Jessy Delfino's Blog

ON REVOLUTIONARY-ISM and BEING RESOURCEFUL

This is a long but useful entry.

I stole Abbie Hoffman's "Steal This Book" from Barnes and Noble in 1995. I didn't know it then, but I was to learn that the way we are taught to do just about EVERYTHING in life is ass-backwards. There is no way capitalism CAN work for the have nots; it's geared specifically to make the rich richer. If you'd like to be able to live affordably in NYC, the first tip is to steal and read "Steal This Book" from any Barnes and Noble or large chain. Though it is old and much of the information is out of date, the message remains the same - there is a better, more efficient, less expensive way to do everything.

Don't ever steal from a small or independently owned book store. The mom and pop shops are being edged out by the big chains and will soon be gone forever. Some people say stealing is wrong and I agree to a certain extent that stealing is wrong. Stealing money or belongings from friends is wrong. Stealing TVs and Ipods and things of "desire" is wrong. But stealing food or things that are used for survival, especially from large chains, is never wrong. Especially when something that costs pennies to make is sold for dollars, and when the cost of living in NYC is what it is. Even if you have a high paying job, you are getting ripped off by every business every where every day. If you don't believe me, look at your Verizon phone bill and you'll note that we are charged a tax that pays Madison Square Garden's electricity bill. If that is the case, why the hell are concert tickets so expensive? And where does that money go?

FROM STEAL THIS BOOK:

ON PHONES

In our opinion, as long as there is a phone company, and as long as there are outlaws, nobody ever need pay for a call. In 1969, alone, the phone company estimates that over 10 million dollars worth of free calls were placed from New York City. Nothing, however, compares with the rip-off of the people by the phone company. In that same year, American Telephone and Telegraph made a profit of 8.6 billion dollars! Ripping off the phone company is an act of revolutionary love, so help spread the word.

You can make a local 10 cent call for 2 cents by spitting on the pennies and dropping them in the nickel slot. As soon as they are about to hit the trigger mechanism, bang the coin return button.

[JD: I don't know if this would work with 50 cents now or not. I suggest giving it a try. You have nothing to lose, besides 2 cents. Also, VERIZON is the most expensive phone company there is. Bargain hunt and save money. There is also a public assistance program, that, if you qualify for, can save you money on your phone bill. You can also get phone service through the internet for cheap and free.]

ON ENTERTAINMENT

There are many ways to sneak into theaters, concerts, stadiums and other entertainment houses. All these places have numerous fire exits with push bar doors that open easily from the inside. Arrive early with a group of friends after casing the joint and selecting the most convenient exit. Pay for one person to get in. When he does he simply opens the designated exit door when the ushers are out of the area and everyone rushes inside.

[JD: A good way to see free movies is to plan a full day at the movies. Buy a ticket for a noon film, and spend the rest of the day theater hopping from movie to movie. My record is 8 movies in one day. For the outrageous cost of one ticket at $11.00, you are now actually getting your money's worth. I do this about once a month and get seeing all the blockbusters out of the way in one day, for one tenth of the price. For extra value, bring your own popcorn, soda and snacks from home. Now THAT'S value. Don't EVER buy movie theater popcorn or soda. $8 for a soda and popcorn is simply robbery, and nothing less.]

ON MAIL

When mailing to the same city, address the envelope or package to yourself and put the name of the person you are sending it to where the return address generally goes. Mail it without postage and it will be "returned" to the sender.

[JD: I deliver all my outgoing in town mail myself, on my bike. I sent out over two hundred of my CDs to various NYC addresses last year, and estimate I saved about $200 in postage by just delivering them myself. To make it extra convenient, arrange to drop it off while en route to somewhere you're going that is near there anyway. (For example, I drop off CDs at The Village Voice when I go to the Bowery Poetry Club on Mondays.) There is no reason why every single person in this city shouldn't ride a bike to get to where they need to go. Public transportation is for the rich, the lazy and the complacent. The elderly and the sick are the ones who pub trans is most appropriate for. This is also a good way to cut out expensive gym memberships and you also have the $80 a month subway fare you can put towards food and rent. Congrats - you just saved $130 per month. And your body is fit on top of it.]

ON HEALTH

In S.T.B., Hoffman references a free clinic, NENA, at 290 E. 3rd St. I'm not sure, but it might be what is now still a low-income clinic (with flexible pay scale) called Ryan-Nena. It's at E. 3rd between B and C. Another tip is to always have a jar of apple cider vinegar on hand. It's a magic cure-all, and if you don't believe me, try drinking a cup of water twice a day with two teaspoons of raw, organic apple cider vinegar mixed in and note the results. It completely cured me of my stomach ailment; something that modern medicine could not do and did not do. And at 2.69 a bottle, it's well worth the value. You can use it to heal everything. Check it out:

(From frugalliving.about.com):

***Our son had a wart growing near the cuticle of his finger, starting to go under his nail. After putting apple cider vinegar on a band-aid and wrapping it on the finger for about a week, the wart was gone and never grew back. Place a new apple cider vinegar band-aid on the wart each night.

