I have never been good with math or money.
Always came up short between paychecks and I would be running to the bank for more overdraft.
Our system has always been to pay bills first, fuel up the car for the week, grocery shop and then whatever is left over gets saved. Smart, right?
Well, let me tell you that besides a scattered 20$ here and there (that will get spent within a couple of days) - there isn't anything left to save.
And this isn't because I go crazy at the stores. I don't buy clothes unless we need them and then it's the cheapest clothes possible. I don't spend insane amounts of money on knick knacks around the house - in fact I might buy a couple of cute things at the dollar store. That's about it.
We don't have a credit card, we don't have car payments as we always buy a slightly older car and we buy it outright.
Where is our money going?
I've looked through countless of websites and blogs, trying to figure out a system that works.
Feeling lost and confused, I gave up! There is no possible way that a person that is horrible with money and that has mutual allergies with math - can do this!
This will be our life - we will live from paycheck to paycheck with 0 dollars saved for emergencies.
Not anymore!
I found it! The system that makes sense to me!
I sat down, pulled out all of our monthly bills and did up the numbers.
We can do this! It is actually possible.
http://www.onebeautifulhomeblog.com/2015/11/soon-debt-free-2016/
I haven't printed anything out yet - I came across this post and decided to try this.
Instead of only listing out the dollars - I actually gave myself a budget for each a category and worked out the percentages.
Groceries - x amount of $ is 15% of our weekly check.
Gas - x amount of $ is 17%.
Regular house bills - x amount of $ is 30%.
Company bills....
You get it.
I also decided to run with the lowest paychecks as a base.
My husband's work is fairly irregular from week to week which has also made it harder for me to make and stick with a budget.
But lo and behold! This works for me!
The first time I ran the numbers, it added up to be 104% of our paycheck!
No wonder we are always broke!
It was easier for me to take those 4 % and adjust the budget accordingly.
Aaaaand! I labelled our savings as a bill!
I will never save money if it keeps being the lowest priority.
I can actually (in theory at least), save a whopping 100$ per week!
This is huge!
I also did it up so that we have 0$ left at the end of the week.
Bills (including our savings), gas, groceries and company bills get paid and then there is a certain amount for each a week for buying coffee, the scattered bagel, etc.
I will be starting this in 3 weeks.
Only because we have an extra bill for this month that throws this budget out the window!
I'm not pressing my "luck" by trying to figure that out as we technically can't afford this bill, even if I apply the future savings of a 100$ a week to it.
The countdown is on! I can't wait to try this.
I already stashed away 50$ of this weeks non-existing money.
Because - now it's a bill!
I will follow Dave Ramsey's advice too and start by having a 1000$ in a baby emergency fund to keep from accumulating smaller debts, before I start paying off our debts.
I wrote down the few debts we do have and I will do the snowball pay-off thing!
This is where you list off all of your debts - smallest to largest.
Then you pay as much as you can on the smallest one, until it's gone!
Then you can take the money you always used to pay that monthly bill and put it on bill #2 on top of the regular amount that you pay into that!
Brilliant!
Thursday, July 7, 2016
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
Very berry muffins!
I do love baking. I really do.
But only when I want to - when I "need to", I hate to bake.
I love the thought of homemade everything.
Homemade breads, muffins, cookies, bars, cakes and truffles!
I'm afraid the former wild-child has been somewhat domesticated!
I love sending hubs to work with sandwiches made from homemade bread, homemade hummus, tomatoes and cucumbers from our own yard and something for a snack.
This weekend started with me feeling off, the weather here has been cold, damp, hot, humid, windy, chilly and now back to humid and hot as h.e.l.l! - I knew I was getting something and when I'm not feeling good, I really. don't. want. to. bake.
Damn sinuses!
So I decided to make a double batch of muffins so hubs would have enough for the whole week.
A couple of weeks ago, I had found a recipe for fruit explosion muffins - scribbled by me on the back of a receipt and stuffed in between pages in one of my many notebooks that are half filled with recipes. It has been forgotten (as was this particular notebook) for .... I'm too embarrassed to say.
So I have no idea where I got it from.
But I made it then and we loved it! We devoured the 15 muffins in 2 days!
So - a repeat was in order!
This is the recipe:
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups chopped berries
Egg-replacer for 2 eggs (mixed, this will go with your wet ingredients)
1 cup vegan sour cream (or vegan mayo)
1/2 cup oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp lemon juice (fresh)
Preheat oven to 400F
Mix together all the dry ingredients in a big bowl and add the berries.
