cheapbohemian

cheapbohemian
Location
Washington, District of Columbia, USA
Birthday
September 12
Title
Chief of Cheap
Company
CheapBohemian
Bio
i blog about money and culture, and i have very little of both.

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Salon.com
MAY 18, 2012 3:37PM

An Impolite Conversation

I've been having fun with charts again.

It's good that the charting is fun, because the information isn't so fun.

I believe this is what my friend Nancy refers to as "the horizon always receding":

(Click the chart for a better view.)

… Read full post »
2 Comments
APRIL 2, 2012 12:11AM

No Fooling

I might as well slap this up for all to see.

So guilt and shame remain crucial elements of my savings plan.

Problem is, at the moment my expenditures are outstripping my savings, so, uh. This isn't what it seems.

It's worse. Eventually to get/… Read full post »
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MARCH 28, 2012 11:06PM

Poetry Thursday: Darrell Grayson

The Nature of Being
by Darrell Grayson

Perhaps
Through humor, love cascades
As a display of stars—these
The gods have reasonably essayed—
And further, they whispered the
Punch-line into clay to ease
Their boredom.

This
Essence is conveyed as light.
These artists crafted the senses through
Bol/
… Read full post »
2 Comments
MARCH 5, 2012 8:58AM

On Saving, and Saving Again

Behind this modest update lies a world of pride.

About two years ago, I started this blog after realizing that a costly, avoidable tax mistake had jeopardized a once-in-a-lifetime trip overseas with my daughter.

To put a keener edge to the blade, the extra amount I owed/…

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MARCH 1, 2012 7:12PM

Poetry Thursday: Matsuo Basho

In 1689 a man left his home and traveled for 1,200 miles with a companion, a few changes of clothes, writing brushes, and notebooks. The two walked throughout their homeland of Japan for five months. He was already known as the master of haiku, a poem form that relies/… Read full post »
4 Comments
FEBRUARY 26, 2012 10:11PM

Zen and the Art of Debt Management

I figured if I confused you with my whole desktop you might not immediately notice that--

I SAVED NOTHING THIS WEEK.

Zero. Goose eggs. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Bupkis.

And I am not a bit sorry.

I went away somewhere far away where they serve you… Read full post »
3 Comments
FEBRUARY 23, 2012 9:11PM

Huzzah for Samuel Pepys

 is that a pen in your hand, Mr. Pepys, or are you just happy to see me? Look.

No, look up here.

I don't do this for just everyone, every day.

But if the online version of your essay about Samuel Pepys in the digital age comes out/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 23, 2012 8:43AM

Poetry Thursday: Jim Carroll



















Prologue

Starting with little in mind
the best you might do is begin it
over and over again. transforming

the real earth to a texture, and strength
beyond control./… Read full post »
1 Comments
FEBRUARY 19, 2012 6:39PM

Notice Anything Different?

Nah, me neither.

That's good, though, really.

This week, I've got nothing to say about this debt, and I'm still saving it.

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FEBRUARY 16, 2012 6:13AM

Poetry Thursday: Fathers and Other Strangers

iconic dad and salesman, Willy Loman I've been thinking a lot about fathers, breadwinners, and fathers as breadwinners, which is what stirred yesterday's reposted Valentine to my dad.

The theme has been coming up in my teaching, too, with Sherman Alexie's wrenching work "Father Coming Home"/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 12, 2012 11:13AM

Shame Works Overtime

It's still an excellent gig for shame at my house. This week's success owes a lot to my parking problems at the downtown location of my job, and the lack of dedicated parking for employees. Which reminds me of this.

Note that the money I put toward debt/…

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FEBRUARY 11, 2012 9:01AM

Strip-Down Saturday: Seeing

I am afraid to see.

This happens now and again, and it started on Thursday. That night, I came home after a rough day, and my daughter said, "Just breathe, Mom. Do that thing you do. Just breathe and settle down and focus."

I stood in the/…

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4 Comments
FEBRUARY 9, 2012 7:37AM

Poetry Thursday: Marge Piercy

via Public Domain Images Online I'll go with a fairly easy revelation from my morning, the poem featured on today's The Writer's Almanac, the radio program that basically gets me out of bed each day.

