Making your Dreams Come True

Ever wonder how people get to do so many things?  Your friends get new furniture, go on super-fab trips, etc.  Feel jealous?  Maybe just a little?  Well, half of those people - probably over half -are charging all those things, so don't be jealous of them.  The other half plan.  They save.  Wow!  What a concept, huh?  We have become a culture of "I want it NOW" and we don't wanna wait!  This writer, included!  Although, there came a certain point in my life - after a divorce, selling a business, ending up with awful credit and a slumping economy (2002) that I decided I had had enough.  I then became a saver and a bigger planner & my world opened up & I became less stressed.

Maybe you noticed that you haven't seen much blogging going on lately from B.A.B.E (really, you probably didn't, but humor me!).  Why?  Because this B.A.B.E went to Borneo!  Yahoo!  It was as fabulous as I had hoped and went as I had planned.  I am a rainforest buff, so from time to time, when I can afford it, I go visit & explore an area of rain forest.  Absolutely exhilarating.

Why bring this up?  Because, we each- hopefully - have passions, interests and things that make us happy.  Many of those take money to enjoy.  The key to achieving and truly enjoying thee things, with no negative repercussions, is to plan & save.  Here is a simple equation:  $40 per week = $2,000 year. Good amount of cash.  $80 per week = you guessed it - $4,000 a year.   You can go most places in this world with $4,000.

How to get this money?  Unless you are literally living on fumes & among the working poor (I am being serious, not derogatory) this can work.  Here are thoughts, bullet pointed & to the point:

• cut out your Starbuck's
• eat IN one (or two) more days a week
• start an online savings account (look for the ING Direct ad on our web page)
• Have your money automatically deducted from your account
• Do not touch said money in above account
• Do this faithfully - like your life depends on it.
• Enjoy the fruits of your labor.

No kidding, it can be that easy.

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Marketing Your Food

As I was cooking my eggs this morning (organic & 2/3 egg whites w spinach), I was thinking about how when I have the good fortune of getting my eggs from a local woman, I frequently get an egg with double yolks.  When I buy eggs, even organic (or not), that never happens.  Why?  Because mass-produced eggs get x-rayed (or whatever it is they do) so that all our eggs are perfect..the same size, the same color, etc.  Are we really that pampered?  Seriously, do we have to have all our eggs that uniform?  You can go through a plethora of things we buy and see how it’s been marketed so we like it better:  our pickles are colored with food coloring (NOT good) so they look more “pickle like”, I guess, add all kinds of color so cheese products look “cheesier” & we bleach paper (toilet, writing, towels) SUPER white so it looks better??  To wipe your, well, anyway, there is obviously not a need for it to be super white.  

We color everything, make it all perfect, all so we’ll buy it.  It just seems strange how we’ve gotten to this point.  The whole process really treats us as though we are that dumb, that easily manipulated, that we have to have the “pretty colors” in order to buy the [food].  There have been several studies (possibly) linking food colorants and additives to ADHD.  I don’t know; I’m just sayin’….