NEAT & SIMPLE LIVING

It's official! Neat & Simple Living Blog is winding down...but it has had a baby!

It's official!

 My exploration of Neat & Simple Living has evolved into Agile Living, Work Design and Productivity!   This blog is six years old and rather than move it, I decided to just leave it here and start fresh.  

The new blog is called "Becoming Agile"   and lives on my new website www.arianebenefit.com. By January 2012 ALL of my new work is going to be exclusively published there.

Has the vision changed? 

My ultimate vision is the same...help people heal chronic disorganization, overwhelm and frustration and design a simpler life that fits.  I'm still working with the same audience of highly creative, gifted, ADHD or ADHDish, highly technical, sensitive people who struggle with the stuckness of procrastination, clutter, disorganization, depression, anxiety and chronic overwhelm.  To embrace all of us without so many labels...I am using the term Neurodiverse Outliers. It just feels better - makes it easier to accept myself as I am, not as a set of labels that focus on what's wrong with me. Over-identifying with the labels reinforces them. Changing the label changes the way you see yourself.  It's powerful stuff.

The Agile Life Design philosophy, mindset, skills and processes is the distillation of everything I've learned about what it takes to have a simpler, less pressured more satisfying life.  The agile approach to designing life, work, systems and relationships that fit together - WORKS.  As I'm working on resources to share the concepts and methods with the world, I'll be blogging the journey.  If you would like to continue with me on this journey

 I warmly invite you to join my mailing list.  

Going forward...the only way to get new content by email is to subscribe to a convenient, single mailing list...no more subscribing to both a blog and a mailing list. YAY!  : )   Thanks to my new email system, you'll have a lot more say in what kind of updates you want to receive from me as well!   

Wishing you much peace and an ever agile heart and mind, 

Sign up here if you haven't already....

 

 

 

Ariane Benefit, M.S.Ed

via arianebenefit.com

Yes, good books can improve lives, shape lives, even change lives. But when was the last time a book literally helped save a life?

The answer is right now.

In this new book, 62 leading writers and thinkers share their best insights, strategies and tips to do more Great Work.

But the real magic is this: $20 from every book sold goes to Malaria No More. $20 is enough to buy a mosquito net and help with their lifesaving work in Africa.

Buy the book and save a life here: www.EndMalariaDay.com

Food, Inc. The BIG Profits in Poor Nutrition

To me, you can't truly live a Neat & Simple lifestyle if you don't feel well and healthy most of the time.  I see it so often in my clients, friends and family that struggle with excessive clutter and chronic disorganization. 

Clutter and disorganization are almost always, symptoms of deeper underlying emotional and / or chronic health issues such as chronic pain, depression, chronic fatigue, obesity, fybromyalgia, ADHD and poor nutrition.  In fact, I think you would be hard pressed to find anyone who is chronically ill that has eaten a long term really healthy diet free of chemicals, artificial sweeteners, sugar, transfats, high fructose corn-syrup, low in gluten, and high in unprocessed vegetables, fruit, whole grain and protein sources. 

I grew up on a primarily highly processed chemical laden diet courtesy of the "surplus food" program provided by welfare before they had food stamps.  The stuff was crap.  Powdered eggs, highly processed "cheese product", pastas, anything you could dry and preserve with lots of cheap chemicals.

The only times I ate well as a kid were when I ate at my grandmother's house.  She cooked mostly whole food, though she did engage me in my former addictions of ice cream and popcorn.  Every Sunday we would go for a "Sunday drive" to get ice cream, and then come home to watch Ed Sullivan and eat a HUGE bowl of popcorn while we played cards.

But I digress. What I really want to do here is reach out to those of you want to feel better and improve your health by improving your nutrition, but find it really difficult to stop buying and eating the enticing and highly addictive substances companies like to call "food."

This trailer for the documentary Food, Inc. will make it a lot easier to motivate youself to start voting with your dollars and make Food corporations more accountable what they put into our food supply.  And of course, the movie will make an even better ally in your campaign to release your junk food cravings!!

 

Similar Movies to Inspire You (Descriptions from Netflix.com)

 

Super Size Me(2004) PG-13   (Now showing free with your Netflix Membership)

On the heels of recent lawsuits against McDonald's, director Morgan Spurlock takes a hilarious and often terrifying look at the effects of fast food on the human body, using himself as the proverbial guinea pig. For one month, Spurlock eats nothing but McDonald's, ordering everything on the menu and "super-sizing" his order whenever asked. The result is a sobering examination of the line between personal and corporate responsibility.

Fast Food Nation(2006) R 

Richard Linklater's fictional tale (inspired by Eric Schlosser's 2001 book of the same name) critiques the junk-food juggernaut that's arguably responsible for America's alarming obesity rates. Don Henderson (Greg Kinnear), a corporate exec of a national fast-food chain, follows beef's journey from the corrals to the slaughterhouses and ultimately to your stomach. The power cast includes Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette and Bruce Willis.

The Corporation(2004) UR

Filmmakers Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott explore the genesis of the American corporation, its global economic supremacy and its psychopathic leanings, with social critics like Noam Chomsky and Milton Friedman lending insight in this documentary. With their merciless quest for profit and insatiable aim to sway every aspect of culture, conglomerates' inner workings are scrutinized to draw conclusions about "business as usual."

Related Articles on this Blog

Cracking the Overeating Code - Interview with Dr. David Kessler

ADD-Friendly Tips for Healthy Eating: Veggies, Butter and Self-medicating with Food

Sugar linked to depression, severe PMS, arthritis, ADD, autism, asperger's, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, yeast infections...

Related Books I Recommend

The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by David Kessler

Going Against the Grain: How Reducing and Avoiding Grains Can Revitalize Your Health By Melissa Smith

Sugar Shock!: How Sweets and Simple Carbs Can Derail Your Life-- and How YouCan Get Back on Track By Connie Bennett, Stephen Sinatra

Hope you find lots of inspiration in these resources as I have!

Sign up for my Getting Unstuck News & Notes and Get FREE Ebooks!

Cracking the Overeating Code - Interview with Dr. David Kessler

Here's a MUST READ blog post for anyone who struggles with overeating....

