The 2009 Entertainment Book – Great Savings on Dining, Shopping, Travel, Attractions, Movie Tickets & More!

I don’t often blog about sales, but this is one I couldn’t let slip by because it is such a good deal. My parents used to buy the Entertainment Book every year when I was a kid living in Hawaii, and I used to love this book. I remember afternoons lying on my stomach on the living room floor browsing this book for coupons for my favorite restaurants and attractions, namely McDonald’s and movie tickets. My bargain hunting days go way back.

Just using a few of the coupons pays back the cost of the book, which is currently on sale at 50% off and shipping is very reasonable at $2.79 per book.

The Entertainment Book, for those who aren’t familiar with it, is a book loaded with coupons for all sorts of local businesses and products in your area. The coupons and deals include savings for every day things as well as special occasions and outings:

• Groceries
• Dry Cleaning
• Auto Care & Repair
• Portrait Studios (JC Penny, Target, etc.)
• Fine Dinging (Ethnic and nice restaurants)
• Casual Dining (Tony Roma’s, IHOP, Pizza, etc.)
• Fast Food (McDonald’s, Subway, Domino’s, Wendy’s, Del Taco, etc.)
• Movie Tickets
• Museums
• Recreation (Golf, Mini Golf, Family Fun Centers, etc.)
• Sporting Events
• Attractions
• Travel (Car Rental, Hotels & Airline)
• and many more.

Entertainment® Book

There are $1000s in local savings in every book. To use your Entertainment Book Discounts, just present your coupon to a participating business. Save up to 50% and get 2-for-1 deals at top restaurants, shops, attractions, sporting events and more.

Membership Card

Every Entertainment Book comes with a complimentary membership card. Simply present your card at select fine dine restaurants, hotels, and car rentals to enjoy even more savings!

Register Your Card and Get Even More Savings Online

In addition to Entertainment Book coupons, you’ll find members-only online deals and exclusive discounts on Entertainment.com. You can also print coupons right from your computer when you want it!

• Print new 50% and 2-for-1 dining discounts – only available online!
• Get Repeat Savings – Find a place you like? Now you can go back to save again & again at select merchants.
• Enjoy $1,000s in travel savings. Hotels, car rentals, airlines & new package deals.
• Get cheap tickets for movies, sporting events, concerts & more.
• Save on restaurant gift cards & certificates for popular restaurants nationwide.
• Shop online & save with hundreds of new offers from top online retailers.
• Find all the savings in your neighborhood with easy searching, maps & directions.
• Save with ServiceMagic! Pre-screened and neighbor-rated home service professionals.

The Entertainment Book is available for almost 200 cities around the U.S. and Canada. Prices and coupons vary a little depending on your locality. A few examples of the current sale prices with a few cities/localities:

If you like going out, shopping, eating out, going to the movies, etc. this book can save you a lot of money. Click here to 50% off the Entertainment Book now. This is a limited time offer, so if you want one, order it now.

Related posts:

• Free and Frugal Things to Do in Los Angeles
• Festival of Frugality #152: Affected by Recession Edition
• Car Trouble: Watch Out for Those Pesky Wabbits
• Slowing Down Makes Sense: Drive Safely, Save More Than Money
• Insurance Matters: The Cost of Complacency

Originally posted 2009-03-04 06:00:03.

Merriam-Webster defines the word “vacation” as “a respite or a time of respite from something”. Well, if that “something” from which one is taking a respite is “peace and quiet” then I would have to agree with the definer. Otherwise, gathering from my 2 recent “vacations” (one to Disneyland, one [working] vacation to Las Vegas from which I have just returned), vacation seems more like a respite from peace and quite to me.

Anyhow, I thought I would put together a pre-vacation checklist to help all you other poor vacationers prepare for your vacations, because if there is one thing I have learned, vacations are costly – and I am not just talking about transportation, lodging and amusements, but all the little everyday necessities – and the only way to travel frugally is to travel prepared. Also, the better prepared you are, the better the time you will have on your vacation; knowing that everything back home is taken care of and that you are prepared for most common travel mishaps will allow you to enjoy yourself to the utmost.

And yes, I am the extremest of Type A personalities, but admit it, sometimes it is handy to have someone who has the bases covered. You’ll certainly be glad to have one of us along when the unexpected happens because we’ve planned and prepared for it (or at least have given some thought to it beforehand so as not to be caught by surprise). This isn’t a list of what to pack (toothbrush, underwear, etc.) but rather more of a pre-departure to-do list to help prepare for your trip. I’m not saying you need to do everything suggested, but hopefully a few items will prove helpful or relevant to your circumstances.

Prevention is the best medicine

Just because you are on vacation, it doesn’t mean everyone else is. This goes for utility companies, burglars and your own plumbing and wiring. When you come home from vacation, you want to make sure you still have an intact home to come home to, and aren’t met with a mountain of additional expenses. Therefore before you leave, you might want to try some of the following:

(These checkboxes are check-able, so feel free to come back and use it.)

Home and Business

Travel Arrangements

Better to be Safe than Sorry

You never know what can happen on the road, and when it comes to health and safety, it is infinitely better to be over-prepared than under-prepared. Therefore,

Well, this may not have covered all the bases, as everyone has different situations, but hopefully this list proved helpful in some ways. Bon Voyage!

If you’re traveling with your pet, check out my next post, Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets,

Related posts:

• Welcome MSN Money Central Smart Spending Readers!
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #4
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets
• Resources

As I mentioned in my previous post, Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklist, it is the preparation that determines how much fun you will have; the better prepared, the more you will be able to enjoy your trip. And again, the way to travel frugally is to travel prepared. So to follow up that post, I wanted to share some tips for helping your entire family enjoy your summer vacation. Most of these suggestions will help save you money by avoiding costly situations such as tips for staying in a hotel with your pet, keeping your dog healthy and safe to prevent costly vet bills (either immediate or future), and also just maintain your pet’s general well-being.

Safe and Smart Pet Travel

• Finding Pet Friendly Lodgings
  Hotels are becoming more and more dog-friendly as businesses realize how many people consider their pets a part of the family and wish to travel with them. Do a search for Pet Friendly Hotels (or Discount Pet Friendly Hotels) to find lodgings at your destination. However, do not rely solely on the word of the pet friendly referral site; even if you will be booking your hotel stay through a referral site such as Expedia, which allows you to search for pet-friendly hotels, always double check the hotel’s pet policy on its official website. Some referral websites contain outdated, incomplete or simply wrong information on hotel pet policies. Some hotels may have accepted pets at one time but no longer, or have pet type, breed or weight restrictions. Sometimes, the easiest thing to do is to just call the hotel and ask.

  When calling a pet-friendly hotel, be sure to:

  • Ask if they accept the type, breed and weight of your pet
  • Ask if there is a non-refundable pet fee (some hotels do not charge a non-refundable pet fee, something called a “cleaning fee”, and others charge as much a $150 per stay)
  • Ask about daily fees – per pet, per stay, etc. (most hotels charge per pet, per day)
  • If you are bringing more than one pet, be sure to check that they allow more than one pet per room
  • Any other pet policies you need to know about

• What to Pack when Traveling with Pets

  • If traveling by car, I highly suggest a doggie seat belt. This is both for your pet’s protection as well as your own protection. In fact, regardless of distance traveled, dogs should always be buckled in. This makes sure they do not disturb or distract the driver in any way, and prevents them from being flung out of the car in the event of an accident. A 30-mph collision with a 30-lb. dog creates a 900 lb. force that can severely or fatally injure both dog and human passengers.
  • To avoid extra hotel cleaning charges, I suggest bringing:
    • An upholstery cleaner
    • Baby wipes to clean your pet’s feet after playing outdoors
    • Paper towels
    • To clean up after any accidents, an pet safe cleaner so that the pet doesn’t get ill from stepping in it and ingesting it by licking its paws
  • Identification and license with your cell phone number printed on the ID in case your pet gets lost. Include emergency contact information for a relative, friend or neighbor who can care for your pet in the event something happens to you.
  • Food and water dish.
  • Dry and not messy food.
  • Non-greasy treats for keeping your dog from being bored and misbehaving. Non-greasy to prevent carsickness and vomiting. We like carrot sticks which are healthy and be be cool and juicy.
  • When packing your own drinks, make sure you bring enough drinking water for your pet. Dogs get very thirsty when riding in cars.
  • Consider a pair of doggie sunglasses to protect from corneal sunburn. Long term exposure to the sun can result in blindness in old age.
  • If your dog is an indoor dog and will be walking outside, consider a pair of doggie boots to prevent injury from hot pavement, broken glass, rough road surfaces and sharp rocks. Dogs who live indoors tend to have softer paw pads that are more sensitive to outdoor surfaces.
  • If staying in a place with hardwood flooring, bring a pair of doggie shoes to prevent damaging wood flooring with nails.
  • If your dog will be staying indoors a lot, you might consider bringing some housebreaking pads (large sizes are available for large dogs) and encourage them to use it if confined indoors for long periods of time.
  • If your dog is used to playing outdoors and doing his business outdoors, look up the locations of a few dog friendly parks in the area before you leave. Some hotels object to letting your dog do his business on hotel property. A dog park might be more amenable to such transactions.

