Give Yourself Your Own Damn Raise!

A couple of weeks ago I was talking to a colleague, who is a moderate smoker, about how we spend money. He said: "If I could just quit smoking, it would be like having a 60-euro raise each month." Now, to Americans that may not seem like a lot of money, but here in Italy, raises are pretty hard to come by (the negative trade-off to having the security of such things as lifetime contracts, I suppose). It is still 720 euros more in your pocket per year.

It got me to thinking about the concept of giving yourself a raise. Why wait for your boss to notice you? Do it yourself. Better yet, reduce your expenses so much that after a few years you won't even have to work that much to cover them! Now that is empowerment, people!

If you're not sure how you can give yourself a raise, I have listed some of the items that we DON'T spend money on at my house. The shock is how much it adds up to! It made me think about how easy it is for my friends who make much more money than I do to live from paycheck to paycheck even though they are high earners.

Note: the Give Yourself A Raise concept is not for everyone.

Especially if you say to yourself, "I work so hard, I DESERVE to spend money on __________" or "Saving money is cool, but I want to have a LIFE..."

Rather, a compatible mindset would say "I work so hard, it's a pity to throw money away on ________  when what I really want to do is _____________."

Pick and choose what works for you. Here are some of the expenses that my friends and colleagues spend money on that I choose not to.

1. A second car.
Gas alone: 150

2. Apperitivi with friends during the week.
Savings: 80

3. Coffee and brioche at the bar (weekday breakfast).
Savings: 80

4. Lunch out or in the mensa.
Savings: 240

5. Yoga at the gym.
Savings: 40

6. Newspaper/magazines.
Savings: 40

7. Cigarettes.
Savings: 100

8. Massages.
Savings: 100

9. Meat.
Savings: 100

10. Manicures
Savings: 100

11. Estetista (hair removal, I believe-- these places are a mystery to me)
Savings: 100

12. Hairdresser (I may go once a year, otherwise I cut my own):
Savings: 100

13. Cable tv
Savings: 45

Total Savings: 1175

There are probably other things you may be spending your money on, too. If they are important to you, keep them. If not, simplify and live richer. It's the Triestine way.

Italy Vs USA: The Banking Edition

Americans believe:

I will make MORE MONEY NEXT YEAR. I can spend NOW.

Italians believe:

I may NEVER MAKE MONEY AGAIN. I'd better save today.

American banks and Italian banks also think differently, especially when it comes to credit. American banks love to give it. Italians do not. The average American has a walletful of cards to choose from. Italians, not so much. Banks stateside and here on the old continent differ on Customer Experience as well (Disclaimer: the thoughts, opinions and declarations of this blog are purely personal and not meant to reflect the thoughts, ideas and/or opinions of all ex-pats living in Trieste, although they often do...) Americans care about it, Italians don't.

I was in my large, unfriendly Italian bank a few weeks ago gathering information on my very expensive credit card (1) and debit card (1) to make sure I could use them internationally and find out how much they would hose me for getting cash abroad.

Here is why I hate my bank (and the hospital and schools and public offices and basically all other Italian Institutions): NO RECEPTION DESK. You walk in and it's like entering a wild jungle. No clue where to go, who to talk to, everyone is pretending they're busy.

The only thing I understand at my bank is what the ATM does.

Finally, a lady came out of one of those private, off-limits offices peppered around the perifery and I walked in (I am probably not supposed to but there are no signs telling me what to do and I pounce on the opaque). I asked the kind (and obviously important) person who I should talk to. Oddly,  he said HE was the one (miracle!). He was even nice. Most people who work in these places are, once you get their attention, and that is the hardest part. He printed up all of the information I requested. When he felt like he had satisfied my every banking desire, he changed the subject and raised his tone of voice to communicate EXCITEMENT about a NOVITA'!

Actually, he was required to get my signature on an18-thousand-page document explaining the change in conditions on my credit card. This was pre-empted with a sales pitch:

"STARTING NOW, YOU CAN ROLL OVER  YOUR BALANCE ON YOUR CREDIT CARD AND PAY IT OFF IN 3, 6, OR 12 MONTHS WITH A LITTLE BIT OF INTEREST!!!"

Excuse me? This is the news? Isn't that why we call them CREDIT cards?*

So, let me get this straight. The ONLY advantage of my having a credit card up to now was that I could wait a month to pay rather than have my purchases (which I can afford because I don't spend money) come out of my account immediately with my debit card?

