Living Lightly

Of course this question is a minefield. How much is enough depends on family size, stage of life, where you live, etc. Still, as a follow-up to our recent observations about poverty in Kenya and the growing awareness of income inequality in the USA, I wanted to know – Are Jim and I doing OK in the Living Lightly realm? Are we in the middle – or a little less (as we like to think of ourselves)? Or could we live on less income?

Historical note: I remember when we first got married in 1971 and our income was about $7,000, I made the rash judgment that making over $50,000 was probably sinful. I quickly revised my opinion to, it’s not the income that’s a problem but rather how one uses the excess after meeting modest needs of daily life. This assumes of course that  one comes by income honestly and not at the expense of others or the environment. Adjusted for inflation, our 1971 income would now be about $41,000. The “sinful” $50,000 income would be about $294,000 in 2014 dollars. Our income has increased in real dollars since 1971. So do we have enough or too much? It got me thinking about what I buy with our increased income.

One of our sons challenged me the other day about several things I considered buying, borrowing, or looking for a sale. The first was a projector for PowerPoint presentations – a genuine but occasional need. The second was a Bengals baseball cap – hardly comparable in cost. He said, “Hey, just buy it! You have enough money. Your house and car are paid for; your kids are all out of college, and you have Medicare. You don’t always need to save money.”

Hmmm. He’s right, but frugal habits die hard. Maybe that’s not so bad in that it keeps me from being a spendthrift, but it also can keep me from being generous. When I look back on what might be “sinful” about an income, I now think the biggest fault is being judgmental of others. Yes, we need to work for fair government policies that decrease the income gap between the wealthy and the poor, but we also need to look at the sin of smugness in ourselves.

In my book, Blessed By Less, I propose the following 7 basic needs for a decent human life:

1. Enough food to stay healthy and the means to cook it
2. Enough clothing to stay warm and that is appropriate for my work
3. Housing that is safe and clean with enough space for some privacy
4. Enough education for the kind of work I want to do and the tools with which to do it.
5. Access to affordable health care
6. Some discretionary money for treats or recreation
7. A job to pay for the above necessities (Ideally, each of us should have meaningful activity, whether paid or unpaid, which contributes to the common good.)

According to the USA Department of Health & Human Services the 2014 poverty level for 2 people (like us) averages about $17,000 depending on where you live. By this measure, we are rich. But watching ads and our contemporaries, however, sometimes we feel poor. Could you afford these basic needs on $17,000?

What do you consider to be enough income? What are your criteria for a decent lifestyle? How do you guard against the “Smug factor?”

I was fantasizing the other day about winning the lottery. Actually, I never buy lottery tickets since the odds are against me and thus it seems like a waste of money. Still, I started thinking of all the non-profit organizations I belong to and volunteer activities that I’m involved with. All of them could use an infusion of money. I could do a lot of good if I came into some sudden cash.

BUT, then I started thinking about the effort I’ve put into writing some grants for those organizations and how I hate to do fundraising. I started to think of how a conscientious person with excess income can carry quite a burden. I wouldn’t turn down a monetary windfall but following are 9 advantages that occurred to me from living on an adequate but modest income:

1. Assuming that you already set aside funds (perhaps 10%) to support causes you are committed to, declining all those sincere but inconvenient telephone solicitors who call – mostly at dinner time – can be done guilt free.
2. It makes signing online petitions easier since the inevitable request for a donation which accompanies them can be ignored.
3. It inoculates against the temptation to buy trendy or status clothes or gadgets which will probably go out of style soon anyway.
4. The bar for a treat is low, so simple pleasures (a meal out, a bubble bath, a special desert) can delight.
5. Taxes are relatively easy.
6. Friendships are not likely to be contaminated by one-up-man ship or the ability to give favors.
7. Getting a bargain can bring great pleasure.
8. Life is less complicated since there is less to protect, clutter, and clean.
9. One doesn’t have to carry the burden of being a conscientious philanthropist weighing the relative merits of many good causes seeking your donation. (Although I’m glad that some people are willing to do this.)

