Even while growing up in very comfortable circumstances, I had a fascination with the potential of objects to be used as they were not intended. This interest may have begun with finding furniture for a doll house from household objects and making clothes for my dolls and cats from old clothing and yarns.

My pursuit of improvisation in furniture and clothes was furthered by literature such as novels by Charles Dickens which portray extreme poverty with infinite charm. There is also a children’s series by Mary Norton describing the lives of resourceful little people called Borrowers who see caviar tins as bathtubs and postage stamps as wall art. In one instance of borrower-like behavior, I used for a drawer pull the steam control knob from a clothes iron which had suffered a fall. Close examination will reveal that the knob bears the words “Max”, “Low”, and “Off”. The other embellishments used on this drawer were 2 pieces of star anise and untidy swirls of hot glue under a coat of paint.

A few years ago, while reading about Commedia dell’Arte, I learned that the colorful look of Harlequin costume originated from the practice of medieval jesters and fools, who were poorly treated and probably poorer paid, to fashion clothing from found scraps of fabric for the simple luxury of keeping warm. The romance of the pathetic significantly increased my fondness for patches and deliberate mismatching. The result is that some of my favorite clothes and household items are made entirely of materials left over from other projects.

The project I would like to describe in this post is after the example of jesters an fools. I have a favorite dress for wearing about the house because it is short enough to stay out of my way and has no sleeves to get wet when I clean. Over the years my favorite dress has been worn very thin and full of holes. The original green color became drab with accents of bright orange where it had met with bleach. There were also splashes of paint in attractive colors and not attractive colors. In recent years, I referred to it as “my favorite rag” and acknowledged that a sensible person would consign this former garment to the trash as it was not even fit for donation. However, I could not part with such an old favorite and so resorted to plans for resuscitation.

The first priority was to deal with the hideous color. Since the problem was uneven bleaching, I decided to bleach it until the whole was uniform. It took several days for the green to become orange and the orange to become pale pink—a pleasant surprise. And now came the unpleasant surprise. I laundered the pale pink thing . . . twice . . . possibly thrice . . . and it still smelled horribly of bleach which rendered it unbearably unwearable. After leaving the fuming rag in a heap for some time, I recalled once reading that UV rays in sunlight could break down toxic chemicals trapped in carpet. My toxic dress was then successfully rehabilitated after lying before a sunny window for about a month.

The next step was the fun part. I selected fabrics of various colors and textures from the leftovers of many sewing projects. These scraps were trimmed into squares, triangles, and whimsical shapes and sewn over the holes in the old dress. Scraps of leftover lace joined together covered the fraying hem and neckline. The spaghetti straps which were in the process of disintegration were reinforced by a satin ribbon which came to me wrapped around a Christmas present from my cousin and happened to be the exact length for this purpose.

The resulting garment is whimsical and wearable, and if unfit for promenading downtown, is quite sufficient for lazing and working at home or running to the mailbox. As more tears develop, I expect to continue adding patches until the original dress exists only as a lining. My favorite dress will, however, last forever.

I hope this account might encourage a few people to mend or renovate clothing. Sewing machines are very affordable nowadays (as little as $90 for a basic model) and sewing by hand is not unpleasant or very difficult.

In the near future, I will relate how my sister and I made use of our Christmas tree rather than throwing it away after the holiday and how this traditional annual botanical experience can leave you with a yearly asset instead of a waste disposal dilemma.

© 2012. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

The Problem

Being first time homeowners, we were unaware (until a few days ago) that the main drain in a house needs to be regularly maintained to prevent clogs from developing. So those of you who are savvy homeowners should not be astonished to hear that after 6 years, our drain developed a serious clog. While copious amounts of Liquid Plumr opened the drain enough to allow for a little water use, we were not able to do laundry in the modern fashion or take a shower lasting more than 10 seconds. Therefore, after washing our hair in the kitchen sink, we decided to try the baking soda and vinegar remedy.

The Solution

On the internet, we found many versions of this plumbing fix. Everyone had a different prescription for baking soda-to-vinegar ratio or how long to wait before pouring in the boiling water. After considering our situation, we came up with our own procedure for clearing a clog with this wholesome home remedy.

Because our clog was low down near the end of our main drain, we figured it would be optimal for the reaction to take place at the location of the clog (or as close to it as possible), rather than have the substances neutralize each other in the kitchen drainpipe. To our great delight, about fifteen minutes after the experiment, we heard the toilets flush themselves and our temporarily inconvenienced lives were back to normal.

If you have a seriously clogged main drain consider our Plumb Bomb before calling an expensive plumber or buying that case of Liquid Plumr from Amazon.com.

What You Will Need

1. Baking Soda
2. Distilled White Vinegar
3. Pots of Boiling Water

Amounts depend on the severity of the clog. You may need to repeat the process a few times for tougher clogs.

How to Clear a Serious Clog In Your Main Drain

1. Start several pots of water to boil on the stove (About 1-2 gallons depending on how far you are from the location of the clog).
2. Pour 1 or more boxes of baking soda into the kitchen sink drains.
3. Use some of the water you heated to wash all the soda down the drain.
4. Then pour a little more hot water down to make sure the soda leaves the kitchen drain pipes.
5. Now pour plenty of vinegar down the sink drain (about 1 gallon).
6. Follow up with a little more water to make sure the vinegar also leaves the kitchen drain.
7. Wait 15-30 minutes to see if there is any change in the function of your plumbing. If it did not work the first time, you may need to try again with more baking soda and more vinegar or use an auger (yuck!).

