Category Archives: Frugal Living

Frugal living starts with a good plan supported by effective methods to create income cash flow followed by principles and methods that compels one to spend less then they earn. Controlled spending also has a plan that defines the outcome.

Business, Economy, Frugal Living

Banks in the United States are becoming LESS SAFE, Again!

Leave a comment

What I’m about to tell you isn’t some wild conspiracy. Or fake news. It’s raw fact, based on publicly available data from the US Federal Reserve.  This data shows a very simple but concerning trend:

Banks in the United States are becoming less safe. Again.

And they’re doing it on purpose. Again.

Few people ever give much thought to the safety and security of their bank.  After all, banks go out of their way to instill an overwhelming sense of confidence that they’re rock solid.

They spend tons of money on ornate lobbies in giant buildings. They buy the naming rights to football and baseball stadiums.  And hey, they’re insured by the government.

But it turns out that none of these elaborate distractions means anything when it comes to bank safety.

Safety is actually pretty easy to calculate.

Think about the business of banking– it’s simple. Banks take deposits, and then use that money to make loans and various investments.

For a bank, those deposits represent the amount of money they owe to their customers.

So obviously the total value of a bank’s loans and investments (i.e. its assets) should exceed its total deposits.

This is known as solvency. A solvent bank has SUBSTANTIALLY more assets than it owes in deposits.

That way, if a loan or investment goes bad, the bank will still be able to repay its depositors.

The other safety factor is liquidity, which basically means that, eventually the bank is going to have to give some of the money back.

Perhaps a depositor decides to initiate an electronic funds transfer to another bank… or makes a withdrawal at an ATM.

The bank should have sufficient cash on hand to be able to meet these needs.

Banks that lack proper liquidity can rapidly run into catastrophic problems, forcing them to fire sale assets in order to raise cash, which in turns could trigger a solvency crisis.

In both of these scenarios, solvency and liquidity, cash is king.

(Note that “cash” can mean both physical currency sitting in a vault, as well as a bank’s electronic deposits at Federal Reserve and other cash equivalents.)

For solvency, cash is about as risk-free as it gets.

Anything that a bank does with your money is going to carry some level of risk. Buying bonds. Car loans. Student loans. Business loans. Residential mortgages.

These all carry certain risk of default. Cash doesn’t.

So a bank with higher levels of cash will typically have much lower risk to its solvency.

Simultaneously, a bank with a strong cash position is also liquid, and hence more likely to be able to honor its customers’ transactional needs.

Bottom line, a safe, conservative bank maintains high levels of cash, especially relative to the total amount of deposits.

But that’s not happening in the Land of the Free.

How the Fractional Reserve Banking system and Federal Reserve work

The Federal Reserve’s most recent report on “Assets and Liabilities of Commercial Banks in the United States” published last Friday showed a continuing trend in the erosion of bank safety.

This is a weekly report, so there’s tons of data. And the trend goes back now at least 2.5 years.

Since late 2014, for example, Fed data show that total cash assets at US banks has been in steady decline, dropping roughly 25% over that period.

But at the same time, total deposits at the banks has actually increased around 15%.

So you can see the issue: cash is falling while deposits are increasing. This is the OPPOSITE of what a responsible bank should be doing.

A conservative bank seeks to INCREASE or at least MAINTAIN the level of cash it has on hand as a percentage of customer deposits.

Banks in the US have been doing the opposite– decreasing their cash holdings while deposits have been rising.

Proportionally, the aggregate cash-to-deposit ratio in the US has fallen by 32% since late 2014.

That’s a steep drop.

So what exactly have they been doing with that money, i.e. the money they should be holding in cash?

The truth is we’ll never know.

Banking is a giant black box. We are provided scant detail about what these people are actually doing with our money.

Sure, they’re making loans. But what loans? To whom? Are the borrowers creditworthy? Is there valuable, high-quality collateral? Does the interest rate make sense to compensate for the risk?

No one knows. Not even the banks themselves know.

When you have hundreds of billions (or even trillions) of dollars of assets on your books, it’s impossible to really know what you own.

So we’re basically all in the dark.

I’m not telling you this to suggest that there’s some major crisis looming or that you should yank all of your money out of the US banking system.

But it’s important to understand that banks are not as risk-free as they lead on.

This huge drop in the cash-to-deposit ratio is a conscious decision. It doesn’t happen by accident. Banks are choosing to hold less cash, i.e. be less safe.

(And the government which supposedly guarantees it all is itself insolvent to the tune of negative $60+ trillion. But that’s another story.)

Why take the chance? Why keep 100% of everything that you’ve ever earned locked up in a system that is actively making itself less safe…

… not to mention the industry’s uninterrupted history of fleecing its customers?

There are too many other alternatives out there.

You could consider transferring a portion of your savings overseas to a stronger, more conservative bank abroad.

Or you could become your own banker by holding some savings in physical cash in a safe at your home or a non-bank safety deposit box facility.

Cryptocurrency is an option (though you’ll have to stomach the extreme volatility for now).

Or even something as mundane as buying Amazon.com gift cards.

There are countless options to distance yourself from this system if you simply have the willingness to see the big picture.

Frugal Living, Meditation, Un-Classified

25 Little Known Facts About Forrest Gump.

Leave a comment

Forrest Gump, made in 1994, is heartbreaking, odd, and beautiful. Breath taking performances by a stellar cast of actors guarantees this film to be a delight every time.

1/25. Bill Murray, John Travolta and Chevy Chase turned down the role of Forrest Gump. Travolta later admitted that passing on the role was a mistake.

2/25. Tom Hanks’ younger brother Jim Hanks doubled for him in many of his numerous running sequences.

3/25. Tom Hanks signed onto the film after an hour and a half of reading the script but agreed only to take the role if the film was historically accurate. He initially wanted to ease Forrest’s pronounced Southern accent, but was eventually persuaded by director Robert Zemeckis to portray the heavy accent stressed in the novel and patterned his accent after Michael Conner Humphreys (young Forrest) who actually talked that way.

 

 

4/25. Tom Hanks wasn’t paid for the film. Instead he took percentage points which ultimately netted him in the region of $40 million.


5/25. When Forrest gets up to talk at the Vietnam rally in Washington, the microphone plug is pulled and you cannot hear him. According to Tom Hanks, he says, “Sometimes when people go to Vietnam, they go home to their mommas without any legs. Sometimes they don’t go home at all. That’s a bad thing. That’s all I have to say about that.”


