Young & Free Michigan

VIDEO: The Home Buying Experience

Janelle O'Hara — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 05:10:28 +0000

I realize not everyone's ready to buy a house at this stage in our lives . . . but kudos who those who are! I interviewed Dan Witting, a 24-year-old who just bought his first house in Metro Detroit! Dan offers some valuable insights on the home buying process for someone just starting out. He literally just went through it, as you can see from the footage of the house . . . there's absolutely nothing in the house yet!

Do you have any tips on home buying? Leave 'em here or over on Facebook!

Stay awesome!

Janelle

Cheap Eats: Vegetarian Ramen Noodle Alfredo

Janelle O'Hara — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 01:33:12 +0000

For all you vegetarians out there, eating on a budget can be just as challenging for you as it is for carnivores. But as you should be aware of by now, a tight budget doesn't mean you have to sacrifice the health factor. Good old ramen noodles, when combined with the right ingredients, can offer some cheap yet reasonably healthy options for those who avoid meat!

Ramen Noodle Alfredo with Vegetables

Ingredients

1 package of Ramen Noodle
3 chopped Mushrooms
1 large carrot chopped
1 large potato chopped
1/2 cup of pine nuts
1/2 cup of buttermilk
3 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. basil
1 Tbsp. Butter
2/3 cup of mixed cheese including mozzarella, provolone, and cheddar

Directions

1. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a pot, when boiling add noodles.

2. Chop all vegetables into small pieces.

3. Heat olive oil in small skillet over medium heat.

4. Add pine nuts, cook 3 minutes and add all vegetables and onion powder and basil. Allow to cook during steps 5 & 6 for around ten minutes.

5. Pour out water from pot, keep noodles in pot with a small bit of water.

6. Add butter, buttermilk and cheese. Mix until melted.

7. Add the vegetable mix to the noodles.

And enjoy!

Do you have any cheap, delicious recipes? Leave 'em here or over on Facebook!

Stay awesome!

Janelle

Infographic Time: Offensive Hand Gestures Around the World

Janelle O'Hara — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 01:04:18 +0000

You know I tell you to travel a lot. I'm always harping on everyone to "seize the day" and "live it up" and "go while you can!"

I stand by that. However, if you DO decide to take off to a foreign land, it's always a good idea to do research on the local customs before you go. And to help you out a bit, here's a lovely INFOGRAPHIC from Coolinfographics.com!

Pretty interesting, right? Look into common offensive gestures for the place you're going, just to make sure you don't end up offending the locals!

Stay awesome!

Janelle

Do You Need $10,000?

Janelle O'Hara — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 02:29:45 +0000

For my college education, I went to an outrageously expensive private school. Students from my alma mater graduate thousands upon thousands of dollars in debt. Not exactly heartening, is it?

That's why Young & Free Michigan and the Michigan First Foundation want to give you money for school! We have three prizes for the top scholars: $2,500, $5,000 and $10,000!

It's pretty easy to enter, too. All you have to do is read the official rules and regulations here, and see if you qualify. You have to be a member of Michigan First to enter, but joining is so easy (and it gives you an excuse to FINALLY open a First Gear Account, if you haven't already!) Information on joining can be found here.

Upload a 60-second video telling us how your education will impact your life ten years from now, and submit the supporting documents on the site. The application page is here!

What do you have to lose? NOTHING! What do you have to gain? POSSIBLY $10,000!

Look at this face!

Stay awesome,

Janelle

5 Key Money Moves Before Marriage

Janelle O'Hara — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 23:21:46 +0000

Whether you're definitely headed down the aisle soon, or merely interested in the financial and legal obligations of tying the knot, it's important to understand what you're getting into by getting married. Sure, you should mostly be focused on sharing the rest of your life with your hunnybunz (ew), but there are several factors that some people don't consider when they decide to make the commitment.

From choosing which name you'll use to whether you'll have joint back accounts to how the bills will be paid, money MATTERS in a marriage. Check out this video from CNN Money for some excellent advice on what to cover with your future spouse BEFORE the rings are on!

Stay awesome!

