? Simple. It’s because our economy is undergoing a structural change that will make it more difficult for unemployed Americans to find work.
This is not the first time in our history an economic transformation has impacted the way Americans earn their livelihood. Our current economic downturn resembles the Long Depression of the 1880s, when the U.S. economy switched from farming to a manufacturing.
Although the start dates for downturns are marked by the bursting of an inflated asset bubble, other factors come together to drag down the economy. Our current economic affliction started last October, when an inflated real estate market collapsed, triggering a crash on Wall Street. Likewise, the 1873 recession started with the downfall of financier Jay Cooke, who had overinvested in railroads. The downturn that began in October 1873 lasted until March 1879, making it the longest economic contraction in our nation’s history. Economist Stanley Lebergott in his book “Manpower in Economic Growth” estimates that unemployment ranged between 12-14 percent in 1876, at the nadir of that downturn.
Although a Wall Street meltdown signaled the start of the economic disruption of 1880s, there were underlying causes at work before Cooke’s firm went bankrupt. The second industrial revolution was gaining momentum in the United States. As industry put technology into factories, it boosted industrial output dramatically. Take iron as an example. According to the book, Age of Empire: 1875-1914 by historian Eric Hobsbawm, between 1870 and 1890 iron output in the five main producing countries more than doubled from 11 to 23 million tons.
The application of mechanization to farming also boosted crop production and as a result agricultural prices plummeted throughout the later half of the 19th century. Historian Hobsbawm notes that in 1894 the “price of wheat was only a little more than a third of what it had been in 1867 — a bonus for shoppers but a disaster for farmers and farm workers.”
When the Panic of 1873 got underway, the majority of American workers earned their living as farmers. By the end of the 19th century, the percentage of Americans employed in agriculture had dropped. U.S. Census Bureau occupation records show that jobs in agriculture went from 47 percent of the overall total workforce in 1870 census to 35 percent by 1900.
An examination of U.S. Census data from 1870 to 1900 shows how difficult it was for out-of-work farmers to change jobs. Employment of manufacturing held steady as percentage of overall occupations during that period; manufacturing accounted for about 22 percent of worker occupations in 1870 and 24 percent in 1900. As factory owners invested more into technology, plant output increased, thereby producing more materials and goods without the need for additional labor.
The same thing is happening today; except this time American is turning away from manufacturing just as a century ago the country moved away from farming. A review of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows American manufacturing has been declining since World War II. In January 1950, manufacturing accounted for 30 percent of the nation’s jobs. That percentage fell to 21 percent by January 1980 and 13 percent by January 2000. On January 2009, it was below ten percent.
Those jobs are likely never to return in a global economy. American companies going overseas in search of low labor costs have driven the deindustrialization of America over the past decade. The makers of branded products have spun supply chains around the globe, manufacturing parts and products in foreign lands and bringing them back here for consumption. According to World Investment Report of 2008, between 1995 and 2007, the number of transnational companies more than doubled, from 38,000 to 79,000, and foreign subsidiaries nearly tripled, from 265,000 to 790,000.
A year ago, rising oil prices prompted many companies to re-examine the tradeoff between manufacturing and transportation costs, and to consider shortening their supply chains. Even when today’s low oil prices start climbing again, multinational companies will likely embrace a regional supply chain strategy, making products in Eastern Europe for the European market and in South and Central America for the U.S. market.
With jobs in manufacturing dwindling as a source of employment, Americans will have to turn to the service sector or self-employment for work. Although census data for the decades after World War II showed a rise in managerial occupations, the days of the “organization man” (or woman) are numbered as U.S. companies shed employees and transform themselves into lean enterprises to compete in the global economy.
It’s not just manufacturing that’s shifting overseas; it’s also any service job that can be performed more cheaply overseas. Princeton University economist Alan Blinder forecasts that offshoring may cost the U.S. economy somewhere between 30 and 40 million jobs over the next two decades.
Given the fundamental shift in the economy, Americans will be forced to find new types of services that other Americans will be willing to pay for - and that can’t be done by someone in India. The problem is that it will take some time for Americans to invent or innovate new services from which they can derive a living. It should be noted that in the 1800s many Americans turned to providing a range of personal services to get by.
