Rants of A Coyote

So this topic really has nothing to do with chicken, but everything to do with blatantly not taking care of your own stuff. When you are on your own, people generally do not notice as much, unless you have company.  When you live in a group setting though: Take care of your stuff.

At my house, the common area of contempt is the Kitchen.  I myself have gotten a LOT better at making sure the pots and pans get cleaned up right after use.  I forget sometimes, but someone usually at least reminds me of this fact and I take care of it. There are other things with my kitchen though that needs attention, like Fried Chicken containers, that get left out for over a week by their owner... Stupid chicken.  The container cannot walk itself to the trash, it's purchaser ate all the legs!

Anyway, somewhat back on track: There are things around my house I know I need to do.  I generally take care of them in chunks rather than each little item at once.  Recently I just fixed 4 kitchen tiles that had fallen off the edge (Poor initial adhesion, but all is good now). Other times it is learning the quirks of items; Like my washer/dryer.

Whenever my dryer is not working as well as it should, I remember when a friend of mine worked in Apartment Management and one of the tenants Dryer would stop working correctly.  Turns out that the tenant never cleared the lint trap.  Stupid Chicken!

Those of you that live in communal living situations... How do you handle things?  How do you divide things like Kitchen, cleaning, trash, etc?

Are you fortunate enough to have a DollarTree near you with a Freezer section?  If not you can still do this, just keep an eye out for sales at your local grocery store.

What are we going to make?  Soup! Good, hearty, healthy soup!

What do we need?  Some spices, some veggies, some chicken, rice and water. That's it!  No, Really... That's all there is to it.

Alright:  I will break it down.  My typical soup that I make in my 12qt stock pot consist of 3 chicken thighs, 1 bag frozen California vegetable mix, 1 bag stir fry vegetable mix, 1 onion 1-2 cups rice, salt, pepper, pepper (I like pepper), Italian Seasoning, Garlic and Ginger.

Really, it is the garlic and chicken that make this. You can be fancy with the chicken or just toss it in frozen.  It really doesn't matter.  Grill it on the BBQ first and you will get a slight smoky flavor.

Now, get your 12 to 16 qt stockpot out. Don't have one?  Send me a message... I can get you a basic one for around $20.

Now the fun part:  Toss everything but the rice together into the pot.  Frozen is perfectly Okay! Fill with enough water to reach about 11 or so quarts of soup.  It will cook down. If your chicken is boneless, then you have nothing more to do.

Cook on medium to medium high until chicken is ready to fall off the bones (If there are bones in it).  if you are using pre-sliced chicken or boneless chicken you can add the rice at this time.  If you have bones... you need to remove them.  Once they are removed, slice up the chicken, add it back to the pot, and add your rice.

at the time you add the rice, for an added treat you can add a large can of diced tomato's. Let this simmer for another hour or so and you have a very hearty soup.

Share your recipes below.

Today a friend of mine reported that he got paid in Silver. With the price of silver hovering around $30 an Oz today (In USD) and up over 500% since 2001, It makes me really wish I had bought silver many years back. We have always been taught that the precious metals do great in a weak environment and right now... our USD is pretty sickly.

As you can see: The prices of precious metals has definitely gone up over time. In part to general laws of Supply and Demand, in part to the weakended state of the USD. Granted, it is only a % difference, but at the time of this post the current live data listed that out of a $8.60 Price Per Ounce increase for gold, $0.40 of that was because of a lower value for the USD. On the other hand, when our dollar is strengthing it accounts for a slightly slower gain in price for gold. Earlier during a USD upswing, there was a -$0.10 change in the USD which kept the price of gold DOWN slightly.

Now that I have seen a live example of people getting paid in Precious Metals, if anyone wants to pay for my Computer and Consulting services in Precious Metals, Great! (Especially Gold!) ... So lets see, that means that right now my rate is about An Ounce of Silver an Hour. (Normal rate is $35.00USD/Hr)

Edit: Picture to be updated soon, but thank you Steve Hyland for correcting me on my math terminology. Gold since 2001 has only increased by 412% and Silver 572%

"The Bubble":

Let's walk through this one together. Hey, do you mind putting down your $6.00 Carl Jr. Burger first? Let me take a sip of my Starbucks $5.00 latte. Okay, Here we go:

Do you know how much you spend a month? No? Chances are you don't even have a basic budget to follow. Always complaining about "Those Stupid Banks" because you over drafted, again? Now I know you don't operate off a budget. Fix it, NOW.

