H. Luiz Presents…

so it’s time to conjure up new dreams to aspire to: the New American Dream Reality.

We use to want to “own” our own homes, now we have to own the biggest property in town. Today, we can’t make mortgage payments and can’t deal with foreclosures.  Little Timmy can NOT go to the University, he has to work at Micky D’s to help pay for Community College – if he’s lucky. Big sister Suzy is trying to have a wedding with $500, but using her new credit card with a $5,000 limit (plus her family’s credit) to have a lavish-looking Day…after all, what would her friends think? I have friends that drive BMWs, Mercedes Benz’s, Lexus’ and Hummers – but have no furniture in their homes.  We’re still going “out” with money we don’t have, in designer clothes we can’t afford, to meet & hook-up with people in worse financial situations than what we’re in.

It’s time to “pull the curtain back” and see what’s really going on.

It use to crack me up when people (family, really) used to say to us, “You two don’t have a house yet?”  I know that they really did not understand it when we would reply, “We can’t afford that kind of future debt AND live our current lifestyle, especially with a son going from an expensive private high school, and onto an expensive college.” They would always counter with, “But you’re paying for such a high rent?” Then of course we would say, “The house that we would want, with real ‘usable’ square footage, would be twice our rent as a mortgage – we just don’t want to be locked in to that kind of debt right now. When and if we do buy, it would probably be an investment 2 bedroom condo.”  Unfortunately, some of those family members and friends are the ones that cannot “do” anything with us – not even go see a play or watch a movie in a theater.  They’re on a never-ending hamster wheel, working jobs they don’t care for, just to pay their high mortgages.  They cannot pay for repairs to their homes. They cannot afford to go away on vacations that they desperately need and they cannot even go out to eat nor have family over to celebrate holidays.  They cannot help their children with college tuitions nor help their older children with wedding expenses – they cannot even attend weddings today since they cannot afford the expense of an appropriate wedding gift.

Other family and friends who were living above their means, have lost their jobs and sadly, some lost their homes.  Currently, there are a few of them who still have their homes, but had to take on a couple of part-time jobs just to make the mortgage payments…and do you know they are still “living” as if they’re still making 6 figure-salaries?? If you’re living above your means now, there’s still time to start down-sizing and prepare for the future.  It’s all about having a wonderful time with the least amount of money – or with no money at all.

Here’s one example…about 5 years ago, we have stopped giving expensive gift to our extended families and friends over the Christmas Holiday.  It was out of control - we used to spend from $800 to $1,000 easy and that was NOT on each-other and NOT on our kids.  Add to that about $300 to $400 on food & liquor for the holiday party.  Now multiply that by around 8 years and that comes out to roughly $10,000 dollars – OH, HELL TO THE NO!!  That’s NOT including gifts for each-other, which are were more lavish than that.  We went back to the real meaning and spirit of the holiday – giving from the heart.  Since the heart of our home is our kitchen, I started baking!

With $30 – $50 worth of good quality ingredients, such as pure cocoa, dark Belgium chocolate, shelled pistachios, organic golden raisins and cranberries, macadamias, dried coconut flakes, champagne extract, white butter, and citrus zest (lemons, oranges, limes) – I can make dozens and dozens of different baked goods.  I’m talking about biscotti (with dried fruit and pistachios), chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, citrus-scented madeleines, flourless coconut macaroons, brownies (with and without macadamias) and gourmet crispies (the champagne extract really sets it off!)   I wrap cookies  in clear cellophane with knotted ties to keep them air-tight and fresh.  I contain madeleines & macaroons in clear Chinese take-out boxes and biscotti & brownies in small khaki-colored bakery boxes lined with brilliant colored tissue paper.  Sometimes, I individually wrap the gourmet krispies with cellophane and home-made banding.  Of course, everything gets tied-up with wraffia…presentation is everything! jajajajajajajaja.  When I can find them, I get larger boxes or tins and make an assortment per couple or family.  This of course is given as “presents” to about 14 people after a wonderful holiday meal (where the real money has gone to), including an over-the-top delicious dessert.  Our holiday party is usually scheduled on the Saturday after Christmas (if Christmas IS on Saturday, we have it Sunday,) we spend the actual day with just the immediate family – giving each other (3 of us) the more extravagant gifts.  We also encourage family & friends not to spend money and buy gifts for us.  They always ask, “What should I bring?” We always say – Your Appetites!!

