Assessing Your Middle-Class Status

Assessing Your Middle-Class Status
Despite the so-called recovery, many families continue to struggle, with income and other living standards slipping below thresholds that typically represent middle-class quality of life. We've assembled a variety of metrics to help determine whether you're getting ahead, holding steady, or slipping further than most.

Income
For the 50 percent of families in the middle of the scale, household income ranges from $51,000 to $123,000 for a typical four-person, two-parent family. The median is about $81,000. Those numbers are from 2008, and have probably fallen 5 to 7 percent since then, on account of the recession. Median income for a single-parent, two-child family is about $25,000.
Housing Costs
For two-parent families, the typical home is worth about $231,000, accounting for $17,600 in mortgage payments and other costs per year. Housing costs have risen by more than twice as much as income since 1990, a trend that may finally be reversing thanks to the housing bust.
Home Size The housing bubble was one factor that boosted housing costs, but the typical family also lives in a much bigger home. The median size of a new, single-family home jumped by 40 percent between 1979 and 2007, to about 2,300 square feet. That may now be declining, as families downsize and some get booted from homes they can't afford.
Medical Expenses
You've probably heard — healthcare costs are going through the roof. A study by the middle-class task force headed by Vice President Joe Biden says the median two-parent family spends $5,100 per year on health insurance and non-covered expenses—assuming an employer provides health insurance. Healthcare costs have risen far more than any other aspect of the family budget since 1990, with no end in sight.
Cars
They provide mobility and represent freedom, one reason the typical family spends about $12,400 per year on two medium-sized sedans or the equivalent, with a new-car value of $45,000. The recession may have dampened our love of the road, however: Americans are driving less and car sales are off about 40 percent.
College Savings
The typical family puts aside $4,100 for college expenses for two kids, estimated to cover about 75 percent of expenses at a state university. Financial aid helps with the rest. But if possible, toss more into the college fund: As states face budget crunches, tuition and fees are going up.
Vacations
One week at the beach or another destination is standard, at a cost of $3,000 or so for four. More affluent families can afford two weeks, at a typical cost of $6,100.
Retirement Savings
A median-income family that saved 3.2 percent of its income—roughly equivalent to the national saving rate—would sock away nearly $2,600 per year for retirement. Of course many families don't hit even that modest goal, and stock-market losses over the last several years have further shrunk the national nest egg.
Everyday Spending
Clothes, food, utilities, entertainment and other living expenses amount to $14,200 a year for a median-income family. Not surprisingly, this is one set expenses many families are trying to reduce, by buying more discount brands, using less or doing without.
Number of Earners
In 76 percent of two-parent families, both parents work. The higher the household income, the more likely it is that both parents are contributing.
Hours Worked
Few parents will be surprised to hear that Moms and Dads are working more than they used to. The total number of hours worked in a two-parent family is 3,747 per year, up 5 percent since 1990. The increased hours add up to more than four 40-hour weeks of additional work per family.
Education
The typical household head has a high school degree plus about two years of college education, up by more than a full year of college since 1990. Good thing—education is a key factor in lifetime earnings, and high school dropouts face a dim future by nearly every measure.
Free Time
What's your top priority? In a 2008 poll by the Pew Research Center, it wasn't healthy kids, a strong marriage or a great career; 68 percent of respondents said it was free time. (And just 12 percent said it was being wealthy.)
Household Net Worth
The typical household has a net worth of about $84,000, according to the Federal Reserve. That's down 30 percent since 2007, thanks to losses in stock portfolios and home values.
Debt
About 18 percent of disposable income, on average, goes toward mortgage payments, auto loans, credit cards and other forms of household debt. That's a bit higher than it was in the '70s and '80s. But since debt payments peaked at the beginning of 2008, at 18.9 percent of income, they've been steadily falling.

Copyrighted, U.S.News & World Report, L.P. All rights reserved.

