Fixed Income Living-Saving on Expenses VS Earning Income

As I've shared on other occasions, I look forward to living on a small pension and my husband's social security.  It's fair to say those amounts will not give me a great deal of disposable income. I've talked about my attempts to build some streams of income such as selling crafts, selling stuff and attempting to begin a concierge business (which has yet to see much income at all).  I look for income from these various streams to give me some added security and greater flexibility in life choices.

Here's the thing, though. I spend at least an equal amount of energy on saving money as making money.  Given the choice, I would rather spend time saving money than creating income.

Why do I choose saving money over making money when possible?  Well, first, because its often more effective and more efficient.  When I save a dollar in one area, that's given me a full dollar of disposable income to spend elsewhere.  Were I to go out and earn that dollar as income I could lose as much as forty percent of it to social security, federal and state taxes and medicare (remember, I'm not of social security or medicare age as of yet).  and that doest include any expenses I might incur such as gas expenses or special clothing costs.

In my case at least, most of my money saving tasks can be done either in the relaxation of my home, or while I am doing the normal activities of life.  Even though I have "home based" streams of income, earning that income requires my going out and interacting with people, searching for business, marketing and the like.  Many meals (even restaurant quality meals) that I make have down time, during which I can read, relax and do the things I find most enjoyable.  Searching for discounts and deals and freebies can be done relaxing on the couch while I'm watching "MI5" on PBS.  Not only that, but I'm probably in a lounger or jammies when I do so.

Another reason I often choose savings over earning is that the results of frugality and saving money are usually visual and often immediate, or darned close.  Today I was window shopping, looking for decorating ideas to make my home more "springlike".  I've determined that winter is over, whether mother nature agrees is yet to be seen.  Once I arrived home, within an hour or so I had made decisions and been creative with what I had on hand. I managed to make my living room seasonal in a few hours, with almost no spending. The rest of the transformation will require a bit more time and effort (and a sewing machine).  The reward for my effort was then and there, both in terms of creativity and money savings. Also, by not spending money in one area, I've immediately increased my "disposable income".

Lastly, saving money often simply requires doing nothing.  By choosing to create a gourmet meal instead of going out, I expend energy instead of money. But the truth is, in many other cases I simply choose to eliminate that spending choice.  In other words, as I mentioned in a previous posting, sometimes its the things I don't do that save me money and increase income.

Everyone makes different financial choices, and some folks who are on a fixed income or retired may truly enjoy their work. I don't mean to imply that earning money is a bad thing. For those of us who work primarily out of necessity, it's good to look at all sides of the picture before stepping out into the "earning world"

FNK (Frugal, no kids)

I read a great many blogs related to frugality, money management or saving money. Most of them have good days and bad days, but it's always interesting reading.  Even at this level of my life I enjoy different perspectives and you can always learn something new.

The one thing I notice about many if not most frugal blogs, is that they spend a great deal of time discussing frugality in terms of raising children. Clothing sales, frugal home school, how to get school supplies frugally-these are all the meat of many frugal blogs. I understand this. When young families start out, this is generally the time when money is tightest. School loans are being paid off. Wage earners are at the beginning of their careers.

The thing is though, that there is a whole generation, a group if you will of single or married folks without children who need and use frugal advice as well. Maybe they are in a career that pays not very much money, maybe they've lost jobs. They could be someone like me, living on a widow's pension instead of my husbands professional salary.  They could be middle aged or retired, having lost much of their retirement and living on a great deal less than they had planned.

The other type of financial blog is the so called "retirement blog".  These blogs generally spend most of their time on planning for retirement or maximizing one's investments after retirement or a layoff. While this is helpful to some folk, single people, empty nest boomers, retirees and the like need a different kind of financial advise. The economy has changed the landscape for people in this country drastically, and many of us who would have been comfortable retirees, or DINKS for example, are now looking at ways to save money and live the life we want.

As I take this blog in its new direction, I hope it will be enjoyable, and provide insights to a few people here and there. I'm sure there are many people out there like me, be they twenty, forty or sixty, who have less income than they hoped, and want to live richly on what is available, whatever the reason. I'm not a professional, and I never play one. but hopefully we'll all have a good time.

Whew, It's Hot!!!

First off, let me say that I chose the Dallas area over Denver (where much of my family lives) for two reasons-weather and costs of living. I'm overall happy with my choice and my location. Now that I've said all that...

Darn, it's hot!! We've got triple digits today and will have them at leas through the week. While I'm not complaining overall, it does impact my exercise level and my yard work a big. When its ninety degrees in the morning, weeding gets shoved to the wayside. I've moved my morning water aerobics (I exercise in our community pool during the summer and then move to the rec center again lager on), to seven thirty am both to avoid the crowds of children and the heat.

I always seem to spend a tiny bit more on groceries in the summer. I/we grill a great deal, and in general grillable  meats cost a big more per pound than the kinds of meat I will throw in the slow cooker or the oven in November. Overall I still do well and it averages out, I think. This weekend my son and I looked at each other after our Saturday errands and decided silently that no one was cooking. I picked up a roasted chicken at Kroger, along with some ready made coleslaw. We had green salad and heat in the micro and eat biscuits (thank God for freezer cooking), fresh fruit for dessert. The chicken will give us one more full meal, and lunches for the week, most likely. All and all the 6.99 was a good spend. Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do.

Although I try to make Sundays do nothing days (church and lunch out usually take up half the day at least), its too hot to sit outside, even on my covered patio, so today I'm dealing with the bills, coupons, deals and other paperwork left sitting from my Denver visit.  It's much easier for me to be frugal when organized!!