Janice Taylor, weight loss coach, hypnotherapist, and author of All Is Forgiven, Move On interviews Dr. David Kessler, author of, The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite (one of my new favorite books) on the Huffington Post

My favorite quote from the interview:

Dr. David Kessler

"The food industry is a for-profit business. Their business model is to pull out all the bells and whistles, load the food with multiple layers of salt, fat and sugar, thus creating what I call "carnival food." This carnival atmosphere keeps us wanting and coming back for more.

The food industry's first priority is to make their foods as highly 'palatable' and appealing as possible. They discovered that certain foods can and do keep us eating and eating, with no end in sight."

_________________

So many people think that food wouldn't be sold if it was really bad for you.  The truth is that most food companies care far more about profit than how nutritious their food is.  In fact, if they are a publicly traded stock, by law, their NUMBER ONE concern is profitability for their shareholders.

My question is, how long does it take to restore your system to good chemical health when you were raised on an over 80% processed food diet AND spent nearly 45 years eating that crap? 

__________________ 

2nd favorite quote:

"Palatability refers to how food engages our senses. Is it cold? Creamy? Does it smell good, and does it taste good? Usually, the most palatable foods contain layer upon layer of fat, sugar and salt. The combination of these factors can and do stimulate the neurons, which are the basic cells in the brain. The brain responds to these highly palatable, rewarding and pleasurable foods by firing electrical signals and releasing brain neurons that are encoded with 'palatability.'

Our brains are being excessively activated - bombarded throughout the day - by food cues. Food cues include the actual food we eat, as well as external cues such as anchors to time of day, location, sound and sight. These cues activate the brain, grab its attention, arousal sets in and it drives consumption.

It's important to understand that when we think of the word 'palatable,' we think of something that tastes good. When the food industry uses that word, they are primarily referring to the food's capacity to stimulate the appetite and prompt us to eat excessively."

 

_________________

The implications of this are enormous - especially for ADDers like myself who have difficulty controlling their attention in the first place.  How long before these food conglomerates get the same treatment the tobacco companies did for DELIBERATELY manimpulating their products to CREATE AND/OR  ENHANCE ADDICTION?? 

The greatest power you have right now is to:

• stop watching commercials if you possibly can. 
• minimize your exposure to advertising in TV and Movies
• STOP buying any products you find difficult to resist 
• Get someone else to do grocery shopping for you for a month or two to help you detox (Many grocery stores offer online shopping and delivery.  This can be a GREAT tool in controlling what you buy.) 
• Shop at smaller grocery stores that emphasize fresh food.  Whole foods at least does not sell products with transfats in them (one of the most addictive substances)  

 

Not sure if writing to crongressman and senators would help, but surely in a profit driven world, you DO vote with your dollars.  You stop buying a product and start buying healthier choices and eventually they will get the message. 

Any other suggestions from readers would be most appreciated....I'm sure there are lots more ways you can make a difference!

Yours in Organizing for Health!

p.s.  There is still time to register for our July Getting Unstuck Program which starts July 9!

p.p.s Here the link to the orginal post: 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/janice-taylor/is-the-food-industry-mani_b_226463.html

 

Simplifying Your Life - Free Class on Wednesday!

Just a reminder that I'm giving a free teleclass on ADDClasses.com this coming Wednesday!

Here are the details:

_______________________________

TITLE: Simplifying Your Life:  Strategies that Work for ADHD 


(and work for anyone with "ADD-Like Traits" or a Creative Personality Type)

DATE: Wednesday, February 18, 2009

TIME: 2:00 PM Eastern Standard Time

_____________________________

Tara McGillicuddy, is also giving a free class

TITLE: Is it Really about Time?

DATE: Tuesday February 24, 2009

TIME: 9:00 pm EST

_________________________________

The classes are free, but you do have to
signup for AddClasses.com by clicking here

Hope to see you there!

Simplifying Life: How about a "TRASH makeover?" Saves Money too!

Are you looking for a way to reduce how much trash you generate and simplify your trash disposal and recycling?  Think it would be IMPOSSIBLE to get your trash down to just one can a month?

Check out this blog with some really neat "Practical Green Living" ideas from two  "EnviroMoms" 

The video clip below shows them on Nightline doing a "trash intervention" Some professional organizers are even specializing in doing but  "Green Living" makeovers.  How cool is that!?

Do you know how many cans of garbage your family puts out each month?

In our home, we are lucky that we can recycle ALL paper, plastic, glass, aluminum, etc.  Our recycling is about 4 times what we put out for garbage.  We aren't down to one can per month of garbage, but we are down to 1/2 to 1 garbage cans per week. 

p.s. We finally found this water filtration unit that fits under our kitchen sink! It's only sold at HOme Depot.  The water is even BETTER tasting than the bottled water....so we have cut our use of plastic water bottles to almost none.  We still use them for traveling etc. but we refill them several times before disposing of them.  Because the separate filtered water faucet is quite slow, I fill up pitchers of water and keep one in my office and one in the kitchen.  That way it's easy to remember to keep my glass of water full.   

The TRUE cost of things

"The cost of a thing is the amount of what I will call life, which is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run."
--Henry David Thoreau

When you think about buying things, or decide to keep things you no longer really love or use, how often do you stop and think about the true cost of things?  I'm talking about the true cost of owning the thing throughout it's life cycle.  

For example, are you aware of how much time you spend maintaining the things you own?

When you think about buying something, do you think about the time, energy and money it will take to:

- Shopping for things
- Choosing and buying things
- Storing things, choosing and buying containers, shelves etc. 
- Fixing things (especially houses and cars - do you really plan for all the repairs?)
- Cleaning things
- Looking for things
- Inventorying and insuring things
- Worrying about people taking your things and paying for security systems
- Yelling at your kids about things
- Fighting with your spouse about things
- Figuring out how to let go of things such as finding some one to give them to

How much of the cost of your home actually goes directly to storing things you can't find when you need them anyway?

Do you argue with people in your life about stuff? Is it worth the trouble?

What would you do with your time, energy and money if you didn't have to worry about so many things?

Are your things helping you avoid having to make the tough decisions about what you really want to be and do with your?  Are they filling a void in your heart and soul?  Keeping you stuck in pattern that is painful but familiar and therefore its hard to change? 

Starting to let go of unneeded things gradually can actually help you face this.  Sometimes the first step in stopping the cycle is just to acquire less and refocus all that shopping energy on self-care.  

