What to do if You Can’t do Organic on a Budget

I just posted a blog on going organic on a budget. Some people don’t have a Whole Foods (like my parents) in their area, or they really can’t sacrifice the extra money to buy those certified organic items. Totally understandable! Here’s some tips to get the most of out your food while also getting the most out of your budget!

1. Don’t go organic. Some products, like milk, don’t have to be organic to be good for you. With milk, just watch out for the label stating that its Rbgh-free. That’s the growth hormone that’s been linked to cancer. Organic milks can run upwards of $5 or more, while Publix has been offering their milk (which is always rBGH-free) for the low price of about $3.50. Look for products that say ‘all-natural’ or similar, and check the ingredients on the package for any funky words that you can’t pronounce. If you can’t say it, then its probably not that good for you. Also, try to avoid eating lots of things with high-fructose corn syrup or sugar or the like within the first couple of ingredients listed.

2. Help your neighbor. One of the best things you can do for your body and your community is shop at local farmers’ markets. If it’s a nice day out, it’s a wonderful way to kill a Sunday morning. By shopping at the market, you’re keeping local farmers in business which is good for the economy, but also local produce doesn’t have to travel as far as produce that comes from other countries so it is safe to say that it is going to be much fresher. They are also carrying more and more organically-grown goods. If you can afford it, Whole Foods has partnered with many local and domestic farmers to buy their bounty to sell at their locations.

3. Shop twice. I’m lucky to have a Whole Foods in my area that is also right next to a Publix. That way I can get what I can afford at Whole Foods, and I can get things like milk, cleaning products, and other house wares at Publix. Just keep a few places in mind where you know you can get the most bang for your buck, and shop there often!

4. Adjust your lifestyle. I’ve been cooking more and more meals that involve things like chicken thighs, lentils, beans, or tofu. I did grow up in a house where red meat was served 4 or 5 times a week, so I’m not going to lie and say that I don’t crave the occasional hunk of steak. Let’s face it- red meat is a luxury some times, not to mention it is better for your body to not overload it with burgers and steak. Some options are to grill Portobello mushrooms, top them with cheese and stick them on a bun. They taste very meaty and any vegan will tell you that it’s a satisfying alternative to beef. Also, fajitas are a good way to stretch a buck, just make sure you add lots of peppers and onions to the mix. Beef stew meat is usually pretty cheap, since anything that you have to braise or slow-cook tends to be.

Please feel free to post other tips that you’ve come across!

Cheers!

Saving Money By Spending Money

Let’s face it: We’re going to spend money. We absolutely, positively can’t go more than a day or two without spending single penny. It would also be crazy to think that we weren’t going to throw around a little money frivolously every now and again, as well. Things happen- you forget your lunch, a great new book just came out, or there is a great sale at the mall. Fortunately, there are a few things that I’ve come across that will make that meal out, that brand new page-turner, or that new pair of heels not feel as if you broke the bank.

1. Online Newsletters
I can attest that packing your lunch can save you in many ways other than just saving you money. Where I work, I get the option to take anywhere between a thirty minutes to an hour for lunch. Because I don’t have to leave the office to grab something to eat, I can take a 30 minute break which lets me get out of the office 30 minutes sooner- beating the rush hour traffic most of the time. I also save my figure by keeping away from the fast food. But let’s be real- sometimes we don’t always have time in the morning, or we simply forget it on the counter. The other day, a co-worker brought me coupon for Sweet Tomatoes. She’s signed up for their newsletter, and periodically they send her coupons. This one in particular had a buy-one, get-one lunch offer as well as another coupon for a free breakfast. Immediately I got on their website and signed up! Who could pass up free?!

2. Store Memberships
One place that I can’t get enough of is Barnes and Noble. If any of my previous postings have clued you in, I’m an avid reader. I’m finally getting around to reading Angela’s Ashes after I’ve hear a dozen people tell me rave reviews of it. I tote it with me to work so I can read it during my breaks because I can’t put it down! Books can get pricey, though, and if you’re not really a fan of going to the library (which I’m not, even though my taxes that I’m already paying are providing me free books) you enjoy having your own copy. But not only that, you kind of can’t beat the ambiance of Barnes. To me, nothing quite beats a day of perusing the new-to-paperback tables and the discount racks, grabbing a treat from the café, and snuggling up in one of their oversized armchairs. If I had a million dollars, I could easily spend it all there!