6/25. The line, “My name is Forrest Gump. People call me Forrest Gump,” was ad libbed by Tom Hanks while filming the scene. Director Robert Zemeckis liked it so much that he decided to keep it in

7/25. With every transition of Forrest’s age, one thing remains the same – in the first scene of each transition he wears a blue plaid shirt.

8/25. Forrest and Dan’s Shrimp Emporium “Bubba Gump”, is now a themed restaurant in 33 locations around the world in the U.S., Japan, China, Mexico, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and the UK. There is one in Orlando, Florida, at the entrance to the Universal theme parks, at the Anaheim Gardenwalk in walking distance from Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California in the Los Angeles area and at Pleasure Pier in Galveston, Texas.

9/25. When Forrest first learns to play ping-pong in the infirmary, he is told the trick is to “keep his eye on the ball” by another soldier. After that moment, whenever he is shown playing ping-pong, he never blinks.

 

 

10/25. The actor who plays the reporter on the scene when Tom Hanks visits Washington DC after his tour in Vietnam was, himself, an actual tourist from Atlanta, Georgia. He happened to be on Capitol Hill that day with his wife, and was asked to read.


11/25. Many of the extras in the hippie scene were actors from the Maryland Renaissance Festival, since the casting director Ellen Lewis realized that would be a good source of performers with long hair.


12/25. Gary Sinise’s lower legs were wrapped in a special blue fabric that allowed them to be digitally removed later.

13/25. During the ping-pong matches, there was no ball; it was entirely CGI, animated to meet the actors’ paddles.

14/25. The running scene was inspired by an actual event. In 1982, Louis Michael Figueroa, aged 16, ran from New Jersey to San Francisco for the American Cancer Society, unknowingly inspiring a line for Forrest Gump’s famous run on the silver screen. “I just put one foot in front of the other,” it goes. “When I get tired I sleep. When I get hungry I eat. When I have to go to the bathroom, I go.”

15/25. The park bench that Tom Hanks sat on for much of the movie was located in historic Savannah, Georgia, at Chippewa Square. The fiberglass bench he sat on, since then, has been removed and placed into a museum to avoid being destroyed by bad weather, or possibly stolen. The church where the feather first falls was about 100 yards just down the street from the bench. To this day, the bench is held in the Savannah History Museum, Savannah, Georgia.

 

 

16/25. Gump’s Medal of Honor ceremony uses the footage of the actual ceremony for Sammy L. Davis, who was awarded the Medal of Honor on 19 November 1968 by President Lyndon Johnson for his actions in Vietnam a year earlier. Tom Hanks’ head was superimposed on Davis’ body.

17/25. When Lt. Dan Taylor first meets Forrest and Bubba in Vietnam, he says, “You must be my FNGs”. Generally speaking, this stands for “F*ckin’ New Guys”.

18/25. Every still picture of Forrest during this film shows Tom Hanks with his eyes closed.

19/25. Robin Wright was sick with a cold while shooting the nightclub scene. In spite of this, she was still able to perform her own singing during a non-stop twenty-four hour shoot in which she was nearly nude except for her guitar.

20/25. David Alan Grier, Ice Cube and Dave Chappelle turned down the role of Bubba. Cube refused to play someone with a disability and Chappelle thought the movie would bomb. Chappelle has since admitted to deeply regretting not taking the role.

21/25. Kurt Russell has said that he did the voice of Elvis Presley (uncredited) in the film, reprising his role from Elvis (1979).

22/25. The shrimp boat used in the film now resides in the moat surrounding the Planet Hollywood restaurant in Downtown Disney, at the Disney World Resort in Florida. Also, one of the ping-pong paddles used in the film is signed by Tom Hanks and hung up on one of the walls inside the restaurant.

 

 

23/25. On the day that Tom Hanks shot the football running scenes he had been suffering from influenza.

24/25. Sally Field is only ten years older than Tom Hanks.

25/25. When this film became wildly successful, talk of a sequel naturally arose. However, at the time, Tom Hanks adamantly refused to work in any sequel (and making the sequel with another actor was not a consideration).

Economy, Frugal Living

Usain Bolt has got nothing on Leonidas of Rhodos.

Usain Bolt has got nothingUsain-Bolt-olympic-runner
on Leonidas of Rhodos

Born nearly 2,000 years ago, Leonidas holds the record as the greatest sprinter of all time, winning more Olympic titles than anyone else in human history.

Leonidas-of-RhodosAt four straight Olympic games, Leonidas dominated all three sprinting events– the Stadion (roughly 200 meters), Diaulos (roughly 400 meters), and the bizarre Hoplitodromos– a 400 meter dash carrying 50 pounds of military gear.

Bear in mind that he competed at a time when there was only a prize for first place. Second place was first loser.

(And they didn’t hand out medals to all the kids just for participating.)

As such, Leonidas was a legend in his own time and was decorated accordingly.

Just like today, in fact, many ancient Greek athletes were rewarded by their city-states for an Olympic victory.

In Athens, the government would award prize money that was equivalent to about 500 sheep.

This was a highly coveted back then; livestock was considered a symbol of wealth and power, so a vast flock of sheep in Ancient Greece may have been the Maserati of its day.

I was particularly interested when I read this because I own some sheep in Chile; they cost the equivalent of about fifty to sixty US dollars in the marketplace.

It’s roughly the same price in the United States for young lamb and slaughter ewes (female sheep) based on USDA data.

But what really floored me was when I found out that the United States Olympic Committee hands out $25,000 in prize money to gold medal winners– roughly the amount necessary to buy a flock of 500 sheep today.

So over 2,000 years later, the prize money for champions is more or less the same.

Now, let’s consider which of these two is more valuable: $25,000 worth of sheep, or $25,000 worth of fiat money (paper currency).

Fiat money sits in a bank account earning a yield of 0.5%.

(Or if you’re really unlucky, you might even have the privilege of paying your bank interest like they do here in parts of Europe.)

Sheep, on the other hand, yield… more sheep.

Depending on breed, the typical conception rate for sheep is between 65% to 95%, with a gestation period of about 5 months.

So a herd can expand dramatically in a typical breeding season, producing meat, milk, and wool along the way.

Fiat money produces nothing. At least, not for you.

It remains in the hands of the bank where they make the most bonehead financial decisions with it, parking it whatever risky investment fad gets them the biggest annual bonus.

They’ll further act as unpaid agents of the government, freezing you out of your own savings in a heartbeat.

And if you request to withdraw your own money, they treat you like a criminal terrorist.

Now, I’m not trying to convince you to empty your bank account and go buy a flock of sheep.