How would your life be different with fewer clothes? fewer books, DVDs, CDs? fewer magazines? less junk mail? fewer toys? fewer photos? a smaller house? no car payments?  

MORE FROM THE WEB AND BLOGOSPHERE ON THE TRUE COST OF THINGS AND LIVING WITH LESS 

• ZEN HABITS Leo Babauta published a free e-book on Thriving on Less: Simplifying in a Tough Economy that is worth a read. He has also published a book on the Power of Less. I haven't read it, but thought you might like to know!
   GET FREE DOWNLOAD
  
• THE DEBT FREE KID - A neat post by Karissa about the true price of things...a great reminder that things really don't buy happiness.
  
• GREEN FERTILITY - Here's a neat couple of posts about the true cost of things...like the true cost of a dozen eggs...and the true cost of low cost food...this one really opened my eyes.
  
• THE TRUE COST OF OWNING A HOME - Owning a home may not be as much of an investment as you think...if you are thinking of owning  a home, think it all the way through and DON"T let the mortgage companies talk you into "buying the largest home you can afford"  or "don't worry about the total cost, just think about the monthly payment"   The total true cost can be as must as 5 TIMES the monthly payment to cover utilities, property taxes and maintenance. Even if you have two incomes, I always recommend buying a home you could afford on 25 - 40% of the lower income ALONE.  The freedom is so worth it! 
  
• THE TRUE COST OF DRIVING  A neat little calculator to help you learn the TRUE cost of driving your car. You might be really astonished! 
  
• THE TRUE COST OF CREDIT  - Tells you what it really costs to use your credit cards.
  
• THE WALDEN POND PROJECT - An activity to help kids learn the true cost of things.

Do you have or know of a great post on the true cost of things?

Post your link below!

25 Ways I Save Money - 2008

I wrote a post on this a few years ago, and with financial times the way they are, I thought this might be a good time to update it and ask: How are you Saving Money?

1. We live in a smaller house than we can afford, and do our own gardening, home repairs and painting. This year, we redid our front garden to expand it and use only plants that don't require watering, and that are perennial.  This is going to save us a lot of money on annuals! Plus it's going to save a lot of time spent on mowing. The new tree will also give us more shade in the summer and save on energy.
    
   
2. Pay bills online with a free checking & online account which also pays interest on our balances.
   
3. We still have our home equity loan balance on a 0% credit card. Haven't paid interest for the 3 years since we renovated the entire front and backyard of our home which has enabled us to pay it off much faster. I set up reminders in my GOOGLE CALENDAR to tell me when the 0% rate is up and then we move it to another 0% interest account. We have paid most of it, and used it to invest in a new roof. But it's still all 0%.
   
4. We never use an ATM or any other banking service that charges fees.
   
5. We changed all our lightbulbs to compact flourescent bulbs including our front porch and outdoor lights. Of course we got them in bulk on sale! We still have not had to replace any of these bulbs.  They really last!
   
6. We use a single Amazon.com Rewards Credit Card and get $25 rewards every month or two. We put all daily living purchases on it and pay it in full every month. We use the reward certificates for birthday gifts that we can simply enclose in a birthday card. In 2008, we earned over 500$ for using our card.
    
7. We use a Miles One Rewards credit card for all business purchases and get free miles for traveling. In 2008, we got Alan's ticket to go with me to the NSGCD Conference for free.
   
8. Don't go to movie theaters anymore - we have cable & wait for movies to come out on cable.  We use Tivo to record movies we really want to see.
   
9. We only eat in restaurants or get takeout maybe once a month or even 2 months. We cook at home every day.
   
10. We only run the dishwasher and washing machine when it's full.
    
11. Only drink water, coffee or tea...no sodas, etc.  We don't drink alcohol at all any more.   
    
12. We moved our car insurance to Geico last year and saved $1500 per year.  Northern NJ has nearly the highest insurance rates in the country. We couldn't believe we saved this much.  And our insurance rates have actually gone down every year!  Probably because my car just keeps getting older.  We also have a huge collision deductible which also keeps rates down.
    
13. I cut my husband's hair myself.
     
14. deleted - out of date
    
15. deleted - out of date
    
16. I mostly only wear lipstick and blush.  Only use full makeup for special occasions.  :)
    
17. Only wear a watch and my wedding rings as jewelry.  Jewelry on my neck, wrists or ears causes me a lot of discomfort and annoyance anyway.
    
18. Do my own pedicures and go out for a pedicure maybe once a year as a treat for a special occasion.
    
19. Do my own manicures...and I don't use nail polish on my fingernails - it saves a lot of time too!!  : )
    
20. We rarely throw any food anyway. We have a system for storing leftovers to make sure we use them them. We always put leftovers in a designated section of the top shelf in the fridge next to the milk so we can't forget about them. We use leftovers the next day for lunch or snacks or as a side dish with dinner.
     
21. We have a small Cuisinart counter top combo toaster, broiler and convection oven and use that for heating & baking small portions instead of turning on the oven.
     
22. We keep our cars. I've only bought one brand new car in my life! Cars only depreciate so I never saw the point in losing a few thousand dollars as soon as you drive it off the lot.  But I did finally splurge on my 40th birthday and got myself a 2000 Sebring Convertible which I will keep as long it is still safe to drive!  I love it!  It is actually very practical as we can open the top and haul just about anything an SUV can.  Even more!  Plus it gets about 27 MPG.  Not bad when you consider how much mileage an SUV gets. In 2008, it is still going strong, but does have a little water leak. : )
    
    I had my 1988 Honda Accord for 10 years until I gave it to my brother in 2000.  He had it another 4 years before it died.  My husband has a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid he LOVES and it gets nearly 50 mpg.  We also buy other things used...like our dining room set.
    
23. We don't buy CDs or DVDs anymore - we download most of our music  - we get 25 songs free every month with our Comcast cable internet service.  The super high speed internet pays for itself between the free music and all the research we do on it to save money.
    
24. We avoid processed foods like microwave popcorn, we use the bulk kind and have a West Bend Stir Crazy popcorn popper.which is actually a lot of fun to use!  We also make our own sugar free ice cream with just fruit and milk using the Vitamix blender we invested in. Cutting out sugar and gluten has saved a lot of money in addition to improving our health dramatically.
    
