This economy...how people are handling everything...working from home?

[BuckeyeDave]

Quote:
Yep!!! We are borrowing money from China (our enemy) to pay the Middle East (our enemy) for oil. This year alone, we will be paying the Middle East $ 700,000,000.00 more than last year all the while we have 3 times the oil that the whole middle east has within our reach and we have the ability to get it.

I wish congress and the house would quit playing politics and do something for the country instead of their special interests.



michaelvcrowder you’re a bright young man, mom and dad would be proud. I wholly agree with your post.

My amazing wife and I have 7 kids, our 8th (our kids call the baby "the Ocho") is due in November, an ACL rebuild on my 17yo. sons left knee after the football season this year, an $ 18k ACL surgery on his right knee and 3 emergency room visits last year, we pay $ 650 per month for health insurance, and it’s finally paying off. We live in a home that is 125 years old 3,800 sqft farm house with 3 acres and have renovated every major system, redrywalled and carpeted as we could afford it, we pay $ 817.00 per month for mortgage on a 15 year loan and nothing else. We live sparingly and have plenty. We don’t buy the name brand clothes because they typically cost 3 times more than non branded. We pay cash for everything and buy our vehicles used and maintain them well, it often costs less to repair than replace. We go through 15 gallons of milk a week when the kids are in school and 21 when they are home for the summer. The kids go through 24 boxes of breakfast cereal every 2 weeks. Of course we shop at Aldi’s and buy everything else on sale. We pay off all credit cards when the bill comes in. We live well within our means, we keep our debt load very low and within our means. Who cares about what the neighbors think, they are the ones on the road to financial ruin.

One of my fiscally proudest moments as a parent was when my sister in law gave my 17yo. son a pair of “Lucky Brand” jeans for Christmas. My son looked at her and said, “I think I’m going to trade these in and get 4 regular pairs of jeans if you don’t mind”.
And that is exactly what he did.

My wife and I try to teach our kids that spirituality, fiscal responsibility, self reliance and being bigger than any name brand or new car is the way to go.
The true American dream is being debt free, someday soon we will be there.
Peace,
Dave

 

[michaelvcrowder]

buckeyedave,
are you my long lost brother? we have to be related... oh yeah, we are all brothers in Christ, eh?

subject number one:
everyone is griping about losing jobs and/or cutbacks in pay or hours. but most of these same people will go to wall-mart and buy whatever item is cheapest to fit their needs. they don't ever turn it over to see where it is made. guess what? if you buy cheap chinese bicycles for your kids at some point the guy in the american bicycle plant loses his job. then he can't buy whatever your neighbor produces, who in turn can't purchase your products/services. as a society we deserve what is happing to us because we are doing it to ourselves.

i needed some hardware the other day and was real close to lowes. every item i picked up said "made in china". i put it all back and drove to a local industrial supply. i was able to source 80% what we needed for this week from "made in the usa" products. yes it took a little more time and cost a little more money but some guy is going to get to keep his job because that is how i conduct business. you want to keep your job? then support our economy by purchasing american when you can. i realize this is not always possible but you can easily double the number of u.s. products that you purchase.

i own 5 trucks, all made in the usa. i own four motorcycles, all made in the usa. over half of my purchases for home and work say "made in the usa". i challenge ya'll to help support yourself and not just look at the short term of the cheapest price today because that cheap price is going to cost you or someone you know their job eventually.

number two:
everyone complains about the price of fuel. we have not built a single oil refinery in this country or nuclear power plant since the carter years. the microblended fuel act of the clinton administration caused the price of refining gasoline to increase more than any other government action in recent years. we are almost completely dependent on foreign oil but the tree huggers continue to block drilling in anwar. one of our current presidential candidates is against all off shore drilling.

two years ago a large number of democratic candidates for senate and house used the price of fuel as one of their platforms to overtake the republican majority. they promised they would take control and bring the prices down. now they have nearly doubled with the dems at the helm of the legislative branch of the government but everybody is blaming bush in the press. they claim he and cheeny are "big money oil men". if these two men had any control over fuel prices don't you think they would do something about it to help salvage the upcoming election for the republicans?

next in line for the blame are the oil companies. i saw a recent special about an oil exploration company that was looking for wells above the arctic circle. each test well costs them 20 million dollars. they have drilled two this year and came up dry on both of them. they are at test site number 3 now with no guarantees. the oil companies are making the same profit percentage on fuel that they have always made. we are just burning more which is what has increased their profits. guess what? their job is to make money for their stock holders who are us, which we then reinvest back into our economy.