But I don’t, so I take advantage of their membership program. Granted, it does cost $25 to sign up. Your savings start right away- you’ll save 10% on everything in the store including the café. You’ll also get 40% off of hard cover best sellers, 20% off of all adult hard covers, not to mention countless coupons that are sent to you via email and free shipping on orders over $25 when you purchase online. Needless to say, the enrollment fee pays for itself very quickly.

3. Online Research
Sometimes the best deals are ones that you have to dig around for. The other day while doing some research on a possible event at the Florida Mall, I stumbled across a page of their website will all kinds of discounts. There was a $10 off of your $40 purchase at Aéropostale, a free beauty bag at The Body Shop, 25% off at LensCrafters, and up to 75% off at Teavana. Also, there were listings about clearance sales around the mall. Next time you decide to go shopping, check out the websites for you local mall before you drive out there to take advantage of their hidden coupons, or just avoid the mall all together if the sales aren’t that great.

Thanksgiving 2008

I’ve been wearing my broke-ness on my sleeve more and more. I’m coming to realize that budgeting and frugal living really is the ‘cool’ new trend. I will say that its been a hard realization that life after college is not the glitz and glamour that it was cracked up to be. There are two great things to this: 1. EVERYONE is struggling. I’m sure even Donatella Versace is thinking that she needs to cut back on the Cristal purchases until more people can start buying her clothes in the boutique rather than the outlet store. 2. I’ve found it more enjoyable to swap bargains with people than to try to keep up with the Jones’. Instead of “Well, I just bought the most amazing bag at Neiman Marcus” I get my kicks with, “Yeah? So I paid $1.78 for gas.”

I will say that I’ve been justifying my showing-up fellow bargain hunters as a means of erasing the image that I had worked hard throughout college to create. I’ve never been a fan of knock offs, but lately I’ve been feeling like the biggest knock off of all. I find myself shouting from the mountain tops, “Hey! I didn’t pay full price for these pants!” I don’t want people to see the remnants of a better economy that I still hold on to and judge me.

While watching Inside the Actors Studio last night, Dave Chappelle said that being a well-off black man was like wearing a really nice sweater that itched like hell, and you can’t take it off. Nowadays, I think anyone that has any form of cash, stock, or 401(k) left is feeling that way. Even if you don’t but look like you do, you feel the heavy eyes on as you walk about with your façade. How do you walk into the grocery store with a designer handbag, pull out your VISA to swipe, and hold your breath hoping that the transaction goes through? How do you drive your German engineered car into your driveway and avoid the mailbox because you know there is a letter from bank about your mortgage in there?

I hear about the terrible economy, and though I know I’m not too far from a cardboard sign and a median in the street, I still can count my blessings. Its so easy to get wrapped up in one’s own problems these days that its hard to remember how well some of us still have it. At work the other day, a coworker said that one of her friends went from making six figures to working a job at the local Publix. The first thing that popped in my head was that he was lucky to have a job. Though it might not be the most glamorous, some money is better than no money at all. I see all of my friends taking jobs that one might not deem suitable for a college graduate, but these are not the times to be picky. I’ve been fortunate to have survived two waves of layoffs where I work, one included the laying off of the woman that hired me. I’m still holding my breath.

I’m currently reading American Psycho. Its not the gruesome torture and mutilation murder scenes that Ellis has so eloquently crafted that makes me squirm. Its more the pitiful way that the characters of the book interact with those less fortunate than themselves in the novel. I know the point that Ellis is making about yuppie culture, and I know he goes above and beyond far past the point of overkill because that’s the whole idea of it. It still hits a little too close to home, like the time I saw a clean-shaven man wearing jeans and a collared shirt asking for money on the corner of Semoran and Aloma about two months ago. It was like that picture that everyone associates with the Great Depression. For me, it was a man who looked just like my father who will forever symbolize these times we’re living in. Though it still makes me cry to think him, I have to keep hopeful and give thanks for what I have.