Two weeks of escape, versus forty weeks of quiet desperation. Where did we sign on for that, how can we get off? In the past it was possible to raise a family with the income from one man’s wage. Now a typical family needs both adults working to service the mortgage. What happened...
My experience in renting apartments in Medellín was recently documented in a four-part series: thefirst part is here, thesecond part is here, thethird part is hereand thefourth part is here. We currently live in a three-bedroom apartment in the Los Alpes barrio inBelén, which is located...
as long as their voice is respectful. But a woman was escorted from a room after making a case for getting a raise of her minimum wage which cannot feed her and her children. For details, see the video and readMcDonald’s President Was Caught Off Guard By Low-Wage, Single Mom. (NPR...
The universities that do offer a living wage are true outliers. At Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, for example, the basic annual stipend for biology PhDs exceeds $42,000, well above the local cost of living of about $36,000. Other institutions that pay a living wage (or cl...
Identify “wants” versus “needs” Unexpected medical bills or a job loss can happen to anyone. But we’re talking about everyday spending habits. Do youneeda smartphone and a $100-a-month data plan? Do youneeda big-screen TV? Reconsider what is important. Would you enjoy eating out ...
The average UK salary for people in the 40-49 age bracket is 40k p.a. Sure, some people outside high finance earn more than that, including my former wage-slave self, but the average is a long way off finding the annual tax allowances a limiting factor Author erminePosted on July ...
How expensive is the USA in comparison to the UK, the EU and Australia? The official currency in the USA is the US Dollar (USD or $ on currency exchanges). You can find out the exact value of your money in USD, using an onlinecurrency converter - but here’s a rough guide: £10...
Unit costs were assessed for volunteer time by either the salary of the individual donating time or minimum wage, for unemployed individuals. The value of donated goods were assessed from market prices (for food donations), pharmacies (for medicines and medical supplies) and from the internet (...
I was living on roughly the national minimum wage, in order to maximize the benefits of salary sacrifice. This was greatly softened by the fact we owned a house outright and several acres of farmland which Mrs Ermine grew a fair amount of our food. But it was tough, and for a holiday ...
(Is academia weird about this versus the business world? I have no idea. I don’t get an expense account or company credit card, but I don’t travel for work very often, either.) I Still Did Pretty Great Even with significant, anomalous travel spending this month, I still spent 19% ...