The point is that productive assets stand the test of time. Paper currency does not.

Always remember that history is inflationary. And while there may be some aberrant years, holding cash will gradually erode your savings.

It’s imperative to make smart, long-term financial decisions. Seek stores of value that can stand the test of time.

In fairness, that’s easier said than done in an environment where every conventional asset class is in a bubble.

Stocks are at all-time highs. Bonds are at all-time highs (earning negative yields in some cases). Banks are perilously illiquid. Many real estate markets are frothy once again.

So it’s a tall order to find safety and stability– at least, within conventional finance.

Outside the mainstream, though, there are plenty of compelling options.

An heirloom Patek Phillipe wristwatch will likely be a much better store of value to pass on to your grandkids than the usual gift of a US government savings bond.

Productive real estate (including agriculture) can also be a much better alternative than letting money sit in a bank account. It’s like gold, with yield. And the added benefit of providing a place to stay, or even food on the table.

Privately held businesses can also be a great option as they can often be purchased at very low multiples on their earnings, generating instant yields of 40% or more.

And even though most stock are hovering at bubble levels, there are some deep value options available where you can buy shares of a well-managed, profitable business for less than the value of its net assets.

Frugal Living

What Happens to Meat When You Grill It?

Here’s What Happens to Steak When You Grill It

By Dr. Mercola

Eighty percent of US households own a grill or smoker, and 97 percent of grill owners have used it in the past year.  It’s safe to say Americans love to grill, particularly on holidays like the Fourth of July, Memorial Day, and Labor Day, but also year-round (60 percent of grillers do so all year).

As for why Americans adore grilling, the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (HPBA) said the top reasons include its good taste and convenience.  Many also find it personally satisfying to grill outdoors while others find it a great way to entertain and spend time at home.

Grilled-Meat-What-Happens-to-the-meat-when-grilledWhat Happens to Meat When You Grill It?

If you’ve ever wondered about the science behind grilled meat, check out TIME’s video, above.  It starts out with an explanation of what makes red meat red, and contrary to popular belief, it isn’t blood.

The red liquid is actually a mixture of water and a protein called myoglobin, whose purpose is to help ship oxygen to muscle cells. Myoglobin is deeply pigmented, which is why the more myoglobin a meat contains, the darker (or redder) the meat will be.

The level of myoglobin in meat is what ultimately dictates whether it will be “red,” “dark,” or “white.” The muscles in red meat are used for standing, walking, and other frequent activity, and they’re made up of slow-twitch muscle fibers. Red meats’ high levels of myoglobin make it red or dark in color.

The color changes that occur as meat is cooked are also due to myoglobin. In red meat, myoglobin changes from red to tan and grayish brown as it is heated. As reported by The New York Times, this color change also has to do with moisture, which is why well-done meat that’s turned gray-brown is often dry:

“Oxygenated myoglobin is red, but when its structure is changed by heat or by other molecules, it changes color. That’s why redness in cooked meat signifies juiciness: As meat cooks, the heat causes the other meat proteins to coagulate and squeeze out their moisture.
Myoglobin stays unchanged and red as the meat juices flow, then turns from red to gray-brown as the release of moisture ends and the meat becomes dry.”

The Maillard Reaction is also involved. This occurs due to a chemical reaction between amino acids and sugars in the meat, which results in browning as well as the flavor of cooked meat.

You can further alter the flavor of the meat depending on whether you use a gas or charcoal grill. Compounds from the charcoal, woodchips, and smoke they create will permeate the meat, adding a more “authentic” grilled flavor.

Why Grilling Isn’t the Healthiest Choice for Cooking Your Meat

Grilling is, unfortunately, not one of the healthiest ways to cook your meat. Cooking at high temperatures, such as occurs during grilling, leads to the creation of toxic chemicals such as heterocyclic amines (HCAs), which are linked to cancer.

Avoiding charring your meat can help to some extent, as the blackened section is the worst in terms of HCAs, but it will not completely eliminate your risk. For instance, when fat drips onto the heat source, causing excess smoke, the smoke surrounds your food.

Along with adding that “flame-grilled” flavor to your meat, it can transfer cancer-causing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)as well. Both HCAs and PAHs are mutagenic, which means they cause changes in DNA that may increase cancer risk and have been found to cause cancer in animals.

So just how much of a cancer risk are you really taking when you eat grilled meat?  Scientists have estimated the average cancer risk due to heterocyclic amine exposure ranges from 1 per 10,000 for the average person to more than 1 per 50 for those ingesting large amounts of well-done muscle meats (beef, pork, fish, poultry), especially flame-grilled chicken.

Other research shows:

  • People who regularly eat well-done meat cooked at high temperatures have a 60 percent greater risk of pancreatic cancer
  • A diet high in HCAs has been linked to tumors in the breast, colon, liver, skin, lung, prostate, and other organs in animals
  • Animals fed PAHs developed leukemia and tumors of the gastrointestinal tract and lungs
Avoid Barbecue Sauce, Marinate Your Steak in Beer Instead

Not ready to give up grilling? At least resist smothering your steak in barbecue sauce. Such sauces, which are traditionally made with sugar and tomatoes, have been found to cause a significant increase in chemical formation – “doubling and even tripling” levels of HCAs after 15 minutes of cooking.

A far better option is to marinate the steak in beer. When researchers marinated pork loin steaks in beer for four hours, then grilled it to well-done on a charcoal grill, it lead to significantly lower amounts of PAHs in the meat.  The darker, presumably more antioxidant-rich beer, had the best effect. Specifically, compared to non-marinated pork loin:

  • A pale lager marinade (pilsner) reduced the formation of PAHs by 36.5 percent
  • A non-alcoholic pilsner marinade reduced formation by 25 percent
  • A black beer marinade (a dark lager) reduced PAHs by 68 percent

Past research also showed that marinating steak in red wine or beer for six hours before cooking cut levels of two types of HCAs by up to 90 percent.  Beer was also efficient at reducing a third type of HCA, cutting levels significantly in just four hours. In this study, the meat was pan-fried, not grilled, a method also known to create toxic byproducts.

Spices Are Your Friend When Grilling

You probably wouldn’t dream of throwing meat on the grill before applying your favorite spice rub, and this is a very good thing. Aside from adding flavor, spices and other marinades (such as vinegar and olive oil) can significantly cut back on the number of toxic cooking byproducts produced.

In one study, adding a spice blend to burgers reduced the level of malondialdehyde, a chemical marker for oxidation, in the meat by 71 percent and levels in participants’ urine by 49 percent.

