Week 1 of Footloose & Callus-Free: Listerine & Vinegar Recipe

Normally I'd head off to the local nail salon to tend to my overly-callused feet.  However, seeing as this is the summer of the extra-frugal budget, spending $25.00 (+ tip) on my tootsies seems somewhat frivolous.

I did a search online to find do-it-yourself callus removing foot soaks that are made with ingredients likely found around the house.  Each week in July, I am to try one to see if you really can get soft & sexy feet without the trip to your local spa.

Week 1: The Listerine Approach

Yup, Listerine.  Apparently, not just for your pearly whites!  This recipe comes from another blogger's attempt at trying Pinterest recipes.  Vinegar & Listerine Foot Soak

The blogger starts off the process by soaking for 10 min, and doesn't see much of a difference.  After her readers encourage a longer soak time, she soaks for closer to 30 min.  Much better results!

So here I sit, on the edge of my tub, with my feet in 1 c. of Listerine, 1 c. of white vinegar, and 1 c. of warm (now cool) water.

...tick....

...tock...

...tick...

...tock...

30 min have passed and I'm scrubbing off some of the calluses with a pumice stone.  Not all the callus came off, but then again, my heels were pretty nasty.  I creamed my feet with a Miracle Foot Repair cream that was a Christmas present one year, and am now wearing a thick pair of socks to help the cream set in.

The soak wasn't itchy and it didn't burn.  I do smell strongly of minty vinegar, but there are worse things!  Some of the callus came off more easily than had I soaked it in a bucket of water, so I'll give this soak a 3/5.

 Week 2: Sea Salt & Baking Soda Soak from the blog, Nuts 4 Stuff

Financial Weakness

How ironic is it that someone who teaches budgeting can't seem to pull her own budget together?

I usually pride myself on my ability to learn quickly about something, but yet, this is one area that I seriously struggle in.  So much so, that this summer is going to be a painful, and admittedly necessary, lesson.

I don't lack for "stuff".  Even my trips to Africa & Latin America don't seem to have cured my enjoyment of shopping.  The biggest drain on my finances, though, is my food budget...or let's be honest, my food expenditures.  I don't seem to be able to stick to a budget.  I've tried before, but most of the ways I've done it are confusing, don't fit my lifestyle, and are difficult to follow.

I took my Dad to the driving range for Father's day.  On the way home, I told him I'd take him to play St. Andrews for his 70th birthday (year...no one wants to golf in December there!).  He admitted that'd be nice, but before that happened, I'd need to learn some financial responsibility.

He was absolutely right.

I didn't get summer school this year.  My summer budget is miniscule and I'm just hoping I can afford my groceries.  This seems like the dilemma someone making less than minimum wage would be facing.  Not someone who makes somewhere in the ballpark of $55 000 a year.

I did a quick mental tally in my head the other day.  I've been at this job for 4 years, and over the past 4 years, I've made a disposable income (take home) of  approx $152 000.

$152 000!!!???  Where did it go??  I feel like I have nothing to show for it, so I started doing some math:

It has to be my rent, right?  I mean, $1100 a month has got to take a good chunk out of that $152 000.  Wrong.  Rent (3 years) of $1100 per month: $39 600.  That still leaves $112 000 out there that I can't completely account for.  If I'd been savvier with my money, I'd have a good chunk of a down-payment ready.

I don't buy a lot of clothes, I don't buy computer games, get super expensive salon treatments, or have a gambling addiction.  So where did my money go?
I can't answer that...and that's a scary thing.

Time to grow up, Steph.  Time to realize that you HAVE to watch these things, and you HAVE to budget.  Otherwise, you might as well be tossing money into the garbage every day.  I'm going to have a lot of time on my hands this summer, so it's a good time to learn.

If you've come across any good financial resources in your online travels, send them my way.  I'm going to start first with a Canadian book, "Smart Cookies" and work my way from there.  What tips do you have for sticking to a budget?

Feeling Sexy

SEXY.

Why do we sometimes associate this word with ones like skanky and slut?  I often find it is a difficult word to say, much less apply to myself.  Somewhere along the line, I started believing this word didn't apply to "good girls", but rather sleazy girls wearing gobs of makeup lining up on the street corner in leather stiletto boots.

I had it in my mind that a good Christian girl is prim, proper, and wholesome.  She wears conservative clothes, avoids much makeup, hides any overtly sexual physical characteristics, and doesn't flirt.  If she were to break out of this mold, she would be offending God and acting sinful.

Now, before anyone gets any ideas, my parents, church, school, and friends did NOT perpetuate this stereotype with me.  It wasn't driven into my head by anyone other than myself.  And I have to ask myself, why?  What happened that I would believe I didn't deserve to feel sexy?

Sexy is not slutty.  It's not going out and having unprotected sex with the first guy/girl to come your way.  It's not objectifying yourself and it isn't dressing in micro clothing designed to leave nothing to the imagination.  In my opinion, sexy is how you feel about yourself.  It is completely normal and even wonderful to feel attractive and wanted.  It doesn't mean you have to prostitute yourself.

So many people see the dark side of the word...the indiscriminate sex; the pornography so readily available on the internet; and the dark imagery perpetuated by movies, music, and television.

Feeling sexy can be as simple as eating right (it's amazing how much better you feel when you get your fruits, veggies and water in!), or wearing your hair in a new way.  Some women feel empowered by wearing sexy underwear under conservative business wear, or putting on an attractive shade of lipstick.

A lot of women start to find that exercising helps them feel sexier, and I'm happy to count myself as one of those.  The pole fitness is definitely more provocative than weight lifting, but it's not simply the moves that help me feel sexier.  It's confidence in my body and improvement in the way I carry myself that makes me feel good about myself and...

Sexy.