BUY THE VISION & SAVE -- 2 DAY LIMITED OFFER!!

Readers of this blog will be glad to know that the publishers of THE VISION have partnered with 6 companies to help promote the new novel by best-selling author Debi Pearl. THE VISION

When you to order THE VISION from Barnes and Noble on 11/3 or 11/4, SIX companies will offer a 25% discount off of merchandise purchased from their web store (no other discounts apply). This is just in time for the Holidays!

As a thank you for your purchase of THE VISION, it is possible to save hundreds of dollars, depending on the products you decide to purchase. In addition to the savings, the purchase offer includes free downloadable EBooks. **

Now is the time to start your Holiday Savings! Follow the links to visit these fine merchants prior to receiving your coupon codes. REMEMBER: the purchase date must be 11/3 or 11/4 to qualify for 25% off savings and free EBooks. **

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS OFFER!
Order THE VISION by Debi Pearl from BarnesandNoble.com on November 3rd or 4th, 2009 (offer good on these days only) and you will receive coupon codes from the following companies offering 25% discounts from their webstores. Discounts cannot be combined with other discounts.

 

1. Ancient Healing Oils
2. The Bulk Herb Store
3. College Plus!
4. More Than Alive
5. No Greater Joy
6. The Mission Ball

PLUS! You will also receive free downloadable ebooks and bonus gifts from Gary D. Foster Consulting (see details below).

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On November 3rd or 4th...
1. Visit www.DebiPearl.com
2. Click the Barnes & Noble link to place your order.
3. Email your receipt immediately to Mel Cohen to receive your coupon codes.
Coupon codes expire on 11/9/09.

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Earning Dual Credit: How to Combine High School and College-
High school students may not realize it but the study they're doing in high school can actually count for college credit through CLEP exams. In fact, they don't need to wait until graduation to do college-level coursework either. Find out how high schoolers can graduate college by age 18 for a fraction of the time and cost of the traditional college system.

Herbal Alternatives-


FREE 3-MONTH SUBSCRIPTION The Foster Letter-
The Foster Letter is a biweekly publication that will be sent to you via email. It provides a Religious Market Update, and is An Executive Marketplace Intelligence Report for Business and Ministry Decision Makers.

PREPARING TO BARTER

When currency is in short supply, trading for goods (bartering) is another method by which you can secure goods. Another benefit of bartering is that traded items can help you generate goodwill from others and secure needed services. However, in order engage in a successful trade, you will need to be prepared.

 

When determining the best items to have on hand, consider these guidelines.

 

REMEMBER THAT THIS IS AN INVESTMENT

 

 

WHEN NEEDED, REPAIRED ITEMS ARE JUST AS GOOD AS NEW

Take inventory of your skills as you consider items for trade. If you know how to make simple repairs, you could purchase slightly worn items at a deep discount and refurbish them yourself.

 

ITEMS WITH MORE THAN ONE USE

Look for things which can be used for more than one purpose. This will increase your trading opportunities and save storage space. A partial list of such items include: assorted cloth, soap, basins, buckets, rubber bands, blankets, twine, string, tarps and duct tape.

 

MAKE YOUR OWN TRADE GOODS

 

KNOWLEDGE

Books on self-sufficiency are a valuable resource. Vary your collection with entertaining fiction. Even more valuable is literature that teaches while it entertains. Shop discount outlets for used books.

 

 

The ability to think creatively will be your most valuable asset. Re-purposing used items into useful goods is a greatly beneficial ability. You can practice this skill now, learning to recognize opportunities. Debi Pearl has written a wonderful work of fiction called THE VISION that promises to get your imagination reeling with possibilities. Read this adventure novel and follow the characters through political, social and economic upheaval as they utilize their skills to deal with difficulties and danger. Read it today and enjoy learning how to make your own way.

BUILD-IT-YOURSELF HOMEOWNER HELPS

Building your own home is an option for people who own land, but lack the funds to have a ready home constructed.

BUILD BELOW THE RADAR
There are MANY MANY plans from many sources on how to build your own home. While recommendations vary on many points, one place where they all agree is that you must know what the building codes are in your area. You will want to know what must be done to the property to make it ready for a residence. Decide on your water source and sewage options and build in such a way that you have the option to make improvements later. In other words, hauling water is fine while you are young, but you will likely appreciate indoor plumbing in your later years. Construct your dwelling with these things in mind.

 

One of the most intriguing plans I've seen is that of compound building. Rather than build a single building for a dwelling. some homeowners are opting to erect several small storage shed sized buildings. These are often small enough that no building permits are required. They can be positioned much the same as rooms would be in a house, but they each have their own foundation and roof. A wall is erected around the outer perimeter to secure the compound and sometimes a roof is placed over the interior courtyard with walkways between rooms (buildings).

 

This plan for a compound home is of one made with hay bale construction.

If you are homesteading, many authors suggest that you live in an old trailer home (or shack) on the property while you are building. During this time, your tools will likely be kept under a tarp or other waterproof container. Your first construction project (building A) will be the building which will later become your storage/garage space. This will help you perfect your skills while gaining experience. Once building A is complete, you live in building A and use the old trailer for storage while you construct building B. As each new section is finished, you move possessions into that and equipment/tools into your finished storage (which you just vacated).

