Right Size Life!!! Saving Money Tips Blog

January 23, 2012

Change your oil often

The question comes up: How often should I change my oil. Oils are better these days than they were 30 years ago, so you don’t really need to change it every 3000 miles like you used to. It used to be a rule of thumb that every 3000 miles or every 3 months, whichever came first, was the time to change the oil. The reason for this was that the oil would break down and form sludge if left longer than that amount of time in the crankcase. And sludge is an engine killer.
These days, the oil used in engines is much more resilient. It’s recommended now that for new cars that the oil be changed every 7500 miles.
But for older cars, over 5 years old that is, it’s still recommended to change it more often, more like 4000 or 5000 miles. The reason is that older cars, even with the newer, synthetic oils, will have a little more breakdown of oil into sludge. And even if you don’t drive the car the prescribed distance within a year, it’s still recommended to change the oil because oil has a shelf life.
It is true what they say, changing your oil is the best investment you can make for your car. With all this talk about living with less money, living on $1000 a month, and cheap car repair, prevention is still the best way to keep things working smoothly.
And if you’re trying to live cheap, chances are you probably have an older car. And if you look carefully, you can find some really cool deals on cars that get good mileage. I got my 1992 Toyota Corolla for only $1500, and under good conditions it can get up to 40 miles per gallon. But this is going to require one to pay close attention to details like prevention, and this includes changing the oil on a regular basis.

Til next time,

Hal

January 8, 2012

Keeping a perspective

If for some reason you came across this blog thinking that it was about totally getting away from the money system, you were possibly misdirected somehow. It is true that this blog is about doing things with less money or no money. However, there are many times when using money in order to get something done or to acquire some material thing, is the most efficient way to use our time.
The real point of this blog is to describe strategies of coping in your life when money is tight or nonexistent, and also to provide ways of using money more efficiently when indeed it becomes more plentiful. The area of focus in your life narrows to what your priorities are, such as a craft that may be a labor of love, like knitting or visual art, and the other areas of your life revolve around this. So the idea of living with less money, living on $1000 a month, for example, is a means to an end. And that end is basically having more time for your craft or whatever it is you like to do. You don’t think the words “live cheap” as much as it becomes a way for you achieve your goals. Cheap car repair happens because it turned out to be the most expedient way for you to get from point A to point B, point B being the freedom of time so that you can do what you want to do. If, by some fortunate set of circumstances you don’t necessarily have to live cheap, then to some degree your life becomes a little easier, but perhaps not as much as you think. Just a little money goes a long way toward making your life better, but when people start to get a lot, they start thinking ever bigger dreams, and more stuff, which then complicates the equation by taking more time to deal with it all, leaving less time for what they really wanted to do in the first place, which was plying their “craft” or “labor of love”. Some things to think about here, as we are headed for the middle of the first month of yet another year.

I’ll be updating you in the coming weeks with more saving money tips. But in the mean time I thought I’d give you just a little taste of what this book reads like.

Til next time,
Hal

From Chapter 1, “Survive with little or No Money”
Money has been around since the beginning of recorded history, and probably before. In the beginning it usually took the form of a precious commodity of some sort that could be carried easily, such as gold or precious stones. But it always represented something of real value. The cultures that formed again after the dark ages that followed the fall of Rome considered agricultural land as the only form of real wealth. Money existed in the form of coins, but most people rarely possessed any of it. Most exchanges of goods and services were simply trades, or barter. When people began to move away from the farm to pre-industrial labor, cash, in the form of coins, became more prevalent. Gold and silver replaced fields of grain or stores of food as the basic definition of wealth. This made way for concentrations of economic power far more extreme than anything in the middle ages.

By the 17th century, banks began to issue paper receipts for gold and silver in their vaults. These receipts could be exchanged like the coins that backed them. There are many sources of information regarding the history of money, and we will leave this for you to research on your own. Needless to say, if you are paying attention to the news (even if you threw out your TV as I suggested earlier) you know of the levels of abstraction and abuse of monetary policy and lending has reached astronomical proportions around the world.

The fact is that our modern day paper and electronic money in and of itself has no value. Money is a tool to achieve what we need or want, but having grand sums in your bank account is not the same as having what you need or want. It seems so obvious a fact, and yet we tend to forget what it means.

