So some of you are reading this and nodding, some maybe applauding my wise decision to seek help.  But there are several of you who are shaking your heads in disbelief.  You don’t understand how someone can not pay their bills.  How someone can constantly go over the limit of their budget.  How someone lives paycheck to paycheck, and not that well.  This blog is for you!

I was raised in a happy home, everything I ever needed was provided for me and more.  I was what some call well to do, or well off.  Not wealthy by any means, but my parents budgeted, worked hard, and my sister and I were very fortunate.  Unfortunately managing money was not something they thought to teach me.  We never had a regular allowance, or were shown how to save it.  We had savings accounts, and my dad would take a small amount out of it at Christmas for us to shop for a few things, but we didn’t even do that every year.

So how does it end up that my sister is very good at saving and balancing her budget, and I am now letting someone else pay my bills and give me a weekly allowance?  I have finally gotten to the bottom of it.  And no it’s not my parents fault.

Here it is for those of you who are still shaking your heads and trying to understand.  I was never taught that “a penny saved is a penny earned.”  Really no one ever really sat me down and said if you put this aside and hold on to it you’ll have more money down the road.  I had a piggy bank and it was full of pennies, but if it hadn’t been shaped like Snoopy, I so would have broken that thing to bits to get to those pennies.  (every now and then I would try to shake them out).

Should my parents have taught me a little more, sure but they thought they were.  The real problem in my mind is the education system.  Growing up in North Carolina, I know I did not have a great school system, but it was better than others.  But, I’ve been away to school, I’ve been across the ocean, and I have met tons of people from all walks of life.  Start asking people where they learned to save, how they learned about interest rates and savings accounts.  It wasn’t in elementary school, it wasn’t in junior high or high school.  And believe me, unless they were a business or finance major it wasn’t in College.

Where is the class, the lesson plan on the value of saving, and not taking risks with your money.  Nowhere to be found is my assessment.  Oh sure there are classes for you after you’ve sunk to financial ruin and bankruptcy, but never before.  The worst is when you get to college.  You’re 18 and on your own for maybe the first time in your life.  You’re going out, spending money, and not paying rent if you live on campus.  So there is a lot more money.  And then the mail comes, and every day there are at least 3 offers from credit cards.  All of them just for you.

We are all so angry at the people who put us in the “credit crunch” “the recession” but no one is looking at the root cause.  We no longer teach the fiscal responsibility to our children.  Many of the hedge fund managers and people who took these risks were under the age of 35, and believe me as someone from that generation, greed was taught more than savings.  We were pushed to get into the best college, so that we could get a good job.  We were told that certain majors had a guaranteed salary of $60,000/year, $90,000, or even 6 figures!  Money signs danced before our eyes, and the value of our education and our foundation went out of our ears and flew away.

So here is my challenge for the week.  Go out and educate.  Sit down with your kids once a week, once a month and show them how to balance a checkbook, create a budget, earn interest on their savings.  Demand that your schools teach a week of money management starting as early as age 5.  Believe me, kids that young, will understand that paper coins saved up in a jar, add up to more paper money to spend on stickers, and other treats.  If you know someone like me that has trouble with finances, don’t shun them or shake your head.  Offer to help them, share tips and tricks that help you.  Volunteer at local community centers and churches to help those who don’t know how to manage their budget.

We can come out of this crisis.  We can rebuild our local economy, but it can’t just be by spending money with local businesses and saving up for the next big crash.  We have to help everyone learn that “a penny saved is a penny earned” and that “a person saved is a friend earned.”

I hated it!

But now that I’ve grown older, it applies to my life in so many ways.  I recently had a nice long relaxing vacation.  During that time I told the story of my mom saying that to me everyday as I left for  school, or went out of the house.  Afterwards I thought about all the ways I use this advice, and all the ways I don’t.

I think it applies to all the topics we discuss on this blog and so much more.

If I keep my finances organized and “pretty” I will most likely have “pretty” results.  Anytime I have invested in positive programs, and companies I believe in I have had great returns.  The “prettiest” of returns.

If I look for the politicians that live up to their “pretty” promises and live their life to serve in government, I am always pleased.  I find that I respect those with differing opinions more if they hold fast to their opinion, are open to discussions, and do not sway based on public opinion.

I have visited many churches, a few synagogues, and even a mosque.  What I found is that I was drawn to congregations that had a community approach to their faith.  Those that accepted everyone, and were positive in their outlook, were the ones that I appreciated.  Even now, the church that I enjoy attending, is one that is focused on the message not the appearance and grandeur of the church and it’s congregation.