• Pet Health and Safety While Traveling

  • Preventing heat stroke
    Remember that dogs are naturally warmer than we are; even when we are comfortable with temperatures in the 80s, they can be hot, especially if they have longer hair. Heat stroke can cause permanent brain damage, so monitor your dog very carefully. If he is panting, that means he is hot.
    • If driving during summer, freeze a container of drinking water, which will be ice by the time you depart. Bring it in the car and allow your dog an occasional sip as it melts. Don’t let them have too much ice-cold water at one time.
    • 
    • A wet bandanna tied around the neck can help keep cool.
    • Consider a dog cooling jacket as pictured to the right. (Click on the picture to see details.) There are also cooling mats for hot dogs to lie on. These are good for staying at home during warm weather as well.
    • Keep your dog in the shade as much as possible. When parking, look for shady spots.
    • Never leave your dog in the car by itself or with young children. Have at least one older child or an adult remain in the car and keep the air conditioning on.
  • Don’t let your dog ride with his head out the car window. As much as they love it, it is very dangerous. My windshield was recently cracked by a flying pebble while driving 50 mph.
  • Never let your dog off leash unless in an enclosed area intended for dogs, such as a dog park or until inside your lodgings. Leave his collar and ID on even when indoors.
  • Don’t have young children hold the leash. The gentlest dog can get excited or frightened in unfamiliar surroundings. Even small dogs can be very strong when excited, which can be dangerous for both dog and child.
  • Don’t forget prescription medication such as heartworm preventatives. Don’t administer medication early for convenience; pack the necessary dosage and give it when it is due.
  • Don’t change your pet’s diet for the trip. Bring the same foods as he would eat at home. Tip: Pets who subsist on a varied home-cooked diet are less prone to diarrhea with diet changes. For more information, check out our article on Cooking for Your Pet at our Franga Designs website.
  • If you are traveling to an area with pests such as mosquitoes, fleas and ticks and diseases not found in your home area, be sure to prepare for it. Ask your vet for disease prevention advice.

• At the hotel

  Pets get very nervous when away from home. Even if they are normally very calm and friendly at home, this may change when in unfamiliar surroundings.

  • Never leave your pet unattended in the hotel room. Nervousness and stress can cause them to make messes, damage property and make noise that might disturb other guests.
  • Hang the “do not disturb” sign on the door to prevent housekeeping from accidentally letting your pet out and either party from injury.
  • Bring a familiar toy from home, and set out your pets things such as food and water dish.
  • If your dog is crate trained, setting up the crate in the room might make him feel more secure.
  • To reduce barking at sounds of other guests outside your room at night, keep him active during the day so that he sleeps better.
  • Clean up after accidents immediately to prevent stains and odors from soaking in. Use an upholstery cleaner on beds, rugs and chairs. Wipe your pets paws and other dirty parts to prevent soiling the room.

Boarding Your Pet

Traveling with pets is a big responsibility, but when done right, it can be very fun. If you feel like it’s too much work, consider boarding your pet at a reputable boarding facility. When looking for a boarder, don’t choose the least expensive one. Ask your veterinarian, friends and/or relatives for recommendations of reputable boarders with whom they have had good experiences.

A veterinary clinic that offers boarding isn’t necessary the best choice. A facility dedicated for the purpose may be better as the employees’ main focus is taking care of boarded animals, while a veterinary clinic (especially a small one), has ill animals to see to. You don’t want to scrimp when it comes to the health and safety of your pet; you want to make sure that you can enjoy yourself on your vacation without anxiety about your pet. Of course, there will still be some worry, but knowing that he/she is well taken care of will help a great deal.

If you do board your pet, take a few familiar items from home such as a bed and toys to help your pet feel more at home at the boarding facility.

Well, I hope some of these suggestions help you and your pet to have a nice summer vacation. Buon viaggio!

Related posts:

• Welcome MSN Money Central Smart Spending Readers!
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Under the Weather – Recommended Reading
• Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklist
• Booking Flights Early Could End Up Costing More

Originally posted 2008-06-02 12:29:17.

All activities listed below are FREE of admission charges unless otherwise noted (some activities are free on particular days or at particular times of day). Those that are not free cost $5 or less per person. Parking fees are noted whenever possible. Depending on the distance and number of persons in your group, public transit may or may not be less expensive. Check out an earlier post I wrote on How to Save Gas and Time by Using Google Maps, which includes tips on looking up public transportation directions and fares.

General & Sight-Seeing

The Grove Fountain Photo credit: r3m3dy

Our favorite frugal activity was walking malls and pretty places to both sight-see and get some exercise. Here are some of our favorite places to walk. Note that even though these include shopping centers, you do not need to shop in order to enjoy the scenery and atmosphere!

• Santa Monica 3rd Street Promenade

  Grab a drink or ice cream cone and just enjoy the scenery and street performers. Check out Santa Monica Pier while you’re there. You don’t have to spend money on the rides, just enjoy the scenery, have a look at the famous carousel built in 1916.

  More information: Santa Monica 3rd Street Promenade

• The Grove

  A very pretty outdoor mall with cute buildings and a park-like setting with fountains and outdoor seating. Includes free events such as Movies in the Park, Girls Night Out, Music in the Park, etc.

  More information: The Grove

• Farmers Market

  

  The Farmers Market isn’t only a place to shop for groceries, but they host free events all year round including a Summer Music Series; Family Fun with music, arts & crafts; Fall Festival with marching band, petting zoo, pig races, etc.; Holiday Festivities including music, Menorah lighting, caroling and a toy soldier band; Mardi Gras with Cajun bands, mask making, etc.; and the Gilmore Heritage Auto Show featuring more than 100 vintage and classic cars. (Photo credit: andy castro)

  More information: Farmers Market Events

• Downtown Burbank

  “Come Out and Dance” with live bands with free dance lessons, fine arts festivals, Halloween trick-or-treat, Holiday Cheer and more in Downtown Burbank.

  More information: Events in Downtown Burbank

Entertainment

• The Hollywood Bowl Museum

  The Hollywood Bowl is the world’s largest natural amphitheater which has hosted symphonies, opera, jazz, ballet, presidential addresses, rock concerts, etc. The grounds are open to the public to during the day to see the amphitheater. During the summer months, the Bowl offers rehearsals every Tuesday, Thursday & Friday, from 9 AM to noon. Admission to the rehearsals is free. The Hollywood Bowl museum is open to the public during the day year-round, and nights before concerts.

  More information: The Hollywood Bowl

• TV Studio Audience

  Attend a TV show or sitcom taping as studio audience. Tickets are free, but you may be there until midnight. A great way to see your favorite stars live and an episode of your favorite show before everybody else.

  More information and tickets: TV Tickets, Audience Unlimited

Universal Studios Hollywood

• Film Screenings

  Before films are released, they are often screened to audiences for input. Los Angeles, being the film capitol of the world, is full of films waiting to be screened. However, this one is more based on opportunity striking, because you often need to be invited. We used to go to the malls a lot, sometimes for shopping and sometimes just to walk, and perhaps 1 out of 4 times, we were approached by people looking for film screening audiences. After the film, you are asked to fill out a questionnaire of what you thought of the movie, and you might be selected to stay behind with a small group to answer questions and provide more feedback.