In another bowl, mix all the wet ingredients.
Add the wet to dry and very carefully fold together.
Fill your muffin liners 3/4 full.
Bake for 15-20 minutes.
I'm told I am odd because I actually like a bit of busted berries in my batter.
I also went overboard with my berries and I think I added closer to 2 1/2 cups!
I use what I have on hand each time.
This time around I happened to have strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries!
I also added, at the request of my hubs, a bit of berry jam in the middle of the batter.
If you do that, then half fill your muffin liners first, then add a bit of the jam of your choice and then cover with batter.
They rise a little bit so don't fill the liners up to the brim!
You can easily make a double batch and freeze half once they are completely cool.
Just take them out of the freezer the night before you want them or you could pop them in the microwave.
I hope you give them a go! If you do, please leave a comment on how they turned out - these are almost completely untested (besides by me and hubs)!
But only when I want to - when I "need to", I hate to bake.
I love the thought of homemade everything.
Homemade breads, muffins, cookies, bars, cakes and truffles!
I'm afraid the former wild-child has been somewhat domesticated!
I love sending hubs to work with sandwiches made from homemade bread, homemade hummus, tomatoes and cucumbers from our own yard and something for a snack.
This weekend started with me feeling off, the weather here has been cold, damp, hot, humid, windy, chilly and now back to humid and hot as h.e.l.l! - I knew I was getting something and when I'm not feeling good, I really. don't. want. to. bake.
Damn sinuses!
So I decided to make a double batch of muffins so hubs would have enough for the whole week.
A couple of weeks ago, I had found a recipe for fruit explosion muffins - scribbled by me on the back of a receipt and stuffed in between pages in one of my many notebooks that are half filled with recipes. It has been forgotten (as was this particular notebook) for .... I'm too embarrassed to say.
So I have no idea where I got it from.
But I made it then and we loved it! We devoured the 15 muffins in 2 days!
So - a repeat was in order!
This is the recipe:
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups chopped berries
Egg-replacer for 2 eggs (mixed, this will go with your wet ingredients)
1 cup vegan sour cream (or vegan mayo)
1/2 cup oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp lemon juice (fresh)
Preheat oven to 400F
Mix together all the dry ingredients in a big bowl and add the berries.
In another bowl, mix all the wet ingredients.
Add the wet to dry and very carefully fold together.
Fill your muffin liners 3/4 full.
Bake for 15-20 minutes.
I'm told I am odd because I actually like a bit of busted berries in my batter.
I also went overboard with my berries and I think I added closer to 2 1/2 cups!
I use what I have on hand each time.
This time around I happened to have strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries!
I also added, at the request of my hubs, a bit of berry jam in the middle of the batter.
If you do that, then half fill your muffin liners first, then add a bit of the jam of your choice and then cover with batter.
They rise a little bit so don't fill the liners up to the brim!
You can easily make a double batch and freeze half once they are completely cool.
Just take them out of the freezer the night before you want them or you could pop them in the microwave.
I hope you give them a go! If you do, please leave a comment on how they turned out - these are almost completely untested (besides by me and hubs)!
Monday, June 27, 2016
Very yummy stuff coming up right here!
I am not all doom and gloom here! I promise!
Since going Vegan, I have been super conscious about what and how we eat.
Trying to get my husband to eat healthy is no problem when it comes to most things, he is however very iffy on meat substitutes and my tofu cooking skills are not the greatest so I often opt to use just veggies as the stars of my meals.
They should be treated as stars! Who knew veggies were so versatile?
Not I!
I had never bought or willingly had cauliflower before going Vegan (yes, I say that a lot).
That's something for a grown woman to say! But the truth is that I was always super picky!
Before meeting my husband, the only vegetable I would eat, would be a spud! Potatoes!
I didn't like bell peppers, lettuce, mushrooms, you name it! Or at least I said I didn't cause I didn't think I did.
When I met my hubby - I knew how to successfully burn burgers on the stove (as I only knew the "high" option on the stove), I could boil wicked hot dogs, I could serve up a steamy gourmet microwave meal and I could order take out like a pro! I wasn't even sure how to boil potatoes!
Anyway - let's get away from my embarrassing (and then non-existing) cooking skills and back to the cauliflower!
Did you know that you can make super yummy buffalo "wings" using cauliflower?
Or use cauliflower as steak?
Or make wicked pizza crusts?
Curried cauliflower?
