edukatorz.com

The Edukatorz read the Internet daily (and not just TGRIOnline and Twitter), so we come upon a lot of crap, including this Wall Street Journal blogpost about living cheaply in a new city.* It’s clearly written by a marketing zombie and anyone with half a brain cell pretty much knows the ‘advice’ they’ve spewing off. With Fall approaching it seems like many are off moving to new cities so it seems appropriate to give some tips living cheaply in a new town or any town really.

1) Find a Neighborhood Bar

We realize not drinking is simply out of the question so we humbly suggest finding a neighborhood watering hole. Not only is it a great way to meet new people and make friends, but if you befriend the bartender a lot of those drinks are going to slide off the bill. Bonus points if you can find a neighborhood bar with wi-fi so you don’t have to pay for the Internet either.

2) Use the Interwebs**

Well use the Internet for more than just Twitter/FB, pr0n, Edukatorz and GChat. While hanging out at the neighborhood bar is awesome, you can’t do it all the time (well you can…) so you’ll have to figure out other things to do. If you don’t want to be antisocial in your off time we recommend finding a few local blogs that advertise events and read them. In any big city (and some smaller ones) there are bound to be at least a few free or inexpensive events.

3) Don’t be Boring

Look, you don’t have to spend money to have a good time or at least very little of it. Boring people are bored and bored people spend a lot of money on crap. Find a hobby or volunteer. At the very least go to the library and check out some books so you’ll be interesting. If you’re really strapped for cash you can still go to DJ nights and shows with small covers, just go sober that night or drink at home/your neighborhood watering hole. Whatever it is you’re in to, there’s a chance it can be done inexpensively, just figure out what it is you dig.

4) Eat Well

Eating out all the time is a huge drain on the old budget so we recommend finding Farmers Markets and small ethnic grocery stores to buy your food from. Not only do they have a better selection than crappy grocery stores and corner stores, but they’re often cheaper if you shop smart. If you make friends with a Farmer they’ll often throw in an extra tomato here and there. You can even finagle you’re way into a job at the Farmers Market and get paid while getting discount produce.

* We generally hate all MSM ‘advice’ and culture stories we read, but we just can’t quit them.
** While this is similar to #5 on their list, our point is to not be lame about it.

Friend of the blog belmontmedina offered to write us a guest post on proper farmers market etiquette. Since she works at a farmers market we figured she’d know best. Follow her on Twitter at @halfsmoke. You can find her shopping or working at either the H Street and Bloomingdale farmers markets or at the Farmers Market at the Grove when she’s in LA.

That’s right, market season is upon us!  Asparagus and strawberries, peas and fava beans, it’s peaches and blackberries and tomatoes!  Then it’s apple season, then squash, then it’s Thanksgiving and I’m depressed and refusing to leave my room until April again.  Wait, what?

So farmers markets are back.  I won’t extol the virtues of farmers market shopping, that’s for another time.  But, as an employee of one of these markers, I would like to remind you, dear consumer, that this is not your local Safeway.

Behold, a guide to not shopping like a douchebag:

1) Come correct. That means small bills, ESPECIALLY if you come during the early part of the market.  I’m not depleting my entire bank to give you change after you’ve paid for your $4 strawberries with a S50.  Dick.  Also, thanks to DC’s new bag ordinance, not many people use plastic bags anymore.  If you need a bag, request one POLITELY.  Do not snippily ask “well, aren’t you going to give me a bag?”  If you do that, I will accidentally smash your strawberries.

2) Be polite. I shudder to think of how many times I have to explain this to people, but the whole point of a market is to get a little closer to your food and the people that grow it.  So if you have a question about an especially odd looking variety of pear, or which applesauce is best with the pork two stands over, please wait until the line has died down to a few people, and I will be happy to pontificate at great length about your selections.  By the same token, if you are behind the person asking the questions, be patient.  I would and will do the same for you, so allow me the time to talk to them.  Also, I can’t believe I have to say this, but please, don’t cut in line.  We’re all adults, Wayfarers or not.  Wait your turn.

3)    Corral your kids. This is nor Costco.  Those samples are out there as just that, “samples”.  Not “free lunch because your lazy ass was too busy sleeping in to feed your ill mannered child.”  It takes time and cuts into profit to do that, so please, allow your kids to sample.  Do not allow them to eat or smear their fingers all over each and every pieee of food

4)    Haggle responsibly. Do not complain to me about the prices.  As with many things in life, you get what you pay for, and as I mentioned, this is not Safeway.  It takes a tremendous amount of time, effort, and care to grow, harvest, and transport all this food.  That being said.  If you are buying a large amount, or have a worthy cause (think school garden or picnic, not that you spend your last $20 on a stupid t-shirt from Urban Outfitters), I might be willing to cut you a deal if you ask nicely.  Do not be upset if I don’t.

I love the farmers market.  Following these rules will make me love you the next time I see you at the market.

We love this time of year, and not just for the awesome weather, but because it’s farmers’ market season. We love the hustle and bustle of the farmers’ market and more importantly we love getting tasty food. If you have time and are by a market you should definitely check it out.

1) Fresh Food – It’s Just Better

Trying to lose weight or up your nutrition game? Naturally that means you should be eating more fresh fruits and vegetables and the easiest place to get them is at a farmer’s market. Yes, we suppose you could go to the grocery store, but grocery store produce is kinda gross in comparison and you have no idea what mystery farm it came from. Even if you do usually buy your produce at the grocery store, farmers’ market produce generally tastes better.

Same thing goes for you carnivores out there. A lot of markets also have sellers that sell meat and most of it is tastier and way better than that factory farm crap coming out of the grocery store.

2) Know Your Farmer

A lot of farmer’s markets are “producer-only” markets meaning that only the farmer can sell their products at the market. This means that when you’re at the market you’re buying directly from the farmer and can ask her/him questions like if they’re organic, if they use pesticides, how the animal your meat is coming from was raised, etc and find out more information about your food. Now you know exactly where your food has come from and with all of the FDA recalls of food out there it’s nice to know where exactly your food is coming from.

If the farmer’s market you go to happens to have “re-sellers” (people who buy food at auction and then re-sell it at market) press them on where they get their food. If they don’t have a good answer buy from someone else.

3) Supporting Your Community

Farmers’ markets are community driven events. That means someone in your community probably organized it as a way to help the greater community so you should be a good neighbor and respect that and stop by. Since the farmers at the markets are local, that means you’re also supporting them and helping them make a living.

4) Helping Out the Environment

It doesn’t take a genius to realize that the carbon footprint of the food you’re buying at the supermarket is going to be way bigger than that at the farmers’ market. When you buy food at the supermarket it travels hundreds, if not thousands of miles and probably comes from across the country, if not from another country. Food at the farmers market comes from farms that are nearby. No farmer is going to drive over 100 miles to sell their products for a few hours.

To find a farmer’s market by you check out this cool application from the USDA of farmer’s markets all over the country: http://apps.ams.usda.gov/FarmersMarkets/. Our favorite markets are the Freshfarm Markets in DC, the Farm to City markets in Philadelphia, the Greenmarket markets in NYC and the Farmer’s Market at the Grove in Los Angeles. Let us know if you know of any awesome markets we should check out.