Good luck and don’t slosh boiling water on yourself. Also be sure to banish children and pets from the kitchen and/or bathroom before starting the process.

Disclaimer: We are not professional plumbers but merely first-time homeowners still learning the ropes. The above method has worked for us but we make no guarantees as to its efficacy and safety to persons, pets, property, household fixtures and pipes.

© 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

1. We’re discontinuing your automatic credit card payments so you can’t get any cash back or reward points to make up for our continually increasing premiums.
2. We’re going to start sending you monthly bills in July because everyone can use more clutter and who cares about trees anyway?
3. Use the enclosed form to enroll for automatic check withdrawal … (Oops, wait, we forgot to enclose it.)
4. Sure, you can by phone … we’ll just charge you $15 to do it.

If this is this some sort of plan to get insurees to leave because they are losing so much money on their customers, it just might work.

[ . . . If I seem to be overly sarcastic and negative about this, it's because we've been dealing with huge customer disservice issues for months with this company involving a $400 bill that they were supposed to cover (it said so on the statement they sent us), but which we've had to pay due to administrative inadequacies on their end. Plus, we just sent in forms less than 3 months ago at their request to update our credit card information for our automatic payments . . . ]

© 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Click on the following link to get Free $3 credit on MP3′s at Amazon.com.

This promotional code expires Nov. 29th so hurry on over and get your free $3 worth of MP3′s.

Happy Black Friday!

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

It is generally understood that cosmetics should not be used longer than 6 months because they get contaminated with bacteria and other substances. Instead of throwing away your cosmetics upon reaching a certain date, try some of the following.

Uses for Expired Cosmetics, Lotions and Other Beauty and Personal Products

1. Old facial moisturizers can be used on hands and other areas less sensitive than the face.
2. Face moisturizer with SPF make nice hand lotion as sunlight causes wrinkly hands. Reapply every time you wash your hands.
3. Face moisturizer containing alpha hydroxy acid can be demoted to feet.
4. Instead of buying body makeup, use old foundation and powder for arms and legs.
5. Face makeup can also be used to cover up mosquito bites and other things that happen before a dressy occasion.
6. Facial toners can be applied to legs after shaving.
7. Clear nail polish can be used to protect rhinestones on hair barrettes and inexpensive jewelry. It can also be used as varnish for small crafts and decorative baubles.
8. Blush and eyeshadow are handy for making fake bruises for theatrical productions or Halloween.
9. Nail enamel, both transparent and colored, can be used in crafts as glass paint.
10. Lip balm that you no longer want to put on your mouth can be used for chapped skin. This is especially good for cuticles.
11. Makeup remover is effective in removing certain chemicals from the hands such as pine-sol and oil-based solutions.
12. Vaseline is a good lubricant for many purposes, keeping crafts from sticking to molds or preventing abrasions.
13. Vaseline on dog hocks and elbows prevent callouses.
14. Expired face cream can be used to oil horse tack—after all, what is leather but dry skin?
15. Razors can remove pills from old sweaters.
16. Save compacts with mirrors for other uses, such as plucking eyebrows, putting on contacts, etc. so as to avoid contaminating current makeup.
17. Old tweezers and cuticle scissors are handy for crafts, certain repairs, and pulling lint from electronics.
18. Old toothbrushes can be used to scrub pet toys, especially Galileo bones.
19. Liquid makeup and moisturizers often come in attractive bottles and that can be washed and used for visible storage of buttons, beads, coins, etc. or miniature vases for real and fake flowers.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Over the weekend, our biological father emailed and asked me to purchase a $2.00 money order on his behalf for an FAA certificate (he’s a pilot) and mail it to him in Japan. While I wasn’t sure how much a money order cost these days, my initial reaction was “What a waste of money to buy a money order for $2.00.” But it was a busy weekend, so I just planned to go to the Post Office this week to buy the money order and gave it no further thought.

When I got to the post office this afternoon and told the clerk that I would like a money order for $2.00, he told me, “OK, but it’ll cost you $1.50.” At that moment it occurred to me that I could have just made out a check for him instead. It was quite embarrassing to not have made the realization sooner, but in front of someone else who must think me a simpleton for not having thought of it before going all the way to the post office. (Luckily, I was also going to the library next door and could also ask how much postage I would need for 1st Class Mail to Japan, so my trip didn’t seem totally in vain.)

The funny thing is, I’m usually very vigilant about the ways I could do something differently to save money, but for some reason – out of busyness or pure absentmindedness – failed to do so this time. Now I wonder how many other things I could be doing differently to save money in my daily life that I haven’t yet thought of. This was a good reminder for how vigilance and a little bit of thinking are a must for truly frugal living.

I’m not saying that one should be consumed by money-saving thoughts day and night, for that can’t possibly be healthy, but perhaps just once a day, when you are doing something that costs money (either directly or indirectly), just spend a few moments thinking about how you’re doing it and what you could change or do instead to save a little here and there. You’d be surprised at what a few minutes of reflection can yield. You may even find ways to improve the way you’ve been doing some things.

Remember, a few cents here and there by themselves may not seem like much, but added up over time, they do make a difference (see From Pennies One Million Dollars Grow). Besides, thinking is free … and it’s good for you, too.

P.S. I checked the FAA website upon returning home to make sure they accept checks.