And I am paying 40+ euros per year for that?!

This bank (all Italian banks) is on the brink of collapse. I think about how much I pay in fees (started out as a free account but that change was another 18-page document to sign) for my account and products that are redundant. And to make things worse, I have to practically break into someone's office to get anyone's attention!

But I get like this every time I come back from the States. Forgive me.

I went back to Wisconsin last week. What struck me was this: it didn't matter where I went-- people were Deeply Concerned about my finding everything I wanted to find. It was a little much at times, but, I also had the feeling that even my lamest whim would be treated with Absolute Urgency.

My mom's bank is comfortable and inviting like a friend's living room. It has puffy chairs for when you have to wait (but you never do) and a machine with free (and good) coffee.

I mean, is it really so hard? Note to Big Unfriendly Italian Bank on the Brink of Collapse: let's work on our communication skills, shall we? And while we are at it, let's sharpen our long-term vision rather than short-term gain.

I am taking my business online, I decided, once I pay the fees to close my bank account (yes, it costs you money to close!!). The service is basically the same, but at least the webpage gives you clear and transparent information.

So there!!

*I pay my balance off every month because I learned good credit card habits when I worked at Bank One in the credit card department in college (my worst nightmares include a headset and a ringing phone that I have to answer like this: "Bankcard Customer Service, This is Karoline. Bankcard Customer Service, this is Karoline..."). Want a cure for the shopaholic blues? Work with credit cards.

Want to Feel Rich? Come to my place!!

My most popular blog posts are about living frugally and saving money the Triestino way. This time I want to turn things around to talk about the things that drain our bank accounts in America. They came to mind as I read the article in the Atlantic this month called the Secret Shame of the Middle Class.

Note that it refers to the MIDDLE CLASS, not the poor. And that is what I find so interesting-- how far the Middle Class will go to appear wealthy.

Among the bombshells of the article was the revelation that 47% of Americans would not have $400 cash in the event of an emergency. Second revelation: 67% of Americans would not be able to come up with $2,000 even if they had a month to do it. Well, they could, but they would probably have to sell some combination of internal organs to do it. So even with the popularity of Financial gurus like Suze Orman, we Americans just can't seem to up our financial literacy game.  

The writer  counts himself as the typical financially illiterate American who is in lousy financial shape and constantly trying to hide it from his acquaintances and even his own family (until now). He explains how it happened that a smart, educated, reasonable guy got himself so overrun with debt that he and his wife had to ask their grown children on occasion to help them pay for heating when the oil ran out.

I kept thinking... Can he hear himself? The justifications for his financial disaster came in this self-righteous tone: "Well, maybe I could have done things differently, but excuuuuuse me for choosing a career I love that pays eratically AND wanting my kids to have a good education AND wanting to pay for my kids' wedding AND wanting to live in the Hamptons!"  

Basically, here is what it comes down to. The game is to appear wealthy. Here is how!

1. Pay for your Childrens' education. School must be expensive and elite to give them the networking possibilities required to jump into a higher social class (inshalla). It starts with private elementary schools and takes them all the way up to ivy league colleges and universities.

2. Live in the most expensive neighbourhood you can afford in the biggest house you can possibly afford (while times are good). If you are not putting your kids in private schools, then public schools are funded by property taxes. The higher the property value, the higher the taxes, and the better the school. Also, you want your kids in contact with the "right" kids.

3. Pay for your kids' enormous weddings, after all, it's your little Princess's Special Day! Put it all on your credit card.

And remember this very important Underlying Assumption which will help you justify spending more than you make. Say it with me:

"I will make more money next year than this year, so I will pay off the debt fast."


Another way you can appear and feel rich is to come and visit ME in ITALY. Here are the comments I regularly get from my American visitors which make them feel GREAT (and make me feel like a total loser)!

1. You live in an APARTMENT????!!!
2. Everything here is so LITTLE and CUTE!
3. Now would you call this a CONDO or an Apartment? Did you actually take a LOAN out to buy THIS PLACE?
4. OMG! You only have ONE car?? How can you LIVE?! It's a STATION WAGON? I can't believe they still make those!! Gosh, reminds me of the 70s!!
5. Your Fridge is so TINY!! It's like Gulliver lives here!
6. Wow! Is that an iPhone 4? Haven't seen one of those since about 2014! My iphone 6  comes free with my $150/month plan and it takes SUCH GOOD pictures. I read books on it, too.
7. What?? They don't have free wifi here, like EVERYWHERE??

