Queercents

Break ups are different for everyone. Sometimes you end up losing out on a lot of money, but sometimes you benefit financially. My live-in partner of over 1 1/2 years and I just recently broke up and in my situation, I will be one of those people who end up financially better. Hey, my heart may be broken, but at least I have good credit!

Living situations: A lot of couples usually move in together because it provides cheaper rent… and because they love each other too. Now that my partner and I have broken up, its probably a good idea to move out. In my case, we were paying for a two bedroom apartment to have studio space. Moving into a one bedroom will be cheaper for me and will allow me to shed my bagagge, so to speak. I’ve collected lots of things over the years, so selling a lot of the furniture, books and random items I’ve accumulated will generate some money to get fresh, new things with no memories attached to them. Another option for those who can’t afford their own place is to move back in with your parents. I moved back in with mine for a year when I was 22 and not only did I save a lot of money, but I formed a closer relationship with my family. A lot of people end up doing this at some point in their life, so don’t feel ashamed if you have to.

If you are the breadwinner: Usually the person bringing home the vegan bacon ends up financially supporting the other person. You no longer have to worry about covering your partner when they don’t have the cash. Best of all, you don’t have to double check the shopping cart when you go shopping to see if there are some items snuck in at the last minute. You can spend your money on yourself and only yourself! Now you only have to worry about paying your bills instead of doing the math to make sure you’re both paying your share. Read the rest of this entry »

Not to be confused with my earlier post about the Really Really Free Market… A Farmer’s Market usually involves monetary transactions. Sorry, no free food here folks. BUT, you can find better deals than the chain grocery stores that pop up on every busy intersection.

My friends live and work on a farm and needed help this past weekend at their booth at the Farmer’s Market so my partner and I went down to help out. All of their vegetables are organically grown (and I’m sure there are organic farmers in your town too). Not only did I learn a lot about vegetables I’d never seen before, but I was able to interact with members of my community who I wouldn’t normally interact with. It’s a friendlier environment than waiting at a check out line and hearing the scanner beep after each barcode is processed.

While I was working the booth, I overheard so many people commenting about how cheap the produce is compared to the grocery store. Not only that, but it’s all organic too! Another great thing is that, unlike the grocery store, you can actually talk to the person who grew your food and ask questions like “What can I cook/make with this?”Everything is local, so that means cheaper transportation costs which makes the food cheaper for you. We all know about the benefits of eating local, right?

The Farmer’s Market in my town has live music and art vendors also. Depending on your area, your Farmer’s Market might be open everyday. Unfortunately in my town, it is only a weekly occurance happening each Saturday morning from 8am – 1pm.

If your schedule prevents you from attending the Farmer’s Market or if one doesn’t exist near you, many farms also have Community Supported Agriculture (CSA’s) that you can subscribe too. Think of it this way, you pay a certain amount of money up front to help fund supplies and then as the plants grow, you get a “share” of the harvest. So it’s kind of like a magazine subscription, except its healthy food! You also may have remembered Jan’s experience in working on a CSA farm. You can find a CSA near you on Local Harvest.

It’s actually really easy. I recently invited my herbalist friend over to teach me and my girlfriend how to make our own tinctures. She delved a bit into some calculations which will help figure out the potency of your potion, but it’s not completely necessary to do all of that unless you plan on selling them.

According to Wikipedia, a tincture is “an alcoholic extract (e.g. of leaves or other plant material) or solution of a non-volatile substance”. We used dried Damiana leaves to make our tincture. Damiana can be used as a natural remedy for multiple purposes such as constipation, depression, PMS, anxiety, and best of all, it is a natural aphrodisiac. Unfortunately, Damiana is only native to South America, Mexico and Central America. Unless you live in those areas, the herbs need to be purchased rather than grown locally. Luckily, I found an herbal shop near my house that sells dried herbs for really cheap, so I am assuming that dried herbs are pretty cheap in general. Keep in mind, you can make tinctures with any dried herb, not just Damiana. I am just using it as an example. Other popular herbs you can use are: Echinacea, Mint, Dandelion Root, Valerian.

Depending on the herb you want to use, you may want to double check the ratios online. Some herbs require more alcohol than others. For this example, we just used a 24 oz mason jar. Kathryn calculated the following ratio for us, but she said that you can pretty much throw the dried herbs in a jar and then fill with alcohol. We had 1 ounce of dried herbs and added 5 ounces of Everclear.  The reason for using Everclear is because of its high alcohol proof. Whatever you do, DO NOT USE RUBBING ALCOHOL! We ended up filling the mason jar above the 24 ounce mark, so really its close to 30 ounces. Take a chop stick and make sure there are no bubbles in your concoction. Close the lid tight and don’t forget to label and date the jar. You’ll have to let it sit for about 6 weeks in a dark area. 6 weeks may seem like a long time, but you can save a lot of money by making your own tinctures, especially if you are growing the herbs yourself.

Our tincture has been sitting for almost two weeks now, so I will be sure to let you know the results when week 6 hits! Also, if you are interested in other libido enhacing herbs, you can read some notes I took from my  friends’ herbalism class.

If you have medical conditions, it would be best if you check with your doctor before injesting any herbs. It’s better to be safe than sorry!

photo credit: sxc.hu

Really Really Free Markets (RRFM) are a great way to meet and share material items, resources, and skills with members of your community. Best of all, everything is 100% absolutely free! RRFM’s are based on the “gift economy“, meaning people bring things they no longer want and anyone who attends can take anything they need. No money is exchanged, no bartering is required, and no questions are asked. (Of course there will always be ‘yard sale vultures’ who are looking for things to re-sell, but when that happens you just need to explain to them that RRFMs are events intended to build tighter communities.) Items range from clothes, books, dishes, plants, fresh produce, bicycles, you name it. Oftentimes people will lend their skills or provide services for free such as hair cuts, back massages, bicycle repair, face painting (it’s a family event where children are always welcome).

Many cities have started monthly RRFMs, especially since the downturn of our economy. Do a google search to see if there are RRFMs in your area. If not, start one! It’s really easy. My friends started one in my small, southern town almost 2 years ago and we have continued doing it every month. Read the rest of this entry »

I started reading a lot of money blogs after an unfortunate bicycle injury. I remember lying in the middle of an intersection thinking “I don’t want to move”. It was a peaceful moment that felt like time had been put on hold. But shortly after, I heard the commotion of people yelling, saw multiple hands and arms dragging me onto the sidewalk and finally heard that familiar sound that had never been applied to me until this moment. The ambulance.

If you fall within the estimated 25% of gay and lesbians who do not have health insurance, then you can probably feel my pain. I didn’t have health insurance at the time. I had heard so many horror stories of people without health insurance paying insane amounts of money on trips to the Emergency Room. Even though I was bleeding all over the sidewalk and missing a few teeth I said “I’m not getting in there if it will cost me money”. I remember repeating this phrase numerous times, but the paramedics assured me it would be okay and that I really needed to go to the ER. So off I went!

To make a long story short (and after 2 visits to the ER), I had a broken jaw and needed it wired for a few weeks before any work could be done on my teeth. At this point, I was more concerned about how I was going to pay for all of this! Surprisingly, there were some extremely helpful people at the hospital that advised me on financial assistance. I’m sure each hospital is different, so be sure to check your hospital’s website for information. Read the rest of this entry »