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Most library websites these days go way beyond the ability to check your account and renew books. Rather, you have access to:

• Free e-book, audiobook, video and music downloads
• Periodicals
• Career and skill building resources
• Homework help for students
• School and career test preparation
• Databases of resources on a variety of subjects including (but not limited to):
  • Consumer information
  • Health
  • Genealogy
  • Grants
  • Business and Career

e-Books, Audiobooks, Videos & Music

Many California libraries belong to a program called Califa, where users of participating libraries can log-in with their library card numbers and check out e-books, audiobooks and music. I’m sure library systems in other states have similar programs.

Materials available through Califa include fiction, non-fiction, children’s and young adult literature. The Califa system offers public domain and non-public domain items. Copyrighted material is copy-protected so that while you can use them, they can’t be copies. Non-copyrighted material can be copied to your computer to keep indefinitely.

My favorite of the offerings are the audiobooks. The system is quite up to date and offers contemporary works and bestsellers such as The Da Vinci Code, Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich, Harry Potter and A Series of Unfortunate Events, as well as classics such as Pride and Prejudice, Moby Dick, etc.

Our favorites that we have listened to several times are the Chronicles of Narnia. The recording quality is good, download is fast, installation and operation of the software was easy.

How the Califa system works

• Browse the catalog for e-books, audiobooks or music you want to check out
• Add the items you want to check out in your “book bag”
• Check out when you are ready (I believe the loan period is 3 weeks).
• Enter your library card number and PIN (Visit or contact your library to get a PIN or if you don’t know yours. It’s often the last 4 digits of your phone number.)
• Download the Overdrive software to play audiobooks or music on your computer
• You can listen to the material on your computer for a period of time before it expires
• The Overdrive program also has MP3 download for iPod, iPhone and iPod Touch

The best part is that even though our current local library isn’t part of the Califa system, I was able to access the system using my old library card from when I lived in Alameda County (in the Bay Area). Older library cards do expire after several years, but if you recently lived in a bigger county or city system, you may still be able to access online resources through those libraries’ websites using your old library card. In California, most libraries will issue you a card as long as you are resident of the state.

So get on our library’s website and check out all the great resources you have access to. If you don’t have a library card, go and get yourself one!

For more on the benefits of a library card, check out a post I wrote earlier this year: The Library Card, Your Other Rewards Credit Card.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Reading is one of the most frugal hobbies in existence, and is something, in my opinion, that everyone should do. Not only is it entertaining, but it can be beneficial and educational in many ways. In fact, reading is (along with watching period films based on classic literature) Madoline’s and my favorite hobby, and when we’re not working we can often be found with a book in front of us, even while eating.

The virtues of reading (even light-hearted, entertaining fiction) are as follows:

• Subconsciously improves your knowledge of language, grammar and writing
• Acquisition of vocabulary through example in context
• Expands your horizons and knowledge of people and the world
• Teaches a sense of perspective and the ability to see more than one side of a situation
• Improves overall reading comprehension skills and better prepare you for life
  • Good reading and writing skills are essential for success in career and business
  • The ability to better read and understand contracts, terms and conditions (such as credit card terms) helps you to be a more conscientious consumer
  • Proper writing and spelling is a necessity if you want to be taken seriously whether it be in letters, on message boards, your own website or blog, etc.

So now that I’ve convinced you of the virtues of reading, here are some tips for reading on a budget (or ) and sources for affordable reading. While we try to borrow from the library as much as possible, we do sometimes purchase books.

A few reasons we purchase books are:

• Collecting
  Book collecting is just as rewarding a hobby as stamp or coin collecting. Some people collect for fun, and others for profit. We personally love books so much that we would rather keep old and rare books than sell them.
• Reading more than once
  We have favorite books and series that we often read more than once (sometimes once a year) and feel it worthwhile to purchase and collect them.
• Study and reference
  Madoline is currently studying in preparation for graduate school, so we often purchase reference and related materials that will be useful both now and later.
• Home library
  We live in a remote area without much to do and our local library can be rather lacking in some areas, so if there is a book we are sure of liking and re-reading, we sometimes purchase it. Also, if you live a frugal lifestyle and often opt to stay home instead of going out and spending money, it’s sometimes nice to have a handy library to pick from when in need of some entertainment or activity.

You don’t have to purchase new books to fill your collection or library. In fact, we often prefer to purchase used books just because they’re more comfortable to read. When we read a new book, we always feel the need to keep it pristine and hate seeing them get dinged or creased. But with used books, we don’t have that problem, and can read in total comfort (after wiping it over with rubbing alcohol). There are many sources for very affordable books, as low as 10-25 cents per book, which I will share below. I will start with the most preferred (frugal) sources and work my way down.

Continue on for a list of affordable reading resources.

1. Libraries

Every city, county and/or state has a public library system. You’ve already paid for the resources offered by the library, so you might as well use it. Most library systems these days are very up-to-date and offer the latest bestsellers and new releases. For more on the benefits of libraries, refer to my post .

2. e-Books

I personally prefer physical books that I can carry around and read in bed or a comfy chair, but for those who don’t mind reading on the computer, e-Books are very easily available from a variety of sources these days. Most free e-Books are classics and other works that have entered into the public domain as a result of expired copyright, but libraries often offer free access to thousands of new release and bestsellers in e-book and audio-book formats through their websites. A couple of good sources for free e-Books are:

• Project Gutenberg
• Book Glutton

3. Library and Friends of the Library Book Sales

Most libraries have a Friends of the Library group that collects donated books and organizes regular sales to raise funds for the library. These book sales often sell old, used, like-new and sometimes even new books for incredible prices, often at 10 to 25 cents for a paperback, 50 cents for softcover trade paperbacks, and $1.00 for hardbacks. These types of sales in metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles are especially plentiful in current bestsellers in new condition. They usually occur once a month in most areas, but even when there isn’t a sale, many libraries have a cart or shelf near the entrance where you can pick up books and deposit the money into a collection box.