 

FREE BUILDING MATERIALS

If you more time than money, you can acquire many building materials for the cost of carrying it away. When modern construction methods are used, the excess materials must be cleared from the site. This is an expense to the contractor. If you follow the construction industry and are dependable, you may be able to get materials FREE in exchange for saving the contractor the expense of hiring a disposal service

 

This site has a nice table on how materials can be used in construction: Recycling Construction Materials: An Important Part of the Construction Process.

FOUND MATERIALS CONSTRUCTION
The house in this video "was built over a period of seven months into the side of a hill. It was constructed almost entirely of salvaged, natural, second hand, or found materials. We wanted to see what could be accomplished with out buying newly manufactured materials..."

LARGE PROJECT HELPS
(Image courtesy of http://www.strawbaleconference.com/index.html)

Don't be afraid to ask for help. Building a dwelling can be labor intensive (another reason for building small). You can gain experience in using your method of choice by volunteering to help with an ongoing project near your home. Search the internet for 'learning workshops.' If you are willing to travel and camp overnight, you will be rewarded with more learning opportunities.

 

When you have enough materials assembled, you can host your own workshop (well worth the expense of hiring an experienced facilitator to teach and organize the crews, in my opinion). Well-placed announcements on the internet and the local health food store (or farmer's market) will get the word out. Consider what you would want to have available as a volunteer, and secure those items when you host a work day(s). This would include toilet facilities, drinking water, possibly a camping area, and possibly enough food for a common meal. Your educational facilitator will likely have some ideas about what works well in these settings (and what he/she may require).

 

Next, we will look at alternative building materials and methods. . .

Whatcha Need? Whatcha Got?

To admit that we might go hungry without the benefit of a grocery store would seem ludicrous to many of our grandparents. Have you noticed that simple, creative solutions escape us when we accept the thinking that without "A," "B" cannot be done?

This point was driven home for me as I visited a village a few years ago. We stopped to watch a canoe being made. The artisan explained that no metals tools were needed for the task. Of course, with a chainsaw and some carving tools, the project could be finished in a day with the help of some skilled friends. The artisan admitted that this was true. Everyone nodded in agreement.

THEN this wise man noted that there were limits to such assembly line thinking. The team working with modern tools would be limited by their brute strength, speed and the number of hours in a day.

He went on to describe how that even children could fell a stand of trees and simultaneously produce a fleet of canoes within a matter of weeks (or days) -- all without modern tools. Even working around the clock, the team of strong men couldn't match that.

His methods were both simple and reproducible.

• * Locate a source of water and mud.
• * Pack the mud around the tree on all sides -- about 6 feet high (or as high as you could reach) -- and leave an open space to expose the trunk on the downhill side of the tree.
• * Build and tend a HOT fire at the open spot in the clay.
• * Periodically, pull the fire away from the tree and scrape away the charred part of the tree.
• * Repeat this process until the tree falls. Tend the flames carefully so that the tree does not catch fire. This can be done with more than one tree at a time if you are industrious. www.native-art-in-canada.com/fellatree.html

• * Place wet clay beneath and around the sides of the felled tree.
• * Keep this moistened throughout the process.
• * Chip away at the topside of the bark and create a flat surface.
• * Build a fire along this topside of the tree and keep it smoldering.
• * Several times a day move the coals off of the surface and scrape away the charred parts of the tree trunk.
• * This can be done with clam shells, hard wood, or other homemade scraping tools.
• * Repeat until the log is hollowed out, creating the canoe shape.

Once you have become experienced, several canoes could be made at the same time using any person old enough to know how to tend the fires -- enough to barter or trade for other goods/services. While the strong team of men with modern tools could produce a finished product faster, they could not match potential numbers produced by the less labor intensive method.

The point of this article is not to teach you the finer points of tree felling or canoe construction using alternative means. Rather, it is to encourage you to think outside the box. Instead of thinking "I cannot secure shelter, food, clothing without money to secure tools, cloth, lumber, or whatever," we may be better served by taking inventory of what we DO have and finding ways to utilize that. If you don't have the manpower for a large task, harness the power of the raw materials at your disposal -- water, fire, clay, sand, plants, animals, etc. -- and work efficiently rather than just intensively.

We may not be able to build a factory and mass produce identical products for wealthy consumers, but -- just as the natives without modern metal tools and a team of strong men -- we can find alternative ways to secure what we need.

If you have a skill that you enjoy, make yourself valuable to others and trade your time for the items you lack. You might need a cabinet. The local carpenter might benefit from the wild grapes you harvested, or the jelly you made. You may not eat ham, but your local vendor might be offering you a free ham with your purchase. You could trade your free ham with your neighbor for a couple of his free-range chickens. Your talents and abilities, used wisely, can be traded for the items you lack. Has there been a giveaway on surplus thingamabobs and you haven't ANY use for them? SOMEONE has a use for them. With a couple of trades, you might be able to put yourself in a position to negotiate for a needed item.

ONE RED PAPERCLIP
Kyle MacDonald is a young man that decided he wanted to become a homeowner. Starting with a paperclip he began to 'trade up' hoping to reach his dream. Fourteen months later, he traded for a house! Click on the video below to see a news report about Kyle MacDonald and how he became a homeowner.

The ability to think about using time and talents as currency is definitely a skill worth having in today's economy. You may find that all of that 'useless junk' you've got laying around is valuable to someone that holds a treasure -- at least it's a treasure to YOU. It's worth considering.