There you have it.
I wish I had a new phone.

One More Post on Saving Cash- The Calzolaio

One more thing (for now) on living the Simple Life in Trieste. The CALZOLAIO. Everyone has their favorite. My best cobbler has a facebook page with some serious action-- there is a ton of traffic in and out of the actual place on a regular basis, too!

Triestini know that it's better to pay a little more for your shoes, and then wear the HELL out of them for years and years with routine maintenance.

Ask anyone. They will tell you. If you go to La Bottega del Calzolaio in Ponte Rosso, which is my personal favorite, tell them Karoline sent you.

In case you are not sure what they do, you can:

1. Stick a heel back on your stiletto.
2. Get new soles on your fancy work shoes.
3. Get your tennies buffed up.
4. Get your leather goods sewn up where the stitching is loose.
5. Get a touch up so your shoes look good again.

I am a believer.

A Triestino Guide to Saving Money

Hope you enjoy these money-saving strategies inspired by the frugalest of the frugal and you will make any Triestine proud!

1. Never pay for parking

Triestini hate paying for parking. Take a look at the lot downtown by Piazza Unità. The license plates? All foreign. Maybe there are a few cars from other regions in Italy that don't know any better.

Triestini would rather hike down from San Giusto and back up again to avoid paying that 80 cents/hour or whatever it costs now to park downtown. My husband says it's not about money, it's about PRINCIPLE.

Which is why the Triestini look for ambiguity and take advantage of spaces where it is not clear whose jurisdiction it is to give you a ticket. Case in point, in that same parking lot, if you park in the blue lines (blue means you pay, white means you don't) you pay for your parking and if your time runs out you get a ticket. If you park OUTSIDE the lines, however, some other "authority" has to come out and give you a ticket. But is it the Port Authority? Is it the local Police? No one really knows, so while they are trying to figure that one out, you can go meet your friends, have a nice walk, and come back to your car without spending a thing. The Parking people can't do a thing about it. They work for a private company that manages the parking spaces that are DRAWN with blue lines.

I wouldn't recommend this trick to you if you are not from Trieste, however. Your illegal parking instincts just aren't sharp enough yet. The Triestini have moved on to better parking options by now, anyway. But I am not allowed to reveal where until they start ticketing there, too.

That is the Triestine Parking Pact and you must be initiated.

2. Buy your clothes at Boutique Mirella

Affectionately known to the Triestini as "Da Mirella" as if you were going to the home of the famous owner, Boutique Mirella is the official outfitter for 3/4 of Trieste (people for sure, and probably the other stores, too) and a large part of ex-Yugoslavia. You, too, can witness the best cultural spectacle this side of the Station! It is Trieste's version of Filene's basement, without the brand names. This shopping experience is not for the faint-hearted. Go with your mother-in-law. She knows how the system works.

Can't find it, you say? Look for the white manequins outside all dressed in the same color not far from more manequins without heads who are wearing a complementary color.

This week they are wearing YELLOW.

3. Order a "Capo in B"

A "CAPO" is called a MACCHIATO in any other town outside of Trieste. The CAPO IN B is a small "Capuccino" served in a small glass, or BICHIERE which the Triestini claim is BIGGER than a normal espresso cup.

This means you get more for your money.

4. Stand up at the bar and have your coffee.

Bars in Trieste charge you the same amount for a cup of coffee no matter where you go if you are standing up. If you sit down it will cost you 2-3 times as much. Some bars have a deal where you can pay for 9 coffees and get 10 or discounts if you get coffee and a brioche (which is not a brioche in the French sense, but more like an industrially-produced croissant stuffed with apricot jelly, custard, or nutella).

Oddly, Triestini don't like the idea of replacing their coffee out with a coffee at home. They will also have coffee at home, of course, but coffee at a bar is a sort of ritual, and is considered the "good" coffee of the day.

5. Live without a dryer.

To us Americans it seems uncivilized, but Triestini say dryers are bad for your clothes. Right! I used to say, until I got used to not having one. Your clothes last longer, you spend less on electricity, and... what's not to like about waiting two days for your clothes to dry in winter? Actually, if you put on your de-humidifier in the bathroom overnight and it's cold enough to have the heat on, they dry overnight.