The Book Sale Finder website is a great place to search for and sign up for notifications of book sales in your area.

4. Thrift Stores

Thrift stores such as Goodwill and Salvation Army usually have a book section with decent prices. They’re not as good as the library sales, but cheaper than most other used book stores, with prices between 50 cents for smaller children’s books to $2.00 – $3.00 for other books.

You can search for thrift stores near you at The Thrift Shopper.com.

5. Used Books Online

My favorite online source for used books is abebooks.com. Prices start at $1.00, even for some new books, and there is a vast selection from booksellers all over the world. The sellers that sell on this site also sell on other used book sites such as Amazon Marketplace, but at AbeBooks, the combined shipping rates for additional books from the same seller are sometimes better, as it would seem that AbeBooks allows the sellers to set their own rates for additional books, while the other sites set a flat rate. Some sellers on AbeBooks offer combined shipping rates of only $1.50-$2.00 per additional book (within the United States), while most other sites charge between $3.00-$3.99 per additional book.

	Author Title Keyword ISBN

6. New Books Online

If you can’t find a book used or free from the library and must buy it new, then I’d say go with Amazon or Overstock.com. I recently learned that many people are not aware that Overstock.com carries books and movies. In fact, Overstock.com actually often has better prices than Amazon even when you add shipping charges, but Amazon has a wider selection, competitive pricing and free shipping on orders over $25.00.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

from someone who once hated to practice the piano

In order to persuade anyone to read or believe what advice I attempt to provide, I must first relate that my strong disinclination for music practice is long past, and that not only did I major in music, but practicing the piano is now a favorite form of study and recreation. From growing up among other musicians and my little experience in teaching piano lessons, I have never doubted that inability or reluctance to practice is more common than it is uncommon. I have the firsthand experience of being a reluctant piano student and a trial upon the patience and efforts of several piano teachers and my mother and so would like to help those in that frustrating position by sharing my observations concerning the various reasons which may prevent regular and productive practice by young or beginning music students and offer some possible suggestions for improvement.

It is a funny thing that practicing the piano should seem to require so much discipline. My sister and I were really very easy to manage as children and teenagers. We did well in school, preferred to read books rather than go out, hardly spent any money, were never punished, and did everything expected of us except to practice the piano (we started learning at the ages of 5 and 3). In fact we both so severely disliked piano practice that our usual way was for each of us to play through our pieces for 20 minutes once a week just before walking to our teacher’s house. Incredibly enough, we advanced enough to show that our dislike of practice did not result from lack of ability because we successfully performed at recitals, church and school events, and our parents were proud.

Perhaps it is that discipline in any field is difficult for people in general, but music did seem especially difficult—more so than drawing, karate, math, and even learning German—and in fact it is so. The enjoyment of those on the receiving end of a musical performance often forms the misconception that the preparation behind the result consists largely of pleasure and ease. In actuality music is as much a science as it is an art and as much a discipline as it is a pleasure (and in the result there is only as much pleasure as there was discipline before it). Consideration must especially be shown to children when requiring them to undertake a subject the parts of which may be impossible or difficult to grasp at a certain age, and every effort made to promote the small successes which create the eagerness and habits of long term achievement.

Following is a series of small essays addressing various aspects of piano practice as pertains to children. While my experience is primarily in piano and singing, the principles I relate can be effectively applied to other instruments.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Once upon a time, sewing was a widespread skill common to the poorest and richest of women as well as men of many professions. The reason for the former popularity of sewing is that it is a skill both basic and necessary. Nowadays, because of manufactured clothing and looser fashions, we are more inclined to search for clothes that we fit into rather than have clothes made to fit us.

Compared to the apparent convenience of purchasing ready-made clothes, a great number of people wrongly believe that the sewing of clothes is either an antiquated custom, a hobby for “creative” people, unreasonably difficult, or simply a waste of time.

Logically the process of manufacturing products en masse seems the cheapest way to get things. This is true: manufacturing in large quantities is the cheapest way for large companies to get their products. But all the savings from using cheap labor and bulk supplies do not become your savings but someone else’s profit. Manufacturing is not always the cheapest way for you to get things, especially clothing.

Below are some of the first items of clothing we made when first learning to sew. Each item cost no more than $1.00 to make.

A wide variety of fabrics appropriate for clothing are available in a range of $1-$10 per yard. I have seen simple sleeveless tops in stores priced at $40 or more and consisting of less than ½ yard of fabric. One half yard of satin can be had for $2.50, stretch velvet for $3.15, and cotton for $1.50. A long-sleeved shirt with approximately 1½ yards of fabric, can cost as little as $1.50 (plus buttons and thread) with sale or bargain fabric.

Hats, which cost $20+ in the days when I used to buy clothing, require even less fabric and can be sewn from what is left over from larger projects. By purchasing fabrics on sale you can save even more money and compensate for the time it takes to sew an outfit.

The time spent sewing is actually equivalent to time spent earning. For example, that little satin top I mentioned above can be made in about 1 hour. The difference between $40 and $2.50 is $37.50—so you would be $37.50 richer for 1 hour of work. Plus, you would have paid less sales tax for $2.50 than for $40.00 (you would pay 93.75% less sales tax).

