Make Money, Money

This is a repost that I think you'll benefit greatly from. Enjoy!

If there's one thing we're all sick of hearing about, it's money. "In this economy..." isn't just a catchphrase anymore; it's an excuse more common than "My dog ate my homework," mostly because we can't afford to have a dog anymore.

Maybe the new excuse should be, "The economy ate my homework." 

Maybe not. It was worth a shot.

Either way, we're all looking to make some money, and it seems like none of us ever have enough of it. Either we're in debt from student loans, credit card payments, car payments, or we're stuck working a 9-5 job paying minimum wage at McDonald's. Money is something none of us really like, but all of us want (and need if we're going to live).

The funny thing about money is that there's about a million ways to make it. You can mow lawns, paint houses, do paperwork, serve food, be a personal trainer, or just about anything else you can think of and make money from it. Money isn't as difficult to come by as some people make it out to be. This is why I want to present you with a way to make a little extra cash today.

For real.

If you live in the United States or Canada, have an internet connection, and are looking for a few extra dollars a month, then this is for you. 

Maybe you've heard of it, and maybe you haven't. Either way, it isn't a scam. Through Swagbucks, you earn points (aptly named "Swagbucks") and then you redeem those points for prizes. Most people that use Swagbucks, though, use it to earn free Amazon gift cards. And if you've ever used Amazon, you know that gift cards to their website are about as valuable as someone handing you cold, hard cash.

I know it may still sound like a hoax, but you've got to use whatever trust you have in me right now to hear me out. I've made over $100 in Amazon gift cards through Swagbucks, and I hardly broke a sweat. Actually, I doubt that I sweated at all. It's pretty simple stuff. They have a million ways to earn points, including something as simple as searching the internet using their search engine. A couple of minutes a day could earn you a little extra spending money!

So at this point, I'm sick of sounding like a used car salesman. I just want you to check Swagbucks out and see if it's for you. If not, that's okay. But don't knock it before you try it! And if you want to help me out with my goal for 2011, you can start by clicking on this banner and signing up as one of my referrals!

So there you have it! A quick and easy way to make a little extra cash! It won't make you rich by any means, but making some money while surfing the internet is better than making none! Check it out and let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: The links above are my referral links, which means that if you sign up through them, you'll be helping me out. And who wouldn't want to do that?

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Questions: Did you try  out Swagbucks? What did you think? What are some ways that you make a little extra cash?


If you enjoy what you've read, I'd appreciate you subscribing to Life Before the Bucket and sharing this post with your friends. Thanks a million for reading! 

Let's Play a Game

So yesterday, I wrote a post about my relationship with my epic wife.

Somewhere in the midst of that most, though, I mentioned The Drawbridge Exercise.

I really shouldn't have skimmed over it like I did, because it's... interesting.

So today, I'm dedicating an entire post to it! Prepare yourself....


The Drawbridge Exercise 

As he left for a visit to his outlying districts, the jealous Baron warned his pretty wife:  “Do not
leave the castle while I am gone, or I will punish you severely when I return!”

But as the hours passed, the young Baroness grew lonely, and despite her husband’s warning,
decided to visit her Lover who lived in the countryside nearby.

The castle was located on an island in a wide, fast flowing river, with a drawbridge linking the
island and the land at the narrowest point in the river.

“Surely my husband will not return before dawn,” she thought, and ordered her servants to lower
the drawbridge and leave it down until she returned.

After spending several pleasant hours with her Lover, the Baroness returned to the drawbridge,
only to find it blocked by a Madman wildly waving a long and extremely sharp knife.

“Do not attempt to cross this bridge, Baroness, or I will kill you,” he raved.  Fearing for her life,
the Baroness returned to her lover and asked him to help.

“Our relationship is only a romantic one,” he said, “I will not help.”  The Baroness then sought
out a Boatman on the river, explained her plight to him, and asked him to take her across the
river in his boat.

“I will do it, but only if you can pay my fee of five Marks.”

“But I have no money with me!” the Baroness protested.

“That is too bad.  No money, no ride,” the Boatman said flatly.

Her fear growing, the Baroness ran crying to the home of a Friend, and after again explaining the
situation, begged for enough money to pay the Boatman his fee.

“If you had not disobeyed your husband, this would not have happened,” the Friend said.  “I will
give you no money.”

With dawn approaching and her last resource exhausted, the Baroness returned to the bridge in
desperation, attempted to cross to the castle, and was slain by the Madman.


Using the following (alphabetical) list of characters, rank the characters (from 1 to 6) in the order of their responsibility for the death of the Baroness.

The Baron ____
The Baroness ____
The Boatman ____
The Friend ____
The Lover ____
The Madman ____

My (very tentative) conclusion:


Baron - 1
Baroness - 2
Boatman - 5
Friend - 3
Lover - 4
Madman - 6

... ... ...

Questions: What were your rankings? Why? What do you think this tells you about what you value?

If you enjoy what you've read, I'd appreciate you subscribing to Life Before the Bucket and sharing this post with your friends. Thanks a million for reading!

It Isn't That Hard

So I live with this girl.

Her and I, we're pretty different.

She likes Pinterest. I like my Playstation.

She runs half-marathons for fun (because she's that epic). I... Well, I cheer for her, and that's pretty fun.

