This Week...Beyond Money 9/18 - 9/24

For me, a life beyond money is making choices so that you can live the best possible life, regardless of your income level. Obviously, you have to make a living, but there are many ways to improve your quality of life without increasing your income levels and correspondingly your expenses. This regular post will be some of the ways that we improve our quality of life beyond just trying to make more money.

Gardening:
* The wheat grass is growing great! Even though the berries are several years old, they had a strong germination, even growth and grew quickly to a good size to give to Raycat. I'm going to let her nibble them down a bit, then put the container up again and see if I can get a second growth.
* Update: Ray nibbles on the wheat grass, but doesn't go as crazy as she does for other grasses. Then again, this is more a supplement than a major part of her diet, so I think that is ok. I have 25 lbs or so I want to use them up however I can.
* I harvested micros throughout the week. I don't get a huge harvest, but it is lovely to snip fresh microgreens to add flavor, texture and nutrition to whatever we are eating.
* I planted more mustard and cilantro micros using store-bought spices. After another spotty germination, I read that cilantro has really spotty germination and is aided by weighting the trays. I will try that next time I grow cilantro. The mustard germinates fine, albeit with varying growth rates.
* I harvested cherry tomatoes, one large tomato and a couple handfuls of small peppers.

Cooking/Groceries:
* I stopped off at the farm stand one morning for an eggplant, 4 poblano peppers and a good handful of shishito peppers. It is looking to be nearing the end of shishito season which is heartbreaking.
* I made shakshouka, only I served it with pasta instead of bread because I have a lot of pasta in the pantry needing to be used up and no good bread. I served with pan-seared shishitos.
* I made a strawberry cheesecake pie...thing. It was not my best dish ever, but it was good. I had some pie-mix in the pantry (the add-water type) that I'd gotten at a salvage grocer for a quarter. I need to use them up, but don't enjoy the taste or texture, especially compared to my homemade pie crust. I had just a little time to make something, so I decided to use them up. I filled a single crust with a basic cream cheese filling (8 oz cream cheese, 1 egg, 1/4 c sugar) and sliced strawberries on top. It was good, but that was just because of the cream cheese and strawberries. I had some leftover dough, so I made several pop tarts using some strawberry jam my mom gave me. I didn't try any of them, but Trucker ate them all for breakfast, so I guess he liked them.
* We made brats one day (manager's special).

Fun:
* We took a crazy day trip for a concert. I know a musician from up north who used to play concerts at my coffee shop hangout when I was a teen. I caught a show about 6 years ago but haven't been able to make it to a show since. My work schedule is aabout to get crazy so i wanted to get to a show this weekend. He was playing a farming festival 3 hours away. We took off as soon as we woke up. We enjoyed the festival. There were demos and samples (where applicable) for apple cider, apple butter, homemade butter, wool spinning and flour grinding. There were calves, goats, sheep, pigs, alpacas, chickens, ducks and rabbits. We enjoyed educational exhibits and a wagon ride. The wagon dropped us off at the campfire where we roasted marshmallows and enjoyed his show. I got to talk with him for a bit on his break. It was amazing to be able to listen to him live. He has a lot of new material since I last saw him. I love his voice and guitar playing and his songwriting is storytelling at its finest. It was totally worth the 6 hour round trip.
* Trucker has been doing more social things in the evenings. Especially since I'm gone so much, I want him to get out more. He went out with his softball league after their double header one day and went out with our discount movie club another night ($1.50 tickets that night).

Nature:
* I loved getting to explore the farm. Getting to enjoy the sunset during the concert was pretty epic too.

Frugality:
* I went thrifting to try to find a dress to wear to a wedding. I didn't look at anything else because I knew if I did, I would find something. As it was, I didn't end up finding a dress, so I didn't spend a penny.
* I worked on my health and financial challenges through my job to get a discount on insurance and a free gift card.
* I had a portion of my paycheck put into my savings account and 401k with employer match.

Waste Reduction:
* I composted a lot of items.
* A portion of a houseplant got pulled off the main plant. I put the stem in water for a couple weeks and it finally sprouted some roots. I have it in soil now and it looks pretty good.

House and Home:
* I went through my shoes in the closet. I got rid of 15 pairs to donate or toss, depending on condition. I also have two pairs that I think I can fix with a bit of super glue. I'll attempt and if it doesn't hold up the first time I wear them, I'll toss them.
* I set aside a trash bag full of clothes to donate.
* I have started a bag of items to donate to the dog shelter: old sheets, a set of curtains I made from sheets and towels.

Work:
* I worked a little overtime each day this week.
* I packed healthy snacks for work. My appetite/digestion is weird since switching shifts, and I can't really handle meals well anymore. It got to be too easy to eat junk or nothing at all. Now I plan ahead to bring things like mixed nuts to nibble on at work.
* I bought prescription safety glasses and new work boots. I was delaying the purchase, but figured that since I spend most of my life at work, it makes sense to be as comfortable as possible. I get reimbursed for most of the cost of each. The glasses will cost around $15 and the boots will cost $30 after reimbursement.
* It looks like my work schedule is about to be crazy for the next several months. I'm a little nervous about how I'll hold up working 6 days a week when I'm gone 12 1/2 hours a day, but I'm going to do my best. Hopefully we continue to put a good amount into savings and towards debt to keep me encouraged.

Preparedness:
* I put a blanket and some granola bars into my car just in case.

Future:
* Trucker had another audition for a commercial.
* Trucker got another role in a movie. He gets to play a villain!

Health:
* I convinced Trucker to try a new barber. He had been going to a chain because they were cheap, but every time it was bad and he was self conscious. I found a barber that was $5 more and got him to try it. It will cost $1 a week, which I think is a fair price to feel confident every day.
* Trucker played softball on his league.

Community:
* My sister had a vow renewal ceremony for her 1-year anniversary. She had eloped but decided she wanted a wedding with friends and family after all. Mom and her friends really put on a lovely event. It was a hunting theme (they both hunt and fish a lot) and they used his duck decoys, branches and logs from my dad's wood pile for decoration. A lot of her friends let them borrow decorative items from their outdoorsy-themed homes. Mom bought the food and my sister's MIL cooked it.

Finally, I thought I'd share a quote I found.

"Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries.” – Anne Herbert

How was your week?