These days, the cost of a domestic sewing machine is very reasonable, and while models with many fancy stitches are available, you don’t need more than what the most basic models are capable of. The cost of the machine will soon pay for itself by the money it will save you, and it has other uses such as mending clothing which might otherwise be unused or thrown away, and making other things such as curtains, pillows, blankets, Halloween and play costumes (for children), etc.

We find that a lot of purchased clothing and bedding tend to fall apart sooner because the buttons are machine stitched without the threads being fixed or knotted, and seams are often serged, a loose stitch that tends to disintegrate. So, the lives of items you have already purchased can be prolonged with the help of a sewing machine.

As for the cost of sewing patterns, patterns for everyday clothes come very reasonably priced. A simple pattern can be had for as little as $2.00 from sewing and craft stores. Designer patterns are a little more costly, but still much more cost-effective than purchasing designer clothing, as several outfits can be made from one pattern. You can also find pre-owned patterns in good or unused condition at thrift shops and on the Internet.

The number of articles you can fashion from one pattern is without limit. Some ways to achieve new looks with the same pattern are: changing color, changing fabric type, adding trims, using different fabrics for parts of a garment (e.g. velvet dress with sheer sleeves), lengthening or shortening, gathering, altering the shape of neckline or hem, shortening the skirt and adding a ruffle, etc.

You can also figure out how to make your own patterns by using basic store-bought patterns as a starting point. Notions (buttons, threads, etc.) will not cost you much if you are truly frugal, but you may splurge a little on fancy buttons or embellishments and still spend less than buying a garment.

And unless humans have significantly genetically altered within the past century, most everyone is capable of learning to sew. After all, poor uneducated persons once learned to sew salable clothes without the help of the standardized patterns and illustrated instructions available to us.

You do not need a professional skill level to sew for yourself or your children. Slight imperfections in your finished projects are evidence that you made them yourself as handcrafted items are valued and admired in this age of manufacture. And an additional benefit to saving money is escaping the danger of showing up in the same dress as someone else.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Merriam-Webster defines the word “vacation” as “a respite or a time of respite from something”. Well, if that “something” from which one is taking a respite is “peace and quiet” then I would have to agree with the definer. Otherwise, gathering from my 2 recent “vacations” (one to Disneyland, one [working] vacation to Las Vegas from which I have just returned), vacation seems more like a respite from peace and quite to me.

Anyhow, I thought I would put together a pre-vacation checklist to help all you other poor vacationers prepare for your vacations, because if there is one thing I have learned, vacations are costly – and I am not just talking about transportation, lodging and amusements, but all the little everyday necessities – and the only way to travel frugally is to travel prepared. Also, the better prepared you are, the better the time you will have on your vacation; knowing that everything back home is taken care of and that you are prepared for most common travel mishaps will allow you to enjoy yourself to the utmost.

And yes, I am the extremest of Type A personalities, but admit it, sometimes it is handy to have someone who has the bases covered. You’ll certainly be glad to have one of us along when the unexpected happens because we’ve planned and prepared for it (or at least have given some thought to it beforehand so as not to be caught by surprise). This isn’t a list of what to pack (toothbrush, underwear, etc.) but rather more of a pre-departure to-do list to help prepare for your trip. I’m not saying you need to do everything suggested, but hopefully a few items will prove helpful or relevant to your circumstances.

Prevention is the best medicine

Just because you are on vacation, it doesn’t mean everyone else is. This goes for utility companies, burglars and your own plumbing and wiring. When you come home from vacation, you want to make sure you still have an intact home to come home to, and aren’t met with a mountain of additional expenses. Therefore before you leave, you might want to try some of the following:

(These checkboxes are check-able, so feel free to come back and use it.)

Home and Business

Travel Arrangements

Better to be Safe than Sorry

You never know what can happen on the road, and when it comes to health and safety, it is infinitely better to be over-prepared than under-prepared. Therefore,

Well, this may not have covered all the bases, as everyone has different situations, but hopefully this list proved helpful in some ways. Bon Voyage!

If you’re traveling with your pet, check out my next post, Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets,

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Our family owned horses for several years in my late teens and early twenties, and friends of ours were always asking us to take them riding. Many amateur riders like to boast that they have never fallen off a horse, which must mean they’re good riders, right? Wrong.

Contrary to popular belief, the best riders are those who have fallen the most times. Seasoned horsemen always say that if you have never fallen off a horse, it just means you haven’t ridden enough.

In the years in which we had horses, I probably had at least one or two (if not more) falls a year. No one who spends a good part of their hours on horseback can be 100% alert and in control 100% of the time. Horses get startled, agitated, excited, run away, buck, etc., and riders sometimes just lose their balance and fall. It’s a natural part of the learning process.  No one becomes an advanced rider without ever falling off.

Some falls are inconsequential and you get up without a scratch. Others might leave you a little scratched, a little or seriously bruised, with a concussion, broken bones or unable to walk for several days. I’ve had most types, but, thank the stars, escaped the concussions and broken bones.

Circumstances differ, but one thing remains the same. The longer you wait to get back in the saddle, the harder it gets. The best cure for getting over the fear of falling is to brush yourself off and immediately get back in the saddle. If you don’t get right back on, but instead go straight home to dwell on your close call and bruises, the next time you get in the saddle, if you ever do, it becomes a lot scarier than it would’ve been.

I also believe that falls come when you need them. When you ride horses regularly, you forget about the many dangers of riding. If you haven’t fallen in a while, you tend to get overconfident, too comfortable and careless. Falls often come at this point. After a fall, you are once again acutely aware of the dangers and find yourself more alert and careful … until history repeats itself all over again.

