Seriously? Another blog?

Yep! Seriously! I need a place to brain dump. If I can help someone else in the process, all the better. I've got a long list of things that I keep saying I want to do. Finish the basement, become a 'Space Cowboy', do a century ride on my bicycle, start a blog... Well, I'm starting the blog. If you are reading this you are either part of my family, or here because I've written something you want to read about. Thanks for stopping by!

What is all this talk about saving?

Save. Such an ambiguous word isn't it? "Saved by Zero", "Jesus Saves", "Save Money on Car Insurance". I'm mainly focused on three areas when I talk about saving: Money, Health, and Home (Our Environment).

Save Money

Let's start with money. Who wouldn't like to save some of their ever harder to earn money? Hopefully I've got some good tips on how to do that. For some context, when my first son was born in 2004, my wife and I made the decision that she would stay home with him. Now we've got two beautiful boys, and she is still home. At first it was hard without her income, but we've managed to cut back our spending to the point that we don't have to worry about money at all. And no, I'm not some high paid executive on Wall Street. I have a state job that pays well below the national average for my profession.

Save Your Life

What about your health? Are you as healthy as you can be? Neither am I. It's been a long road filled with Diet Soda and Candy Bars. But I'm getting there. I've kicked soda and most other junk. I'm well on my way to being vegan, as outlined by The Engine 2 Diet. As you age, taking care of your health is a HUGE way to save. You can gain years of life and tons of money by making small changes in the way you live. The earlier you start making those changes, the bigger the win. Less pills to pay for; fewer doctor visits... I'm sure you've heard it before. "Health is Wealth".

Save the Environment

Finally, and definitely the most important. Let's save the freakin' planet! Oh, and let's save some cash while we do it. My take on saving the planet is much more pragmatic than most:

1. Keep it local. When most people talk about environment, they are talking about global warming, or pollution, or any other number of global issues. That can be extremely overwhelming. I tend to think much smaller. I think about our home, neighborhood, and commumity. If everyone would do their part locally, then we wouldn't have to worry about the rest of the world.
2. Focus on energy savings. We can't do it all. I'm not focused on saving the polar ice caps. For those who are, great! I applaud you, it's just not my thing. I care about conserving energy and saving money in the process.
3. To quote DJ Quik, Master P, and a half dozen other rappers: "If it Don't Make Dollars, it Don't Make Sense". Do what you can, but don't break the bank in the process. Anything you do to save energy is probably going to cost you money. You need to make sure that it's going to pay itself back in the long run. For instance, solar panels are great. There is surely something empowering about making your own electricity. Unfortunately I live in an area where there are no subsidies, less than ideal sunlight, and cheap power. For me, solar panels are not currently a good long term investment.

Wrap it up. I'm hungry!

I look forward to sharing many of my thoughts on money, health, and home. If you are reading this, I've surely been posting for a while, and you are getting caught up. I couldn't be happier. Thanks for stopping by.

Live long and prosper!

-Brian