gossamer

The concept of gardening for food isn't new to me, but this is the first thing that I ever planted and eventually ate (thanks to Cathryn for knowing when to pick it!). Holy shit this tomato was good! Now I know why some people are so fanatical about growing their own vegetables. I hope to one day grow an entire salad. It would be nice to eat something that I'm sure wasn't sprayed with yummy chemicals.

But you know what's really great? I switched auto insurance. I'm saving almost 9% a year with Allstate Auto Insurance. What can I say, the advertising with the ex-president of the United States from 24 worked on me! Plus, after being a 21st Century customer for 17 years, they agreed to cancel my policy without so much as a thank you or "here's what we can offer you if you stayed with us". Feh. Slowly but surely I'm starting to learn the lesson of not everyone cares or appreciates if you give them business.

And now to reveal something SHOCKING AND SCANDALOUS!!! I watch Oprah from time to time and while I wouldn't classify myself as a fan, I would definitely tell anyone who asked that her show can often be worthwhile. Why I bring this up you ask? She did a whole series of shows on something called the "Debt Diet". It was really fascinating to hear the various stories people had, how much in debt they were (!), and how doable it was for them to get out of it (which they eventually did in an often surprising small amount of time).

There are several main things you're supposed to do to help alleviate your debt, but I forgot them (check on her site, buy the DVD, etc. - however I do remember one of the easy ones was to simply ask for a raise). The other thing I remember was the pie chart of your budget, which I can share with you, my loyal and very interested readers: 35% housing, 15% transportation, 20% debt (meaning use 20% of your income to manage and pay down debt), 10% savings (pay yourself), and 20% everything else (food, haircuts, movies, etc.)

Well there you have it. Plant tomatoes to eat, save on car insurance, and get rid of your debt by watching Oprah.

Best blog entry EVER!

ERRATA
I got the pie chart info wrong! Sorry about that. 'Debt' is 15% and the 'Everything Else' part of the pie is 25%.