Jul

2

Rendered

By Julie B Cosgrove | Comments Off


Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?”They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”  When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.  Matthew 22:19-22

When the Federal Mint started issuing the State Quarters in 1999, my  husband and I bought a little folder to house them all.  Yesterday, we finally got “Hawaii”. Now we have all 54- including DC, Puerto Rico, Samoa and the Virgin Island coins.  So, when I read this passage today, something struck me about Jesus’ words.  

On the Roman coin was a picture of Caesar and an inscription to him. The coin honored him, claiming all the money in Rome was essentially his property to take at any time. He was just letting the people use it to pay taxes to him.  But as Christians, we see all things as the property of God, our creator and Heavenly Father.   Jesus was basically asking them to determine where their loyalties lay. Today, He asks the same of you and of me.

Our coins in the US typically honor a historical person or a symbol of our freedom. But they are not the coins of the realm, because there is no kingdom here. They are not the government’s property, but that of the people of this democracy.  We elect people in government to help us spend these coins and manage them. We pay taxes so our roads can be serviced, the poor cared for, our children educated ( or so it is supposed to be- but that’s another topic all together, isn’t it?) , and our troops equipped to defend us.  But, the money is still rendered unto us, We the People.

Perhaps, that is why our founding fathers, in their wisdom, placed  four  simple yet profound words on every coin – In God We Trust.  Perhaps, they too had this passage in Matthew and this lesson from Jesus in mind.  It’s like saying, remember to whom you, this land and everything else belongs. Maybe, it is a message we need to clarify today.

Jun

20

Saving on Electricity Continued

By Carrie | Comments Off


This recent article in the NY Times addresses the energy consumption of computers, the biggest culprit I tackled in saving electricity in my home.

The article also mentions a neat device called Kill-A-Watt, something I have been wanting to buy to experimentally prove what gadgets in my home are energy-hogs. The reviews on Amazon will give you an idea of how this device has worked out for people.

Jun

19

Saving on Gasoline

By Carrie | Comments Off


With gas prices so high I was glad to find this article by Edmunds: What Really Saves Gas? And How Much?

Edmunds actually tested the different theories of how to save on gas consumption and the results were interesting. I have tried to incorporate what I can.

I have also heard that gas prices are higher right before the weekend – I am keeping my eye on prices this week to see if that really plays out. The other tip I have read is to fill your car in the cool of the morning because gas condenses when cool – makes some sense but still not sure there is much to gain there.

It is also important to identify where the cheapest gas station is in your area. The best way is probably just to take a mental note of prices as you drive around but you can also get some clues from online sites like gasbuddy.com.

Finally, the most straightforward way to save on gas is to use less. Try to consolidate all errands keeping in mind the shortest route. If you have two cars, try to use the car with the better gas mileage for errands and for longer trips.

Jun

16

Saving on Electricity

By Carrie | 1 Comment


About two months ago I decided to see if I could get my electricity bill down.

One of the biggest changes I made was with our computers. We have a desktop and a laptop and both computers were left on all the time though they were in standby mode (which is less energy consumption than being fully powered on). This was a matter of convenience which allowed us to jump on the computer at any time. But the fact was, for many, many hours the computers were not used which was a waste of energy.

I also noticed that the laptop power cord contained a transformer which had a small green light on. That meant that even when the computer was not directly pulling power, the transformer was always pulling some small amount of power (this would be true of other charging cords like for a cell phone). Likewise, we often left our cable box on and just turned off the TV – yet a small light on the cable box told me that power was still being used.

To conserve energy (and money), we began to power down the computer whenever we were done with it. If we would be using the computer later in the day, we would be sure to put it into standby (instead of waiting for the computer to do that itself after being idle) and turn off the monitor (desktop). This was a little less convenient, but it turned out that the desktop was sometimes off for days in a row instead of constantly on (despite not being used).

We also began to use the laptop more – laptops are generally cheaper to run than desktops. And we unplugged the laptop power cord as much as possible (to avoid pulling power through the transformer). Again, when not in use, the laptop was shutdown completely.

In addition to the computers, we tried to be conscientious about turning lights off. We turned the cable box off when not and use. I also tried to not overuse my clothes dryer. Before I would just turn the timer up to some high setting – now I have gotten a feel for the minimum time I need to let the dryer run.

So, did all of this pay off? Yes – we saved $20 off our electricity bill during the first month. Plus I feel better about conserving energy from an environmental perspective. It is now less convenient to just jump on the computer whenever I want (and not have to wait for it to start up), but that convenience is not worth $20 per month.

If you would like to learn more about saving on your electricity cost there is some good information in these articles (and on this website in general): Hidden Electrical Bandits and Electricity Myths.

Jun

12

Lowering Cable/Phone/Internet Bill

By Carrie | Comments Off


I got this idea from another website and it worked.

We have a combined phone/internet/cable package through Verizon. The prices seem to have slowly crept up since the the initial starting package which is easy to just ignore. However, this is an area where you can use competition to your advantage.

I noticed that another company in our area offered the same type of package for about $30 less than what we are currently paying. So, I called Verizon and mentioned the competitor’s package and asked if I could get a discount on my current plan. Verizon agreed to offer me a 1 year promotion which saved me about $30 per month.

I would have been willing to switch to the other company, but by staying with verizon I avoided any installation fees and the potential “we’ll be there to hook you up between 9am and 2pm”. I am happy with the outcome.

So do your homework. See if you can find a better offer for any of these services (usually you can find pricing online but you may need to call) and then call your current provider with the information and ask for a better deal. It adds up!

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