Finding "Purpose"

Finding a purpose.

I've been surfing around for information on the golden calf of American society.

“Finding a Purpose”

What I've found is somewhat depressive, everything from boiler plate buddhism to the veiled suggestion to make yourself cry while making a list of things you like to do in life.

For myself, I tend to believe whatever you apply your passion plus your discipline to becomes ones purpose. The above is well intentioned advice, however as the Dhammpada mentions, we all walk upstream in life with no particular end to that stream.

I would suggest to enjoy what one has, do not want more then you can possibly use and finish whatever goal one has for ones life. And that can be anything from starting a multi million dollar business to enjoying a beverage at the water hole. Just do not be so consumed with the goal as to not enjoy the journey.

That lack of enjoyment, usually replaced by everything from hatred, frustration, envy, disenchantment, bitterness, is how lives are wasted. Sadly they are never truly lived in the first place.

Enjoy what is in your cup, even if the cup is empty.

Beef prices rising..again

"The average retail price of beef from January through April this year is 7.7% higher than the same period a year ago, according to the USDA's Economic Research Service data, while it's remained steady over the past few months, says John Michael Riley, an assistant professor in Mississippi State University's department of agricultural economics. And the average price in 2011 was 9.8% higher than in 2010.

Higher Prices Will Continue

Shoppers are going to continue to see higher prices at the meat counter — and not just for beef. Chris Hurt, a professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University, says he expects the average price of beef to rise to about $5.30 a pound next year. So far this year through May, retail prices have averaged $5.03 a pound — a record high for this time period (it was $4.72 a pound for January-May 2011 and $4.83 for all of 2011). The latest Consumer Price Index for all food is projected to increase 2.5% to 3.5% in 2012"

Courtesy of Yahoo finance

An average increase in the price of beef over the last two years of 8.5%, all very predictable, mostly under the radar as well courtesy of the prevalence of food stamps among US consumers.

Now here at the Last Cause, we believe in giving value for value, so this is not a shot at "greedy cattle barons", though most ranching in the US is more then likely done on mass scale by corporate farms and not by small ranchers.

A few substitutes for beef include Elk and Deer and other game animals, which has been covered here before, though one does have to wonder why, even in the early yrs of a new century, such game is not allowed via various laws, to be sold or traded?

Alpha Strategy in action

One of the lessons I've learned over my two year hiatus from blogging is having implemented the Alpha Strategy is effective, but not completely so. Reason being is stockpiles of increasing in cost commodities does not cover for monthly living expenses.

Such storage does help to mitigate a lack of cash for things you need such as laundry detergent and toilet paper. Another finer point is having the necessary equipment such as food processors is also a must. Huge cans of tomatoes are nice, without a way to quickly turn them into tomato sauce means they will not be used.

Another point is ones family has to like the food or it will not be used.

A few items of food processing equipment that would have been helpful:

-Bread machine, these save hard cash
-Food processor, for making everything from tomato sauce to jalapeno mustard.
-Crock pot, for making everything from frijilos con porco to lasagna to onion soup

All three items can be easily found at most thrift stores such as goodwill and at local community free cycle locations.

Overall however, the Alpha Strategy has worked as long term unemployment and underemployment is a fact of life in Asheville North Carolina. Several of my coworkers have remained unemployed for two years now. A family member has been under employed for at least a year. My fellow coworkers who have found jobs are making much less then they were prior to being laid off.
Some have grown extra large gardens, others have opened online businesses. The ones whose spouses have remained employed weathered the financial turmoil, the family member has been forced to go deeply into stockpiled Alpha Strategy goods such as canned hams. In my case the food has not been an issue, the problem items have been household goods such as toilet paper and laundry detergent, these cost hard cash and there are no substitutes that seem workable such as homemade laundry detergent.

Quick Ramen Recipe!

Tastee and inexpensive, pasta and ramen recipes.