The list is endless! This gem of a vegetable that often gets overlooked is so versatile, super yummy and so healthy!
Since going Vegan, I have been super conscious about what and how we eat.
Trying to get my husband to eat healthy is no problem when it comes to most things, he is however very iffy on meat substitutes and my tofu cooking skills are not the greatest so I often opt to use just veggies as the stars of my meals.
They should be treated as stars! Who knew veggies were so versatile?
Not I!
I had never bought or willingly had cauliflower before going Vegan (yes, I say that a lot).
That's something for a grown woman to say! But the truth is that I was always super picky!
Before meeting my husband, the only vegetable I would eat, would be a spud! Potatoes!
I didn't like bell peppers, lettuce, mushrooms, you name it! Or at least I said I didn't cause I didn't think I did.
When I met my hubby - I knew how to successfully burn burgers on the stove (as I only knew the "high" option on the stove), I could boil wicked hot dogs, I could serve up a steamy gourmet microwave meal and I could order take out like a pro! I wasn't even sure how to boil potatoes!
Anyway - let's get away from my embarrassing (and then non-existing) cooking skills and back to the cauliflower!
Did you know that you can make super yummy buffalo "wings" using cauliflower?
Or use cauliflower as steak?
Or make wicked pizza crusts?
Curried cauliflower?
The list is endless! This gem of a vegetable that often gets overlooked is so versatile, super yummy and so healthy!
I figured I'd share a recipe I stumbled on while Pinteresting (I say it's an actual word)!
Here is a link to the most delicious Buffalo cauliflower bites and a homemade ranch dressing.
I used a bit of Agave nectar instead of honey and of course vegan mayo.
http://ourlifetastesgood.blogspot.ca/2015/10/baked-buffalo-cauliflower-bites.html
You will thank me later! I promise!
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
How I got here.
I have been married to my man for over 8 years.
Not once had I uttered the words "vegan" or "vegetarian", nor had I ever talked about it.
Ohh, I knew it existed but I always pictured the popular stereotype of a happy hippie and never thought much about it other than they might be a bit ,uhm, quirky!
So imagine our surprise when I entered a heated debate with a "militant" vegan, as an animal loving meat eater and got spit back out a confused, hurting vegan (and a lonely one at that)!
My Vegan "birth" was anything but painless. I was awake in the reality. And the reality is cruel.
This happened on one of those "I love pets" Facebook pages.
Where I among others, were accused of hypocrisy when we got upset over a sad treatment of a dog but we still condoned and supported animal agriculture.
At first I wondered what the heck that person was going on about!
I mean, common! Everybody knows it's not right to leave a dog in his kennel all day, every day and only let him out 1x a day for 30 minutes! Right?! That's just common sense and common decency!
Why is this person talking about cows and pigs anyway?
"They live their lives grazing meadows and have access to a barn when it gets cold!
They don't live in tiny little boxes!
Jeez!"
"That cow HAS to be milked! It's for her own good! Her udders will start to feel uncomfortable if we don't milk them! Milk has much needed calcium!"
I could go on and on about my misconceptions but I won't.
I got so pissed off at this stranger on the internet! How dare he to accuse me, of ALL PEOPLE, of not loving animals in general? Of course I do!
I have been bringing in sick, injured, lost and wandering, feral animals since I could remember, much to mother's dismay! I still do - even as I listen to every sigh that my husband tries to hide.
I remember being a scrawny 8 year old that witnessed the older neighborhood bullies, tossing a hamster between them and how I lost my sanity and scared them $hitless!
It got the job done! The poor little hamster was saved and brought to his home.
What is a speciest and why the heck am I accused of being one?
I set out to read every link he posted, watch every video he linked - for the sole purpose of proving him wrong! I was going to pick apart this faceless man's "information" and throw it back in his face!
I was going to teach him a lesson!
Well - turns out, the sad, cruel joke was on me.
Cows that live on factory farms do NOT graze green meadows, happily looking after their calves.
Pigs on factory farms do NOT bathe happily in mud by a pretty, red barn while the sun is shining.
Chickens on a factory farm, do NOT get to run about with their kind, in a big fenced off area by a cute little chicken hutch.
This is "the greatest lie ever told". Something Emily over at Bite sized Vegan, often says (link to her website follows).
I was naïve. Even after years of being bullied, after being abused, after being raped and attacked - by my fellow humans - I still believed that people had goodness in them. That we in general, were good.
We want to be good and we want to do good.
I believe that's why Animal Agriculture needs and wants Ag-Gag laws in place.
