by Mike on February 8, 2010
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A few weeks back I read Frugal Dad’s post about his quest to start walking 10,000 steps a day. He had purchased a pedometer and started tracking how many steps he was taking and worked out an exercise walking plan to reach his goal.
That post inspired me to pick up a $5 pedometer at Target and start tracking my own steps each day. Well after using it for about 2 weeks (less really since I keep forgetting to put it on in the morning) I’m only averaging about 4,000 steps each day.
I gotta say I’m shocked how low that number is. Even though I spend much of my day sitting at a desk I still assumed I was walking double that or 8,000 steps a day. But I may be thinking back to when I was working part time in a retail store and I was on my feet non-stop for 5 hours a night…walking from one end of the store to another, stocking shelves, climbing ladders, etc. I used to go through sneakers like crazy.
But since I quit the part time job I’m moving a lot less and it shows. I’ve put on a couple pounds since quitting and now I see why. I need to start moving more and getting regular exercise walking certainly helps.
So now that I have a baseline to go by I’m going to start following Frugal Dad’s tips for adding extra steps into my day. I already follow some of them…I’ve never been one to drive around parking lots trying to find a closer spot, and pacing around while trying to get the baby to fall asleep could add a few hundred steps with ease.
I’ll report back in a couple of weeks to let you know how my exercise walking program is going. Hopefully by then I’ll be breaking the 10,000 step barrier!
by Mike on February 5, 2010
Okay, I admit it…I’m a bit of a Star Wars nerd. I used to beg my dad non-stop for the newest Obi-Wan or Admiral Ackbar figures. And I completely wore out my VHS tapes of the original trilogy until they were virtually unwatchable (much like any of the prequels when Natalie Portman was not on screen).
So as I sat brainstorming for new ideas to write about, I naturally wondered what the great Lord Vader would do to save some cash.
I mean let’s face it, running a Galactic Empire isn’t cheap. And how embarrassing would it be to call home to Palpatine begging for beer money?
So here you are…Darth Vader’s top 5 tips for saving money:
- Some of your senior officers nearing retirement age? Not a problem. Just use the force to choke them to death before they’re eligible for retirement benefits. Cha-Ching!
- Shields are expensive…way too costly to install on tens of thousands of TIE fighters. Replacing pilots killed in action is much more cost effective. On the other hand, you may want to shell out the cost of shielding exhaust vents on massive, planet-destroying space stations. Especially when they lead directly to the main reactor. I’m just saying.
- Suddenly realize you made a bad deal and want to get out of it? Just say you’re changing the terms of the contract. Then lean in close, and in your most menacing voice say, “Pray I don’t alter them any further.”
- Outsource some of your less desirable jobs to some good old-fashioned bounty hunter scum. You only pay when the job is complete, they’re not entitled to benefits, and they don’t even need a company car. Just don’t complain if Boba Fett gets carried away and incinerates someone you wanted alive.
- No one likes paying for insurance, but it can be a life saver if you suffer a serious financial disaster. Our favorite Sith Lord used the insurance money from the first Death Star to build a bigger and more powerful version.
There were rumors at the time that Vader took out a huge policy on the first Death Star just a week before it was destroyed…by a handful of out-dated and out-gunned fighter ships no less. Pretty convenient how he decided to step outside for a smoke just minutes before the whole thing blew, huh?
by Mike on February 5, 2010
by Mike on February 4, 2010
If you love hamburgers as much as I do then I have a treat for you.
You can get printable Red Robin Coupons delivered right to you email when you sign up for the Red Robin eClub.
It’s free to join and you’ll be glad you did. Red Robin has some of the most delicious gourmet burgers ever. My favorites are the Whisky River BBQ Burger and the Guacamole Bacon Burger.
When you sign up for the eClub here you will get a free coupon right away. Then you’ll receive more Red Robin coupons around your birthday and throughout the year.
Please note this has nothing to do with the phony red robin coupons that have been circulating around the internet (check out Snopes for more details). These are all legitimate coupons directly from Red Robin itself.
by Mike on February 3, 2010
If you’ve got a high definition TV in your home or you’re thinking of upgrading then you know you need some HDMI video cables to take advantage of the high-def signal. But take a walk down the aisles of retailers like Best Buy or Radio Shack and you’ll see sticker prices of $50 to $100+.
Are they kidding? You can buy hdmi cables cheap online through Amazon. In fact when we purchased our new tv I went to Amazon and got these hdmi video cables for about $6 each. I use one to connect the TV to my FIOS box and the other when I want to connect my laptop to the big screen so my kids can watch their favorite music videos like Single Ladies.
The truth is there is no significant difference between a $6 cable and a $50 cable. Both CNET and Popular Mechanics agree that premium hdmi cables are just not worth the cost.
Why are hdmi video cables so expensive??
Because electronics stores think we’re all a bunch of suckers, that’s why.
Retailers mark up hdmi video cables ridiculously high because they know most people won’t know any better. Particularly when the salesman who just sold you the 52 inch flat screen goes on and on about how much better the picture will be if you get the premium cables.
They’re counting on your ignorance to help them make the sale. And hdmi video cables have a huge profit margin which helps the retailer pad their bottom line.
Plus they know you’re dying to go home and check out the picture on your new HDTV and you probably don’t want to wait until cables arrive in the mail.
But you can outsmart shady salesman by ordering you hdmi video cables from Amazon. Isn’t it worth waiting a couple days to save $40 or more?
by Mike on February 1, 2010
When I’m brainstorming for post ideas I often find inspiration in strange places. As I watch the New York Mets baseball team prepare for the 2010 season I realized I could use them as an example. And not in a good way.
I admit it. I’m a Mets fan.
