Your basket is currently empty!
Expenses
Forever free, unsponsored, and proudly primate produced! If you’ve enjoyed reading, please consider buying me a coffee.
-
Saving not Spending
Christmas is over, the January sales are over, and credit card bills are starting to arrive. It’s time to start thinking about saving not spending.
-
5 ways to help save the environment
You may hold the opinion that it’s not your responsibility. But what serious effort have you seen Government or Business make to help save the environment?
-
Small Business Saturday
Small Business Saturday is an event in November which takes place between the Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales to encourage people to shop locally.
-
Reciprocity, Relationships, and Power
I’ve been thinking more about respect, relationships, and reciprocity. Mainly, as I mentioned, because we’ve started looking at updating the house.
-
Freak Situations
In one of a number of freak situations, we recently endured a major power outage/failure/interruption caused by wild weather. Fingers are pointing, accusations are flying, and we’re ducking recriminations all round. More than half the state of Victoria was affected.
-
Iceberg dead ahead
Do you sometimes think about what’s coming. Perhaps with a mixed feeling of excitement and dread, all the time thinking there’s an iceberg dead ahead.
-
Thoughtless shopping and life
Recently I’ve been thinking that shopping can be a metaphor for life. Not so much the shopping itself, but why we are so thoughtless about the shopping. And living.
-
The Problems of #GirlMaths
I recently heard about #girlmaths, and it doesn’t make me happy. It involves specious calculations to reduce the cost of clothes/shoes/accessories to free…
-
The Smell of Woodsmoke
The other day, we took Clever girl for a walk around the neighbourhood. There was a beautiful blue sky, and the temperature was warm, but not too warm, with just a lazy wind. And the smell of woodsmoke.
-
Christmas is coming
I saw my first Christmas decorations recently, and I suddenly realised Christmas is coming. It came as quite a surprise.
-
Inflation and You
I’ve been watching the inflation rate with interest. The local commercial tv stations running around like headless chickens talking about how disastrous inflation is
-
Money, Time, and Health
As far as I am concerned, there are three aspects to wealth: money, time and health. As I say in Holistic Personal Finance, the value of money
-
Revisiting Just-in-Time Delivery
The concept of just-in-time delivery is essentially having ZERO stock on hand, ordering it when when you need it. In 2015, when I was long-term unemployed, I wrote a post about developing the virtue of Wealth. Essentially, it involved: But, times are changing… In the good old pre-Covid days, it was possible to buy as…
-
The Cost of Money
Wealth is worth more than the cost of money. Wealth is an abundance of something, whether that’s time, money or physical wellbeing.
-
Product Price v Quality
Continuing the theme of choice, and gratitude, today I’m talking a bit more about choice. Only this time, more about things than people. Both in terms of price, v quality. And why it’s sometimes better to pay a bit more.
-
Is the Old or New Normal Better For You?
Politicians have “won” the war on Covid, and are talking “getting back to normal,” even though we don’t have a normal to go back to. We have a “new normal.”
-
Wealthy is as Wealthy Does
There’s a proverb of sorts, Beauty is as Beauty does And according to Walt Disney (video has sound) at any rate, it means being kind and doing something nice for someone who feels down. Every single day. Because beauty is about what’s on your inside, not the outside. You can Google to your heart’s content,…
-
What, Why, and How of Pleasure
When times get tough, one of the first expenses cut is pleasure. In the face of all other considerations, it becomes frivolous and wasteful. And yet, without pleasure, life can look and feel very grim.
-
Electricity Humbug
The other day, our electricity went out, and I was a little surprised about how dependent on it we’ve become. Even though I’ve written about that before.
-
Your Role as Purchasing Agent
Have you ever thought about your role as a Purchasing Agent? Or are you like most people who just buy stuff?
-
How to Eat Well and Save Money on Food
As I mentioned for my 2016 Transplantiversary, I’m hoping to make some significant lifestyle changes to get down to the hospital recommended weight. I’ve ordered new cookbooks to help! During my cookbook shopping, I found a review of Jamie Oliver’s Everyday Super Food, which dismissed it (1 star) because if you made the dishes as described…
-
Wealth Management for a Happy Retirement
The tender “winners” are an older couple in their sixties who can’t afford to retire, so they have started an office cleaning business. Instead of the happy retirement life of sun-seeking travel, relaxation, and comfort they had fondly imagined.
-
Deliberations on Luxury
With the research for my new book Holistic Personal Finance progressing nicely, I’ve been thinking about luxury. Partly inspired by the old guy who just paid $55 for a packet of cigarettes (I believe they were about $15 when I quit), but more particularly luxury in food.
-
A Short History of Attitudes Towards Household Expenditure
I am intrigued in particular about how the attitudes towards household expenditure I’ve been reading about have changed.
-
2015 Summer Wardrobe Plan part 3
In part one, I talked about the basics, part two a wardrobe review, and now in the 2015 Summer Wardrobe Plan part 3, it’s time to refine the plan.
-
2015 Summer Wardrobe Plan part 2
In part 1, I formulated the basic plan. Now, in the 2015 Summer Wardrobe Plan part 2, it’s time to get a bit more specific about the details.
-
2015 Summer Wardrobe Plan part 1
After four years of unemployment, I must buy clothes for the life I’m currently living. It’s time to develop a 2015 Summer Wardrobe plan.
-
A Critique of Glamour’s “24 Fashion Essentials You’ll Need in 2015”
In a large nutshell, this is my problem with “fashion essentials”. An essential is something that you just can’t do without; the air that you breathe for example. Fashion is a customary or conventional way of doing something; in this instance, a way of dressing.
-
Wardrobe Planning 1935 style
Today’s advice about wardrobe planning 1935 style comes from a college textbook I discovered during my book research.
-
How to Protect Yourself from buying counterfeit goods
Recently I had the misfortune to purchase counterfeit goods online. Owning counterfeit goods in Australia is illegal, let alone selling them. I found it very shocking – I thought I had been really careful, but once you click the buy button it’s too late!
-
The Benefit of Clothing Budgets
It’s been a couple of weeks since I talked about the value of wardrobe planning, so I thought I’d follow up with some thoughts on clothing budgets and buying clothes.
-
Young Spirit v Older Body
I received a not-for-profit solicitation in the mail the other day. It’s an organisation that I believe does worthwhile work in the local and international communities. I have supported it for many years with donations of money, and more recently with my time and services. But, the solicitation really disturbed me – it made me very uncomfortable on a number…
-
How to Make the Perfect Pizza
One of the rare pleasures of unemployment is the time you can spare to make “real” food. Today, it’s the perfect pizza.
-
Could You Do Fashion On a Budget?
I spent too much on clothes – most of them mistakes, and I still had nothing to wear! I needed a system to procure fashion on a budget.
-
Virtue of Wealth
Cut and dried, the virtue of wealth is all about money (or maybe goods in lieu). It’s about being able to pay the mortgage and put food on the table. And not just for the now, I need to ensure there is money for the future too.
