Thrift Tip:

Even thrift stores have sales!

The key to taking advantage of these sales here in Marion (and probably other small towns as well) is to make regular visits. I try to make a thrift store trip once a week during my regular grocery shopping excursion. Will I miss some sales this way? Certainly, but I'm okay with that because I'm shopping when I need something, not just for the sake of shopping. If you're an eBayer or just enjoy looking for deals, you'll want to stop by a couple more times in the week.

The sales for my local stores are posted inconspicuously on the interior entrance doors of the building, for example, "All purses 25% off." There are almost always sales right before the holidays as well, just like any other retail outfit. I've called all the thrift stores I know of here in Marion to ask if they had periodicals or newsletters or any other form of notifying customers of their promotionals, but I got a "no" from all of them. The lady I talked to at Goodwill, in fact, insisted that they do not run sales because of their "everyday low pricing," but I happen to know that isn't true. Instead, I'll keep stopping by and pay attention to the postings.

If you're in a large city, you may be able to find sales postings for your local thrift stores online because these stores have more sales competition, but even many of these large retailers have no outside promotional postings.

Keep your eyes open!

EFFAK-- Emergency Financial First Aid Kit

I know, I know. I've been posting around the issue of the economic crisis lately rather than addressing it directly. The truth is, though, that I honestly believe I'll be raising my children during the next Great Depression. I could outline my thought process for you, but there are a million other bloggers out there who are already doing a much better job at it than I could. Let it just suffice to say that my thoughts of late have been almost exclusively bent towards emergency preparedness, be it immediate things that we need (warm pajamas for the kids) or more longterm items (a year's supply of food). Maybe it's the blogs I read, but I haven't seen many posts at all geared towards financial preparedness. Everyone seems to simply be in lockdown mode.

So here I am to share a wonderful tool with you all. It's called the Emergency Financial First Aid Kit, or EFFAK. Basically, the EFFAK helps the user to identify key financial documents and organize them effectively so that financial stability can be maintained during an emergency. Think of it as a quick reference when you need to have things at hand right now.

One kit per household should be sufficient, but be sure that all of your various accounts and assets are included. If you and your partner(s) or child(ren) have separate bank accounts, for example, make sure they all make their way into your file, not just your joint accounts. It may take you awhile to complete the kit, but believe me, it is well worth it. I recommend that you do this together with anyone who will be sharing your kit. Not only will you both be aware of what is included and what the importance of each item is, but it will give anyone who isn't always the most involved party in the finances a chance to get an overview of things.

One more piece of advice. It's always best to have a backup of your backup, so please consider making a copy of your EFFAK and storing it in a safety deposit box at your bank, credit union, or other institution. Though I didn't think of it myself, I've seen it recommended that you mail a copy of your EFFAK, in a sealed envelope, to your attorney to be opened in the case of personal incapacitation. Don't forget that your personal home EFFAK copy should be stored in a fireproof safe or other reliable storage container.

To print your free EFFAK, visit OperationHope.org. Not only do they provide you with the kit, they also provide you with more advice and helpful information than I provided in this post. The linked page will also give you access to their Personal Disaster Preparedness Guide in case you need a jumping off point for general emergency preparedness as well.

Here's hoping you never have to use this kit, friends. Good luck.

Anyone else with tips on preparing your finances or financial documents to weather any storm?

Going Debt-Free

Homesteading is not cheap. At least, not in the beginning. There are seeds to buy, alternative energy sources to fund, animals to feed, etc, etc, etc. Yet, one of the dreams or goals or sometimes realities of every homesteader I know is to live debt-free.

I know what you're thinking. Aren't homesteaders that crazy bunch of people who do everything themselves and can rig up just about any invention from scrap PVC and recycled aluminum cans? Don't y'all get everything you need by patiently waiting it out on freecycle? Ummm, maybe there are some homesteaders out there who do just that, but I've yet to see solar panels listed on our local freecycle and I'm not nearly enough of a genius to rig them up myself from... anything. Shhh! Don't tell The Husband.

So while I've been pondering and fretting over all the steps we have yet to take to become more self-sufficient and more evironmentally friendly, I've been ignoring the number one step in becoming more self-sufficient: getting out of debt completely. No mortgage, no credit cards, no nothin'. That's right. I'm using double negatives. I mean business, people!

Once upon a time, before we had kids, The Husband and I were completely debt-free. We even discussed purchasing a house with cash. Then I got pregnant with twins and The Husband lost his job and I had to quit my job when I went into premature labor so that I could do three months of hell bedrest at home. The inheritance I'd gotten from the early death of my mother was soaked up in an instant. House money? Gone. I think we even had to borrow a bit of money from The Husband's mom to get by until The Husband got a job... when the twins were 4 months old. Then came the student loans when The Husband went back to school so that he could get a better job, which never happened. Anyway, you get the picture, right? We're knee-deep in it.

We do have one thing under control. We have no car payment. I paid cash for the car that The Husband drives to work each day. It's a 1990 Carolla, and we bought it from a little old lady who used it once a year. The other vehicle, which we use only for the rare family outing, was an even trade for our pre-baby car. Other than that, we're pretty average in our debt.

Now the question is, how do we get out of it? There are a million financial gurus out there, each with their own plan for becoming debt-free. Most that I've seen are pretty much the same. There are small differences here and there, but the basic premise is the same: control your spending, pay off your highest rate debts first, pay more than the minimum, and build an emergency fund quickly that makes up 3-6 months worth of living expenses.

One of the currently popular plans for relieving yourself of debt is Dave Ramsey's 7 Baby Steps. It's a good place to start, but there are things I disagree with. Nevertheless, I'm going to use a slightly tweaked version of it to get the ball rolling here. I recommend that you tailor any plan you choose to follow to your individual needs and personality. This is going to be my primary focus for quite some time. Getting out of debt and living life oweing to no one else can be a very long process, but it really is, in my mind, the most important step in self-sufficiency.