The urban homesteading movement is a growth enterprise (sorry) in the United States. My current column at MSN Money shows why.
“A chicken in every condo?” details some of the ways that let people with small urban properties — or those who don’t own property — produce food.
The random number generator loved Sheryl the best this week. Sheryl: Please respond to my e-mail with your address and the book will wing its way to you.
In other news:
“Time to plan an egg-based meal,” my weekly post at MSN Money’s Smart Spending blog, was chosen for the Festival of Frugality at Stupid Cents.
“Emergency preparedness on a budget,” my latest work at Get Rich Slowly, is an Editor’s Pick in the Carnival of Personal Finance at Funny About Money (even though the post contains the word “poop”).
The article is about meeting basic needs in an emergency. Such as:
Pam F. is the winner of the $20 Amazon.com gift card. She’ll use it to birthday gifts for her little sister. (Cue the girl noise: Awwww!) Thanks to all who entered.
I entered two blog carnivals this week and was happy to get into both:
On the train ride to Cornwall today I met a delightful woman who has traveled extensively and once shot photos of a tiger while riding on an elephant. She suggested accompanying me to Paris on a day trip (boy, does that sound weird) this weekend or, if the Chunnel train tickets are too costly, to tour me around Windsor (the region, not the castle).
Now up at MSN Money is my latest column, “Useless Groupon? Cash it in.” It’s all about the secondary market for social commerce vouchers from places like Tippr, Buy With Me, Living Social and, of course, Groupon.
The advantage is twofold: You can unload deals you no longer want and, more to the point, you can look for deals you missed on the first go-round or that you didn’t know existed.
As one secondary-market host says, it’s “a catalog experience vs. an impulse buy.”
You know you want free rent.
Practical Parsimony was the winner of this week’s giveaway, a $20 Amazon.com certificate. I’m sure her grandson will be relieved, because Practical P. plans to spend the scrip on an iTunes card for her grandson, to “accompany the boring bathrobe I am giving him.” Happy birthday, grandson — dodged a bullet there. In other news: … Read more
My writing is in three personal finance blog carnivals this week. “What do we want to be? A few thoughts on labor” was selected for the Carnival of Money Stories at Eventual Millionaire. “What’s with the shopping cart? Or: Art vs. commerce” is in the Carnival of Personal Finance at Sustainable Life Blog. Finally, last … Read more
It’s a little after 1 a.m. and I’m writing from my dad’s place in South Jersey. Already sweating, and boy, are those crickets loud. You forget.
Had to rewrite a paragraph for the next “Living With Less” column — didn’t want the editor to have to wait until tomorrow — so as long as I was up I thought I’d let people know what gives here in the land of tomatoes and prisons.
For starters, I had an excellent experience flying on United Airlines. Not a single flight attendant cursed or leaped out of the plane, beer in hand.
My work is in three PF carnivals this week. A big thank-you to the judges.