Recreated Modern Minerva Outfit
Scarf: $1.99 at Goodwill
Sweater: Van Heusen $5.99 at Goodwill
Shoes: Bass Weejuns $5.00 at Goodwill
Skirt: H & M $7.99 at Zeus’s Closet (locally-owned resale shop in Scarborough, ME)
All I need is a bag…and I’m gonna try to order one from a woman who designs cloth bags here in my town, and an owl ring or other piece of costume jewelry.
View the original by clicking HERE.
What do you think?
Spring Daffodillies
Dear Reader:
You didn’t think I was writing about baseball, did you? No, this is my “Spring Season” opening day because the ground is warm enough to walk barefoot in the grass, the daffodils are bursting with golden frilliness, and the rhubarb is sprouting-leafing up through the garden dirt after a winter’s hibernation.
Rhubarb
When we were kids, my sister and I would sometimes visit the rhubarb patch and break off a pink-green stem and chew it, wincing at the tart-sour taste. I wasn’t especially fond of rhubarb pie (strawberry-rhubarb was much better), but now I’m already planning to make a pie as soon as the ‘barb is ready. I even found some REAL lard at The Cornerstone Country Market in S. Waterboro over the weekend. With the whole wheat white flour from the co-op and this lard, my rhubarb and some sugar, I will be able to create an almost totally local pie. Not sure if I could substitute maple syrup or honey for the sugar, but I will look into it.
Speaking of the Cornerstone Country Market, if you live in this neck of the woods, I highly recommend stopping in there. They have a deli counter. They have local (Lyman) beef in the freezer section. Local eggs. Lots of dry-goods. (I heard they had local milk, but I didn’t see any and didn’t ask this particular time). They also carry a dizzying amount of cake decorating products–candies and sprinkles and such for cupcakes, birthday cakes, etc. Baking mixes. Flours.
I purchased some steel-cut oats for my breakfast and a jug of Maine maple syrup since I missed Maple Sunday at Hilltop Boilers a few weeks ago. I would have grabbed some of the beef, but I had just stopped in to Kniffin’s Specialty Meats also in S. Waterboro for “steakburger” and chicken legs for this week’s menu. All of Kniffin’s meats come from Maine farmers. No pink slime here!
Compost Bins In Action
As you can see from the photo, we’ve been busy “harvesting” carbonaceous material (a.k.a. beech and oak leaves) from the lawn to compost. The bin on the far right has been composting for a year or so. The two bins on the left are full of this year’s leaves plus some table scraps thrown in. Beside the right-hand bin is a small, dark pile of nearly-ready-to-use compost that I will spread into a Lasagna Garden later this season over near the rock pile. No, this does not mean I will be growing ingredients for lasagne (eggplant, peppers, onions, oregano, tomatoes, zucchini), though that would actually be cute and fun. Lasagna gardening refers to the preparation of the garden bed through layering of carbon material, nitrogen material, manure, straw, etc.
I am also psyched about the idea of trying Straw Bale Gardening. I ordered Joel Karsten’s pdf manual (easy, easy) and now have all the info I need on a file here on my computer. Hopefully, this will allow me to grow tomatoes on the one part of my lawn that gets adequate sunlight–on the leach bed. I think the straw will lift up the plants so they won’t be in any danger from the leach field, the beds won’t take up much space on top of the field or interfere with its processes in any way, and the extra heat generated by the composting straw will be perfect for those heat-loving globes of red juiciness (heirloom tomatoes? Lead me to ‘em!)
On my way back from the meat and lard shopping, I stopped into the antique store to see if I could find a ring or pin with an owl motif, as I’m still recreating my Modern Minerva outfit on the local scene. I scored the red sweater at Goodwill last week. Alas, no jewelry fit the bill, though they had mucho floral pieces I will revisit later.
Moooooo!
However, this adorable creamer pitcher just had to come home with me! Now, I need to start buying raw milk again so I can get some thick, rich, yummy cream into the pitcher . . . and then into my morning coffee.
