Living Through This Economy

Like I wrote in a previous post, the economy is going to pits. People are losing jobs, spending has gone down, the stock market is down low(which is nice for people like me who buy stocks at their all time lowest). The government only has so much money to provide unemployment, food stamps, welfare, etc. to those that were already taking advantage of the benefits of either not being able to work or choosing not to work. Obama (through Powell) asked for volunteers to help the government get this nation back on track. However, some people don't have the time/finances to volunteer. Here are some common sense tips in my mind that can help us deal with the recession we're in:

1 - Transportation - Seriously, you hear this more than you want to, but either take the bus or car pool. With carpooling you can save money on gas and wear & tear on your car. Take a small sedan for example, you can comfortably fit four people (five if you don't have a personal bubble) in one car. That means you only have to drive once a week, twice a week once every four weeks, to get to work. This will save on gas, wear & tear, and if many people do it the freeways will clear up decreasing traffic jams and crowded roads.

Taking the bus has more advantages, and also less. Let me explain. If you take the bus you don't have to worry about filling your tank with gas, wondering who you can carpool with, and car insurance isn't a worry. The only problem with taking the bus is you have to fit your schedule around when buses arrive, and they do not run past a certain time depending on your area. Lets see the price difference. Gas is about $1.59 right now. My tank is 12 gallons, so it costs approximately $19.08 to fill my tank. I fill up twice a month. So there is $40. Add in oil changes every three months, and insurance, and you're looking at another $80 a month. $120 at least for me. Now, that's me, and I don't drive very often. Many people fill up their cars once a week. UTA bus passes are $74.50 a month. That's less than insurance alone! Plus, you can ride TRAX in downtown SLC with that $74.50.

2 - Grocery Shopping - Ok, this might be a personal observation that you don't believe, but it seriously works. I get paid every once every two weeks, and no other income is coming in. I have a decent job that pays well for what I do, but still, it's not enough to just relax and not worry about finances. My wife and I need to make sure we have everything we need for two weeks before I get paid, mainly groceries; plan out your meals up to two weeks in advance. We decide what we're going to have, what we need, and we buy it all at once with the exception of some fruits or vegetables just so they are fresh when we plan on eating them in a meal. When we head to the store we get our list and that's it. We prevent the zombie like wandering from aisle to aisle buying little things that add up to an unknown amount. This has literally saved us $100 a week.

In addition to planning meals, plan meals with a few similar ingredients. Dillweed (I just like to say that, it's a funny word....dillweed) is a spice that isn't used very often, and you do not have to use much in recipes. Instead of planning out a meal that calls for dillweed, then not using it again for months, plan out two or three different dishes with that ingredient so you use it up. Not only does this use what you already have, but it prevents you from buying 10 or 12 different things that you will only use once. So use the stuff you buy.

How about getting together with others and only providing half or less of a meal? This might be a little tender to talk about (oh look, I do have some color showing in my black heart), but some people can't even afford to buy ingredients for food for a couple days. It's happening and it's sad. Well, my American Heritage teacher at BYU SLC Center would talk about his experience in the depression and how they survived. His mother and father could only afford food for a few days, and his dad was only paid weekly. This was the case with all his neighbors too. Instead of everyone whining about it and worrying about what they were going to do, they got together and shared the food they had. Now, I'm not saying you'll have a feast, but you'll be able to eat. Let me give you an example. Six families in his neighborhood were chatting outside in his yard. One person would say, "I have a few potatoes in my cabinets." and another would say, "I have some carrots." etc. Everyone would bring a few vegetables chopped up and put them in a soup. There would be enough for everyone to have a few servings. The next day, they would take what they had again and make a meal for everyone instead of each family eating their potaties, and meat, and milk all at one sitting. It might be uncomfortable or awkward for some, but take what you have and get together with others to make a meal. It will help.

3 - Use unecessary luxuries to your advantage. My wife and I have cable and Internet through a local company. We use the Internet to find ideas on how to save money. We also split Internet with our neighbors to split the cost. Therefore, the money we save from ideas we get online, and splitting the Internet bill helps save us money to pay for the Internet if not more. People are still buying things online. Maybe sell a few things, or buy your items online if it's cheaper than going to the store. Do the research because finding deals is worth it. Check out my visited websites and you'll see some of the things you can get great deals on. Cable...well, that's something to find other ideas on how to save money if you watch the right channel. Otherwise, it's for my wife to stay sane when she can't go outside, and for me to watch my MWC sports.

4 - Budget. Alright, I know people hate doing this, but budgeting will help. If you know how to budget than you're already going to be successful. If you do not know how or don't know where to start here are a few tips. First, take your automatic expenses like gas, electricity, rent, etc. that you have to pay otherwise it's gone. These shouldn't be more than you make, otherwise you need to get rid of a few unecessary luxuries. Second, estimate how much you'll spend on food after PLANNING TWO WEEKS IN ADVANCE for your meals. Third, add up the costs of other expenses such as gasoline for driving, cable, Internet, etc. that you have but can decrease. Fourth, add up how much you make with your net pay, then check out the difference. If your income exceeds your expenses, excellent. If your income is less, there are few things you need to cut.

We can live through this crisis as long we use our brains (it's that thing in our heads, three feet above our butts). Trying to live in the lap of luxury will only cause more stress and harm on the economy.