Poverty? ...meh.

-I wish I could give you all a source for this, but I found it on Facebook and it was the perfect accompaniment to this post!



My son and I are in the abyss of financial poverty:



~We carefully tear apart our incoming mail envelopes and re-fold them inside out, securing them by a glue stick or some tape, so we don't have to purchase new ones



~I make our own salsa from canned tomato sauce a la food shelf, one chopped up Roma tomato, 1/2 an onion diced, and add hot sauce. Tortilla chips are a luxury around here (even though we know the issues with corn)

~I'm teaching my son how to do laundry in the tub with shampoo samples from hotel stays as detergent, and white vinegar as fabric softener



~Meals are invented - tonight was the last of the mayo, with the last half of spinach dip seasoning, a thawed bag of frozen spinach, and our coveted organic vegetable twirly pasta. A chunk of diced onion and another Roma tomato chopped up along with some shredded carrots made an interesting pasta salad



~We are literally growing as much of our food as possible, even drying our own herbs, and planning to can for the winter months with any bounty that we are unable to eat before it goes bad.

~Pasta water (salt- and oil-free) fertilizes our plants



~When we cook, we put aside enough for our pet to feed on, as well, minus any ingredients that may harm him (such as onions or tomatoes, garlic and raisins)

~We also cook in a way that will use the least amount of energy, yet feed us as long as possible: More pasta than usual at one time, making the leftovers into something new for the next day's meal, soaking beans overnight instead of using energy for a long amount of time to cook them faster, and things like pancakes or bread are made in huge batches, so that the freezer will provide us with a fresh loaf when needed, and pancakes can just be popped into the toaster instead of using the electric stove to make new ones



I could go on and on, but what I'd rather focus on, after emphasizing how money-poor we are, is that we have become rich in resourcefulness.

I'm happy to see my son following this trend, too. He was outside the other day, and learned that there was a nearby basement clean-out going on, where everything was free for the taking. He dashed to it and brought home dishes, a couple used Star-Wars toys (also a luxury), a book he thought I should read, and even a new stuffed animal for our dog, Dutch.



So, in being less of consumers, we have found ways to live within a "societal standard" (clean clothing, nutritious food consumption, entertainment for family and pets) that are relatively easy changes to make, and also save us quite a bit of money, not to mention fossil-fuel energy consumption.

I hope to awaken people with our shameless ways of doing things, the "broke" way, as it seems that it is an enormously effective way to help ourselves, as well as the earth's issues, by making simple sacrifices such as convenient purchases, expensive services, and the notion that "having more means having a higher social status".

Hard to swallow? Maybe...but, easy to make the changes? For sure. :)