Speaking of coffee, where oh where is the Green Mountain Island Coconut java this year? It is not to be found in any of the usual spots, not even the branch of the used-to-be-Maine-but-now-owned-by-a-multinational-conglomerate supermarket chain. I once worked for said chain and truly enjoyed the experience. So disappointing to me that it is now part of a multinational . . . and no matter what the advertisements say, shopping here is NOT like shopping “local.” When the profits travel out of town, out of county, out of state, out of COUNTRY, it is not local. Some CEO somewhere is making a hugemongous salary, and he’s not paying local property taxes (unless a Belgian businessman has bought land in south-western Maine and I didn’t hear about it.)
However, to be fair, said supermarket does employ many Maine people, and they pay good wages. The working conditions are very good. I would still work for them . . . and then spend my paycheck at Kniffin’s and Goodwill and Plummer’s Hardware. I’d call it “operation reverse money drain”…sucking money from the conglomerate and dispersing it to the local businesses via my purchasing power.
As we head into the growing season, dear reader, I wish you all the best with your gardening, harvesting, and preparing of early crops. Peas. Spinach. Rhubarb. Strawberries. Don’t forget to visit your local farmer’s markets and roadside stands and berry farms. Consider locating local meat markets in your town or state. The prices may be a little higher, but consider the greater nutritional value. Eat less but gain fewer pounds while enjoying a nutrition-dense product that suports the local foodshed. It’s a win-win . . . Outside the Box.
Posted in Compost, Economy, Farmer's Market, Food, Gardening, localism, Shopping
Tagged compost, localism, straw bale gardening, supermarkets
Rhubarb
Dear Reader:
In recent posts I have strayed from my original plans for this blog–advocating “going local” in place of spending hard-earned dollars at big-box retail stores with questionable business ethics and negative impact on community economics.
One of my passionate causes a few years back was the attempt to create a community garden in my, er, planned neighborhood which I will nickname The Contrammunity. If you have been following Outside the Box for awhile, you will remember that the struggle ended in defeat . . . mostly because some members of The Contrammunity thought that a run-down, unusable tennis court was preferable to a garden in their neighborhood.
But who am I to say what is or isn’t more valuable? I gave up the fight, deciding that if a community garden stirred up so much controversy and bad feelings, it wasn’t anything I wanted to pursue further.
Anyway, I still have a soft spot in my heart for community gardens. In the right kind of neighborhood, a shared garden space can be an oasis, a gathering place, a teaching/learning tool for newbies and kids, and (I truly believe this) a positive selling point for real estate nearby (unlike a broken, unused, cracked tennis court, for example.)
Waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting . . . for spring!
So when I read “If Every Community Had a Garden” in the Significato Journal this morning, my heart warmed. I was especially interested in the rainwater-catching system used for irrigation. Click to take a look at this short piece about a community garden started in Norway, Maine . . . incidentally, a town I lived in, worked in, owned a home in before moving further south. Norway is a wonderful, small, Maine town with a vibrant Main Street of small, locally-owned businesses including an impressive co-op store/space called the Fare-Share Co-op.
This video says it all!! Click Alan Day Community Garden Video. (Honestly, I’m watching this, and I can’t believe I moved away from this place!)
I don’t see myself ramping up the necessary energy to try to create a community garden again here The Contrammunity again. Sometimes you just have to admit you are living in the wrong place, make the best of your own backyard, and find a good co-op group and/or CSA farm–by looking at the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) website.
Wild Plant with Old Leaves in Background
Spring is just around the corner, and I’m looking forward to getting new garden boxes set up, ordering seeds, and planting–just as soon as the snow melts and I’ve raked up the leaves I left moldering on the lawn over the winter.
What about you? Does your community have a shared-garden space? Do you have plans for spring planting? Drop me a line . . . Outside the Box.
