I voted

Tuesday I voted in my local primary. No, you don’t get to know how I voted. That’s the beauty of a secret ballot. 

There was one interesting change in my town’s voting procedure. In the past we’d mark paper ballots. Then the ballots were scanned into a machine and counted. The beauty of that system was the paper ballots. In case of a recount there were actual physical ballots. This year they did away with the machine entirely and went to hand counting paper ballots. It’s not that hard to do, especially in the small town I live in. 

The reason they got ride of the machine count? The machine was getting old and the servicing company had difficulty getting parts. Rather than spend town funds on a new machine they decided to go old school. That’s the sort of frugality I expect from the Yankee farmers that make up much of the town leadership. 

To make the count work they needed volunteers from both parties to do the hand count. They had no difficulty getting enough qualified people for the job. Everyone, no matter the party, worked together to make sure the election went smoothly. That’s the way it’s supposed to work. 

-Sixbears

Money Lies

There are a lot of self-help books, podcasts, and YouTube channels about how to achieve financial independence. A lot of them have useful information about how to avoid common financial traps. Often frugality is presented as the way to become a millionaire. There’s no doubt that living below your means is a proven method of acquiring wealth. 

What almost all of them gloss over is the fact that there’s no substitute for high income. All the frugal tips in the world won’t help you if your income is too low. Imagine you have a $2000 car bill. Because you didn’t save much of anything from your low paying job you only have $100 to put towards it. Imagine that by living on noodles you were able to save $1000. That still doesn’t fix the car. Lets say you had a good run and did save the $2000. That problem is solved and it’s a good thing too as your rent just doubled. Now you have to live in your car. 

Having a high income doesn’t solve all your problems either. Let’s say you are a professional at a major business in a large city. Your income could be well into the six figures but you won’t necessarily be able to save a ton of money. A professional has to have a certain look and that costs money. Shopping Walmart sales and tying your hair back in a pony tail won’t cut it. Living expenses will be high in the big city. 

We also had a good long run where investments did well. Those days are probably over, at least for a number of years. The financial guys love to point to the years when just about any investment did well. Nobody shows numbers from the Great Depression. 

It’s a sad truth that most of us will not get rich. The best indicator of wealth is having wealthy ancestors. Money doesn’t guarantee happiness. Then again, extreme poverty doesn’t either. 

What we can strive for is a level of income vs expenditures that won’t keep us in a constant state of stress. One thing that has helped is remote work. People are able to take their big city income out to the low cost rural areas. Too bad so many companies want people back in the office now. It’s like the system wants us to be in constant stress. 

You know what people constantly on the edge of financial ruin are called? Normal. 

If you accept that you’ll never be the millionaire next door you can adjust accordingly. Look for something that gives you a decent work/life balance. Be aware of the expenses that come with certain jobs and work locations. Cut yourself some slack when things outside of your control bust the budget. There is no shame in downsizing. Sometimes you have to do the best with the cards you are dealt. 

-Sixbears

Frugality Limits

You’ve got to know your limits. There are plenty of Internet folks out there with helpful frugality advice. 

Some things won’t apply to where you live. One well know prepper has plenty of advice on how to take advantage of store specials. That’s great if you happen to live near any of those stores. My area is considered a food desert. We are lucky to have any grocery options at any price. 

Then you have advice like never buy coffee at a coffee shop. It’s cheaper to make your coffee at home. While that’s true in a strictly dollars and cents way it might not be the best idea for you. Maybe that coffee shop stop is one of the few things bringing you joy. Maybe it’s a social connection you desperately need. When I was in college money was tight, but I always scrapped up the cash for a coffee at the student center. It gave me the chance to connect with people and to gather my strength for the coming day. 

Some advice just does not make sense in the modern world. To do much of anything these days you need at least an Internet connection and a smart phone or computer. One of the things my wife and I did for her parents in rural TX was to deal with cancer doctors and hospitals.  Her parents lacked Internet service so we set up a hotspot to sort things out on-line. Due to covid restrictions even driving to the hospital to sort things out wasn’t an option. 

Without Internet access you can’t easily apply for jobs or services. Not being connected will cost most people more in the long run. 

You can’t decide to go without electricity. The state will take your kids away. 

Repairs and maintenance get short shrift when times are tight. You can usually get away with that for a short while but it will bite you late. All your skipped oil changes don’t make up for the cost of a blown car engine. That leak in the house roof will destroy your home if not fixed. Unfortunately most of us are balancing the most pressing needs month to month. We decide on the oil change rather than paint for the railing. If you are rich you never have to make those decisions. If you are poor and frugal it’s a constant balancing act. 