Think about how our society is arranged, except completely disregard the money part of it. What you will see is that there are certain people in the world who are allowed to have anything they want, while a great majority are somehow induced to do most of the work, some of whom may actually like doing this work, and some of whom may not like doing this work. You will see little difference between some of the well advanced societies of earliest recorded history, such as the early Egyptians (who had huge monuments built by the toiling of their slaves) and our modern society of the “haves and have-nots” of today. It turns out that archeological research has determined that these “slaves” actually had a form of health insurance. There are certainly advances in technology that have improved our modern life, but many citizens are denied access to these technologies, including health care, to this day. This comparison certainly leads one to question whether our modern life has really advanced much since the time of the early Egyptians.

I left a few things out of my above analogy. The first is that in our present day society, many of those who possess a lot of material sustenance have worked incredibly hard at it and made great sacrifice. Part of our process in adjusting to our new economic situation is going to involve learning to accept that those people who are rich are not necessarily to be despised or hated (although of course, there are some rich people that have turned into pretty unsavory characters). Learning to accept Bill Gates Jr. or Donald Trump as real people who have problems just like you or me may be one of the hardest things to do on your journey toward happiness in life. Second, at least some of the great leaders in historic times had great responsibility, even if they were born into nobility and wealth.

I made the above comparisons to bring us to one of the most the important questions we are faced with when we experience abruptly changing economic situations. That question is: What really matters? What is important for you in the time you have here on planet Earth? And really, once we get all of the unnecessary stuff out of the way (both in our mind and in our physical world) that is distracting us, we can really begin to formulate a vision of what it is we really do want, and how to go about achieving it.

Finally, after many technical difficulties, I have posted my latest book on Amazon. It can be purchased for $13.97 by clicking here. It is an assembly of my history with getting by on little or no money and has some pretty amazing stories, if I may say so.
It is more the practical route, rather than just ideas about pinching pennies. It’s more about networking with others to create win-win situations with saving money tips throughout.
If you want to learn to do things like get cars for free or for almost no money and fix them up, or how to get free food, or how to manage other situations that might seem impossible, then by all means check it out! Right here.
I am also working on a workbook and some other goodies so stay tuned.

Hal Merrill

August 8, 2011

I’ve talked about a lot of saving money tips, and it seems to never end with how much money can be saved with cars. Especially if you can network with friends on repairs. Saving Money Tips is all about networking. I’ve split wood for my neighbor many times, so when it came time to do a partial re-build on this baby he was glad to help. This time it turned out to be a 1992 Toyota Corolla. I knew with the 1.6 litre engine that this one had good potential for good, efficient gas mileage.
It turns out that the harmonic balance pulley was loose, so I got the car for a little bit of a discount. The asking price was around $2000, but I immediately got a major discount by pointing out the fact that there was something wrong. It helps to be savvy with negotiating!
So we took everything off of the left side of the engine, where the timing belt is located. Replaced the water pump, timing belt, and harmonic balance pulley (a major component)!
I also replaced the rotor, distributor cap and spark plug wires. And the valve cover gasket. It turns out in this case that the distributor cap and wires are all built together as one piece.
Here is a picture of the engine torn apart:

It’s a hemi! All the better for good gas mileage. Hemi means the top of the cylinder is hemispherical, resulting in a more efficient burn of the fuel.

Here’s the engine all put back together:

Little did I know, or even expect, the car gets 45 miles per gallon! Talk about saving money tips – that’s one for sure. Such machines are still on the market, one just has to look, and be a little innovative. This baby runs well and hasn’t used a drop of oil!

Here is a picture of it:

This baby gets 45 miles per gallon, that’s the real blessing here!

For even more saving money tips – Look for my upcoming book “Survive with Little or No Money”. Coming soon.

‘Til next time,

Hal

Now for the latest news about the Mazda 323. It has reached 193,000 miles. Incredible. Especially considering the terrain I drive over to get to my little place in the country. Check it out.

I’m still driving it and taking care of it. Probably one of the best saving money tips: Keep up on the maintenance and they will keep on working for you.

This site is really about much more than just saving money tips, even though that is a great part of it. Savingmoneytipsblog is also about reaching out and finding ways that people can help each other.

In light of the recent  insult with the passage of continued tax cuts for the rich and further encroachment on our first amendment rights, it is becoming increasingly evident that we the people are going to have to start doing a lot of things for ourselves. Jobs are increasingly hard to find, and the real unemployment rate is inching ever closer to 20 percent, regardless of the mainstream media’s insistence that it is half that.

So how do we start doing these things for ourselves? Let me explain. You see, money is a wonderful tool, and if you’re flush at the moment, good on ya. But when you’re low, that’s when this little space opens up so that innovation can start to happen.