If the parallels with the Long Depression are correct, then the ranks of jobseekers will remain stubbornly high for several years during this period of adjustment. The challenge for federal and state governments will be spurring the creation of decent-paying jobs, which are as of yet unspecified. It should be noted that the federal government didn’t solve the economic crisis of the late 1800s and despite its best efforts the government may not be capable of a solution nowadays. What’s required here are innovation and Yankee ingenuity, and the ability for individuals to see new market demands for products and services.
James Cooke is the editor of the magazine, Supply Chain Quarterly. He is not related to Jay Cooke. He can be reached at: jamesacooke@charter.net.
End Notes:
Hobsbawm, Eric. The Age of Empire 1875-1914; Pantheon Books, New York
Lebergott, Stanley. Manpower in Economic Growth: The American Record since 1800. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1964.
Alan Blinder and Jagdish Bhagwati, The offshoring of American Jobs. MIT Press. Sept 2009.
Is the White House Really Neglecting Bioterror?
Posted By Annie Jacobsen On October 25, 2009 @ 12:15 am In . Column2 09, Homeland Security, Middle East, Politics, US News | 19 Comments
Bioweapons — infectious agents unleashed into the environment to kill or disable people — have been around since the advent of war. In the 6th century BC, the Assyrians poisoned enemy wells with rye ergot, causing the spread of fungal disease. During World War II, the Japanese created a radical biological warfare program in a notorious laboratory complex called Unit 731 [1]. There, doctors and scientists weaponized pathogens to use against their enemies, specifically China and the United States. In one instance, Japanese pilots dropped plague-infected fleas over Manchuria as they worked to perfect an aerosol bomb, which they wanted to explode over the United States. Instead, the Americans dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki before it came to that.
After World War II, many nations stepped up their bioweapons programs. American research took place at several facilities around the country, including in many university laboratories. Most of the official work went on at Camp Detrick, now called Fort Detrick, which made news recently with the case of Bruce Ivins [2]. Bioweapons work progressed steadily until 1975, when President Nixon spearheaded a treaty [3] which prohibited the development, production, stockpiling, and use of weaponized disease agents such as anthrax, smallpox, or plague, as well as equipment and delivery systems for pathogens. But unlike nuclear non-proliferation, the Nixon treaty had no provisions [4] for verifying or monitoring compliance.
Just four years later, in April 1979, one of the most deadly accidents involving bioweapons occurred in Sverdlovsk, Russia. The Soviets were weaponizing anthrax in a secret facility when aerosolized Bacillus anthracis spores were released into the environment. Sixty-six people died. Denied by Russia at the time, the CIA monitored the “rumors” surrounding the event but was unable to conclude exactly what had happened. “Reports of a BW accident persist but add little to our knowledge of what actually happened in Sverdlovsk,” read a top-secret CIA document labeled “Biological Warfare,” dated October 15, 1979.
Flash forward to 1992. The wall is down. Russia is no longer the enemy. Russian President Boris Yeltsin tells President Clinton that the Sverdlovsk anthrax incident did in fact occur and was related to military developments at the microbiology facility there despite their having signed Nixon’s treaty. We were, after all, at war with Russia, albeit a Cold War.
Flash forward to 2008. The twin towers are down. Al-Qaeda is the enemy. Al-Qaeda is developing bioweapons to use against the great Satan, the United States. And yet, it takes the Commission on the Prevention of WMD Proliferation and Terrorism — a “bipartisan” group led by former Florida Senator Bob Graham and former Missouri Senator Jim Talent — to arrive at what they seem to think is a stunning conclusion [5]: Al-Qaeda wants to use bioweapons against the United States.
Our Commission interviewed hundreds of experts and reviewed thousands of pages of information. As this work began, it became clear that the United States faced a growing threat of biological terrorism.
