Cleveland rocks. But plan your trip better than we did
Today’s day trip: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. We’ve been talking about making a repeat visit since our first one when the museum opened up several years ago. The opportunity came up today. Yes, we had a nice time. But here is the lesson of the day: putting off [...]
Continue reading Cleveland rocks. But plan your trip better than we did …
From Monroe on a Budget.
Escaping the Mundane
Charlie writes in (this is an excerpt, because the full story is quite long):
What I finally realized is that I usually buy stuff because it makes me feel like this is all worth it for a while, that all the work I’m doing isn’t just going to feed Uncle Sam and to keep a roof over my head and cheap food on the table. But then I get the bills and I feel even worse than I did before.
The ups and downs of buying stuff (up) and then seeing the new wear off and facing the bills (down) is a rollercoaster, but at least it’s better than the mundane shuffle through life of just paying the mortgage and going to the grocery store and going to work over and over and over again. A completely frugal life is the most mundane thing I can imagine.
I think you’re going about this from completely the wrong perspective, Charlie.
First of all, frugality is not about giving up the things that bring you joy in life. It’s about figuring out what actually does bring you joy in life and accentuating that, then cutting back sharply on the things that don’t matter as much to you.
For example, if you don’t watch much television, a frugal decision would be to get rid of your cable box and just use the over-the-air signals – or, perhaps, selling your television off entirely.
A key part of that statement – perhaps the key part – is the if you don’t watch much television part. If you do enjoy television and you watch it multiple hours per day, then you shouldn’t cut back on it. You might, however, find that you don’t watch your premium channels much, so you might get a cheaper package – or you might not.
Another example: if you’re not home during the day, why would you bother to heat or cool your house during those hours? Get a programmable thermostat, install it, and set it to turn off your air conditioning or furnace during the hours where you’re not at home. Why? Because for virtually everyone on earth, keeping their home at a perfect temperature when no one is there is not a key value in their lives.
There are some things I don’t hesitate to spend money on. I will buy expensive cheeses and other ingredients for great home-cooked meals. I don’t skip on kitchen implements – I get stuff that will last forever. I don’t mind buying a book that I know I’ll re-read in the future. I’m currently shopping for a piano and I will happily pay the right price for the right piano.
Aside from that, though, I unabashedly cut corners. I make my own laundry detergent because, frankly, buying Tide doesn’t improve my quality of life. We use cloth diapers for our baby. I use vinegar to mop the floor. We have a single television in our house and it’s an old CRT television that has a discolored screen on one side of it. This stuff isn’t really important to me at all – so why would I spend anything more than the minimum on it?
Hand in hand with that is big, long-term goals. My wife and I have some large, long-term goals that are deeply fulfilling to both of us. Foremost among them is our long-talked-about home in the country, with trees around and a small barn in the back. We both want this deeply.
I have a picture that currently serves as my desktop wallpaper on my main computer I use for work. It depicts nothing more than a nice-looking farmhouse-style home surrounded on two sides by trees, with a red barn off to the left. It has a long driveway leading up to it and on the driveway, you can see a child running towards the cameraperson. That’s exactly what I’d like to have. (I’d happily shre the photo, but I think I’d get into copyright trouble if I did.)
I know that every time I choose not to have something that’s important to me, I take one step in that very long journey towards that dream we share. I look at that photo sometimes as I’m checking account balances and I feel very warm inside knowing that all of my little choices are slowly adding up to something we’ve both wanted for a very long time.
That feels good. That feels really good.
The combination of these two factors is that frugality enables me to reach for the big things I want out of life without giving up the little things that genuinely matter. The drawback? I’m not buying products that aren’t important to me.
Some drawback.
Continue reading Escaping the Mundane …
From The Simple Dollar.
Escaping the Mundane
Charlie writes in (this is an excerpt, because the full story is quite long):
What I finally realized is that I usually buy stuff because it makes me feel like this is all worth it for a while, that all the work I’m doing isn’t just going to feed Uncle Sam and to keep a roof over my head and cheap food on the table. But then I get the bills and I feel even worse than I did before.
The ups and downs of buying stuff (up) and then seeing the new wear off and facing the bills (down) is a rollercoaster, but at least it’s better than the mundane shuffle through life of just paying the mortgage and going to the grocery store and going to work over and over and over again. A completely frugal life is the most mundane thing I can imagine.