Frugality is more than dollars. There’s quality of life, mental health, and even spiritual needs. Be careful you don’t cut out “non-essentials” that make life worth living. 

-Sixbears

Nicks and scrapes

Did you ever spend way too long trying to fix something that should have been replaced? That took up way too much of my day. A while back I had to borrow my cousin’s compressor to set the bead on a scooter tire. The annoying thing about that is the fact there’s a big 240 volt compressor in my basement. 

The problem is that it had not run for years. Life gets busy. So I messed around with it. When power finally made it to the motor is made a lot of horrible screeching noises at first. Before that I thought I’d gotten the compressor to actually turn over. In the dark basement I did not notice that what I manged to do was to loosen the pulley on the spindle. The belt went back on for a test. When the motor finally kicked on it spun the pulley right off. 

At that point I decided I’d better get some more lights on in the basement. Taking a good look at the overall condition of the compressor I decided to finally junk it. Had I not been working in a dark cramped corner I’d probably had come to that conclusion sooner. Nicks and scrapes on the knuckles would have been avoided too. 

I can be frugal to the point of being stupid, but there comes a time. Tractor Supply had a nice cheap little compressor that can handle everything I’m doing right now. By the time all that was sorted out it was too late in the day to finish the job that required a compressor. 

Such is life.

-Sixbears

Extremely Cheap Cars

I once bought an old Dodge wagon with the 318 engine for fifty dollars because the junk yard only offered the previous owner thirty five. It had a blown torque converter and the engine had lifter noise. A cheap can of additive solved the hydraulic lifter issue. A buddy at work found a torque converter in a vehicle abandoned in a farmer’s field. I did the work in my dad’s backyard. The car, after repairs, still cost less than one hundred dollars.

Unfortunately the gas gauge never worked. One cold night it left me stranded a long walk from home. That was it, time to trade the car in. We had driven it for two years by then anyway.

My lovely wife and I bought the first new car of our marriage. It wasn’t much of a car, a Dodge Omni with the four speed manual transmission and the gutless 1.6 liter Peuguet engine. The car was cheaply made; it didn’t even have a radio. We drove that thing for 10 years and it was falling apart: rust, broken door handles, and a host of niggling mechanical issues. One day my lovely wife got into an accident with a tractor trailer fuel hauler. She totaled the truck, so you can imagine what the car looked like. She was lucky to survive with minor injuries.

Over the years we’ve owned way too many junk cars. At least we aren’t buying Dodges anymore. Probably the best car we ever owned was an old Mercedes 240 D. It was very old when we bought it with 100,000 miles on the odometer. I converted it to run on waste vegetable oil and we put an additional 400,000 miles on it.

All I ever wanted from a car was transportation. It’s not about ego. I don’t have to have a big fancy lifted 4X4 to compensate for my short comings. Cars just don’t excite me, especially new cars. They cost too much money and are poorly made. While the best car I ever owned was that Mercedes, I would not buy a newer one. They are now over engineered with too many computers and too much cheap plastic.

While I had fun running four different diesel vehicles on waste veggie oil, that’s come to an end too. Newer diesels are too complicated and don’t convert well. Then there’s the issue that waste veggie is no longer free and harder to get.

So what’s in my future? With my budget, maybe walking. My lovely wife is currently driving a very cheap Nissan Versa Note with a manual transmission. I’ve got that 2004 Chevy Blazer for the main purpose of towing my boat. When those are gone, I’m just not sure. Maybe we’ll spend half the year living on a sailboat and not needing a car. For the other half? It’s anyone’s guess. Maybe there will be cheap reliable used electric cars on the market? Maybe the whole car thing will be over and we’ll be back to horses.

-Sixbears

Food budgets for your needs

There are some people who live on ridiculously frugal food budgets, like a few dollars per person per week. It can be done, especially if you can garden a little and forage a bit. That’s fine. Some people are even satisfied with that sort of thing.

If you are the type of person who has no problem eating a half cup of plain oatmeal for breakfast every single day then maybe you can pull it off too. For some people food is just fuel. They eat only to make the hunger pains go away.

Then there are people like me. Growing up food was a huge part of my culture. Family and extended family meals were hugely important. They still are. We love eating good food, cooking good food and serving attractive meals. It’s an experience, one of life’s joys.

The food budget for the second group of people is going to be a lot higher. Just accept that and plan accordingly. That doesn’t mean you can’t be frugal, just not as frugal as the food is only fuel crowd. We have to add a lot more variety, spices, and quality ingredients.

