Aurora sightings.

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As you may have read, an intense solar storm has caused the aurora borealis (aka “northern lights”) to be glimpsed as far south as London, England. Apparently the aurora put on quite a show at Stonehenge, too. The image that came to mind was a bunch of neo-Druids pointing and yelling: “It’s the elder gods sending a message! Does anyone speak Aurora???”

The photo in the illustration was taken by my niece, Alison Willis, and is under copyright so don’t use it to make a T-shirt or something. The colors would likely have been brighter outside of town, due to Anchorage’s light pollution, but it was past 10 p.m. and she didn’t feel like driving an hour or two out and back on a school night.

Instead, she took these photos at Earthquake Park here in town. Throngs of other shooters were there, and the roads to Pt. Woronzof and Flattop (also here in town) were apparently parked on both sides for up to half a mile out.

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Support the reader economy: Giveaway #8.

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It’s been a minute since the last giveaway. As inflation shows no signs of disappearing, I will continue this series.

I know that $25 isn’t much. But it beats not having $25.

As always, the rules are simple: Winner gets to choose his or her scrip source. If it’s possible for me to get an e-gift card from your retailer of choice, then I will do so.

This includes cards from outside the United States, so international readers (and I know you’re out there because Google Analytics told me so) should feel free to enter.

I do need to qualify something: Mastercard or Visa prepaid cards are not an option for this giveaway. They add noticeably to the $25 price tag, and I prefer to stretch my prize budget as far as I can.

Okay, two ways: I will do only e-gift cards from now on.

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Low- or no-spend February 2023, Weeks 2 and 3. (I’m back.)

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Running a little late, obviously. I was already a bit tardy with the low- or no-spend February challenge update when a stomach bug made me almost completely work-avoidant. Many quarts of hydration and loads of hours of sleep later, I am much healthier. But catching up on belated assignments meant missing a week.

While mildly ill, I was reminded yet again that sickness means either spending way too much (medical co-pays, prescriptions, special foods) or feeling too crummy to spend much at all.

This time around it was the latter, fortunately. I was also reminded that I live in a low-maintenance prepper paradise where just about anything I needed was already in hand (and likely bought on sale or at Costco). Powerade? We got it. Canned chicken soup? Ditto. Generic ibuprofen PM, so I could sleep for 12 hours at a stretch? You bet.

That sleep was some of the coziest ever, thanks to the brand-new-to-us down comforter  whose frugal purchase was detailed in the first roundup. Reading some of the comments on that piece, I was impressed by a couple of readers’ stirring tales of thrift.

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Midlife love rocks! (Ask me how I know.)

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(Happy Throwback Tuesday! I know it’s generally “Throwback Thursday,” but my playground, my rules. This post originally ran on Valentine’s Day in 2013. It’s a message that bears repeating, I think.)

I find myself in the middle of a Lifetime movie: Middle-aged woman leaves long-term abusive marriage, goes broke, wins a scholarship, stumbles into an unexpected career – and finds a man who’s perfect for her.

A man who’s smart, kind, funny, well-read, musically talented, astoundingly physical and – bonus! – extremely handy around the house.

A man who only gets her jokes but embroiders on them, and who wrote a smutty double dactyl in honor of her birthday.

A man who wants her for who she is, not for the person he thinks he can turn her into.

The experience has been startling, and humbling, and oh so gratifying. I never knew emotions came in this size.

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Unclaimed funds: Look for them!

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Recently an acquaintance was contacted by a company that specializes in finding unclaimed property. If she would authorize them to act in her name, they’d make sure she got the money – minus their 10 percent finder’s fee. She wondered if this were legit or some kind of scam.

Apparently there’s some kind of software that matches unclaimed funds to last known addresses. If even half the folks contacted respond with, “Sure, go ahead,” that company stands to make a lot of money.

But why give it away without at least trying to get it yourself?

In about 60 seconds I was able to search online and tell her that yes, the state is holding a bunch of money for you. And while I was in there, I learned that both DF and I were also owed some unclaimed funds.

Not a lot of money: just $19.71. But as someone who picks up found coins, the chance to get almost 20 unexpected bucks sounded pretty good. And as you can see from the illustration above, that money is now in my bank account instead of the state of Washington’s.