This is why we don't get offered a tour into big factory farms.
They do not want us to know the truth. Because as good people, we would be sick to our stomachs at the atrocity these animals face - every day.
I was floored! Disgusted! Heartbroken! Defeated!
And I had only glimpsed a few minutes of the lives of the billions of animals that have been treated horribly by us humans. We have failed them spectacularly and we still do today.
We will fail them spectacularly tomorrow and we will do so the day after that.
Right now - at this minute - there is a cow that is throwing up in unbelievable pain because the bolt gun didn't stun her before she is strung upside down and her neck is cut.
Right now - at this minute - there are pigs crammed in tiny cages - screaming in pain - as they burn on the inside while fully aware and awake.
Right now - at this minute - there are chickens that are strung up by their legs on an assembly line, that miss the stunner and might even miss the "killing machine" where their throat is cut - they will end up being scalded to death in the hot water that is supposed to remove the feathers of their dead bodies.
This is what we call "humane slaughter".
How did I not know the horror these poor, innocent souls, live in?
Better yet! How did I not know I was paying for this horror?!
When I learned this, I hated the "angry vegan" that opened my eyes.
It was so much nicer to live blissfully unaware, in my happy little bubble of goodness.
But here I am.
http://bitesizevegan.com/ethics-and-morality/the-extremism-of-veganism-exposing-the-greatest-lie-speech/ - check out Emily's video.
Not once had I uttered the words "vegan" or "vegetarian", nor had I ever talked about it.
Ohh, I knew it existed but I always pictured the popular stereotype of a happy hippie and never thought much about it other than they might be a bit ,uhm, quirky!
So imagine our surprise when I entered a heated debate with a "militant" vegan, as an animal loving meat eater and got spit back out a confused, hurting vegan (and a lonely one at that)!
My Vegan "birth" was anything but painless. I was awake in the reality. And the reality is cruel.
This happened on one of those "I love pets" Facebook pages.
Where I among others, were accused of hypocrisy when we got upset over a sad treatment of a dog but we still condoned and supported animal agriculture.
At first I wondered what the heck that person was going on about!
I mean, common! Everybody knows it's not right to leave a dog in his kennel all day, every day and only let him out 1x a day for 30 minutes! Right?! That's just common sense and common decency!
Why is this person talking about cows and pigs anyway?
"They live their lives grazing meadows and have access to a barn when it gets cold!
They don't live in tiny little boxes!
Jeez!"
"That cow HAS to be milked! It's for her own good! Her udders will start to feel uncomfortable if we don't milk them! Milk has much needed calcium!"
I could go on and on about my misconceptions but I won't.
I got so pissed off at this stranger on the internet! How dare he to accuse me, of ALL PEOPLE, of not loving animals in general? Of course I do!
I have been bringing in sick, injured, lost and wandering, feral animals since I could remember, much to mother's dismay! I still do - even as I listen to every sigh that my husband tries to hide.
I remember being a scrawny 8 year old that witnessed the older neighborhood bullies, tossing a hamster between them and how I lost my sanity and scared them $hitless!
It got the job done! The poor little hamster was saved and brought to his home.
What is a speciest and why the heck am I accused of being one?
I set out to read every link he posted, watch every video he linked - for the sole purpose of proving him wrong! I was going to pick apart this faceless man's "information" and throw it back in his face!
I was going to teach him a lesson!
Well - turns out, the sad, cruel joke was on me.
Cows that live on factory farms do NOT graze green meadows, happily looking after their calves.
Pigs on factory farms do NOT bathe happily in mud by a pretty, red barn while the sun is shining.
Chickens on a factory farm, do NOT get to run about with their kind, in a big fenced off area by a cute little chicken hutch.
This is "the greatest lie ever told". Something Emily over at Bite sized Vegan, often says (link to her website follows).
I was naïve. Even after years of being bullied, after being abused, after being raped and attacked - by my fellow humans - I still believed that people had goodness in them. That we in general, were good.
We want to be good and we want to do good.
I believe that's why Animal Agriculture needs and wants Ag-Gag laws in place.
This is why we don't get offered a tour into big factory farms.
They do not want us to know the truth. Because as good people, we would be sick to our stomachs at the atrocity these animals face - every day.
I was floored! Disgusted! Heartbroken! Defeated!
And I had only glimpsed a few minutes of the lives of the billions of animals that have been treated horribly by us humans. We have failed them spectacularly and we still do today.
We will fail them spectacularly tomorrow and we will do so the day after that.