Marinating steaks in a mixture of oil, water, and vinegar (without spices) was also effective at decreasing HCAs, as are commercial marinades. Each significantly decreased HCAs, as follows:

  • The Caribbean mixture decreased total HCA content by 88 percent
  • The herb marinade decreased HCAs by 72 percent
  • The Southwest marinade decreased HCAs by 57 percent

Since most store-bought marinades are far from healthy (they typically contain corn syrup, MSG, and other additives), I highly recommend making your own at home.  Fortunately, there are beneficial marinade ingredients available that will suit virtually everyone’s tastes.  For instance, the following ingredients have all been shown to be effective at lowering HCAs in various meats. Depending on your preference, you can add them in directly to the meat (such as in hamburgers), via marinade or using a dry rub:

  • Cherries, Dried plums, Apples, Garlic
  • Virgin olive oil, Teriyaki marinade, Turmeric, Onions
  • Rosemary, Grape seed extracts, Cider vinegar, Mustard
  • Lemon juice, Cloves, Cinnamon, Oregano
  • Black pepper, Paprika, Ginger
  • Make Your Steak Grass-Fed

Just as important as cooking method is choosing a high-quality source for your meat. I’ve often said that the differences between organic, pastured beef and that from animals raised in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) is so great that you’re really talking about two completely different animals (and the same applies to other animal meats, and animal products, such as dairy and eggs). The natural diet for ruminant animals, such as cattle, is plain grass. When left to their own devices, cattle will not graze on corn or soybeans.

Just as in humans, poor gut health in animals promotes disease. This radically altered diet also affects the nutritional composition of the meat. For example, when raised on a grass-only diet, levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) are three to five times higher in the meat compared to CAFO beef. CLA has been found to have a wide array of important health benefits, from fighting cancer to decreasing insulin resistance and improving body composition.

Grass-fed beef also tends to be leaner, and have higher levels of vitamins and minerals such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium. It also has a healthier ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats. Unless labeled as grass-fed, virtually all the meat you buy in the grocery store is CAFO beef, and tests have revealed that nearly half of the meat sold in US stores is contaminated with pathogenic bacteria — including antibiotic-resistant strains.

Grass-fed beef is not associated with this high frequency of contamination, and their living conditions have everything to do with this improved safety. Currently, meat in supermarkets will be labeled 100% grass-fed if it came from pasture, but if it contains no label it’s probably CAFO-raised. Ideally, look for a reputable source of grass-fed beef from a local farm or food coop near you.

If You’re Going to Grill, This Can Make It Safer

As reported in the Natural Medicine Journal, eating a diet rich in vegetables (especially spinach and cruciferous varieties) and fermented foods will help to neutralize the negative effects of HCAs and other cooking byproducts.

So if you eat grilled food, be sure you’re eating plenty of vegetables and fermented foods as well… and if you drink alcohol, feel free to have an occasional beer along with it. It turns out the yeast beer contains may also help mitigate HCA toxicity, especially when consumed in close proximity in time to when the grilled meat is eaten.  Further, while I do recommend limiting the amount of grilled foods you consume, if you’re going to grill the following tips can help to cut down on the cooking toxins created:

  • You can reduce the amount of PAHs when you grill by not cooking fatty meats and by trimming the fat off before you grill.
  • When grilling, cook your food with indirect heat, such as on a rack rather than directly on the coals. Cooking on a cedar plank is also helpful.
  • Always avoid charring your meat (and don’t eat the black or brown parts).
  • Cook meat partially before putting it on the grill, or cook smaller pieces of meat, which take less time to cook, and therefore give HCAs less time to form.
  • You can reduce the amount of another cooking byproduct, advanced glycation end products (AGEs), in your food by using an acidic marinade that contains lemon juice or vinegar.
  • Marinating meats before grilling or broiling them can reduce HCAs (according to some experts by 90 percent or more). However, only use natural ingredients for marinades and keep the coating thin to avoid charring.
  • Flip your burgers often, as this will help cut down on HCAs.
  • Add blueberries, cherries, garlic, or spices to your burgers, as they can also help prevent the formation of HCAs.
  • Adjust your cooking temperature, even when using your oven. Increasing oven temperature from 392 degrees F to 482 degrees F may triple the amount of HCAs created in beef.
  • Avoid grilling hot dogs, bratwurst, and other processed meats, as these seem to be among the worst offenders.
  • If grilling chicken, remove the skin prior to cooking, and don’t eat the skin if you do cook it, as it has the highest HCA content.
  • Only grill high-quality, organic and grass-fed meats.
  • Cook the meat as little as possible – rare or medium-rare at the absolute most. You can also quickly sear the meat on both sides, leaving the inside mostly raw. This gives the illusion that you’re eating cooked meat, with many of the benefits of raw.

Remember, with HCAs, the longer the cooking time and the higher the heat, the more HCAs.

Economy, Frugal Living

Andrew Carnegie’s Weird “Wealth Machine” to Help Secure Their Retirements

Andrew-CarnegieDuring his lifetime, Andrew Carnegie became one of the wealthiest men on the planet. Before he began giving away his wealth, his net worth was valued at $475 million — the equivalent of about $75 billion in today’s dollars.

It’s been almost 100 years since Carnegie died. Today, he is remembered most for building Carnegie Hall in New York City and establishing the modern U.S. library system. Both are still in existence today, a remarkable testament to Carnegie’s legacy.

But did you know Carnegie created something else before he died that’s helped tens of thousands of people to secure their retirements?

Carnegie had a soft spot for American educators. He wanted to help provide professors at schools like Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, and Columbia with financial security in their old age. So in 1905, he gave $10 million to set up America’s very first variable annuity.

From $10 Million to $279 Billion…

Carnegie’s fledgling variable annuity started with $10 million. Today it is worth an astounding $279 billion. It is now called the Teacher’s Insurance and Annuity Association – College Retirement Equities Fund, or TIAA-CREF for short.

Think about that. The TIAA-CREF was started in the year 1905 and it still exists today.

That means it survived the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression that followed. It survived Black Monday in 1987. And it survived the more recent financial meltdown of 2008 and 2009.

In fact, it has survived all the booms and busts of the last 110 years! That’s an amazing track record.

The only reason Carnegie’s annuity has survived so long is because annuities make conservative investments in order to fulfill promises to its investors. Therefore, annuities don’t gamble or make risky investments. They play it safe so they can continue paying out guaranteed payments every single year.

