inflation hits home........

This is interesting.

reply to post by dolphinfan


I used to live in hawaii (on the big island a maui) I miss the fact that I could grow anything I want at any time of the year. If you have the land for it anyways.

Originally posted by rubbertramp
reply to post by queenofsheba

 

that is high, sheba.
the more specialized the shop the higher the cost.
do yourself a favor, take it to a place like pepboys and get a free estimate.
they guarantee their work the same as anyone else and i'd almost bet would quote you 25% less or so.
i really didn't see anything in your description that needs to be done by a specialist.

Thanks, appreciate your input. Unfortunately, live about an hour north of the Twin Cities and we don't have anything like that up here. Had to have it towed and that apparently was a big ordeal for the tow truck driver, he insisted it was over 15 miles, which I'm only 13 miles from town but oh well, guess that's the price for living in the country. Wouldn't trade it for the world, though.

On a side note, since everything we own needs work apparently, we took our ATV, a Polaris Ranger in to get fixed and it was there for three weeks, the guy was waiting on a part and it took forever. I finally called him to ask how it was going and he said they were waiting on this part and I asked, jokingly, "Where's it coming from, Japan?" and he just started laughing... who knows, maybe it was. Have a great day!

reply to post by queenofsheba


yea, in that case you do need to go with what is available.
i live 60 miles from the nearest big town.
the other thing i hate to mention is the honesty of some mechanics.
they do take advantage of woman, which i'm assuming by your handle.

it does not seem worth even messing around in order to save a possible couple hundred bucks.
wish i was closer, i'd do the work for cost of parts plus 45 an hour.
do wish you luck.

I would like to pass on this old favorite without actually posting the pdf. here's the link.


"POSSUM LIVING" BY DOLLY FREED aclassic70's book on living well without money.
call me "Diongenes"..
www.filestube.com...

I've been noticing at the store i work at prices have been slowly going up in a matter of weeks. On average 10 cents.

reply to post by rubbertramp


Oh, I know those guys I talk to probably take advantage of the fact that I'm a woman, with a very soft voice; which I have, but I can deal with it. I can be a tough girl, too when I need to be. I do what I have to do I guess. The thing is it's my husband's money that pays for it and unfortunately, or fortunately he is working a lot right now so I need to take care of these things and make things happen for our family. And of course this stuff happens when he's in the middle of working crazy hours of six days a week and so I try to make things better for him in handling issues. But yeah, I've definitely noticed that being a woman and talking to mechanics is sometimes not to my benefit.

I'm more on top of the inflation issue because I do the shopping and bill paying. I get that it's not the best decision to go out and buy ten pairs of shoes and waste money on things I really don't need. I'm the one who's out grocery shopping and paying the bills. I'm in charge of grocery shopping and yeah, it's so obvious how prices have increased and then to see how they have packaged food items in less quantity so you think you're getting on "okay" deal, but you're not. How to stretch the dollar and still get your kids out there for some fun time on the weekends like going to see a movie....now there's a whole 'nother story.

Oh, and I brought up the issue to him tonight that I feel the whole 2.25 hr test drive was a bit much and was most likely a way to even out the wrecking the bumper. I mean really, where he'd drive to? The cities and back? I guess everyone has to figure out a way to make their money when costs are so high.

I just don't get it.

I just cannot fathom how we've let it get to the stage where you're seen as a criminal for growing food!

I encourage everyone to start growing their own food, if you can't sustain yourself, well then... It's the essence of life IMO. I'm going to start growing my own from here on in. Luckily I live on a good few acres.. I guess it's a population issue!

Let's get our fingers green & filthy

12 oz organic cheddar cheese, bag of oreida sweet potato fries, and 2 tomatoes was $15.00 today...i almost snip

Originally posted by butcherguy
reply to post by AshleyD

 

That is freakin' nuts!

People will begin to starve for real at that rate.

I'm starting to think, that's the plan.
2nd

For those who enjoy their peanut butters, I make my own. It's way cheaper.
I have a ninja blender, just throw the almonds in and make enough for a week or two. Put it into a storage container and keep it in the fridge. I do the same for cashews if I can pick those up cheap.

Originally posted by gatewaywithin
I fear this is only the beginning.

I have entertained the thought of buying my produce from roadside stands and farmers markets for years, I guess it's time to actually do so.

edit on 12-4-2011 by gatewaywithin because: (no reason given)

************************************************************************************************************************************

I am a farmer. (very small operation) more homesteader than anything else. Oh, yes I planted LOTS extra as people will be wanting and needing food... I am hatching at least 500 more chickens as the price of eggs is rising fast....

The food banks in our town are political and stingy.. I plan on waiting down the road and just handing out my extras.....to the poor....(we do hope to sell food in other road side stands)

We raise our own beef, veggies, chickens, eggs.... and I am saving up for a pond so we have another source of water.
I have learned to can home grown food, make tamales, raise chickens and garden. I am living in "my heaven"
oh, and by the way... I am handicapped with polio and on disability with a WALKER... So if anyone is not growing patio tomatoes or starting a community garden, you have NO EXCUSES when TSHTF......

Call your county agriculture office... ask for Master Gardeners.. they work/volunteer to help your state for FREE. Get started.... Go to your church, school, park.... your own back yard.. or someone you know with a backyard (eldery person that needs food?) offer to help set up and run a garden for a share of the produce... Cant till? no tools? learn to grow most of your food in 5/10/20 gallon buckets from feed stores or storage containers..... YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!