Sometimes we can save a lot of money by spending more time. For example homemade bread with pea soup made from dried peas is yummy and cheap, but takes a lot of time. The peas have to be started the day before. Good bread takes hours to make. It’s a lot more work than a bowl of rice.

If you are not fussy about your meals, food storage is easy. If good food really means something to you, prepare your storage accordingly. Don’t assume you’ll go from the food is life camp to the food is fuel camp overnight. You’ll be very unhappy if you try.

In a crisis, a hot dish of good food can do wonders for your mental health. Plan accordingly.

-Sixbears

Money Saving Tips

You see those articles in the press, on TV, and all over the Internet: how to save money and finally get ahead by doing a few things differently. You know the articles. They tell you to avoid buying a fancy coffee on the way into work, or to make your own lunch instead of buying it.

Sure, those things save you money. However, they don't make up for your health care costs tripling, your income suddenly dropping by $25,000, or your company doing away with its retirement plan.

Politicians can be the worse. They say that the reason people can't buy houses is because they are spending money on avocado toast. The real problem is that people have to go into debt to get degrees for jobs that don't pay as well as manufacturing jobs did 30 years ago.

Sure, and we can pay for health care if we don't buy a fancy cell phone. Not buying a top of the line cell phone would almost buy me one month of health insurance -almost. In the real world, I'm starting my third year with a $99 phone with a plan that costs me less than $13/month. I'd be more than happy to pay that for health insurance. As it is I don't have health insurance.

Saving money can cost you money too. If your clothing is not up to “professional standards,” you are less likely to get promoted and more likely to get fired. Those people who got out for lunch with the boss are more likely to get promoted than the guy eating lunch at his desk. Even in blue collar fields, it matters. Not having quality tools or even really good work boots makes a big difference.

There was a time when I was injured, out of work, and had taken a huge income cut. We were so tight that I found uses for potato peels. That's right, I wouldn't even throw out potato peels. Then some monthly bill would shoot up. It was depressing. Those money saving articles were of no help at all. When you can't even afford to throw out potato peels, articles on how to save money on airline tickets weren't cutting it. I used to joke that garbage was for rich people. We threw almost nothing away.

In my case, what actually made a difference was winning my case against the retirement system and getting four years of back pay. Amazing how getting more money can improve your financial situation.

-Sixbears

Economic Depression and You

Anyone want to bet on the economy? Anyone?

Funny thing about economic downturns. The kinda sneak up on you. We tend to think the start of the last major depression coincided with the collapse of the stock market. While in hindsight that was a major turning point, the average Joe at the time didn't feel it. Some folks were impacted right off, but others didn't feel the pinch for a year, two years or even longer. A minority actually prospered.

Even most of those who lost big didn't get feel the full brunt of the downturn immediately. It took some time for savings to be exhausted and debt collectors to catch up. Some folks limped along for a while selling hard assets at fire sale prices. There are families who's tales of the depression are about how they had to let most of the servants go. Yeah, times were hard on them.

There are a couple of ways to deal with a downturn in one's economic situation. One is to limp along trying maintain as much of the old lifestyle as possible. Middle class people will probably try and do that by living on their credit cards. The idea is that when their situation improves they'll make good on all that debt.

Another method is to not wait for things to get better. Instead you assume things won't, at least for a long time. With that in mind a person's lifestyle is ruthlessly cut back. Expenses are reduced to reflect one's downsized income.

Personally, I've used both methods at the same time. That's not something I recommend, but I had some reason to expect a monetary settlement that would eventually cover most of the debt. While it worked for me, it was a near thing. The stress level is pretty high so if you can reduce your expenses and still live a reasonably comfortable life, that might be better.

Most people think they are in pretty good shape if they have the resources to survive a year. Yes, that's good, but economic depressions don't last just one year. If you can radically downsize maybe that cushion can last much longer. The time to prepare for a down turn is before it really impacts you.

On a personal level I was fortunate that I had my own well, some solar electric power, and a woodstove. Those resources were extremely useful. However, after four years I was about to lose the house for nonpayment of the mortgage and taxes. Even if the house had been paid off, I would have been unable to pay the taxes. That's something to keep in mind. They will take your house away and put it up for auction.

Now is a good time to figure out how to deal with a depression. It might be a world wide economic downturn or it could be something personal like a job loss, medical expenses, or other problems like legal issues.

Don't let your problems pile up. Have a plan. The last thing you want to do is ignore approaching disaster.