  More information: Tips for How to Attend a Free Movie Screening

• Universal City Walk Summer Block Party

  Free entertainment and movies at Universal Studios City Walk (no admission fee) seven nights a week during the summer. But to save on parking, you will want to find free or low-cost parking elsewhere and walk up to the City Walk.

  More information: Universal Studios City Walk

• Grand Performances

  Grand Performances presents free performing arts that reflect the best of global culture and inspire community among the diverse peoples of Los Angeles.

  More information: Grand Performances at California Plaza

Outdoor Activities

• Night Hikes at Griffith Park

  The Sierra Club leads free 2-hour hikes open to the public to view nightlife and birds. They encourage you to bring binoculars to better see the wildlife.

  More information: Night Hikes

• L.A. Mountains

  Several parks that have free group hikes through several canyons and ranches. Some have a $1-$5 parking fee, but the hikes are free.

  More information: L.A. Mountains Hikes and Events Calendars

Art & Culture

The Getty Villa

It is recommended that you check with each institution regarding admission and parking fees prior to visiting as the information may change.

• The Getty Center

  “The Getty Center presents the Getty’s collection of Western art from the Middle Ages to the present against a backdrop of dramatic architecture, tranquil gardens, and breathtaking views.” Admission is Free, but parking is $8.

  More information: The Getty Center

• The Getty Villa

  The Getty Villa, located in Malibu, is an educational center and museum dedicated to the study of the arts and cultures of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria.

  More information: The Getty Center

• Skirball Cutural Center

  A great cultural and historical museum which offers free admissions on Thursdays and other free events such as film screenings. We once attended a great exhibit on Albert Einstein here.

  More information: The Skirball Cultural Center

• Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

  The largest arm museum in the western United States. On the second Tuesday of each month, general admission to the permanent galleries and non-ticketed exhibitions is free to all. After 5 pm, you may pay what you wish. Evening special: Vehicles entering the 6th Street parking garage after 7 pm park for free.

  More information: Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

• Los Angeles Public Library

  This is one of our favorite places in the world – a 5-story building full of books. Aside from books, it is also a center of art and architecture with its distinctive sphinxes and rooftop pyramids. Docent guided tours are available daily. Parking is $1 Flat Rate for cars entering after 3PM, and on Saturdays and Sundays.

  More information: Los Angeles Public Library Tours

Educational

• Travel Town Museum

  A combination transportation museum and recreation center located at the L.A. Zoo. Has a miniature train ride tour of the perimeter of the museum for a small fee. Picnic tables and barbecue facilities are available on a first come, first serve basis. Admission is free, parking available on Museum premises.

  More information: Travel Town Museum

• Griffith Observatory

  Located at Griffith Park, Griffith Observatory’s grounds, exhibits, and telescopes are open and free to the public each day the building is open. The Observatory also offers programs, special events, and public star parties.

  More information: Griffith Observatory

Griffith Observatory

• California Science Center

  “The California Science Center offers fun and informative permanent exhibits presented in interactive worlds. Through hands-on experiences in our galleries, you’ll learn about human inventions and innovations, the life processes of living things and more.” Admission to permanent exhibits is free, additional charge for IMAX and special exhbitions. Parking is $6.

  More information: California Science Center

• Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Society – Hollywood Museum 27

  Museuem and exhibit of firefighting history dating back to the 1880s including a library and learning center on fire and life safety for both children and adults.

  More information: LAFD Historical Society

• Barnes and Noble Storytime

  Barnes and Noble bookstore offers storytime for children, toddlers, and beginning readers. This is a nationwide program. Check the events calendar for the schedule of the store closest to you.

  More information: Barnes and Noble Store Events Calendar

• Santa Monica Pier Aquarium

  Exhibits and public programs to educate kids and families about the ocean, its animal and plant life. Children under 12 enter free, adults pay a suggested admission of $5 ($2 minimum).

  More information: Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica Pier Aquarium

Sources for More Free Events and Frugal Activities in the Los Angeles Area

• This week in … Guides to events such as concerts, movies, hikes and other activities in the area (some free, some not)
  
  • Burbank
  • Santa Monica
  • Pacific Palisades
  • Beverly Hills
  • Malibu
  • East San Fernando Valley (Encino, Sherman Oaks, Studio City & surrounding)
  • West San Fernando Valley (Calabasas, Woodland Hills, Tarzana & surrounding)
  • Southern California

• Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation
  Guide of activities, programs and classes offered through the parks and recreations. Some may be free and some for a fee.
• Parents Connect Activity Calendar – Los Angeles
• Eye Spy L.A. Free Things to Do in Los Angeles
  

Related posts:

• Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth) 1 Year Anniversary
• Insurance Matters: The Cost of Complacency
• Save on Groceries, Auto Repair, Movie Tickets, Dining, Travel, Recreation and More with the Entertainment Book: Currently 50% Off
• Festival of Frugality #140: The Frugal Quotes Edition
• Our Financial Lent: Giving up Chocolate and Ice Cream for a Month to Save $14

With numerous “How to Save Gas” tips all over the internet, such as this one on WikiHow: How to Save Money on Gas, I figured I wouldn’t do one here because they can be easily found elsewhere. So this post won’t be about the most common suggestion such as: Unload all unnecessary weight, leave early, drive slower, etc., but rather on how you can use tools provided by Google Maps to save you gas and time.

With gas prices constantly rising and the economy as it is, we can’t go wrong saving even tiny bits of money and gas here and there. Even if we shave off only .1 mile on a daily trip, it will add up to something.

Google Maps has been getting fancier and fancier with satellite images, trip planners with multiple destinations, re-route tools to discover shorter routes and more. Many of you probably already know about this, but it is possible that some do not, so I thought I would do an in-depth guide on how to use Google Maps to help you plan and re-route trips, be they long or short distance.

This is a rather long guide (mostly due to the number of images), so here is a table of contents of the sections contained in this post:

• How Google Maps Can Help You Save Gas and Time
• How to Re-Route Trips on Google Maps
• Driving Directions and Route Options
• Traffic Conditions
• Satellite Image Street Views
• Foreign Travel
• Fun Stuff & Research
  • Photos and Wikipedia
  • What does your house look like from the sky?

How Google Maps Can Help You Save Gas and Time

• Re-routing drives for daily errands, trips to the grocery store, to your kids’ schools, church, the bank, post office or homes of friends and family.
• Planning routes with multiple destinations to consolidate your trips.
• Avoiding left turns, which according to UPS (UPS Delivers Gas Saving Tip), saves gas because it prevents waiting in traffic.
• Satellite images of street views can show you what unfamiliar destinations look like so you can know what to expect, which side of the road your destination is on, which lane you should be driving in and prevent you from wasting time by getting lost.
• Traffic conditions look-up for live traffic or a specific day and time can help you plan your departure time and estimate driving time.

How to Re-Route Trips on Google Maps

The re-route tool can help you save gas by planning the most efficient route for your drive.

1. Enter in your starting and ending locations. You can type an address or the name of the location. It helps to include the city and state.
2. The site will generate a map with a route.
3. To the right is a map with the route marked with a blue line.

   Tips: To shift the map, place the cursor on the map and a hand tool will appear. Simply drag the map to center your area of interest on the screen. You can also click on the small arrow on the bottom right-hand corner of the map. A small square box will pop up showing the current are. Click and drag the blue box to shift the map. If you use your scroll button, the map will zoom in (up) and out (down).

   

4. To the left are driving directions, distance and estimated travel time.
5. Don’t take for granted that the default route shown is the shortest option.
6. Place your cursor somewhere on the route.
7. A small circle will appear under your cursor.

   

8. Click on the circle and drag to another street.

   

9. As you drag the route to different streets, a small text box pops up to show you the driving distance and estimated travel time of this new route.

   

10. Release the cursor and the directions to the left will update with a new route, distance and travel time.

    

11. One-way streets
    When you try to re-route a trip where there are one-way streets, Google Maps will take them into consideration and show the closet alternative. If you insist on driving on a certain one-way street (keep dragging to the same street), it will map out a route for you.
    

Driving Directions and Route Options

1. Method of travel: Driving, public transportation, or walking (Walk when at all possible. This is good for your health and wallet!) For public transit, the directions show the fare compared to the driving cost for the trip. How cool is that?!

