35 Tips for Frugal Living

1.  Build Habits that Focus on Production, rather than Consumption.

2. Make coffee at home (easier said than done).

3. Walk off Anxiety instead of relying on expensive medication.

4. Exercise to beat Depression instead of relying on expensive medication.

5. Take Free Financial Literacy Classes Online, so you are equipped with all the knowledge you need to retire.

6. Take the Bus instead of driving to work. Or any other tasks for that matter.

7. Save 10% of every pay check and put it away in a fund you won't touch for retirement.

8. Consider the costs and benefits of paying for milestones no one actually cares about as much you think they do. For example, having a luxury wedding when it's really not about the guests.

9. Consider using a food shelter if you have no money for food.

10. Rent a cheap basement room, or live with roommates to lower rent cost.

11. Cut out you cable and/or Netflix service.

12.  Buy Clothes from the thrift store or ask the church for donated clothes in times of need.

13. Learn to Cook.

14. Learn to Needle & Sew, so you can fix the wear and tear in your old clothes.

15. If you are a two-income household, go with one car.

16. Borrow books from the library instead of purchasing them.

17. Cut out drugs, alcohol and cigarettes from your diet.

18. Go out for lunch, instead of dinner dates.

19. Better yet, pack your own lunch and dinner.

20. Invest in home-mad DIT Skincare and Healthcare instead of relying on expensive products.

21. Always try to Price Match, especially in big retail chains such as Walmart.

22. Make your own birthday/holiday/special occasion greeting cards instead of spending money on buying them.

23. Clean out your fridge and freezer once a week to make a meal out of leftovers.

24. Try to go meatless at least once a week. Your arteries will thank you.

25. If possible, grow your own food.

26. Try to find the cheapest flights possible if travelling.

27.  Live a minimalistic lifestyle to avoid the temptation to shop and clutter your way into debt.

28. Get a cheaper cellphone plan.

29. Use less laundry detergent and wear clothes as many times as you can before washing.

30.  Sell you old clothes, jewelry, dishes, and other possessions that are in decent condition.

31. Invest in a juicer so you can make green smoothies at home instead of paying money for them.

32. Borrow make-up from friend or even strangers, if they have unopened extras, instead of purchasing it. Better yet, don't even bother wearing makeup.

33. Keep track of everything you purchase and review your receipts and statements at the end of every month.

34.  Consider not having kids. No, I'm actually serious.

35. Keep working and earning.

36. Be The Queen of DIY.

37. Sell your old stuff.

38. Have an emergency fund to cover 6-10 months of expenses.

39.

500 Days of Journaling: Day 19

    Work is bleeding over into everything else in my life.

No rest for the Wicked right?

There has to be something to come to the surface; I'm waiting for the next lightning bolt of inspiration & motivation to hit me. 

Am I waiting on a miracle?

I feel like I've been fighting my whole life and it's always been against my own self. 

My own Inner Demons. 

My own psychosis, verbal assaults on my own psyche & my hidden fears lurking in turkey brain waters, holding me back from living out my potential.

I Just Launched My First Book on Amazon. Here's Why I Could Care Less How Many Copies I Sold

I have not been excited about much over the last month.  The bitter taste of mortality, combined with am ever mounting pile of snow outside,  and caring for a loved one makes for a Non-Nonchalant me.

What to do? What to do?
Oh, I know, I'll finally finish off that book I've been putting off.
The one born out of a series of tumultuous relationships and short-lived friendships and just the general feeling of chaos I've been feeling inside and out. The one that's been turning me into someone I don't really recognize anymore.
More on that later (probably never).


For anyone interested in checking out my book for practical help on Loving Oneself as a Single Person wading through life, you can find it here: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B081Y8DVTP
Now that I have got the marketing portion out of the way, here is my take on what the Sales Figures of My First Book Ever really mean to me:
Nothinggggggggggggg!!!!
Absolutely Nothing. ZIP. NADA. NILCH. NAI (Wait, is that even a word?)

It's not that I don't value my work or know my worth. Far from it. Countless one-nighter were pulled in an effort to finish this book. Even then, I was way behind production schedule. The only thing constant throughout the entire writing process was my constant backaches and loneliness. The only person who pushed me to finish my book was myself. So you'll have to excuse me if I sound a bit proud. However, I am in no way, shape or form attached to the sales record of this book.

Perhaps it's because I am just a novice writer, just stepping my foot into unfamiliar territory. Or, I lack the self-confidence to assert my marketplace value to the best of my abilities. One thing is for certain though. No-one is able to help me grasp the meaning of my writing path except myself. The same way no-one can take words out of me and pour them onto a page. For this reason, I choose to stay focused on the Art, instead of the Numbers.

If enough people resonate with what I have to say about life, thoughts which are biased and washed over my my life experiences, and they end up buying my book, then that's an added bonus. I'm here to save lives, even if it just happens to be my own.

5 SureFire Ways To Beat Depression

Here's something you might want to look into before heading into Winter Wonderland.

