Blog Action Day Post: Investing for Change

It's Blog Action Day, and I'm just getting in on the tail end of it. But I've had a topic in mind ever since the new investment opportunities opened up at work. Our university has long had a pre-tax investment option in addition to the state pension plan and a pension investment alternative plan. I finally took advantage of the pre-tax investment plan, socking a few hundred extra pre-tax dollars away each month painlessly and automatically.

Our university has contracts with several firms, and two had socially responsible investment choices. After investigating their various investment options with tools at Morningstar, comparing past performance, current operating costs, and similar screening tools, including the investment choices of each of the funds I was interested in, I chose a socially responsible fund operated by Fidelity. It appeared to be the best of the socially-responsible funds that were offered.

I teach biology, and we spend time in class looking at the impact of our choices on our own health and on the environment. If I'm preaching responsible action, I'd better teach it through my own actions. How can I good conscience invest in companies whose products I wouldn't buy, or companies with whom I've got issues with over their treatment of their workers or their environmental record?

We can vote with our wallets when we boycott certain products. We can do the same thing when we choose our investments.

First Kiva loan repayed

Back in April I started making loans through Kiva (see Kiva: Fighting Poverty through Microlending). One of the first loans I contributed to was a six-month loan to a woman in Ukraine who wanted to expand her wallpaper business. Congratulations to Tatyana Rud'ko who just paid her final payment on her loan! She looked like she was absolutely freezing in her open-air stall the day her picture was taken. It would be lovely if her business grew to the point that she could move it indoors.

Once the payment clears all processing through Kiva, the amount that I contributed will return to my account, ready to lend out again. I have eight other ladies, including two single mothers, in my portfolio and I'm watching their progress with interest. Since I assume all the risk and earn no interest, the cost of the loan is small, making it possible for people in poverty to afford loans to start or expand businesses that will help them into self-sufficiency. I love this concept.

Edit: Okay make that nine other ladies. I just came across this Cambodian widow who is supporting herself and her four children with a sewing business, as well as providing employment for young women in her village. With the popularity Kiva has gained recently after Oprah put in a good word for them, I'm sure her loan will be fulfilled within hours.

Stock market humor: A "summary" of last quarter

If you haven't seen this bit of humor floating around the internet already:

Helium was up, feathers were down.
Paper was stationary.
Fluorescent tubing was dimmed in light trading.
Knives were up sharply.
Cows steered into a bull market.
Pencils lost a few points.
Hiking equipment was trailing.
Elevators rose, while escalators continued their slow decline.
Weights were up in heavy trading.
Light switches were off.
Mining equipment hit rock bottom.
Diapers remained unchanged.
Shipping lines stayed at an even keel.
The market for raisins dried up.
Coca Cola fizzled.
Caterpillar stock inched up a bit.
Sun peaked at midday.
Balloon prices were inflated.
Scott Tissue touched a new bottom.
And batteries exploded in an attempt to recharge the market.

Going frugal for breakfast

Okay, is it cereal, or is it medicine? I've been eating some of the great cereals from Kashi, like their Vive, which is supposed to be full of probiotics and fiber and such. Or Heart to Heart, which is kind of like very robust Cheerios, with various added heart-healthy antioxidants.

Problem is, as good as the cereals are, they're expensive! But then, so are a lot of other cereals these days. To cut costs, I do make eggs and toast on Saturday, and oatmeal on Sunday, using Snoqualmie Falls oats, the best on the planet (it's my Scots blood calling out for that oatmeal). But during the week, it's faster to pour a bowl of cereal, and I prefer something with substance so I don't get hungry mid-morning. The Kashi company has been kind enough to send coupons in the mail every once in a while for filling out some of their surveys, but still -- how much does a box of grains and vitamin supplements need to cost?

