Five Things That Make Me Happy, and Two Things That Piss Me Off

by Katy on October 29, 2010 · 36 comments

I have written past columns about five things that make me happy. I like these mini-posts because they’re very to the point and keep the long winded side of me in check. It’s good to remind myself of the happy things, as life can get a bit zooey around here at casa Wolk-Stanley.

But today’s five things that make me happy list doesn’t seem complete without a chaser of two things that piss me off. It somehow balances the treacle-like quality of the cult of happiness. So, here goes . . .

Five Things That Make Me Happy, and Two Things That Piss Me Off

  1. Having get togethers with friends to look forward to. (Grown up play dates?)
  2. Finding out that a task I’ve been avoiding took care of itself.
  3. Discovering cool free entertainment for my family.
  4. Knowing that my neighbors do not judge me for storing our Halloween candy at their house until 5:00 P.M. on October 31st. (And it’s more to keep myself out of the Snickers bars than the kids.)
  5. Being able to walk almost all my errands in my urban neighborhood.
  1. Finding out that the child I put to bed an hour ago is not only out of bed, but is out of his pajamas and now wearing jeans and a long sleeve T-shirt.
  2. Getting to the end of a library audio book and discovering that the very end of the very last disc is scratched.

Okay folks, what are your seven things? Please share your lists in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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TisBest Charitable Gift Card Winners & Some Terrific Reader Comments

by Katy on October 28, 2010 · 1 comment

Thank you to everyone who entered to win one of two different $35 TisBest charitable gift card giveaway packages. Your comments about how you incorporate charitable giving into your lives were both inspiring and thought provoking. Congratulations to Erin G and Jennifer whose comments were randomly chosen to win this week’s Non-Consumer Advocate Monday Giveaway. And a great big thank you to Non-Consumer Advocate reader Tegan, who set up this week’s giveaway!

Here’s just a small sample of the comments about how readers give both their time and money towards charitable giving. Click here to read them all. And make sure to check back in next Monday, when I’ll be doing a giveaway of Jonathan Bloom’s American Wasteland, which is his fantastic exploration of the issues related to food waste.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

Erin G

“I help my church feed the school kids across the street. A lot of them rely on school lunches for food, so we give them a bag lunch to take with them over the weekend.”

Jennifer

“It’s hard to give back with two young kids, I hope when they’re a little older we’ll be able to volunteer as a family. I’d love to work in an animal shelter–though it would be hard not to take all the animals home. I do donate old towels & blankets to animal shelters when they start to go thin & I always participate in food drives. We always bring our outgrown clothes to Goodwill or other charities/thrift stores.”

Barb @ 1 Sentence Diary

“Giving is a part of life in my household. Two examples:

– Our synagogue collects cereal and pasta for the local food bank (each institution collects different items, so that there will a variety). My kids and I donate cereal and pasta, as well as bring all the donations monthly to the food bank. We also volunteer at the food bank sorting and organizing food for other volunteers who deliver it.

– The 8th night of Hanukkah, in my household, is charity night. The kids pick a charity they want to support, and donations are made in lieu of gifts that night.

I love the idea of these cards. I’m going to look them up right now to consider as gifts. Thanks so much for letting us know about them!”

Sarah

“I give my time (and money through buying supplies) to my local elementary school my son attends. I’m not into the PTO/PTA volunteer situation. I actually spend my time, at least 10 hours a week, inside the classroom. I take care of anything I can for the teacher so she can focus more on the students such as; grade papers, make copies, gather and send out homework, etc…

In addition, I work a lot one on one with the kids. I tutor the children that are having difficult times. Some kids just need that little one on one attention and a quiet atmosphere to learn. Yes, they excel but I literally get a high when they progress. It is the greatest feeling and I get so excited for them.

I give money as well. Actually, I had a New Year’s resolution to never say no to people raising money. I give a minimum of $10 everytime I am asked. Funny thing is, karma is such a good thing. We have been financially blessed beyond belief this year unexpectedly and I truely believe it is because we opened out hearts and wallets to others in need.”

Lucy

“How do I give back to the community? Well, I help people with fundraising projects when they ask! I do a lot of grant proposal writing… paid and as a volunteer.”