Shirt found at Goodwill store
Dear Reader:
Outside the Box has been a fun and productive and creative place to be in 2011. I may have strayed from the original path a bit . . . but isn’t that what being Outside the Box (like coloring outside the lines) is all about?
Meat and Butter from Local Butcher Shop
This year I’ve joined a buying co-op, found a few new local places for meat and other Maine-produced goods, bought jeans and shirts at consignment shops and Goodwill stores, traveled to D.C., continued to knit, wrote some poems, read some great books . . .
Needless to say, I’m looking forward to more adventures in 2012, trying to support all things “local” while continuing to be aware of national and global trends.
If you’ve been reading my Christmas story, Unlikely Objects, the final installment can be found in the Fiction Corner. As always, thank you for reading, and I’ll see you in 2012 . . . Outside the Box.
Shelley 2011
February Socks Finally Finished
Dear Reader:
As the summer begins its inevitable wind-down, I find myself winding down as well. My feet hurt from hours of walking through museums, parks, and monuments. My brain is overwhelmed with information, my senses are overloaded, and my creativity’s flow has ebbed to a trickle. I’m clumsier. I bump into people in crowded subway trains. I say the wrong thing. I can’t get my umbrella closed on the bus and someone yells at me. The self-deprecating remark made to the grumpy cashier at the bookstore earns me a snide comment. I want to curl up with a cup of tea and a book, stay in bed for the day, and catch my breath.
We all have these times of slowing down, hibernating, or simply laying low for awhile. Knitting is one of my favorite slow-day things. What can be better than some soft yarn, a soothing color, repetition, and the gentle click of the needles as you wind and slip and knit and purl your way to something beautiful?
Pretty in Pink Lacey Socks
One of my goals for this year was to knit one pair of socks per month. These are my February socks, so you can surmise how well I’m doing with this resolution. I found this pattern in the Lion Brand JUST SOCKS book. It is the “Chevron Lace Socks” pattern on page 51, and is supposedly for experienced knitters . . . which I’m not. However, when I read over the pattern, I didn’t think it was particularly difficult, and really I had no problem following it. The only caution I would give is this: don’t drop a stitch. With all the yarn-overs, it really would take an experienced knitter to be able to rework the dropped loop into the pattern.
I used a soft “baby” yarn made of acrylic in hopes that it would wear better than the wool socks I’ve made in the past. I love natural fiber, but this was fun to work with. It has a pretty sheen to it. The pattern called for size 4 double-pointed needles, and because the gauge piece turned out too large, I went down to a size 3. The socks still came out a bit on the saggy side, so when I do these again, I will maybe try a size 2 needle.
Local Virginia Wine
In the spirit of localism, I decided to try a local Virginia wine. This Rapidan River Raspberry was on the less expensive side, a grape wine with raspberry flavor and slight carbonation. It is vinted and bottled by Prince Michel Vineyard in Leon, Virginia. Virginians have been making wine since Jamestown. In fact, the Virginia House of Burgesses passed an article in 1619 saying that every householder should plant 10 grape vines per year in order to promote wine making. I found this information in an article by Alexis K. Brown called Thomas Jefferson and the History of Wine in Virginia. Always knew I liked Jefferson.
The beverage was reminiscent of Boone’s Strawberry Hill wine which, if you were a college girl in the late 1980′s, you are probably familiar with. Poured into a glass with a couple of ice-cubes, it was refreshing enough for patio-sitting and conversation with Hubby. Next time, though, I may splurge a little and go for a more expensive, serious bottle. Their Prince Michel 2008 Barrel Select Chardonnay sounds heavenly.
Then again, the Rapidan River Chocolate–yes, chocolate wine!–at $12.99 might just be too interesting to pass up.
