I hate Valentine’s Day. It’s not because I’m not a romantic. I am (but don’t tell anyone). I hate it because it’s a holiday that makes a lot of people feel badly about themselves because of what they may not have on a particular day of the year. It’s worse than trying to keep up [...]
Food is one of the biggest line items in a budget, usually behind only rent or a mortgage and maybe the utilities. It’s also a necessity so you can’t just give it up. Many people want to know how to cut their food budget yet still eat something other than Ramen noodles and Hamburger Helper [...]
When I first started embracing frugality, I wasn’t thrilled with the process. It all seemed so limiting, somehow. I didn’t enjoy combing sales flyers and planting my own gardens. I wasn’t thrilled about hanging my clothes out on the line or trying to find yet another way to re-purpose a glass jar. It seemed that [...]
We often think of hobbies as expensive, and some are. If you want to raise horses, collect antique cars, take up drag racing, or own your own plane to indulge your passion for flying, you’re going to pay a lot of money. However, there are plenty of hobbies available that are free or inexpensive. With [...]
You are using far too much of far too many things and you probably don’t even realize it. Most of it is simply out of habit although a good portion of it has it’s roots in commercials. No matter what the cause, becoming aware that you may be needlessly wasting money by using too much [...]
As a kid you probably grew up hearing Aesop’s Fables. These little stories all have a moral designed to teach kids (and adults) to live better lives and to be better people. Many of these stories deal indirectly with financial topics. As an adult it’s fun to go back and re-read some of these tales. [...]
One of the things that makes getting ones finances in order difficult is the assumption that pleasure costs money. The truth is that it really doesn’t have to. The more that you enjoy the simple pleasures in life that don’t cost anything, the easier it is to get yourself out of the consumer mindset that [...]
I used to have a bad TV habit. A really bad TV habit. There were the daily prime-time shows during the week that I began watching as soon as I got home, and then sports the entire weekend. It never occurred to me that there could be a life without TV. It was just the [...]
If you do much shopping, banking, and investing online, then no doubt you are drowning in a sea of passwords. That doesn’t even include the passwords you have to remember for your network, your router, and all the other technological solutions you use. While most sites and devices will help you recover a password or [...]
I must admit that I wish I had more artistic talent. When there is an art piece that catches my eye, I can stare at it for hours wondering how the artist was able to visualize the final piece from the raw materials she decided to use. I also must admit that I have a [...]
