Queercents

Have you ever wondered about the history of Labor Day. It’s not just the unofficial “last day of summer.” It’s a day for the working class to take a much needed reprieve from their labors. According to the US Department of Labor,

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

The first Labor Day was celebrated in 1882 in New York City, and Grover Cleveland declared it a national holiday in 1894. There is a little bit of controversy over who first proposed that the working class needed a day off. However, despite the dispute over who coined the idea, Labor Day has typically been a day for union workers to acknowledged for their contributions to the nation.

I hope that all of you hard-working readers enjoy your day off today (assuming, of course, that you’re not in retail or the service industry, and that you actually get a day off).

For more info on the history of Labor Day, check out this piece on NPR, or this article over at Wikipedia.

The nice folks at MyMint interviewed me about personal finance. They have an interesting Personal Finance Interview series that goes around probing the wallets and minds of other money bloggers. It’s pretty cool to learn what we all have and don’t have in common.

Click here to read what I know and don’t know about money, and some hard lessons I learned along the way.

Mint is a free personal finance software program available in beta form to those who sign up on their site. I haven’t had a chance to tool around with it yet. It’s hard work keeping up with my own expense tracking. It does seem like they’re working hard to build a good program though, so check it out if you enjoy exploring free finance programs. Free is good.

If anyone ever gets the idea from me that developing a more responsible relationship with money has been easy, I must do more to present a realistic picture of the constant work it takes to take control of my money.

With each daily struggle I face, I’m forced to pay attention to little nuances that make my personal finances a challenge. Recently I was inspired to look at my spending from a new angle and ask myself some hard questions after a mentor of mine commented on the ways I put high amounts of pressure on myself regarding fitness and appearance.

He said to me, “You certainly have an expression of the ‘gay gene.’ There is a keen appreciation you have for beauty, style and celebration, and there’s a different set of pressures that comes along with it.”

I’m still having trouble digesting his comment. However, the ‘gay gene’ comment beautifully summed up a set of traits that can be applied to some or many LGBT people we know who, like it or not, have some level of social influence in our community. Often, the straight population may also be quick to look at us in the same light. I couldn’t help but wonder, 1) Do we really have a greater than average appreciation of beauty, style and celebration in the LGBT community? 2) Could it be possible this influences our spending? 3) To what degree could these influences extend? Read the rest of this entry »

Fantasy versus the cold, hard facts marks this week’s theme. As the season begins to change, we get a chance to evaluate and take stock of our state of affairs…or stick our fingers in our ears and hum the theme to Cinderella’s ball. With the new moon imminent and in standoff to Neptune, it’s probably a good time to let go of any blinders you’ve been wearing: fashion statement or otherwise. Read the rest of this entry »

The effects of Mercury retrograde are finally starting to wear off, the full moon has begun to wane, and the Sun is finally outrunning Saturn. All this to say: TGI-not-last-week! Dreams start to come true if you’re ready to step center-stage. Read the rest of this entry »

Welcome to the first edition of “Starring Audrey,” my weekly astro-finance column for the gay with or without pay! In addition to these tidbits, I do offer birth chart readings, synastry readings (using the charts of you and your loved one), and Tarot readings. Readings can be done in person, over the phone, or recorded and sent. Contact me at audrey@queercents.com. I look forward to being your newest astro-guide! Read the rest of this entry »