I used to think I had Depression.
The Worst Kind.
The Depression that makes you want to lie in Fetal Position and cry for an hour, while almost being tempted by the idea to suck your own thumb.
The kind that makes you cancel plans, at the very last minute, and pray you don't lose your last two friends.
The kind that makes your crash mid-day and wakes you up in the middle of the night.
The kind that feels like an ache deep inside your sad bones.
The kind that makes you feel like you're floating on a raft in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
The kind that makes you kinda just wanna die.


That's the Depression I am talking about. Or at least I thought I did.
It turned out I didn't have depression. I just happened to be allergic to people.
Meaning I discovered I ranked high on Introversion in terms of my personality. Even though I grew up in a metropolitan, surrounded by people, I peaked my performance when I was alone.
My main talents are writing and editing. I was attached to the library by the hip since age 2. However, since I grew up in a culture and family that always favoured togetherness, to the point of never valuing an Independent Identity, my unmet needs resulted in a Depression that haunted me through most of my early 20s. When I finally realized my depression was caused by filling the role of a loud, nurturing extrovert to please the world, I also reached the conclusion that I did not have to be a slave to my depression.

The only way to stop being a Slave to Depression is to Stop Being a Slave to Society, Your Parents, Siblings, Extended Family, Spouses and the world at large.


Depression is rampant in the West. It is medically defined as "A Rite of Passage for people who grew up on the promises of Technology Solving All Their Problems and Parents Who Were Too Caught Up In Their Baby Boomer Hedonism To Pay Attention".
Depression is as collective as it is personal to each individual. Depression still remains largely a stigma in a society full of Superman and Superwomen Syndrome Individuals. By the time individuals get around to accepting it as an issue, it has usually wrecked tons of damage on their immune system, interpersonal relations and work prospects.

This doesn't have to be you!!!

I urge you to download and read the Infographic made by yours truly, regarding some practical ways you can overcome your Depression. I can't wait to hear about your wellness journey and the ways you are cultivating yourself as a priority, in your work and personal lives.

Whose Skeleton Are You Wearing?

There was a time when Video Entertainment was just taking off as a medium.
That was a longggggggggggggg time ago.
I am talking the late-1800s.

Fast-forward to the eclipse of 2020, we are a fully evolved video-based economy.
Everything is instant and captured on screen.
Job Interviews, Dating Profiles, Online MBA & Masters Degrees, and the traditional avenues of Entertainment such as movie theatres and cable.

The advance of video has no doubt resulted in a large increase in consumption of video based products, especially related to Entertainment.
We are a Streaming Generation.
We stream at the bus-stop. We Stream at work. We stream at home.
The only time we don't stream is when the stream is paused or downloading.
Our voracious appetite for streaming has led to clear marketplace domination of streaming companies such as Netflix and Amazon.


However, there are obvious repercussions to streaming.
The most damaging one is my opinion is the distortion of our reality.
The beliefs, conclusions, synapses, lies, deception, assumptions, conditioning, re-conditioning we acquire from movies, songs, lyrics, tv shows and talk show/podcast hosts.
There is, without doubt, tons of positive content being put out into the world to attract an audience and help improve our mental psyche and physical/material lives.
However, there are some really dark pieces of consumption in the video compartment.
I am not even talking about pornography here, which is not necessarily evil on its own.
Instead, I want to reference dark music videos that promote false-sexuality and exploit the shame and guilt all human beings are susceptible to, in their vulnerable state.

Sure, you can say that what one consumes in the Video Medium is completely their choice. You can even ramble on about free will. This doesn't change the fact that we're largely social creatures subjected to large and heavy social pressures to fit in, watch what everyone is watching and see/feel/do what everyone else is doing. This is especially true for urban dwellers who largely function in an almost-niche type of friends circle. We naturally end up listening and watching content that does not necessarily align with our authentic nature, values or morals. Forget all that.


What strikes the most uncomfortable chord in me is the exploitation of basic human emotions.
All for the bottom-line.
Just to keep the views coming.
Just to reach the Top 40 charts.
Just to reach.
There is reckless honing in on peoples' fears, insecurities, shameful past, guilt about the future and the inherent bottom-less pit of their emotional needs.
Video makers understand these fragilities so well that they are sacrificed at the altar of every 30-second sound bite.
The end result is, of course, a dramatic increase in the neurosis we acquire as both individuals and as a collective whole.


Neurotic:

The Urban Dictionary defines it as "An Epidemic. Worse than the Bubonic Plague. A Mass Epidemic affecting Poor Urbanites and Socialites on an equal level. It leaves no room for Interpretation or a Happy Medium. Engaged in the complete malignment of one's sense of self and identity if there ever was such a thing". 

By that definition, we are all neurotic, even the monks of the Himalayas who cater so carefully to their image of being oh so fucking zen. However, they didn't need to listen to 50 Cent to gain neurosis. Theirs was probably thanks to the mountain goats that sang their infectious and annoying tunes. Which is probably the reason they learned to tune out the world in the first place.