25. We use a digital camera for photos and ONLY print out a very select few!

Whew...that was fun!   So what are your top tips?  Would love to hear any additions you might have!    : ) 

Happy Thanksgiving!    I'll be in Virginia visiting family till Sunday!

 

See you next week! 

 

1. We live in a smaller house than we can afford, and do our own gardening, home repairs and painting. This year, we redid our front garden to expand it and use only plants that don't require watering, and that are perennial.  This is going to save us a lot of money on annuals! Plus it's going to save a lot of time spent on mowing. The new tree will also give us more shade in the summer and save on energy.
    
   
2. Pay bills online with a free checking & online account which also pays interest on our balances.
   
3. We still have our home equity loan balance on a 0% credit card. Haven't paid interest for the 3 years since we renovated the entire front and backyard of our home which has enabled us to pay it off much faster. I set up reminders in my GOOGLE CALENDAR to tell me when the 0% rate is up and then we move it to another 0% interest account. We have paid most of it, and used it to invest in a new roof. But it's still all 0%.
   
4. We never use an ATM or any other banking service that charges fees.
   
5. We changed all our lightbulbs to compact flourescent bulbs including our front porch and outdoor lights. Of course we got them in bulk on sale! We still have not had to replace any of these bulbs.  They really last!
   
6. We use a single Amazon.com Rewards Credit Card and get $25 rewards every month or two. We put all daily living purchases on it and pay it in full every month. We use the reward certificates for birthday gifts that we can simply enclose in a birthday card. In 2008, we earned over 500$ for using our card.
    
7. We use a Miles One Rewards credit card for all business purchases and get free miles for traveling. In 2008, we got Alan's ticket to go with me to the NSGCD Conference for free.
   
8. Don't go to movie theaters anymore - we have cable & wait for movies to come out on cable.  We use Tivo to record movies we really want to see.
   
9. We only eat in restaurants or get takeout maybe once a month or even 2 months. We cook at home every day.
   
10. We only run the dishwasher and washing machine when it's full.
    
11. Only drink water, coffee or tea...no sodas, etc.  We don't drink alcohol at all any more.   
    
12. We moved our car insurance to Geico last year and saved $1500 per year.  Northern NJ has nearly the highest insurance rates in the country. We couldn't believe we saved this much.  And our insurance rates have actually gone down every year!  Probably because my car just keeps getting older.  We also have a huge collision deductible which also keeps rates down.
    
13. I cut my husband's hair myself.
     
14. deleted - out of date
    
15. deleted - out of date
    
16. I mostly only wear lipstick and blush.  Only use full makeup for special occasions.  :)
    
17. Only wear a watch and my wedding rings as jewelry.  Jewelry on my neck, wrists or ears causes me a lot of discomfort and annoyance anyway.
    
18. Do my own pedicures and go out for a pedicure maybe once a year as a treat for a special occasion.
    
19. Do my own manicures...and I don't use nail polish on my fingernails - it saves a lot of time too!!  : )
    
20. We rarely throw any food anyway. We have a system for storing leftovers to make sure we use them them. We always put leftovers in a designated section of the top shelf in the fridge next to the milk so we can't forget about them. We use leftovers the next day for lunch or snacks or as a side dish with dinner.
     
21. We have a small Cuisinart counter top combo toaster, broiler and convection oven and use that for heating & baking small portions instead of turning on the oven.
     
22. We keep our cars. I've only bought one brand new car in my life! Cars only depreciate so I never saw the point in losing a few thousand dollars as soon as you drive it off the lot.  But I did finally splurge on my 40th birthday and got myself a 2000 Sebring Convertible which I will keep as long it is still safe to drive!  I love it!  It is actually very practical as we can open the top and haul just about anything an SUV can.  Even more!  Plus it gets about 27 MPG.  Not bad when you consider how much mileage an SUV gets. In 2008, it is still going strong, but does have a little water leak. : )
    
    I had my 1988 Honda Accord for 10 years until I gave it to my brother in 2000.  He had it another 4 years before it died.  My husband has a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid he LOVES and it gets nearly 50 mpg.  We also buy other things used...like our dining room set.
    
23. We don't buy CDs or DVDs anymore - we download most of our music  - we get 25 songs free every month with our Comcast cable internet service.  The super high speed internet pays for itself between the free music and all the research we do on it to save money.
    
24. We avoid processed foods like microwave popcorn, we use the bulk kind and have a West Bend Stir Crazy popcorn popper.which is actually a lot of fun to use!  We also make our own sugar free ice cream with just fruit and milk using the Vitamix blender we invested in. Cutting out sugar and gluten has saved a lot of money in addition to improving our health dramatically.
    
25. We use a digital camera for photos and ONLY print out a very select few!

Whew...that was fun!   So what are your top tips?  Would love to hear any additions you might have!    : ) 

Happy Thanksgiving!    I'll be in Virginia visiting family till Sunday!

 

See you next week! 

 

Check out these Top Lifehacking, Productivity & Frugal Living Lists!

These are some of the best compilations of blogs covering Lifehacking, Productivity & Frugal Living!  Okay, so yeah.  I'm a little biased.  They all list Neat & Simple Living on them!  But that only makes them better lists right?  tee hee : ) 

Seriously, check out all the great blogs they list! You won't regret it!

From WhitePapers.org
Personal Productivity Required Reading List: 100 Kick-butt Lifehacking Blogs

From The Frugal Panda
Top 50 Frugality Bloggers

From Zen Habits
The Top 50 Productivity Blogs (most of which you haven’t heard about)

From Personal Development Demands Success
The Personal Development List

Update 9/9/07  - I'm reproducing the Personal Development list here by request!

It's extremely long so, click on the continue reading link to see it....

May all your productivity goals come true!

Easy Drop-off Recycling for Your old Computers & Electronics is Here in NJ Thanks to Goodwill & Dell Computer Partnership! (CA, PA, NC, MI & TX too!)

I'm so thrilled!  We have a bunch of old monitors and computer accessories up in our attic that have been waiting for our twice a year electronics free recycling day.  Now we no longer have to wait!  We can just drop it off!

RECONNECT is a comprehensive electronics recycling program which includes a variety of ways to repurpose your donations.   Goodwill Industries and Dell partnered to create RECONNECT so that you can simply bring in your donation to your participating local Goodwill store or Goodwill donation drop-off sites.  Some of the goods will be sold to support the Goodwill mission of creating job opportunities for individuals with barriers to employment.  Others will be recycled by Dell.