Janelle

Living Young & Free Show Episode 056: Cheap De-stressing, Conscious Spending & Gone Phishing

Y&F Michigan Team — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:00:32 +0000

Lee in Alabama shares how to de-stress without spending money, Jenn from St. Louis looks at ways to be more conscious about your spending and Matt from Indiana covers the warning signs of phishing scams.

You can also download all of the episodes as a podcast from iTunes and you can watch all previous shows!

The Y&F Michigan Team

Website Spotlight: MentalFloss.com

Janelle O'Hara — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:00:27 +0000

Plenty of you who follow my Facebook page know that I'm a big fan of the site MentalFloss.com. In fact, I've been wasting hours tonight taking quizzes, reading articles, and looking at pictures on a variety of subjects -- science, history, pop culture, you name it, there's an article on the subject.

I justify spending so much time on this site by the fact that it's educational! I've learned so many random facts from this site, and I just keep coming back for more. Tonight, for instance, I took a quiz in which I had to name all 50 state capitals in 10 minutes, a quiz on Saved by the Bell, and a quiz matching Presidents to their Presidential portraits.

Granted, you can always Google the answers, but where's the fun in that? Also, may quizzes are timed, so you don't always have time.

Here are links to a few of my favorite quizzes, as well as some recent articles I've read that you might find interesting:

The 50 State Capitals Quiz

Which Film Won the Oscar Instead?

Pseudonym or Real Name?

Name the Superbowl Host City

Who's the One on the Left? 22 Famous Pairs Explained

What Makes a Grand Jury So Grand?

6 Unlucky Australians Who Couldn't Catch a Break

5 Great Loves Stories That Weren't Really All That Great

And of course, there's the handy-dandy Amazing Fact Generator!

If you find yourself with a few minutes to spare, check out this fantabulous site!

Stay awesome!

Janelle

VIDEO: Stick Figure Theater: 6 Things to Reduce

Janelle O'Hara — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 02:35:29 +0000

The Stick Figure is back in town! Poorly Drawn Stick Figure Janelle is here to tell you about six ways you can easily simplify you life and lighten the load on your wallet!

Stay awesome!

Janelle

Hi.

Janelle O'Hara — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 22:53:37 +0000

Hey everyone, just a quick update - my video will be up at some point this weekend, due to slight technical difficulties. But never fear! A video is near! Ish.

Stay awesome!

Janelle

Exercise Some Self Control

Janelle O'Hara — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 22:07:36 +0000

Many, many people have been trying to get me to join Pinterest. Pinterest is a social photo-sharing website (some have compared it to Tumblr, but there are several distinct differences between the two sites.) You can follow others and see their "pin boards", which are separate groups of photos that you've "pinned" as something you're interested in.

The reason I've held off on joining is this: I've heard it's extremely addicting. And if you know anything about me, you'll know that if I get into something, I REALLY get into it. Examples:

1) I stayed up til 4:30am each night for three weeks and watched six seasons of Doctor Who.

2) I own 3 sets of the Laura Ingalls Wilder "Little House" books.

3) I own 5 copies of Beauty and the Beast.

4) I own a Ravenclaw house banner from Harry Potter, along with the tie and Luna Lovegood's jewelry set, and I've read the books so much that my paperback copies have long since disintegrated.

5) I saved up my babysitting money for 6 months to buy the complete Anne of Green Gables DVD box set.

6) I've actually cut my hair to look like Rory Gilmore.

And the list goes on and on. Needless to say, I have an addictive personality, so I am terrified to try Pinterest. I already spend waaaaay too much time on Tumblr.

However, Kaylie from Young & Free Ontario told me about an app called Self Control. Apparently, if you download it, you can block yourself from accessing certain websites for a set period of time. You can't remove the block by uninstalling the software or deleting it or rebooting -- you HAVE to wait until the timer runs out.

If you ever find yourself wasting time on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Twitter, etc. when you should be doing other things (like studying!), this app might be for you. It would also be helpful if your email is distracting you on a vacation or something, since it will also work for web-based email.

What's your poison? What TV/websites/movies/fandoms distract you so much that you might need the Self Control app?

Stay awesome!

Janelle