-Sixbears

Obsolete trailer

Last fall I hurriedly converted an old utility trailer into a boat trailer for my 12 foot Ooze Goose. The box was stripped off the frame and some rails were added for the boat to sit on. The wheel bearings were replaced and a hasty fix done on the lights. The trailer hadn't been on the road since 2006. One more year unregistered and it would have disappeared from the state registration system, which would have been a pain.

It survived thousands of miles of hard travel. Once, due to a missing pin in the trailer hitch, it exited the highway at 65 mph all by itself. While in Florida a car clipped it, scuffing the paint but doing $2800 damage to the car. It also survived a flat tire in Louisiana.

On the way back one of the springs broke in Massachusetts. Fortunately, I was able to drive it home.

During the first attempt to fix it we discovered no replacement springs were available in my area. It spent the summer at my friend's house, waiting for new springs. After an extensive on-line search suitable springs were found from Northern Tool for a reasonable price. I had the springs, but life got busy for everyone in the summer.

So finally our schedules meshed and another attempt was made on the repair job. While it was apart my buddy did some welding to reinforce a few weak spots on the frame. We were not able to buy all the spring mounting hardware off the shelf as the design is obsolete. For $13 I was able to get some parts fabricated at a local shop and my buddy was able to build the rest.

In the end the whole repair job ran about $80 in parts. Some people wonder why I'd bother fixing an old trailer rather than buy a new one. Have you priced new trailers lately? The old trailer isn't fancy, but it does what I need it to do.


By the way, I originally bought the trailer used for $50. It spent many years hauling firewood before being converted to haul my boat.

-Sixbears

Road life and breakdowns

There's quite a few folks living on the road in everything from small vans to big RVs. It can be a pretty cheap way to live. There are more free camping places in the western part of the country, but even in the populous east there are free options. Even campgrounds can be pretty economical. They also have the advantage of having useful services: hot showers, laundry, pump out stations, electric power, and wifi.

One thing that can put a real damper on the lifestyle is vehicle repairs. I know of one family who's converted bus just suffered a blown engine, a $7000 repair. That certainly throws a monkey wrench into frugal living. Major problems with one's vehicle not only leaves you without transportation, you lose your house at the same time. Things can get very expensive very quickly.

Most long term road warriors know a fair amount of vehicle repair and maintenance. However, sometimes you need the service of a full time garage. I've a had a small taste of it myself. Some years back my lovely wife and I were traveling through Louisiana, and our vehicle suffered a major breakdown. We found a garage that could do the job near a cheap motel. It took days to get the right parts and the repairs done. While there were some restaurants and stores close by, nothing was set up for walking. Every time we went somewhere we risked being run over by high speed traffic.

It pays to have stayed in contact with friends and family. Right now I'm at my dad's in Florida. I'm going to check the wheel bearings on trailer and install better lights. If the van needed something my dad could drive me around to get parts. If I needed local services, my dad knows who does good work for a reasonable price. Another time we stayed with friends in Kentucky while my truck got broken springs replaced.

If you travel on the road long enough odds are a major repair will have to be dealt with. If you are lucky you'll have local contacts who'll help you. However, you'll still have to spend some money to fix your problems. Nothing beats having an emergency fund. Call it the price of freedom.

I'm not a big fan of credit card debt, but a credit card can save you. It's better than nothing. Last year I had to resort to that myself. It was at the end of our winter travel and funds were low. It allowed us to fix the problem and get home. A few months later the bills were all paid up and we were ready for the road again.

People who live in regular houses have unexpected expenses too: furnaces die, roofs leak, AC units fail, pipes leak, and so on. People's cars break down too, making life difficult. Every lifestyle has its challenges.

-Sixbears

Right size for two

A friend was complaining about having a teenager living in his house. There's his 20 minute showers, standing in front of an open refrigerator door unable to make a decision, and never turning off lights.

The poor kid would be suffering at my house. His shower would run cold and he'd probably drain the house batteries down to nothing, to be left shivering in the dark.

My lovely wife and I are living with a pretty small energy budget, but we aren't suffering. In fact I think we are living extremely well. We try and get by with what the sun provides. That doesn't always work out, but our generator usage is still less expensive than grid power.

We were always pretty frugal with our energy usage, at least by American standards. However, after living on a small sailboat for a while, we've cut our usage even more. It doesn't take all that much to be comfortable, but it does take some awareness.

I'm thinking it's not the teenager's fault. Unless taught otherwise, electric power comes from those plugs in the wall, hot water comes out faucets, and food comes from refrigerators. Few really have a handle on how all those things are provided. Maybe they have vague ideas, but since it's usually someone else doing the providing, they don't really get it.