   

2. Check the box if you wish to avoid driving on highways.
3. Click on this link if you need reverse directions to get back from Point B to Point A.
4. Click on the camera icon to see a satellite image of that location. Also works if you click the numbered link before each direction.

   

5. Click the plus “+” or minus “-” to show or hide the driving directions.
6. Click on the small blue arrow to expand the map (make it full-screen width) and hide the directions panel on the left. Click again to bring back the directions.
7. Click the “X” to delete the location. Will let you enter a new one.
8. Click the “Edit” link to edit your location.
9. Click to add a destination to your trip.

   Click and drag the new destination to re-order your route.

   

10. Click on the “km” or “miles” links to change to change distance calculations to kilometers or miles.

Traffic Conditions

The Traffic tool can show you live traffic conditions on freeways as well as estimated traffic conditions for specific times on any day of the week (estimated based on past conditions). Simply click on the “Traffic” button and a window will pop up. If the bold text reads “Live traffic” and you wish to see a specified time and day, click on the change link to enter your choice.

Tip: You may need to shift the map to see the highways.

The colored lines on the freeways correspond to the color guide in the Traffic box. A red line means the traffic is between 10 and 25 MPH, a red line means 25 to 45, etc.

Satellite Image Street Views

Click on “Street View” and a little yellow man will appear on the map. Click and drag the little yellow man to a location you would like to view.

Click on the arrows to advance in the specified direction. You can go straight to following the road or make turns to see the surrounding street view.

Tip: If your map does not show the “Street View” button, use this link: Google Maps Street View

Foreign Travel

Google Maps is available for many foreign countries. Below is an example for a trip from Tokyo, Japan to Kochi, Japan. Because Japan is primarily a public transportation/walking country – very few people drive there, but rather take taxis and trains, and Kochi is an island separate from mainland Japan, the trip directions includes directions for walking, bus, train and plane as well as the cost of transportation fares for the trip in the local currency.

Fun Stuff and Research

Photos and Wikipedia

Click on the “More” button for an options to show photos and Wikipedia entries on landmarks and places.

Click on a photo thumbnail for a larger view.

Click on the Wikipedia icon for an excerpt from the Wikipedia entry on the landmark. Includes a link to the full article.

What does your house look like from the sky?

For me, this is mostly a fun thing to find and look at my house and seek how it looks from above, but it could conceivably come in handy too. Wondering if your roof is missing any tiles? Take a look on Google Maps!

Related posts:

• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Google Search
• Our Fourpence Worth has moved. Please update your feed readers.
• Privacy Policy
• Welcome MSN Money Central Smart Spending Readers!

For years, savvy travelers have been booking flights as many as 6 months ahead of time to take advantage of early booking discounts. This year, however, what used to be a smart move could end up costing travelers more money as airlines begin to cut back and cancel flights this fall. According to Airline Cuts Hit Fliers Who Planned Early by Matt Phillips of the Wall Street Journal, many travelers have already been influenced by this situation.

Some of the ways in which these flight cancellations are affecting travelers’ plans and pocketbooks are:

• Disrupting carefully planned schedules and itineraries
• Added hours or days to trips
• Longer hotel stays
• Missed connections (flights, cruises, etc.)
• Required use of more vacation days than planned
• Nonstop flights being broken up (adding layovers)

While the airlines offer to change flights or refund the airfares, they will not cover additional associated expenses.

One example of how some travelers are being affected is a couple planning a wedding and honeymoon this fall. They had booked a flight that arrived in South America in time for them to board a cruise, but their original flight has been canceled, and the flight the airline wanted to put them on arrives a day later – too late for the cruise. The only other option the airline could offer was putting them on a much earlier flight, which disrupts their plans for spending time with family members who are traveling especially to attend their wedding. Not only will the earlier flight cut in on their family time, but it will add several days’ worth of hotel stays while waiting for the cruise’s departure.

Another example is a family planning a trip with small children. To make the trip easier on the young children, the parents had booked a nonstop flight with traveling times suitable for the children. Now their flight has been canceled and the only option the airline can offer is a flight with a connection that arrives late at night, which will be hard on the children.

The airlines say they are doing their best to contact and accommodate all customers being inconvenienced, but many travelers only found out that their flights had been canceled by checking their itineraries online.

If you have booked a flight for after Labor Day 2008

• Go online or call your airline to check your itinerary.
• Don’t wait for the airline to call you. There are a number of reasons they might not call you – a wrong or outdated number or they may have already tried to call once and may not try again, etc. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to work out a solution.

If your flight has been canceled or changed

• Check your contract of carriage for the terms on schedule changes and cancellations. (Don’t expect too much.)
• Contact customer service to ask about your options.
• If they do not offer you a suitable solution, cancel and request a refund.

Remember, they might change your flight for you, but they will not cover added expenses associated with the schedule change, so be sure to go over the rest of your plans for before and after the flight.

Related posts:

• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Don’t Spend that Tax Rebate Just Yet
• Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklist
• Make Your January 1, 2009 Home Mortgage Payment Today to Cut Your 2008 Taxes
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise

Originally posted 2008-07-07 06:30:29.

From Our Fourpence Worth

• Father’s Day
  If you’re still looking for a Father’s Day present, many of our ideas from Frugal but Thoughtful Mother’s Day Gift Suggestions could also apply to fathers and father-figures in your life.
• Tax Rebate
  If you are truly interested in helping the US economy, check out Don’t Spend that Tax Rebate Just Yet for a few suggestions on how to and how not to spend your tax rebate based on an article by Liz Pulliam Weston of MSN Money.
• Motivating Children to Practice Music
  Take advantage of summer vacation to help your kids get ahead on their music practice and get the most out of your music lesson fees with some advice by Madoline, who majored in music and has had experience in teaching children’s piano lessons.
  • Motivating Children to Practice Music: Introduction
  • Part 2: Playing the Piano is a Privilege (Not a Chore)
  • Part 3: Playing Slower for Faster Results
  • Part 4: Divide and Conquer

  (If you like the image to the right, which is an original illustration by my sister Madoline, check out our CafePress store Mozartini for gifts and collectibles featuring this image and other artwork by the same hand.)

• Editor’s Picks
  We’re starting to get the hang of blogging (which was completely new to us when we started this blog in February), and have produced a few Editor’s Picks in recent blog carnivals:
  • The Frugal Literate’s Guide to Affordable Reading
  • Frugal but Thoughtful Mother’s Day Gift Suggestions
  • My Favorite Money and Time Saving Websites
  • Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets
  • Lottery Tickets: Worthy Investment or Waste of Money?
  • Simple Solutions to Staying Out of Debt

News from the Personal Finance Blogosphere

• Personal Finance Buzz
  Check out PF Buzz for lots of great personal finance articles and vote for your favorite ones — hint hint — my profile.
• Finance Fiesta
  Last Thursday (June 5th) saw the first edition of the Finance Fiesta blog carnival hosted at Master Your Card. This week (today), the Fiesta is being hosted at Wide Open Wallet and will be hosted by yours truly next Thursday. If you have a finance or frugality related article, be sure to submit it by Wednesday June 18th 5:00PM EDT to be considered for inclusion in the 3rd Edition of the Finance Fiesta!
• Summer Savings Series
  Money Life Network is running a Summer Savings Series over the course of 3 weeks with tips including but not limited to:
  • Ways to save on travel
  • Frugal activities for the kids
  • Ways to save on your auto expenses
  • Ways to save on groceries
  • How to get motivated to save

  Be sure to also check out my last article Frugal, Fun and Productive Summer Activities for some ideas for keeping cool, busy and fit this summer.

I promise to return soon with more scintillating material. Thanks for reading!

Please consider subscribing to our RSS Feed to keep up with new posts. If you prefer, you can also have new posts delivered directly to your inbox by Subscribing by Email.

Related posts:

• Tips for Staying Healthy This Winter
• Hosting the 3rd Edition of the Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Hosting the 16th Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Does Thinking About Money Make You a Bad Person?
• Closing Your Credit Cards Can Hurt Your FICO Score

Originally posted 2008-06-12 05:48:09.

This week’s edition was particularly challenging for me to put together, because to tell the truth, of all the submissions received only 60% made the final cut. Decisions to include and exclude were based on many factors: readability, presentation, relevance, value of information and more. So, a job well done to those who made this week’s edition.

Today’s theme is the poem “Devote Your Life to Money!” by David Kessel. I hope you find it amusing as I did.