Now sex, how am I going to relate this to sex.  That is almost the easiest one.  Don’t you appreciate sex so much more when someone is kind and giving.  I find that if you give as much as you receive the whole relationship works better.  And sure wearing some pretty lingerie doesn’t hurt the fun!

So how can you be “pretty” today.  Can you clean up your office, and have prettier results while being more efficient? Can you make an effort to smile at everyone today, and see how great it feels to have people smile back? I walk out of my door most days in a big rush, but a small voice is always in my head saying “pretty is as pretty does!”

Look around, do you ever see anyone getting up on a street corner or in the middle of a city square and start talking? If you do, you probably ignore them as some crazy nut.  But that used to be the way we expressed our opinions.  In the city I grew up in, there was a man known as “The Preacher” who spoke in front of the courthouse almost everyday.  He would always get a good crowd, mainly homeless people.  Around lunchtime a few people would sit cautiously on the outskirts of his ministry just to listen to him preach the good word.  Or maybe for amusement.  I always quickly walked by, avoiding the looney man who shouted.

But now I sit here writing an opinion blog, hidden in my anonymity and wonder if I could ever be as brave as that man.  Could I bring my self to grab a sturdy wooden soapbox and go downtown and set up?  Could I put together a stream of rhetoric that would influence others? I don’t think I could.  The digital soapbox that is created here is as close as I’ll ever get to the masses.

What about you? Where is your soapbox? Do you write letters to the editor, do you visit sites like TellAllGram and send out anonymous messages? Or do you only hop on a soapbox in front of friends and family, or maybe only in your mind as you drive a crowded street?

Our society teaches us to hide our opinions, to not shout out.  Why? When did we go from a nation of protesters to a nation of bobble heads! We sit around letting others speak for us and we simply nod and shake our head.  Why don’t we argue for our own opinion.  I don’t agree with everything my political party does or says.  So why should I vote a straight ticket?

Go home, find your soapbox, and start shouting! We need to get back to the times of heated discussions and protests.  We need to stop ignoring that man with the megaphone, and start yelling back! Now is the time to let your voice be heard! With so many mediums available to you to spread your opinion and your unique take on life there is no reason to sit at home as a meek mouse waiting for someone else to take up the charge! We are all Angry Anteaters, waiting to get loose!

I recently went shopping with a friend at the Dollar Tree.  Her daughter’s birthday is coming up and she needed supplies.  Everything from plates and cups, to gifts for her daughter and the paper to wrap them in.  We bought everything at the Dollar Tree.  Our total bill was $16.38! And as she put it, why would I ever shop anywhere else?  She’s on a tight budget and was still able to buy a few fun ornaments and other items for herself.

I have learned a lot by shopping with her. When she finds something she wants to buy for someone, her first trip is not to the store, it’s to the internet where she looks for coupons and discounts.  She can afford to pay full price, but knows that if she saves it she can put that money towards something else.  A lot of the time she puts it towards a donation to a charity.

This is where Good King Wenceslas comes into play.  Based on a saint, a former Duke, the song is about a King going out to help a man he sees from his window.  He takes him alms and invites him in.  His overabundance of wealth and offerings were shared.  So here is the challenge from your Angry_Anteater who is slightly mellowed due to Evan Williams Egg Nog (yummy!):

Do not buy in bulk.  Buy only what you need.  Set your budget up now, and every time you save money set it aside or put it directly into those bright red buckets from the Salvation Army. Be your very own Good King Wenceslas and hum as you go along your day.  Or even better, download the bell ringing app to your iphone and help someone in need!

Christmas is based on ancient religions that celebrated nature!  In ancient Babylon, the feast of the Son of Isis (Goddess of Nature) was celebrated on December 25. Raucous partying, gluttonous eating and drinking, and gift-giving were traditions of this feast. (More info here) Our christian holidays are centered around the season changes.  This was done so that it would be an easier adjustment from ancient religions to new ones.  You could still feast at Christmas, and fast at Easter.  The evergreen tree is an ancient druid tradition honoring nature and her ability to produce life throughout the year.  When you bring a tree in your home, you’re not celebrating Christ’s eternal life, your perpetuating ancient traditions.  We didn’t invent St. Nicholas, in many religions there is a jolly benefactor who brings gifts of wisdom and fortune, ever hear of Buddha?

More so, the tradition of gifts to honor the gifts that the 3 wise men brought, um can we say sacrificial offerings to the gods? So this year light a sacrificial fire with incense (Yule Log) and enjoy your homage to nature (Christmas Tree) while drinking your mulled wine (yeah alcohol isn’t pagan at all).  I’ll be having a very Merry Christmas here at my house, and will wish everyone the same.  If you want to say Happy Holidays and honor all, that’s your business, but don’t rain on my pagan parade!