Growing up I spent a lot of time at my dad's hunting camp. How comfortable the camp got was a function on how good a job I did filling the woodshed. I could use all the water I wanted. There was 5 gallon jug and a trail down to the stream. There was no electricity at all. The big luxury items were the propane stove and two propane gas lights. When the propane ran out we cooked on the stove and used an antique kerosene lamp for light. I loved life at that camp.

Now I've got a well pump, electric lights, and the Internet. I'm living large and don't take it for granted.

-Sixbears

The minimum wage job

Being paid minimum wage is a sure way to know the people you work for don't care or respect you. They'd pay less, but it's against the law.

Maybe the company you work for can't afford to pay more than minimum wage. That's only true if all the management also only gets minimum wage.

If minimum wage was such a good idea, your boss would work for it too.

Should companies that can't pay more the legal minimum wage deserve to exist? Are they badly run, or do they make a profit? Pay dividends?

Here's the thing that really freaks me out about minimum wage. Workers generally are not only paid badly, but also treated badly.

Maybe I'd accept a minimum wage job if the other perks were amazing: Full health care. Company car. Free meals cooked by professional chefs. Paid vacations in exotic locations. Free quality housing. Use of the company jet.

Nope. Odds are, if getting paid the minimum, your company treats you like crap in many other ways.

What about the nobility of work? Yeah, what about that? If it was so noble, it would be worth something, right?

Minimum wage jobs have changed. They used to be either jobs worked by kids living at home, or people at the bottom rung at a company they could move up in. My father-in-law started work at a gas station but worked his way up to being a company chemist. That kind of mobility is rare today.

Minimum wage jobs can be traps. By working two or three of them, you might scrape up enough money to survive. However, you don't have any extra time, money or energy to rise above that level. At one time it was possible to pay for college by working part time during the school year and during summer vacations. In real actual dollars, wages have gone down and education costs have skyrocketed.

Let's say you had a decent job that paid $20/hour. Then the job goes away. Maybe you collect unemployment for a while. Maybe you are too proud and take a minimum wage job because any work is better than no work. (that nobility of work thing again) Working that low paying job makes it harder to get another good one. Human resources have no respect for minimum wage workers so they will have no respect for you. They will think there is something wrong with you.

I've go no disrespect for people who work minimum wage. They get enough of that from everyone else.

If you are an adult trapped in a minimum wage job you have three choices. Do everything you can to get out. Everything. Learn a skill someone will pay money for. Start a business. Every spare moment you have should go towards that goal of a better job.

A second choice is to live in such a way that low wages are all you need to get by. Live in microhousing or shared housing, avoid having a car, garden -do everything to live as frugally as possible.

The third option is to just keep working those low wage jobs and hope for the best. Yeah, good luck with that.

-Sixbears

The last electric bill

Today my last electric bill came in the mail. Not the most recent -the last. Service is now cut off, on my request. When we get back home in the spring, we will be relying completely on our solar electric system. There are a few tweeks and upgrades that I'll do, but we already generate enough of our own power to get by.

It's both exciting and scary. Always in the back of my mind was the idea that if the solar electric system had problems, the grid was there to take over. The way things actually worked out is that the vast majority of the time it would be the grid that failed. My homebrewed electrical system is more reliable than the system run by a major corporation. Scary to think they are running nuke plants.

Have you ever figured out what it costs just to have services? Most of my electric bill was for “connection fees.” That bill has to be paid even if zero watts were used. Almost all utilities have something similar. Never make or receive a phone call and you still get a phone bill. Don't use a drop of water and there will still be a water bill. Watch no television and there will still be a cable fee. These things add up.

Eliminating the electric bill was just the most recent of these monthly services to disappear. I've my own well and septic so no water and sewer fees. We don't watch cable TV so no bill from them.

So what monthly services do we pay for? Internet is the big one. That's $42/month. Technically, we could live without it, but we don't want to. In fact, being able to pay bills on-line and do research makes it a tool that pays for itself.

Having the Internet allows us to have our phone service over the Internet through Vonage. That worked our to almost half the price of my previous land line service. Messages sent to my home phone catch up to me in the form of e-mail audio attachments. That's useful to me.

Cell phone service is a strange one. We don't get reliable cell phone service at home so we only use it on the road. Most years we got by with a prepaid Tracfone. It's basic, but cheap. This trip I'm using an iphone and paying on a month by month basis. For me, that seems expensive. Once I get home in the spring I'll probably cancel the servcie. It's good to not be locked into a contract.