Capital On Monday
While the economic outlook doesn’t look particularly rosy for the foreseeable future, at least Congress was able to get it together enough to pass the debt-ceiling legislation with an imperative to do even more in the coming months. Like I wrote in response one of my more conservative friend’s Facebook post this morning, I’m beginning to feel about the economy and politics the way I feel about the “impending dooms” of peak oil, energy depletion, global warming, and terrorist threat. I believe they are impending, but that the problems are like huge trains speeding toward a cliff, too fast and too heavy to stop completely, especially as we do not seem to have the will or the cohesiveness to make tough decisions and tougher implementations. The best thing, in my opinion, is to go as local as possible, as soon as possible.
What that means for you, I don’t know. As for me, I’m gonna keep knitting and learning how to spin fiber into yarn and maybe start saving seeds and definitely start collecting old-fashioned “know-how” books–not just for me but for whoever has need of that information in the future. Positive action, even small things like this, is better than no action at all.
How have some of you, my dear readers, transitioned to a more local way of living? Feel free to leave a comment and share you ideas and inspirations. You may just trigger similar inspiration in others. We need to collaborate, not compete. Compromise, not cat-fight. Thanks again for reading, and in the spirit of February . . .
Artwork by "The Teen"
Posted in Crafts, Economy, Food, localism, Outside the Box In D.C., Sock of the Month
Red sky in the morning . . .
“Red sky at night, sailors delight. Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning.”
Dear Reader:
The above quote is an old adage I learned as a child. Basically, it means that if there’s a red sunset you can expect clear, sunny skies the next day, but if you have a red sunrise, watch out for a gloomy day ahead. (click HERE for a scientific explanation.)
I say, with all the news we’ve had lately about oil prices, revolutions in the Middle East, mega earthquakes, nuclear power plant problems, our national debt ceiling about to be reached come May, and a stalemate over our Washington budget, we are seeing a red sky in the morning here on planet Earth. Will we heed the warning signs?
Is there anyone out there who hasn’t heard about Peak Oil yet? If you haven’t, I encourage you to find out about it as quickly as possible. The Post Carbon Institute has published a Peak Oil Primer (click HERE to read it)that will give you an overview of the issue. Basically, Peak Oil is the point in time when we have used up half of the original oil reserves in the world. If graphed on a bell curve, the extraction and production of oil would form a “peak” at this point, and from that point on extraction and production will become more difficult and less efficient over time. Another term for this is “energy resource depletion.” Or, as I like to call it, “running out of gas.”
You can also watch a few documentaries:
COLLAPSE with Michael Rupert (click HERE)
THE END OF SUBURBIA (click HERE)
ENERGY CROSSROADS (click HERE to view the trailer)
These are just a few. I encourage you to explore and share what you find.
In essence, what these films (and the myriad books that are available–more on those in another post) tell us is that everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, in our current way of life depends on oil. Our food is grown with oil-based fertilizers applied by oil-run tractors that are manufactured using oil. Irrigation pumps to water the fields run on oil. All plastics are made with oil. Obviously, our transportation is mostly oil-fueled. We heat our homes and hot water with oil. Our clothing (and just about everything else in the stores) is shipped to us via a fleet of trucks that run on gasoline. Suburbia depends on the automobile to get its residents to and from work, school, stores, and hospitals. We have fewer and fewer walkable, liveable communities.
I am aware that this all sounds alarmist. It is. I am alarmed. The more I learn, the more I read the news, the more I think, the more alarmed I become. All my little projects here Outside the Box have been attempted because I believe the only way to make a difference in this alarming scenario is to go local. Even then, deep down, all this square-foot gardening/buying local milk/knitting socks feels more like child's play than a real answer to the disaster-waiting-to-happen. Unless everyone else begins to localize, too.
A couple years ago I tried to bring Peak Oil and its implications to the attention of my homeowner's association–asking that we begin to think about some changes to our bylaws that would allow us to become more sustainable and less dependent on oil and outside resources. Opening up the canopy to let in much-needed sunlight was my biggest plea. I said we needed to be able to learn to grow our own food in our own backyards, and and that takes eight hours of sunlight, minimum. I also said we could become more energy independent if we used solar technology to heat our homes and hot water, possibly even selling excess energy back to "the grid" and easing some of our home economies and off-setting increases in our association dues.