I think you’re going about this from completely the wrong perspective, Charlie.
First of all, frugality is not about giving up the things that bring you joy in life. It’s about figuring out what actually does bring you joy in life and accentuating that, then cutting back sharply on the things that don’t matter as much to you.
For example, if you don’t watch much television, a frugal decision would be to get rid of your cable box and just use the over-the-air signals – or, perhaps, selling your television off entirely.
A key part of that statement – perhaps the key part – is the if you don’t watch much television part. If you do enjoy television and you watch it multiple hours per day, then you shouldn’t cut back on it. You might, however, find that you don’t watch your premium channels much, so you might get a cheaper package – or you might not.
Another example: if you’re not home during the day, why would you bother to heat or cool your house during those hours? Get a programmable thermostat, install it, and set it to turn off your air conditioning or furnace during the hours where you’re not at home. Why? Because for virtually everyone on earth, keeping their home at a perfect temperature when no one is there is not a key value in their lives.
There are some things I don’t hesitate to spend money on. I will buy expensive cheeses and other ingredients for great home-cooked meals. I don’t skip on kitchen implements – I get stuff that will last forever. I don’t mind buying a book that I know I’ll re-read in the future. I’m currently shopping for a piano and I will happily pay the right price for the right piano.
Aside from that, though, I unabashedly cut corners. I make my own laundry detergent because, frankly, buying Tide doesn’t improve my quality of life. We use cloth diapers for our baby. I use vinegar to mop the floor. We have a single television in our house and it’s an old CRT television that has a discolored screen on one side of it. This stuff isn’t really important to me at all – so why would I spend anything more than the minimum on it?
Hand in hand with that is big, long-term goals. My wife and I have some large, long-term goals that are deeply fulfilling to both of us. Foremost among them is our long-talked-about home in the country, with trees around and a small barn in the back. We both want this deeply.
I have a picture that currently serves as my desktop wallpaper on my main computer I use for work. It depicts nothing more than a nice-looking farmhouse-style home surrounded on two sides by trees, with a red barn off to the left. It has a long driveway leading up to it and on the driveway, you can see a child running towards the cameraperson. That’s exactly what I’d like to have. (I’d happily shre the photo, but I think I’d get into copyright trouble if I did.)
I know that every time I choose not to have something that’s important to me, I take one step in that very long journey towards that dream we share. I look at that photo sometimes as I’m checking account balances and I feel very warm inside knowing that all of my little choices are slowly adding up to something we’ve both wanted for a very long time.
That feels good. That feels really good.
The combination of these two factors is that frugality enables me to reach for the big things I want out of life without giving up the little things that genuinely matter. The drawback? I’m not buying products that aren’t important to me.
Some drawback.
Continue reading Escaping the Mundane …
From The Simple Dollar.
Escaping the Mundane
Charlie writes in (this is an excerpt, because the full story is quite long):
What I finally realized is that I usually buy stuff because it makes me feel like this is all worth it for a while, that all the work I’m doing isn’t just going to feed Uncle Sam and to keep a roof over my head and cheap food on the table. But then I get the bills and I feel even worse than I did before.
The ups and downs of buying stuff (up) and then seeing the new wear off and facing the bills (down) is a rollercoaster, but at least it’s better than the mundane shuffle through life of just paying the mortgage and going to the grocery store and going to work over and over and over again. A completely frugal life is the most mundane thing I can imagine.
I think you’re going about this from completely the wrong perspective, Charlie.
First of all, frugality is not about giving up the things that bring you joy in life. It’s about figuring out what actually does bring you joy in life and accentuating that, then cutting back sharply on the things that don’t matter as much to you.
For example, if you don’t watch much television, a frugal decision would be to get rid of your cable box and just use the over-the-air signals – or, perhaps, selling your television off entirely.
A key part of that statement – perhaps the key part – is the if you don’t watch much television part. If you do enjoy television and you watch it multiple hours per day, then you shouldn’t cut back on it. You might, however, find that you don’t watch your premium channels much, so you might get a cheaper package – or you might not.
Another example: if you’re not home during the day, why would you bother to heat or cool your house during those hours? Get a programmable thermostat, install it, and set it to turn off your air conditioning or furnace during the hours where you’re not at home. Why? Because for virtually everyone on earth, keeping their home at a perfect temperature when no one is there is not a key value in their lives.