Ben Bernanke’s Shocking Retirement Secret

Before Ben Bernanke became the chairman of the Federal Reserve, he taught economics at Princeton University. While there, he set up two annuities through the annuity company Carnegie founded.

Apparently, Bernanke’s retirement strategy didn’t change a bit when he took over at the Fed because his two largest assets are still the annuities he set up while working at Princeton. Each of these annuities are currently valued between $500,001 and $1 million.

While other experts have criticized Bernanke’s conservative approach to retirement investing, maybe the better approach is to ask a question: Why would the man who was head of the most powerful financial institution in the world choose to invest in annuities?

The answer to this question will become clear when you compare average retirement savings to one particular group of people.

The Surprising Reason Why College Professors Have More Saved for Retirement than You

Ben Bernanke isn’t the only one who is benefiting from annuity investments. Many college professors and other higher education professionals have invested in the same annuity fund originally set up by Andrew Carnegie.

And the proof is in the pudding.

In a recent study conducted by TIAA-CREF, they discovered that “83 percent of tenured and tenure-track faculty felt very or somewhat confident they will have enough money to live comfortably throughout their retirement years, compared to 55 percent of workers overall.”

And there’s a good reason for their confidence. According to surveys, higher education employees who participate in retirement plans have average account balances that are 43% to 46% higher than average Americans.

The 8th Wonder of the World

Famous academic Albert Einstein once said, “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it… he who doesn’t… pays it.”

Einstein put his money where his mouth was by investing in annuities way back in 1933 when they were still a relatively new investment vehicle.

Annuities exist to provide people with safe and predictable investment returns every single year during retirement. Many of them come with guaranteed rates of return.

Just one year bad year in the stock market can take years to recover from. But safe and predictable compound growth — like that provided by annuity funds — can provide investors with a stable retirement and peace of mind.

That’s why Einstein invested in annuities. It’s why Ben Bernanke is invested in annuities. And it’s why thousands of higher education professionals invest in annuities every year. Maybe annuities are worth a closer look after all.

Business, Frugal Living

Solar FREAKIN Roadways

Leave a comment

This is totally cool and the future for saving the planet from environmental contamination.

Years ago, when the phrase “Global Warming” began gaining popularity, the inventors of Solar Roadway Panels started batting around the idea of replacing asphalt and concrete surfaces with solar panels that could be driven upon.  In consideration, they thought about the “black box” on airplanes; they didn’t know what material that black box was made of, but it seemed to be able to protect sensitive electronics from the worst of airline crashes.

So, they imagined making a section of road out of this material and housed solar cells to collect energy, which could pay for the cost of the panel, thereby creating a road that would pay for itself over time.  Then, they asked: what if we added LEDs to “paint” the road lines from beneath, lighting up the road for safer night time driving?  What if we added a heating element in the surface (like the defrosting wire in the rear window of our cars) to prevent snow/ice accumulation in northern climates?  The ideas and possibilities just continued to roll in and the Solar Roadway project was born.

 

 

This could be a VERY GOOD investment in which to participate, as suggested by U.S. Senator Mike Crapo who discusses the Solar Roadways project:

 

 

And this exciting presentation explains how these panels work:

Frugal Living

Why I don’t drink Soda Drinks like Coca Cola

Leave a comment

Have you ever wondered what exactly Coca Cola is?

After 10 minutes

Ten tea spoons of sugar contained in a glass of Cola, cause devastating “strike” on the organism and the only cause, by reason of not vomiting, is the phosphoric acid which inhibits the action of sugar.

After 20 minutes

A leap of insulin levels in bloodstream occurs. The liver converts all the sugar into fat.

After 40 minutes

Ingestion of caffeine is finally completed. The eye pupils are expanding. Blood pressure rises, because the liver disposes more sugar into bloodstream. The adenosine receptors get blocked, thereby preventing drowsiness.

After 45 minutes

Body raises production of dopamine hormone, which stimulates the brain pleasure center. Heroin has the same principle of operation.

After 1 hour

Phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium and zinc in the gastrointestinal tract, which supercharges metabolism. Releasing of calcium through urine also rises.

After more than 1 hour

Diuretic effect of the drink enters in “the game”. The calcium, magnesium and zinc are removed out of the organism, which are a part of our bones, as well as sodium. At this time we have already become irritable or subdued. The whole quantity of water, contained in a coca cola, is removed by the urine.

Actually, when having a cold bottle of Coke and enjoying its undeniable freshness, do we know what chemical-cocktail we pour into our throats?

The active ingredient of Coca-Cola is orthophosphoric acid. Due to its high acidity, cisterns used for transporting of the concentrate have to be equipped with special reservoirs designed for highly corrosive materials.

Let’s have a look at “the anatomy” of one of the most advertised products of “Coca-Cola Co.” – Coca-Cola Light without caffeine. This drink contains Aqua Carbonated, E150D, E952, E951, E338, E330, Aromas, E211.

Aqua Carbonated – this is sparkling water. It stirs gastric secretion, increases the acidity of the gastric juice and provokes flatulency – plenty evolution of gases. Furthermore, spring water is not used, but is used regular filtered water.

cokeingredients.jpg?9276ac

E150D – food coloring, obtained through the processing of sugar at specified temperatures, with or without addition of chemical reagents. In the case with coca-cola, ammonium sulfate is added.

E952 – Sodium Cyclamate is a sugar substitute. Cyclamate is a synthetic chemical, has sweet taste, which is 200 times sweeter than sugar, and is used as an artificial sweetener. In 1969 it was banned by FDA, since it as well as saccharin and aspartame, caused cancer in rats’ urinary bladder. In 1975, prohibition seized also Japan, South Korea and Singapore. In 1979, WHO (World Health Organization), “who knows why?” rehabilitated cyclamates and recognizing them as safe.

E950 – Acesulfame Potassium. 200 times sweeter than sugar, containing methyl ether, where it aggravates the operation of the cardiovascular system. Likewise, it contains asparaginic acid which can also cause excitant effect on our nervous system and in time it can lead to addiction. Acesulfame is badly dissolved and is not recommended for use by children and pregnant women.