As you can imagine, nobody took this seriously. Maybe it was because I also mentioned raising goats.
I understand that some people moved here to "get back to nature." Our development was created as a vacation community, after all. I understand that people "up to camp" like the old, Maine pine trees swaying above the cottage while the sunlight sparkles on the lake. It is beautiful. I like it, too. I wish our way of life could continue on just the way it is now, driving outside the community to go to work and coming home to our nice houses and power boats and microwave ovens and the wind sighing through the pines while we sip our pre-dinner Merlot on the deck while the steak sizzles on the gas grill. It's a wonderful life.
I just don't happen to believe it's gonna last. Hopefully I'm wrong.
While we wait and see what the future holds, I'll keep on playing around with my projects. I can't do much about what other people chose or chose not to learn. To give up entirely would mean giving in to fear.
In the spirit of doing something even if it is a drop in the bucket, I am plunging ahead this year with more garden boxes. I am going to focus on vegetables and herbs that can be grown in the shade and hope to trade for some tomatoes and peppers and squashes from someone with a sunny garden spot. I’m also going to experiment with those Topsy Turvy planters . . . growing tomatoes upside down on iron hooks stuck into my septic field–the sunniest spot in my yard. I’m also contemplating growing a few tomatoes in large pots . . . on top of my septic tank, the area of my yard that remained mostly snow-free all winter despite record snowfalls due to the heat underneath the dirt.
If you have a shady area of your yard, if your entire yard is shady, and if you want to give gardening a try, HERE is a list of plants that will grow in 3-6 hours of sunlight. Compost heavily. Water regularly. Read the article about Peak Oil and share it with others. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.
Springtime (?) in Maine
When I began this Outside the Box venture, my goal was to stay out of big box retail stores for one year and to document ways to buy from locally-owned (or at least NOT big corporate-owned) businesses. Along the way, I’ve dabbled with everything from gardening to spinning, figuring that if I can’t buy it, I might as well learn to make it/grow it myself.
One thing I didn’t jump into completely was locavorism–only eating food grown, say, within a 100 mile radius of my home. I bought locally-produced food products when they were easily available, but I also spent the bulk of my food income at the local grocery store. It seemed just too big of a jump to try to eat only protein, veggies, grains, and fats produced nearby.
The other day, an acquaintance I’d met through a community mom’s group contacted me to ask about local food sources in our area. I gave her what I had, and then I began to ponder whether or not I was ready to take the plunge this year and try for a 100-mile diet. As I wrote out my weekly meal plan and grocery-store list, I circled everything on the list that I thought I could purchase from Maine farmers. Surprising to me, I circled more than half the items.
Maine Wine and Vinegar
There are some veggie farmers in nearby towns, and I can grow a few things for myself. I bought some wine from a Maine vintner (Blacksmiths Winery in Casco)and some raw vinegar from Ricker Hill Orchards in Turner while stopping to get a prescription filled at the local Hannaford’s a couple weeks ago.
I’ve purchased safflower oil from safflowers grown in-state (found at a health-food store in Kennebunk). Milk and cream come from Downhome Farm just up the road in Parsonsfield. We have blueberry, apple, strawberry, and raspberry growers in our town.
I’ve purchased Maine cheese in the past, though I haven’t seen any mozzarella–the lack of which might make for some unhappy family members on pizza-movie night.
The woman from whom I buy my beef has also started a food co-op featuring Crown of Maine Organic Cooperative offerings. Options aplenty!
After I shared my limited local food sources with my mom-friend, she shared the following with me. It is a newish farm in Alfred, Maine called Groundwork Farm which offers a community supported agriculture program (CSA) where you pre-buy a share in this year’s crop. Check out their blog by clicking HERE. I quickly zipped off an email to request an application, and I hope that there are still slots available.