Don't shoot the messenger. This is what the Triestini do!

5. Have your apperitivo where there is free food.

Everyone now is having their happy hours in ViaTorrino, which is that street that goes up to Piazza Hortis. Do they have free food? I am not sure, but if they do, rest assured that if they do, the bar is full of Triestini having a drink and loading up so they can skip dinner.

6. Get your gas, cigarettes, and Sunday lunch in Slovenia.

Some things never change. Even Lorenzo Pilat addressed this in his Triestine Anthem "Finanziere" about Triestini coming back over the border from Slovenia smuggling meat and grappa when it was still Yugoslavia. It's not as cheap as it used to be, but there are still savings to be had by doing your grocery shopping and fill-ups in Slovenia, and, while you are there, loading up on mixed grill in a quantity-is-better-than-quality restaurant somewhere close by.

7. Buy wine in bulk, or "sfuso".

We get ours in Slovenia most of the time, but you can also go to places in town here and buy really nice wine by the liter. Bring your own 1.5 liter water bottles and transfer to glass bottles when you get home. Not recommended for bringing to someone's house if you are invited for dinner unless you got a really good verduzzo or you are really good friends. Note: drink it fast. It doesn't last as long as the bottled kind.

8. Go to the "Mercato del Ingrosso" on Saturday mornings

Where else can you get a CASE OF RADISHES for 2 euros?! (Next question, what the hell do you do with a CASE OF RADISHES??) This is the best of Triestine food shopping. There is hustle and bustle, people yelling, and forklifts. You can also bargain with the sellers who want to get rid of their stock on Saturday. The catch is that you have to buy things by the case, so go with a friend and split what you buy. Otherwise you will have carrots coming out of your ears after three days.

The Mercato here is open from 10am to 11am. Before that they are only open to merchants who buy the same food and mark it up to sell to the public in normal quantities.

BTW, if you want to buy in normal quantities but want that mercato feel, go to the Mercato Coperto in Largo Barriera. There you can also buy from local farmers. You can get things like eggs from real chickens there, too. I recommend it.

9. Make friends with a person with an "Orto"

I love people with vegetable gardens. Especially during tomato season. Beware of excess zucchini! I don't know what it is about that stuff, but everyone seems to plant too much zucchini and no one really likes it as far as I can tell.

11. Buy your car used.

This is how you tell the spenders from the savers! The savers have used cars they bought in cash. The spenders have new cars they buy with financing.

12. Maximize on the affordable luxuries.

Triestini buy a can of really expensive coffee ONCE and then use the can over and over again but filled with their favorite off brand of coffee. They swear that their secret brand is JUST AS GOOD and that NO ONE EVER NOTICES.

The fancy coffee can looks GREAT when you have guests!

That is what it is all about, of course, saving money but making it look like you spent LOTS! One time I got a really good deal on a summer dress. I was so excited I only paid 15 euros for it. I was announcing it to the world. My mother-in-law took me aside and advised me: "Karoline, you must NEVER reveal how much you paid for that dress, just wear it and look great."

The joy is in the secret.

Seven reasons Trieste is awesome if you want to live on the cheap

I've noticed that in Trieste right now everyone seems to be having a difficult time economically. There is just not that much money floating around. What continues to surprise me, however, is how good people are here about it. Let me explain. When I lived in the States, there was NO WAY I could survive if my pay were two months late (and I made a hell of a lot more money than I make now). Here, it happens to me (I'm freelance so that's to be expected) and my husband (who is a regular employee of a company) all the time, and we're not the only ones. It's almost normal. You work your normal hours and payday comes and goes, but the money never makes it to your account. Often there is no explanation or any kind of conversation about it. You just don't get paid. When the money comes in, whenever that is, you probably will. No use in complaining about it (this is not to say that a fair amount of complaining doesn't get done, because it does), you just have to suck it up and wait, just like your company is doing. End of story.

Since Italy has lots of small companies (a company the size of say, Illycaffè, by the way, even though it's an international brand and a pretty big outfit, is considered a medium-sized company and most people here work for companies which are teeny by comparison, and family owned) there just isn't that safety net of money for employers to rely on when things get tough. Getting rid of people is much more difficult than not paying them and waiting for the sun to come out, so that's what happens. Employees who don't get paid hang on with the same optimism of brighter days ahead-- that, and they're terrified of not finding another job, or worse, of getting another job but having no benefits and/or a lousy contract. 

