Elimination of waste, if I look close, what are the excess in my life?   What are the excessed in your life?

Also, what are the must haves?

First, looking at excesses, these are things I have eliminated because of the economy and because I can add more value to my life doing these chores. 

1. Maid

2. Nanny

3. Personal Assistant

4. Concierge (community)

5. Season Tickets (I can always buy a ticket to any game)

6. Fancy dinners

7. Extra car

8. 3rd car or 2nd car for that matter – maybe only one needed, if that?

9. 2nd house or rental (will sell when appropriate)

10. First class flights or the Marquis Jet Card

11. AMEX Platinum Card

12. 5 star hotels and hotel suites

13. Car washes ($20 a pop, come on)

14. Bottled water (billions of plastic bottles wasted)

15. Starbucks Latte’s (the Latte factor)

16. Gym membership (I have gym at Toscana)

17. Lunches (eat when hungry, time created demand)

18. Golf membership (how boring to play the same course)

19. Sailboat (bareboat when you want to sail)

20. Luxury toys (boats, jet skis, skis, 4 wheelers and airplanes – rent when appropriate)

21. 1000 channels of TV – the internet has it now, Google will soon make the internet free

22. Office or employees (I can work from anywhere with my iPhone and MBA and hire contractors)

23. Printers – do we really need to print anything, seems like such a waste

24. Home phone – my cell phone works wonders…

25. Trips to shopping mall.  

Things I must have:

1. Health 

2. Friends and Family

3. Humor

4. Education

5. Freedom

6. Parks

7. Public Transportation

8. Purpose

9. Law

10. Connectivity

11. Home

12. Clean water

13. Community

14. Simplicity

15. Love

16. Happiness

17. A bed (preferably heavenly bed)

18. A chair (preferably my ralph lauren chair)

19. A shower (preferably a heavenly shower)

20. A good pair of running/walking shoes

21. A kitchen – a refrigerator, stove, and sink.

22. A grocery or marketplace

23. A good cookbook or access to one online

24. Wine?  

25. A passport – see the world!

Here is a cool picture I captured of my family as I am now on a trip to Geneva.  Even my dog is participating in our discussion.   Whoever says technology is not bridging the gap to the world, has never used Skype.  

Here is a environmental way to save a ton of money.   More to come in future blogs.   I will share how to put a Solar Panel on your home to immediately lower your energy burn.

Yet, for now the cost of a owning a car keeps climbing each year. So here are some stats that may help you decide if Zipcar is right for you.    Turn the lease in and do not get another. 

Car Ownership   Car: Something similar to a Chevy Impala or Ford Fusion. Car payment  (including depreciation) $283 Finance charges $62 Insurance $80 Gas $78 License, registration, taxes $45 Maintenance and tires $46 Parking on (or near) campus (estimated by Zipcar) $50 Total: $644/mo* $644/mo is a lot of money! That’s about 81 hours or 11 days of Zipcar driving. Zipcar   Car: Whatever your whim – a hybrid one day, a truck the next. If you drive a lot $366/mo Several trips each week and a weekend trek off campus  (10 two-hour, 2 three-hour and  2 daily/24-hour reservations) If you drive a fair amount $180/mo A couple trips each week  (6 two-hour and 2 four-hour reservations) If you don’t drive much $36/mo About one trip a week  (4 one-hour reservations)

Forty percent of Zipcar members have told us they either sold their car or decided not to buy a car because of Zipcar. With each Zipcar taking 20+ personally-owned cars off the road, think of all the good that’s doing for the environment and community.

Members also tell us they save over $435 a month using Zipcar! They appreciate the low rates, living without the hassle of car maintenance and that we pay for gas, parking and insurance. Oh, the fun new cars don’t hurt either.

*Numbers based on a 2007 AAA study of average driving costs.

For me this would save, over $700 a month on our second car, even if we use it daily.   Crazy to think about, that is over $20 a day in savings.   Now, Zipcar just needs to expand to more neighborhoods than ASU in Arizona.

How cool is this? Right next door to our new Desert Ridge Toscana Home.