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OxyFlush, MMS, Detox Foot Pads, and NutrASilver

I have been getting a LOT of orders lately for OxyFlush - a colon cleanser that I offer through my website. I have been using this for about 5 years now, along with OxyEarth, and OxyLift. I am a big proponent of Oxygen Therapies, and even have an ozone generator at home to infuse my liquids and oils with ozone. Some people are buying a dozen at a time! YAY!

And, MMS - Miracle Mineral Solution is also selling well. I shipped my last one that I have in stock today, but placed an order for more MMS kits yesterday, so you don't have to worry, they will be back in stock later this week. We actually used some MMS last night to disinfect our water heaters. I don't know the lingo, but there are some type of steel or metal rods that go into our water heaters, it is supposed to attract bacteria, but once they stop working the water starts to smell, etc. We could have used bleach to clean our water, but I try to avoid things like that. I know even FEMA recommends it as a water purification source, and in emergencies I wouldn't hesitate to use it, but when we have something healthy that does the job just as well, if not better, then why not use that? So I activated the MMS with 10% citric acid mixture. I have citric acid crystals, and did a 9:1 ratio pure water to the crystals. I then took 1/2 tablespoon of MMS, and 2 1/2 tablespoons of the citric acid mixture, and mixed them together in a cup. They need between 3 to 10 minutes of activation. Right at first it is clear liquid, with no smell, and as it activates, it turns yellowish, and starts smelling STRONGLY like bleach. It is sodium chloride activated by citric acid, which creates chlorine dioxide, which is NOT poisonous.

So, as it turns out, I was able to pour one batch into each tank. Our water smells so fresh, and CLEAN!!! No bleachy smells. I am so impressed. After Steve drains the tanks later this month, I am thinking that I am going to do that again, just because I can :) There were no smells coming from our water, and my shower was so fresh and clean, so I feel good!

I am also getting a lot of orders for NutraSilver. Most people by 3 or 4 bottles at a time. I am guessing that these folks are suffering from Morgellons so of course I want to ship them their product as soon as possible so they can get relief from their symptoms. Many people are having great success with using both NutraSilver and MMS together.

Steve helped me last night by putting labels on my detox foot pads for me. I am running low on my stock of detox foot patches, so I hope to get more in within a week. I have enough for at least one more week. Once I get my new order of foot pads in, I can start offering promotions and deals and sales on detox foot pads. I have a lot of things planned!! I just need the inventory. It should have shipped out from overseas yesterday. So, within a week I will be full of inventory!!!

On another note, I did get introduced to a new freeze dried foods company,  Wise Food Storage. I will be receiving one of their breakfast buckets -- supplying 3 months worth of breakfasts for my long term food storage supply.

Steve and I will have to go camping this summer, hopefully with the dogs!! So that we can use some of our freeze dried meals. I want to try it out!

I am very loved. Steve replaced my bumper on my truck yesterday.

A couple years ago I was driving down the freeway and a car merged onto the freeway, slowly, causing me to change lanes into the left lane (because I didn't want to slow down -- don't you hate it when people don't know how to merge?)

About a mile up the freeway, this same vehicle passed me, quickly changed into the left lane and then noticed everyone was stopping ahead (there was a slight grade in the road so visibility in this area is limited). So, even though they had PLENTY of room, and were in a teeny Toyota car, and I had a big truck, they slammed on their brakes. I do not think what they did was to intentionally cause an accident, but they sped up (I was going at LEAST the speed limit, if not more -- I have a lead foot on the freeway). So they HAD to have been speeding, no doubt about that, and then they admitted they were running late so I assume they wanted to get going faster... anyway, I ended up rear ending them. My bumper got dented, their bumper got dented. They had a newborn baby in their car -- like 5 days old!! Why would the father drive so aggressively with his newborn baby!!!?? That bewilders me.