There was a time, a few years ago, when I was in Austin, Texas, and I had an event that changed my life. As it happened, I was unemployed and without money, facing a situation perhaps like one you may be facing (or fearing) now. I had no idea where my next meal would be coming from, much less where the rent money was coming from. What is worse, my van ran out of gas in the middle of a crowded street, and with no money I couldn’t do anything about it. This is one of our greatest fears, right?

But something happens when we are in sticky situations where the mind becomes ever so creative. What did I do? I walked to the first gas station that looked like it had real people working in it. This is important, because networking like this requires real people, not corporations or machines. It was one of those little family owned shops with dirty floors and extra used car parts and trash laying around. Something came over me, and I explained to the guy working on a car there that I just happened to be walking by and noticed that his shop could use a little cleaning up and I’d be happy to clean it up for him if he could spare a couple of gallons of gas.

I was actually a little surprised when he agreed, but it was probably because I was dressed well and didn’t look like a bum, and I offered something rather than asking for something. But this was the beginning a long process of learning how to provide services for others while providing for my needs or for my friends needs.

So let’s fast forward to our present situation. This is how things are going to be folks. With the economy going the way it is, we (the people) are going to just start finding ways to help each other out. There’s going to be a lot more comradeship and team effort going on between real people. In fact, there are already many such movements and organizations being developed to this end. One of them is the Portland Hour Exchange, and you can learn more about them here. I envision entire communities built around this way of innovative thinking. Saving money tips is about finding ways to accomplish things without money, and this is the ultimate result of that.

This is going to be a huge phenomenon just out of necessity. We all have skills, and we all have needs, and when these come together, great things can happen. We are going to have to network with each other and provide for each other just like people did in the great depression of the 1930’s. Our elected officials, at least those in Washington D.C., are mostly millionaires and completely out of touch with the average person. Their mantra seems to be “I’ve got mine and you can just drop dead”. The “poor” business people they are speaking up for are actually multibillion dollar corporations.

I’ve alluded to my techniques of trading services for goods and vice versa in earlier posts, and will continue to do so. There are so many saving money tips and ways of innovation that we can’t even begin to list them all here. I will be creating more blog posts soon to help direct people to more resources on this subject.

Hal Merrill
December 11, 2010

Hi,
One of the most valuable saving money tips is to pay off your debts. This week I am offering a guest post by Mr Jason Holmes. Jason Holmes is a regular writer with Debt Consolidation Care.

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Ways to Pay Off Debt

by Jason Holmes

Ways in which you can save money while having fun on your vacation

All of us like to spend quality time with loved ones and de stress on a vacation. However, if you are planning to go on a vacation but can not really relax because too much money is flowing out of your pockets, then you should consider a few simple ways in which you can save a lot on your trip.

Here are a few frugal ways that you can adopt to save on your vacation.

Save on hotel costs

Try staying with family or friends: Where ever you are traveling to, you may first consider if you have relatives or friends staying there. If so, then you can stay with them, instead of staying at a hotel and paying for it unnecessarily. Even if you cannot do this for the entire trip, you can do it for a few nights, this way too you will be able to save something. Saving will also help in opening different ways to pay off debt.

Use online discount hotel rates: Whenever you are making a reservation try to use online discount services. Never pay the full price. If you are already sure where you want to stay, then you can make an online search and find out if you can get any coupons. These coupons help you get discounts and stay in hotels at cheaper rates, this helps you save money.

Lower your expectations: You can also save a lot on vacations, if you lower your expectations a little bit. This implies that instead of making reservations in three star hotels, you can look for good two star hotels and make reservations there.

Save on food expenses

Try cooking for yourself: You may not much like the idea of cooking on your vacation, but it is one of the best ways to save money. However, you may develop a liking towards cooking on vacations if you consider that it is a lot more fun. This is because it will be a new experience for you.

Make sure you eat more for lunch: In most places dinners are more expensive than lunch. So you should try and eat more for lunch and have a comparatively lighter dinner. This is a healthier option as well, along with being pocket friendly.

Try and avoid breakfast from hotels: Breakfasts too costs more in hotels so try and avoid having it from there. Try and find out a local cafe where you can eat. It will be cheaper and a lot more interesting as you get to explore.

Save on car rentals

Use a small car: It is no use taking a very fancy big car. You may not even require the extra space that the car has and taking a bigger car would mean that you have to refill more gas that bigger cars need.

Fill up gas yourself: In case you need fuel after renting a car, get the refueling done yourself. This is because the rental company charges you for the full gas tank, no matter how much you use.