DETAILS

Any brand computer is eligible for donation.

You are responsible for removing data from your hard drive. 

Neither Dell nor Goodwill Industries takes any responsibility for your data.

The computer can be working or non-working. All equipment that cannot be refurbished is responsibly recycled.   

Donations may be tax deductible. Check with your tax advisor for more information about eligibility and how to value your donation.

Get complete and current info at: www.reconnectpartnership.com

LOCATIONS

• California
• Michigan
• New Jersey
• North Carolina
• Pennsylvania
• Texas

Thank you so much to DELL & GOODWILL!!!

p.s. for VA & OR, try www.etechrecycling.com/

Related Posts on this Blog

• How to Donate Your Old Computer
• Ink jet, Laser & Toner Cartridge Recycling
• Donating Your Stuff Can Make You More Money Than Selling it! (If you do it right)

• Challenge: Find out what your local charity needs, THEN go on a clutter hunt in your home!
• Charitable Donations Get Stricter Tax Rules
• How to Have a Successful Garage Sale
• 1-800-Got Junk? Comes to NJ!
• Where to Donate Household Goods, Clothing, Books & More in NJ

Milk May be Going up to $5 per Gallon

Wow.  Dawn over at Frugal For Life wrote a great post about how to Freeze Milk and Butter because the price of milk may be going up to $5 a gallon by fall.

If you can't afford the price of milk, I have a few suggestions for those of you who, like me, don't have a lot of room in your freezer (My freezer is filled with Frozen Veggies & Fruits to make my own juices and ice cream using my Vita-mix)

1. Eliminate as many processed foods as you can.  Especially cereals & snack foods.  Most have a ton of sugar in them anyway and are VERY expensive.  Use your savings to buy the milk and fresh fruit, too.
   
2. Use breakfast alternatives that don't require as much milk. Use oatmeal, cream of rice, etc.  Or maybe make a dozen boiled eggs, and have them ready to eat in the morning.  Another great breakfast alternative is frozen Gluten-Free waffles with mashed banana or simmered blueberries or strawberries.  You can be very creative with sugar-free toppings for waffles.
3. Make smoothies and whole fruit juices using little to no milk - I give a recipe on my blog and you can get a ton of great recipes as well as great health articles in the Health and Wellness section of the Vitamix site.
   
4. Use Milk Alternatives such as soy milk or my new favorite, flavored Almond Milks!  I use a little in my coffee with regular milk to reduce the amount of milk I drink.
   
   But actually, milk alternatives are generally not less expensive than dairy milk unless you make your own using your Vitamix which I just found out I could do!  You can also make pecan milk, cashew milk, rice milk, coconut milk and more. Nut milks are especially delicious with cereals and in smoothies or you can drink them by the glass.

Get the recipe for making your own Almond milk on the Vitamix website or by clicking here to read this extended post

Read more about breakfast alternatives.

Read more about alternative sources of calcium.

Green Living: Have you Seen Sundance Channel's Big Ideas for a Small Planet?

If you haven't seen this intelligent and groundbreaking series, you are in luck.  They now have many clips from the episodes online!!  Last weekend we finally got around to watching the Paper Vs. Plastic episode.  I was left completely enamored with William McDonough, an architect, who with Michael Braungart, a chemist created a company called MBDC and pioneered the "Cradle to Cradle™ " approach to practical and profitable sustainable product design. 

Their goal is to redesign products so that nothing is ever wasted.  Instead of trashing the waste from manufacturing, every bit of leftover product becomes "food" for some other process. He was also featured in an episode on designing green buildings and one on furniture design.  Every now and then you learn about something that completely changes the way you think about the world forever.  This is one of those series.

Be warned:  If you watch any of these shows, you will never again be able to throw things away without a sense of guilt.  But on the bright side, you will feel hopeful. 

Somehow I can sleep better at night knowing that people like him exist who have the rare gifts of remarkable vision,  combined with the ability to so elegantly and eloquently communicate ways to rethink product design to create zero impact on the environment. AND he shows them how doing so is not only good for the environment, it can creates substantial gains in profits!  He has persuaded some of the most egregious corporate plunderers of the earth to change their ways.  Maybe there is a chance that we can stop mortgaging our childrens' futures to meet our needs & wants today.

Can you imagine?  A world where all our clutter is biodegrable or at least is 100% recyclable.

He not only imagines it, he's making it happen. 

Wednesday Wisdom - Using what you have to get organized without spending a penny!

WISDOM

I have always preferred having wings
to having things.

                   - Pat Schroeder

This quote is so true for me.  In 1992 when I moved from Oak Park, Illinois, to NJ I had to sell or donate nearly everything I had.  Because I had so much stuff it had cost my company over $14,000 to move me out to Illinois.  (I told you I used to be a packrat)  But when I wanted to move back to NJ, the only way I could afford it was to lighten my load. (it only cost me $1200 to move back) I eventually collected more stuff, but then I let go of it once again after I got my first Feng Shui Consultation.  Read here about how letting go of clutter may have been the thing that helped me get married for the first time when I was 41 years old!  Ultimately, my quest to let go of clutter led me to finding my passion, taking charge of my own happiness, and starting this business which has truly given my spirit wings.

BONUS NEAT & SIMPLE ORGANIZING TIP!

Here is my latest foray into using what I already have to get organized.  I needed a plastic bag holder in a closet where I put a litter box for my cats.  I didn't want to run out and spend $12 on a new one, so I thought for a minute, and here's what I came up with...I took the last few tissues out of the package and stuffed it with plastic bags!  It works like a charm!

Happy Fourth of July!  : )

Sugar on CBS NEWS!

One of the reasons I often discuss the ill effects of sugar on this blog is that Sugar is known to be strongly linked to worsening or even causing depression, severe PMS, arthritis, ADD, autism, asperger's, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, yeast infections and much much more.  All of which have a very serious affect on your ability to focus and get organized.

Personally - quitting sugar made dramatic improvements in my health and in my life overall.  Whenever I backslide and eat more than a teaspoon or 2 of sugar - within days I become moody and irritable, have difficulty focusing, feel overwhelmingly sad, have difficulty sleeping and feel overall joint pain. After a year and a half off sugar, I'm still amazed at the harmful effects it has.