Tammy

“I work with a friend of mine and her Mom to provide loaned prom gowns and accessories to local girls who might not get to attend their Jr/Sr proms. We collect donated and thrifted gowns, shoes, accessories, toiletries and if available dinner certificates, hairdo certificates, etc. We ask for the gowns back and cover cleaning, etc. My friend and her Mom are great seamstresses and have been known to hem, tuck, etc. to make a girls dream gown “fit” and I provide handknit ribbon shawls, custom beaded jewelry, etc. We have some local beauty pagent participants help the girls as their personal shoppers to put together that special look. We’ve done this 2 years so far and everyone who has participated has seemed to really enjoy it as we try to make it a really fun shopping event from which the girls leaves with everyone she needs or a plan on how to achieve her dream prom. It’s truly one of the best experiences of my life and we hope to continue for years to come.”

Alicia

“When I had a job, I would donate to the food pantry if I had extra money left over at the end of the month. It didn’t happen very often, but three or four times a year. When I was younger and had no money, I would volunteer to take donations at the local public radio station. Now that I’m a mom, I have little extra money or time — if we do have extra money, I wind up feeling guilty if we don’t add it to our son’s college fund. So I recently decided that for his first birthday (and probably for the first few birthdays) we will ask our guests for no gifts — he has enough stuff already — and instead put out a call for donations to a local charity. If we decide to donate to the food pantry, then I’m going to have my sister make robot decorations out of canned food cans. If we decide to donate to a different kid-centered charity, we will try to find a way to make that part of the party theme.”

Christine

“One of the ways we like to help out our community is with the homeless. During the winter, we always have some blankets in our trunk to give to those who need them. And when we see someone asking for food, we stop by the grocery and buy bread, peanut butter, fruit, and a hot deli item like chicken for them to eat for a few days. We also try to take a few minutes to listen to the person. Its a hard life out there and sometimes people just need to have someone care.”

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Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old (or Borrowed) Kit Bag and Smile, Smile Smile!

by Katy on October 27, 2010 · 7 comments

The following is a reprint of a previously published post. Enjoy!

suitcase

Summer is a time of travel. Your journey might be to far flung locales, or as close as a weekend at the beach. Either way, you’re going to need to fill a suitcase with the necessaries of life.

My family has had a few high stress travel events that streamlined our packing routine. Mostly, it was a two week trip to Japan in 2007 which my husband Dale, and then 11-year-old son went on. The packing list was very specific and everything (including host family gifts) had to fit into a standard 29″ rolling suitcase. We didn’t actually own any rolling suitcases, (29″ or otherwise) and I was unsuccessful at scoring one from a thrift store.

So, did I shell out the cash for a somewhat poor quality suitcase that would fit within our stretched budget?

No way! I found suitcases to borrow instead.

I have since scored a high end Sampsonite brand rolling suitcase in a thrift store for only $6. (I checked, and to buy it new would have been $150+.)

What’s the lesson here?

If there’s something you need and aren’t able to find an acceptable used version of, then perhaps you should look to borrow one. (It goes without saying that keeping good care of it is a priority, and that you should look for an opportunity to do a favor for the lender.) Putting off this purchase saved us over $140 had we bought a high end suitcase, and saved us from spending $40 on a poor quality one.

We now have enough nice luggage for most travel situations, but that doesn’t mean we don’t borrow a few things here and there. My ten-year-old wants his own rolling suitcase, but there’s no hurry on that. I’ll just keep an eye out.

Do you feel comfortable borrowing from others, or does it make you feel uneasy? Please share your thoughts in the commentssection below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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A Gallery of Decluttered Items

by Katy on October 25, 2010 · 9 comments

I have been working hard to declutter my big ol’ house over the last few years, and lately have been putting in an extra va-va-voom into the effort. Here’s a short gallery of a few of the items that have left my life through Criagslist and consignment shops over the past few weeks. I think I may need to apologize in advance for some bad Star Wars puns.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

My cute Goodwill Dansko Mary Janes. I wanted you to fit, yet you never really did. You are now for sale at an expensive consignment store for $45.00.

Hello 50 cent Hanna Andersson thrift store jammies. I sold you on Craigslist for between $10 and $12 apiece.

So long painted game table. You were a free coffee table that my sister and I painted up cute for my older son. I was sad to see you go, but the $50 I got from a Craigslist buyer soothed my wounds.

Farewell dear Darth Vader cardboard standup. You were the centerpiece of three different birthday parties. My husband will miss you the most, but the $15 we received in exchange brought us over to the dark side.

Be gone Darth Vader cookie jar. You collected greasy dust on top of the refrigerator. The $10 you brought us will be better than any Wookie Cookie.

Sayonara Darth Vader voice changer masks. You took up way too much room in my sons' closet, and he was happy to make room for the $30 you brought into his life.