Devote Your Life to Money!

Editor’s Picks

• Blueprint for Financial Prosperity presents How To Include A Baby In Your Financial Plans.
• Brunette on a Budget presents Don’t fall for rebate bait.
• Broke Grad Student presents 10 Stupid Ways College Students Waste Money.
• Master Your Card presents Mega Guide: How to Get Out (and stay out) of Credit Card Debt

Oh, money, the life-giving juice of society!
It brings us its blessings of every variety,
It softens the blows that lifetime delivers,
It favors the brave and it crowns achievers.

Saving Methods

• No Debt Plan presents Sticking Our Toes into the CD Laddering Pool.
• The Smarter Wallet presents Ways To Save on Seasonal Purchases: Time To Shop For Halloween!
• Silicon Valley Blogger presents Upromise Survey: Saving For College, Getting Tougher?

It renders us free from oppression by jerks,
From mockings, and putdowns, and scoldings, and smirks.
It lets us buy tickets and travel away
From where we’re not welcome but are forced to just stay.

Debt and Credit

• Money Blue Book presents What Is My Credit Score and How Is My FICO Calculated?
• LAL presents After Debt?
• Ask Mr. Credit Card presents Will Creating A Repayment Plan With Your Credit Card Company Hurt Your Credit Score?

From creditors’ letters and big ugly urbs,
From all that don’t matter, from stuff that disturbs,
To wide sandy beaches and azure blue waters,
Away from the smoke of ten million motors.

Careers

• The Shark Investor presents The Alternatives Of 9 To 5.
• Your Finish Rich Plan presents What To Do If You Think You Can Lose Your Job.

With money it all starts to fall into place-
No longer respect is what you have to chase.
It follows you like an afternoon shadow
Thank money, it makes you a prince from a padow.

Consumerism

• Can I Get Rich on a Salary presents Man Bites Dog — Beats Airline in Dispute Over Canceled Flight!
• Personal Finance Analyst presents Expedia Coupons & Travel Deals.

With money, all people will treat you much better,
As you are no longer society’s debtor.
Sweet smiles on you they will now bestow,
Obsequious looks in their eyes then will glow.

Economics

• The Sun’s Financial Diary presents A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words.
• The Iconoclast Investor presents Fannie, Freddie and America’s Debt.
• Mr. Tough Money Love presents Spenders Get the Gold Mine, Savers Got the Shaft.

And women forgetting your age and your weight,
Your looks and your height and your bald, shining pate,
Will wink and remark how handsome you are
For, in their minds, you are now a star.

Investing

• Sam presents Choosing a Stockbroker.
• Small Business Blog presents Real Estate Investing Startpoints: Negotiation, Legality, and Referrals.
• Green Technology Investor presents Hot Rock – Steady Progress Towards a New Source of Renewable Energy.

Oh, how pathetic society is!
A “Miss” is now where there used to be “Ms.”
For quickly they learned that you’ve got all this dough,
And then they appear from above and below.

Other

• Budgets are Sexy presents Is it bad that i haven’t donated any money in like 5 months?
• The Part-Time Life presents Financial Fitness Group.
• Geezeo presents Money Matters Key to Wedded Bliss? 5 Tips for Happily Ever After.

As long as you’re here on our green Earth,
And want to be living in freedom and mirth,
Devote your existence to dollar and pound
For cash makes the world go smoothly around.

This concludes the 16th Edition of the Finance Fiesta. Next week’s edition will be hosted by Mighty Bargain Hunter. Visit the Finance Fiesta website for submission guidelines.

Technorati tags: finance fiesta, blog carnival

Related posts:

• Hosting the 3rd Edition of the Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Hosting the 16th Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #8
• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals

While browsing the WiseBread Forums today, I came across an interesting thread in which a member asks: Is “Simple Living” Just Another Term for “Giving Up”?

Several members responded with various opinions:

• There is a difference between simple living and forced poverty.
• Not everyone enjoys the rat race.
• It’s a choice.
• It’s a form of retirement.
• Some live the frugal life because they have no other choice.
• Frugal does not mean “easy,” but instead takes work and ambition.
• It’s the means to an end.

I thought I’d add my own opinion to this and go more into why we live the way we do – sort of a continuation/elaboration on Our Family Financial History which tells how we came to be where we are today. The answer to this question, as evidenced above, is different for everyone depending on your station in life – age, personal goals and lifestyle preferences.

For us, the last answer, “It’s the means to an end,” is closest to our view of “simple living” or “frugal living.” For me, simple living is not just another terms for “giving up.” I like to think of it as “saving up” and making it possible to “live it up” in future years.

Though, I think this has much to do with where we are agewise in our lives. Madoline and I are in our late twenties and we have many years ahead of us. But for someone at midlife, retirement or late-life, it would probably be different.

Our Reasons for Frugal Living are:

• To pay off our house as soon as possible
• To save up to attend graduate school
• To save up for a replacement car when the time comes
• To make sure we and our pets have enough (or more) to live on in later life
• To be able to live as comfortably and healthily as possible in later life
• To be able to help extended family who may need assistance
• To be able to travel and see the all the places we’ve been wanting to see
• To own a small farm on which to keep horses, sheep and dogs
• To be free of debt and worry
• To be able to have the things we want be they large or small
• To be able to pay our taxes – sad, but true

Frugal Living as a Choice

At this time in our lives, we cannot really afford to not live frugally. Our business is still in its development stages, and we are still considering other career paths. Because we prefer to avoid debt and our business is small, we have been using our cash to invest in sewing machines and materials for the business.

So for us, frugal or simple living is a choice because our present lifestyle is also a choice. At this time, we’d like to have a shot at making our business work because we prefer to work for ourselves and be able to work from home so we can be with our dogs who are our closest family. This is the reason we bought our house where the closest city is 40 miles away. We could move to a large city and get full-time jobs if we really wanted or needed to, but for now, we want to try to make our business work.

Frugal Living as a Means to an End

One of the ways in which we hope to make our fortunes is by investing. This also requires some capital other than regular savings and and emergency fund. So that is another reason we live frugally – to save as much money as possible to invest.

How about you? Do you live frugally? If yes, what are your reasons? And if no, why not?

Related posts:

• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Pecuniary Links ~ August 2009 #1
• Short Term vs. Long Term Savings with Bulk Buying
• Resisting the Urge to Splurge
• No-Air Conditioning Summer Part 2 – How We Stayed Cool Without A/C

In every online discussion I have seen about credit cards, there are always at least a few contributors whose only comments are “Credit cards are evil” or “No credit card is best”, etc. This post is mostly for those people.

For several years, we also believed that credit cards were bad, having been thus informed by our stepfather, a compulsive spender who is constantly in debt. But over the past few years, we have learned that credit cards are actually a good thing and provide many benefits and advantages:

• Building Credit History
  If you plan on buying a car or house in future, chances are that you will need a loan, and if you have no credit history, it can be difficult to get a good interest rate on a loan. Interest rates make a huge difference in the amount you end up paying or saving. Credit cards, if used responsibly, are a good and easy way to build a good credit history, which can ultimately save you thousands of dollars.

• Tracking spending
  Credit card statements provide an good way to track and analyze your spending habits. By charging all your purchases, you will have a printed statement of where every dollar has gone, a useful too for budgeting.

• Safer than carrying cash
  If you carry a lot of cash and lose your wallet, you can usually assume that money gone forever. If you mostly use your credit card and carry very little cash though, all you have to do is call the credit card company as soon as you discover the loss and you won’t be liable for any unauthorized charges to the card.

• Backup for emergencies
  Credit cards can be a backup source of funds for emergencies when you don’t have cash on hand. Though these should be true emergencies and not things like “fashion emergencies”.