There are some things I don’t hesitate to spend money on. I will buy expensive cheeses and other ingredients for great home-cooked meals. I don’t skip on kitchen implements – I get stuff that will last forever. I don’t mind buying a book that I know I’ll re-read in the future. I’m currently shopping for a piano and I will happily pay the right price for the right piano.
Aside from that, though, I unabashedly cut corners. I make my own laundry detergent because, frankly, buying Tide doesn’t improve my quality of life. We use cloth diapers for our baby. I use vinegar to mop the floor. We have a single television in our house and it’s an old CRT television that has a discolored screen on one side of it. This stuff isn’t really important to me at all – so why would I spend anything more than the minimum on it?
Hand in hand with that is big, long-term goals. My wife and I have some large, long-term goals that are deeply fulfilling to both of us. Foremost among them is our long-talked-about home in the country, with trees around and a small barn in the back. We both want this deeply.
I have a picture that currently serves as my desktop wallpaper on my main computer I use for work. It depicts nothing more than a nice-looking farmhouse-style home surrounded on two sides by trees, with a red barn off to the left. It has a long driveway leading up to it and on the driveway, you can see a child running towards the cameraperson. That’s exactly what I’d like to have. (I’d happily shre the photo, but I think I’d get into copyright trouble if I did.)
I know that every time I choose not to have something that’s important to me, I take one step in that very long journey towards that dream we share. I look at that photo sometimes as I’m checking account balances and I feel very warm inside knowing that all of my little choices are slowly adding up to something we’ve both wanted for a very long time.
That feels good. That feels really good.
The combination of these two factors is that frugality enables me to reach for the big things I want out of life without giving up the little things that genuinely matter. The drawback? I’m not buying products that aren’t important to me.
Some drawback.
Continue reading Escaping the Mundane …
From The Simple Dollar.
Drugstore and back-to-school ads July 31
My sales and deals posts are for the Monroe, Mich., area: The following ads are in today’s edition of The Monroe Evening News: Wal-Mart (sale starts Sunday) will have 70-sheet notebooks at 15 cents (wow!), economy binders at 75 cents, 24-county Cra-Z-Art crayons at 20 cents. Storage ottoman in various colors at $17. Boys or [...]
Continue reading Drugstore and back-to-school ads July 31 …
From Monroe on a Budget.
The Simple Dollar Time Machine: July 31, 2010
Many newer readers of The Simple Dollar haven’t been exposed to the hundreds of great articles in the archives of the site, so this is a weekly series that highlights the five best posts from one year ago this week, two years ago this week, and three years ago this week. I call it … the Time Machine.
One Year Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2009)
Does Earning More Trump Frugality? To me, it’s kind of like asking if you still need a hammer after you buy a chainsaw. They’re both useful tools for getting the job done that can be used in concert for some amazing things.
Makers and Managers: What You Are, and How It Can Help Your Career I am 100% a maker. I do not like being a manager – at all. This fact actually explains a lot about my career path and the directions it has taken over the years.
John’s “Campground” – Some Thoughts on Investing with Added Personal Value John is investing his money in land – and, eventually, into the structures he’ll build on that land. He enjoys the process deeply and will someday have a great deal of financial value there.
Passion by the Hour In my eyes, the things you’re passionate about are the things that you can dump tons of time into while still deeply enjoying yourself. If you can channel that into earning income in some way, you’re far ahead of the career game.
Rule #7: Watch Your Progress – But Make It Fun. While keeping track of your progress towards big goals can be really empowering, it can also feel like drudgery. The best way is to keep your end goal in mind and recognize that you really are taking steps that will get you to where you want to be.
Two Years Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2008)
Some Thoughts on Being Broke and Being Poor I don’t address poverty on The Simple Dollar. I do address the state of being broke, which is more of a state of resource mismanagement than a lack of resources. The vast majority of people in the United States are broke, not poor. They have the resources needed to make it, they’re just dealing with the results of mismangement of resources in their past.
Overcoming a Habit of Lying to Yourself About Money Deceiving yourself is one of the most dangerous things you can do. Almost every time you see someone under a mountain of debt, some sort of self-deception is at the root.
Class Warfare and The Simple Dollar So often, people want to view personal finance advice as some sort of rich versus poor battle. In truth, both sides of the coin want the same things: more time and more security.