I talked to my dad last week in the states and he complained the prices went up.
Here in spain my wife and I have a restaurant and we've noticed a few things go up but nothing drastic.
Seems like most the towns produce just food and wine here.They also pay 1.30 euros a liter of gas so that would be about 5 a gallon or 7$'s.
For 35euros or about 50 $'s we feed 15-20 people on good days in downtown madrid.
This includes a choice of 2 1st plates which are usually soup,salad, rice,pasta, vegetable relleno....
and the a choice of a 2nd plate with either a fish type dish or a meat w a side
a glass of wine and desert or coffee for 10 euros/13$'s.
This is all fine and dandy but the 1st 2 years it paid for the bills and this 3rd year we've been able to pay the bills(rent/car,ins,taxes) and split about a 1000 euros a month which isn't much for 2 people working 60 to 75 hrs a week.
I keep telling my wife to try to stock up for the restaurant for a few months with products that store long so when the prices do go up fast we at least have a little buffer time to rethink things.
Nothing like owning a job that doesn't pay much
We just have to think smarter and battle through this.
Gotta go time to get my aquaponic system set up.

Peace and grow your own

reply to post by queenofsheba


finally, someone hits on the packaging scam. i've been sitting here reading the thread wondering when someone might hit on a few other ideas that have been tumbling around in my brain for a few years now.


the can of trader joe's sumatran that i enjoy so much for many years was 4.95 for a one pound can. that is 16 ounces.
now it is 5.95 for a 12 ounce can. that is a dollar increase for 25% less product. a 25% decrease in the value of my dollar, not even mentioning the the dollar rise.

another of my favs i get at costco, it's the 'first colony' organic rainforest blend. yum, good stuff.
for years that i can remember a 3 pound bag has been right around 16 bucks. great deal, great coffee.
hey, guess what, a few years ago they changed from a 3 pound bag to a 2.5 pound bag.
it still runs right around 16 bucks per.

this little scam has been done with many more items than just coffee.
a one pound bag of organic pasta is now only 12 to 13.25 ounces.
this is true of basically any pasta available in any store.
same goes with many canned goods, what was a one pound can for 90% of my life span is now only 12 ounces, or at the very least filled with more water and less product.
this all falls under the title of 'inflation'.

even if the price per can of coffee was the exact same as it was in the past, the 25% decrease in product means a 25% decrease in bang for my buck.

someone show me one msm reporter/article who mentions the decrease in product per package, along with the mention of this being tied to inflation.

hmmmmm........what else has been effected like this.
cereal for sure, along with almost any package of prepared food.

Originally posted by Thunder heart woman
For those who enjoy their peanut butters, I make my own. It's way cheaper.
I have a ninja blender, just throw the almonds in and make enough for a week or two. Put it into a storage container and keep it in the fridge. I do the same for cashews if I can pick those up cheap.

Wow I have a Ninja and didn't know you could make nut butter with it. Do I just throw some nuts in there and grind away? do tell.

reply to post by mayabong


search peanut butter in a blender

Originally posted by nowayreally
Found this in Vanity Fair and it really fits the mood of this thread and American life..

Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%
Americans have been watching protests against oppressive regimes that concentrate massive wealth in the hands of an elite few. Yet in our own democracy, 1 percent of the people take nearly a quarter of the nation’s income—an inequality even the wealthy will come to regret.
It’s no use pretending that what has obviously happened has not in fact happened. The upper 1 percent of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation’s income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1 percent control 40 percent. Their lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12 percent and 33 percent. One response might be to celebrate the ingenuity and drive that brought good fortune to these people, and to contend that a rising tide lifts all boats. That response would be misguided. While the top 1 percent have seen their incomes rise 18 percent over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall. For men with only high-school degrees, the decline has been precipitous—12 percent in the last quarter-century alone. All the growth in recent decades—and more—has gone to those at the top. In terms of income equality, America lags behind any country in the old, ossified Europe that President George W. Bush used to deride. Among our closest counterparts are Russia with its oligarchs and Iran.

www.vanityfair.com...
sums it ups pretty much but good article to read!

The problem with this article is that it is based on a false premise. It states "yet in our own democracy..." but we are not a democracy, we are a republic.

Originally posted by OptimusSubprime

Originally posted by nowayreally
Found this in Vanity Fair and it really fits the mood of this thread and American life..

Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%
Americans have been watching protests against oppressive regimes that concentrate massive wealth in the hands of an elite few. Yet in our own democracy, 1 percent of the people take nearly a quarter of the nation’s income—an inequality even the wealthy will come to regret.
It’s no use pretending that what has obviously happened has not in fact happened. The upper 1 percent of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation’s income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1 percent control 40 percent. Their lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12 percent and 33 percent. One response might be to celebrate the ingenuity and drive that brought good fortune to these people, and to contend that a rising tide lifts all boats. That response would be misguided. While the top 1 percent have seen their incomes rise 18 percent over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall. For men with only high-school degrees, the decline has been precipitous—12 percent in the last quarter-century alone. All the growth in recent decades—and more—has gone to those at the top. In terms of income equality, America lags behind any country in the old, ossified Europe that President George W. Bush used to deride. Among our closest counterparts are Russia with its oligarchs and Iran.

www.vanityfair.com...
sums it ups pretty much but good article to read!

The problem with this article is that it is based on a false premise. It states "yet in our own democracy..." but we are not a democracy, we are a republic.

that is in all actuality supposed to be true, but when looking at reality.....................
i don't think 'republic' means 'government bought and paid for by corporate lobbyist' anymore than democracy does.
assuming you live in the same united states that i do.