I joked with a friend of mine at college one day about ramen flavor packets literally bleaching students souls. A poor joke of course however when the funds are low Top Ramen or various other brands will be on the menu. Ditto the lowly box of pasta.

Here is my favorite Ramen recipe:

-two packs of ramen
-sesame oil
-butter or margarine
-Parmesan cheese.
-garlic or onion powder

Cook ramen on stove top, or microwave oven. It takes about 5 minutes to cook two packs of ramen in a standard microwave. Discard flavor packet, or use very sparingly as this is usually were the sodium content comes into play

Drain in colander
add to bowl
add sesame oil, about half a teaspoon
add Parmesan cheese, butter and onion or garlic powder

Mix ingredients into ramen, enjoy. I prefer my ramen dry as the broth from the flavor packet is just far to salty for my tastes. A variation is to hold the sesame oil and use peanut butter, or to drop an egg into the pot when the ramen is cooking to make egg drop ramen.

Pasta

I enjoy making pasta al fresco with veggies from the kitchen container garden. The local sav mor has 1 pd bags of pastas such as rotinis and macaroni for .80 cents so this is on the menu frequently. However a proper ragu sauce is expensive to make even when using ingredients such as pork neck bones and ground turkey instead of ground beef. So a lighter pasta recipe is called for and here is mine.






Bring 8 qt pot to a boil
add salt
add oregano oil*

In a bowl, mix Parmesan cheese, melted butter, garlic or onion powder, cayenne pepper or black pepper.

Drain pasta
Mix in poor man's Alfredo sauce
Add veggies from garden (optional)
Bread and butter is nice with this,

*oregano oil is made simply by adding last fall's left over oregano to a half gallon wine bottle and filling the bottle with olive oil and allowing it to sit for the winter. This works great for left over herbs as dried oregano and dried basil just do not do it for me. Basil oil made like this is just awesome on pasta!

Vintage Technology that still performs

Old technology that is frugal, yet serviceable is one of the great secrets of living cheaply, but with style, this should be a goal for everyone who rejects consumerism. A bold statement in a “hipster” culture.

The reasons are simple yet profound.

First and foremost a laptop with wifi is a must, the one I'm currently composing this post on, a Dell C400, cost 40 dollars and came without a hard drive or caddy. However at 6 pounds and 10 inches by 10 inches it is the size of a netbook, yet half of the cost even after buying a caddy and new hard drive. Add in an old wireless wireless N wifi card that was laying around and a battery bought directly from a Hong Kong distributor. This created neat package that easily fits into a back pack for bike commuting.

With such a package it is simple to go to a wifi hotspot and conduct everything from an Ebay business to submitting applications for employment online to doing college coursework. Another benefit in using recycled is one learns how to fix laptops and note book computers so much so it has become a side business. Granted it won't keep the lights on but it does generate cash. One caution about taking that approach is finding device drivers for some old models can be a chore and set a 1 ghz processor minimum or your laptop will become a paper weight.

Another surprisingly fun piece of old technology that has been useful is a ink jet printer, not one of those spiffy, yet ink hungry all in one models, but an old school HP deskjet 932c. Mine is very durable, replacement ink cartridges cost 12 dollars each or can be refilled by oneself, Compared to the all in one models this runs circles around them in terms of cost per page and costs to operate.

The third and final piece of old tech that is quite useful is a sony walkman. When one bike commutes one has time to listen to information or music. An Ipod or knock off MP3 player is smaller and lighter and far more hip. BUT things such as language course cassettes are 1 dollar at a thrift store compared to the media costs of using a MP3 player once again the old tech wins. Currently I've found courses in Chinese, Spanish, Arabic and Sales all for one dollar.

A life long commitment to learning is quite inexpensive and well worth the effort in terms of self esteem and confidence.

Bike Commuting 098

Bike Commuting 098


Ah, the perils and joys of bike commuting, all year around, books can and should be written about them. When the job went away and gasoline hit 3.80, it was peddle power for this fella.