And best of all, the reason we use our credit cards whenever and wherever we can:

• Credit cards can earn you money
  Credit cards can “make” you money in 2 ways:
  • There are many cards out there that earn you cash back or rewards. Some earn you as much as 5% cash back on grocery, drugstore and gas purchases. If you get a card with no annual fee (there are many out there), use it responsibly for regular purchases (not cash advances), and pay your balance in full every month, you can earn money without paying a cent to the credit card company. We have an American Express Blue Cash Credit Card that earned us over $300 cash back last year.
  • In addition to the cash back, credit cards also earn you money by allowing you keep your money in the bank longer. Depending on your billing cycle, you can charge your purchases and bills to a credit card and your money can sit in the bank earning interest for up to 6 more weeks. For example, our propane bill was due on January 30, 2008. Our credit card billing cycle ends on the 28th of each month. If we charge our bill to our credit card on the Jan. 30, 2008, it goes on the new billing cycle which ends on February 28, 2008, and the due date for that billing cycle is in mid-March 2008. So the money for that propane bill that was due and paid on Jan. 30, 2008 won’t actually leave our bank account until 6 weeks later. That’s 6 extra weeks of interest on money that would have left your account immediately had you paid by cash or check.

These are just a few basic reasons we use and approve of credit cards. However, if you know that you won’t be able to control your spending, then perhaps it is better to not go this route. If you need advice on applying for credit cards, visit your bank or credit union and someone can usually recommend a good card for you and help you with the application.

Continue reading for tips on choosing the right card and a few tips for safe and responsible credit card use.

Choosing the right card for you

If you have no or very little credit history, a low income, or a blemish on your credit record, it is possible that you won’t be approved when applying for a credit card. If this is the case, don’t keep attempting to apply for different cards as each denied application will hurt your credit rating and lessen your chances of being approved. Instead, go to your bank or credit union where you have an account and ask to speak to someone who can help you with selecting and applying for a credit card.

You may have to start out with a secured account with a deposit held as collateral and a low credit limit. After a while, perhaps a year, if you have responsibly paid your balances on time each month, your bank will probably upgrade you to an unsecured card with higher credit limit. Make sure you read the terms and conditions of your new card when this happens and check for changes in rates and fees, including annual fees. When Bank of America offered my sister an unsecured card a year after she got her secured card, the card came with an annual fee. There are many cards out there that don’t have annual fees, so why settle for one with an annual fee if you can save that $30 or $100 a year?

Today, there are credit cards for all sorts of people with all sorts of interests and lifestyle. If you travel a lot, you’d be interested in cards that offer travel benefits and discounts and rewards for flights, hotel stays and car rentals. For families and households, cards that offer cash back for household purchases such as utilities, gas, grocery and drugstores can save you a lot of money.

Tips for safe and responsible credit card use

• Never spend money you don’t have. Just because you have a $5,000 credit limit doesn’t mean that you have to use it all. In fact, for best credit practices, try not go over 1/3 of your total credit. Therefore, if you have a $5,000 limit, you should try to keep the balance below $1,600.
• Always pay on time and in full, not just the minimum payment due. If your credit card company has automatic scheduled payments, it may be a good idea to use it. Just make sure your bank account has sufficient funds on the due date.
• If you’re concerned about security and unauthorized charges, sign up for online banking and check your online statement every so often for suspicious activity. (We’ve never had any problems. There was only one incident when someone made a suspicious charge on my card and my bank caught it and contacted me to check if I had authorized it, which I didn’t, so they immediately canceled my card and sent me a new one.)
• Don’t leave your wallet, cards or card information lying around.
• Never send credit card information over email, instant messengers, etc.
• When using a credit (or debit) card online, make sure the site is SSL protected. You can tell by the little lock icon in the browser window – usually around the bottom right-hand corner.

Related posts:

• Pay Bills Online and Save
• Credits Cards Really Aren’t So Bad (Re-Post)
• Closing Your Credit Cards Can Hurt Your FICO Score
• Why I Will Not Change My Mindset, Plus the Difference Between Justifying and Being Optimistic About Spending
• Pay Bills Online and Save (Re-Post)

I will be the first to admit that I LOVE television and movies. I have been an avid TV-watcher since I was a kid. To this day, I can still remember the schedule for my favorite show, a cartoon called Doraemon, when I was 6 years old and living in Japan – Friday nights at 7:00 on Channel 10. Despite being a pretty intelligent kid — I read a lot and got good grades — I loved television. Some of my favorite shows as a kid (now living in the States) were Flipper, Lassie, Saved By the Bell, Full House, Growing Pains, I Love Lucy, etc.

I haven’t changed a bit as far as this area of my personality is concerned (as a matter of fact, I have passed my love for video entertainment on to my dog), but can proudly say that I have survived since 2001 without cable. For some reason, our TV doesn’t work without paying for cable. We don’t get any local channels and antennae don’t work — don’t ask me why. But for almost 8 years, my appetite for video entertainment has been sated solely by DVDs. Luckily, I am one of those people who can watch the same movie over and over (even more than once in the same day) and still enjoy it, so we haven’t gone broke feeding my addiction.

Then last year, I learned about this marvelous site called Hulu, a network approved video hosting site for watching free TV shows and movies online, and I have to say, life has vastly improved — not that I wasn’t happy before, I’m just even happier. I was now able to watch shows that I’d only vaguely heard or read about such as House, and have discovered an array of new shows that I had never even heard of that have come on air since 2001.

Free and Legal Online Videos

Since then, I have learned a lot about where, when and how to watch TV shows online and thought I’d put together a list/guide of websites for those of you who are considering cutting off cable, because you can live without cable these days and still be able to watch all your favorite television shows and keep up with local, national and international news.

Pros of Online Video Viewing

• You can watch what you want when you want
  • New episodes are usually available for about a month
  • Some canceled shows make 1 or 2 seasons available for free online viewing
• You can catch up on episodes you missed from current and past seasons
• Commercial breaks are shorter than on television — most are 15 or 30 seconds
• You can pause, rewind or fast forward during play so you can visit the facilities or fetch more popcorn
• You can watch your favorite episodes again and again as long as it’s still online
• Most sites have a notification system where you can have alerts sent to your email when new episodes of your favorite shows are posted
• It’s free!

Cons of Online Video Viewing

I haven’t really come across any except that my computer screen isn’t as big as our TV. But you might be able to circumvent that by connecting your computer to your TV if you are technologically savvy.

Some shows don’t release new episodes until 8 days after the original TV broadcast, but you still get one new episode a week, just one week behind the TV watchers. But as long as you have a decent internet connection, you shouldn’t have many problems.

Websites for Watching Free TV Episodes and Movies

There are a couple of different types of websites that offer free video viewing. One is the Network sites, the official homepages of the television studios or channels. These sites have official pages for each of their shows with information and interactive material such as photo galleries, games and forums for their fans. The other is the online video service sites which host video content from various networks.

The official network sites seem to offer more HD videos (see Technical Requirements below) than the online video services, which mostly offer Standard-Res or HQ (360p or 480p) videos.

Online Video Service Sites

These sites have current and new episodes as well as offer more back episodes of previous seasons and canceled shows than the network sites do.

• Hulu
  • Hosts videos from over 100 content providers including FOX, NBC Universal, MGM, Sony Pictures Television, Warner Bros. and more.
  • Offers free full movies, full episodes, clips from films and TV shows, news, talk shows, and more.
  • Includes past episodes and seasons not available on the network sites.
  • Past seasons of current, older and canceled shows include: Arrested Development, New Amsterdam, The Journeyman, The Riches, Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, The O.C., One Tree Hill
  • My favorite shows on Hulu: House, Bones, Crusoe, Burn Notice, Battlestar Galactica, Life, Monk, Psych, The Office, 24
• TV.com
  • Many of the videos on this site are streamed from Hulu, but it also offers videos from CBS which aren’t available on Hulu.
  • The CBS site is sometimes a little slow, so I watch CBS shows here.
  • Offers quite a few shows in HD quality video.
  • What I watch on TV.com: NCIS
• Fancast
  • This site also streams a lot of videos from Hulu, but also has episodes not available on Hulu. For example, it has the pilot episode of Psych which isn’t on Hulu.
  • What I watch on Fancast: Friends
• Joost
  • Originally a download desktop player service, Joost recently launched an online viewing service; however I find the search function could be improved.
  • Content from from CBS, Showtime, HBO, TheWB.
• Sling
  • Still in beta, this site streams videos from Hulu as well as CBS and others.
• TidalTV
  • Still in beta, this site offers a large selection of TV channels including Animal Planet, National Geographic, Wall Street Journal, The Travel Channel,  and lots more.
  • Selection is vast, but video quality isn’t quite as high as other sites.