How to Deal with a Partner That Hides Money Problems Sunshine is the first step in the process – all of the issues have to be out on the table so that you have a starting point from which to build.
The Single Biggest Money Mistake I’ve Ever Made I think the real root of it all is that I listened to other people instead of to my own heart.
Three Years Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2007)
Which Is Best: Paying Off Debts Now – Or Avoiding Future Ones? Reasonable protection against future debts – i.e., an emergency fund – is an essential first step, but at some point you round the corner and start paying off the debts you have now.
Applying Jerry Seinfeld’s “Chain” Concept To Personal Finance The “chain” idea is still one of the best ideas I’ve ever heard. I’m using it right now with my piano lessons.
10 More Ways To Entertain Young Children For $1 Or Less (Without The TV) The best way to entertain your children in a valuable way is to just spend time with them. It really doesn’t matter what you’re doing.
Personal Finance In A Family Crisis For me, family crises are what emergency funds are made for. Sometimes, things happen – you have to fly to another part of the country to be with someone, fifteen sad people are sitting in a kitchen and someone has to come up with lunch, and so on.
Is It Worth Higher Prices For A Quality Shopping Experience? For me, once you reach a minimum level of quality – the store is clean and you can actually find what you’re looking for – then additional quality doesn’t really add anything beyond a higher price at the register.
If you’d like to browse through more of the archives, visit the chronology, where all posts are listed in chronological order.
Ten Ways to Get More out of The Simple DollarUpdated!
This is kind of a FAQ for new readers and is posted each week along with the Time Machine. Here are ten great ways for new readers to dig deeper into The Simple Dollar.
1. Subscribe by email or RSS. Visiting The Simple Dollar’s website is great, but for many people, it’s more convenient to receive the articles in another form. It’s easy to join 60,000 other subscribers and get The Simple Dollar’s content by email or in your RSS feeder (if you’re unfamiliar with RSS, check out Google Reader.
2. Comment. Each article on The Simple Dollar has lively discussion. Just click on the green square in the upper right of each article on the website and join in!
3. Become a fan of The Simple Dollar on Facebook. I put up questions and other materials about once every week or two on Facebook (so you won’t be flooded with Simple Dollar updates). Join in the conversation with other Simple Dollar fans and occasionally get some interesting freebies, too.
4. Follow me on Twitter. I post interesting articles, quotes, follow-up material, commentary, and other material on Twitter. Follow me! If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter, it’s essentially an open discussion forum for people to share ideas and thoughts with other like-minded folks – you just choose the people you want to listen to and their ideas and thoughts are all delivered to you on a single page.
5. Read my story of financial meltdown and recovery. The Simple Dollar isn’t based on what I’ve read in books or learned in school. I’ve made a lifetime of financial mistakes – The Simple Dollar is a record of what works for me during the process of getting my life on a better track.
6. Download my free 49 page e-book. Everything You Ever Really Needed to Know About Personal Finance On Just One Page is completely free. It summarizes all of the key lessons I’ve learned along the way about personal finance in one tidy package – in fact, all of the main principles can be found right on the cover.
7. Dig through “31 Days to Fix Your Finances.” 31 Days to Fix Your Finances is an article series that outlines how you can get a grip on your finances over the course of a month.
8. Send me your questions and suggestions. Send me an email and let me know what you’re thinking, what you’d like to see, and any questions you might have. I try to respond to as many emails as possible and I read them all. I may even use your question in a future article!
9. Become a “Friend of The Simple Dollar.” If you find the stuff on The Simple Dollar valuable and are willing to spend five minutes or so a month to help me out with small things, please consider signing up to be a “Friend of The Simple Dollar”.
10. Email a great article you find to a friend. Find an article that you think your friend would love? At the bottom of each article, you’ll find a link that says “Email this” – just click on that, type in your friend’s address, and send it right along to them!
Continue reading The Simple Dollar Time Machine: July 31, 2010 …
From The Simple Dollar.
The Simple Dollar Time Machine: July 31, 2010
Many newer readers of The Simple Dollar haven’t been exposed to the hundreds of great articles in the archives of the site, so this is a weekly series that highlights the five best posts from one year ago this week, two years ago this week, and three years ago this week. I call it … the Time Machine.
One Year Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2009)
Does Earning More Trump Frugality? To me, it’s kind of like asking if you still need a hammer after you buy a chainsaw. They’re both useful tools for getting the job done that can be used in concert for some amazing things.
