Tag: remember this

Hey I’m seriously freaking out about what to do with my life and how i’m gonna be able to afford dogs and all that lame stuff. What’d you go to school for? If any other dogblr has any suggestions on how to manage too I would really love it.

wherehorsesmeetdogs:

cynological:

wherehorsesmeetdogs:

i mean… i’m still in school. i work as a nanny and i budget the shit out of my life and STILL have extra to save on most weeks. that’s what it all comes down to: managing your money correctly and responsibly. i’d tell you what i make per year on average, to make you feel better but i’d feel judged.

and i’m currently majoring in anthropology so there aint going to be anyone poorer than me. so if i can do it, you can do it.

My only suggestion is to live well below your means. Budgetbudgetbudget.  

I’ll leave myself open to be judged: I made about 18k base wages (not including tips) last year working two jobs six and seven days a week living in one of the poorest counties in the state, and put less than a quarter of that into savings that I’m currently living on as I re calibrate my life (Google “fuck you money” and why it’s a good idea).

Things that cut down on my costs of living: Having roommates. I have not paid more than $350 a month for rent and utilities since I moved out of the dorms in college. I also have a cheap phone and a prepaid phone plan that comes out to being only $45/month. Student loans now operate under a “pay as you earn” plan, and since I earned poverty wages, I didn’t owe anything last year, though my crippling interest is collecting.

 I have a fantastic credit score (speaking of, get a credit card and start building up your credit. Be smart about it.) and so I was approved for a good car loan and was able to sign up for the payment plan on my car that stretched it out over several years about brought my monthly payment down significantly (I’m aware that this does end up costing more money in the long run but I increased the amount I paid every month depending on the state of my income).

My dog food bill is about $57 every six weeks for the cheapest bag of Acana (Chicken and Potato). I’ve been playing cat food roulette so I don’t actually know how much her food ends up being, but we can just assume that the cat food is about $25/month. Again, this is the higher end stuff, you can switch to something cheaper and be better for it. Cat litter is probably like, $8/month or something like that. I also elected to buy pet insurance for the dog in the event of an emergency because I knew I would not be able to afford vet bills without it. $350/year, paid for itself and then some over when he started limping. Flea and heartworm meds were cheaper for me because I worked at the clinic, so I think I got them at cost or close to it, but Allivet’s prices are very good. 

And then go on to factor in gas and food. Cook your own food, don’t fall into the fast food trap (I spent way too much money on fast food, and it adds up quickly). Coupons and discount food stores are fantastic places. I’ve never been on any assistance programs, so IDK how those work. I like nice things, but I don’t like paying full retail price for nice things if I can help it because I do not have a lot in the way of a disposable income. Craigslist is a great place to get stuff inexpensively, as well as Ryanspetsupplies, and Chewy. Thrift stores are also great places, especially if they’re supported by an animal shelter because a lot of people donate pet stuff. 

Not going to lie, it’s stressful. But you can make it work. You just have to set up your priorities and know how to access resources.

ayooo, since cynological took the plunge and posted how much they make per year: i’m looking at making a little less than 20k this year (about 5k less than last year). i pay ~$500 total in rent + utilities. i never go out… EVER. i only buy clothing at ross or marshalls (both are hella cheap and have quality shit). i make all my food and buy cheap ass groceries.

monty eats victor which is $44 for 40lbs. milo eats a zignature/acana (depends on how i am financially) which is around 28lbs for $50/70ish? milo’s food lasts me 6 weeks, monty’s lasts me 12 weeks. we get all our shots done at the mobile vet, and only go to the real vet for emergencies,  and the yearly physical, blood test and physical. 

before you get a dog SAVE MONEY IN CASE OF EMERGENCIES, even if you get the dog health insurance. and i’m not talking 500 bucks, i’m saying 2k at least. i cannot stress this enough. this is not only the responsible thing to do, but it will save your ass several times be it in an emergency or bc you don’t have enough money to eat that week. it doesn’t matter if you have to dip into it AFTER you get the dog as long as you don’t blow through it unnecessarily; this is something to fall back on bc financial hardships come around more often than you imagine. i’ve had to dip into mine several times in the past.

be responsible, build credit, don’t be stupid, kiss your wild-child days goodbye, and prepare for the worst case scenario.

dealing with the worst case scenario

4velitta4:

lilypotterr:

I feel like this could be useful in my future

itsleightaylor:

I just tweeted it and I figure I should also post it here. 