Now I know of some hard core folk who don't even have phone service. Some are hermits who just don't talk to anyone. Others are hardcore short wave people. Seems that only works if everyone you want to talk with is also a hardcore short wave person. Some just use it as cell phone replacement to keep in touch with family members.

I am surprised at the number of people on very limited budgets who pay large monthly fees and never think about it. It's a blind spot in their budget. TV is the one that drives me nuts. Shut that off and get a library card. Your life will be better. Okay, less extreem, just put up an antenna or get a Roku device for free Internet channels. Small steps, but once those invisible bills become visible, who knows where it will end? Maybe you'll get your “last” electric bill someday too.

-Sixbears

Will the checks stop?

With no end to the government shutdown in sight, and the October 17th debt ceiling fast approaching, people are getting worried. Obama has raised the possibility that Social Security checks might not go out. That would get interesting.

As luck would have it, by the 17th I should be visiting my dad at his retirement park. If things are not settled before then, I'll be around a lot of angry old people.

Under normal political conditions that would not be allowed to happen. Old people vote. They also have pretty good lobbies. Usually that's enough to keep the checks flowing. These are not normal times. Politicians are much more concerned about ideologies than the good of the country.

My very own lovely wife is on a SS disability. Her check is almost half of our income. What would we do if that was cut off? How would that affect our travel plans?

Most likely we'd go sailing anyway. However, it would affect how we'd travel. Forget about spending a lot of time at marinas and dock side restaurants. Rice and fish would be a big part of our diet, cooked on the boat. There are a lot of things to do and see that don't cost much money. Reading good books on a beach somewhere isn't too hard to take.

Maybe that's the wise thing to do. Head out to sea until the whole thing blows over. Of course, that's pretty good advice for just about anything from personal troubles to a full blown zombie Apocalypse.

-Sixbears

Where I will spend money

There's a lot of fancy and expensive gear out there. Generally, I'll use cheaper alternatives or do without.

One thing that I will spend money on is a quality sleeping bag. I've a large bag rated for zero degrees Fahrenheit. In reality, I've been comfortable in it down to -30. That's with a good ground pad, thermal underwear, and heavy socks.

There are lighter bags with the same rating. Unless I was going to be winter backpacking all the time, it's not worth the price difference. A good compression sack gets the bulk under control and I can live with my pack being a couple pounds heavier. That worked well enough for the occasional winter hike.

I've a second lighter bag too. That can be zipped together with the heavy one and make a very comfortable nest for two.

There's no sense in giving model numbers as these bags were purchased over 30 years ago. They are still going strong. They've lasted though backpacking, canoe camping, months of nonstop car camping, and now they are on the boat. Mine were purchased from L. L. Bean -on sale, of course. The company still carries a lot of decent bags.

Make sure you get a synthetic one. They are still retain heat when damp. Down is nice, but not very good wet, plus I'm allergic anyway. Cheap cloth bags are death traps.

The next place I'd spend good money for a survival situation is a good tent. Big tents are great for campgrounds. I own a nice one. However, for backpacking to throw in a canoe, or tie to a bike a smaller tent is the thing.

20 years ago I bought a quality 4 season backpacking tent. 4 season tents have better support to handle high winds and snow loading. I've used mine in the snow, and the extra strength makes all the difference. It's also a good tent to have when car camping. If my lovely wife and I were only spending one night someplace, we'd set up the small winter tent. No need bothering with the big tent for one night. We also used in places with high winds. The strong poles, low profile, and multiple tie downs keep the tent in place when lesser ones became kites. That tent is still in good condition. It's been everywhere from the mountains of Maine to Key West Florida.

If a person can keep warm and dry, the rest of survival is much easier. Never underestimate the advantage of a good comfortable night's sleep.

While these two quality items cost a few extra bucks, I've gotten years of use of them -cheap in the long run.

-Sixbears

Blue Collar Millionaire

Back in my firefighting days, my ladder truck driver was a millionaire. He certainly hadn't made his money as a firefighter. After he got out of the army, he and his wife opened a little mom and pop store. That did pretty well, but he was a shrewd stock market investor and that's where he really made his money.

He enjoyed being a firefighter and driving the ladder truck. He did it 27 years before retiring. I had the pleasure of working with his the last years of his employment. Paychecks piled up in his wallet. The secretary had to remind him to cash them. For him paychecks were literately pocket change.