This was a challenge and one of the largest lifestyle changes for me. Starting to bike commute at a time when most men are beginning to have wide guts and new cars was first and foremost..awkward. The US has social expectations about where men should be in terms of their transportation at stages in their lives, one is to have a new car and the debt that comes along with it, the other is the unsaid of “bikes are for preteens not grown men”. That is not to say women do not have such societal pressures, for example “have a child by the time you are 30”, that however, is a digression.

Bike commuting in the mountains when one is 40 pounds overweight at the time meant a traditional road bike is also out of the question. For those wondering “road bike” is the new way to describe a ten speed. This meant a steel framed hybrid which is somewhere between a road bike and a ten speed, such as wider tires then a road bike but thinner tires then a mountain bike. Several gears were also a must, the single speed bikes are just brutal to deal with on a half mile climb, up the mountain side.

A couple of must haves on a bike commuting rig:
-Front light, these are required in all 50 states
-Fenders, without them riding in even the lightest of rain is an adventure in suck
-Rear luggage rack, the more you can comfortably carry the more useful your rig is.
-Tools
-Air pump or tank
-Spare tubes and tires
-Gloves, your hands will go numb if you ride far enough.

I consider a helmet optional, as in your choice. It has been my experience that one either knows what one is doing, or you do not, a helmet is no substitute. On a bike not only should you consider that you are responsible for you, but also for bad drivers.

The drawbacks
-Societal pressure, believe me when I say this is a fact in my town
-Time, it does take longer and you will make less trips (and save money by not making them
-You will get hot and sweaty

The benefits
-Save money, lots of it.
-Health benefits, literally I now am in the best shape I've been in since the late 1990's and soon will weigh the same as I did in High School
-Scenery, this is so true, in a car there is no time to appreciate your surroundings, on a bike you hear the birds, feel the cool of the morning, appreciate how steep or flat the road or bike trail is laid out.
-Meet more people, there is a sort of bike commuting club usually with very diverse interests but with a love for riding.

Bike commuting is not for everyone, you will meet those who believe everyone should bike commute and you will meet some who are not thrilled you are riding on the road who make their displeasure known. It requires commitment and focus, the payoff in terms of financial, physical and spiritual is high, however the physical work, the societal pressure and inefficiency are also factors.

If one wishes to try it, by all means, do so, and find a bike that fits you and ride the thing on a schedule to get used to riding. Ride on roadways to get the feel for traffic, lighter traffic is better at first as it takes time to learn to use an intersection with a red light on a bike. Which is the difference between a preteen riding and an adult bicycle commuting. A kid on a bike is sort of messing around, an adult on a bike in a roadway is seriously traveling and is more akin to a car with peddles.

Back in the saddle again

Hmm, here I am again.

2 years between blog posts, however my subject, inflation in commodity prices was so obvious there was little reason to continue to belabor the point.

Lots of life changes, mostly "bad" some "good", as I restart this process these shall be mixed in along with some less than obvious points and some photos of my town and area to give a flavor of where I'm coming from when I blog.

Food producers announce price increases

"...Prices of staples including milk, beef, coffee, cocoa and sugar have risen sharply in recent months. And food makers and retailers including McDonald's Corp., Kellogg Co. and Kroger Co. have begun to signal that they'll try to make consumers shoulder more of the higher costs for ingredients.

For food executives, how quickly to pass along higher costs presents difficult choices. Missteps could be costly when the economy...."

Per the Wall Street Journal

There is a window to stock up now on staples before these preplanned price increases take effect, unless of course one believes the money can be invested elsewhere for a higher return than the price increases will be, right now it appears to be anywhere from 3% for companies and 4 dollars on 1 pd of premium beef.

Thank you helicopter Ben, now armed with information, I'd expect a buy of staples as not even pasta and rice will escape this round of price inflation and Coffee seen as a daily staple inside the US will certainly see even more of a price increase as the dollar's decline will make importing Coffee even more expensive as well as piggy back price increase by coffee producers that they will blame on the declining dollar.

