The Friday Feast ~ the 15th of May

I love learning. Always have. So when I find a blog or writer that interests me I devour everything I can find. Every day I move countless amazing articles from an array of  frugal, simple living, FI-minded writers into my Amazing Reads folder to be read at my leisure. These articles inspire me and the Mr. to think about things in different ways, to keep open minds and to constantly keep learning so we can be the best possible us.

In this episode of Friday Feast: Fervant Finance, Even Steven Money, Dharma Wanderlust, Sincere Spaces, Eyes on the Dollar.

Here are my picks for this week's Feast. I hope they inspire you to set financial goals and take control over your heart, mind and - yes, your pocketbook.  There is a fire lit within each and every one of us, and the sooner we find that flame, the quicker we can use it for the energy we need to master our own happiness.

Forces of Nature:

We have two forces of nature to deal with this week. First, Fervant Finance explained his Savings Waterfall. Both Steve and I loved the concept and the easy to understand diagram in the article. Want to know how to save money, the waterfall is a great explanation. But what about debt?

While you can use the metaphor of a waterfall for saving, a much better metaphor for paying off debt is the Debt TORNADO of rage that Even Steven Money explains, "The Debt Tornado in its simplest form is a debt reduction plan that is deeply rooted in anger, outrageous goals with a plan of attack, and kicking a$$". Sounds epically awesome!

Design:

I love our home. It's not perfect by any means but it's ours and it makes me happy to be cuddled up inside with Steve and our girls (our k-9s). While we try not to spend much on our home, sometimes it is nice for a change. But as Dharma Wanderlust shares, this doesn't mean you have to buy something; instead, renew to retreat. Sometimes just doing some re-arranging can change your outlook on a space. I might need to try this approach this weekend.

Another way we try to decorate our house is through our travels. We don't do souveniers (unless its hot sauce...we love hot sauce...did I mention the hot sauce bar at our wedding? or the 14 bottles currently open in our fridge?). Steve is an awesome photographer so we're slowly decorating our home with his photos of the amazing places we've been. We also have slide shows put together to run as the screen saver on our tv. I have to admit most of the the time on weekends I just have the tv on for the pictures. Sincere Spaces shared with us more fabulous ideas of how to incorporate travels into our homes without the clutter. I am so going to DIY a few of the photo ideas (possibly for Christmas presents).

Cheap vs Frugal:

Steve and I are early enough on our journey and not as hard-core as in the ER community. Therefore we have yet to be called cheap (at least to our faces), though my family does praise us as being frugal! I don't think we're cheap by any means (in fact, we probably live in the lap of luxury). Being cheap can cost a person a lot: of happiness and in the end of money. How? Take a look at the story Eyes on the Dollar shared this week. It's very sad but shows the importance of spending money on what matters. For us that is health. We would delay retirement if we had to to maintain our health. Luckily this will not be necessary, but it's good to know our priorities.

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Did you read something inspiring this week? If so let us know in the comments below!

They have been at a great feast of learning, and stolen the scraps.
- William Shakespeare