Thank you a lot and have a nice rest of the week!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/380391897/ameressence-sketches-of-the-american-continent

I’ve done enough craft fairs to know what it’s like to sit behind a table, selling one’s wares, and watch one’s friends walk by and not buy them. I’ve realized that bad feelings about the lack of sales will only end up with me having less friends. I’d rather have little money, lots of friends, and no hard feelings any day!

There are a lot more reasons, but I think two stand out. (1) The structure of Kickstarter, in which you’re giving money and getting something concrete back (whatever the gifts are at the different levels), is a really give-and-take structure. People like it because they’re not just blindly giving money, but giving to get something in return. Sure, I could do that through a web site, but there wouldn’t be the excitement and structure. (2) Having a successful Kickstarter in your past is a lot more of a checkmark in a new business’s portfolio than saying, “my friends gave me a bunch of money to get this going.” It’s concrete. We found we got a lot quicker response to queries to other businesses — the printers, for instance — when we could say, “we raised almost $10,000 on Kickstarter in two weeks!”

I never checked to see if anyone removed me as a friend, but if they did, I guess they felt like you. I ended the campaign with more friends than I started with, so it’s hard to know.

I think the key here is, however, that I was only “selling” something I believed in with every bit of me. I also believed the existence of the magazine would (and I still believe it will) make the world better. I think people need this. So while I would hate to think I’d lost friends, I’m unapologetic about posting a bunch about something I love so much

While I did directly ask a few people for money, and perhaps the few who didn’t give felt huffy about it, for most people I just put the link out there and expected that those who could, and wanted to, would, and those who didn’t, wouldn’t. I don’t think that, except for a few direct-asks, anyone felt like I was setting the thing up as an expectation.

I tried not to make anything a hard sell

http://www.amazon.com/Hominy-Grits-White-10-Bag/dp/B0017OB3CM/

5- star review and it looks awesome.

I’ve been wanting to order those but last I checked the shipping was pricier than the grits

Anyway, if he’s going off the grid, I’d also throw in a few of these

I have donated to a few KS projects. I wonder if I’m now on friends lists of “those who gave less thab I expected”.

From what I can see, Kickstarter isn’t as common here in Canada as in the U.S? (If the pitifully few posts in Toronto are any indication.) I’m glad to have been introduced to it

And yeah I listed that. I meant to show it’s possible to eat for very little money in America– not the healthiest hippie food, but very cheap.

The oil at $6/gallon is insane. There are like a million calories there to beat the winter. $6 for a gallon of oil is *cheap*.

Grits: corn is the cheapest grain in America– way cheaper than rice or wheat or oats. I wanted to link to the “Great Value” grits that are like a whole can for $1, but I couldn’t find them on the website. Oh wait, they are here!!

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Value-Quick-Grits-24-oz/10415365

They are actually hominy grits which are lots more nutritious than plain ground corn (no pellagra, like with polenta).

And eggs are the cheapest protein– again, from corn that’s fed to chickens.

People might say “oh but that’s not organic and holy and virtuous.” Sure isn’t, but it beats, what should I call this, “charity” food, which I had to try once in my lifetime and… never again!

In everyday life I use olive oil and fruits and veggies and nuts, and grains not so much, but that’s my backup plan if cash is ever short again– plus some fish pills from costco.

The funniest part about it is that I figured out this system from reading Michael Polan’s books– a total subversion of his ideas.

Reading this article has been so inspiring and informative. It has revealed some things I needed to know and hear.

Thanks Sarah Gilbert and best of luck with your project!

My nephew just had his 2-year b-day party. Ordinarily I would never buy a gift, between parents and grandparents kids have enough crap. I guess this time I felt different since my sister just moved out to the west coast, and all our family is still on the east coast, so I was the only family at the party.

So I compromised and bought the kid a box of “Cars” themed band-aids for $2.50.

Maybe I’m just an asshole.

Agreed that Facebook is huge for this, but so are corporate/business donors. I don’t have the time to figure the exact numbers, but for us something like 30% of our total raised funds came from businesses. In terms of returns on the efforts, one email to businesses was much greater than all the Facebook poking.

The problem with Facebook is that information changes so quickly that you have to make an effort to remind people about your project without being pushy.

At the same time though, having the Kickstarter campaign gives you a great platform to show you’re legit and approach businesses (who usually prefer to send you fat checks instead of using credit cards), so you gotta have it.