E951 – Aspartame. A sugar substitute for diabetics and is chemically unstable: at elevated temperature it breaks down into methanol and phenylalanine. Methanol is very dangerous: 5-10ml can cause destruction of the optic nerve and irreversible blindness. In warm soft drinks, aspartame transforms into formaldehyde which is very strong carcinogen. Some number of cases with aspartame poisoning include: unconsciousness, headaches, fatigue, dizziness, nausea, palpitation, weight gain, irritability, anxiety, memory loss, blurry vision, fainting, joint pains, depression, fertility, hearing loss and etc. Aspartame can also provoke the following diseases: brain tumors, MS (Multiple Sclerosis), epilepsy, Graves’ disease, chronic fatigue, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, mental deficiency and tuberculosis.

diettt.jpg?9276ac

E338 – Orthophosphoric Acid. This can cause irritation of skin and eyes. It is used for production of phosphoric acid salts of ammonia, sodium, calcium, aluminum and also in organic synthesis for production of charcoal and film tapes, for production of refractory materials, ceramics, glass, fertilizers, synthetic detergents, medicine, metalworking, and textile and oil industries. Food orthophosphoric acid is used in the production of carbonated water and for preparation of ingredients in pastry. It is known that orthophosphoric acid interfere with the absorption of calcium and iron from the body, which can cause weakening of bones and osteoporosis. Other side effects are thirst and skin rashes.

E330 – Citric Acid. It is widely spread in nature and is used in pharmaceutical and food industries. Salts of citric acid (citrates) are used in food industry as acids, preservatives, stabilizers, and in medical fields – for preserving blood.

Aromas – unknown aromatic additives

E211 – Sodium Benzoate. It is used in production of some food products, as an anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agent. These products refer to jams, fruit juices and fruit yoghurts. It’s not recommended for use by asthmatics and people who are sensitive to aspirin. A study conducted by Peter Piper at the Sheffield University in Britain, found that this compound causes significant damage to DNA. According to his words, sodium benzoate which is an active component in preservatives doesn’t destroy DNA, but deactivating it. This can lead to cirrhosis and degenerative diseases like Parkinson’s disease.

So, what turns out? Well, it turns out that “the secret recipe” of coca-cola is just one advertising play. What kind of secret may be there, when it’s well known to us that this is a weak solution of cocaine with preservatives, colorants, stabilizers and etc. I.e., this is legalized cocaine addiction plus pure poison. Diet Coke is even worse, because the aspartame in it, replaces sugar, becoming pure neurotoxic poison.

So, if you can’t imagine a life without coca-cola, take advantage of the following recommendations:

  • Many distributors of coca-cola in U.S use this drink for cleaning their truck engines.
  • Many police officers in U.S have bottles of coca-cola in their cars and when a car accident happens, they wash the blood out of the road with it.
  • Coca-Cola is a great tool for removing rusty stains on chrome surfaces of cars. To remove corrosion from car battery, pour it with Coke and the corrosion will disappear.
  • To unscrew a rusty screw, dip a cloth in coca-cola and wrap around it for several minutes.
  • To clean stains from clothes – pour coca-cola on dirty clothes, add washing powder and run the washing machine as usual. You will be surprised of the results.
  • In India, some farmers use coca-cola instead of pesticides for pest extermination, because it’s cheaper and the effect is completely satisfying.

So, coca-cola undeniably is a very useful product. The key is to be used for intended purposes, but not for drinking!

Here is a video about Coca-Cola!

Frugal Living

Boomers and Millennials are similar: panelists

Leave a comment

Boomers and Millennials are similar: panelists
Like Millennials, they follow their passions and live in the moment,” said Robin Albing, principal at the AIMsights Group, an international marketing consulting firm specializing in purchasing behaviors of Baby Boomers and Millennials. … Millennials …
Read more on Supermarket News

 

Cultivating impact entrepreneurs
This innovation, if put to good use, has the potential to bring an essential commodity like drinking water into the lives of thousands living in water-starved regions. This report … I strongly endorse frugal innovation at all entrepreneur forums that …
Read more on Financial Express

 

Frugal Living, Meditation

Quotes about moving on and to live by – Frugal Living Tips

Leave a comment

Quotes About Moving On

“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there are Quotes To Live Byto inspire, I don’t think you can go wrong.”

“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare composed poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.'”

“I never married because there was no need. I have three pets at home who answer the same purpose as a husband. I have a dog that growls every morning, a parrot that swears all afternoon, and a cat that comes home late every night.”

“You really won’t understand your life as a woman until you understand this: You are passionately loved by the God of the universe.  You are passionately hated by his enemy.”

“Love me when I least deserve it, because that’s when I really need it.”

“From 40 feet away she looked like a lot of class. From 15 feet away she looked like something made up to be seen from 40 feet away.”

Quotes about moving

“This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days, smiles when sadness intrudes, rainbows to follow the clouds, laughter to kiss your lips, sunsets to warm your heart, hugs when spirits sag, beauty for your eyes to see, friendships to brighten your being, faith so that you can believe, confidence for when you doubt, courage to know yourself, patience to accept the truth, Love to complete your life.”

“Having a role model in life is a great thing to have; one who provides us with direction and inspiration.”

“However, we will forever be restricted by that person’s limitations if we live within their boundaries. Be influenced, but set your own standards and develop your own principals, if you are ever to live beyond someone else’s dreams.”

“Behind every successful woman is a cleaner and a nanny.”

Quotes to live by

“Our deepest wishes are whispers of our authentic selves. We must learn to respect them. We must learn to listen.”

“Go to the people. Live with them. Learn from them. Love them. Start with what they know. Build with what they have. But with the best leaders, when the work is done, the task accomplished, the people will say “We have done this ourselves”.

“I’d much rather be a woman than a man. Women can cry, they can wear cute clothes, and they are the first to be rescued off of sinking ships.”

General Quotes

The more anger towards the past you carry in your heart, the less capable you are of loving in the present.

“I am willing to put myself through anything; temporary pain or discomfort means nothing to me as long as I can see that the experience will take me to a new level. I am interested in the unknown, and the only path to the unknown is through breaking barriers, an often painful process.”

Frugal Living Tips

 

Related Frugal Living Articles

Frugal Living

Frugal Living – Featuring Ray Gosling

Leave a comment

Frugal living, as presented by Ray Gosling, brings us an inspiring presentation of how natural it is for people to abide.

Borscht to Be
Frugal Living

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here: Learn more from our other pages about Frugal Living

Frugal Living

An item from the regional current affairs programme Inside Out. Filmed in June 2008, first broadcast October 2008.

Frugal Living as a Minimalist

When many people imagine a frugal or minimalist life style, the picture in their mind is of extreme deprivation. To be a minimalist, they believe a frugal living would ostracize them from the rest of their peers (who are probably spending too much time coveting one another’s stuff).  But, this simply is not the situation in my case – as most of my acquaintances don’t have a clue about how I save as much as I do.