Not sure how much DF will be getting, because he’s still waiting for the results. However, the acquaintance was owed more than two grand. If that company hadn’t reached out, all three of us would still be owed money. But this way we get to keep it instead of forking over a 10 percent fee.

You, too, might be owed money – so why not look for it? Here’s how.

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Low- or no-spend February 2023: Week 1.

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(Surviving and Thriving has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Surviving and Thriving and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses and recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.) Let me say this upfront: I spent money. Before you … Read more

Pinto bread: A weekly beans story.

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Earlier this month I mentioned a frugal challenge called “weekly beans.” DF and I have vowed to make beans the focus of at least one meal a week. In part that’s because of inflation, which is scaring our frugal pants off right now. Mostly, though, it’s because we have so many beans in storage.

Sure, they’ll keep indefinitely (or what passes for indefinitely at our ages). But why have them, so why not eat them? Especially since they were bought at a lower price than they go for now, and since they’re good for us, and since they’re so darned tasty?

The week after that post we used the seasoned black beans from the freezer for rice bowls and burritos. The last few spoons of beans went into a soup made from boiling bag broth, to add some additional heft (and nutrition) to the carrots, potatoes, onions and homegrown celery.

Last week I announced that I would cook a few cups of pinto beans. Most would go into the freezer for future chili. But some would go into a recipe that I couldn’t get out of my brain: pinto bean bread.

Once I saw that, I couldn’t un-see it. The same is true of things like ketchup cookies and Kool-Aid pickles. It isn’t just a good idea to try these things. It’s the law.

Pinto bean bread isn’t a new thing, but it was certainly new to me. This particular recipe came from a blog called A Farm Girl in the Making. The blogger, Ann Accetta-Scott, called it a “stick-to-your-bones and fill you up kinda recipe.”

She’s not wrong.

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Valentine’s Day giveaway.

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It’s a little early* for Valentine’s Day, but the point of this giveaway is for the winners to have gifts for the holiday. I’ll need some time to mail them, so early is the way to play it.

Those gifts can be for your sweetheart, your mom, your daughter, your niece or a nice coworker.

You could also gift them to yourself. And if you’ve got a bestest buddy who wears earrings? Make them a Galentine’s Day present.

My photography is subpar, but all these earrings do feature heart shapes. They seemed appropriate for Valentine’s Day.

 

They were made by my jewelry-making buddy Linda B., whose work has been featured in giveaways before. Since I believe in supporting the local economy, why not use heart-shaped art from someone I know? 

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Low- or no-spend February 2023: Who’s in?

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This is not a new idea, and in fact many bloggers make it a strictly no-spend February. But I like to keep things a bit looser because not everyone can just stop buying things.

Not that you have to stop buying entirely. If you get a head cold in late February, you don’t have to wait until March 1 to hit the drugstore.

And obviously you’ll still have to gas up your car/renew your transit pass as needed, or pick up fresh produce or milk when you run out (and if you decide you can’t live without these things).

The point of this 28-day exercise is to try not to spend, and to be intentional about what you do end up buying. Pretty sure you guys are already good at that.

So: Who’s in?

Instead of buying on autopilot, a low- or no-spend February asks you to think critically about everything you want to put into the shopping cart:

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Get 50% off Earn More Writing.

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In the past I’ve written about Earn More Writing, a freelancing course created by my FinCon colleague Holly Porter Johnson. After nearly seven years, she’s decided to close the course to new students – so this is your last chance to take advantage of her considerable knowledge of the freelance market.

And she’s having a big ol’ sale to commemorate this closing. So if you ever wanted to become a freelance writer, or if you’re already one and want to step up your game, now’s the time to take Holly’s course. From now until Jan. 31 she’s offering a 50% discount.

As an affiliate partner, I do stand to earn a little money if anyone decides to take the course. But I’d recommend it even if I weren’t an affiliate: Holly knows her stuff. She brings in six figures per year – often in the $400k-plus range.

To be clear: You won’t leap to six figures overnight. But you have to start somewhere. Holly did: She was freelancing steadily while working full-time, determined to build her business. Those first clients led to other clients. Taken together, she was able to quit her day job and become her own boss.

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