So what does this have to do with personal finance?

Personal finance is not a high speed train on which you are just a passenger and which would disappear in a nanosecond if you slipped and fell off. Think of it as a horse that you are riding. (Assuming your horse is well trained and stops when you fall off, which most horses do.) If you slip and fall once in a while, you haven’t lost your chance at reaching your goal. Just get back on and try your best to stay on.

Everyone slips once in a while, and no doubt you do or will at some point. Mistakes are a natural part of the learning process from which we learn. If you fall off your saving wagon and commit a spending faux pas, don’t let it keep you down. Don’t think, “Well, I’ve blown it already. What’s the point in continuing to try?” and then proceed to spend more. Instead, analyze the situation which led to your fall, learn to recognize the factors that caused you to fall and watch out for them the next time they come around.

For example, you walk by a favorite shop window and see a large SALE sign. You can’t resist the call of the sale and therefore go in and spend unnecessarily. Afterwards, when you realize your mistake (and can’t return your purchases because you bought them on sale), instead of giving up your resolve to continue to save, think about the following:

• What caused you to slip? Seeing the SALE sign.
• How did you come to see the SALE sign that led you to your folly? Walking by the shop and looking in the window.
• Solution: Take a different route next time, or don’t look at the window if you must walk past it.

Next, don’t console yourself with an ice cream or a new pair of shoes. File this experience away as a lesson learned and get back on your saving wagon.

I once got bucked off a horse during a riding lesson. The instructor thought a rabbit had probably dashed out of some nearby bushes,  startling him and causing him to buck. You can be sure that if I’m ever again on horseback where there could be rabbits nearby, I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled and my heels down.

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Affordable and Convenient Shipping With USPS

• Affordable Shipping Rates

  I ship all of my customer’s non-rush orders with Priority Mail. Delivery time is 2-3 days (just 2 days from my location to New York City) and the rates are much lower than UPS Ground or 3-Day Select, at least for my small business.

• Online postage at discounted rates w/ free Delivery Confirmation

  You can purchase postage for domestic and international Priority Mail or Express packages online with Click-N-Ship or PayPal Shipping (without an associated PayPal transaction).

• Free Carrier Pickup – Save Time and Gas

  As long as you have at least one Priority Mail package (not much more expensive than Parcel Post), you can schedule a free carrier pickup and your mail carrier will pick up your package with your daily mail delivery. Note that you have to have appropriate postage on your package. UPS charges for One Time Pickups and FedEx doesn’t pick up in my zip code.

Other Useful Online USPS Tools

• Letter or Package Redelivery Request

  If you miss a delivery of a signature required item, you can go to USPS.com/redelivery and submit a request for your carrier to redeliver it on a specific day when you will be home.

• Mail Hold

  If you are going on vacation, you can request mail hold so your mail doesn’t pile up in the mailbox.

How to Get Good Customer Service From USPS

For the most part, my packages are shipped and delivered without a hitch. I print my postage online, request a carrier pickup and my shipments arrive in 2-3 days.

But in my business, there is a high number of orders where the customer must get their dog or horse costume by a certain date because they’re participating in an event like a show or costume contest. These orders come in at the last minute and require a precise, tight schedule with no margin for error: ship today, receive tomorrow, event the next day. But once in a while, there is a hitch – usually due to an error on my end or general miscommunication or misunderstanding with the customer.

The important thing to do when you need help is to call the local Post Office. Find the local (not 1-800) telephone number for the Post Office you need help from and speak to an employee at the local post office. This is faster and much more helpful than sending an email online which rarely gets a relevant and helpful response in one reply.

Twice in the past year, when it was necessary to get help with an Express Mail delivery, I was able to get top-notch customer service by speaking to an employee at the destination Post Office. They have gone out of their way to help me find the Express package and make necessary arrangements to allow my customers to get their packages in time.

Conclusion

Yes, there are a lot of horror stories out there about USPS; I don’t know how true or exaggerated most of them are. We do have an occasional hiccup with our local post office because the employees don’t seem to have fully grasped the online services (must be a small town thing) and miss an occasional redelivery request, but for the most part, USPS has delivered for me.

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

When I logged into my rewards account yesterday, I noticed that I had the option of redeeming $50 in gift certificates or $50 cash (in the form of a check). In the past I just always chose the gift certificate because I shop at Amazon.com so often, but I realized that I could get more out of my rewards program by redeeming my points for cash.

How I get more out of my rewards program by redeeming cash instead of gifts certificates

1. I spend  “cash” out of my bank account when I make a purchase at Amazon.com (I pay it back at the end of the month).
2. I get 3 rewards points for every $1 spent at Amazon.com.
3. When my rewards points reach 2,500 I can get a $25 gift certificate, BUT
   • If redeem a $25 Amazon gift certificate and use it on an order,
   • I don’t get any rewards points for that $25.
4. So I wait until my balance reaches 5,000 points.
5. I redeem it for $50 cash.
6. I put that cash in my bank account.
7. I pay for my next Amazon.com order with my Amazon.com credit card.
8. I can earn another 150 points with that $50 cash that came from points I’d already earned using the card when I pay for my next Amazon.com order with it!

And, of course I also put any and all purchases and bill payments on my Amazon credit card to get 1 point for each $1.

So if your credit card rewards program gives you the option between gift certificates and cash, take the cash and put it back to work for you again … and again!