Video Rating: 4 / 5

Related articles
Frugal Living
Frugal Living

New Opportunities for Urban Garden Farmers

Leave a comment

Revised Laws and Urban Garden Farming Projects

Visit the Dr. Mercola Video Library

Urban garden agriculture now has a growing interest from local as well as national people.  This trend is a true cause for celebration.  In fact, I’ve been encouraging everyone to plant a “Victory Garden” as a step toward fixing our broken food system. During the previous Victory Garden period Americans produced over 40% of the vegetables in America in their yards.

A great way to improve your health, help build a sustainable food system, and support our planet as it struggles to make room for increasing numbers is to growing your own Urban Garden as well as participating in growing a community Urban Garden.  Food grown in your own Urban Garden is fresher, more nutritious, and tastes better than store-bought food—and you can not beat the cost savings!

Having a Urban garden is key to saving energy, protecting water quality and topsoil, and promoting biodiversity and beautifying densely populated communities. Remember, plants are our richest source of natural medicine.

For all of those reasons and many more, urban agriculture is growing so quickly that changes in local ordinances are not able to keep up. Zoning laws are outdated and out of step with today’s world, causing a flurry of legal conflicts, as well as a good deal of confusion about what people can and cannot do on their own land.

Every city has different laws and ordinances, and there are no standards spanning jurisdictional lines.

I encourage you to get involved in growing your own food, but remember the important preliminary step of finding out what your zoning laws allow. There are often restrictions governing the raising of goats, chickens, bees, and even where you can plant a simple vegetable garden.

Failing to follow these ordinances can result in some very unpleasant legal snafus. The laws are changing but not quickly enough. Know your rights, as you never know when you may be confronted by an angry neighbor who is out of sorts because your overly exuberant rooster awakened him at sunrise.

A few US cities are showing innovative examples of how laws can be updated to meet 21st Century needs. Making the shift from unsustainable, health and Earth-destroying monoculture to locally produced real food requires thinking outside the box—and a few brilliant thinkers are giving the rest of us a lot to think about!

Urban Garden LA’s ‘Gangster Gardener’ Turns the City on Its Nose

A few notable urban farmers are changing the world one backyard at a time by challenging City Halls across the country to rewrite old laws so that they can bring fresh, homegrown eggs and organic veggies to their fellow urbanites.

In the featured video, “Gangster Gardener” Ron Finley is turning Los Angeles on its nose with his no-nonsense approach to healthy eating. The city of LA issued a warrant for his arrest for the unthinkable crime of growing tomatoes and kale on a small plot of unused land, about 10 feet wide by 150 feet long—basically, a strip of dead grass.

With the help of his local councilman, Finley beat the city of LA and is using his experience as an opportunity to educate his community about how to turn “food deserts” into “food forests.”

Finley says, “Growing your own food is like printing your own money.” Just about everyone can relate to that!  But what if your home doesn’t have space for a garden? If you don’t have a plot of land available, what about a rooftop?

Feed Your Entire Family with Fish on Your Roof

In order to think outside the box, urban gardener Roman Gaus has had to think inside the box—an aquaponics box, that is. Gaus combines aquaculture with hydroponics to create a closed soil-free system to grow vegetables in a way that is extremely efficient. Aquaponics requires 90 percent less water than traditional soil-based agriculture. The vegetables grow in circulated water and are nourished by the waste products of the fish that live in that water, in a closed system that allows both to flourish.

Yes, the plants feed on fish poop! This system is completely contained in a “box.”2The UF Box system is designed for small-scale production and can be placed on a roof, in a backyard, in a parking lot, at a neighborhood co-op or a school, and is mobile and transportable. He claims his UF Box can completely feed a family of three, both in terms of veggies and fish. He also offers much larger rooftop systems that can sit atop any flat-roofed building and feed hundreds of people in a community. Think of the potential for a large, flat-roofed big box store!

Your food has the greatest impact on your ecological footprint—more than housing, energy or transportation, and this is one way to drastically reduce your carbon footprint. But even if you aren’t ready for an aquaponics system, lack of space is not a deal breaker when it comes to growing your own food.

You CAN Grow Great Food in Small Spaces

Regardless of space, you can produce your own food. Take sprouts, for example. Sprouts are a nutritional powerhouse, containing up to 30 times the nutrients of organic vegetables from your own garden. Sprouts also allow your body to extract more of the vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and essential fats from the other foods you eat.  Growing your own sprouts is quite practical and takes less space and time than a full sized garden.

Rather than growing them in Ball jars, try growing them in potting soil. It only takes about a week before you can harvest, and in a 10×10 tray you can harvest between one and two pounds of sunflower sprouts. That will last you about three days and you can store them in the fridge for about a week. I have been doing this for the past year and have used the sprouts to replace my salad greens. The sunflower spouts give you the most volume for your work and, in my palate, have the best taste.

urban gardenAbout to plant wheat grass and sunflower seeds – 2 days after soaking urban gardenWheat grass and sunflower seeds – 3 ½ days post germination
urban gardenSunflower seeds and pea sprouts – 3 days until ready for harvest urban gardenSunflower seed sprouts and wheat grass – ready to harvest

Nevertheless, there are many different ways to grow your own food, even if you live in an apartment. If you have a yard, you are truly blessed! But if not, Alex Mitchell’s book The Edible Balcony is an excellent resource for how to grow produce in small spaces. You can use virtually every square foot of your space, including vertical space, for growing food. Hanging baskets are ideal for a wide variety of foods, such as strawberries, leafy greens, runner beans, pea shoots, tomatoes, and a variety of herbs. And instead of flowers, window boxes can hold herbs, greens, radishes, scallions, bush beans, strawberries, chard, and chilies—to name just a few.

While you will obviously need to use pots if you don’t have a garden plot, avoid using lots of small pots because they dry out too quickly. Instead, opt for large yet lightweight containers or even the newer cloth pots. You may also want to consider self-watering containers, which can save you time. (You could even make your own… Mitchell shows you how in her book.) And don’t forget to compost—even apartment dwellers can compost successfully.