Except for the fact that he and his wife took expensive vacations, one would never know he was so rich. His house wasn't anything special. Every seven years he'd pay cash for a new car. By year seven the old car always looked pretty beat. Appearances never bothered him.

Management was afraid of him. The guy was good at his job and generally followed orders well. The only time there was trouble was when he thought an order was stupid. Then he did whatever he wanted, and always got away with it.

Once the Chief gave an order that we could no longer wash our cars at the fire station. The millionaire never washed his car, but that day he did. In fact, he made a show of it by washing it right in front of the station. The Chief came out, didn't say anything for a few minutes. In a quiet voice he requested that cars get washed behind the station from now on. To this day the guys still wash their cars at work but nobody working there now knows how that came about.

I thought it would be the greatest thing in the world to have that millionaire attitude. What did that money really signify anyway? Independence. Not caring what other people thought. Not having to do stupid things just to keep a job. While I didn't have the money, I adopted the attitude anyway. It worked for me.

My lovely wife eventually adopted the same attitude. It wasn't too far below the surface in her anyway. It's surprising how many people just assumed we had hidden inherited wealth or a lot of political power. It wasn't money that allowed us to act independent, but frugality and self reliance. In the end, it was just as good as millions.

-Sixbears

Beer and frugality

While settling back into our home I discovered the makings for a batch of beer. Home brewing beer shows faith in the future. It won't be ready for a bit, but there will come a warm spring day when a beer will be just the thing.

This is the first batch I've brewed since I got the cook woodstove. It's great that the big stockpot is in full contact with stove top. There's even room left for the big tea kettle and a couple fry pans. Dinner and brewing can be done at the same time.

In previous posts I've touched on how I can live frugally. Friends have pointed out that much of what I do would be difficult to impossible while working a full time job. They are absolutely right. A married couple, working full time, would be hard pressed to do much extra.

Even something as simple as heating with wood can stretch the time budget. The only way to really save money is to process the wood yourself. Then there is the care and feeding of the woodstove. When I worked a full time job, I'd load up my big woodstove, set the dampers, and hope for the best. It never gave me any trouble, but I did worry about it.

My home repairs and improvements, cooking from scratch, handling waste veggie oil for the van, all these things keep me busy. Of course, I do get a lot of free time by not watching TV. Then again, that time probably goes into Internet surfing.

My lovely wife used to have a full time job. The money was nice, I must admit. One day I woke up with the idea that by reducing our expenses she wouldn't have to work. Soon after is when we started traveling in the winters. My lovely wife would quit her job in the fall and reapply in the spring. They always said she had no guarantee of being rehired, but she always was. Even if they didn't hire her, we'd get by.

That was put to the test when my wife had to leave work for medical reasons. We went a year and half before her disability was approved. At the same time, one of my daughters and my granddaughter moved in with us. We got by. There wasn't much extra, but nobody suffered.

Which brings me back to beer. Like Ben Franklin said, “Beer is proof that there is a God and he wants us to be happy.”

Sure, I enjoy a beer now and then, but what I enjoy more is sharing with friends and family. It's one more way to keep the tribe together. Well, the fermenter's been cooling outside in the snow. The temperature should be just about right for pitching the yeast. Spring is coming and I'm going to be ready.

-Sixbears

The financial planner

While hanging out at the local coffee shop, I ran into an old friend of mine. She was having a meeting with a financial planner. Papers and binders were scattered all over their table.

She asked where I'd been lately and I told her I'd just come back from Florida and talked a little bit about my trip.

“That's what I want to be able to do,” she told the financial planner.

“How do I do it?” He asked.

“Magic,” I said.

“I want some of that pixie dust,” she said.

Then I went on to say that it's cheaper for me to go to Florida than to buy heating oil for my house. I've got free or inexpensive places to stay: at my dad's, on the boat, or camping. The planner quickly ran the numbers in his head (he appeared to be a real numbers guy), mumbled a few figures, and agreed with me.

I then said it's not so much what you have coming in as what you have going out. That statement seemed to catch the planner a bit off guard. He looked somewhat puzzled by the concept. I worry about the quality of the advice my friend is getting. It appears he's all about big returns on investment.

I don't know much about returns on investment. My track record shows I know nothing about increasing income. Way back in 1993 I made about $35,000 as a firefighter. I've never equaled that income since. That's in actual dollars. Adjusted for inflation, my income looks even worse.

The only way I'm able to live the way I live is watch where that money goes. Solar electric power, wood heat, waste veggie powered vehicles, and a whole bunch of other money saving activities add up.


-Sixbears

Heating triage

Parts of my house can be cut off from the heat sources. There’s a lot of flexibility on how much of the house gets heated and how warm.