She's smart - sometimes even smarter than me. But I definitely have a better beard than her.

Also worth noting: we're terrible at taking pictures together.
This one is over two and a half years old.

And you know, with all of the personality between the two of us, you would think that World Wars III and IV would take place in our little apartment.

Truth be told, though, that isn't the case.

I know this flies in the face of everything you may have been taught about marriage or have experienced in your own marriage (or in your parent's), but...

We get along.

We kinda like each other a lot.

And I don't know if we've ever gotten in a knock-down, fight-it-out argument. In fact, I'm pretty sure we haven't.

(Yup. Wife just verified it: no WWE Smackdown has ever happened here.)

Oh. Wait. There is this one thing. Just Google "The Drawbridge Exercise." Herein lies the fiercest divide our household has ever seen. You've been warned.

But you know what? We can disagree. And that's okay, too. We allow that around here. But frankly, we agree about almost everything.

Sure, sure, sure. I can just hear it now:

"You're both wearing rose-colored glasses."

"You haven't been married long enough."

"Just wait until you have kids."

Here's the thing, though. We've been through so many ups and downs together that we've essentially bullet-proofed ourselves from any potential collateral damage of circumstantial turmoil.

We've faced death together. We've wrestled with the reality of having a child. I've been sick to the point of not being able move for long periods of time. We've dealt with family conflict. Church drama. School drama. Friends abandoning us. Loved ones leaving.

We've also savored the more fleeting moments of peace and contentment. Sabbath dinners together. Nighttime prayers. Ridiculous dates. Our times of good health. Road trips. Weddings. Birthday parties. Family get-togethers.

High and low, we stay the same. Our love for each other, though expressed differently in varying circumstances, never changes.

And you know what? It isn't that hard.

We haven't had to fight for our marriage.

We don't have to wrestle with trust issues.

We aren't constantly struggling to give love where there is none.

And this isn't to say that we don't care. We love each other fiercely, with unbridled passion for one another. 

I guess it just comes naturally. And we take no credit for that. We give credit where credit is due: to the source of love himself. It wouldn't be possible without him. And you know, it probably wouldn't be this easy, either. 

... ... ...

Question: Should marriage be difficult? Why or why not? What are some ways that you've discovered to have an easier, more fulfilling marriage?

If you enjoy what you've read, I'd also appreciate you subscribing to Life Before the Bucket and sharing this post with your friends. Thanks a million for reading!

Living an Ersatz Life

So I learned a new word last week, and I haven't been able to let go of it.

I've been thinking about it, chewing on it, pondering it, and I've just about had enough of it. I've gotta get it off of my chest.

The word, courtesy of Experimental Theology, is ersatz.

Ersatz is everything we're not about around here. Simply put, ersatz describes something that is fake. If something is ersatz, it's a replacement, and a crappy one at that.

For instance, many people, especially outside of the United States, would declare American football to be an ersatz football game, preferring the kind people actually play with their feet.

Meanwhile, many Apple fans preach that PCs are ersatz computers, trying to convert us to the dark side.

But I digress.

Seriously, though. This is a word that'll make you think.

Personally, I think about the idea of living an ersatz life, and I get a little nervous.

Living ingeniously is one of my biggest fears, but as someone who thrives off of the encouragement of others, it's a realistic possibility. I like to think that I'm an independent, self-sufficient adult, but I'll be the first to tell you: that's a dirty lie.

The truth is, I wouldn't be worth my weight in toilet paper if I wasn't encouraged along the way by some awesome people like yourselves. If blogs didn't have a comment feature, I'd be up a creek (and I'm not much of a swimmer). I treasure kind words.

The danger, though, is that while I crave encouragement, I also tend to crave approval.

I can't help it; I want you to like me.

And while I've learned a thing or two about people not liking me, it doesn't mean I've mastered the art of ignoring the haters. Sadly, I walk a fine line every day between appealing to others and becoming what they want me to be at the expense of who I actually am. And though people have great intentions, something tells me that who they want me to be is an inferior replacement of who I actually am.

I don't want to live an ersatz life when I've been called to so much more.

... ... ... 

Question: Do you sometimes find yourself living an ersatz life? What influences you to be someone you aren't? How can you genuinely be yourself today? 

If you enjoy what you've read, I'd also appreciate you subscribing to Life Before the Bucket and sharing this post with your friends. Thanks a million for reading!

Win of the Week

It's one of those days.

You know, the three-cups-of-coffee-won't-wake-me-up kind of day.

But, regardless of how worn out you are, you made it. It's Friday.

And around here, it means something relatively new.

We think we're pretty special people, and in living life as fully as possible, we get a little worn out. We need a pat on the back, and so we come here to get it.

This week has been exhausting beyond belief for me. It was our first full week of school. It was also my first full week off of my antibiotics, which means the darned bacteria in my lungs gets a chance to recover from my attack on them.

It was a great week, though.

A picture of a picture, because I AM that tired today.

My win of the week? Definitely getting to see our family both last Sunday (that was still this week, right?) and this coming weekend. Last weekend we had a birthday party, and this weekend, we'll probably just relax, play board games, and pick on my youngest sister, Tanna, because we all know she's smarter and more talented than the rest of us and want to feel good about ourselves.

I kid, I kid.

So what about you? What was/is/is going to be your win of the week?