Acting Poor

There was an article written earlier this week about “acting poor” to give you choices.  I feel like this is what Todd and I have been doing more so now than ever before.  Make no mistake, we spend money on things that are important to us; however, for everything else, we make it ourselves (thank goodness for a handy hubby!), buy used, shop around, or do without. 

There are so many people we know who say “I couldn’t live like you do.”  I don’t understand what we are doing that makes people think that we do not enjoy our life or that we live a life of poverty.  We feel quite the opposite, actually.  We feel know we live a life of abundance!  We lack for nothing.  We have traveled, experienced and learned so much because we aren't afraid to jump in with both feet (homesteading, raising a pig, raising chickens, remodeling a house) and  have had more fun than most people we know.  We have done more in our short marriage than some people have done in their entire lives!

Here’s the thing:  We take pleasure in finding a good deal and saving our pennies.  I find satisfaction in making my own baked goods from scratch, making enough homemade laundry detergent that lasts the entire year for $3.62,  growing of our food, shopping at thrift stores, browsing flea markets, going to garage sales, cancelling the cable, downgrading our cell phone plans, attempting to be more energy efficient by using the dryer and dishwasher less and installing smart strips as well as negotiating prices for our utilities.  We take pride in going on cheap dates together.  Again, this may seem extreme to some people, but we do this so that we can spend our money on what is important to us: experiences together!  Annual anniversary trips, surprise birthday fun, investing in time together and spending time and traveling with family. 

If acting poor enables us to do all of these things together, I will gladly give up the smartphones, new cars and eating out multiple times a week.  For us, it's worth it.  Not only does acting poor enable us to create lasting memories together, it also enables us to reach for our goal of financial independence. 

Learning to Live Without a Dryer and Dishwasher

As a part of trying to conserve energy, I decided to try to live without the clothes dryer as well as the dishwasher.  The first day I tried to live without these two appliances, I realized how easy they made my life.  They were truly a convenience I had come to rely on.  This is what I’ve learned over the past month by going without these two appliances.

Small Loads Are Best

The very first day I washed laundry, we had 3 large loads to do.  I put in the first large load into the washing machine to realize all of the clothes would not fit on our 3 drying racks.  So…I hung some up on the fireplace mantel and dried them extremely quick in front of the fire.

With the dishes, if I wash them as I go, it is not as overwhelming.  I have been washing the dishes after breakfast, which takes about 5 minutes.  I unload those dry dishes from breakfast while making dinner in the evening. When my husband cooks, he uses all  a lot of pots and pans, and the days he cooks, I am completely overwhelmed with a stack of dishes and want to throw up my hands in defeat by loading them into the dishwasher and hit the “start” button.

Frequency Rules

With laundry, I have learned to do several (smaller) loads throughout the week instead of 2 or 3 large ones on the weekends.  By doing this, we have enough room on the drying racks to allow the clothes to dry properly within 24-48 hours. 

As I mentioned above with the dishes, I wash the dishes after every single meal to ensure I don’t get overwhelmed.

It Ain’t Pretty

In the beginning, we kept the drying racks in the family room and they were not very pretty to look at

every time we walked into the room.  It then dawned on me that we could keep the drying racks in our spare bedroom to keep them away from cute little kitten claws (we have 3 – 5 month old kittens right now) and they are out of the way.  This has been working well for us.

 

Patience is Key

I have to laugh at this because I have no patience whatsoever.  It is so easy to hit a button and 34 minutes later you have dry clothes.  Hit the “start” button on the dishwasher and 2 hours later you have clean and dry dishes.

Now, it takes anywhere from 24-48 hours for our clothes to be completely dry (I am looking forward to the warmer weather when I can hang clothes outside on the line!).  I am learning to plan ahead instead of live in survival mode when it comes to dishes and laundry.  To me, it feels better to have laundry done and put away every few days instead of 3 heaping baskets of clean laundry waiting to be put away once a week.  It takes a little more time throughout the week, but it’s done and I don’t have to worry about it.

I joke that I would like to live the “simple life” like the Amish…without all the work.  I am learning that by getting rid of just two appliances, it creates a noticeable change in work load; however, I am (surprisingly) keeping up. 

I grew up with dishwashers and clothes dryers.  This is what I am accustomed to.  It is definitely a change in mindset to willingly go without, but I am enjoying it.  Right now, I am doing this to see if we can lower our electric bill and put the savings toward our mortgage payoff; however, I would love to be able to one-day create enough electricity to power our home.  Trying to reduce our energy consumption is one step closer to being independent of energy.

Do you live without a dryer or dishwasher?

What are your tips and tricks or advice for those of us just starting out in our journey of less “convenience” appliances?

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Making A Few Extra Bucks

I am the worst sales person ever.  We couldn’t sell ice cream in the Sahara.  We pretty much give our stuff away at garage sales.  Over the past several weeks, we have had good success using Craigslist to sell some of our unwanted clutter and furniture. 

One item in particular was our old water softener and water filtration system that came with the house.  We struggled with this system and still couldn’t drink water from the tap after trying to get it to work properly for 3 years so we bought a whole new system that works great!  We were able to sell the name brand water softener and filtration system for $50 which is what we listed the sale price as on Craigslist.  The best part is that the gentleman who bought it acted like it was the “deal of the year” and we were happy to get rid of it without throwing it away!  The gentleman owns several rental properties that have these systems in them and will use it for parts.  Win-Win!

If you have anything you are looking to get out of your house before the holidays, I highly suggest listing it on Craigslist.  I haven’t had success with getting rid of books I’ve accumulated over the years so those will go to the library and some tchotchkes were given away for free. 

Do you use Craigslist often to sell your unwanted items?

Do you buy from Craigslist often?