Now, I can buy good stuff like whole grain flour, soy flour, flaxseed meal, wheat germ, oat bran and all, for pretty cheap if I buy in bulk. According to the Superfoods book, soy has all sorts of healthful properties, oats and other whole grains are full of fiber and antioxidants, flaxseed is a good vegetable source of omega-3 oils for those of us for whom fish is poison, and wheat germ, of course, is an essential part of the whole grain, containing a raft of vitamins and minerals. And what do you do with such a mix of ingredients?

Make bread, of course.

This morning I got out a Rubbermaid container and mixed up some whole wheat flour with some bread flour, soy flour, oat bran, wheat germ, flaxseed meal, and powdered milk. With the Super Flour ready-mixed, it's easy to scoop it out and dump it in the bread machine.

So in my bread machine right now is whole grain apricot walnut breakfast bread. More Superfoods: apricots, a source of beta-carotenes, walnuts, a source of heart-healthy oils.

A slice or two of the super bread, a bowl of plain Nancy's honey yogurt with some frozen blueberries (both superfoods as well), and there's breakfast.

To make it even more frugal, I'm learning to make the yogurt myself, and when blueberry season comes around, I'll go pick blueberries for my own freezer.

I imagine I'll still be buying Kashi cereals just for variety's sake. But if I make my own good-for-what-ails-ya breakfast, all chock full of the latest in fashionable nutritional goodies, I think I can save a bundle on breakfast.

Kiva: Fighting poverty through microlending

I've blogged for over a year now about personal finance, savings, and investments.

The "investment" I'm writing about today pays only in karma and warm, happy feelings. But that's a mighty good payoff.

I discovered Kiva on the ever-popular Stop Buying Crap blog. I checked the site out and was impressed enough to sign up and start micro-lending that very evening.

I've seen microlending sites before, the people-to-people kind where things can get a little, well, weird. Potential borrowers pleading for loans, posting photos of themselves that are... um... interesting, and while there's a lot of entertainment value in it, and one can earn interest on the loans that are paid back, I haven't yet been tempted to try.

Kiva is different. Here's how it works:

Financial institutions in developing nations screen the applicants. They select people based on their enterpeneurial spirit, the soundness of their business, and other similar qualities. They contact Kiva, which posts the applicants' photos, the amount they need, and what the money will be used for, on the Kiva website. Lenders browse the site, select applicants and businesses they're interested in supporting, and lend a portion of the loan amount. The minimum one can lend is $25, paid either with a credit card or Pay Pal (which is waiving its fees for this project). One can lend much more, but because there's always the risk of default, Kiva recommends lending small amounts to many people. Once the loan amount has been raised, the borrower is expected to pay back the loan in a given amount of time. Because of the screening process, the default rate is very low. The local lending agencies do charge a small amount of interest, and Kiva will soon charge a small amount to cover their own costs, but the lenders do not collect interest. This keeps the costs very low and makes the loans affordable for the recipients.

So right now I've got four small loans out. One fulfilled the needs of a Samoan woman who makes and sells handicrafts. The other three are still in the fund-raising process.

Why did I choose to do this? Because I know what poverty looks from the inside. Poverty sucks. Being in a position now to help people grow their own businesses and their dignity feels mighty good and reminds me of how much I really have.

So c'mon. Can you spare $25?

Cold cash doesn't tell (shopping) tales

The New York Times featured and article recently (Money Doesn't Talk) about why women use cash for expensive purchases to "hide" the true cost from husbands or boyfriends.

Why, the article asks, in this day and age, when so many women are financially independent and sometimes earn salaries larger than their other halves, do they feel compelled to hide how much they spend?

Gulp. And here I thought that was just one of my stupid little quirks.

Granted, I've never spent cash to cover a $2000 tote bag like the woman in the article did. I wouldn't know what to do with a $2000 tote bag. I do know what I'd do with $2000, and I wouldn't spend it on a freakin' tote bag, no matter what designer has scribbled her name on it. I'd rather have some lovely designer stocks, thanks.