Official TV Network/Channel Sites

Entertainment

• FOX
  • Home of 24, Bones, House, Fringe
  • Offers HD quality video
• NBC
  • Home of The Office, Crusoe,  Life, My Own Worst Enemy, 30 Rock, Heroes and many more
  • Offers HD quality video
• USA
  • Home of Burn Notice, Monk, Psych and The Starter Wife
• CBS
  • Home of NCIS, CSI, Numb3rs, How I Met Your Mother
  • Offers HD quality video
• ABC
  • Home of Desperate Housewives, Lost (which I saw for the first time last night), Pushing Daisies, Grey’s Anatomy (which I’ve not yet seen but seems popular)
  • Offers HD quality video
• Sci Fi
  • Home of Battlestar Galactica, Eureka, Sanctuary
  • Includes enhanced episodes with commentary by the film makers
• FX
  • Home of Damages, Nip/Tuck (which I’ve not seen)
• TheWB
  • Show include Chuck, One Tree Hill, The O.C., Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Smallville, Gilmore Girls, Firefly and many more
  • I’ve watched 1st season episodes of Chuck here, which aren’t available on Hulu or other sites.
  • Still in beta
  • Has more commercials than the other sites
  • Cycles through seasons of shows so you can watch them in order
• The CW Network
  • A joint venture between Warner Bros. Entertainment and CBS with a target audience of women between age 18-34
  • Shows include 90210, Privileged, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, Superatural, Smallville and more
• ABC Family
  • Shows include 7th Heaven, Greek, Gilmore Girls and more
  • Also has a couple of full length movies
• TV Land
  • Classic TV such as The Andy Griffiths Show, The Beverly Hilbillies, etc.
  • This site seems to rotate available shows and episodes and advises bookmarking the above page and checking back frequently to see what’s on.

Educational

Shows and video clips on all things educational – history, animals, environment, science and more.

• The History Channel
  • A vast collection of full episodes and video clips on an array of historical subjects including American History, Military History, famous speeches
  • Shows include Ancient Discoveries, Cities of the Underworld, Moster Quest and more
• National Geographic
  • Videos on a variety of subjects: Animals, Environment, Science & Space, Travel & Culture, Specials and News
  • My dog especially enjoyed the clip on Arctic Hares
• The Discovery Channel
  • Full episodes of 2 shows and clips from scores of others on a variety of topics including animals, current events, environment, archaeology, technology and more
• Animal Planet
  • Full episodes of shows including Untamed and Uncut, Pet Planet and Living with the Wolfman
  • Scores of other videos on all things animal-related: wild and domestics, informational and political
• PBS
  • Current events, history, arts, cooking and more
  • Includes shows such as Frontline, NOVA, NerdTV, WIRED Science, Julia Child and more
• HGTV
  • Home and garden channel with shows on home decorating, improvement, buying and selling
• The Food Network
  • Including shows such as 30 Minute Meals, Ace of Cakes and more

News

Local, National and International News, Politics, Economy, Personal Finance, Technology, and more

• CNN
• MSNBC
• BBC
• C-SPAN
• Wall Street Journal

Technical Requirements

Video Quality

You need a decent internet connection (preferably DSL or Cable and faster). There are various video quality levels available and you have an option depending on your internet connection.

• Standard Resolution: 360p — 1,000Kbps or higher
• Hi-Res/High Quality (HQ): 480p — 1,500Kbps or higher
• High Definition (HD): 720p — 3,500Kbps or higher

Computer Requirements

• Internet Explorer 6.0 or above, Firefox 1.5 or above, or Safari 2.0 or above
• JavaScript and Cookies must also be enabled
• Adobe Flash Player 9.0 or above
• Microsoft Windows XP SP2, Microsoft Windows Vista, Macintosh OS X, or Linux

Related posts:

• Wall Street Journal Giveaway Winner and Carnivals of the Week
• Friday Fun: Meme Me! 7 Things You Didn’t Know About Me (Penelope Pince)
• My Favorite Money and Time Saving Websites
• Feeling Sorry for the Little Guy in the Battle Between Brick-and-Mortar and Online Shopping
• Watch “Sandra’s Money Saving Meals” and “The Dave Ramsey Show” Videos Free on Hulu

Originally posted 2009-01-26 06:00:33.

Whenever I make my 15-mile drive to the grocery store, even traveling at the posted speed limit of 55 mph, I am constantly being passed (via the oncoming lane), or tailgated until the highway splits to 2 lanes after 10 miles. While I understand the concept that “time is money,” this behavior just doesn’t make sense to me.

I admit to a somewhat wreckless time in my youth when the speed limit seemed like a nuisance that kept me from getting where I wanted to go as quickly as I wanted to go. But some time in my mid-twenties, I began to see how stupid I used to be and shudder at the chances I used to take.

Financial Reasons to Slow Down

• Save Gas
  According to the California Energy Commission, “Vehicles lose roughly one percent in fuel economy for every mile per hour driven above 55 mph.”
• Speeding Tickets
  In my aforementioned wreckless youth, I have been the recipient of 2 speeding tickets. My first (1999), for going 50 mph in a 35 mph zone, cost me $67. My second (2002), for going 30 in a 25 zone, was around $70. I don’t know how much speeding fines are these days, but I know they cost a lot more.
• Auto Insurance Rates
  Traffic violations and accidents, even if you’re not at fault, will raise your auto insurance premiums.
• Risk of Accidents
  Even if you’re insured, an accident will most likely cost you money in the form of repairs and deductibles. If you injure someone or damage someone’s property, it could potentially cost you a fortune in legal and liability costs.
• Auto Maintenance
  The less wear-and-tear you put on your car, the longer it’ll last and the fewer repairs it’ll need.

Health Reasons to Slow Down

• Reduce Chances of Serious and Permanent Injury
  Is the risk of an injury that will impact many years – if not the rest – of your life worth getting wherever you’re going 5 minutes faster?
• Reduce Stress
  Driving at high speeds is stressful. Whenever I drive at speeds over 55 or 60 mph – even when within the speed limit – I find my body tension level significantly increased. My back and legs are often sore when I arrive at my destination. We already have enough stress in our daily lives, why add more?

Moral Reasons to Slow Down

• Injury to Others
  This includes other motorists, pedestrians, children and pets. Injuring, or worse, accidentally killing, someone or someone’s pet would affect more than your own life.
• Your Loved Ones
  What would happen to your loved ones – children, spouse, parents and others who care about and depend on you – if you were seriously injured or killed in an accident?

Maybe because I drive very little these days – a few times a month to run errands – I am more conscious of the dangers of driving. Every time I leave my house, I am acutely aware of the fact that anything can happen. I don’t have human children, but I have a dog that I care about more than anything, and I remind myself that getting to the store 5 minutes faster is not worth the risk of my not being here to take care of him.

I know we live in a busy age where everyone has 30 hours’ worth of things to get done within a 24-hour day. But is it really worth it to jeopardize our safety, risk accidents, fines and more to get there faster? Try to leave earlier. If you can’t get everywhere you need to without speeding, then maybe you need make some changes. Easier said than done, I know, especially if it’s work related, but speed limits are there for a reason.

When I was younger, I used feel like I was being rude if I was holding people up, even if I was already going over the speed limit. But, not anymore. I drive the posted speed limit not only because it’s the law, but because it’s the smart and responsible thing to do. I will not be made to feel guilty or like a “prude” for driving the speed limit. I won’t increase my risks just so others behind me can satisfy their need for speed.

Recommended Reading

• Yahoo Finance: Slow Down a Little, Save a Lot of Gas
• California Energy Commission: Slow It Down to Save Gas and Money

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #19
• Economical Pet and Child Safe Ways to Repel and Kill Ants, Spiders and Other Insects
• When “Free” Things Aren’t Free: Beware the Hidden and Indirect Costs
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #6
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #15

I know there are a lot of good ID theft prevention tips out there, but these are a good supplement for what information is out there and give good advice on what to do should you find your wallet missing or stolen.

The email didn’t include the original author name, but as he encouraged his recipients to pass it on, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind my sharing it with you here.

A corporate attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company:

• Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put ‘PHOTO ID REQUIRED.’
• When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the ‘For’ line.  Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won’t have access to it.
• Put your work phone number on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address.
• Never have your Social Security Number printed on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary.   But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.
• Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license,  credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place.

