Financial Crisis

No no, I'm not personally in one, but, umm, collectively we're ALL in one. Not only do we all need to save money, we all need to treat our natural resources (water, oil, food) like the precious commodities they are.

Does anyone have any suggestions for my normal, middle class household to help us save money and/or reduce our impact on the environment? And please, don't tell me to Google it, I HAVE. I'm just asking if there is something you personally are doing that is working, or if you have a favourite site you turn to.

All of this has been prompted by a bit of ageism....for the first time, I am REALLY seeing that there are three distinct generations living in my house, and only one of us seems interested in saving the planet / our wallets. There's me, almost forty; Husbandly One, almost sixty; and Stepson, just on the other side of twenty.

Stepson: could care less about any of this, is not polically minded, does not consider global issues, feels he should be able to walk around the house in shorts during winter, does not pay the heating bill.

Husbandly One: actually pays the heating bill, so is often grumpy. Still, if Husbandly One feels the slightest bit chilly, he turns up the heat.

Me: the crunchy granola chick in the middle, screaming, "If you are cold, put on more clothes! The sweater is paid for already, the heat is NOT!"


I face the same issues with our soaring grocery bill. I am a big fan of eating leftovers, recipes that involve stewing beef, my crock pot, and whatever is on sale. Husbandly One is much more capricious, purchasing whatever appeals to him in the moment. I once tried menu planning/grocery shopping for a three week period and it almost destroyed his psyche. "How can we decide on Monday what we want to eat on Thrusday?"

(Irma, in the background, banging head on wall.)

So, my Internet Friends, is there anything you can suggest? I am looking for ANY way to stretch a dollar.