Right now - at this minute - there is a cow that is throwing up in unbelievable pain because the bolt gun didn't stun her before she is strung upside down and her neck is cut.
Right now - at this minute - there are pigs crammed in tiny cages - screaming in pain - as they burn on the inside while fully aware and awake.
Right now - at this minute - there are chickens that are strung up by their legs on an assembly line, that miss the stunner and might even miss the "killing machine" where their throat is cut - they will end up being scalded to death in the hot water that is supposed to remove the feathers of their dead bodies.
This is what we call "humane slaughter".
How did I not know the horror these poor, innocent souls, live in?
Better yet! How did I not know I was paying for this horror?!
When I learned this, I hated the "angry vegan" that opened my eyes.
It was so much nicer to live blissfully unaware, in my happy little bubble of goodness.
But here I am.
http://bitesizevegan.com/ethics-and-morality/the-extremism-of-veganism-exposing-the-greatest-lie-speech/ - check out Emily's video.
A little bit about me.
I am a very flawed person.
I can be short tempered, I swear ALOT, I am sarcastic, stubborn, have little to no patience when it comes to certain things, I don't like to talk about my feelings and I am very much set in my ways.
Ohh! And I am the queen of the scatterbrains!
But I also love fiercely, I am a bleeding heart (as my hubby calls me), I can't stand bullies of any kind and I always speak up for those who cannot speak themselves, whether it be a 4 legged creature or a 2 legged one.
Hi. I am B - the Effed Up Vegan.
I don't know why I am starting this blog. I don't know what topics I will cover and I know I won't tiptoe around the subjects that I will be posting about. I go out of my way not to be hurtful to people on purpose but I do call things the way I see them - I might not always be right but I won't always be wrong either.
I am a new Vegan. Just an itty bitty sapling really.
Less than a year old in Vegan years.
That means that I ate my friends, with a smile on my face, for 28 years.
I am also what people often call, a "rape survivor" or a "victim of sexual abuse/violence".
Why on earth am I telling you that?
Because I am the way I am today, because of it. Or in spite of it. I don't really know which one is more appropriate.
I still have days that I struggle with the memories and I often get pulled back to the past while talking about rape or when I am fighting with a fellow "survivor" in their case or with their feelings.
Of course I don't have to participate in that topic but I know that I'll pull through. I always do because remember, I'm stubborn.
I am a wife with step kids. They are actually young men now.
I also have 3 dogs and 2 cats.
I am a sister and a daughter, a friend and I'm sure, someone's foe.
I say that last part because of my habit of calling people out when it comes to the treatment of animals and sometimes, people. They might not be MY foe but I'm sure I'm theirs.
I love reading, baking and cooking.
So, good people of the internet. This is me in a nutshell.
I can be short tempered, I swear ALOT, I am sarcastic, stubborn, have little to no patience when it comes to certain things, I don't like to talk about my feelings and I am very much set in my ways.
Ohh! And I am the queen of the scatterbrains!
But I also love fiercely, I am a bleeding heart (as my hubby calls me), I can't stand bullies of any kind and I always speak up for those who cannot speak themselves, whether it be a 4 legged creature or a 2 legged one.
Hi. I am B - the Effed Up Vegan.
I don't know why I am starting this blog. I don't know what topics I will cover and I know I won't tiptoe around the subjects that I will be posting about. I go out of my way not to be hurtful to people on purpose but I do call things the way I see them - I might not always be right but I won't always be wrong either.
I am a new Vegan. Just an itty bitty sapling really.
Less than a year old in Vegan years.
That means that I ate my friends, with a smile on my face, for 28 years.
I am also what people often call, a "rape survivor" or a "victim of sexual abuse/violence".
Why on earth am I telling you that?
Because I am the way I am today, because of it. Or in spite of it. I don't really know which one is more appropriate.
I still have days that I struggle with the memories and I often get pulled back to the past while talking about rape or when I am fighting with a fellow "survivor" in their case or with their feelings.
Of course I don't have to participate in that topic but I know that I'll pull through. I always do because remember, I'm stubborn.
I am a wife with step kids. They are actually young men now.
I also have 3 dogs and 2 cats.
I am a sister and a daughter, a friend and I'm sure, someone's foe.
I say that last part because of my habit of calling people out when it comes to the treatment of animals and sometimes, people. They might not be MY foe but I'm sure I'm theirs.
I love reading, baking and cooking.
So, good people of the internet. This is me in a nutshell.
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