The kitchen is the warm heart of the house. Right next to the kitchen woodstove, people can be as warm as they like. On really cold nights, my lovely wife and I will bring our work or entertainment to the kitchen table. It’s cozy and comfortable. We’ll even watch movies on a laptop computer rather than upstairs in the cooler living room.

In past years we’ve tended to keep the upstairs around 50. That’s where the bedrooms, a second bath, and a large living room are. I like sleeping in a cool room. That’s what blankets are for.

The conventional oil heating system uses forced hot air. It’s easy to shut down the air ducts in unused bedrooms. Hot water systems are harder to deal with. In one apartment I lived in, the hot water radiator pipe burst from freezing. It was too far from the part of the house heated by a woodstove. Hot air systems, on the other hand, can be safely shut down and not suffer damage.

A large air duct and the stairway direct air from the kitchen woodstove to the upstairs. The air duct can be shut and the stairway blocked by a heavy curtain, keeping heat downstairs.

Most houses don’t have insulation between the first and second floor. Mine does. The original house was one floor, with an insulated attic. When I removed the roof and replaced it with a dome, I left the insulation intact. There are now six rooms where once there was only a tiny attic. Those new rooms can be thermally isolated from the rest of the house.

If the winter should turn bitterly cold, firewood in short supply, or both, the upstairs could be kept even colder. One concern is that the upstairs bathroom plumbing would freeze. With that in mind, I put in shut offs and drain valves down in the basement where the feed lines are. All the upstairs plumbing can be drained and winterized.

Once the hot and cold water lines are shut down and drained, I have deal with the sewer lines. The easiest thing is add RV non-toxic antifreeze to the shower, sink and toilet drains.

It is possible to drain the sink trap and completely emptying out the water of the toilet using a sponge or a water vac. The shower drain can be accessed by removing the screen. The problem with that method is that nasty sewer gases can enter the house. It’s not a major issue if the whole house is going to be shut down for the winter. Just make sure to ventilate the house well before reopening it for the season. Another method is to tape and seal any gas source with duct tape and plastic.

My preferred method is to use antifreeze as it’s easier and safe. The other method could be used if antifreeze became unavailable.

The basement of my house can get quite cold. All the plumbing and even the water pressure tank, is mounted high to benefit from the warm first floor. The water enters the house through a heavily insulated pipe. The insulation reaches a couple feet below the basement floor.

The basement can be heated either with the oil furnace or a very large and capable woodstove. If we have a period of subzero (Fahrenheit) weather, it’s a good idea to warm up the basement to protect the plumbing. It’s also nice to heat the basement if I’m doing a project down there and want glue and paint to dry.

That’s how we deal with heating our house in northern New Hampshire.

Of course, we also like to shut the place down completely and go sailing in Florida, but that’s not always an option.

-Sixbears

Skinny water sailing

In this photo we just landed. Even the sails have yet to be put away. The boat’s in about 2 feet of water near low tide. On the way in, I dropped a heavy stern anchor. The bow is tied off to some mangroves. My dog was desperate for a landfall, so I got her to shore quickly. After taking this photo, and taking care of the dog, my wife and I buttoned up the boat.

With the swing keel lifted and the rudder kicked up, the Oday 19 draws only about a foot of water. The sailboat can be sailed in that condition. The only problem is that it’s impossible to make any headway against the wind without the keel.

The water was shallow and to make it more interesting, pretty weedy. One time with the keel down we actually picked up enough weeds to stop the boat dead in its tracks. Other times, the swing keep was our depth sounder. I discovered that I could deploy the keel about halfway and that allowed some headway against the wind.

With all the playing around, it took a good hour to go where we could have motored in about 15 minutes, but what’s the fun in that? I had a great time, experimenting and practicing shoal draft sailing. A boat with a deep draft is severely limited in the shallow waters of Florida.

My wife and I are thinking seriously about eventually living half the year on a boat. Our sailing grounds would include a lot of the shallow waters of Florida. Something like a Triloboat would be great. They are cheap to build, roomy, shallow draft, and have a huge amount of cargo space. They also look kinda cool, so that’s a consideration.

I can confirm that it can be pretty inexpensive to live on a sailboat. Of course, that depends on the boat, how much time is spent in marinas, how much one motors instead of sailing, and some other factors. Being able to do repairs yourself with inexpensive parts is key. My wife and I are getting some good ideas about what will be required in the future.

Of course, in the here in now, we are having a blast, no matter what the future will bring.

-Sixbears