***My mother drinks this every day and does not have high cholesterol. My aunt had very high cholesterol and tried a prescription drug for it. The drug caused some liver problems and she had to stop taking it. Then she tried this and lowered her cholesterol by 40 points: 1 quart apple juice, 1 pint purple grape juice, 1/4 to 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar. Drink 1/2 to 1 cup daily.
***If you douse your cold sore repeatedly with vinegar it will dry it up and eventually prevent further outbreaks.

***I was having terrible hot flushes during the day and night until a friend told me about apple cider vinegar. I take 1 or 2 tsp of vinegar with a glass of water 3 times a day or more and the hot flushes are gone right away. The taste is not bad at all and it doesn't upset my stomach. I feel like I'm back in the land of the living!

***I have used vinegar in water for arthritis and it takes the swelling and stiffness away. I use 1 tablespoon in water twice a day. It has given me my life back.

***This was given to me by a chiropractor who checked my urine and told me it was "gunky." Drink 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in 4 ounces of water once a day for 5 days.

***As a child I was plagued with sprains. My grandmother mixed apple cider vinegar with red clay, heated it and made a paste. It was placed on the sprain and then wrapped with strips of an old sheet. After an hour the paste was soaked off with warm water and my sprain was healed.

***I have blepharitis, a recurrent eyelid condition that causes intense itching, redness and swelling. After trying every OTC I could think of (and reading the Vinegar Page) I tried dipping a cotton swab in full strength apple cider vineger and carefully swabbing the affected eyelid 2-3 times a day. Within a week the symptoms were gone! I told my doctor about it and he said just be careful not to get the vinegar in your eyes.

***My husband had a toothache for 2 days and tried all the over the counter relief medicines with absolutely no relief. I had been reading the pages about medicinal uses of vinegar and when I read how it takes the pain out of a sprain and arthritis I figured, "What does he have to lose?" So we put apple cider vinegar on cotton balls and he put it in his mouth and bit down gently for a few minutes. To our surprise his pain was gone. My mother then told me later that her father used to use vinegar for his teeth. Its amazing how the old fashioned "home remedies" really work, and of course they are a lot cheaper. (Note: Always rinse your mouth thoroughly after using vinegar, as it deteriorates the enamel. --Pat)

***For a cough that will not stop, make a remedy my brother and I always called Witches Brew. This was from my Great Grandmother.
Mix 1 Tbs Butter
1 Tbs Sugar
1 Tbs Vinegar
Melt it together, and take while still warm.

***To resolve chronic indigestion or heartburn, take 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in 1 ounce of water each evening after supper.
A reader adds: I suffer from chronic acid reflux where I wake up usually at 2 a.m. regurgitating. I've tried many medications but always quit because of side effects. A doctor said to take two teaspoons of vinegar for the acid reflux. I did it and I now swear by it. For some reason the acid from the vinegar stops the acid from the reflux. In the last six months I have regurgitated only once and that is because I forgot to drink the vinegar.

***When I was growing up whenever one of us caught our finger in a door, Mom would get a cup of vinegar and stick our finger in it. It would sting for a bit but it helped take the pain away very quickly. I think the smell also helped calm us. As an adult I have done this and it still works.

***I have had migraines all my life. I was taking 6 Excedrin tablets a day. I started taking one capful of vinegar, lie down for twenty minutes and the headache is gone!

***One evening while watching tv, I started itching. First my face, then my arms and down the line it went. I discovered I was covered in hives. Apparently I was allergic to something, but what was the big question. Through trial and error I discovered it was penicillin. I was told to soak in a bath of water and vinegar to relieve the itch as I am also allergic to benedryl. It relieved the itch almost immediately, and the hives started to settle. I have since developed an allergic reaction to soy and used the same method to relieve the lumps and itching.

ON FOOD

From a flyer I got at a clothes swap:

Join us for a brief discussion on "freeganism" and a trash tour exploring the massive amounts of usable food that is wasted every day.

MONDAY, Oct. 17th
Discussion at 8:30 PM
Tour at 9:30 PM
Cafe 61 (southeast corner of 13th St. and 5th Avenue)

Freegan.info organizes trash tours to expose the injustice of an economic system where massive quantities of consumer goods are produced and discarded while millions go without basic necessities. We work to expose the impacts of waste, mass production and materialism while advocating resource recovery as a sustainable, ethnical and liberating lifestyle alternative.

For more info & to further explore freeganism, go to www.freegan.info.

ON METERS

Instead of feeding the meter your hard earned quarters, feed it a sliver of aluminum foil. Watch in delight as the meter blinks "out of order". Save those quarters and use them towards rent and utilities, or the outrageous cost of gasoline.

It's an evil, unfair world out there. Lighten your load any way you can, bar hurting others. Good luck!