Jason Holmes is a regular writer with Debt Consolidation Care and is also a contributory writer with other financial sites. His expertise is woven around various aspects of the debt industry and with his e-books he tries to impart to people the different situations and simple solutions to get out of difficult situations. Some of his works include e-books like ‘Credit Score The Quintessential Therapy for a Happy Pocket’, Take Creditors and Collection Agencies to Small Claims Court’ and, My Story- From Depression To a Smile’.

I spent Thanksgiving this year at a church with a friend helping with a dinner for the less fortunate, and if you’re looking for saving money tips, this is a most excellent way to not only save money, but to make new friends and learn more about people’s lives in general. It also gave me a good feeling of being more connected to the community and of having made an accomplishment.

If you’re unfortunate enough to be one of those out of work and struggling to put food on the table, I can really empathize with you, as I have been there numerous times in my life. There are some creative ways to lessen the pain, however. One of these ways I have found is to volunteer to actually work at a food bank. This way, not only do you get free food, you also have an opportunity to network with people. I actually got a job doing landscaping by talking to people at the food bank. Another way to get food for free is to offer to provide a service for a restaurant, such as washing windows, in exchange for a meal or two. I know it sounds a little farfetched, but if you can overcome your fear of rejection and exhibit confidence, you will be surprised at how well people react.

If you happen to be more fortunate, but still looking for saving money tips, it might still be a great idea to volunteer at such events. It’s a great way to get involved with community, and get a perspective on people’s lives around you. It really doesn’t have to be a holiday event either. Many churches and community organizations have regular charity events throughout the year.

I assume you are intelligent and sophisticated to not be sold on the idea of going out the day after Thanksgiving and spending a whole bunch of money you don’t have to get a whole bunch of junk that you really don’t need. Take the day off and do something fun. I don’t recommend that you get radical with this “buy nothing day” and start causing traffic jams or anything like that. Heck, even I bought a pair of glasses today. Is it just me, or does it seem a little wacky for someone to camp out on the doorstep of a Target store in order to be the first in line for the latest flat screen TV? What’s wrong with the TV she already has at home? If you’re really looking for saving money tips, this might be one of the areas of your life to really examine. Just for example, I’ve had the same cell phone for 5 years. I know that a new phone is going to happen for me sometime in the next few years, but it’s really worth it to take your time and shop around for something that is practical and reasonable. There are a few saving money tips for you!

Till next time,

Hal

Is it worth it to go to many different stores for their deals?

Have you ever wondered, when considering saving money tips, if it is really worth the extra effort to go from store to store to save a little, or even a lot, on the different deals that certain stores have?

This is really a multi faceted question, and many variables come into play here. I think you will be shocked at some of the insights I’m going to share with you here. Have you ever stood there, looking at the high price of something, like a gallon of milk, knowing that another store, a half mile away, like the drug store, for example, has the same gallon of milk for a dollar less? I have, and I finally figured out the marketing strategy that is used here. That strategy is to get you into their store. Store X (a grocery) has a sale on milk that goes on for a number of weeks, and you find that you can also get a few other items there at a reasonable price. Then suddenly, the price of milk at store X has gone back up to the brand name prices, but you discover the same day that store Y (a drugstore) has an even lower price on milk. However, you find that store Y has much higher prices for most other items. In addition, store Y has a whole bunch of other things that are tempting, and since you’re there already, you decide to just browse the aisles for a few “good deals”.

The real question you have to consider is: How much is your time worth? Let’s say you’ve been shopping at store X for some time, and even though sales come and go, you’ve been able to get most grocery items at a somewhat reasonable cost. Since you’ve been reading about saving money tips you find that store Y has this discount on milk and you’re going over there to save, say, four dollars on a couple of gallons of milk. After all, it’s only 5 minutes away (you think).

So you make the trip to store Y and actually it takes 10 minutes each way because it’s Friday afternoon. Then, as mentioned above, you spend a little time looking around and end up buying something you don’t really need, like a bag of candy or cookies that you’re probably just going to take to the office anyway. So there go another 15 minutes and probably another couple of dollars. This is how human nature works. I’ve done the same thing in the past. That is, until I started to see the whole picture of how I was wasting my time. You have just spent about 35 minutes of your time, not to mention fuel for your car, to “save” what may be four of five dollars on a couple of gallons of milk. That is an irreplaceable amount of time you could have spent with someone you love.

Is it worth it? You decide. It may be worth it to you. I would say for small or single units of one item it probably isn’t worth it, especially a perishable food like milk. If you’re stocking up on staples like rice, potatoes or other types of food with a longer shelf life, then it probably is worth it. It really helps to have your list and plans together so that you don’t have to make separate trips out to the store later.

Keep reading for more saving money tips.

Till later,

Hal