This website literally GRADES YOUR ESSAYS. You can choose your grade level, if you’re using American or British english, what type of paper it is (essay, short story, biography…), and it even checks for plagiarism. THEN once it’s grading your essay, it shows you grammatical errors, suggestions for better sentence structure, and a lot of other things. Reblog to save a life. 

Things to write about and fill your journal with

bananatops:

1. Go for a walk. Draw or list things you find on the the sidewalk. 

2. Write a letter to yourself in the future. 

3. Buy something inexpensive as a symbol for your need to create, (new pen, a tea cup, journal). Use it everyday. 

4. Draw your dinner. 

5. Find a piece of poetry you respond to. Rewrite it and glue it into your journal.    

6. Glue an envelope into your journal. For one week collect items you find on the street. 

7. Expose yourself to a new artist, (go to a gallery, or in a book.) Write about what moves you about it. 

 8. Find a photo of a person you do not know. Write a brief bio about them.

9. Spend a day drawing only red things. 

10. Draw your bike.

11. Make a list of everything you buy in the next week. 

12. Make a map of everywhere you went in one day. 

13. Draw a map of the creases on your hand, (knuckles, palm) 

14. Trace your footsteps with chalk.  

15. Record an overheard conversation.

16. Trace the path of the moon in relation to where you live.

17. Go to a paint store. Collect ‘chips’ of all your favorite colors.

18. Draw your favorite tree.

19. Take 15 minutes to eat an orange.

20. Write a haiku.

21. Hang upside down for five minutes.

22. Hang found objects from tree branches.

23. Make a puppet.

24. Create an outdoor room from things you find in nature. 

25. Read a book in one day.

26. Illustrate your grocery list.

27. Read a story out loud to a friend.

28. Write a letter to someone you admire.

29. Study the face of someone you do not like.

30. Make a meal based on a color theme. (i.e. all white).

31. Create a museum of very small things.

32. List the smells in your neighborhood. 

33. List 100 uses for a tin can.

34. Fill an entire page in your journal with small circles. Color them in.

35. Giving away something you love.

36. Choose an object, draw the side you can’t see.

37. List all of the places you’ve ever lived.

38. Describe your favourite room in detail.

39. Write about your relationship with your washing machine.

40. Draw all of the things in your purse/bag.

41. Make a mini book based on the theme, “my grocery list”.

42. Create a character based on someone you know. Write a list of personality traits.

43. Recall your favorite childhood game.

44. Put postcards of art pieces/painting on the inside of your kitchen cupboard doors, so you can see them everyday (but not become deaf to them.)

