Man, Things are tough these days. Between Inflation, Greedflation and Shrinkflation (No, not that kind. There’s a pill for that kind of “flation’), surviving the daily boogie is a struggle. The squeeze is on! From food prices, gas prices and rent, living is barely manageable.
Now try to add having some fun in life and forget it. I went to Downtown Las Vegas for a show, and it was $50 just to park at the Golden Nugget. Yes, The Golden Nugget. That should be illegal. Rant aside, the economy doesn’t feel like it’s getting better, even though all the indicators say it is.
Are There Really Free Things?
According to Usbank.com, even though unemployment is low, the job market is strong and the GDP, while growing at a slow pace, is still growing, it doesn’t seem to be trickling down our way. We are hurting, bad.
According to parents.com, 40% of Americans are struggling with buying groceries. Add to that, 17% can’t pay their bills on time. So if the economy is getting better, we don’t feel it. Nope. We are so broke we can’t even compare apples to oranges, because we can’t afford to buy them.
And now there’s data showing how broke we really are.. Again, according to Usbank.com Consumer spending is “softening” and if we don’t feel better soon, it will reflect in the economy far more than it is now. Rob Haworth, senior investment strategy director for U.S. Bank Wealth Management says, “a big question that may drive the markets and the timing of Fed rate cuts is whether consumers can continue spending at a sufficient pace to keep the economy growing.”
I’m no economist (I could barely understand what he just said), but I can tell you what I think we need. Free. We need more free in our lives.
So here’s my top five (sort of) free things you can do when flat broke.
#5 Hike Or Take In Nature
I’ll start with one of the most natural (sort of) free things, nature. I say sort of because you still may need to spend gas getting to the cool gathering of trees. Living in Vegas affords us many beautiful spots to hike. Red Rock is gorgeous, although you may have to pay a park fee, but there spots where dont have to pay. Find them. There’s also Valley of Fire. That my friend is FREE.
#4 Volunteer To Feed The Homeless
The freeist thing in life is volunteering. Its good for the soul and easy on the wallet. Feeding the homeless is particularly rewarding, because you see the gratitude in their eyes. For me, that’s pretty cool.
#3 Host game Night
Hanging with friends is always good for the soul. Hosting game night is one way to spend time with the good people in your life. Make sure its a BYOB party, because as a perk of being the host, you get to keep any leftover alcohol.
#2 Reverse the Spam
How many of us recieve spam calls, all day, everyday? Well, I say turn it around and have fun answering them. You. “Hello?’ Them.” Yes, maam, this is John and I’m calling about..” You, cutting them off ” About the drugs? I told you I don’t have anything to do with the Cartel anymore. I mean, yeah, we just moved 5 kilos the other day, but I told them I’m out. I’m out! Hey do you know where I can get a dozen python snakes? My old supplier left town , suddenly.” Look, If you make it to the snakes, you’re doing it wrong. But keep trying because this is choc full of free fun.
#1 Listen to the Radio
Radio is free. Its the only entertainment medium left that’s free. Sure, you have to listen to commercials, but all apps are going the way of making you endure commercials, unless you pay MORE money. Movie streaming services like HBO, and Prime TV are doing it. Trust me, music streaming services will too. Radio, however, is free. Besides, one of your favorite broke DJs is on the radio and she loves you. Spotify doesn’t love you.