Knife Sharpening.

Well, if you have time to watch TV, you have time to sharpen all of your utensils. A sharp knife means less effort is needed to use as well as being a nice helper when you are deboning a chicken thigh or a fish or what have you.

This a video on how to use a wheeled knife sharpener these do a fine job especially on longer blades and charming cheapy flea market blades.

The old fashioned way, a wet stoned pocket knife

For a prepper, or Frugalist, how to use a cinder block to sharpen a knife

How to use some commercial systems such as a Lansky

How to fix a blade with a chip in it with a stone

Wet stone maintenance

Learn to sharpen your own blades, scissors, shovels, hatchets, what have you, so they perform the way they should when you reach for them.

The Bicycle experiment

Lately I've found, with additional time on my hands, that I have a renewed interest in bicycling, a past time I loved as a young man moreso than driving an automobile. Being forced into frugality, my selection for bicycles to engage in this past time is limited to the products at the local Goodwill Thrift Store.

Which means..Huffy bicycles, at one time Huffy was just considered a lower end bike, now among bicycling purists Huffy is akin to cow flop with rims that may or may not melt when exposed to direct sunlight.

At least that is what my online research (research=lurking on Bicycle Forums and reading old posts) has shown. Undaunted, I picked up two Huffy bikes, one a Superia 15 speed, the other an ancient Santa Fe 10 speed. The Superia appears to have been what I'd politely call a "good idea at the time" bicycle, someone bought it, rode it maybe 5 times, parked it in the garage and eventually donated it to Goodwill, the tubes are fine, the tires are fine, the brakes work etc. But with air in the tires, and a relubing the crank, forks, and wheels, it was road ready from Day 1.

It also cost a whopping 12.50 cents

The Santa Fe is a different situation completely, it was more or less from the "rode hard, put away wet" category, the 1 3/8th inch tires were flat, the front derailuer does not work, the bearing were all dry as sun bleached bones, the inner tubes had holes, the rear dereaileur was out of adjustment, and to top it off, it came from an era where tires and tubes are not standardized a 26 inch road tire could mean one of 3 possibilities and no amount of googling will solve the mystery one has to try them out or take the wheel to the local bicycle shop were to enjoy the faintly patronizing looks as the innocent question of "do you have a tire to fit this rim" question is asked.

I have no intention of mentioning that it belongs to a Huffy, least wise the patronizing look turns into thinly veiled contempt as they consider this klutz in front of them basically married their Sister, or at least 1st cousin, by owning a Huffy and having the gall to walk into THEIR shop with such a piece of garbage!

Pardon the digression.

The Sante Fe cost a whopping 10 dollars, but the reality is a Huffy of that vintage is worth 100 dollars..at most. So repairs are an expense that is not going to be recouped. However the advantage the 10 speed has over the 15 speed is simple, it is a lighter, quicker bike if one has to peddle 10 miles less weight and less rolling resistance is the way to go.

I found the tires and tubes needed on Amazon.com for 32 dollars delivered which is somewhat expensive, however if the Santa Fe works I suspect that it will be ridden far more than the more durable, but heavy, Superia. 

At the end of it all, the benefit from a cost point of view will not be all that great, even with gasoline at 2.80 a gallon, my vehicle achieves 22 mpg, meaning to recoup that 42 dollars I'll have to peddle 70 miles or so to just break even and since it is the Fall heading into Winter, that seems like a tough deal to manage to accomplish. However the health benefits should not be ignored as if one does not have health, what do you have to replace it?

Free Stuff and a Cold Steel Shovel upgrade

Gentlemen sounds as if he is Australian, but his modification of the Cold Steel Special Forces Shovel are among the best I've ever seen the cord wrapped handle along with the additional pouches attached to the nylon sheath are good ideas. I've used a CS shovel for everything from camping to a coal moving device on a BBQ grill to a thrower and the CS shovel just trucked right through everything that I've thrown at it.