So back to the NEUROSIS OF VIDEO.
It's there. It's Real.
It is Extremely Toxic and Damaging if consumed without proper awareness.
It is also probably as addicting as Junk Food.
It can lead to over-consumption of other products (Beauty/Houses/Expensive Cars), without addressing the underlying issue of what causes guilt and shame in the first place.
Perhaps I will make a video that will cover why.
In the meantime, skip anything that makes your stomach queasy like McDonald's fries. Or at least limit them to once a week like me.

Becoming Mirror To Our Individual Souls

It is tuesday morning and I am enjoying a hot cup of coffee with my brother.  He is off from school for the next three weeks and I finally have a day off work.

Life is calling us to get enmeshed in the process. However, the process can wait. For now, we are enjoying our steaming cup of coffee and sharing what's on our mind. The amount of depth in terms of conversation and pure company I enjoy with my brother has been unparalled. I appreciate it more as I get older. Today, there is an overlying truth that keeps turning in my head as he shares his fears and plans for working after graduation.

We are extremely good at soothing and helping in detecting the pain points of our loved ones. Their struggled and vulnerabilities become so easy to categorize and write a prescription for. However, it's not as easy to do this for our ownselves. We are often heavily dependent upon others to recognize our blindspots. This is not necessarily a weakness. In fact, it is a way to more spiritual and personal growth.

When we grow deeply in our interpersonal relationships, we slowly start embracing a solid sense of our inner vulnerabilities. As a result, we are able to deeply connect to other people through these vulnerabilities. This helps shine a mirror on our INTERNAL ISSUES, BAGGAGE AND CRAVINGS. Slowly, we realize that we all have so much more in common than we think. Even with the siblings who are going their own way with their lives.

The Mindfulness Trap

How does it feel when you splurge on Beauty Products?
Would you say it is the Epitome of Self-Care?
It sure is for me.

The emergence of thousands of new beauty products leaves one always wanting more.
Facial Masks, Hair Masks, and Neck Cleansing Clay comes along with facial serums, hair serums, and neck wrinkle reduction serums. Over the years, I have come to embrace these products as precious gems found in the cave Aladdin got thrown into. Simply put, I cannot live without beauty products.

There are markups and markdowns on all different hair products: Marc Anthony, TREsemme, Pantene and the list goes on.

Recently, I have noticed that beauty products are marketed towards a more environmentally conscious demographic.
No surprise there.
With rising fears about Sustainability and Global Warming, it is high-time for companies to do their part in helping secure our planet's future.


A huge sub-set of these new marketing strategies is the promotion of Mindfulness.
Recently, I purchased a tooth-paste and face-mask promoting the notion of peace of mind upon their consumption.

feel Face Mask: MINDFUL

Burt's Bees Toothpaste: Zen Peppermint 

Now, don't get me wrong. Both Products live up to their expectations.
My tastebuds find a calm tingling every time I use Burt's Bees Toothpaste. There is a millisecond feeling that whatever residual of the garbage I inhaled during the day (pizza, fries, burgers, sometimes all three) seems to just roll up from my tongue. It flies right out of my mouth and high up into the blackness of the solar system.


Meanwhile, the face mask has incredibly calming effects on my botched, under-hydrated skin. However, underneath all these perks, and perhaps despite them, I still do not feel mindful.
Perhaps mindfulness cannot be categorized into a form of consumption.
It would negate the very purpose for which we turn to mindfulness in the first place: A resting place from the daily hassles and routines of life.
If we incorporate mindfulness into the very routines from which it provides us respite, aren't we being the exact opposite of mindful?
To me at least that poses a fundamental question of what is mindfulness?



You see, when I wear my face mask, I am also listening to a business podcast and editing photos for my Poshmark Closet, and learning about the ways Canada is changing their Tax Laws once again. I am working to support my eco-system while providing you guys the life tips you need to do well in their economy.
However, mindfulness goes out the window when it's being done at the same time as it is not being done. I cannot simultaneously work while not working.

I believe it is high-time for beauty companies to take more mindful initiatives for promoting Mindfulness that go beyond Flashy Packaging and Increase in Targeted Advertising.
I think companies can encourage individuals to find their own unique ways to practice mindfulness.
Ways that go beyond increasing their own bottom line.
I truly believe this joint effort can allow individuals to truly embrace mindfulness that is as uniquely tailored as their favorite beauty products.


For those of you still reading, my advice is to stop looking at mindfulness as a goal. Rather, appreciate it's unique nuances in your personal life as they come and go.
Appreciate them because they are yours and hard to come by.
Appreciate them to get more of them.
Discover the mindfulness of nature and strong kinship ties and more nourishing foods.
Embrace the mindfulness of human connection, since it is one of the scarcest commodities out there.
Embrace the mindful you, through less investment in beauty products and more investment into welcoming and revering mindfulness more gracefully into your life.

I am not saying you need to stop buying beauty products. Mindfulness comes about through daily actions and habits of catching your breath and being genuine in spirit. I am saying that the products don't lead to mindfulness. Sometimes you need both and sometimes you need neither.

Is it Really Mindfulness If I still have to use my mind?