Money, Money, Money

I am not a materialistic person. I don't care about brand-name clothing, designer handbags, glittery jewelry, expensive kitchen appliances, or original artwork on my walls. I can happily walk around in an old pair of Levis and a Hanes t-shirt. My sunglasses generally cost about $5 and come from a rack at Wal-Mart. Store brand bottled water is the only kind I buy.

I am also a frugal shopper. I spend an hour a week clipping coupons to save $10 at the supermarket (barely worth my time in terms of an hourly wage), and I shop sales, buy store brands, and generally avoid excess spending on non-essentials.

I do have a few places where I spend a little too much of our monthly budget. The liquor store clerk pretty much knows me by name, and the bookstore has my credit card on file. But overall, I am not too much of a shopper.

Nonetheless, Hubby and I have found our budget stretched THIN. I'm a writer by profession, but the magazine industry has basically gone kaput. And web writing gigs are hard to find. The quality of writing required by many websites is lacking, so the pool of writers is larger. Unfortunately, there are a lot of bad writers willing to work for low wages.

So I've been racking my brain for a way to earn a little extra income while still meeting the needs of my family. This means it needs to be something I can do from home, something that requires little extra training/schooling, and something that generates enough income to make it worth my time. It would be an added perk if it would be a job that would be useful in a shit+fan situation.

I've considered become a holistic health practitioner, which would include knowledge about alternative medical therapies and herbal medicines. Since Hubby is a health professional, I figure the combination of my skills and his experience would probably make us the town doctor after the zombies arrive. Unfortunately, this type of certification requires about $2,000 in education. And my state is pretty hardcore about licensing healthcare practitioners. I'm just not sure it's a viable option for me right now.

Childcare, sewing alterations, teaching, hand crafts... these are all things I am not suited for with regard to my talents and temperament. I am not patient and I lack any real artistic skill. My best talent is ordering people around (according to Hubby).

Know anyone who's hiring for a "Queen Bee," "Universal Supervisor," or "World Manager" position?