Our Simplicity Plan, part 1 of 6. A detailed look at money.

This post is part of a 6 part series about a re- focus on a lifetime of green living. I am the proud owner of a life, that I can choose to flow with or fight against. I'm for the flow. These are some of the steps we are making or have made, to change our reality, to better go with that flow. Your changes may be different, though some should ring true of all people. We are challenging ourselves to take inventory of our existence, both inner and outer. We find ourselves longing for simple, less, and more meaning to our actions, purchases and our quality of life. 


So much of who I am and who I once was, got lost during the mystery illness years. We honestly thought I was going to die. My husband did his best to keep things afloat while I spent a year in bed. We slacked, we let things and emotions land where they may and pile up. Totally normal reaction to possible death, I think. I wasn't very concerned with sustainability, saving money, or staying organized. I was focused on writing out family recipes and years of journals for my daughter, organizing photos and getting my affairs in order for an untimely death. Oops, NOT YET. So, now we have a mess.


Here in reality land, things have gotten VERY realistic. We MUST adapt and renew our idea of normal, as we ourselves and the world around us changes. I very seriously walk my talk. Conscious, simplistic living is not a new idea, but, you can't buy this life or rent it on DVD. You must live it with all of your heart. 


This is what we've been working on.

1. Detailed, in-depth look at the budget and the expenses. What can we eliminate, what are we willing to give up, where do we need to spend more? Our answers?


A. Lattes. We were spending allot of money on lattes; even with our 3 coffee pots and an espresso maker. Once a week lattes are now a treat and we found the money in the budget for the work truck payment...almost to the dollar. That's a' latte...


B. Eating out. We had been know to do so up to 3x a week. We just don't, unless it is a very special occasion. Besides being safer for me, we have saved countless dollars a month. Would we have been able to do this, as cold turkey as we did, if I was still eating gluten? Honestly? Probably not, I'm a foodie. Like I said, I'm grateful to be gluten free...in so many ways!


C. EATING THE FOOD WE BUY. Plan your weekly menus. Leftovers are perfectly fine. Add a fresh green salad and, presto, dinner. I know there are people who feel food dies and leftovers are 'trash'. Slow cooked food made with intention and calm energy, lasts. Many fall prey to being food elitists. They usually have lots of disposable income and must have never made a soup or chili, many of which taste better in the 2-3 days after they are made. With a few key useful quantity purchases for basics, I shop more frequently at the Farmer's Market which eliminates overspending on impulse grocery items and increases focusing on eating the food we by, at a higher quality, in less quantity.

D. Just say no to plastic. As in credit cards. If we can't save and pay for it, then we don't need it now. I do miss the feeling of, "I can get new tires and fly to London next week and not pay for it for a year.", but I do NOT miss the bills, APR issues, interest...etc. Cutting them up was almost liberating. Paying off the debt, will be liberating.


E. Are you house poor, too? DOWNSIZE. Trading in a house and very large yard for a few hundred square feet with a patio... is going to liberate us in ways renting this large, lovely, sunny place never can.

F. Netflix. $18.29 a month VS $200.00 a month in rental and late fees? We still support our locally owned video store 2-4x a month for movies we can't wait for on Netflix. Netflix also provides us with TV series sans commercials and THOUSANDS of on demand movies. Bub-bye cable.


G. Making our own household cleaners and some basic body care products, is going to save us almost $3,000.00 a year. Part 5.B, Kermit Was Wrong, will have some more information. Fun, thrifty, and all natural. How can that be bad?


H. For us, dropping the $120.00 a month health club membership was not even an issue. Using the public pools, walking, gardening, dancing, yoga, biking, hiking, and frisbee golf as exercise has worked much better. We do miss night swimming, so when reality turns, who knows? But we will get a pool only membership this time, knowing that is the only amenity we miss and includes the sauna and hot tub.


I. Identify WANT VS NEED. We need to meet expenses. Period. Yes. I want a stand mixer and a grain mill attachment for my juicer, but, I need new pants. Yes. We want to fix the other record player for mixing, but, we need a new needle for the one that works first. And pants and record needles...are nowhere near our need list right now. Eating, keeping housed, feeding our animals, and keeping the work truck on the road, legal, and fueled...are at the top.


In summary, we identified the main money stressors in our life. We realized allot of money was being used on convenience, ease, and impulse. We talked it though honestly, without raising our voices. There was no you did, I did...we did. We ended up laughing at ourselves, loving each other even more, feeling focused and ready to face our future... and Part 2: Asking what your possessions mean to you.