Stocks on Steroids

Is it really the right solution for the federal government to inject the economy, particularly the stock market and credit and loan bureaus, with 200 billion more dollars worth of federal emergency loans ? Where is this money even coming from when our nation is already in debt trillions of dollars ? Who does this injection benefit ? Who will pick up the tab and when ? What do the federal interest rate cuts actually do and what is the lasting benefit ? Are there any policies or rebates which encourage people to save, be resourceful, and avoid debt ? What are the tangibles which back up our currency ? Is it oil ? Is it housing ? What will we do if our currency can no longer purchase cheap goods and services from subordinate countries ? What if our leaders' eye on the prize in the middle east doesn't result in a return on our investment as they had hoped ? These are important questions to stop and think about. As the true reality of our economy presents itself, we may find great opportunities to be creative and make positive and necessary changes.

Ceder Fever

Here in Central TX, Ceder trees grow everywhere. Some consider them to be invasive, since they are not native to the area. They are known to horde water even. Yet, they continue to multiply. They are very beautiful trees and happen to make excellent wood for building. In setting up for the Texas Natural Building Colloquium, taking place in Kerrville TX, we spent a few days harvesting Cedar Trees from a neighbor's ranch. Harvesting Cedar Trees in Central TX is guilt free. Using mostly human power, we carefully and considerately plucked our trees from an overgrowth, leaving only small gaps where extra sun rays can peek through to help grow smaller trees whose size have been hindered by the shadows of their neighbors. This practice is much preferrable to clear cutting, the industrial standard of quickly capitalizing on lumber with no consideration of the long term effects. They maximize their profits and minimize expenses by taking ALL trees in an area while leaving the earth below to regress quickly into a desert scape that then loses its ability to hold water and plantlife.

When Cedar Trees are stripped of their bark, what is left is a very unique beautiful and smooth custard colored wood, which Erin the volunteer coordinator refers to as the wood used in Texas country porches. The bark can only easily be stripped within 24 hours of harvesting the tree. After that, as the water dries out of the tree, the bark sticks to the wood like glue.

Getting a few friends together and finding a rancher who wants an overgrowth of trees cleared can get you some of the highest quality wood available for free, with minimal impact to the land.

Tour Share

What is tour sharing ? It's when musicians on tour combine itineraries ( and a ride ) in order to save money and increase efficiency. When Raina Rose and Hunter Paye asked me to join them on tour down the West Coast back to Austin, TX ( where I was intending to fly to ), I knew that this was the universe stepping in with a better alternative. Raina's van gets 25 mpg, which is pretty good for a van. With 3 people, it gets 75 mpg per person ! This is a great improvement, considering that songwriters often tour solo. In addition, Raina transported a mattress ( a paid craigslist gig ) for someone in Austin. There is no quesstion that we maximized all usable space in the van. The universe was good to us in return and carried us safely without incident. Most music venues will put a few artists together on one bill anyway. This method of touring offers an already completed bill to a venue. Venues like that. It also combines fanbases for better attended shows. Being that Raina is the tour monger, she already had the shows booked, but for songwriters with less experience on the road, combining tours helps to also split up the work getting the gigs. We basically put the money from the tip jar towards travel expenses ( gas, etc ) and then we each kept our own CD sales to put towards our futures.

Crow House Collective

The Crow House Collective in the Alberta neighborhood in Portland, Oregon is disbanding after two years of shared living, as members are getting ready to launch on various endeavors and international travel experiences. Members may regroup in a different location when they return. The current residents of the Crow House include Hope, Emile, Christa, Laura, Matt, and Christopher. Their ages range from the early 20's to early 40's. The Crow House is planted in the middle of the Alberta Arts District. What would otherwise be a very expensive area, this shared living experience drops the price of rent to only $300 each per month. Bills are split 6 ways, delicious home cooked meals ( usually shared ) are an everyday experience, and group outings are always being planned. Other than Hope and Emile ( a couple ) sharing a room, each resident gets their own private room. The basement has been transformed and devided into an art space, music rehearsal room, shared internet station / movie room, and even a guest room for me during August 2007. There is at least one backyard camp fire each week, usually including music and sometimes even wine. Before their decision to disband, they had 6 egg-producing chickens, a garden attempt which was hindered by a large tree, a compost system, rasberry bushes galore, many visitors, and now lots of memories. Living with 5 other people has its share of challenges, but the positives outweigh the negatives exponentially. Sharing a living space enables residents to learn new skills from each other ( new recipies, different ways to clean dishes, how to play an instrument, etc ). The financial savings coupled with sharing chores frees up many hours each week to work on personal projects, make art and music, plan for the future, and enjoy life.

Thanks to the members of the Crow House for being such generous hosts during my visit to Portland.

Go ByCycle

Check out ByCycle.org. It is a point to point mapquest-like mapping program which navigates cyclists through the city along established bicycle routes. Right now, it is only available in Portland, Oregon, and Milwaukie, Wisconsin, but there is hope that it will be available next year in Austin, TX and other potential municipalities.While cycling is one of the greatest ways to save money, stay healthy, and protect the environment, route safety is a big barrier for most commuters. This is where ByCycle.org helps most.

Carpenter John

John Steup has figured out that remodelling/restoring his family's home can perhaps be the smartest use of time while in between jobs. John treats this project as he does any other job, with fervor, passion, and selfless devotion. He understands that it can pay him and his family back exponentially, especially when considering the money they are saving and value added to their home when comparing it to and factoring in the compound interest of financing someone else to do it for them. It helps that John has previous carpentry experience and an artistic and instictive vision for his home. John has chosen to make ethical choices in materials used for his home, purchasing much of his supplies from the Rebuilding Center in Portland Oregon. John's situation demontrates that by having a number of skills on the backburner can and will come in handy in times of necessity. It also gives him distance from the rat race and more time to spend with his family, while carefully scouting out work that fits his values. During the remodelling process recently, he uncovered a newspaper from 1929 ( the year the house was built ) in the framing of the house. On one of the pages was this quote :

If you want to succeed in the world you must make your own opportunities as you go on. The man who waits for some seventh wave to toss him on dry land, will find that the seventh wave is a long time a-coming. You can commit no greater folly than to sit by the roadside until someone comes along and invites you to ride with him to wealth or influence. - John B. Gough as seen in the Friday November 8th 1929 edition of THE OREGON DAILY JOURNAl found in the framing of John's house.

Makin' it in the City

Friend and former housemate, Jason Butler, has maximized the capacity of his small lawn by removing the surrounding grass and concrete driveway and transforming the space into an intensive, carefully thought out vegetable garden. He is harvesting tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, chard, squash, many kinds of herbs, berries, and much more. He also has two egg-producing chickens, which run freely through the garden for much of the day. Living in the inner city, Jason and his fiance, Melissa, haven given up their car. By cycling and walking everywhere, and by growing their own food, they save thousands of dollars every year, which frees up time for them to work on various creative projects. They were lucky to find their house in NE Portland a few years ago before the inflated housing prices descended upon that area.