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Not Too Proud For Messed Up Cake

by Katy on October 24, 2010 · 10 comments

Today’s post will be pretty short. I’m actually stealing a moment during my 15-year-old son’s birthday party. It’s a casual party, with just a handful of friends, a lot of snacks and an excursion over to an old-timey arcade. (They have Skee-Ball!)

As easy as this sounds, I ended up making the cake not one, not two, but three times! The first batch of homemade chocolate cupcakes turned out all collapsed in the center, which I attributed to undercooking them. (I was preparing a meal for nine people at the time, so my mind was elsewhere.) The second batch was a cake, not cupcakes as I no longer had enough paper liners. This cake also collapsed and refused to budge from the pan, and then came out in pieces. At this point I realized that my oh so brag worth organic, fair trade unbleached sugar was not to be used for baking! So this morning I went out into the rain and bought a can’t screw it up cake mix.

Luckily, the assembled masses devoured last night’s mess up cupcakes, and I’m saving the ugly but still tasty cake for the party guests. (seriously, they are 15 and 14-year-old boys not Martha Stewart!)

Anyway, gotta go!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Can a Two Career Family of Four Get by with Just One Car?

by Katy on October 23, 2010 · 46 comments

My husband and I are just starting a conversation about going from two cars down to one. And frankly, this makes me nervous. It’s not that our neighborhood isn’t walkable, or that Portland, Oregon doesn’t have great public transportation, but it still seems slightly undoable. However, I do get a free public transportation pass through my workplace.

We currently drive a 2005 Honda Odyssey mini-van and a 1997 Subaru Outback.

The Honda Odyssey is great because it seats eight people and can fit an enormous amount of stuff in the back. It’s also super comfortable and trouble free. And I don’t know about your kids, but my kids do better on car trips when they have a little elbow room. We’ve owned this car since it was brand new and it has 36,500 miles on it. The safety ratings on this car are the best of any mini-van, (which is why we bought it) and it has a gas saving feature where it goes from six to three cylinders when it hits a cruising speed. This package came with leather seats and a built in DVD player. Because the car is so freakin’ big, it has a number of dings and scratches which I need to get taken care of. I have a bad back and driving this car feels like steering a Lazy-Boy through town.

The Subaru Outback just hit 100,000 miles and appears to still be going strong. It seats five people, has cloth seats and smells a little funny on the inside. (My husband thinks a homeless person spent the night in it while he was at work last year.) It’s a four wheel drive, which when we need it comes in very handy. This car may have a few dings and scratches, but because it’s an older car we don’t freak out about it as much. Driving this car feels scratchy.

My husband and I both work, and our sons both play soccer. My husband has biked to work in the past, but he dislocated his elbow a couple years ago biking over a railroad track and hasn’t enjoyed cycle commuting since. His work hours are erratic, and often have him not coming home until 8:00 P.M. or leaving for work at 2:30 A.M. My workplace is too far to cycle, although I could take the bus. However, I would have to catch the 5:54 A.M. bus. Right now, I drive to work and leave at 6:35 A.M., so I suppose it’s not that big of a difference.

I wonder how we would get the kids to their two different soccer practices, which run concurrently. I wonder what we do if I wanted to take the kids to the beach or to Mt. Hood for a weekend.

Our high school age son takes public transportation back and forth to school, which is free. Our middle school age son takes a district school bus. Although, he has to picked up two days a week when he stays after school for Japanese tutoring.

I am aware of options such as Zipcar, which allow you to borrow a car without paying for insurance or gas. There is one parked a couple blocks away, so this would actually be a decent plan B.

With all these thoughts swimming around in my head, I took the bus yesterday to pick up a few staples at Trader Joes. I ended up waiting awhile for the bus to come, but I had a good book in hand. Of course, I chose this experiment during daylight hours on a bright and sunny afternoon.

I think we are going to spend a month pretending we have only one car and see how it goes. It will either be much easier or much harder than we anticipate.

Has your family figured out how to get by with a single car? Please share your ideas in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Okay, Your Turn. Who Are You?

by Katy on October 22, 2010 · 160 comments

The role of a blogger is unique. I write an almost daily personal essay, which while not exactly soul baring, still opens my life up to thousands of strangers. You all know that I’m a Portland, Oregon labor and delivery nurse, parent to 12 and 15-year-old sons, frugality geek, green living enthusiast and large house/simple living wannabe.

