Budgeting

Every so often, I look up this particular article online. It's helped me a lot over the years with buying groceries when you "think" you are too broke to eat!

I've seen similar articles, but they all amount to one basic thing - how to buy dirt cheap groceries when you're pretty much at the end of your budget and payday is at least a week away. The list they give is minimal. There are no steaks or big meats listed. It's just basic food that will get you through three meals a day for a few days.

Another article shows you steps for feeding yourself for $15 a week. The tips are very good and even if you only use part of them, you'll save money.

There is also a well-written article on Hillbilly Housewife that shares not only how to feed a family on around $40 a week in groceries, but also gives recipes you can download.

Because I live alone, I actually can get by on just the $10 or $15 a week grocery list. However, like anyone, it takes careful planning to make it work, and using everything to its fullest. It also means having a few staples on hand, such as dehydrated herbs and vegetables, so your menu isn't too boring.

Technorati Tags: budget,shopping

Desperately need rain

We are experiencing some really hot, dry weather in my part of the country right now, and it doesn't look like it's going to end soo. Today's predicted high temperature is over 100 degrees, with heat indices well over that!. We desperately need rain...soon. My yard is crispy feeling when I walk outside.

I do try to water the gardens and some of the yard at night, but it doesn't look like I'm going to need any  women's rain boots for quite some time to come. This, after having had such a temperate spring with just the right temperatures and just the right amount of rain. Already, people's gardens are looking more like late July or early August heat stress.

Yesterday, it clouded up and thundered, promising some rain for the thirsty ground, but nothing actually materialized.

Technorati Tags: weather

Dreams to reality

I'm sitting on my front porch in the middle of the night, wishing I could just do all my work from right here. Like anything worth doing, though, it takes some research and planning to bring a dream into reality.

So, just as I'd research the side effects of diet pills before I ever took them, I'm in the midst of researching and developing a plan of action that will bring me out of my regular job and into a position where I can work solely from home. These days off give me a real hunger for just being home and making my own work schedule - something that can't be done when you work for someone else.

"Freedom" is my mantra these days. I know that being self-employed can often be harder than working a few hours for someone else, but there's something very satisfying about being the one who is responsible for everything, good or bad. It's satisfying to continue learning and set goals.

Technorati Tags: work

Dropping weight

I'm just like anyone else...I want to lose some weight. I'm not grossly overweight, but I know that dropping a few pounds will help lower my blood pressure and make it easier on my joints those long days of standing at work. I do try to watch what I eat, but it seems like the pounds are permanently glued to my body, so that even eating less doesn't make them go away anymore.

So, I sometimes think about diet pills, However, I need to know what diet pill side effects there are. As a person with high blood pressure, I don't want to risk having a stroke for the sake of weight loss! So, I need to be looking a natural, possibly herbal, weight loss supplements and checking to make sure they really don't cause any bad side effects.

Any tips?

Technorati Tags: weight loss