Ah, Kuntao Silat Footwork, Steve Gartin IS a fine teacher, but with a troubled past, as with most teacher/student relationships, both should take away what they are looking for and discard that which is unprofitable.

General Mills has announced a 5% price increase for their products.

Take advantage of opportunities, especially if you live in the Southern Portions of the US as Winter will be upon us soon and all we can wait for is Spring, and the rebirth of the Earth..5 months from now..

Federal Reserve Announces:we have to steal more value from your savings

We've all been to the movies to see an Action Film, the Hero is some supposedly highly trained merchant of death out to save the world, the villian is of course clearly delineated, suspicious laugh, psychotic small army of men willing to spend their lives etc.

That of course is Reel Life, in Real Life, they are much more difficult to spot but occasionally they do mark themselves, to whit:

Federal Reserve Open Market Committee:

"...The Committee will continue to monitor the economic outlook and financial developments and is prepared to provide additional accommodation if needed to support the economic recovery and to return inflation, over time, to levels consistent with its mandate..."

In their view, the way to fix things is to make the money you have in your pocket, bank account, piggy bank, what have you, worth much less in order to stimulate the Economy.

Basically they are planning to rob the value of your money through the silent tax of inflating the currency, now would be a great time to use a Modern Version of the Alpha Strategy to purchase items that are needed, but will be more expensive in the future as the Robber is not using a firearm, but a digital creation of US Dollars to make everyone in the United States all the more poor.

This is in addition to the news that now 1 in 7 Americans are in poverty, the highest level ever recorded, there are an additional millions barely above the poverty line via Unemployment Insurance Payments that should have expired some time ago.

However as a philosophical issue, income should never mean poverty or no poverty as it is safe to say whomever bothers to read this blog is smart enough to structure their life to have as Wealthy a lifestyle as Common Sense may provide.

From raising a garden to self improvement to recapturing that health of youth, "we" know the score no matter the promises from a politician of Nuevo Utopia, it is up to ourselves to create our own lives and it would be helpful if they stepped out of the way and allowed that to happen.

Lower Fixed Costs by any means necessary.

Welcome the Consumerist to the links at the bottom of the page

Ran across the Consumerist on Survival Blog and thought it a useful tool for those who are concerned with both saving money and receiving good value when money has to spent.

Their Shrink Ray is both funny and sad and illustrates "how" Large Food Corporations change weights and amounts of ingredients but use the same size packaging. Any consumer or modern Alpha Strategist needs to know that information as per unit cost is one of the keys to savings and value.

How the Alpha Strategy has made money for me.

Ah, Unemployment, the new American Pandemic, a terrible affliction that has reached my doorstep in the form of losing my job in the down economy. Fortunately I had a month and half of lead time before the closure and put it to work via stocking up on goods that would have to be purchased with expensive but cheap money over the upcoming months whilst the job search, or new venture is launched.

Expensive but cheap money, one asks, isn't that an oxymoron?

Allow me to explain, right now after years of working the household is well stocked with the items that make a home a home, cleaning supplies, laundry detergent, soap, toilet paper etc. as time rolls forward those items will be depleted through normal usage, to purchase replacement items two months from now, with dwindling cash reserves is quite expensive when there is no other income coming into the home. But the money is "cheap" as it was created out of nothing at all but a vague promise of "full faith and credit".

By purchasing those household items over the past two years, in bulk, the Alpha Strategy helped me to avoid the "Expensive but Cheap" conundrum, as well as sidestepping the 10% inflation on those items that has bumped prices upwards.

Reviewing my notes from 2008, a jumbo box of Surf detergent at Sam's Club in 2008 cost 14.54, today they cost over 17.00, so every box of Surf purchased in 2008 has made around 3 dollars per box..not to bad a ROI.

