Tips for Living on a Budget

I can't get enough tips these days for how to save money. I am always on the look out for easy ways to squeeze here, stretch there, and end up with just a little more at the end of the month. What a great feeling!

So when my friend told me about this website, wisebread.com, I thought, hey, now we're talking! This is a network of bloggers dedicated to finding new ways to live on a small budget, and even try to make it FUN. In their words: "We believe people on a budget can still enjoy fabulous and fun lives." I think that is a bit of a stretch, but I must say, it is pretty fun to save money with little effort.

If you know of good blogs with tips for savers, let us know here, at 415-264-7106, or by email at news@kalw.org.

CNN picks up on the Economic Edge

Remember the first story in our Economic Edge series about the opening of the Big Sip Cafe in Oakland? I profiled the owner, Dickson Elias, who was opening a business in the middle of the worst economy in decades. Turns out CNN Money got wind of our report, and you can watch it here:

A Dramatic View of Growing Unemployment

(Photo obtained under Creative Commons License, taken by Scott A. Drzyzga (C) 2009)

California has among the highest rates of unemployment in the nation: 10.5 percent. Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Slate.com designed a rather dramatic interactive map where you can track the decline in jobs around the country. You can check it out here: Slate's Interactive Map.

Day Laborers in this Recession

Today on KALW's Crosscurrents, you can hear my report on how the economic crisis has affected day laborers, three quarters of which are estimated to be undocumented immigrants.

I spoke with many day laborers for this piece, but decided to profile Amadeos. He is a middle aged man from El Salvador, who crossed illegally into the United States six years ago, and now lives in San Francisco with his wife and baby. I met him on the corner of Oak and Divisadero, where there is a Kelly Moore Paint Store, a typical place for day laborers to congregate and look for jobs.

I went back today to check in with him, and he says everything has stayed pretty much the same, very little work, but now there are fewer and fewer guys on the corner because many have gone back to their native countries. I talked with some of the other men there today, and two confessed that they were ready to go home, if only they had the money to pay for it. It seems to weigh on them heavily, this choice of whether to return or not. "If the economy is bad here, it trickles through the rest of the world, and to our native countries," one man named Santiago told me. "So you can imagine how bad it must be back there, probably worse than here." But they stick around, they tell me, in case the stimulus money creates more jobs, or if there is an advancement in Washington on immigration reform. "It's really difficult right now, but we have to keep trying...no hay otra," Santiago tells me...there's no other choice.

The Lemon Lady

A little while ago, we got an email from a woman who calls herself: "Anna The Lemon Lady". She didn't always carry that fancy title, though. Until not too long ago, she was just regular Anna Chan, from Clayton. It was on her walks with her daughter, Ava, that Anna first realized many of her neighbors had fruit trees with excess fruit that would just rot on their lawns. She got the idea of collecting this fruit, and taking it to her local food bank, which was much appreciated.

In the past couple of months, what started as a novel idea became a sort of calling for Anna, and now she is recruiting volunteers and fruit tree owners to join her efforts. This is a section of the email that she sent us, so you can hear her story in her own words:

(photo obtained under Creative Commons from Flickr user Alasam)

This fruit picking project can really be done by anyone. I embarked on this idea by typing fliers and knocking on doors. As I write this, I have collected nearly 3,000 pounds of fresh citrus in my own neighborhood. As you are aware, with the poor economy, many people are turning more to the charity organizations. Fresh produce is scarce at food pantries. All fresh fruit and vegetables are welcome. The food banks even advertise as such on their websites. Sadly, it is just lack of awareness that prevents people from taking the initiative to donate. Most people I speak with are more than willing to help out. They just have never thought to donate.

Spreading public awareness that fresh fruit is accepted, very easy to donate, no red tape, can help hundreds, thousands of needy families. The need is never ending, and the fresh fruit bounty in California is all year long! My only dream is to inspire others, and hopefully harvest most of the fruit from the trees, rather than seeing it go to waste.

If I - only one person - could collect 3,000 pounds in just over a month, imagine what many willing volunteers could do!? Anything is possible. I believe.

Ending the Week on a Positive Note

Henry Sullivan is a half glass full kind of person.

And he thinks more people should be that way, when it comes to this economic downturn. Hear what he had to say in his call-in to us this week: