My Country, 'Tis of Thee

I love America, the good ole USA, my home. I really do. But I have issues with where our country has been and the direction our great land is heading.

There are alot of Americans who love to talk about returning to an America that closely mirrors the intentions of the founding fathers. These same founding fathers who owned slaves, saw nothing wrong with it, yet proclaimed that all men are free.

I believe this is where the dichotomy began and continues. Some may call it hypocritical, but for the sake of keeping my emotions in check to communicate clearly I will use the word dichotomy. I remember after 9/11 many politicians said we must fight for our freedom to walk about and live our lives freely. That we should not let others terrorize and change our way of living.

We live in a land of the free, but at the same time there are alot of us who are not free. The pursuit of happiness as the constitution states seems to be a fantasy for many. Yet those same people who want to return to the founding father's ideas, want to spread this "freedom" worldwide. Yes, we have free speech. For the most part. We have the ability to pursue happiness up to a point. But I'm not sure we are that different from the countries we are trying to democratize.

The world was watching...

When our bank system toppled the entire world economy without accountability or punishment
When we imprisoned (or interned as it was put) the Japanese citizens of this country
When Africans were brought to the Americas on ships and enslaved
When American Indians were cheated/bullied out of land they rightfully owned
When the Africans who were enslaved later were denied equal access to bathrooms, education, employment
When children are abused and molested with no report at the hands of a unified church system
When certain political groups feel the basic needs for food and shelter be denied to others

When....this list can get very very very long

Our troops are deployed to fight for the above atrocities in other parts of the world. How about we address our own?

There are two Americas. Those who have the freedom to walk about freely without fear of a police officer (or a want to be officer) questioning their motives, and those who do not enjoy that freedom. There are those who wonder if a store clerk is watching them because their hue is more likely to steal. There are parents who dread the day their son or daughter brings home a person of a darker hue.

I have spent most of my life living, working, going to school as a minority. One thing I learned quickly is some in the majority don't consider us human. This may seem harsh at first, but to me it's the only way I can figure out how one can justify killing another person because of what they look like. Some think African Americans have tails, Oprah had a guest who told her so. If one does not regard a person as human with a soul then killing that person becomes an afterthought. Much like this dog shooting earlier this month. Animal shelter workers can attest, many innocent creatures are treated horribly (I do not condone animal cruelty at all). Burned, hung, kicked, used for fighting, sold. Sound familiar?

I AM HUMAN!

These same founding father supporters will uphold the right to life, but show no mercy to the loss of life at the hands of a another. Dichotomy. Maybe they want more little brown and black lives to oppress. Makes them feel more important?

When a young unarmed man is shot in cold blood and the justice system essentially turns a blind eye to this atrocity, we have a big problem. But to me it seems like the same America we started with. If this is what the founding fathers intended then God will NOT bless America.

My country, 'tis of thee,

Stronghold of slavery, of thee I sing;

Land where my fathers died,

Where men man’s rights deride,

From every mountainside thy deeds shall ring!

Abolitionist verses, 1843, A. G. Duncan 

Ms. Frugality

Frugal: entailing little expense; requiring few resources; meager

I am frugal, both by nature and necessity.

In my youth, our family did well enough that we lived a bit outside the frugal definition. Or at least I wasn't aware of penny pinching. But my Mother was especially gifted at finding bargains and stretching a buck, which I believe was acquired from her mother who lived on a very modest income.

This rubbed off on me and has especially become more of a focus in recent years. After racking up over $11,000 in credit card debt in my 20's (thanks to AMEX giving me a credit card my freshman year of 
college ), paying that off and then getting back into debt $5,000 because of medical bills my insurance did not cover enough was enough. 

Currently, I adhere to a zero credit card debt tolerance, which means if I do use a credit card I have to have the cash coming in to pay it off in full. The only debt I still maintain is my car and student loans. I adopted this zero credit card debt tolerance after my medical bill debt was paid in full. Which culminated in a court visit because of an evil credit consolidation company (long-long story). As a result, there are alot of things I have to simply do without.

After my layoff in 2011 my salary plummeted drastically. I was unable to afford the rent I was paying in NYC and it wasn't even high by NYC standards. I wasn't living in luxury either, my apartment was a middle income government subsidized unit. Staying in NYC wasn't too much of an option with rents increasing and the job market decreasing. So with my move I was at least afforded an opportunity to secure a job and pay a little less rent. But then there's that car payment...