There are of course areas of my life that I do not write about. I am deliberately vague about my husband and sons, and try not to share my bad moods, which are inevitable. Truth be told, I probably share too much about some areas of my life, and not enough about others.

But here’s the thing, I want to know about you.

Are you male or female, do you live in the U.S., and if so what area? Do you have a blog, kids, chickens? Are you frugal, how about green? Are you a hip twenty-something or a seasoned sixty-something? A hundred things in your house, or a hundred things on your coffee table? Do you read The Non-Consumer Advocate regularly, or are you a first time visitor? Did you come to frugality out of choice or unexpected life changes? You get my drift.

Please share your stories in the comments section. If you read this blog but never comment, today is your day. It’s time to turn the table around and let you share your life.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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“Keeping Chickens with Ashley English” — a Winner, Plus Some Fan-Clucking-Tastic Reader Comments

by Katy on October 21, 2010 · 3 comments

Congratulations to Sue Smith, whose comment was randomly chosen to win her an autographed copy of Keeping Chickens with Ashley English: All You Need to Know to Care for a Happy, Healthy Flock. In all, 85 readers wrote their dreamy poultry plans in the comments section. Not bad, considering what a niche interest chickens are.

Thank you to everyone who entered this week’s giveaway, you are the best mother-cluckers (and fathers) a blogger could hope for. Click here to read all the fan-cluckin’-tasic comments. Cluck.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

Sue Smith:

“We have 6 laying hens at our B&B here in Kona Hawaii, and they are a kick! At the present time, Goldy is setting on 12 beautiful blue eggs trying to hatch them. She sneaked into the shrubs near the spa and laid her eggs one by one until she got the urge to incubate them. We finally found out where she was when we trimmed the plants. Not sure how long it will be for the chicks, but it takes 21 days to hatch from the time she stays on the nest continuously.

We also have 2 Rhode Island Reds, Penny and Sparkle, 1 black feral hen, Coffee, and 2 Auracana mix hens Bluta and Jenny. 2 lay big brown eggs, one lays a dark olive green egg, 2 lay white eggs, and Goldy is our blue egg layer.

I have many stories about my chickens, and we have a lot of fun with them.

Aloha, Sue”

Ellen:

“I had a pet chicken when I was a child that I raised from a chick. Her name was Chickenelli and she was tame and I loved her. Then one day “she” started crowing at four in the morning. I lived in surburban Miami and she had to go. It was the saddest day of my life up until that time. I’ve always dreamed of having a chicken again and would love to win an autographed copy of the book.”

Maggie O:

“This reminds me of a joke… So a chicken walks into the library, goes up to the Librarian and says “book…book…book.” I can’t remember the entire punchline, but it’s something about her friend the frog saying “read-it…read-it…read-it.” Anyway, I’ve read-it and I’d like my own copy of the book…book…book, please! Thanks for the opportunity.” :)

Jessica Wolk-Stanley:

“I have no chickens, but our coolest friends do.
Some of the eggs come in such pretty colors too.
Urban homesteading is a fun way to have your own zoo.”

Amber:

“Ashley English is one of my reasons for swallowing all my fears and getting chickens! We bought 3 laying hens who’d not had a happy home, and now they are all feathered and fat and happy and so funny to watch! They lay big, beautiful brown eggs, each one a day! I love my biddies, and hope to free-range them one day…but there’s wandering dogs and hawks here… *sigh*”

Penelope:

“Well since you mention chickens, I woke up like I’d been pushed off the bed this morning at 3:23 am. I’d been dreaming about chickens and that I’d found half my flock torn apart by raccoons, piles of feathers, odd limbs. It was really horrible. Then I thought about my real flock. Half of them sleep safely tucked away in the fancy new coop we just built for them but the other half refuses to go in for the night. Instead they roost in a pine tree. They get up too high for me to have any chance of catching them but I know that one night a raccoon will discover their secret and my dream will become reality.”

Andrea:

“Neat! My husband is building a barn/garage (barage) this winter, which means we’ll finally have somewhere to keep chickens (my mother-in-law dropped some teenage chickens–not even cute little chicks–at our house one Easter morning a few years ago and suggested that we keep them in the basement when we took them back). We get our eggs from a nearby farm, but it would be nice to just walk outside to get them.”

Eric Gottlieb:

“I live in midtown Memphis and have been thinking about getting chickens for several years. A bunch of my friends have them now. I’m hoping to take the plunge soon. I’d love to see my flock scratching around in my compost pile.”