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Sorry for my long absence and non-responsiveness to any emails or comments these past months. Back around October 2009, our business started picking up and we’ve had to  focus our time and energy on getting our sewing orders out.

I’ve had a couple of questions about whether or not I’m still doing Pecuniarities. The answer is “Yes” but perhaps not as frequently as before. We will still be posting once in a while when we have some free time and good post ideas, but won’t be maintaining a regular posting schedule as we’d like to focus on developing our business now that the economy seems to be (fingers crossed) bouncing back.

As for the Carnival of Pecuniary Delights, I’m sorry to say that while it was a good idea and we had some great editions with great submissions, and while there was a lot of interest from bloggers wanting to submit posts each week, there was not enough interest in hosting an edition. Now that I don’t have as much time to devote to promoting and maintating it, I’m afraid the Carnival of Pecuniary Delights is on hiatus.

So, please keep subscribing to our feed to be updated when we have new posts. We may not post as often, but will make sure they’re are good when we do! In the meantime, we are re-posting an older post from our early days every week for newer visitors who weren’t with us back then.

Thanks for stopping by,
P.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

When we moved to our current hometown, located 40 miles from the closest Bank of America branch, we started researching local banking options of which there are three: 2 banks and 1 credit union. I visited all three websites and compared the account options and noticed that while the 2 banks charged monthly fees for checking accounts, the credit union didn’t. This led to a little research of banks vs. credit unions, and this is basically what I learned:

• Credit unions are not-for-profit organizations (and banks are for-profit organizations)
• Credit unions are “owned” by all of its members (anyone who holds an account and deposits money there)
• All credit union earnings after taxes and expenses are returned to the community by way of low-interest loans, higher dividends, and low-fee or free services
• Funds deposited in credit union accounts are insured by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF), a federal government agency

After learning the above, the logical choice was to go with the credit union instead of one of the banks. After all, why pay monthly fees for a checking account when you can open a free savings and checking account at the credit union and earn more interest? The only requirement was a $25 non-withdrawable deposit as long as the savings account is open, and that $25 is eligible to earn dividends.

Our original plan had been to deposit our checks in a local bank and then transfer the funds electronically to our Bank of America accounts. We opened our credit union savings account with $25 in the beginning of June 2006. On June 30th, we received our first quarterly dividend and found that we had earned $0.84 on about $1,000 in that first month. That was almost 10% of what our Bank of America savings account had earned us in one year with a much higher average balance that we immediately changed our plan, closed our Bank of America accounts, and moved everything to our credit union savings account.

We now put everything in our saving account and transfer what we need to our checking account to pay our bills a few times a month, leaving the funds in the savings account for as many days as possible. (Read our article for tips on optimizing your earnings.)

We have been with our credit union for almost 2 years now and have never regretted it. Here is a comparison of our experiences with our credit union vs. our prior experience with Bank of America:

• Customer Service is always friendly and truly helpful. The tellers don’t mind spending time answering or making an effort to find answers to all your questions. Whenever I email our credit union with questions, they respond promptly with a personalized and relevant message. With Bank of America I often received form letters that didn’t address my questions at all.
• Because it’s not-for-profit, our credit union never tries to sell us anything. When we were with Bank of America, their telemarketers were constantly calling to try to get us to sign up for services we didn’t need. They once called and spoke to my sister about services for one of my accounts, and even though she told them that it was not her account and she was not authorized to make any decisions, they went ahead and signed me up for a service anyway. They charged me for that service for 2 months in a row before I was able to get them to cancel the unauthorized service, but I never did receive a full refund of those charges despite several requests.
• We can visit the teller as many times a month as we need to. At Bank of America, we were only allowed 2 teller visits a month and additional visits would incur charges. I know you can make deposits at ATMs, but we just weren’t comfortable sticking large checks into a machine out-of-doors. In any case why should you have to pay to go deposit money in the bank when you’re already paying for your account and they’re making money just by taking your money?
• In our first year with our credit union, our savings account earned over 6 times the amount of interest than we had with Bank of America.

I don’t know if all credit unions are as good as ours, but I’m sure that for the most part they must be better than banks, because the #1 priority for banks is to make money, while the aim of a credit union is to help support the community.

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Ingredients

• Uncooked spaghetti (or other preferred pasta such as macaroni)
• Condensed tomato soup (Campbell’s or similar store brand
• 1 hot dog
• About 1 teaspoon sugar
• Optional: chopped onion (very yummy)

Preparation Directions

1. Slice hot dog into about 15 pieces
2. Cook spaghetti noodles until almost done
3. Pour out the water
4. Add tomato soup (or pasta sauce) into the pot with the noodles
5. (Add a little water to dilute the condensed tomato soup)
6. Stir in sugar
7. Toss hot dogs into the soup/sauce
8. Simmer until noodles are done and sauce is thickened.
9. When preparing for children, be sure to let cool sufficiently beforehand. Pasta is extremely hot right after cooking.

Pasta sauce can also be used in place of tomato soup.

Eat up!

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© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

I have never had any luck with steel wool. Perhaps all of you who have got it together domestically ask, where is luck required in the use of steel wool? Well, I can use it just fine. It’s the best thing for scrubbing a burnt pan clean. But the problem is after I use it. Once it gets wet, steel wool rusts and not only does it look nasty, but it leaves red stains on the sink and counter.

I’ve tried airing them dry on racks, putting them in the dishwasher, and even polishing with Brasso, but I have never been able to keep my steel wool from rusting. So I stopped buying them several years ago and resorted to scouring with plastic scrubbers, baking soda, and other methods that require excessive effort with less than satisfactory results.