also look at the lawsuits against the oil companies at present. especially in california. everybody thinks the oil companies have deep pockets so lets sue them. everytime a division of a local, state or federal government sues them all the expenses of that suit just get rolled back onto the consumers. so as long as you allow your public officials to sue the oil companies over this and that the price goes up.

so you really want someone to blame for the price of gas. it is you and me! no matter the cost we are still driving our expeditions, suburbans and 4x4 pickup trucks. we are still not carpooling to work, we are still riding around in our boats, r.v.'s, motorcycles or whatever. until we adapt a more european mindset on consumption and public transportation the middle eastern oil countries own us. you want to stop the hemorrhaging? stop burning unnecessary fuel. stop electing officials that say one thing and do another. stop pushing the government to legislate alternative energy. that is the private sectors realm.

number 3:
instant gratification:
the television and print media tell you that you deserve to have everything you want RIGHT NOW. well that is wrong. buying what you can't afford on credit and paying interest works somewhat until the grim reaper comes to settle the account. if the bank says you qualify for a 300,000 dollar home don't go spend 299,999 dollars. buy a 199,000 dollar home and leave yourself some headroom for potential downturns. if the bank says they can't lend you money on a car because you are maxed but the auto company will lease you a ride to satisfy your credit crunch, don't buy into it. keep driving the used car you already have paid for. basically don't buy anything you can't pay for.

fourteen years ago i bought a old house that had been a rental unit for over a decade before i owned it. it was complete trash. i remodeled the master bedroom and one bathroom and the wife and i moved in. the roof leaked, the basement leaked, the pluming half worked and every time we turned on the microwave or a hair dryer the electricity went out. but it was a bargain.

we started saving our money and when we had enough i put a new roof on it. we started saving again and when we had enough we excavated the foundation and re waterproofed the basement. then i started remodeling one room at a time. during this process i re plumbed and rewired the entire house. not once was there any money borrowed on a home equity line or anything put on a credit card. when we had the cash in hand i went and bought supplies.

since the kitchen was the most expensive we saved it for last. we lived without a stove or refrigerator for seven years. we had a cooler for the first couple of years and then someone gave us one of those little refrigerators like we all had in our college dorm rooms. we cooked on a propane coleman stove and with a 50 dollar microwave. when we had saved enough cash i went and bought a full assortment of GE appliances and remodeled the kitchen. it is now as nice as anything you will see on home and garden television.

after this we built an enclose garage and then finally bought us a nice television and furnishings, one at a time. no buy now, pay later schemes, no credit card debt, no other payments. patience has rewarded us with a nice home that we don't owe our soul to a bank or credit union for. now if my work goes away i don't have to worry about losing my home. all of our vehicles are paid for and although they are not new and shiny we don't have to sweat payments during a downturn in the economy.

all while doing this we managed to save a little along the way. in 15 years the wife and i have been to two movies. we go out for dinner about once a month unless we are traveling. i see my friends go out on friday night and take the family to dinner and a movie and it cost 100 to 200 bucks. they do this almost weekly then complain about having trouble paying the bills. if your kid has a xbox 360 with 20 different games and you can't pay your bills then it is your fault about the finances. if someone drinks alcohol, smokes cigarettes, goes out to lunch every day (i brown bag it to work), or does anything else that is unnecessary for basic survival on a credit card then they deserve to be in financial trouble.

if you choose to buy a new car, boat, motorcycle or anything that is not completely necessary in which you have to make payments on then complain about not being able to afford health insurance then tough. when you end up losing your home over an unexpected trip to the hospital, don't blame the government for not providing you with "free" health care. blame yourself for being greedy and not having your priorities straight. when the government provides health care it is going to cost you much more than private insurance by the time they take another 20% of your paycheck in taxes.

what is wrong with the united states of america? a bunch of lazy citizens that think they deserve instant gratification. i am not ranting at any one particular person but our society as a whole. don't take my statements personally unless they are striking home. i am personally welcoming this downturn in the economy. i hope as a lot of people lose their homes, cars and other stuff to the creditors that they and their children will learn some common sense in the process. i will still sympathize with these people and if they will go to their prospective churches they will not starve to death. i urge anyone that is having financial problems to get a free credit consultation with crown financial ministries. if you want to take total control of your destiny then this organization or a similar one like the dave ramsey lectures will change you life and that of your kids. don't let the children fall into the same trap that we have!
michael

