Cash, Credit, Debit 

First, I honestly don't know how I made this happen, but since it is snowing I thought this would be a good visual!

Let's start the year right by getting charge of our finances!

Gratitude & Generosity

Gratitude & Generosity

Me & Cardinal Dolan

Full disclosure:  I am an extremely (almost scandalously) liberal Catholic, a follower of the Jesuits, the thinkers.  The Archbishop of New York, Timothy Cardinal Dolan, is not a Jesuit and I am not a fan, but he said the 7:30pm Mass at my church St. Ignatius Loyola on Sunday and came to the social afterwards, hence the selfie.  

It's very complicated to be a woman and a Catholic.  As a die hard feminist, I disagree w/ the hierarchy on many (female) issues. 

I attended Catholic school in the tumultuous 1960's.  My first grade teacher Sister Joshua was learning to play the guitar and had a Beatles wig she used to wear over her severe black habit! She told us Simon and Garfunkel were prophets! 

Fun Stuff 4 Old Folks!

I know this stuff is going viral, but I have to say as one of the original DIYers, this touches my heart!

life hacks

Great, huh?  Seriously, the OCD in me wants to make use of everything possible to 1)save money, and 2) reduce my carbon footprint.  

Jenna, the 20-something daughter of my close friends the Dorfman-Tandlich's told me about this.  It's called life hacks. Jenna described it as tips to do everything better.  Thanks, Jenna!

So getting back to the saving money and reducing my carbon footprint, I think these go hand-in-hand.  Using energy efficient light bulbs saves the environment and saves you money. Recycling saves the earth and saves you money.  Obviously reducing what you use saves money, space and your sanity.  Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle are my words to live by!

So don't forget this Saturday's Stop & Swap.  GrowNYC is holding this event at Wagner MS from noon to 3pm.  Really free stuff that other people no longer want & a chance to clear out your unwanted items.  It's a win-win-win!

Follow ups...

Here it is: my favorite Thrift Store gift!  My boyfriend is the business manager for a private boys school run by the Benedictine Monks.  When I found this salt & pepper shaker set, I hit gold! 

Aren't they cute?  Now I can't guarantee any specific finds, but it's safe to say there's a lot of  good stuff out there!

In other Lori - related news, the new Chancellor of the NYC school system was named today and Bill DeBlasio could not have made a better choice.  Carmen Farina was the Principal of my son's school for all but his last year.  When Alex was in third grade and I was lying in the hospital - scared & being diagnosed w/ Multiple Sclerosis - I was stunned to get a phone call from Mrs. Farina, who shared a personal story about her sister and offered me her support and encouragement.  Carmen is a tough, amazing, compassionate leader...the very best!

   A very peaceful and Happy New Year!  Keep calm & carry on...Lori Bores

Thrift Gifts

Other than the items I made, this year for my son and my daughter and my Mom, I bought my favorite gift at a Thrift Shop.  The item is for my boyfriend and like a good boyfriend should, he reads my blog. So, I am not going to reveal here what the gift is (yet)!  But the point here is 1) you can find unique, wonderful gifts at a Thrift Store and 2) if the recipient doesn't appreciate Thrift Store ingenuity, perhaps it's time to re-evaluate the relationship!

The 10 Blessings of MS

The  10 Blessings of MS

Recently, I felt like a rock star!

   

I was signing orange bandannas for some of the 5000 participants the day before the 2013 MS Bike Tour. On October 6, 2013,  riders had the rare and immeasurable pleasure of riding through the streets of NYC car free. As one of the MS Champions my job was to ask people, who didn't know anyone w/ this unpredictable disease, if they would ride for me.  Hence, the autographed bandannas.

During the 13+ years that I've had multiple sclerosis, life certainly has not been a bed of roses.  There have been - and still are, though far less often today - some very dark days.  I wouldn't be human if I didn't boo-hoo occasionally about this sucky disease.

But I am here to say that despite the scary name and despite the fact that I do not know how my MS will progress, a corner has been turned. Today, I realize that MS is a blessing in the disguise of a disease. here's why:

Almost Free Tech

I  

I am reading a fabulous book called Citizenville by Gavin Newsom.  The subtitle is How to take the Town Square Digital and Reinvent Government.

After the recent abysmally low turnout primaries in New York City, it seems especially relevant to promote this book.

Now, I am the first person to admit that as one of the (over 30) "digital immigrants"  - as opposed to many of you (under 30) "digital natives" - I am far from the most technically savvy person you know! However, I may be the most thrifty, so allow me to share some of my tidbits...