Monthly Archives: November 2021

Relocation: Do Your Research First

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I’ve been spending some time away from State College taking care of my parents in north central Pennsylvania.  And I’m amazed at how the cost of things can vary so widely from place to place.  The price of a gallon of gas is the same here as in State College, but just about everything else seems to be cheaper.  Housing.  Groceries.  Cable TV.  It’s all a lot less expensive here.  I noticed a similar reverse sticker-price shock when I relocated from Chicago to Pennsylvania almost 19 years ago.  Regional cost of living is something that you always have to take into consideration when making career decisions.

Relocation is something you will consider from time to time through your life.  You follow your education.  You follow your career.  You follow your spouse.  You follow your dreams. And it’s a good idea to do your research before you decide rather than jumping in blind.  There are a lot of tools available to help you do that.  One of my favorites is a great relocation cost of living calculator from PayScale.  If you want to focus on just housing, you can easily do that at Zillow or Realtor.com.  You can use this study to see how taxes compare from state to state.

Everybody knows that it’s more expensive to live in New York City than in State College, Pennsylvania.  But there are a lot of different ways to think about that.  Don’t go into a big move blindly only to realize you really can’t afford to be where you’ve already moved to.  Do your research and arrive prepared.

Being Rich

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This week most of the United States takes a pause to celebrate the things we are thankful for.  And while I’m definitely grateful for turkey and pie, there are so many more things that make me grateful for what I have.

My family is just as dysfunctional as anyone’s.  My sister and I don’t see eye to eye politically.  My brother and sister don’t particularly like my husband.  My parents don’t manage well when things are different in any way from how it’s always been done.  In short….it’s a bit chaotic.  But we’re all going to be together on Thursday.  It’s been a couple of years since we’ve all gathered over a Thanksgiving turkey, and I’m really looking forward to how we will put our own kind of fun into the family dysfunction.  I’m very grateful that after a couple of years apart, we actually will be able to gather together safely.

My house is small.  It needs a good cleaning as well as quite a few repairs.  But it’s cozy and meets my needs perfectly.  When I’m there with my husband and our cats, I know that I’m truly home.

My cars are old.  They’re far from perfect.  But they do the jobs they are intended for without fail.  My Prius has 184,000 miles on it, but it still regularly gets 40 miles to the gallon or more.  My Subaru is closing in on its 10th birthday, but it’s always ready to tackle snow or mud or a camping trip to anywhere.

I’ve had the same job for almost 19 years.  It’s not always perfect.  I haven’t advanced my career in a very long time.  But that is by choice. I love what I do.  I can’t imagine doing anything else for a living.  How many people get to spend their entire career helping people to achieve their dreams?

A wise friend once told me that there are two ways to be rich.  One is to have everything you want.  The other is to want what it is you have.  And this week as we celebrate the things we are thankful for, I feel very rich indeed.

Think about what you have.  Think about how you love what you have.  And have a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Enjoy feeling rich.

 

Combating Black Friday Ads

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It seems like as soon as Halloween is done, the Black Friday sale ads start in full force.  December holiday music starts following me around any store I enter, and it makes me want to buy things.  It’s on the TV.  It’s on my social media feed.  It’s in my mailbox and my email.  I see the ads and think, “Oh….I’d love to have that!  And my husband would like one of those.”  It’s a dangerous time of year.

This year in particular I’m trying to keep my holiday spending to a minimum.  I know from the news reports that my winter heating bills are going to be higher than last year, and prices at the grocery store and the gas pump are spiraling upward.  That doesn’t leave a lot of wiggle room for things I don’t need.

Need is the key word here.  When I think I want to take advantage of those Black Friday deals, I first ask myself, “Do I need it?”  In most cases the answer to that question is no.  That makes it a “want” rather than a “need.”  Then I ask myself, “Do I already have something else that fills that purpose?”  Often the answer to that is yes.  And that’s usually enough to end my internal battle.  If it is something I don’t need, and I already have something that does the job ok, there is no reason to buy something new.  At this point in my life I don’t need a lot of frivolity.  I’m not a “fragrance and jewelry” kind of girl.  I wear the same silver hoop earrings and stainless steel wedding band every day, and my favorite fragrance is Dove soap (followed closely by the scent of campfire smoke).  Wanting something just to have it is really not my style.

Would it be cool to have a new smartwatch?  Sure!  But my old Fitbit still does the trick.  Would a new smartphone be awesome?  Of course….but my old one is still going strong.  The wish that almost sucked me in was wireless earbuds.  I felt weak…and I even added the ones that match my smartphone brand to my online cart.  And I actually needed something to replace my Bluetooth earpiece that disappeared several weeks ago (because my aging cars don’t have Bluetooth connections for talking on the phone in the car).  But then I found a cheap knockoff set of earbuds for $25 and bought them instead…and they’re working great.

Advertisements are strong this time of year.  We are pummeled with “BUY NOW!!!!” from every turn.  Unless you are immune to this kind of pressure, it’s important to have a plan to combat it.  For me it’s the pause to ask myself the questions of whether it’s needed.  Sometimes it’s placing it into my online cart and letting it sit there while I ponder the necessity.  If it survives both of these tests, sometimes I will actually buy something…but I’ll be certain that it was a purchase that makes sense.

How do you combat the Black Friday ads?  Are you able to tune it out?  What is your plan to make sure you don’t make unnecessary purchases this time of year?

 

Before the Snow Flies…

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It got cold last week.  I had to scrape ice off my windshield before driving to work.  The heat in my house is running all the time now.  And any way you slice it, winter is expensive in the northeast part of the country.  So I like to take some time to think about things I can do now, before the snow flies, to make things more affordable.

This weekend I took the first step by putting air in the tires of my cars.  You likely remember from high school science classes that gasses expand in the heat and contract in the cold.  The air in your car’s tires is a gas, so when the temperature drops, the air pressure in your tires also drops.  If you are driving around on under-inflated tires, you not only will get fewer miles to the gallon, you also can end up with uneven wear on your tires.  Uneven wear will require you to need to replace your tires sooner.  So stop by your local Sheetz, where the digital air pumps are free, and air up those tires.  Air is free.  Tires are not!

Now is also the time to focus on warming up life inside the house.  The easy way to do that is by cranking up the heat.  But the smarter way to do it is with insulation.  Do you have windows that leak a lot of cold air?  Cover them with plastic.  Do you have a wall that is particularly cold?  Hang a blanket on it.  Add flannel sheets and an extra blanket to your bed so you can turn down the heat at night.  Bundle up with sweaters and hoodies so you can keep the heat lower when you are awake.  Keep some cozy blankets on the couch for bundling up while you read or watch TV.

I actually get excited about the start of winter.  I love the crisp air and the look of a fresh blanket of snow.  I enjoy having a cup of hot coffee with a warm cat on my lap.  I like wearing a lot of layers of clothing.  I love soups and stews and casseroles—the low cost meals that fill my winter.  Many people dread the winter.  But I think it’s my favorite season.

Are you ready for winter?  If not, now is the time to start preparing for it.