Makers and Managers: What You Are, and How It Can Help Your Career I am 100% a maker. I do not like being a manager – at all. This fact actually explains a lot about my career path and the directions it has taken over the years.
John’s “Campground” – Some Thoughts on Investing with Added Personal Value John is investing his money in land – and, eventually, into the structures he’ll build on that land. He enjoys the process deeply and will someday have a great deal of financial value there.
Passion by the Hour In my eyes, the things you’re passionate about are the things that you can dump tons of time into while still deeply enjoying yourself. If you can channel that into earning income in some way, you’re far ahead of the career game.
Rule #7: Watch Your Progress – But Make It Fun. While keeping track of your progress towards big goals can be really empowering, it can also feel like drudgery. The best way is to keep your end goal in mind and recognize that you really are taking steps that will get you to where you want to be.
Two Years Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2008)
Some Thoughts on Being Broke and Being Poor I don’t address poverty on The Simple Dollar. I do address the state of being broke, which is more of a state of resource mismanagement than a lack of resources. The vast majority of people in the United States are broke, not poor. They have the resources needed to make it, they’re just dealing with the results of mismangement of resources in their past.
Overcoming a Habit of Lying to Yourself About Money Deceiving yourself is one of the most dangerous things you can do. Almost every time you see someone under a mountain of debt, some sort of self-deception is at the root.
Class Warfare and The Simple Dollar So often, people want to view personal finance advice as some sort of rich versus poor battle. In truth, both sides of the coin want the same things: more time and more security.
How to Deal with a Partner That Hides Money Problems Sunshine is the first step in the process – all of the issues have to be out on the table so that you have a starting point from which to build.
The Single Biggest Money Mistake I’ve Ever Made I think the real root of it all is that I listened to other people instead of to my own heart.
Three Years Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2007)
Which Is Best: Paying Off Debts Now – Or Avoiding Future Ones? Reasonable protection against future debts – i.e., an emergency fund – is an essential first step, but at some point you round the corner and start paying off the debts you have now.
Applying Jerry Seinfeld’s “Chain” Concept To Personal Finance The “chain” idea is still one of the best ideas I’ve ever heard. I’m using it right now with my piano lessons.
10 More Ways To Entertain Young Children For $1 Or Less (Without The TV) The best way to entertain your children in a valuable way is to just spend time with them. It really doesn’t matter what you’re doing.
Personal Finance In A Family Crisis For me, family crises are what emergency funds are made for. Sometimes, things happen – you have to fly to another part of the country to be with someone, fifteen sad people are sitting in a kitchen and someone has to come up with lunch, and so on.
Is It Worth Higher Prices For A Quality Shopping Experience? For me, once you reach a minimum level of quality – the store is clean and you can actually find what you’re looking for – then additional quality doesn’t really add anything beyond a higher price at the register.
If you’d like to browse through more of the archives, visit the chronology, where all posts are listed in chronological order.
Ten Ways to Get More out of The Simple DollarUpdated!
This is kind of a FAQ for new readers and is posted each week along with the Time Machine. Here are ten great ways for new readers to dig deeper into The Simple Dollar.
1. Subscribe by email or RSS. Visiting The Simple Dollar’s website is great, but for many people, it’s more convenient to receive the articles in another form. It’s easy to join 60,000 other subscribers and get The Simple Dollar’s content by email or in your RSS feeder (if you’re unfamiliar with RSS, check out Google Reader.
2. Comment. Each article on The Simple Dollar has lively discussion. Just click on the green square in the upper right of each article on the website and join in!
3. Become a fan of The Simple Dollar on Facebook. I put up questions and other materials about once every week or two on Facebook (so you won’t be flooded with Simple Dollar updates). Join in the conversation with other Simple Dollar fans and occasionally get some interesting freebies, too.
4. Follow me on Twitter. I post interesting articles, quotes, follow-up material, commentary, and other material on Twitter. Follow me! If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter, it’s essentially an open discussion forum for people to share ideas and thoughts with other like-minded folks – you just choose the people you want to listen to and their ideas and thoughts are all delivered to you on a single page.
5. Read my story of financial meltdown and recovery. The Simple Dollar isn’t based on what I’ve read in books or learned in school. I’ve made a lifetime of financial mistakes – The Simple Dollar is a record of what works for me during the process of getting my life on a better track.