Lawns Are Ecologically Hostile to the Planet

Many people are digging up their lawns and turning that valuable ground into a garden. Lawns are not good for the environment, for numerous reasons:

  • Lawns are basically grass monocultures, which is why they are so expensive and labor-intensive to maintain
  • Lawns require massive amounts of water, heavy fertilizers, herbicides, and other chemicals that give off nitrous oxide (a greenhouse gas) as well as producing chemical runoff that pollutes our waterways—and lawns give nothing back for all of this labor and cost
  • Most people maintain their lawns with fossil-fuel-guzzling lawnmowers, edgers, and weed whackers
  • Grass emits more carbon dioxide than it sequesters. One study3 found that lawn-related maintenance releases four times as much carbon dioxide as the grass itself, concluding that grass lawns are polluting the environment. Another study concluded that lawns are even worse for the planet than cornfields, in terms of carbon dioxide production4
  • Lawns are like concrete to most wildlife species and offer little benefit to animals. If you don’t want your entire lawn to be a garden, use some of it to create a wildlife habitat.5, 6

The War on Urban Gardeners

Across the US and Canada, a war has been raged against urban garden  homeowners who want to plant gardens on their own property.7Legal codes that outlaw planting vegetables on a large percentage of your yard, or restrict them to only certain areas like the backyard, out of view of the public, truly defy common sense—especially considering the negative impact lawns have on the environment.

With resources being increasingly stretched, we need a clear, comprehensive policy on urban agriculture that crosses jurisdictional and geographic boundaries. It’s time for agricultural entrepreneurs, activists, policy makers, and ordinary homeowners to band together and propose some well-defined, fully articulated policies and codes, with incentives that make it attractive for people to grow their own food. Even some of the cities that espouse the virtues of healthy living, buying local, and spending time outdoors fail to update their zoning codes, which prohibit urban agriculture and encourage the proliferation of fast food drive-thrus.

The more involved you can be with your local urban planning and development agencies, the faster our outdated zoning laws will be changed. If you want to see a beautiful example of this, take a look at a report called “Cultivate L.A.,”8 prepared as a Masters Thesis project by a few UCLA students. The report takes an intensive look at how to best support the growth of urban agriculture in Los Angeles, including a comprehensive needs assessment of the city. Imagine if students were to do one of these for every American city!

Kudos to Those Turning Concrete Jungles into Havens of Green

Some cities are already building sustainable landscapes and should be praised for their innovation in turning vacant lots into vegetable plots. The following are just a few examples that may inspire you to suggest a similar urban gardening project to your own city planners:

  • A new law in California, signed by Governor Jerry Brown, promotes community gardens and small farms by allowing municipalities to lower property taxes for homeowners who commit to dedicating their land to growing food for a minimum of five years.9 There are five innovative urban gardening programs in LA alone,10 and others in San Francisco.
  • Seattle has loosened its rules for backyard goats, domestic fowl, farm animals, and even bees. Seattle also basically wrote the book on community gardening, now boasting 82 neighborhood pea patches, 24 of which are new or expanded. Seattle’s community gardens give about 10 tons of food to local food banks and hot meal programs every year.11, 12, 13
  • Detroit has revised its rules governing compost and greenhouses and has new urban agriculture ordinances.14 Detroit and Cleveland are offering abandoned lots at almost zero cost to those who commit to growing food on them. In 2010, New York City lifted the ban against urban beekeeping.15 For a list of US cities where beekeeping is still illegal, click here (as of 2010).
  • Santa Fe, New Mexico, is drafting amendments to city code for urban agriculture that will permit zoning for urban food production, farm stands, and even large-scale community gardens.16
  • Chicago O’Hare Airport is using goats and llamas to clear airfield brush instead of lawnmowers.17 And in Seattle, 120 goats from Rent-A-Ruminant are hard at work clearing a hillside below the Alaska Way Viaduct, as well as providing an entertaining diversion for local businessmen.18

Resources for the Urban Gardener

Growing numbers of people are becoming excited about local food, healthier eating, and greener cities, sparking renewed interest in the development of urban agriculture around the country. But many don’t know anything about their local ordinances or where to go for help before enthusiastically plunging their shovels into the ground—only to be surprised later with a citation for breaking the law.

These ordinances are constantly changing, so you really need to do your due diligence in planning your urban garden. Below are a few organizations and resources that may assist you on your quest. Whether it’s organic veggies, a berry patch, or a chicken tractor you want to build, make sure you are proceeding within the legal guidelines before you start in order to avoid major headaches down the road.

American Community Gardening Association (ACGA) – Devoted to community gardening and greening up communities across the nation. The organization has local chapters across the country.
Sustainable Cities Institute – Research and innovation about how to make cities more sustainable, including planning and zoning for urban agriculture
Practice Urban Agriculture (March 2010) – Information about urban agricultural zoning; lists a good number of government initiatives, plans, and ordinances that are up for vote in the near future
Food Not Lawns – A sustainability movement focused on getting rid of lawns in favor of more ecofriendly alternatives; also has chapters in nearly every state across the country
Lots 2 Green – Provides technical assistance to communities in order to facilitate their using vacant lots and other urban properties for community gardens and farms
Frugal Living, Meditation

Earthing..

Leave a comment

“Grounded” is an independent feature film about what many authorities consider “The Greatest Health RE-discovery of all Time”. The concept was tested on the people of Haines, Alaska, population 1,700. The movie makes its premiere to mainstream audiences theatrically in January 2014. The full film CAN be viewed NOW, as a pay per view at the Intuition Physician or Kroschel Films website.
 

www.SkepToid.com

www.earthing.com

 

 

Frugal Living

Thiel Foundation Fellowship: Keil Fleischbein applies with a Utopian concept for grocery price sharing and comparison grocery shopping.

Leave a comment

The Thiel Foundation has offered $100,000.00 to be paid out over two years as a fellowship award to 20 students, ages 15 to 20 years.  To be clear, that is $100K per student, and 20 students under the age of 20 years, 20 under 20.  Keil Taylor Fleischbein submitted to their request for proposal by answering their two questions:

  1. Tell us one thing about the world that you strongly believe is true, but that most people think is not true.
  2. How do you want to change the world?

The following is Keil’s response transcript, and here is his YouTube video submission for the Thiel Foundation Fellowship:

Continue reading Thiel Foundation Fellowship: Keil Fleischbein applies with a Utopian concept for grocery price sharing and comparison grocery shopping. →

Frugal Living

Electronic Pickpocket: protect your credit cards!

Leave a comment
Electronic pickpocket RFID data on credit cards
Pickpocket RFID data from credit cards at a distance with new technology

Thieves able to steal your credit card information without laying a hand on your wallet

Brand new technology that is putting 140 million people at risk from electronic pick pocketing.

Radio Frequency Identification technology found in the most recently released credit cards from banks allows this to happen.  RFID is now found in your passport, debit and credit cards for the benefit of doing things faster, but now it can be used at your loss.

Continue reading Electronic Pickpocket: protect your credit cards! →