Anyway, the mom was hysterical and screaming and crying and threatening. Give me a break, lady. I did NOT tailgate -- I had PLENTY of room in front of me until they did a sudden lane change. The baby DIDNT EVEN WAKE UP!! That is now mild the tap was.

So, I never got my bumper fixed to remind me of idiots like that... but now I need no more reminders... and since my license plate frame broke off in a parking lot snow bank sometime in the past 3 months, I decided to replace the  bumper. In comes Steve. My savior, and sweetie pie. He and two friends replaced the bumper yesterday for me, and so now I have a new bumper and new license plates. I am not driving illegally anymore with expired tags, either. Life is grand. Maybe I should get my truck detailed so it looks brand spanking new! I love a shiny new truck!

Thank you, Steve, for being so great. You are fantastic and I am lucky to have you.

we don't like lentils but LOVE homemade baked beans and... what is new with me! (blog posting)

I am trying out some recipes made from scratch from my food storage ingredients. I am not a big fan of lentils at all... (It may have been the way I cooked them, too... I soaked them overnight and cooked them with some low fat turkey kielbasa -- maybe if I used some italian sausage or bacon it would have been better). If you have a lentil soup recipe you want to have me try, let me know and I will try it!

But... I did make homemade baked beans. They were a hit. I can't wait to go home tonight to make more. I never knew that you use white beans for them! I always thought it was a brown bean of some sort.

My next thing I am going to try is pinto beans. I love mexican style foods, and so I will try some pinto beans. Maybe some black beans, too! My friend from Mexico gave me a simple recipe to cook the pinto beans in.

For the next two weeks I am doing my twice yearly treatment of DE on my dogs and cat. DE (Diatomaceous Earth) is a natural de-wormer. Our animals have never been diagnosed with having worms but that doesn't mean that they don't. They play around enough other dogs so that if another dog had worms, my dogs could easily catch them, and bring them into our home. So, while we aren't "treating" worms, we do this just to clean out their systems "just in case". I sprinkle it dry, on their food. I am also adding pumpkin to their foods because for some reason their dogpoo is a little on the soft side and I want it to firm up (how gross is this talking about this topic!! YUCK!)

Now, another thing I am going to try is boiled wheat. It makes a very healthy breakfast cereal. I will probably flavor mine with Stevia and real raw butter. I am thinking about trying some tomorrow morning, to eat as a snack throughout the morning. I will report back once I try, to let you know how that goes.

I am now fitting in my clothing that I have not been able to wear in over a year. I still have a ways to go, but I am excited about the good start that I got. 18 lbs lost in 21 days. Now, I would like to lose another 15 lbs in 6 weeks. I think it is do-able!! Then I will be able to fit in every outfit I have!!!!

My detox foot pad sales are increasing, which are making me happy. It appears that many people are starting to focus on their health. That impresses me because I am in such despair about our healthcare system here, and really don't want to be taxed anymore. If everyone in the country used my foot pads for 1 month straight, and stopped putting toxins in their bodies, the health benefits would be so drastic, so many people's lives would change.

I need to do another acupuncture appointment with Jennifer at Winer Acupuncture. Then I have a rolfing appointment with Erin Herdina at Structure for Life in two weeks. So, after that, along with doing my physical therapy continuously, I think I will be in a great position to face spring and summer!! Come on, sunshine! I am waiting for you!

Consumer Reports found fecal contamination in 39% of pre-washed bagged salads that they tested!!

Supermarket greens packed with bacteria

Here's some news that could even make a die-hard vegan swear off salad: Pre-washed packaged greens sold in supermarkets are crawling with fecal filth.

Consumer Reports tested 208 bags of allegedly pre-washed salad blends -- the kind you'll find in supermarkets everywhere -- and found shockingly high levels of the bacteria that indicate fecal contamination and poor sanitation. Tests revealed unacceptably high levels of total coliforms in 39 percent of the salads, and 23 percent had high levels of the bacteria enterococcus.