As I gain more readers, I have to revisit my "whole/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 6, 2012 3:00AM

Susan G. Komen Foundation: The Heathers of Women's Health Back Down

Discount Gun Distributors of Seattle sure picked the wrong week to try to help the little ladies.
The email in my in-box last week was titled "Disappointing News from a Friend."

The way that Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards broke the news to her supporters was/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 5, 2012 4:55PM

Piggymojo, Flying Dog, and Wildeman FTW

via piggymojo Shame and banking have always gone together in my pocketbook.

So it shouldn't surprise any of you that this week, shame banking is again paying big dividends.

I've just transferred over my week's goal of $260 toward credit card debt, as part of/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 2, 2012 8:05PM

Poetry Thursday: Margaret Atwood, "Marrying the Hangman"


It's been a week of hangings in America. Gingrich still hanging around after Florida, the other candidates hanging blame and shame, but worst of all--most surprising, but why did we find it surprising?--the most squeaky-pink and prominent Big Girl in the Cancer Wars hanging women with/… Read full post »
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FEBRUARY 1, 2012 7:48PM

Is Your Job Costing You Money?

Photo by L. Schamess via RedKid I had an epiphany the other day. It was small, so I took two:

1. Jobs cost money! (Told you it was small.) 
2. The perfect "nut" I'd have to make to quit my job should be/… Read full post »
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JANUARY 30, 2012 7:46PM

A Small Act

Humphrey Oguda, 1967-2011This is Humphrey.

It wasn't like him to be on this side of the camera, but his close friend Stuart, who was my partner from 2003 to 2008, is also a camera guy.

Stuart snapped this photo quick on the stoop of our house, just before he and Humphrey set forth/… Read full post »
4 Comments
JANUARY 29, 2012 4:53PM

Saving Money Without Saving Face

Crying while saving.Shame had a field day at my house this week.

I had a couple of windfalls early in the week, and  I was feeling flush already by Monday.

So I guess I got carried away and started doing crazy things. Like eating lunch.

I'm ashamed, but not a bit sorry. Because I'm learni/… Read full post »
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JANUARY 28, 2012 10:31AM

Strip Down Saturday: Composting Your Treif for Shekels

Seriously. This was a life event for me. via my FB, via Liz Seymour.As I get deeper into vermiculture, I discover that a lot of the "don'ts" for casual composters are in fact  possible "do's" for those who really mind their piles.

And if there is nothing else you know about me/… Read full post »
2 Comments
JANUARY 27, 2012 6:30AM

Free Friday: Freerice 2.0

Better, faster, stronger: That's Freerice 2.0, the simple game that combines learning and giving with a social network and competitive tracking for added fun. I first wrote about Freerice in July 2010 during the earliest weeks of CheapBohemian. Little did I know that the site was only two months/… Read full post »
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JANUARY 26, 2012 6:30AM

Poetry Thursday: E. Ethelbert Miller

It's been my pleasure to meet and work with amazing people because I am a writer and teacher.

My students, for starters.

And among the grown-ups, one of the greatest is E. Ethelbert Miller, a gentle and intense force for poetry, education, and justice in Washington, D.C. and the nation.

This past week I/… Read full post »
3 Comments
JANUARY 24, 2012 1:07PM

Moneyhack Magic: Trick of the Wrist (CB Redux)

A version of this post originally appeared on July 20, 2010.

As I start the blog up again after the 6-month hiatus John and I are calling The Summer of Love, I thought I would re-share some of my favorite moneyhacks. Starting with the Snowflake Principle, which in turn gave birth to my/… Read full post »
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JANUARY 22, 2012 5:06PM

The Girl Effect

Graphic via The Girl Effect

Today is Blogging for Choice Day. I proudly add my cheap-ass mezzo soprano to the chorus of voices that support this 39-year-old legacy for women's--and men's, boys', and girls'--lives.

Being pro-choice does not mean being pro-abortion. I am not "pro-abortion," in/… Read full post »
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JANUARY 22, 2012 3:32PM

Loans, Damned Loans, and Statistics

Last week I started blogging again about the debt pay-off project I've often called The Big Drift. My first try at this was pretty satisfying, if you like Pyrrhic victory as much as I do.

I called the first campaign against debt Europe on $35 a Day, and set a goal of  $12,775/… Read full post »
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