This “one” change has saved us around $1200 a year AND it has also saved our family & friends money, especially during the holidays.  Some of our family members have incorporated the same tradition with their extended family and what’s better for the holidays than “breaking bread” with loved ones?  By the next day after our holiday party – we receive lots of phone calls with folks saying, “Ooooh, I just had those madeleines with a cup of coffee and the kids had their cookies with milk – delicious!”  Ring-Ring “You have to give me that biscotti recipe…my husband can’t get enough of them!” Ring-Ring “I have never liked coconut macaroons – until now, thank you so much.” Ring-Ring “What is in this rice-crispy square – crack? I can’t stop eating them!”  Those phone calls are the real gifts.

Spend time with your loved ones, go for a family walk in the cooler, evening, summer hours after dinner.  You’d be surprised on what your kids will share with you during these walks.  It costs nothing and you can lose some calories too.

Give your older children $20-$25 and tell them that they are making dinner this Saturday.  They (he or she) will be able to see what food costs and decide if it’s worth buying it.  Be around to help with food-prep and stove/oven supervision.  Have them follow a recipe or let them get creative.  It’s better and less expensive than going out to eat with your kids. (My family of 3 can have an amazing, home-cooked meal and dessert for under $25…if we go out to eat – $150 easy!)  If it goes well, let them make dinner the first Saturday of “every” month, if they’re any good – maybe once a week!

A picnic lunch for one is amazing especially during your lunch hour at work.  Grab a blanket, find a patch of grass at a nearby park, and dive into some home-packed foods – curried turkey salad or pasta pesto with chicken or “pea”-lafels maybe.  Hell, a store-bought sandwich and a park bench will do in a pinch.  Just get away, escape, relax…you’ll return to work refreshed with more energy than staying in the lunch room with co-workers talking about work.

Avoid driving the car at all costs – walk, ride the bike, use those roller-blades, take a bus or train whenever you can.  Gas is too high and we’re too lazy.  Do something about it!  And please – we do not care what kind of car you drive.  If you have a Honda or a BMW, it makes no difference to us – as long as you can afford it.  We also do not care if you’re not impressed with our 5-year-old Nissan Altima (we’re not car-folks, but it is a nice ride and we love the color we chose), it gets us to our events and to our supermarket on the weekends.  It used to get us to our son’s sporting events when he was in high-school, but now-a-days it sits in the parking lot about 26 days a month.

Don’t buy a house if the mortgage payments will stop you from living a good life.  If we bought a 3 bedroom 2 bath house like we wanted to 5 years ago, we wouldn’t be able to have holiday parties, vacations, Broadway plays, new PCs & laptops, attend weddings, buy electronic gadgets, pay college undergrad tuitions, help charities, run websites, and pay for post-graduate education just to name a few.

PLEASE, do not go into credit-card debt perpetrating a fraud on your family, friends, and most-importantly – yourself! If you’re struggling, do NOT buy a $1,200 dress or a $1.600 suit because you have to “maintain an image.” I integrate my high-end clothing with low-end pieces to expand my wardrobe. The blazer may be Oscar de la Renta but the trendey jeans are Old Navy (yes I said it jajajajaja!)  The shoes may be by Kenneth Cole but the amazing colored dress-shirt is from Macy’s house label – Alfani.  The jeans may be Diesel but they’re paired with casual’ walking sneaks from Payless.  The dress-shirt may be by Armani with a beautiful $5 tie from an NYC street vendor.  The dress-shirt, tie, casual slacks, and shoes may respecfully be Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, and Dolce & Gabbana but the blazer is Merona – a TargetStores brand.  Mix it up!! Two years ago, I didn’t have $12,000 to add suits, clothes, and shoes to my wardrobe, but with $1,200 I more than tripled the size of my wears! This year’s challenge: what can I do with $250?  I’m thinking, that’s a lot of Century 21, TJ Max, Target, JCPenny and Old Navy.  I can still look stylish with just 10% of the costs.

So let’s stop the “nightmare,” stop all the pretensions, stop foolishly wasting money, and let’s really live the American Dream.  The best things in life are FREE…or low-cost!

There are still FUN things to do for FREE in NYC, check out http://www.hluizpresents.com/2009/08/11/8-things-to-do-in-nyc-for-free/  and for ways to save some dollars, check out http://www.hluizpresents.com/2010/08/01/a-few-ways-to-save-a-buck-or-40/ . One Saturday this summer, we’re doing a “Truck-Hunt.”  Instead of spending $200 on dinner for two, we’re going to track down (Twitter) the top 8 NYC food trucks by foot (we’ll burn some calories) and only spend $5 to $7 per truck (that’s only $20 to $23 per person). Here’s the list http://www.hluizpresents.com/2010/09/07/8-best-food-trucks-in-nyc/ and who knows, we may even invite you on the Truck Hunt…are you game? 

Live the American Dream – not the Nightmare!  
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