The Brevity Bell

Saving Money


Nature teaches us how to save money.

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I discovered a money saving principle while watching a PBS program on why humans get fat.

When we eat more food than the body needs, it saves the excess in adipose cells, ( fat storing
cells ) and our bodies have a lot of those cells.

They featured a person whose body would not save any extra fat and his body would use all the incoming fat.

I said to myself, “His body is living from paycheck to paycheck."

"I need to write about this because I think there is a money principle showing up in the program."

Here we go.

First let’s make a connection to food and money. We spend our lifetime acquiring both and burning both.

Burning both?

Yes. Let’s look at food and money as an energy source that we burn.

Eating food provides us energy that we burn.

If we run short on food our body will run short on energy.

During those times of no incoming energy we depend on the fat saved in our body to provide us the energy that we need.

We have to start withdrawing from the savings account that our fat cells are holding.

When we have plenty of food coming in, more than we need to burn, nature will store it in our adipose ( fat ) cells.

We do not have to think about it. Nature does the job for us, and sometimes it over performs.

Remember this;
The energy stored in our fat cells become our savings account to use when there is no food coming in.

We have to know our energy burn rate to survive.

Playing football has a high burn rate and reading about the game in a newspaper has a lower burn rate.

We learn the burn rate and make sure we have plenty of food intake to meet our needs to stay in the game.

Now, let’s look at money as energy to burn.

If we have plenty of money coming in, more than we need to survive, nature does not provide us a storage device in our bodies.

Nature provides us a mind to find a place for storage.

People who do not find a storage place will be like the guy on the PBS show whose body did not store excess fat and burned every bit of the fat that came in.

During the time of shortages, people with extra storage can ride out the storm.

Those without storage reserves will have to depend on family and friends or strangers to get thru any emergency.

Storing food energy is easy because we have plenty of fat cells that we can fill and the best part is, they are within us.

Storing money energy is difficult because there is never enough coming in and the storage places are handled by somebody else.

The question becomes, “How can I store some of my excess money energy in a place that I can grab quickly.”

Remember this:
“Money in the pocket is worth more than the amount of money on a monthly credit card statement.”

We have two basic sources of storage places where we can save money.

Immediate and long term.

Grass is immediate with easy access and Maple tree is long term requiring an effort to access the funds.

Remember this;
Grass will burn faster than a Maple tree.

Meaning?

Small amounts of grass will burn quickly.

Maple trees have plenty of burn material.

Saving money in your Grass account is for small temporary emergencies and is usually hidden at home.

Saving money in your Maple tree account is stored with a big institution that promises to make it grow into a bigger Maple Tree.

Let's look at setting aside emergency money in your grass account that you hide somewhere in your home.

The following is a suggestion only.

You will probably come up with a better hiding method.

Look for some powdered food in your cupboard that is beyond the best buy date.

You will need a small sealable bag, and a larger sealable bag.

Put your cash inside the small bag. Seal it tightly and put it inside the large bag.

Fill the large bag with your stale powdered food. Hide it in your your freezer or pantry and don't forget where you put it.

We went on an extended vacation and I decided to put our excess credit cards in a little container of rice. By the time I got home, I forgot where I hid the cards.

About six months later my wife asked, "What are these credit cards doing in this rice container?" I replied, "That's a hiding place in case we get robbed."

I did not fess up that I spent a long time searching for them after our vacation.

Now, let's look at setting aside long term use money in a Maple tree account.

I do not have any divine insights, that is the job of Financial Planners.

I can only tell you about my experience.

When I got my first minimum wage job in 1964, I was told to start saving money for a rainy day.

I did not listen because I owned an umbrella.

Saving long term use money will take a long time and most often require the help of an investment advisor.

The advisors would encourage me to manage my accounts wisely so I can pass my money onto my children.

I responded, "Actually, I would prefer to spend it all before I die, besides, I would rather give my kids the money before I die.

That way if they blew it, I would still be around to give them the Stupidity Lecture.

Here is the real strategy I used that worked for me.

10 years before I retired, I saved like crazy and made sure my required living expenses were less than my Social Security check.

Remember This;
What worked for me may become a disaster for your.

Do a lot of research before you make your decision and things should work out.

I make no promises.

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Lu Mar
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