Connie Bennett, C.H.H.C., author of Sugar Shock, and my inspiration for letting go of sugar, was recently featured on CBS News Sunday Morning during a segment in which they spent a whole 8 minutes on our skyrocketing sugar consumption and related health problems.  If you missed the CBS News Sunday Morning segment it's not too late!
You can view it online here

http://cbs2.com/health/health_story_168113516.html

According to Connie's newsletter, there was:

"one major glaring error in the piece regarding sugar consumption figures. Americans consume 142 pounds per year (or possibly as high as 170 pounds) per person of caloric sweeteners such as sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, etc. That figure does not include artificial sweeteners as was reported in the CBS News Sunday Morning piece.

Actually, according to the Calorie Control Council 180 million American adults (as of 2004) consume low-calorie and sugar-free sodas, other beverages and foods using five different sugar substitutes approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration--saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose and neotame.

Which, of course, begs the question: Are these sugar substitutes safe to consume? This is one of the most Frequently Asked Questions I answer in SUGAR SHOCK! (I had to cover this, because while researching my book, thousands of people kept asking me if they cut out or reduced their sugar intake, was it OK to drink or eat foods with these sugar substitutes.)

Frankly, I was shocked at what I learned! Health experts urged me to warn my readers that questions have been raised about the safety of every single artificial sweetener on the market!! - despite repeated claims of safety from the FDA and the companies creating them...

By the way, in SUGAR SHOCK!, you also can learn about what some experts call a "paradoxical weight gain" that some people experience when ingesting foods with artificial sweeteners. Yeah, consuming artificial sweeteners can actually PACK ON THE POUNDS instead of peel them off!

Shocking, eh? Anyhow, you can learn about artificial sweeteners and a whole lot more by getting SUGAR SHOCK! here now."

You can get Connie's newsletter on her blog here.

Hope for Compulsive Shopping - Just do MORE of it!? : )

Dr. Amie Ragan of The Psychology of Clutter blog wrote this brilliant post on how she helped a client who couldn't pass up a bargain and cluttered her home and closets with all the "treasures".  She used a technique called therapeutic paradox or paradoxical intention.

If you've struggled with compulsive shopping or excessive compulsive cluttering, Read all about it here!

Here are a couple other GREAT blogs dealing with the underlying emotional side of letting go of clutter.

• The Thoughtful Consumer by Cynthia Friedlob
• It's not about your stuff! by Jessica Duquette

Have you switched to Organic Milk & dairy products yet?

If you haven't switched to organic milk and dairy products, or you think organic milk is too expensive, you probably haven't seen Comedy Central's "Colbert Report" Video Clip of his Milk & Hormones rant about what rBGH, the bovine growth hormone produced by Monsanto and used by many dairy farmers does to the cows. 

And I'm sure you haven't seen what ends up in milk produced by cows treated with rBGH.  Since we learned about rBGH a couple years ago, we don't buy anything but organic dairy, cage-free & organic eggs & meat products. 

It kills me that although the synthetic hormone rGBH has been banned in most nations, including all 25 European Union nations, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, due to its links to endocrine disruption and cancer, it is still widely used in the U.S.!!!!

Monsanto even had the nerve to file a formal complaint with the FDA demanding that dairies that don't use rBGH should NOT be able to label their products "rBGH-free."  See the article "Monsanto Declares War on 'rBGH-free' Dairies" on Organic Consumers Organization site.

Want to know what "organic" really means?

Here's the USDA consumer info brochure

Want to learn more about rGBH? 

See "What's in Your Milk?"  on the Cancer Prevention Coalition website

rBGH, the Hormone Given to Cows that Makes Them Produce More Milk - Why do Some Groups Want it Banned?

Need a laugh?
See Comedy Central's "Colbert Report" Video Clip of his Milk & Hormones rant.  It's HILARIOUS and also educational and scary.  (Type Milk in the Search box to find it.)

Want to avoid rGBH?

The best way to avoid rBGH is to only buy milk and milk products that clearly state that they are rBGH-free.  Some companies have been caught saying they are organic but really aren't like Horizon. Horizon Organic and Aurora dairies cheated. This story is a couple years old...not sure what the latest is but it appears they don't operate within the true intent of the Organic label.

Check out Cornucipia.org's SCORECARD report that rates organic dairies on a 5 point scale.  VERY INTERESTING!  Stonyfield Farms only rates a 3 and Stop n Shop's Nature's promise is only a 2 and Trader Joe's is a 1 because they wouldn't provide info.  Our favorite was rated a 4 (yay!) - Organic Valley

Publix Supermarkets banned rGBH in its Publix brand milk!  Safeway, Starbucks, Ben and Jerry’s and Chipotle Mexican Grills also have rBGH-free policies.

Do you know what "enough" is for you?

As the year comes to a close, I found this treasure by Dawn over at www.FrugalforLife.com   She talks about how she came to define for herself what "enough" is so that she could be happy and fiscally sound by living a frugal life.  She decribes people who are content and have found what "enough" means to them as follows:

• They have a purpose that is larger than their needs or wants – They have a mission to help others; they aren’t out to fulfill their own desires, because those would be infinite and not bring the happiness that comes from helping others.
• They can account for where their money is – they know how much they have and how much they spend and they are ready for the unexpected
• They have their own ideas of ‘enough’ – They aren’t relying on what kind of car their neighbor bought or how many vacations they took. They look inside and they see that this *blank* is sufficient for happiness, whether bought at a yard sale or not.

Read her entire post here...

While Dawn is talking about money, this is true of living a reasonably organized life as well. 

• You have to have a purpose that serves others as well as feeds your passion in life in order to organize to make it happen.  What is your clear & compelling purpose?
• Knowing what you have and being able to access it (regardless of how messy that is or what it looks like) is empowering.  Whether it's knowing how much money you have and where it's going, or knowing where your important papers are, or just knowing where your keys are.  Knowing what you have and how to get to it makes it possible to be ready for unexpected problems as well as for unexpected opportunities for great things to come into your life.   Are you ready for a fabulous 2007?
• Know what enough is for you is a powerful tool to help you make decisions wisely.  What is enough money?  knowing this helps you choose your career and how much time to put into it.  What is enough clothing?  Knowing this help you let go of excess.  How neat do you need to be to function well?  How organized do you need to be?  Is just having all your photos in one big box enough?  Great!  Do you need them all sorted into albums?  Is it worth doing that over other ways you could be spending your time?  What is enough for you?  Where do you draw lines and make choices?   