I will also need to sit down with a calculator and my husband to see just how far down this locavore road we can go this year.
I find it so encouraging to see new farms starting up and so many people becoming interested in supporting local agriculture. It is especially encouraging this week as news from Libya and the Middle East reinforces my concerns about the future of energy–hence life–in the U.S. The sooner we begin to localize, not just food but everything, the better off we will be.
I urge you to find CSA’s, local farms, and local artisans in your neck of the woods this spring/summer. New customers will encourage even more young people to see farming as a viable career. Speaking of young farmers, I also found a great blog dedicated to these amazing young tillers of the soil. The blog is called The Irresistible Fleet of Bicycles, and is part of Greenhorns, a land-based non profit dedicated to helping young farmers across America. I’ve found many of their blog posts to be inspiring.
I will be adding these blogs to my list this week and doing some basic “housekeeping” here Outside the Box. It’s been two years already! Time to sweep out the dusty cobwebs.
Do you have any great blogs or websites that inspire you in your daily life? Sharing information is a simple way we can all learn from each other as we head into an uncertain future. Thanks for continuing to read!
De-Accessorized
Dear Reader:
I finally took down my Christmas tree this week. When all the lights and ornaments and glittery, colored balls were packed into their storage boxes once again, I stepped back and looked at the tree in order to appreciate its simplicity, its dark green needles, its long branches . . . its three tops.
Now, how did I end up with such a nonconformist evergreen? In the spirit of localism and community support, I took my family to a tree farm here in town. The local fire department had advertised a fundraiser, the price was more than reasonable, and I liked the idea of getting a fresh-cut tree grown right here in my neck of the woods rather than picking up a perfect specimen at a big box lot. We arrived on an overcast afternoon, greeted one of the teenagers we knew who had been conscripted to help with the project, and proceeded to look for our tree. They were all rather tall, so it was hard to see the tops, but this one had a nice shape. We took it home. That’s when I realized the triple-top situation.
I grew up with trees cut from the woods, trees shaped by nature rather than pruning shears. This tree brought back all those wonderful memories. I remember my sister and I following Dad through the snow down and up the steep hill along the sand pit toward the quarry, smelling the scent of chainsaw fuel and balsam as he cut the tree he’d scouted during deer hunting season, and trying to hold up the my end of the tree as we carried it home. I remember getting out the big, bulbous, multicolored lights and the familiar ornaments, stringing popcorn (and eating more than actually stringing), and how my mother placed silver tinsel on every tip of every branch one at a time so they hung perfectly aligned.
Some years, the tree was a beauty. Some years, not so much. Once we had a pine tree instead of a fir. As a kid, I found them all magical. Beautiful. They didn’t have to be perfect, and this year’s tree did not have to be perfect to be pretty, either.
My three-topped tree had long, graceful branches from which my ornaments hung in all their glittery glory. It had a pretty shape . . . not too fat, not too skinny, curving in all the right places. The needles were dark green, nice with the little white lights my family likes. I loved looking at that tree this Christmas. It brightened my house for three weeks. Now it is outside next to my front porch steps, lending its pleasing green-ness to a wintery white landscape.
Looking at it sans accessories, I was reminded that we don’t have to be perfect in order to be pretty. Each of us has our own unique beauty, shape, coloring. Yes, we can dress ourselves up with baubles and bows, but underneath is what counts. It is all too easy to compare ourselves to the fashionable beauty plastered all over the television, movie screens, magazines, and the mall stores. Instead of feeling downhearted when we can’t live up to society’s current notion of beauty, I suggest we strive for health and fitness, finding our own sense of style, and looking at ourselves and others for the beauty within.
What are your goals for this new year? I am still working on mine, but I hope to share them next Friday . . . Outside the Box.
Happy 2011, Dear Readers.
