Today I'd like to cover personal privacy. In today's society, 7% of all homes in the U.S. contain a family member that has suffered from one form or another of identity theft. This number is only anticipated to drastically increase in the future.

To protect your identity you must practice personal privacy. For the average American, making a few simple lifestyle changes can help protect your personal information from being compromised by a data predator.

1.) Buy a decent quality shredder and shred any mail or documents containing any personal information, including "trivial" data like your birthdate. In addition, a locking mailbox is desirable.

2.) Never offer your personal information. Almost never reveal your social security number. Opt to use home address and phone numbers as identity confirmations rather than birthdate and SSN.

3.) Use Tor Browser for online activities. It protects your identity, your location, and your information protected through the use of onion routing and forced use of HTTPS protocol.

4.) Only keep physical copies and original paper documents in a fireproof safe that's bolted to the floor.

5.) Maintain an updated anti-virus and firewall application. After extensive research and personal experience II suggest the use of the current AVG free edition, couple with Zone Alarm's personal firewall.

6.) Use TrueCrypt to encrypt your hard-drive. Create decoy operating systems if necessary to further protect your data. Even though data is encrypted, it's only protected if the computer is OFF. So don't forget to power down when not in use.

7.) Pay in cash and use alias names when legitimate names are unnecessary.

By implementing an following some of these seven simple suggestions can effectively deter and event stop a criminal from stealing your identity. As a rule of thumb, practice common sense when it comes to your personal identifiable information, You only get one identity. You should probably protect it.

To start my journey I thought I'd ease into the transition. I first decided to get an accurate account of my spending habits. To do this I decided to deposit my entire check into my bank account and stick to using Bank of America's cost tracker to find where costs could be cut.

I'm seeing 25$ a week on coffee alone, and an outstanding 60$ on eating out a week. Now that I have a general idea of how my money is spend, I decided to deposit just enough of my check into my account to pay my bills, such as lot rent, electric, cable, cell phone, etc. The remaining amount that was to be used for food, gas, and everything else would be carried on me in cash.

I used billpay to take care of the bills automatically. I then locked my card into my safe so I wouldn't be tempted to use it out of habit. By paying for everything in cash I find I'm more conscious of where my money's going. That daily cup of coffee at the local coffee shop isn't as enticing as it once was. Now I've opted to make my own at home. I've become a bit of a coffee snob.

You don't have to do it how I did, but getting control of your spending is the first step in sustainable living. Track your spending habits, Make a budget, and always be frugal.

Welcome everyone to my blog the Modern American.

This blog is dedicated to the rediscovery of the American Way of Life. A forgotten way of yesteryear. A time where privacy, independence, and self-sufficiency were commonplace.

In todays economic recession, the need of being sensible has never been higher. That's what this blogs all about. Breathing new life into an old way of living. Practicing sensibility, independence, and living within your means. This is my account of my journey to self-sufficiency, and my pursuit of the American Dream.....