Then yesterday, I forgot the dogs’ dinner on the stove (which was to be chicken and white rice) and ended up with a lump of charcoal stuck to the bottom of a steel pot. Because I am short of time and have a lot to do, I needed a faster way to clear up the mess and came up with the idea of scrubbing with used aluminum foil. I got out a small tin from a pie, scrunched it up and voila! I had an excellent scrubber. It doesn’t even rust.

And so I wanted to share my discovery with other frugalites. Give your aluminum foil a second use. Scrunch it up really well so it doesn’t gouge your cookware. Use it as many times as you think proper and then throw it away. When you finish a casserole or lasagna, how convenient that you can use the cover to clean the pan? And if there should be a proper way to store steel wool and you should happen to know it, you might drop me a note.

Not that I’ll be buying anymore, but just out of curiosity.

© 2010 – 2011. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

Due to issues with our wireless router, I am currently in the market for a lengthy and affordable ethernet cable so that I can work online on a laptop while Madoline does her artwork (as can be seen in our CafePress Shop) on our desktop computer.

Prior to leaving to run errands today, I checked Amazon.com‘s pricing for ethernet cables so that I might pop into the local Radio Shack on my way home to compare prices. I wasn’t in Radio Shack for more than a couple of minutes before I was on my way out again as it was immediately apparent that their prices were 3 times what I would pay for comparable products online.

As I reached the door, the shopkeeper addressed me in the fashion typical of solicitous shopkeepers, and the following conversation ensued:

Shopkeeper: Did you find what you were looking for?

Me: Yes, I was just checking the prices on ethernet cables.

Shopkeeper: What length cable do you need?

Me: 100 ft.*

Shopkeeper: And?

Me: Well, they’re three time as much as I can get them for online.

Shopkeeper: Quality!

Me: Yes, well, the quality on Amazon is quite good.

Shopkeeper: Oh.

Me: Thanks, though.

Shopkeeper: OK.

*So I can work from my smaller and therefore warmer room during the winter.

I left feeling a little sorry for these local, brick-and-mortar businesses. Even when times are good, they have a hard time keeping up with the vastly discounted online stores. And now that times are bad, they must suffer even more. And as we live in a remote area, prices here were already higher than most cities.

Being a small business owner myself (albeit online) and experiencing first hand the strain on business brought on by the poor economy, it seems a bit traitorous that I am not supporting the small local business, and instead going to the lowest bidder.

But I also cannot justify nor really afford an expenditure of $60.00 on an ethernet cable when I can get a 100 ft. no-name ethernet cable for $20 including shipping or 2 Belkin 50 ft. ethernet cables for $24 and with a gift certificate (so no out-of-pocket expense for me) on Amazon because I feel sorry for the local store. After all, I have think about my mortgage, food and utility bills.

As for the question of quality, Radio Shack’s cable may be better than the $20 one on Amazon, but judging by the user reviews for the less expensive product, I am fairly certain that it would serve my purpose adequately.

Of course, the most preferred scenario would be to figure out how to get the Wireless router working so that I won’t need to have a 100′ cable running across the house. So good luck to me. And to all the little guys out there.

Perhaps if and when the economy picks up and money is no longer an object, I’ll be able to help support local businesses more. If they’re still around, that is.

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.

I received a comment today on my recent post When “Free” Things Aren’t Free: Beware the Hidden and Indirect Costs, on which I wanted to further commentate. The reader, Brenda, stated in her comment:

You need to change your mindset.

This comment was followed by her opinions and interpretations on the 7 points I made in my post, but I must respectfully state that while I admire a “glass is half full” point of view, some of her statements could also be interpreted as “justifications.”

Justification vs. Optimism

How one determines whether a statement is a justification or merely an optimistic point of view depends on the habits of the person saying it.

• If you are someone who tends to spend more than is necessary or wise, then I would have to say that these statements are justifications.
• If you are a prudent spender and see an opportunity to save because the offer is for something you happen to need or want at that very moment, then these statements are optimism.

Promoting Awareness

The purpose of When “Free” Things Aren’t Free was merely to point out that something presented as “free” isn’t always so by definition, which is costing nothing. That’s it. I’m not judging or telling you that you must never, ever spend money, eat out or take a break from making money. My purpose was to foster awareness of the indirect costs associated with a “free” offer.

I do not claim to be a saint when it comes to my spending. I do occasionally purchase a meal or a drink when I am out running errands and find myself hungry – though I rarely purchase fountain drinks as they are one of the worst things you can spend money on. I occasionally buy things that are not absolute necessities. I am human and therefore subject to the same temptations and errors in judgment as any other person.

Which is all the more reason why I don’t want to change my mindset, because awareness is foremost in controlling anything you do. Awareness of the indirect costs associated with an offer allows me to make an informed spending decision.

I am a very left-brained sort of person who likes things analyzed down to facts and numbers. And that is what I often do here on my blog: offer an analytical interpretation on a situation. And that’s all When “Free” Things Aren’t Free is:

• An analysis of the indirect and hidden costs behind free offers, and
• to help the average consumer become aware of these indirect costs.

What you choose to do with the information is up to you.

If you need to eat out, need or want to take a family member out for a meal, by all means, take the offer if it will save you money. But if you don’t need or want those things and are merely taking the offer to “get something free” when it isn’t truly so, then you’re not exactly coming out on top.

© 2010. Pecuniarities. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or published anywhere outside of Pecuniarities.com without our written permission.