Seed Heads for Winter Birds
I found a really good, simple, layman’s-terms explanation of the housing bubble. Here is the article. http://www.stock-market-investors.com/stock-investment-risk/the-subprime-mortgage-crisis-explained.html
My question is still this: How do we prevent such a thing from happening again? Maybe the answer is, we can’t.
As we head toward Thanksgiving Day, I’ll leave you with some thoughts. Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst. Take your pleasures where and when you can. Save for a rainy day. Be thankful for your blessings. Invest in community, in friendships, in knowledge, in healthy activities, in things that are important to you. Take a class. Learn something. Vow to eat a healthier diet. Cut back on the stuff that’s not so good for you. Exercise. Build muscles and stamina instead of a fat stock portfolio. Invest in yourself.
At least that’s how I’m looking at it today Outside the Box.
Posted in money, voluntary simplicity
Saving for a Rainy Day
We are about to celebrate to bounty of the harvest and all the blessings that have come to us throughout the year. Traditionally, this is the time when the fruits and veggies have been collected and stored. Instead of eating every bit of the garden produce, we try to grow extra and save it for the long, cold, unproductive (gardening-wise) months ahead.
In days of old, many people lived a subsistence lifestyle–growing their own food, making their own clothes from fibers of animals they raised, creating their own amusement by telling stories, singing songs, and playing games. In that kind of life, it was very important to plan ahead and save.
Today, if we are able, we also try not to spend every penny we make, putting some aside “for a rainy day.” It’s been more difficult to do that in the present economy, but we continue to try. Here is a question though: Where is it safe and ethical to store your money?
A friend and I have been engaged in a conversation of late regarding the banking system and usury (see Into The Black parts I and II to read the comments and replies). Today she pointed out that the first definition of usury is “lending money for interest.” Not exorbitant interest. Not really high interest. Just plain interest. Her point is that when we put our money in the bank and earn interest on it, that is usury. When we invest in the stock market so that banks can borrow our money and we earn interest on it, that is usury. So who am I to point fingers (first, second, third, forth, or thumb) at the banks for doing what I also do every day?
Are we all just devils in disguise?
Once I got over being defensive, I had to ask myself, “Okay, so if I do business with the banks and I put my money in the banks and the stock market and I expect to earn interest on my money, I am part of the problem. So now what do I do about saving for that rainy (snowy, sleety, hurricany, tornado-y) day? Do I stuff money in a safety deposit box? In a hidden safe in my house? Do I just stockpile stuff?
I don’t believe there are any easy answers here. I’m a big believer in putting money in the bank, but I’ve also accepted the current reality that you might as well stuff it in your mattress because inflation rises higher than the interest rates in the bank. Hence, investing in the stock market is one financial option that must be considered since the rate of return has been historically higher. Except when it isn’t.
I’ve briefly (and only playfully) considered taking my 401 K and using it to buy up a stockpile of yarn. Yarn is actual. Real. Something of value that could be traded for something else. I could open a yarn store, for instance. I could plant bamboo on my front lawn (it’s a grass!) and make bamboo knitting needles for sale. But, of course, even a dreamer like myself sees how ridiculous this sounds as a way of saving for the future.
Are we stuck with banks as they are? Are there any options out there?
One option is a credit union. These are non-profit, democratically-run banks where members can save money in accounts and take out loans. Some are federally insured while others are not. They are rated by an organization called the NCUA–National Credit Union Administration who evaluates the credit union for soundness. Click HERE to read some FAQ’a about credit unions.
I also like the idea of doing business with local banks rather than large multinationals. These banks lend to homeowners and local businesses, keeping the money in the community.
However, interest IS paid on these accounts, and even though you are supporting local business, local banking, and local people, you would also be profiting from your investment. Usury. Sigh. Perhaps I should take another look at alpaca farming . . .
Any ideas on how to save money Outside the Box?
Posted in Community Activism, Gardening, knitting/crocheting, localism, money
Tagged localism