6. Download my free 49 page e-book. Everything You Ever Really Needed to Know About Personal Finance On Just One Page is completely free. It summarizes all of the key lessons I’ve learned along the way about personal finance in one tidy package – in fact, all of the main principles can be found right on the cover.
7. Dig through “31 Days to Fix Your Finances.” 31 Days to Fix Your Finances is an article series that outlines how you can get a grip on your finances over the course of a month.
8. Send me your questions and suggestions. Send me an email and let me know what you’re thinking, what you’d like to see, and any questions you might have. I try to respond to as many emails as possible and I read them all. I may even use your question in a future article!
9. Become a “Friend of The Simple Dollar.” If you find the stuff on The Simple Dollar valuable and are willing to spend five minutes or so a month to help me out with small things, please consider signing up to be a “Friend of The Simple Dollar”.
10. Email a great article you find to a friend. Find an article that you think your friend would love? At the bottom of each article, you’ll find a link that says “Email this” – just click on that, type in your friend’s address, and send it right along to them!
Continue reading The Simple Dollar Time Machine: July 31, 2010 …
From The Simple Dollar.
The Simple Dollar Time Machine: July 31, 2010
Many newer readers of The Simple Dollar haven’t been exposed to the hundreds of great articles in the archives of the site, so this is a weekly series that highlights the five best posts from one year ago this week, two years ago this week, and three years ago this week. I call it … the Time Machine.
One Year Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2009)
Does Earning More Trump Frugality? To me, it’s kind of like asking if you still need a hammer after you buy a chainsaw. They’re both useful tools for getting the job done that can be used in concert for some amazing things.
Makers and Managers: What You Are, and How It Can Help Your Career I am 100% a maker. I do not like being a manager – at all. This fact actually explains a lot about my career path and the directions it has taken over the years.
John’s “Campground” – Some Thoughts on Investing with Added Personal Value John is investing his money in land – and, eventually, into the structures he’ll build on that land. He enjoys the process deeply and will someday have a great deal of financial value there.
Passion by the Hour In my eyes, the things you’re passionate about are the things that you can dump tons of time into while still deeply enjoying yourself. If you can channel that into earning income in some way, you’re far ahead of the career game.
Rule #7: Watch Your Progress – But Make It Fun. While keeping track of your progress towards big goals can be really empowering, it can also feel like drudgery. The best way is to keep your end goal in mind and recognize that you really are taking steps that will get you to where you want to be.
Two Years Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2008)
Some Thoughts on Being Broke and Being Poor I don’t address poverty on The Simple Dollar. I do address the state of being broke, which is more of a state of resource mismanagement than a lack of resources. The vast majority of people in the United States are broke, not poor. They have the resources needed to make it, they’re just dealing with the results of mismangement of resources in their past.
Overcoming a Habit of Lying to Yourself About Money Deceiving yourself is one of the most dangerous things you can do. Almost every time you see someone under a mountain of debt, some sort of self-deception is at the root.
Class Warfare and The Simple Dollar So often, people want to view personal finance advice as some sort of rich versus poor battle. In truth, both sides of the coin want the same things: more time and more security.
How to Deal with a Partner That Hides Money Problems Sunshine is the first step in the process – all of the issues have to be out on the table so that you have a starting point from which to build.
The Single Biggest Money Mistake I’ve Ever Made I think the real root of it all is that I listened to other people instead of to my own heart.
Three Years Ago (July 25 – July 31, 2007)
Which Is Best: Paying Off Debts Now – Or Avoiding Future Ones? Reasonable protection against future debts – i.e., an emergency fund – is an essential first step, but at some point you round the corner and start paying off the debts you have now.
Applying Jerry Seinfeld’s “Chain” Concept To Personal Finance The “chain” idea is still one of the best ideas I’ve ever heard. I’m using it right now with my piano lessons.
10 More Ways To Entertain Young Children For $1 Or Less (Without The TV) The best way to entertain your children in a valuable way is to just spend time with them. It really doesn’t matter what you’re doing.
Personal Finance In A Family Crisis For me, family crises are what emergency funds are made for. Sometimes, things happen – you have to fly to another part of the country to be with someone, fifteen sad people are sitting in a kitchen and someone has to come up with lunch, and so on.
Is It Worth Higher Prices For A Quality Shopping Experience? For me, once you reach a minimum level of quality – the store is clean and you can actually find what you’re looking for – then additional quality doesn’t really add anything beyond a higher price at the register.