What's more, they found this filth in organic and inorganic blends alike... and it didn't matter if the label said "washed," "pre-washed," or -- my favorite -- "triple washed," because clearly whoever was doing the washing was asleep at the hose.

Some of these salads had 100 times what experts considered acceptable levels for these bacteria.

But really, what's an "acceptable" level of poo in your food? Don't know about you, but for me that number is ZERO. That's why I don't eat any prepared foods, and I include pre-bagged supermarket bunny chow in that category.

It's not just the salad. Much of the mass-produced packaged foods and meats available in supermarkets are crawling with filth. And the junk they peddle in fast food joints is even worse (not to mention the risk of boogers, spittle and anything else the teenage chefs feel like "adding" to your meal).

The lesson here, if it's not clear already, is to be extra choosy about your food. Buy meats from a good butcher who sells grass-fed organic cuts. And treat pre-bagged veggies like any other packaged food: avoid them.

If you hate preparing lettuce and spinach so much that you're buying these feces-filled feedbags, then just skip them altogether.

Seeing red over greens,

William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.

Buncher Alert they are stealing dogs from Virginia to Minnesota, please let anybody who has pets know.

  http://www.helpinganimals.com/Factsheet/Files/FactsheetDisplay.asp?ID=41    http://www.metropettracker.com/bunchers.htm

please keep cross posting until the whole mid-west is aware of this
BUNCHER ALERT AND THEY ARE WORKING IN VERY LARGE AREAS FROM VA TO MN. POST YOUR HEARTS OUT. DOG THIEVES AND WORSE. FOR IMMEDIATE PUBLIC RELEASE

I am writing to let you know that there is a LARGE group of bunchers working from the Hibbing-Virginia area down through Duluth-Mid Minnesota-mid Wisconsin. I have not only spoken with many people who have had their pets stolen from their fenced yards, taken off tie-outs, and one brave enough to run up to a man's porch in broad daylight and try to steal his Dachund. Luckily, he lived by a 4 way stop, and ran into the street in front of the cars. When he yelled "What are you doing with my dog" the woman threw her out of the window to the pavement and said "We thought she was lost" then took off before he could get a license number.
Note: A woman was driving and she had a 9 or 10 year old girl run for her.
I was an intended target as well.
I'd noticed a blue truck with a topper and a sort of loud muffler going slowly past my fenced yard off and on for the last three weeks. Last week one of the guys (there were 2 men) got out by my side fence and bent down to call the dogs-luckily I was standing at the door and was out there like a shot. Needless to say, they took off.
Four nights ago, just at dusk, I heard that truck again. This time they pulled up the the front fence (so all I could see was the side of the truck-no plates). Two of my dogs were out. The guy in the passenger side jumped out and was at my fence in a second, bent down and calling "come here puppy want this come here.."
Again, luckily I've been keeping an Eagle Eye on my dogs. I ran out and called Baily (he was closest) and at the same time screamed "What the hell are you doing"...well he was in the truck and gone in 2 seconds.
The next day, Dan was out in back by the garage, and Mason trotted up to him! We couldn't figure out how in the world he'd gotten out, until Dan checked the fence. The spot where this dog thief was squatting the night before had used wire cutters to snip several pieces of our fence wire...just enough to reach in and grab the dogs.
Please be advised that there has also been a report of a dark haired woman in a coupe-like red car who has been spotted doing the same thing. God knows how many there are and how many vehicles are being used.
PLEASE use caution when letting your dogs out. Mine will never go out alone again!
ORIGINAL POSTER CONTACT (from MinnesotaAnimalRescue@yahoo.com- Digest #2230 - dated 11MAR10):

update on my diet -- 16 lbs lost in 18 days

I have 3 more days to go before I can drink my delicious raw milk again!! I can't wait! Monday morning for breakfast I am going to have a delicious healthy glass of milk! And, funny thing, I did this diet without being very hungry at all! YAY for me.