45. Draw the same object every day for a week.

46. Write in your journal using a different medium (brush & ink, charcoal, old typewriter, crayons, fat markers.

47. Draw the individual items of your favorite outfit.

48. Make a useful item using only paper & tape. 

49. Research a celebration or ritual from another culture.

50. Do a temporary art installation using a pad of post it notes & a pen.

51. Draw a map of your favorite sitting spots in your town/city. (photocopy it and give it to someone you like.)

52. Record all of the sounds you hear in the course of one hours.

53. Using a grid, collect various textures from magazine and play them off of each other.

54. Cut out all media for one day. Write about the effects.

55. Make pencil rubbings of six different surfaces.

56. Draw your garbage.

57. Do a morning collage.

58. List your ten most important things, (not including animals or people.)

59. List ten things you would like to do every day.

60. Glue a photo of yourself as a child into your journal.

61. Transform some garbage.

62. Write an entry in your journal in really LARGE letters.

63. Collect some ‘flat’ things in nature (leaves, flowers). Glue or tape them into your journal.

64. Physically alter a page. (i.e. cut a hole, pour tea on it, burn it, fold it, etc.)

65. Find several color combinations you respond to in public. Document them using swatches, write where you found them. 

66. Write a journal entry describing something “secret”. Cut it up into several pieces and glue them back in scrambled.

67. Record descriptions or definitions of subjects or words you are interested in, found in encyclopedias or dictionaries.

68. Draw the outline of an object without looking at the page. (contour drawing).

 

69. What were you thinking just now? write it down.

70. Do nothing.

71. Write a list of ten things you could to do. Do the last thing on the list. 

72. Create an image using dots. 

73. Do 3 drawings at different speeds.

74. Put a small object in your left pocket (or in a bag), Put your left hand in the pocket. Draw it by feel.

75. Create a graph documenting or measuring something in your life.

76. Draw the sun.

77. Create instructions for a simple everyday task.

78. Make prints using food. (fruit and vegetables cut in half, fish, etc.)

79. Find a photo. Alter it by drawing over it.

80. Write a letter using an unconventional medium.

81. Draw one object for twenty minutes.

82. Combine two activities that have not been combined before.

83. Write about your day in an encyclopedic fashion. (i.e. organize by subject.) 

84. Write a list of all the things you do to escape.

85. Cut a random shape out of several layers of a magazine. Make a collage out of the results.

86. Write an entry in code.

87. Make a painting using tools from the bathroom.

88. Work with a medium that is subtractive.

89. Write about or draw some of the doors in your life.

90. Make a postcard that has some kind of activity on it. 

91. Devise a journal entry using “layers”.

92. Devise an entry using “layers”.

93. Write your own definition of one of the following concepts, sitting, waiting, sleeping (without using the actual word.)

94. List 10 of your habits.

95. Illustrate the concept of “simplicity”.

 (source: Keri Smith, 100 ideas)

Pseudo-intellectual Pricks

wishesofalibiya:

preeoz:

He’s most likely educated, possibly a master’s degree in rhetoric. He could be a new atheist, possibly libertarian, most likely white. If you can’t smell his smugness, you can recognize him by the following tropes below.

Next time they use one of these on you, don’t waste your time. Copy and paste. Let them know they’re stereotyped.

The Pacifist

  • The guy who’s always making that bigoted comment on your thread, and always ends with, “Let’s agree to disagree.” He may follow up with a disingenuous attempt at finding common ground.
  • Example: I’m just saying, that if poor people worked harder, they wouldn’t have to depend on the government. You obviously don’t think so. No need to get upset. Let’s just agree to disagree. We can certainly find common ground with the fact that there are definitely some poor people that work very hard.

The Freedom Fighter

  • More indignant than the smug pacifist, he feels you’re taking away his right to have an opinion.
  • Example: I’m allowed to have an opinion about homosexuality. I’m allowed to express my beliefs. I’m allowed to disagree without being attacked. 

The Anecdotally Privileged

  • He’s white (and male) and he’s right. No matter what your experience is, his experience trumps it.
  • Example: Well, I lived in New York City for three years and the NYPD has always treated me with respect.

The Wounded

  • He responds with the old shock and awe routine about being misunderstood.
  • Example: You know who I am. I’m not a bad person. How can you call me a sexist?

The Oppression Authority

  • He married into oppression (or is friends with the oppressed or spent time working among the oppressed), so now his opinion should have gravitas.
  • Example: My wife’s family is Mexican, and they also think illegal immigrants should be deported.

The Call for Civility

  • He indirectly insults your racial, gender, sexual identity, spiritual beliefs, or simply your intelligence. When you call him out on his bigotry, he is (huff huff) insulted. Then he plays the “call for civility.”
  • Example: I haven’t called you any names, but you called me a bigot. If you want to persuade people, you need to treat people with civility.