There is one item that has retreated in price due to Govt Subsidies, Light Bulbs, in 2009 those mercury filled, energy efficient bulbs were 9 dollars for a pack of 8, now they are 3 dollars for a pack of 8 due to Subsidies from the Govt.

Win some, lose some.

Our Summer of Discontent

Well, for better or worse the US rolls forward into a uncertain future, it should be rather clear by now to all but fanatics that Obama's policies have, on the main, failed, now the US is looking at a mountain of debt, a War that is in shambles, and political leadership that enjoys the trappings more than the job.

Meanwhile, the small, quicker fish should be moving into Yr 2 of garden planning and harvesting, conserving cash to purchase durable goods, if not purchased already, and have finally realize the truth of the matter, the plaintiff cries from the flooded streets of New Orleans post Katrina "Help us, Help us" have been answered in the only manner the Govt knows how to..ineffectively.

Inflation rises by 2%

Death Taxes and Inflation.

With the Federal Reserve unlikely to tighten monetary supply, now would be a good time to stock up on Items one will need this Fall, things such as Motor Oil and Filters, Tools, Ammunition, Bulk Food and perhaps Christmas Gifts.

Time for this year's garden

It has been a long and cold winter but the first real green shoots are coming up now, which means "time to plant the early spring garden". 

This year's foray will be mostly herbs as last yr's experiment just did not have enough room for proper vegetables to flourish, Basil and Cilantro and Oregano will be the main crop this year as they are used the most around the house in cooking.

December Inflation rises 2.7%

Prices on food and fuel rose in December prompting the Fed to contemplate raising interest rates, which means the proto recovery, or faux recovery will be over before it begins.

 

1 in 5 US Families could not purchase food in 2009

Well, here at the Last Cause we tend to look eskew on anti Hunger groups in the US as the dichotmy, Obeisity and Hunger is simply to large to reconcile.

However, this story caught the eyes:

"..Nationwide polling found 18.2 percent of households reported "food hardship" -- lacking money to buy enough food -- in 2009, according to the group. That is higher than the government's "food insecurity" rating of 14.6 percent of households, or 49 million people, for 2008.

Households with children had a "food hardship" rate of 24.1 percent for 2009 compared with 14.9 percent among households without children. Twenty states had rates of 20 percent or higher. Seven Southern states led the list..."

Food insecurity? They made that up, or the respondents did not understand the question, or perhaps did not know how to prepare simple foods, after all Children's palates have been subtly changed via massive amounts of Sugar in nearly every food product aimed at the pre 12 yr old market.

A decent larder/pantry/storage would see people through the hard times, yet it would not include the Sugary foods, but would not be bland and tasteless either.

Extending the life span of lithium batteries

"Aging of lithium-ion is an issue that is often ignored. A lithium-ion battery in use typically lasts between 2-3 years. The capacity loss manifests itself in increased internal resistance caused by oxidation. Eventually, the cell resistance reaches a point where the pack can no longer deliver the stored energy although the battery may still have ample charge. For this reason, an aged battery can be kept longer in applications that draw low current as opposed to a function that demands heavy loads. Increasing internal resistance with cycle life and age is typical for cobalt-based lithium-ion, a system that is used for cell phones, cameras and laptops because of high energy density. The lower energy dense manganese-based lithium-ion, also known as spinel, maintains the internal resistance through its life but loses capacity due to chemical decompositions. Spinel is primarily used for power tools"

A fascinating article, and timely.

There are few things more frustrating than reaching for the cordless power tool, that has had a battery on the charger and being met with a slow hum and 3 turns per second.

On the plus side, apparently Scott Brown's election in MA has stopped Healthcare Socialization in it's tracks, which on the whole is good, but the additional 1.9 Trillion Dollars in debt the Federal Govt is forced to authorize is not so good.

Sooner or later, that will start the inflationary spiral, when jobs are being lost at 400k per month, the US is about to face a double squeeze, rising prices and no jobs to be had to buy anything anyway.