But every now and then, without thinking about why, I've used cash from my wallet to cover the purchase of a book, a desk toy, or some other indulgence.

Why?

It's not that my husband will get mad. Heck, no. In fact, he sometimes wishes I'd indulge myself more often.

No, for me this goes further back. I can remember times when my mother scolded me, even screamed at me, for "wasting" my puny allowance on something she thought was frivolous instead of saving it for -- I don't know what. She'd also get mad at my Dad if he bought something she thought was a wasteful indulgence, and to "show him," next time she needed new uniforms for work, she'd buy them from a second hand shop. The message I got from home was, "Don't spend money. There's never enough money."

I wonder what triggers the "secret cash" behavior in others?

Frugal diet tips for your new year resolutions

Have you set your new year resolutions yet? Better still, have you set your new year goals yet? If you haven't get with it, because goals like, "I'll set aside $XX of my income every month" give you something concrete to aim at, while vague resolutions like, "I want to start saving more this year" are all too easy to break because what does "start saving" really look like?

Diets often figure large in people's resolutions or goals for the new year. In the interest of promoting frugality, here are the diet tips that have worked for me from year to year to shed those holiday pounds while not putting the bite in your strained post-holiday budget.

Mind, if you have any special health problems, see a doctor before following any of this advice. Some folks gain weight from eating too much, while others have health conditions that make it difficult to lose weight. If you are in the latter category, be sure to follow your doctor's advice.

1. Lay off the "detoxifying" and "fat flushing" pills, potions, and teas. I teach college-level science. My degree is in botany, but I know several human physiologists. They all agree that the only thing that causes people to gain weight is consuming more calories than they use up. The notion that "toxins" cause you to gain weight, they all tell me, is bogus. So-called "toxins," the normal by-products of metabolism, are taken care of by cellular systems, the liver, and kidneys. If you are suffering from a build-up of metabolic toxins, you'd be very, very sick, and you'd belong in the hospital, not on a diet.
   
   As for "fat flushing" products -- well, have you ever seen an oil slick in the toilet after you use it? I think not. The kidneys are not a fat-disposal system.
   
   So why do these products appear to work at first? If you read the labels, the herbal products often contain dandelion, parsley, or other common diuretics. All you're "flushing" from your system is water -- not to mention all the money you're flushing from your wallet. If you really, really need an herbal diuretic to fit into that special dress for that special party, have a salad of tender dandelion greens and fresh parsley, with a cup of tea. Oh, yah.
   
   
2. Lay off diet pills altogether. Read the information on the products at established medical sites, not the diet sites, especially not the diet sites that sell you products. The vast majority of them don't work, and some can have serious side effects.
   
   
3. Forget the fads. There's nothing inherently wrong with carbohydrates. You need carbohydrates. Your brain runs entirely on glucose, and if you don't get enough carbs, your brain gets very cranky. Fat, too, has an awfully bad rap. Many saturated fats and trans fats are bad, but omega-3 oils and monounsaturated fats have heart-healthy qualities. Any food can make you fat if you eat too much of it (well, getting fat off of celery would be a real trick). You need some fat, some carbs, and some protein. Don't go overboard consuming or avoiding any of them. Just eat good, healthy, fresh foods, especially vegetables, fruits, and whole grains.
   
   
4. Don't rely on special "diet" foods. Jenny Craig and all her friends want to do your dieting for you. In exchange for a quantity of money, they will hand you pre-made breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and dinners. If all the food you have in the house is Jenny Craig's, and if you don't want to have to think about your food, and especially if you hate to cook and don't mind paying for packaged food, this might work for you. It takes all the thought out of dieting, since all the food is pre-portioned and calorie-controlled for you. But what you hand over in exchange is a lot of money, and the chance to have fresh food prepared just the way you like it. If you're a foodie, you'll go nuts.
   