Here, I will even help you! First off, what are the things you NEED to survive where you live? Rent, Electric, Water, Sewer, Natural Gas, Property Taxes? I will even throw in Internet for the 21st Century. Now, how about food. I mean honest to goodness food. Make it yourself with ingredients. Can't cook? That's fine, get a crock pot. It does it pretty much for you. Well worth the $30-$40. Don't like to chop stuff? Get a food processor, even a cheap one (You will do better to get one in the $100 or higher range though.)

Technically, you can eat consistently for about $50-$100 a month if you know how to bargain shop and can remember PORTION SIZES. "Oh, but I am a bigger person and need to eat more." ... Are you kidding me? BULLSHIT! To some extent you may need marginally more, but if that is the case I am guessing you are not that active either, which means... YOU ARE NOT BURNING THAT MUCH. Guess what that means... You don't need as much... Anyway. Enough about food. That is not the purpose of this rant.

Basically, a budget is a rough guideline. A budget is not static either. It is a living idea. Each month you should be reviewing your budget, making adjustments where necessary to accomplish your goals. Me Personally, I try to live to have a $200.00 float by the end of the month. What's a float you ask? A float will make those idiot banks stop over drafting you. Generally about 10-20% is good. Oh wait... that means you have to do the work to prevent it. "But my bank just wont process the transaction and I will pay cash" (Or insert similar stupid comment here). There are a few things wrong with this: Gas stations and restaurants. Gas Stations, depending on where you go, only pre-authorize for $1.00. This means your bank only sees a $1.00 charge going through until it clears. When it does clear the full amount will go through, and you will still overdraft. Same thing for restaurants and tips. Generally still, most places only Pre-Auth for the food amount. Not gratuity.

Paying for your own utilities? Turn down the heat/AC! Granted: On the extreme days it probably is not going to make much difference anyway, but each degree helps! Is it a little chilly in your place? Man (or Woman) Up and get a little throw blanket. Heating the area immediately around you is a lot more effective and a lot better on your wallet. If you are in any state of decent health, two-three throw blankets will keep you warm enough that you will probably be close to sweating. Have a little bit to spend on a small upgrade? Buy some heavy DRAPES for your windows. Chances are within a couple of months they will have paid for themselves.

"You're one to talk, with your 73 inch Television". Yeah, I have a 73 Inch Television, but it only uses slightly more power than a 100W Light Bulb... and I do not run it 24/7. Why don't we talk about how you want to have your entire house lit up with regular light bulbs so that every aspect of your house is evenly lit.

Are you pissed at me yet? No? Okay then, lets keep going. Pretty much, utilities follow the same rule: Use less, pay less. What a novel concept. Let's see what else we can apply that to: Driving? Hmm, Drive less, pay less for gasoline. Fast Food? Don't go to Wendy's, don't have to spend $$ on their "Value Menu"... AND less likely to have to spend $$ at doctor later on. Double Bonus!

Now: We have covered the basics. One thing I have not mentioned is Fun Money. Sanity Money. Etc. Budget some fun money each month. each person is different, but generally try to set aside $50 to $200 depending on income for quick "I have got to get that" moments each month. Roughly 2.5-5.0% of your income is good for these moments.

Here. Here is a sample $2000 budget.

• Income
• Source 1: $2000
• Expenses
• Charities: $200
• FLOAT: $200
• SAVINGS: $200
• Rent: $650 (Really... should only be about 1/3 TOTAL income, MAX.)
• Utilities: $250
• TV/Internet: $90
• Food: $100
• Car Insurance: $100
• Gasoline: $100
• Fun Money: $50
• Amount Unallocated (But Should Go Into Savings)
• $60

Now go save some money. Still cannot get this right? Message me. I will walk you through the process for $20.00. No, I am not an expert at this, but I will still gladly charge for my time being used.