Of course all of this is predicated on having enough, but not too much. This is a thorny and complicated decision for a person or family to make. Some people don’t have a choice. Circumstances can change and income can be lost. Genuine needs can increase so what once was enough no longer covers medical bills or a crisis. Assuming, however, that one is living at that squishy level of “enough but not too much” there is still another challenge – how to live with moral humility and avoid the smug factor?

How do you stay balanced? How much is enough?

I’ve been doing a lot of traveling lately and I also know that I can be frugal to a fault. So what do these 2 things have to do with each other?

TIPPING:
It started with a decision about whether to tip a guy in Chicago who I thought was a cab driver but who I learned was just signaling an oncoming cab to stop for me. I could have done that! He expected a tip and got nasty when I got in the cab and didn’t tip him. The actual cab driver then dropped me off about a block away from my destination. I always give a 15 % tip at restaurants and to the person who cuts my hair. I leave a tip for the hotel maid. I avoid using bell hops because I use a rolling suitcase and have no trouble finding my own room in a hotel. I don’t like tipping for service that I planned to do myself. All this has got me thinking about whether I am too much of a tightwad, or am I just being self-sufficient.

I pride myself on living and traveling simply and have enough income to meet my basic needs. But I’ve been trying to remember that often people who are customarily tipped are working at minimum wage jobs, if that. Perhaps I have to let go of some of my pride and change my thinking to see my “tip” as a way to do my share to decrease the income gap. (Of course a more permanent solution would be to work for the political change that would respect all human labor as worthy of a living wage and decrease the discrepancy between the rich and the poor.) But then there was the situation last week when I was getting some medical shots and the credit card receipt had a blank for a tip for the nurse. I wasn’t sure what to do?

TAXES
This brings me to the sidewalk in front of our house. My city government has recently repaired all of the sidewalks in my part of town. The construction company has done a great job – and it’s FREE. I’m impressed. But then I remember that I actually did pay for this service when I paid my city taxes. Few people like to pay taxes but I’ve been trying to train myself to pay them readily and happily because it’s a way to provide for the common good. Everybody pays according to their income for things like police and fire protection, road repair, health care, national security, etc. This is good, EXCEPT, I just got an unexpected bill from my city saying that I needed to buy a $50 license because I was an independent contractor and had made money this past year while working out of my home. I then needed to pay tax on the income I made. Hmmm. I already paid federal and state tax on this income. I didn’t know I needed a city license. Now I also have to pay a license fee and city tax on the income too. I paid it, but I’m not happy.

TITHING
Knowing that I can be overly frugal (our kids call it being a Scrooge or a tightwad) a long time ago Jim and I decided that we would make sure we donated 10% of our income to charity each year (church, charitable and political causes, and the like). This relieved me of making decisions about how much was enough to give away. I could feel like I was doing my fair share. BUT, what about the beggar on the street or those incessant phone calls from different causes asking for donations? I seldom give, Jim often does. I’m not proud of my lack of generosity. Sure, it can be defended by:

• The beggar may just use the money for alcohol or drugs
• I already give to (and volunteer at) agencies who help needy persons
• My 10% tithe is already committed

But, I wonder if I’m hiding behind a rule and not willing to go the extra mile. I’ve always appreciated when friends donate to causes that I solicit for. What would Jesus do?

These are tiny, and sometimes big, moral dilemmas for me. I’ve developed a few rules of thumb but I don’t have a perfect system and I’m not sure I’m being generous enough. Here are my current criteria.

1. Tip people who are doing a service for me, and be especially generous to people in jobs that I know are low paying.
2. Don’t be so adamant about doing something myself, just to avoid the need to tip.
3. When possible, employ people who come to our door asking to do odd jobs.
4. Pay taxes with gratitude that I have an income to tax.
5. Tithe at least 10% to worthy causes but look upon it not as charity but as justice, a way of giving back.
6. Give to any neighborhood kid who is selling something, especially Girl Scout cookies.

What are your criteria or thinking on this?