If you’d like to browse through more of the archives, visit the chronology, where all posts are listed in chronological order.
Ten Ways to Get More out of The Simple DollarUpdated!
This is kind of a FAQ for new readers and is posted each week along with the Time Machine. Here are ten great ways for new readers to dig deeper into The Simple Dollar.
1. Subscribe by email or RSS. Visiting The Simple Dollar’s website is great, but for many people, it’s more convenient to receive the articles in another form. It’s easy to join 60,000 other subscribers and get The Simple Dollar’s content by email or in your RSS feeder (if you’re unfamiliar with RSS, check out Google Reader.
2. Comment. Each article on The Simple Dollar has lively discussion. Just click on the green square in the upper right of each article on the website and join in!
3. Become a fan of The Simple Dollar on Facebook. I put up questions and other materials about once every week or two on Facebook (so you won’t be flooded with Simple Dollar updates). Join in the conversation with other Simple Dollar fans and occasionally get some interesting freebies, too.
4. Follow me on Twitter. I post interesting articles, quotes, follow-up material, commentary, and other material on Twitter. Follow me! If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter, it’s essentially an open discussion forum for people to share ideas and thoughts with other like-minded folks – you just choose the people you want to listen to and their ideas and thoughts are all delivered to you on a single page.
5. Read my story of financial meltdown and recovery. The Simple Dollar isn’t based on what I’ve read in books or learned in school. I’ve made a lifetime of financial mistakes – The Simple Dollar is a record of what works for me during the process of getting my life on a better track.
6. Download my free 49 page e-book. Everything You Ever Really Needed to Know About Personal Finance On Just One Page is completely free. It summarizes all of the key lessons I’ve learned along the way about personal finance in one tidy package – in fact, all of the main principles can be found right on the cover.
7. Dig through “31 Days to Fix Your Finances.” 31 Days to Fix Your Finances is an article series that outlines how you can get a grip on your finances over the course of a month.
8. Send me your questions and suggestions. Send me an email and let me know what you’re thinking, what you’d like to see, and any questions you might have. I try to respond to as many emails as possible and I read them all. I may even use your question in a future article!
9. Become a “Friend of The Simple Dollar.” If you find the stuff on The Simple Dollar valuable and are willing to spend five minutes or so a month to help me out with small things, please consider signing up to be a “Friend of The Simple Dollar”.
10. Email a great article you find to a friend. Find an article that you think your friend would love? At the bottom of each article, you’ll find a link that says “Email this” – just click on that, type in your friend’s address, and send it right along to them!
Continue reading The Simple Dollar Time Machine: July 31, 2010 …
From The Simple Dollar.
30 Patchwork Pretties To Make: {Free Patterns & Tutorials}
Patchwork Sewing Machine Cover {Make} A Bag Sew-A-Long: Patterns for bag, toiletries pouch, makeup roll, sunglasses case (plus a couple more to be published). Patchwork Kindle Case Scottie Dog Pattern Download Heart Sachet Sets Patchwork Pillow Tutorial Lunchbag Tutorial Miniature Patchwork Pincushions Tutorial: Reversible Patchwork Bag Patchwork Notebook Cover Eye Pillow Patchwork Teapot Pattern Patchwork [...]
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Continue reading 30 Patchwork Pretties To Make: {Free Patterns & Tutorials} …
From TipNut.com.
30 Patchwork Pretties To Make: {Free Patterns & Tutorials}
Patchwork Sewing Machine Cover {Make} A Bag Sew-A-Long: Patterns for bag, toiletries pouch, makeup roll, sunglasses case (plus a couple more to be published). Patchwork Kindle Case Scottie Dog Pattern Download Heart Sachet Sets Patchwork Pillow Tutorial Lunchbag Tutorial Miniature Patchwork Pincushions Tutorial: Reversible Patchwork Bag Patchwork Notebook Cover Eye Pillow Patchwork Teapot Pattern Patchwork [...]
- Also See These Tips:
- 14 Laptop Sleeves & Cases: Free Tutorials & Patterns
- Top 14 Makeup Bags: Free Tutorials
- 20 Fabric Wallet Patterns & Tutorials {Free}
Continue reading 30 Patchwork Pretties To Make: {Free Patterns & Tutorials} …
From TipNut.com.