Photo: Hadley, MA I’ve always had romantic notions about living in the country.  I’ve dreamed of waking up early and going for long walks and surveying the many acres on my “property” ; maybe encountering wild life and foraging for wild mushrooms (just like Mayle’s book, “A Year in Provence”).  I would certainly take refuge in the fact that I could […]

(The following is a guest post from Wendy Thomas at SimpleThrift ; Wendy is also a Journalist for the Nashua Telegraph) As a writer of a weekly newspaper column on thrift, the author of a blog on the same subject, and a mother of 6 children I consider it my responsibility to continually try out different ways of being thrifty.   […]

Home Improvement and Remodeling Tips Do you spend hours talking to your significant other about possibly moving an interior wall to free up more space for your kitchen or what the old butler’s pantry may look like if your restored the original walnut trim?  If so, you may be itching to renovate a portion of your home.  And if you […]

Photo of some master elder savers. A recent newspaper article stated: The savings rate of Americans, meanwhile, jumped to 5.2 percent in the period April to June, the highest since 1998. A higher savings rate, however, could slow economic recovery because consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity. I read about the above implication over and over again […]

I like beef just like the average Joe, but I wouldn’t say I crave beef or any other red meat for that matter.  For me, I get just as much sensory pleasure with a heaping dish of home made fried potatoes with a healthy amount of salt or a perfectly ripe avocado with finely minced cilantro, red onion, and olive […]

As of late, I’ve started to recieve some reader questions and going forward I will aim to answer key reader messages as they arrive in my inbox via Scordo.com.  If you have a question ask it in the comments or send an email to blog at scordo dot com.   Question: I saw your blog post about not being a sucker […]

Photo courtesy of gbatistini. How to Make Your Own Beer Even though the process is simple, there are some tips and tricks you can use to help you avoid mistakes and make a better beer. In today’s post I’m going to walk you through the process of starting your first extract beer from the initial boil to the final addition […]

How is it that we are so eager to watch other people browning beef cubes on screen but so much less eager to brown them ourselves? For the rise of Julia Child as a figure of cultural consequence — along with Alice Waters and Mario Batali and Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse and whoever is crowned the next Food Network […]

This entry will, hopefully, be the first in a series entitled, “Against the Mainstream.”  The series will aim to dispel popular, or mass media, themes, trends, recommendation, tips, or programs.  Does the Cash for Clunkers government program make sense for a practical or frugal individual?  Before we dive into the question, let’s consider some facts via the official Cars Allowance Rebate System […]

Recipe: Homemade Sun Dried Tomatoes in Olive Oil One of my favorite, all purpose, condiments on this little planet is sun dried tomatoes preserved in olive oil.  Authentic sun dried tomatoes capture the essence of the tomato and can be enjoyed year round.  There is a difference between tomatoes that have been truly dried in the sun and dehydrated tomatoes (click here to […]