   But even if you don't go the Jenny Craig route, there are lots of other "diet" products out there, including the "meal exchange" bars and shakes. The idea here is that instead of eating a tasty salad, sandwich, bowl of soup, or last night's casserole warmed over, you eat a tasteless, vitamin-enriched candy bar or a thin, sugary milkshake-like-product. Still hungry? Still want something to munch? Aw, too bad. For the same caloric cost, you could have had a great big tasty salad, full of vitamins, fiber, and natural antioxidants, instead of one nasty little candy bar.
   
   Above all, don't fall for the fallacious logic that if one diet bar a day can help you lose weight, eating lots of diet bars should make you lose a lot of weight. There's nothing in the diet bars that makes weight come off. It's the calories you consume.
   
   
   
5. Eat less, move more. That's really all there is to it. There are no magic foods or magic combinations of foods that will do it for you. The real secret to weight loss is to consume fewer calories and, at the same time, use up more calories. But don't go overboard. Just cut back on your food a little bit at a time. Pour a little less cereal in your bowl in the morning. Have one egg instead of two. Take smaller portions of food. Moving more doesn't mean you have to run out and join an expensive gym, either. As with reducing food, increase your movement a bit at a time. Take a ten-minute walk at lunch, and increase it a bit week by week. Do some "office exercises," like push-ups off of your desk, and knee bends and leg-raises while holding on to your chair. Just a bit at a time, so that it becomes a regular habit.
   
   
6. Don't keep snacks around the house. Studies show that people eat more if food is in front of them. Practice "out of sight, out of mind" dieting. If there's nothing handy that you can snack on when you're not really hungry, it's easier to avoid snacking.
   
   
7. Increase your fiber consumption. Fiber helps fill you up and helps you feel more satisfied at the end of a meal. Studies I've seen in Science News have shown that it's not just how much you eat, but how long it takes you to eat it, and the whole "mouthfeel" chewing thing that helps people feel satisfied. A chewy, high-fiber whole-grain roll gives more satisfaction, for example, than a soft white roll. More fiber in your insides also controls choesterol, fat absorption, and suchlike. So eat whole grain cereals and breads instead of white bread (but check the label to see that the whole grain products don't have extra added sugars or oils). Eat more beans than meat. Eat one or more large helpings of low-calorie, high-fiber vegetables, such as broccoli or cabbage, at meals. Add lots of celery to soups and casseroles as high-fiber, low calorie filler. I've even seen some fiber supplement products that look like snacks. One might use them that way, or take a fiber supplement before a meal.
   
   
8. Cook. If you don't do a lot of your own cooking already, learn how to. Packaged foods are often full of fat and sodium and low on fiber. Restaurant foods are often full-fat, and restaurants often serve huge portions. Besides, pre-prepared food is several times more expensive than home-cooked foods. Big cookbooks too confusing for you? Never learned how to cook? Pick up a kids' cookbook. I learned to make muffins from the Betty Crocker Boys and Girls Cookbook when I was in second grade. If a second grader can make muffins without help, you can, too. Once you get the hang of basic cooking, find a low-calorie cookbook and try some new stuff. Try low-cal vegetarian recipes for meals that are as easy on your budget as they are on your waistline.
   
   
9. Find sneaky ways to reduce calories. Mix equal parts of your favorite creamy salad dressing with balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar (or a mixture of both). Presto! You've cut the calories in the dressing in half, and you need less of the thinner dressing to coat the lettuce (you should learn not to drench your salads in the first place). Where recipes call for sour cream, substitute part or all plain yogurt. Use applesauce instead of oil in quick breads. Think of meat as a flavoring or condiment instead of a main dish. Whenever a recipe calls for high-fat ingredients, look for a low-fat alternative.
   
   
10. Knit. Really. Or anything else that keeps your hands occupied when you watch TV or sit down to a movie. If your hands are busy, you'll be less likely to reach for snacks. If you don't want to knit for yourself, pick a knitting charity to make things for.

There ya go. It all works for me, so it may work for you, too. Happy goal-setting!