I was already on my way to a simple life before I came here, but living in Italy makes it much easier. Since I spend  a fair amount of time complaining in my blogs, I figure it's high time I praise Italy and my triestino friends for what somehow allows me to live with a sense of security even though I don't have that much money. Here we go. 

1. Healthcare. The inner peace you get from knowing you have it and that it can't get taken away from you goes without saying. It's also very easy to get here. If you're married to an Italian you qualify for it automatically. If you're a foreigner living here with a proper visa, you can also pay into the healthcare fund every year and get coverage (and if I remember correctly it costs less than what it would cost to pay for insurance from abroad, but this must be verified). In the States, the only time I didn't live in constant paranoia about healthcare was when I was covered under my parents' policy and that's because I was too young to know what could have happened if one of them lost their jobs and would have had to pay for, say, a broken arm, out of pocket. Throughout my adult life I was constantly worried about getting laid off or fired from a job and losing that coverage. I no longer carry that burden (Fire me all you want, suckers!!). That being said, I shutter to think about how much it would cost to have a baby without insurance in the States (a thought that never occurred to me before, but now that I'm seven months along, it somehow comes to mind). 

2. Fresh food is cheap. Very delicious, locally grown food (I don't know about packaged food here, because I stay away from it unless you count the roll of pizza dough I use to make homemade pizza a couple times a month) doesn't cost much. It almost always tastes good. After about 150,000 peaches consumed this summer, today I had my first kind of funky one, but that might just mean the season's coming to an end. No fear, I have a two-euro giant watermelon waiting for me on the bottom shelf of the fridge to compensate. If you don't mind cooking stuff up yourself (and if you do, just eat stuff raw for heavens' sakes!), you can really live on a small grocery bill. 

3 and 4. One car is totally doable and banks are meaner. I live in what is condescendingly referred to as "la periferia" as in not downtown or in the fashionable Carso. It's a working-class area with big and horrible-looking apartment buildings (I happen to live in one of them), the Stadium, lots of grocery stores, and a ton of busses which take you downtown and to the train station at the end of the line in 20 minutes or less. You find a lot of nice people here, young families and other folks living the simple life. I happen to love it. What attracted us to this area was the abundance of affordable housing which allowed us to buy a small apartment (with a parking spot in a big garage) on one salary (which is what we were living on at the time). Thanks to the fact that the bank required us to pay 20% down (no money, no mortgage, which is what I meant when I said they were meaner, but it's really just tough love and it was for our own good) and we were able to cover that by cleaning out our piggy banks and putting the money together, our monthly mortgage payment now is about the same as what I paid for rent my first year of university 18 years ago in Milwaukee (not, say Manhattan, and I lived in an apartment roughly the same size). As far as cars, we could probably get by without one, but when I worked in Basovizza in the Carso, it was handy to have one, as it meant 10 minutes instead of an hour-long bus ride (the periferia is not well connected to the Carso) and I often work out of town.

5. Bartering. I thank my lucky stars for portable skills. Having decent English language skills for translations and English lessons has helped me save money on lots of things, both for me and for the non-profit I run: legal services, accounting services, help with phone bills, all kinds of things. This is a culture where professionals help each other out through trading services. It rocks. I also learned Italian and worked on my Portuguese by trading half hour language lessons with friends I met here. Bartering gives you immediate value for your work and there are no taxes to pay (bartering, sadly, does not make taxes go away but it doesn't give you any additional ones, either, so it is still a win-win). My advice to young people starting out in the world: hone your portable skills.

6. There is free stuff to do everywhere: nature (Adriatic sea, Carso, Val Rosandra, public gardens, etc), look at historic stuff (downtown architecture and piazzas, Miramar gardens, free museums, etc), concerts and events (thank you, Comune and cultural associations), and two very kick-ass bike paths means there's plenty to do without breaking out the pocket book. 

7. Ice Cream is cheap if you know where to go. I go to Marco downtown (not far from Piazza Unita, accross the street from the Roman theater, you know, by the Questura). He's still at 1.00 a scoop and his stuff is about the tastiest in Trieste. 

Um. That's about all I can think of for now. But I think that's a pretty good start.