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| Sunday, February 22, 2009 |
| Fixins |
Entertainment can be a pricey discretionary cost these days. Between 1997 to 2008 the average movie ticket cost rose from $4.59 to $7.18, a whopping 56% increase. From 1996 to 2009 the average concert ticket price has grown from $25.81 to $67.33, a 160% increase. Even after adjusting for inflation, things have gotten expensive these days and necessitate a little more outside the box thinking than in the golden age of the 90s.
With a little creativity and imagination entertainment can still be cheap in cost and rich in benefits. Museums, free concerts, food exhibits, these are some of the options we still have. If we feel like vegging out the library offers DVD titles free of charge, and thanks to Internet multimedia we can now watch almost any TV show we want for free on Hulu. We can build things by planting new seeds, create things in the kitchen, or fix things around the house. We can have fun with our bodies by going to exercise more or rewarding our frugality with treats like chocolate. Depending on your looking glass, this is an opportunity to enjoy our diversions more or audition our inklings into new hobbies. A good book, even.
Yesterday I finally fixed the door and put up 4 picture frames that have been sitting by my bed since I moved. Now I have four pictures occupying my walls, and a door that works, and saved $6 that can go elsewhere. All it took was a hammer, four nails, and a knife. The door handle was about to jiggle right off, and instead of calling the property manager to send a handy-man to fix it, I gave it a look see myself and saw the screws affixing the handle to the door were coming undone. Endeavoring to stay frugal, instead of buying a Philips screwdriver for $6.32 at the nearest Wal-Mart I used a kitchen knife to work the screws back into place. While sometimes it's hard to avoid having to use a screwdriver, a good knife, pen, or fork can be a suitable and economical alternative to purchasing tools you might use once a year & might clutter up your living space.
Here is a list of hobbies I am going to try and expand on
 Note: I bought Frogs into Princes on Amazon for more money than I should have paid, but have found it online here in .PDF for FREE
Good luck! |
posted by Flaco @ 8:36 AM  |
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| More on the Name of this Blog |
| You might wonder why it was that I chose the name "Abstract Capital" for the title of this blog. The reason is because while material comfort & a positive cash flow is important, I feel there is additional wealth to be had simply in a non-fiduciary sense such as the treasures of life that can't be quantified. Without these we'd just be financial automatons, and I thought the best name for these unique shares of wealth would be to call it life's "abstract capital." |
| posted by Flaco @ 7:34 AM |
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| Sunday, February 15, 2009 |
| Setting Goals |
Goals are better than resolutions because they are more flexible. Mentally, there is a feeling of failure associated with infringing on a stringent pledge or a New Year's resolution. In my life this has been best illustrated by the times in college and high school after New Year's when my local gym filled in January with people attempting to shed the pounds, followed by the subsequent ritual emptying of the treadmills in February and March. Resolutions and pledges are ill-fitting for real-world living purposes, they create an air of commandment that generates unreasonable feelings of letdown which hinder self confidence, prevent establishing short term goals, and really shouldn't even be there in the first place.
Goals, on the other hand, are more supple and elastic, much like the to-do lists of daily life, and more compliant with inevitable scheduling conflicts and exceptions. By establishing goals, you give yourself more of a chance to complete what you want to do and what you want out of life without punishing yourself because you had an off day or couldn't get around to everything you wanted to. While resolutions and pledges are strict and unyielding, goals are organizable and receptive. For example, with goals, you can categorize them as short-term & long-term. You can also itemize their importance as reminders about which are most important to you and which are low-priority.
In my experience it's most helpful to keep your list of goals as concise as possible. Be as brief as possible, there's no reason to make your goals unreasonably extensive, or to pore over them and intimidate yourself with what you want to do. A short list of goals is efficient, flexible, and best of all receptive to understanding any changes you want to make. Also don't burden yourself by over-concentrating on your long-term objectives; these are actually the opposite of concrete. Long-term goals are mostly conceptual and not concrete; long-term goals are really just an abstract representation of a series of small steps, your very short-term goals. Most importantly, a long-term goal shouldn't hang on you like an albatross; a long-term goal is like the conclusory paragraph on a college paper, it's just a simple summation without much real content. Having a long-term goal is important, but it's easy to lose the forest from the trees with them. At most review your progress at a max of a once per week basis, don't constantly remind yourself of the distance between yourself and your long-term objectives; a long-term accomplishment is achieved by taking it one day at a time, and living on a series of short term success. The fabric of your long-term goal rests with taking it one step at a time, accomplishing your short term goals, and patting yourself on the back for most of all trying your best.
And keep it fun, and remember to reward yourself for your short-term goals. The most deserving person to feel good about accomplishing the day's chores or the week's goals is you, and you owe it to yourself to feel good about yourself for doing so. Here is a brief personal list as an example, share and be creative or traditional if you like. Good luck!
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| posted by Flaco @ 11:05 PM |
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| Saturday, February 14, 2009 |
| Beginnings |
| Three years ago I never thought I would have a blog, and now I have two. I'm a 23 year old grad student with a background in law, formerly an overthinker type, and presently learning the art of savvy consumption and world watching. I'm interested mainly in human behavior, and have always been; if I could have I would have majored in sociology, communication, economics, psychology, and for the hell of it probably anthropology. What is the premise of this blog? Essentially to provide insightful commentary on frugal spending and living habits & the occasional current event. My financial vocabulary is limited, and I hope to provoke your thoughtful responses, so hopefully what I write about will be easily accessible to as many readers as possible. Disagree, suggest, anything really is welcome in this house. I firmly believe everything is feedback, and this includes your observations and commentary as well. This is our blog, I hope you enjoy it! |
| posted by Flaco @ 11:02 PM |
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| About Me |
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Name: Flaco
About Me: Just another thinker.
See my complete profile
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Friedrich Nietzsche - "All things are subject to interpretation whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth." |
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