 

[cajunlizz]

I can NOT agree more

 

[SterlingAcres]

I won't gripe about anything. I'm thankful.
The past 6 months, this economy has been so sh*tty that we moved from town and sold all the extra things we had including extra vehicles. We bought a farm, we've got chickens coming, dairy goats soon, close to 1/2 acre garden will go in next spring as well, bought a chest freezer to stock up on roo meat this fall...
With everything going downhill and money being tight, all it's done is changed my ideals. I don't need a million dollar home in Malibu and all the 'bling' that goes with it. I've seriously downsized. Our home is now 700sq ft and we've more than enough room for a family of 4 with a dog. We live off one income and we have no issues paying for our necessities.
I do not:
-use a dryer. Don't even plan on getting one, our clothesline works just fine.
-use any lights during the day. Computer and bator are exceptions.
-buy new clothing. I purchase from local consignment and thrift stores, because name brands do not matter to me and children grow so fast, they won't even have the same clothing next year.
-own a second, third or fourth vehicle anymore. We have one car and I only use it on Wednesdays when I grocery shop after payday. If I have errands, they're done the same trip.
-pay anyone to cut our hair. I cut DH's and the boys hair myself. I haven't had mine cut in years and don't see it happening anytime soon.

There's probably a ton more... like we plan on getting a solar oven, solar shower, rain collection system and a few other things up and running soon. All DIY of course. But in the long run, I'd rather be as self sufficient as possible. I find it morally wrong that the majority of the human race has never killed and made their own meals. If you dropped them off in the woods, would they even know how to survive? Have we really lost all those instincts? We have so much more in this country than everywhere else... and most of it, we don't even need. We just have it to have it.

 

[Alaskan]

I agree about the saving money and not spending more than you make..

I don't follow it quite as well as I should *sigh*

but right now I am feeling some major sticker shock.

We just discovered that child #2 has Celiac (no gluten for life). That pretty much translates to a more expensive grocery bill to buy the 'odd' flours or small packages of gluten free pasta. We can still eat rice, which isn't bad price wise. Mostly just a pain in the rear, and a bit of a shock money wise. And then to add to the cost, child #1 and 2 are not to eat any beef, pork, or chicken for 1 to 3 years. Not that this is the end of the world, but it is another shock money wise.

We haven't yet decided what to do about the extra food cost. We can't keep buying gluten free stuff as well as buffalo meat. The fish hasn't been running well this year. Whatever my DH has brought home we have eaten in less than a week. I am hoping for a really big moose come hunting season.

We might have to simply totally change how we eat and go to mostly rice and beans.

And of course the cost of food up here has really been going up due to the transport cost.

And I have 5 boys, the eldest is almost 10, but they already eat a bunch.

 

[michaelvcrowder]

alaskan,
food is going up everywhere. many staple items have doubled and quadrupled even here in the lower 48. transportation costs are a small part of it. the biggest cause is that some moron decided it would be a good idea to legislate that we turn our fuel supply into food. ethanol is a VERY BAD idea. by the time the tree huggers and the press figure this out then a lot of damage will have already been done.
michael

 

[Robin'sBrood]

Quote:

 

[Emzyyy]

My dad is going to put electric moters in his oldsmobile for us to get to school. He says he'll only put enough electricity for us to get to school and back. -__-

 

[michaelvcrowder]

henmamma2,
there i go typing faster than i think again. thanks for pointing out my word reversal. that should read "turning our food supply into fuel"
michael

 

[sundance]

we live on a fixed income,no credit cards,and try to use as little electric as possible. Due to a severe heart condition both DH and I have to have A/C. but we keep it set on 78 degrees, and this month our electric bill was $129.00. We stay home except for going to church and do our grocery buying once a month. we do have cable but No cell phone,a garden and of course the chickens. but I like to read,(thanks someone for the link to paperback trade), I buy lots of books at yard sales and then donate them to local library, since we don't need any new clothes, we save there and since both of us need to loose a few pounds we have cut down on food, We still more than enough to eat but we just don't seem to need it anymore. guess age has that advantage. Since the nearest convenience store is 14 miles from home we buy everything we need in one trip to town. All prescription's are refilled at same time. I pay anybills (utility, cable by P/C, and if we do need something I either order it or have one of the kids pick it up on way home from work.