These thoughts are on my mind intensely as I start the new year and think about how I want to move forward with my business, balancing work with having a life and managing the way I spend my time.   What is enough fun? enough work? enough business growth?

But for tonite, I'm off to enjoy First Night Montclair and ring the New Year in with FUN!  Hope you have an inspired, peaceful, joyous, and wonderfully Neat New Year!

Got a bit of Gadget Mania? Having Trouble Resisting the Urge to Splurge? Sometimes all it takes is the right question!

I confess.  I am a natural born enthusiast.  And, I am especially drawn to creative ideas! So when I saw this clever little gadget at the Container Store, I got all excited. 

How clever!!  It holds your cooking utensils so you don't have to lay them down on your stovetop or get your spoon holder dirty!  So I showed it to my husband.  "What do you think?  do you want one?" 

He looks at me and gives me some of my own medicine ..."Do we REALLY need that?"

I stopped dead in my tracks.  Looked at him and started laughing.  Just that question started me thinking about what a pain it would be to use and how quickly it would become clutter! 

• Where would I put it when it's not on the pot so that it would be handy? (I don't have drawers near my stove.) 
• Suppose I put it in the other not so handy kitchen drawer, will I really get it out of the drawer to use it every time I cook? 
• Then clean it and put it back? 
• Nah

All of a sudden, my good old fashion spoonrest that sits on my stovetop 24/7 starting looking beautiful again.  Besides, it's shaped like a cat!!!  And I do love my cats!  : )

Goes to show you - NO ONE is immune from the appeal of a clever kitchen gadget.  But one little question - the right one - can give you much needed power over your impulses! 

Do I REALLY need that??? 

 Will I REALLY use that? 

Where will I PUT that??

Come to think of it...my own medicine didn't taste that bad.  And I still have $10 in my pocket!

This is one of a few close calls I've had this holiday season.  The bag of impulse purchases I have to return to Linens N Things is proof I'm not always that strong.    The bag is already sitting next to my front door waiting to go back.

So how are you holding up with the ever tempting "urge to splurge" this holiday season?  : )

p.s.  I do the same thing for him in his weaker moments!  : ) It's all about teamwork.

Another Alternative to Traditional Gift Wrap

Thanks to Micheal Chandler, a "green" builder in North Carolina for sharing this tip! www.ChandlerDesignBuild.com

Hi Ariane,

Beth and I run a design-build company and we are local “Green Building” leaders. So we’ve been looking for alternatives to store bought wrapping papers since even though we save all our Sunday funnies we don’t have enough for all our wrapping needs. Your idea about using last years calendars made sense but we didn’t have enough so we hit on an idea that really is working for us.

Because of our interest in architecture we get many, many architectural periodicals and the ads in those are very graphically and culturally edgy. So Beth got out a stack of old Dwell and other architectural magazines and some scissors and we now have architectural themed re-cycled wrapping paper. The gifts look more like three dimensional collages. And they really express our personalities both in the colorful architectural theme and in the recycled aspect.

Thanks yet again.

Michael

Hmm...what a great idea! This could work with lots of other magazines & publications too! I get one from a paint company called Stir! Lots of neat photos.

See Related Posts: http://blog.neatandsimple.com/blog/gift_ideas/index.html

Thanks for the contribution Michael!

Going Green - One Bite at a Time - Check out this "Sassier Shade of Green"

Have you wanted to go green and be more conscientious about protecting our environment & natural resources but found it to be overwhelming and too exhausting to do all the research to figure out the green way to do things?  Well, this website has a solution for those of us who need a "lighter, sassier shade of green!"

Ideal Bite will send you a tip a day!  You can take it or leave it, but you will learn greener ways to do things without having to do a lot of research!  Plus when you have a specific question, like how to unclog your drains without putting poison down your drain you can search the very extensive and well organized tip library!  (I'm taking notes for my library redesign : )

Top Ten Tips From Ideal Bite

1. Just Say No to Junk Mail - Resolutions Week 2006   [Note: Neat Living gives these tips 5 Stars! !!]
2. A Proper Burial for Your Dead Batteries
3. Taking Ourselves More Lightly
4. Plastic Baggies and Tupperware: Not Such a Party
5. What REALLY Helps? - Home Energy Week
6. BYOB
7. Every Fruit Has Its Season - Good Cooking Week
8. What Could Be More Natural?
9. Kitchen Consequential - Spring Cleaning Week
10. Bottled Up

Thanks to Perri Kersh, a professional organizer in Chapel Hill, North Carolina for introducing me to the Ideal Bite!  Her company is called Neat-Freak Professional Organizing and her neat blog "Enough is Enough" is at http://neatfreak.wordpress.com/ 

6 Great Re-usable, Creative Gift Wrapping Alternatives!

Check out the six beautiful, convenient, re-usable, and recyclable gift wrap ideas at EarthEasy.com!

My favorites are:

• Fabric Gift Bags.  They include instructions to make your own.    But you can also buy them!  Check out these 2 neat stores:
  Paper Mart and Lagniappe Gift Wrap
• Comic Strip Pages.  I've used this one for kids and adults - they love it!
• Last Years Calendars.  What a neat idea!
• Children's Art

See more details and ideas at: Gift Wrapping Alternatives.

Another source for neat gift-wrapping ideas:  Paper Mart

Clutter Free Greeting Cards You can Plant in the Ground!

Now this is a really neat idea!  Imagine a holiday greeting card made of plantable paper which has seeds embedded in it that actually grow after you plant the card!  Look no further! Green Field Paper Company offers the following types of paper:

- machine-made Hemp Heritage hemp paper

- Grow A Note® seed embedded plantable paper also kcalled seed paper

- 100% Junk Mail® infused with their own junk mail

- Gilroy Garlic paper infused with garlic skins

- Java paper made with coffee chaff!

25 Ways I Save Money

LAST UPDATED - July 2011

 

Dawn over at Frugal for Life has put out a call to share ways to save money.  I couldn't resist this one,  so here are the top 25 ways we save money!  

1. We live in a smaller house than we can afford, and do our own home repairs and painting.  Though we weren't thinking about it at the time, living in a smaller house gave me the freedom to quit my corporate consulting work and start coaching.
   