Hundreds of experts? Thousands of pages! Were these former congressmen asleep during history class? They neglected to mention how many millions of taxpayer dollars were spent drawing the conclusion, which could have been identified back in 1998 when Osama bin Laden declared war [6] against the United States. “Biotechnology Is Not Rocket Science,” the former senators say in headline. Yes, and neither is the basic premise of war: He who declares war against an enemy uses any means necessary to win that war and generally does not stop until he wins or is forced to surrender.
Still, the former senators, pitching from the podium so as to make headlines at USA Today [7], tell us:
First, there is the accessibility of the weapons material: highly enriched plutonium and uranium do not exist in nature, but anthrax and many other biological agents do, in almost every part of the world. Second, there is the diversity of potential weapons: there are only so many ways to build an improvised nuclear device, but there is an almost limitless array of disease-causing organisms and scenarios for their nefarious use. A third difference is the accessibility of weapons technology: engineering a nuclear weapon is a closely guarded skill, whereas every crop-dusting farmer knows the process for spraying live biological materials.
This might sound scary if you’ve been asleep for the past eleven years. But if you’ve been reading headlines ever since Osama bin Laden’s original fatwa — beginning with al-Qaeda’s twin terrorist attacks at the U.S. embassies in East Africa — then neither the threat of bioweapons, nor the ease with which they can be dispersed, comes as news.
As with any of the WMD debates involving al-Qaeda, no one threat poses any greater threat than another. That’s because, in theory, at the end of the day al-Qaeda will use whatever practical means it can to achieve its goal. Chemical, biological, and nuclear WMD plans have all been identified by intelligence agencies around the world as being in al-Qaeda’s pipeline. One could interview hundreds of experts and review thousands of pages of documents to make any number of strong cases that the White House is ill-prepared to deal with the repercussions of any WMD attack.
The focus of former and present congressmen and their committees — be they bipartisan, right, left, or center — should be finishing the war that al-Qaeda started.
Article printed from Pajamas Media: http://pajamasmedia.com
URL to article: http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/is-the-white-house-really-neglecting-bioterror/
URLs in this post:
[1] Unit 731: http://www.amazon.com/Unit-731-Japans-Biological-Warfare/dp/0029353017
[2] case of Bruce Ivins: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/04/us/04anthrax.html
[3] treaty: http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/usa/cbw/bw.htm
[4] no provisions: http://gsn.nti.org/gsn/ts_20090828_3718.php
[5] conclusion: http://www.preventwmd.gov/6_09/
[6] declared war: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/terrorism/international/fatwa_1996.html
[7] USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2009-10-21-WMD-threat_N.htm
not as quick Diet Coke bread,garlic cheese toast or corn bread to go along with the soups.
Now I’m hungry. :0)<<<
Yes, so am I.
Thank you for sharing your recipe ideas, they are good ones.
I don’t remember a diet Coke bread, do you have the recipe?
Care to share ?
Please!!
Thank you for coming to our thread, hope you will return and let it be often........
Now it will go in the freezer, and I’ll add bacon grease to the mixture. Hmm... I’ll bet that I could toss hamburger grease in there, too, say?!<<<<
Yes, Yes, Yes.
We even served things like Chicken fried steak, Liver and onions, you name it, full Mexican and American menu.
They had a large cafe, either 5 or 7 waitresses on the floor running for dinner and people lined up on the street waiting for their turn. The El Mohave, in downtown Kingman, closed now and there will never be another like it.
If you are serving fried potatoes with those beans, then it should be bacon drippings they are cooked in, as well as a dash of the bacon drippings in the Mustard greens or Turnip greens.
When my Navy husband went to sea, it was party time at my house, for the wives who wanted real Texas food, my menu would include, fried potatoes, beans,cornbread, a mess of greens, onions raw or green, iced tea.......we never had room for desert, so do not have a memory of making one.
Maybe that is why the marriage did not last, he ate only rare beef, sour cream, baked potatoes and a salad.
LOL, In Texas all meat is well done, I never did learn how to cook it rare and prefer not to see rare meat on my table.
The spaghetti sauce I get (one of my cats also likes it at times),....but GREEN OLIVES?
VERY unique!
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