How I've been frugal
February/24/2025
How I'm frugal
1. I have no mortgage. I do have monthly electricity and HOA fees.
2. I have no credit card debt. Whatever I may owe gets paid off before it's due.
3. I don't buy clothes. I wear jeans and T-shirts or turtlenecks. Many of my clothes are hand-me-downs from friends. I'm happy with that.
4. I don't eat restaurant food. I buy groceries and cook food at home. My home economics degree at work.
5. I don't attend local community events - dances, parties - because there's an entry fee. I don't even go to the $2 movies.
6. I don't own a car. I have a golf cart so where I can go is limited because golf carts aren't permitted on public streets, only private roads in my small community. But I don't have to pay for hefty car insurance, gas, and repairs.
7. I don't make condo renovations. My 800-square-foot condo is 50+ years old and was a rental unit for many years. It looks very worn. I would love to have a walk-in shower, a front door with a window and screen door, new kitchen cabinets that would allow space for my refrigerator and food, new paint on the walls, bathroom faucets, and a dishwasher. My first effort would be a new kitchen sink and faucet which is leaking. But these will have to wait. For now, making repairs to hurricane-damaged doors and windows, and replacing missing shutters is the priority.
8. I don't have my nails or hair done. I keep my nails short so I can type. No polish. If my hair needs trimming, I cut it myself. My once-coarse, thick hair has become fine and falls out everywhere. At least I don't have male pattern baldness as my father did.
www.TurnAdversityintoAdventure.website/blog.html
1. I have no mortgage. I do have monthly electricity and HOA fees.
2. I have no credit card debt. Whatever I may owe gets paid off before it's due.
3. I don't buy clothes. I wear jeans and T-shirts or turtlenecks. Many of my clothes are hand-me-downs from friends. I'm happy with that.
4. I don't eat restaurant food. I buy groceries and cook food at home. My home economics degree at work.
5. I don't attend local community events - dances, parties - because there's an entry fee. I don't even go to the $2 movies.
6. I don't own a car. I have a golf cart so where I can go is limited because golf carts aren't permitted on public streets, only private roads in my small community. But I don't have to pay for hefty car insurance, gas, and repairs.
7. I don't make condo renovations. My 800-square-foot condo is 50+ years old and was a rental unit for many years. It looks very worn. I would love to have a walk-in shower, a front door with a window and screen door, new kitchen cabinets that would allow space for my refrigerator and food, new paint on the walls, bathroom faucets, and a dishwasher. My first effort would be a new kitchen sink and faucet which is leaking. But these will have to wait. For now, making repairs to hurricane-damaged doors and windows, and replacing missing shutters is the priority.
8. I don't have my nails or hair done. I keep my nails short so I can type. No polish. If my hair needs trimming, I cut it myself. My once-coarse, thick hair has become fine and falls out everywhere. At least I don't have male pattern baldness as my father did.
www.TurnAdversityintoAdventure.website/blog.html
What I'm doing to survive without Social Security
February/23/2025
What I'm doing to survive without Social Security:
1. I'm selling off everything I do not need to work, cook, eat, stay clean, dress and sleep. I'll use the cash for monthly bills and to repair my van. What doesn't sell I'll give away or throw away.
I'm posting items locally and on my website: www.AndreasEstate.com Have a look I'll ship items that aren't fragile or very heavy, anywhere in the US .
2. I'm still writing letters to individuals and companies who never paid me for work I did or who didn't complete work I paid for. Many of these people/companies may be featured in my book, The Kindness Chronicles. www.TheKindnessChronicles.com
3. In March I will relaunch my Personal Public Relations Consultancy. My mission is to help specialists attract to them: clients, the media and press, book publishers, invitations to speak, corporate sponsorships, corporate contracts, etc., so they need not "knock on doors." I did this for myself when I landed in Canada and, as a result, management consultants, doctors, psychologists, and authors asked me to show them how to attract what they needed, too. www.AndreaReynolds.com
4. I'm still running my GoFundMe campaign: https://gofund.me/5fb9136d So you can donate and read my updates.
5. Here is the real ADVENTURE part. I've always been a "prepper" so if the worst happens and I must give up my one bedroom condo, my van ("The Magic Bus") will contain everything I need to live in it full-time. I'll post pictures of the van's contents later, but here are some of the items: microwave oven, small fridge, propane stove, mini-slow cooker, toaster, veggie steamer, power stations with solar panels, solar cooker, solar shower, potty, fan, air conditioner, digital TV, Sterno stove, emergency radio, induction cooktop, water heater, kick scooter, mobile hotspot, etc.
Watch for the next installment of Turn Adversity Into Adventure.
(You can read my answers to 29 Frequently Asked Questions, here: www.TurnAdversityintoAdventure.website/blog.html )
P.S. If there's another hurricane and power is out for days again, I got it covered.
1. I'm selling off everything I do not need to work, cook, eat, stay clean, dress and sleep. I'll use the cash for monthly bills and to repair my van. What doesn't sell I'll give away or throw away.