The Logical Fallacist

  • His go-to is the ad hominem. When you point out that he may not understand a racial problem because he’s white, he screams, “ad hominem!” and runs around with his underwear on his head. Another favorite is the straw man, where he claims you’ve ignored his real argument and are attacking an incorrect version of his argument.
  • Example: You’ve misunderstood my main point. I was talking about the prison industrial complex, not racism. Straw man!

The Claim of Ignorance/Innocence

  • He claims that he’s confused about your opinion on a personal matter and wants to discuss it. Don’t be fooled. He knows exactly what he wants to say and is trying to lead you down a path where he can claim you’ve made a logical fallacy. Then he will claim innocence again—that he was simply trying to have a discussion. He will call for civility. You can’t win.
  • Example: I’m confused. It’s just not natural to be with someone of the same sex.

The Rational Male

  • He is calm, collected, and detached. He understands reason and logic. If you make it personal or emotional, that’s it. Conversation over.
  • Example: Simply put, I fail to see the logic of religion. All religions are the opiate of the masses. But there is one religion that kills people if you disagree with them. And that’s Islam. You don’t see Buddhist bombers, do you? Well, if you’re going to become emotional, then we can’t have this conversation. 

The Neutral Judge

  • He can view the situation from a neutral point of view, implying you cannot. Sure, he understands your POV. Because he’s neutral and wiser than you, he also understands the other side. Because of this ability to discern such (literally) black and white issues with no partiality, he is a better judge than you are.
  • Example: I followed the entire George Zimmerman case and listened to all the evidence presented. Though I find it all tragic, I have to agree with the jurors. You might have anecdotal evidence about racism in the law, but the law is the law.

I swear 99% of white men fall into all of these categories

melodies-of-shibuya:

painttoolsaifornoobs:

pineapple-drink:

ouyangdan:

theubergrump:

mediocreprincess:

theubergrump:

sometimes I forget that rulers work with tablets and I get really frustrated with my inability to freehand straight lines

I NEVER

REALIZED

YOU COULD DO THIS

BUT IT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE

#and you can just trace circles too and use a straight edge and ohmygod my whole world is different now   

omfg for real I thought this was just me?

er, dear artists of Tumblr:

image

image

WHY DID THIS NEVER OCCUR TO ME?

pspspss

you can also trace things

image

Because true.

OH SWEET JESUS I WAS SO DUMB AND BLIND THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING—

nebet-ren:

actualanimevillain:

sometimes you say or do bad things while you’re in an awful mental place. sometimes you say things that are rude or uncalled for or manipulative. and i’m not going to hold that against you. mental illness is hard, and no one is perfect. but once you’re through that episode, you need to take steps to make amends. you need to apologize.

“i couldn’t help it, i was having a bad episode” is a justification, not an apology.

“i’m so fucking sorry, i fucked up, i don’t deserve to live, i should stop talking to anyone ever, i should die” is a second breakdown and a guilt trip. it is not an apology.

when you apologize, the focus should be on the person you hurt. “i’m sorry. i did something that was hurtful to you. even if i was having a rough time, you didn’t deserve to hear that,” is a better apology. if it was a small thing, you can leave it at that.

if you caused significant distress to the other person, this is a good time to talk about how you can minimize damage in the future. and again, even if it is tempting to say you should self-isolate and/or die, that is not a helpful suggestion. it will result in the person you’re talking to trying to talk you out of doing that, which makes your guilt the focus of the conversation instead of their hurt.

you deserve friendship, and you deserve support. but a supportive friend is not an emotional punching bag, and mental illness does not absolve you of responsibility for your actions. what you say during a mental breakdown doesn’t define you. how you deal with the aftermath though, says a lot.

This is the most carefully-nuanced discussion of this I think I have ever seen. Thank you for writing this.