Molly on Money:

“I’m a huge backyard chicken enthusiast. I go for some of the crazier looking breeds that aren’t the best layers but I love to look at them. This year I took the big leap to chicken farming poultry. For someone who had hardly every cut into a piece of raw poultry it was definitely a learning curve (a very gross learning curve).”

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Things vs. Experiences

by Katy on October 20, 2010 · 15 comments

The following is a reprint of a previously published post. Enjoy!

Shoptimism

Last Sunday’s Parade Magazine included an article titled, “Why Shopping is Good Again” by Lee Eisenberg. I set the insert magazine aside, thinking the information included in such an ad based publication would certainly be an interesting read.

It turns out that Eisenberg has a book to be published next week called, “Shoptimism: Why the American Consumer Will Keep On Buying No Matter What,” so the article actually was more than the that silly recession is behind us, please buy our advertiser’s products that I had expected.

One part of the article that struck me as quite insightful was the subject of how experiences differ from things:

“Over the past decade, social psychologists have conducted numerous studies that find we’re happiest when, instead of shelling out for stuff, we spend money on things that provide social and personal engagement.

Shared experiences, researchers find over and over again, offer greater value than material buys.Pleasant memories don’t fade in the wash or go out of fashion. Just think back on that family trip out West. Sure, everyone returned home with assorted souvenirs that proved you were actually there. But now, what do you remember as the most meaningful part of the trip? Maybe it was the look you saw on your kids’ faces, their eyes wide as saucers, as they peered into infinite chasms that offered up a spectacle beyond anything they’d experienced before—including, even, the first time they fired up their PlayStation.”

My mother’s birthday was last week, and instead of buying her more stuff, I took her out on the town to see a play with dessert afterwards. We started this tradition a few years back when a showing of Sing-Along Sound of Music was in town and I decided that I had found the perfect gift for her. Not only would we get to spend a child-free evening together, (a rarity at the time, as my kids were still small) but the combination of singing and making smart-ass remarks at the screen was right up her alley.  My instinct was right on the money, and we still laugh about how fun that night was.

My mother already owns a lifetime of possessions and there’s nothing I can buy her that she doesn’t already have. Nothing.

I would suggest that you consider the things vs. experiences issue when making your gift giving choices for this year’s holiday season. Not only are you providing an experiential gift, but are not contributing to the excessive clutter that so many of us struggle with. Plus there’s none of that pesky packaging!

Have you received or given experience gifts such as theater or movie tickets; massages or homemade gift certificates in the past? Please share your stories in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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Order

by Katy on October 19, 2010 · 21 comments

I am not a naturally ordered person. I come from a family where we actually made fun of  the notion of “A place for everything and everything in its place.” Keeping an organized home is a struggle for me, and as much as I find solace and satisfaction in order, it’s a forced habit.

I brought home a huge zucchini from work last week that no one seemed to be laying claim to, and finally got around to shredding it last night. (Thank you, Cuisinart!) I decided the freeze them in one cup portions. The result was so pleasing to the eye, that I have yet to remove the frozen zucchini castles from their formation.

This got me thinking about other organization that have snuck into my life. My first inclination was to share photos of my my underwear drawer, which is organized within an inch of its life. (This is thanks to the Ikea drawer organizers I got from my sister last year, which I have added to with help from the Ikea seconds department.) However, I decided that there is no one out there in cyberland who wants to see my decidedly non-sexy underwear, organized or otherwise!

I suppose my inspiration is the Things Organized Neatly blog, which features, well . . . things organized neatly. It’s an odd concept, yet like a mini-mind vacation all at once. Ahh . . . . Nothing out of place, everything so very perfect. A glass of perfectly chilled water in a Mountain Dew world.

I walked around my house and chose a few things to photograph to illustrate my own attempt at organization. Zucchini, former junk drawers and a clothesline of paired drying socks all made the cut. My husband’s bedside table? Maybe later.

I don’t know what it is, but there’s something very soothing about looking at ordered objects, even if they’re not my own. Perhaps it’s the calm in the storm, or simply that semblance of control in an otherwise chaotic world.

Frozen one cup portions of shredded zucchini. They will be transferred to a Ziploc bag, but for now they enjoy their formation.

Paired socks dry on the clothesline, easy to match up when it's time for removal. Their shadow pleases me.


Tape, paperclips, glue and rubber bands. Batteries, chargers, drawer knobs and printer ink. They each enjoy their own little bin.

Are you finding yourself drawn to a more organized life? Are you following simple living blogs such as Rowdy Kittens, Zen Habits or Simpler Living? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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