I'm posting items locally and on my website: www.AndreasEstate.com Have a look I'll ship items that aren't fragile or very heavy, anywhere in the US .
2. I'm still writing letters to individuals and companies who never paid me for work I did or who didn't complete work I paid for. Many of these people/companies may be featured in my book, The Kindness Chronicles. www.TheKindnessChronicles.com
3. In March I will relaunch my Personal Public Relations Consultancy. My mission is to help specialists attract to them: clients, the media and press, book publishers, invitations to speak, corporate sponsorships, corporate contracts, etc., so they need not "knock on doors." I did this for myself when I landed in Canada and, as a result, management consultants, doctors, psychologists, and authors asked me to show them how to attract what they needed, too. www.AndreaReynolds.com
4. I'm still running my GoFundMe campaign: https://gofund.me/5fb9136d So you can donate and read my updates.
5. Here is the real ADVENTURE part. I've always been a "prepper" so if the worst happens and I must give up my one bedroom condo, my van ("The Magic Bus") will contain everything I need to live in it full-time. I'll post pictures of the van's contents later, but here are some of the items: microwave oven, small fridge, propane stove, mini-slow cooker, toaster, veggie steamer, power stations with solar panels, solar cooker, solar shower, potty, fan, air conditioner, digital TV, Sterno stove, emergency radio, induction cooktop, water heater, kick scooter, mobile hotspot, etc.
Watch for the next installment of Turn Adversity Into Adventure.
(You can read my answers to 29 Frequently Asked Questions, here: www.TurnAdversityintoAdventure.website/blog.html )
P.S. If there's another hurricane and power is out for days again, I got it covered.
I answer your questions here.
February/22/2025
To launch this blog I'l answer questions I've received:
1. Why do you want to raise $15,000?
I want to EARN enough income to pay my way in life. Right now my income is only a $440-a-month pension and SNAP benefits (“food stamps”). I’m not eligible for Social Security, SSI (disability), or Medicare. I need to EARN more income to survive on, especially as I'm now 75.
2. Who are you?
I’m a single, childless, senior woman who gave up her home, business, and income in Canada to return to the United States to care for her father (metastasized cancer and alcoholic dementia), his death, and the estates of both parents. As a result I stayed away from Canada too long to be able to return legally... I think.
3. Why $15,000?
a. Health.gov requires an income of almost $15,000 in order to qualify for health insurance with financial assistance so I'm able to afford the premiums and copays. Otherwise, premiums will be $1,100 a month.
b. The additional $850-a-month income will also cover the monthly deficit I have for my living expenses.
c. The earned income each year will allow me to acquire more work credits toward Social Security benefits.(I have only 27 of the needed 40).
d. I’ll be able to afford to pay for much-needed dental work.
e. I’ll be able to repair my van so it's drivable and livable for when I must give up my one-bedroom condo. It will become my permanent home.
f. My biggest concern has been being homeless again. I was homeless for the years when I returned to the US to take care of my father because without employment I couldn’t rent an apartment or buy a home. I was younger then; being homeless is harder when you can’t move easily.
4. Why aren’t you receiving Social Security and Medicare benefits? I don’t have enough work credits to be eligible. I have only 27 credits of the required 40 credits.
5. Why so few work credits? I lived in Canada for the better part of 30 years and paid taxes in Canada – not to the US – as a self-employed person, taking every deduction possible.
6. Are you a Canadian or US citizen? As a US citizen I immigrated to Canada in 1973. I held Permanent Resident Status there and kept my US citizenship.
7. Can’t you go back to Canada? I left Canada to return to the US to take care of my ailing father. Both he and my mother died in 2011 in different states. When I became executor of my father’s estate the IRS said I couldn’t leave the US while I fulfilled my duties. I exceeded the time limit to be away. As a result I understand I’m no longer allowed to return to Canada, except as a visitor.
8. How do you expect to earn $15,000? Here’s what I intend:
a. I will sell as many items as I can from my home for as much cash as possible and declare all of it on my tax returns.
b. I plan to place my previous and future books on Amazon to earn royalties. That will require money for cover design, copyright registrations, and ISBN (numbers).
c. I can earn income by editing short books (100 pages/28,000 words) by other authors.
d. I can offer to negotiate higher speaking fees and contracts for experts who speak.
9. Why can’t you go work at Winn-Dixie for $12 an hour? Selling hours for dollars is not wise. It makes more sense for me to invest in work that pays passive income like book royalties while I negotiate a speaker’s contract (potential $750 for 5 hours) or while I spend a day proofreading an author’s how-to book. Also, I calculated that working part-time would knock me off food stamps and health insurance, but wouldn't provide enough income to buy food and health insurance.
10. Why can’t you get a job locally? Basically I’m unemployable. I’ve had no US work history since 1972, and as a self-employed person in Canada I have no employer references, and thus nothing to put on my résumé.
