I’m all for saving money, but lately I’ve been focused less on buying the cheapest thing and instead looking at the overall safety and other problems associated with a product. You’ve probably heard about the lead tainted items from China, the BPA found in plastic that can cause hormone disruption, the PFOA found in microwave [...]

When is a deal a good deal? Unless something is absolutely free, we are necessarily paying for it, so how do we decide if something is worth buying? Even if something is absolutely free, there may still be costs associated with transporting it, storing it, using it or disposing of it. The [...]

Over my years of debt free living I’ve learned that procrastination is a huge enemy to staying debt free. We all tend to say, “I can take care of that tomorrow,” and put off things we don’t want to (or can’t) deal with right then. The problem is, the longer you put things off, the [...]

One of the things I’ve learned along my own frugal journey and through helping others with their financial problems is that the reasons behind living frugally/saving money often dictate just how far a person is willing to go in order to cut spending. I’ve learned that in order to have the greatest chance of success, [...]

You may recall that a labradoodle puppy joined my family earlier this year. Adding a dog to our household has brought many changes. Some have cost us money. Some have saved us money. Some just serve to demonstrate that it is easier for us to spoil our dog than it [...]

I love October, as it starts my favorite three months of the year: autumn weather, the beautiful transition from the final days of summer weather to the first days of winter, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas! There is not a better ninety days in the calendar.
Unfortunately, over the past few decades, the consumerism that [...]

Over the years of simplifying my life and spending I’ve rediscovered the joy of doing things manually. Years ago I was hooked on every electronic gadget and power tool. If it plugged in and was convenient, I used it. But I learned that the convenience came with a price tag. Not only were the electronic/plug-in [...]

The only debt we’ve ever incurred was to buy our house. At the time we bought, we just didn’t have a spare $150K lying around so we had to get a mortgage. We knew going in that we didn’t want to be stuck with it for thirty years so we set out to buy a [...]

I have a bad habit of having to complete things. Normally you’d think of this as a virtue. The willingness to see something through to the end is usually considered a good thing. But I’ve learned that my obsession with completion is sometimes costly and often disappointing. Some things are meant to be finished. Others [...]

As I write this, the final days of summer are winding down in the Northern Hemisphere. Autumn is upon us and most of us are looking forward to cooler weather, football and Halloween. It will be December before we know it and Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year’s Eve will occupy our thoughts [...]