Nevertheless, I try to work it out.  I hold three jobs and I have a fourth in the works. Even though to most on the outside looking in it appears I am "rolling in the dough". This is really a matter of choices I make in regards to my purchases.

Home

When I moved from NYC I sold pretty much everything except my kitchen items and clothing. Since moving I didn't replace too much of anything. I don't have a TV or a bed, I sleep on a futon mattress (much more comfy and firmer than a saggy mattress). I just bought an "AS IS" chair from IKEA (YAY!). Everything else was either donated or found in the trash (no shame since alot of people throw out perfectly nice stuff).

Wardrobe

Yes I have a Michael Kors bag. Did I pay full price? Hell no. I learned a long time ago from my Mother that quality is worth more in the long run. I carried a Kenneth Cole bag I bought for $100 at TJ Maxx for close to 10 years until it literally fell apart. I think I got my money's worth. I bought my Michael Kors bag on Ebay for $115 and I plan on carrying it for a very long time. As far as the rest of my wardrobe, I use coupons from DSW when I need new shoes, shopping exclusively in the clearance section. There's nothing in my closet that I have paid full price for UNLESS it was from Forever 21 or H&M. The remaining items I find at thrift or clearance. My most accomplished item is a Barney's New York jacket that was 6.99 from the Salvation Army (it was 50% off too). That sucker retailed $600. Woo Hoo!

Food

I do buy organic but only because this keeps my medical bills down to zero since I'm currently under-insured. When I do buy organic I buy moderate portions and stretch every bit of food. For example, this past week I bought a pre-cooked organic chicken and vegetables along with other items for the week. I don't buy juices or soda or other junk foods since they tend to cost more. I drink Water, Tea, Almond milk. Special treats are Kind bars which I buy at Trader Joe's because they are $1.49 instead of close to $2 elsewhere. Total grocery bills average just under $65. After the chicken was eaten I boiled the remains and made soup with the leftovers including the veggies. I had enough food to make it from Sunday to Saturday. I carry a lunch bag to work everyday. I carry snacks and small meals in the car so I don't eat out. But if I do eat out it is at affordable organic based places (unless I get a Groupon for something). I had to put it this way in my mind; if I am spending roughly $10 a day for a lunch at work then that adds up to about $200 per month. I simply cannot afford an extra $200 a month food expense. Case closed.

Entertainment

My only "cable" is Netflix and the Internet. I pay $40 total for them since I get the Netflix streaming option for $7.99/month. I wouldn't bother with Internet except my part time job is online teaching so I am required to have access to the Internet from home. In addition, if I go to the movies I choose wisely. I average 3 movies a year unless I can go to the budget theater ($3 here in LA). I do partake in an occasional stage play but get the seats really far away unless they are rush tickets (I miss NYC rush tickets). Everything else I do is free or very very cheap.

Beauty

I cut my own hair, polish my own nails, do my facials and everything else. The make up I buy is over the counter. I had to give up the MAC and Sephora obsession with my pay cut. I try to stay away from the chemical based make up brands if my budget allows. 

Health care

Since I am under-insured I make sure I keep exercise apart of my schedule as well as natural supplements. I eat well too so I can keep my immunity up to par. Gym membership was on sale for $50 a month which is worth every penny for the results I get. I also found an affordable acupuncturist and massage therapist. Knock on wood, I haven't been deathly ill since losing my really good insurance in 2011. I plan to try my best to keep it this way. 

Working the system

For the few things I am not able to pay off quickly I take advantage of no interest options. For instance, I bought my iPad (refurbished 2nd generation which is my TV set essentially) on a card offering zero interest. As long as I paid it off in 6 months, interest would not incur. I also take advantage of the rewards programs which offer gift cards for a certain number of points. My next purchase will be a new laptop, since my current one is dying. I hope to get a no interest deal from one of my cards soon.

Stewardship of Property

The one thing that helps keep costs down is to take very good care of my stuff. For instance, I took my 5 year old MacBook to the Apple store and the technicians all raved about how well he (I do assign gender to my beloved items) looked. I figure if I take care of what I have then the likelihood I will need to replace it is decreased. Wish I could say the same about my iPhone, knock on wood the poor thing is going strong after it fell down a flight of subway stairs and into a toilet (on separate occasions). Same with clothing, I hang dry most of my clothing so they last longer. The dryer ruins alot of clothing. And of course my wonderful used car, I make sure she is well taken care of.

So there it is, my frugal system. I really wrote this to help me be accountable to myself and see how much I am stretching my dollars these days. But I hope that maybe this will help YOU stretch your dollars too!