I am down 16 lbs and hope to lose 2 more pounds in the next 3 days. 18 lbs is not that bad, I guess, though I would have liked it to be closer to 25 lbs. I will continue to lose weight until I reach 140... I know some people consider that underweight for my 5'8" height... but it is where most of my cute clothes fit me the best... My goals are to only eat simple carbs (sugars, processed flour) on a very limited basis. Another important goal is portion control. Besides that, all else works. I won't limit myself of anything that I normally would eat. For example, I still won't go to fast food restaurants, nor will I eat processed foods, but I normally don't eat those anyway.

My grandma's first cousin's funeral is today, so that is why I am home from work. Then, later this afternoon I will be heading over to my duplex and checking out some measurements and quotes for a fence installation. I promised her a fence for her dog this spring!!

I hope to start promoting my detox foot pads more, in the next week. I want to do a huge sale to welcome spring in. Spring is a time to get ready for summer, to lose weight, start up your exercise regime again, and get healthy. Get rid of those toxins that are making you tired, lethargic, and in pain constantly. If you suffer from migraines, headaches, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, or other chronic issues, then for sure the detox foot pads will help you.

Now, off to get ready for the day! I always seem to be running a bit behind!

Bedrooms

It was just a thought that I had... how differently Steve and I view our bedroom. When I want to rest, I will go in my bedroom and lay down and read, even if I don't fall asleep. Of course I also take plenty of naps there, too! If I am organizing or polishing my jewelry, I will do it in my bedroom. I spend a lot of time in the bedroom -- if I have to stretch, I will do stretches on the floor (this is beyond my workouts or physical therapy), or use the foam roller to get kinks out of my muscles. I fold laundry in the bedroom, after all, it is a lot closer to where it gets put away. Sometimes I will lay in bed and use my notebook. Much more comfortable than the couch!

Steve, on the other hand, uses the bedroom to get dressed, and sleep. He can take naps on the sofa no problem. I can't. He does almost everything in the living room -- from working, watching TV, reading, using his notebook, and even playing with the dogs.

I wonder if my resistance to getting comfortable on the couch has anything to do with us Hauptmans being raised to not put our feet on the couch or lay down on it. All we were supposed to do is sit on it. Hmmm. I do suppose our furniture lasted quite a long time for a family with 9 kids... Just some thoughts that go through my head.

But I am glad that I at least love my bedroom. I love my walk-in closet, my little bench, my master bathroom suite with its own water closet, and although I HATE my sleep number bed, I do enjoy reading while laying down, vs. sitting up. Not to mention the number of times I fall asleep holding a book in my hand!!

How do you view your bedroom? As just a place to sleep and get dressed? Or more of a sanctuary, like I do?

EARTHQUAKE SAFETY TIPS from Simply Prepared

EARTHQUAKE SAFETY TIPS

IN HOMES--Stay away from windows, hanging objects, fireplaces, and tall unsecured furniture. Drop to the floor. Get under or next to a heavy piece of furniture, against an inside wall, or under a supported archway and hold on.
IN A HIGH-RISE BUILDING--Stay away from windows and glass partitions. Drop to the floor. Get under a heavy piece of furniture, against an inside corridor or hall, or near a pillar or support column and hold on.
IN A SHOPPING MALL--Move away from windows and display shelves. Drop to the floor. Move against an inside wall or corner, or get under a table, counter, or bench and hold on.
IN THE OPEN--Move away from buildings, if possible. To avoid flying glass, run to an open area or duck into a safe doorway. Stay away from waterways or swimming pools.
IN A CAR--Pull over and stop away from buildings, bridges, overpasses, underpasses, or overhead electrical wires. Keep your safety belt on.

Detox Your Body with
Purify Your Body Foot Pads!
www.purifyyourbody.com

Minnesota Boxer Rescue
www.mnboxerrescue.org
Adopt a Boxer Today!