11. Don’t you have a husband or kids who can help you financially? I was divorced 37 years ago, and I didn’t have children (or grandchildren). I haven't been able to locate my ex-husband since 1986.
12. Are you physically able to work? While I’m still mentally adept, I have difficulty hearing on the phone, which makes some office work difficult, and standing for hours can be dangerous because of my history of blood clots in my legs.
13. Aren’t you eligible for survivor benefits or ex-husband’s benefits? No, but I did try. Without his social insurance number and a death certificate my application went nowhere.
14. Could you get married again and receive Social Security benefits that way? Sure, it would be lovely to have a partner who wants to make life a little easier for me. But it hasn’t happened in the past 37 years, and I’m not counting on a man to rescue me.
15. What work did you do in Canada? I owned my own practice as a personal public relations consultant. I promoted intangibles (advice), not products or companies. My clients were CEOs of Financial Post 100 companies, lawyers, physicians, psychologists, management consultants, authors, and speakers. I also wrote how-to books, and was a keynote speaker. Here in the US I'm an unknown with no reputation.
16. Will those skills work here in the US as well? As a “baby boomer” I’ve been called a dinosaur. People don’t want to hire a wise, experienced person with expertise whose success came from trial-and-error. They want to hire younger people with more energy, less experience, who talk fast. That doesn’t make sense to me, but I can't fight it.
17. How did you get clients in Canada? Why not here as well? I had the good fortune of living in Toronto which was Canada's media and press hub. I was able to appear easily as a guest expert on radio, national television, and the business press. I don’t have that kind of access or reputation here.
18. What will happen if you don’t earn $15,000? Then I will likely need to sell my 50-year-old condo and contents for as much as I can get, invest the funds, live off the interest or dividends, while living in my 20-year-old van looking for places I can park safely overnight.
19. What other avenues have you approached lately for income? Because I’m handy and live in an 0ver-50 community I offered many services to residents: painting rooms, house sitting, pet sitting, organizing/staging rooms, furniture assembly, but people here either want the service for free or they would prefer to hire a man. I gave up on local work, now I’m focusing on selling my possessions across the country.
20. Would you return to Canada if you could? Yes, but first I would need to have my Permanent Resident Status restored – very doubtful at this point – and without the PRS card I‘ll be ineligible for health care there. It will take me another year to reduce my belongings to be able to move there, because whatever I bring into Canada will be subject to import fees.
21. What work would you prefer to do? All I really want to do is write more how-to books, publish them, promote them, and receive royalties from Amazon. My goal is producing one short book a month. I already have a dozen written, and have material for 7 more to write in the future. And I hope one day to do a speaking tour, but I need enough money to live on so I can do that. So, I developed this website, www.AndreasEstate.com (unfinished).
22. What ways will you accept payment? I accept as payment: CASH, checks, or gift cards for Amazon, Wal-Mart, Publix, Winn-Dixie, CVS.
23. Will you ship items we buy? Of course. I can get to the post office to mail things. I charge only what it costs me to send.
24. How can I pay you for items I buy on AndreasEstate.com?
Here are some ways:
a. Cash: By mail or in person.
b. Zelle: Use my email: crisiswriter@gmail.com or 656-227-1130
c. Venmo: www.Venmo.com/Andrea-Reynolds-79
d. PayPal: www.PayPal.me/AndreaReynoldsIntl
e. FacebookPay: https://www.Facebook.com/andrea.reynolds.90
It's possible Facebook may only allow you to send money by an app on your phone, not by Facebook Messenger.
f. Cash App: Use: $AndeBitanga
g. I'm happy to receive checks in my mailbox. My mailing address: Andrea Reynolds, 1902 Andover Street, APT 194, Sun City Center, Florida 33573-5942
h. For larger amounts you can send gift cards for Amazon, Wal-Mart, Publix, Winn-Dixie, or CVS.
25. How long will your sale continue?
Until I can sell all or most everything.
26. Why don't you put your things in storage and leave?
Three reasons:
a. I won't have enough money to pay for the cost to rent a storage unit.
b. I don't know where I'll be going and if I leave this area I'll be too far away to access my stored things.
c. One day I'll die and all that stuff could end up being thrown out by strangers. It's better for me to find homes for my things now.
27. What will you do when everything is sold?
I’m not sure. It depends on how much income I have to live on, hopefully enough from book royalties. I can’t work forever, so if I run out of money, or income is not enough, I will have to sell my condo and make a home in my 2004 van, somewhere. (Maybe snowbirds will invite me to house-sit in their homes up north while they spend winters in the south.)
28. What happens if not everything sells?
Then this will stand as a written inventory of my estate with descriptions and values provided.
29. How will you survive living in your van?
My plan is to sell my condo when it's mostly empty, invest all the money and then live on the interest – saving the principal for my nursing home care. I'll have maybe $640. a month for gas, insurance, registration, and food. If I can keep food stamps and get Medicaid I should have just enough. If I'm lucky, I'll also have some royalties from book sales, and income from any editing assignments and speaking fees.
Do you have another question for me?