Please don’t beat me up for it. I take enough abuse from all the Yankee fans running around waving their championships in my face.
I was raised a Mets fan and I’m too just loyal to switch now. So instead of looking forward to a 2010 baseball season where my team has a shot to win it all…I’m just hoping they’ll be able to make some moves that bring them closer to respectability in 2011 and beyond.
Let’s take a quick look at the Mets and see what kind of parallels we could draw to your own personal finances.
1. The Mets appear to have no long term plan at all. While the Yankees always seem to have a coherent plan and multiple fallback options, the Mets are a team in utter disarray and no one within the organization seems able to pull them out of it. They simply throw something against the wall and hope for the best.
Do you have a long term plan to meet your financial goals? Wanting to retire early and travel or play golf is a nice goal. But how do you plan to achieve it? What are you doing now to prepare? Or are you just crossing your fingers and hoping the 401k gods are kind?
2. The Mets are too concerned with what others think of them. Sharing the Big Apple with the Yankees has given them an inferiority complex and they worry too much about what the fans and talk radio guys think they should do. They end up making moves for show instead of addressing their real needs.
Case in point…the Jason Bay signing. The Mets signed Bay to a huge free agent contract this summer and I think it was done mostly to show they could get a big name and keep fans in the seats. But I predict Bay will be an expensive failure.
Don’t get me wrong, Bay is a great player and I wish him well. But the Mets play in a pitcher’s ballpark where the impact of Bay’s hitting will be less than it was in Boston. He’s also getting older and the Red Sox were concerned about his knees holding up. And even if Bay does play well…he Mets really need better pitching to compete. Not another bat.
Do you let other people’s opinion’s cloud your judgement? Do you buy things you can’t afford so you can appear to be more successful than you are?
3. The Mets bid against themselves and paid Bay more than necessary even though he had no other concrete offers on the table and didn’t show any interest in playing for the Mets. They misread the market and didn’t do their homework.
Do you pay more because you don’t understand basic economics? Did the car dealer rip you off because you had no idea what a fair price for your new car was?
4. The Mets built an amazing new stadium. Citi Field is absolutely beautiful. But it cost a lot of money and now they don’t seem to have the cash to pay for upgrades to their lineup. And the more they struggle on the field the more empty seats there will be.
Did you buy more house than you can afford? Are you having trouble making your mortgage payment and paying off your other bills too?
5. The Mets blame their 2009 debacle of a season on injuries, but the truth is they weren’t very good even before their players started marching off to the disabled list. Any Mets fan can tell you that Mets management needs to look in the mirror and accept for responsibility for the mess they’ve made. Only then will they be able to move on and rebuild for the future.
Do you blame everyone else for your financial troubles instead of taking responsibility for them? Of course there can be extenuating circumstances (sickness, death, a job layoff) that led to your current situation. But the first step to turning things around is to stop blaming the world and start forming a plan to get back on your feet.
by Mike on January 30, 2010
This blog is only a few months old and yet I’ve already changed themes 3 times. I just couldn’t find one that gave me all of the options I wanted in terms of style, customization, and functionality.
I ‘ve taught myself some basic html coding so I can play around with things a bit but whenever you start delving into source code you run the risk of screwing things up royally. And frankly I’m not good good enough at coding to make a basic theme do everything I want.
So I decided to splurge and download the Thesis theme. I see Thesis all over the place and everyone raves about how easy it is to work with. Plus it’s highly customizable so two blogs using Thesis could actually look nothing alike.
I’ve been playing around with it a bit and I must say that I’m pretty impressed so far. So far I haven’t done much customization at all. What you see is pretty much Thesis right out of the box…but you can expect to see some changes here and there while I play around a bit.
But the best news for both me and you is that I won’t have to waste so much time searching for themes and trying to tweak them to suit my needs. I can actually spend time writing and creating helpful content for you!
Now all I need to do is get a nice logo to make the site really stand out and I’ll be all set.
by Mike on January 29, 2010
Every year, thousands of aspiring writers are fleeced out of their hard-earned money by poetry scams.
The perpetrators of the poetry scam rake in millions of dollars each year by promising fame and fortune to unsuspecting victims. No one knows for sure exactly how much money is involved, but estimates put the figure somewhere between $6 and $10 million every year.
How The Poetry Scam Works
You’ve seen the advertisements for various “poetry contests” hosted by organizations with impressive names that certainly sound legitimate (the names keep changing and there are far too many to list here). You’ll find them in newspapers and magazines, in your mailbox, and even in your email.
The poetry scam ads offer large cash prizes and promises of publication. There’s no entry fee. All you have to do is submit your poem for consideration by a panel of experts.
A few weeks later you receive a letter in the mail congratulating you for achieving “semi-finalist” status. You glow with pride as you say to yourself, “Wow! I must be a better poet than I thought!”
And that’s not all. The letter goes on to say that your poem has been selected to be published in a special anthology of the very best poems submitted. You feel like you’re going to burst with excitement.
And this is where the poetry contest scam really kicks in… [click to continue…]
by Mike on January 29, 2010
by Mike on January 28, 2010
Months ago my town announced they had commissioned a reassessment of all property values within the city limits. Every property in town would be appraised and everyone’s property taxes would be adjusted based on the revised assessment.
The total amount of property taxes collected by the town would stay the same, only our individual shares would be increased or decreased based on our new property values.
Needless to say I was a little nervous when I learned that our property value had increased from $146,000 to $278,000. How much was this gonna cost me!
Well as it turns out I’m actually going to save a few bucks. $961 to be exact!
That’s right, after years of watching my property tax bill shoot up higher and higher I finally get to see a decrease from just under $9000 to just under $8000. That’s still a lot compared to most of the country but in Northen New Jersey it is the going rate for a modest sized home.