2. Pay bills online with a free checking & online account from Wachovia (now Wells Fargo) which also pays interest on our balances.
   
3. We moved our home equity loan balance to a 0% credit card. Haven't paid interest for the 3 years since we renovated the entire front and backyard of our home which has enabled us to pay it off much faster. I set up reminders in email to tell me when the 0% rate is up and then we move it to another 0% interest account. It will all be paid off in 2008.  2011 - All paid off.  We are so grateful!
   
4. We avoid using ATMs that charge fees.
   
5. We changed all our lightbulbs to compact flourescent bulbs including our front porch and outdoor lights. Of course we got them in bulk on sale!
   
6. deleted - out of date
   
   
7. We use an Amazon.com Rewards Credit Card. We put all daily living purchases on it and pay it in full every month.
   
   2011 UPDATE- We are rethinking this strategy...every time we use credit card the business owner has to pay the credit card company 2 - 4% of every purchase.  Not sure I want to reward the Credit Companies that way.  So now, we try to use checks or cash when paying small business owners. 
    
8. We use a Miles One Rewards credit card for all business purchases and get free miles for traveling. We've gotten 2 tickets free that way!
   
9. Don't go to movie theaters anymore - we have cable & wait for movies to come out on cable.  We use Comcast DVR to record movies we really want to see.  
   
10. We rarely eat in restaurants or get takeout maybe once a month or even 2 months. We cook healthy fresh food at home every day. in 2010 we even started growing our own veggies.
    
11. We only run the dishwasher and washing machine when it's mostly  full.
    
12.  Only drink water and coffee or tea...no sodas, etc.  
    
13. We moved our car insurance to Geico last year and saved $1500 per year.  Northern NJ has nearly the highest insurance rates in the country. We couldn't believe we saved this much.  And our insurance rates have actually gone down every year!  Probably because my car just keeps getting older.  We also have a huge collision deductible which also keeps rates down.
    
14. I cut my husband's hair myself. 
    
15. I mostly only wear lipstick and blush.  Only use full makeup the first time I meet a client for the first time!  :)
    
16. Only wear a watch and my wedding rings as jewelry.  Jewelry on my neck, wrists or ears causes me a lot of discomfort anyway.
    
17. We saved a lot of money on our wedding rings with just simple bands.  We put our money into the down payment on our house instead.
    
18. Do my own pedicures and go out for a pedicure maybe once a year as a treat for a special occasion.
    
19. Do my own manicures...and I don't use nail polish on my fingernails - it saves a lot of time too!!  : )
    
20. We rarely throw any food anyway. Have a system for storing leftovers and USING them! We have a tray in the fridge on the top shelf and always put leftovers there and then use them the next day or 2 for lunch or snacks or as a side dish with dinner.
     
21. We have a small Cuisinart counter top combo toaster, broiler and convection oven and use that for heating & baking small portions instead of firing up the stove.
     
22. I've only bought one brand new car in my life! Cars only depreciate so I never saw the point in losing a few thousand dollars as soon as you drive it off the lot.  But I did finally splurge on my 40th birthday and got myself a 2000 Sebring Convertible which I will keep as long it is still safe to drive!  I love it!  It is actually very practical as we can open the top and haul just about anything an SUV can.  Even more!  : )
    
    
23. We download most of our music and movie.  No CDS or DVDS.
    
24. We avoid processed foods like microwave popcorn, we use the bulk kind and have a West Bend Stir Crazy popcorn popper.which is actually a lot of fun to use!  We also make our own sugar free ice cream with just fruit and milk using the Vitamix blender we invested in. Cutting out sugar and gluten has saved a lot of money in addition to improving our health dramatically.
    
25. We use a digital camera for photos and ONLY print out a very select few!

Whew...that was fun!   So what are your top tips?  Would love to hear any additions you might have!   hmmm...Wonder what a list of the top 25 ways we waste money would look like!  : ) 

 

RELATED POSTS by Ariane 

The TRUE cost of things

Having Trouble Resisting the Urge to Splurge? Sometimes all it takes is the right question!

Is Wal-Mart Good for America? The High Cost of Low Price

Food, Inc. The BIG Profits in Poor Nutrition

25 Ways I Save Money

Using what you have to get organized without spending a penny!

 

 

Frugal For Life: Many Uses for Toothpaste

Here's one of the many awesome lists Dawn from Frugal for Life has created on creative, simple and frugal uses for everyday things - like toothpaste.  Personally, I have used toothpaste for polishing silver. I keep a tube under my sink just for that. It works GREAT! And it keeps it looking like silver. The silver cleaner I used to use made it look like chrome! : )  I like it to look a little more on the aged yellowish side and toothpaste does that perfectly.   Not only is toothpaste more frugal, it works better!  Long Live Toothpaste!

Enjoy!!!!

^Make vinyl tennis shoes look newer, apply with a rag, rub and wipe off.

^Polish silverware (and gold) with a rag and

Follow Dawn's Journey to Fixing Her Credit Report! She shares & teaches all!

Dawn's Steps to Order Credit Reports and Monitor Your Credit Score

Dawn over at www.FrugalforLife.com is actually going to take you through her steps as she fixes her Credit Report! 

I've been through this process. It was not pleasant!  But it was definitely worthwhile. I closed a lot of really old accounts that I thought were already closed. Plus I found multiples of accounts and weird addresses making it look like I had a ridiculous amount of credit available to me.  It was like over $500,000 - that makes you a bad credit risk, even if you don't have any balances on the accounts. 

When I closed all those old and bogus accounts, my fico score went way up - over 720!  If I hadn't done this years ago, we might not have been able to buy our house! 

If you have been wondering how to go about this, join Dawn as she goes through the process.  Here is an excerpt:

First item of business is getting my credit score. Personally, I only like to go through www.Myfico.com to get all three as they seem to have more history behind them and seem to be more standardized. Using a score from one of the credit agencies isn’t always a good idea as many times they are off from the fico, and the fico is the more preferred way to check your score by banks and others.

After buying my score, which comes with a report on all three agencies, I quickly go over anything that may stand out as incorrect. But in order to dispute an item, I will need the credit report from the agency itself.

Next step is to ...  read Dawn's full story

Good Luck Dawn!