I also carry a photocopy of my passport when I travel either here or abroad. We’ve all heard horror stories about fraud that’s committed on us in stealing a name, address, Social Security number, credit cards.

Unfortunately,  I, an attorney, have firsthand knowledge because my wallet was stolen last month. Within a week, the thieve(s) ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information online, and more.

But here’s some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know:

• We have all been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately.  But the key is having the toll- free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call.  Keep those where you can find them.
• File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).
• But here’s what is perhaps most important of all – I  never even thought to do this: Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and also call the Social Security fraud line number.  I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

By the time I was advised to do this, almost two weeks after the theft, all the damage had been done. There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves’ purchases, none of which I knew about before placing the alert.

Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend (someone turned it in).  It seems to have stopped them dead in their tracks.

Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your let, if it has been stolen:

• Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
• Experian: (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742
• TransUnion: 1-800-680 7289
• Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-027

We pass along jokes on the Internet; we pass along just about everything. If you are willing to pass this information along, it could really help someone that you care about.

Related posts:

• March 1st-7th is National Consumer Protection Week!
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Consumer Safety Resources from the Government on SPAM, Scams, Fraud, Phishing and Identity Theft
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #6
• Credits Cards Really Aren’t So Bad

Welcome to the 188th Carnival of Personal Finance! Our theme for this week’s edition is Jane Austen, as I am a admirer of both her novels and the films based on her novels, which are graced throughout with witty commentary on society — and in particular, money and marriage.

If this is your first time here, please take a look around and consider subscribing to our feed to have new money saving tips delivered to your feed reader of choice or your email inbox. We are also currently holding our first ever giveaway for a free 6-month print subscription to the Wall Street Journal. Please be sure to stop by the contest page and see how you can enter to win.

Single women have a dreadful propensity for being poor – which is one very strong argument in favour of matrimony.

Jane Austen, Letter to Fanny Knight, 13 March 1817 Photo: Anne Hathaway as Jane Austen, Becoming Jane (2007), Miramax

~ Editor’s Picks ~

• Coffee For One presents Paying the Bills
• FruGal presents Joining the gym? Read this first
• Sound Money Matters presents That Makes Me Stabby: Do We Have an Obligation to Spend?
• Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck presents Lessons from Flight 1549
• Free From Broke presents Just Enough Is Not Good Enough
• Pimp Your Finances presents 10 Financial Commandments for Your 20s
• Money Ning presents 50 Ways to Budget Travel and Save Money on Vacations

If the loss of what is most valued is so easily to be made up by something else, your resolution, your self-command, are, perhaps, a little less to be wondered at.

Marianne Dashwood, Sense and Sensibility Photo: Kate Winslet & Emma Thompson, Sense & Sensibility, Sony Pictures

~ New Year’s Resolutions ~

• The Passive Dad presents My Latte Factor In 2008. Automatic Millionaire Goals for 2009
• Destroy Debt presents Did You Give Up On Your New Year’s Resolution Already?
• My Money and My Life presents New year, new goals
• Think Your Way To Wealth presents Tips for Making Your Personal Finance Resolutions Stick- Turn Your Resolutions into Habits

Imprudence or thoughtlessness in money matters would be unpardonable in me.

Jane Bennet, Pride and Prejudice Photo: Rosamund Pike as Jane, Pride & Prejudice (2005), Working Title

~ Frugality ~

• Passive Family Income presents Live Frugal – But in moderation
• Living The Frugal Life presents What Would You Do If You Lost Your Job Today?
• The Paycheck Chronicles presents Space Heaters or Turn Up the Thermostat?
• Getting Rich in Grad School presents 5 reasons why the best financial advice is always free
• The Smarter Wallet presents Buying A Computer? Check Our Computer Shopping Tips First

People always live for ever when there is an annuity to be paid them…. An annuity is a very serious business; it comes over and over every year, and there is no getting rid of it.

Fanny Dashwood (in regards to Mrs Dashwood), Sense and Sensibility Photo: Janet McTeer as Mrs. Dashwood, Sense & Sensibility (2008), BBC Warner

~ Budgeting ~

• Monogamoney presents What’s in my pantry
• Yielding Wealth presents Do You Need a Gatekeeper for Your Personal Finances?
• InsureBlog presents Wallet Biopsy
• About Financial Software Blog presents 8 Tips for Choosing Budgeting Software

And we mean to treat you all, but you must lend us the money, for we have just spent ours at the shop out there.

Lydia Bennet, Pride and Prejudice Photo: Brenda Blethyn, Jena Malone & Carey Mulligan, Pride & Prejudice (2005), Working Title

~ Consumerism & Spending ~

• Not Made of Money presents How Has the Current Economy Changed Your Wants and Needs?
• Budgets are Sexy presents My tipping rule: Everyone gets 20%! Nice and easy…
• Second Child, Last Born presents What Type of Saver/Spender Am I?
• Making My Own Payday presents The Not So Perfect Gift (Card)

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

Pride and Prejudice Photo: Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy, Pride and Prejudice (1996), BBC/A&E

~ Money Management ~

• FIRE Finance presents Advantages of Online Banking
• Dawn’s Evolution presents 6 lessons in personal finance from my mother
• Prime Time Money presents How to Care {Not Worry} About Your Finances
• The Strump – Financial Blog presents How Detailed Should Your Financial Plan Be
• The Sun’s Financial Diary presents Where Did Our Money Go?
• Your Money Relationship presents Do You Still Balance Your Checkbook? I Sure Don’t!

A single woman, with a very narrow income, must be a ridiculous, disagreeable, old maid! the proper sport of boys and girls; but a single woman, of good fortune, is always respectable, and may be as sensbile and pleasant as anybody else….for a very narrow income has a tendency to contract the mind, and sour the temper.

Emma, Emma Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma, Emma (1996), Miramax

~ Debt ~

• Managing Money God’s Way presents Debt? What debt?
• Shrinkage is Good presents 5 Steps to Combat Holiday Debts and Ward Off Future Relapses
• Personal Finance Ology presents Understanding Good Debt Vs. Bad Debt
• American Consumer News presents Playing the Credit Card Balance Transfer Game
• Done To Zen presents Credit Cards Suck
• Secrets For Money presents How To Shop For A Legitimate Non Profit Credit Counseling Service

A large income is the best recipe for happiness I ever heard of. It certainly may secure all the myrtle and turkey part of it.

Mary Crawford, Mansfield Park Photo: Alessandro Nivola & Embeth Davidtz, Mansfield Park (1999), Miramax

~ Career ~

• Blueprint for Financial Prosperity presents Success Finds Hard Work, Talent & Passion
• Greener Pastures presents The Power of Positive Psychology
• Happiness Is Better presents 6 Reasons Why I Joined Toastmasters
• PennyJobs.com presents 6 Options for Students To Consider with Respect to the Economy

Business, you know, may bring money, but friendship hardly ever does.

John Knightley, Emma Photo: Jeremy Northem as George Knightley, Emma (1996), Miramax

~ Saving & Investing ~

• My Wealth Builder presents Get Higher Interest for Saving – Up to 6%
• Generation X Finance presents How to Roll Over Your 401(k) When You Leave or Lose Your Job
• Four Pillars presents Can You Invest Your House Down Payment In The Stock Market?
• Lazy Man and Money presents Greed or No Greed
• Cash Money Life presents Increased 401k Contribution Limits in 2009
• Dividends4Life presents Dividend Stocks Role In The Future Recovery
• Military Finance Network presents 2009 Thrift Savings Plan Contribution Limits
• The Personal Financier presents Is the Stock Market a Big Ponzi (Madoff) Scheme?
• Stock Trading To Go presents Beginner’s Guide to Currency ETFs

But there are not so many men of large fortune in the world as there are pretty women to deserve them.

Mansfield Park Photo: Bennet family, Pride & Prejudice (2005), Working Title

~ Economy ~

• The Digerati Life presents Studying Business Cycles: Economic Graphs of The Current Economic Cycle
• Amateur Asset Allocator presents Unemployment At Highest Level In 15 years: Or Is It Even Worse?
• The Happy Rock presents [Video]The Government’s Money Hole – Recession, Taxes, and Bailout Commentary
• Personal Finance Analyst presents Can You Really Opt Out of a Recession?
• BankAround presents List of Banks that Took TARP Money

Pray, my dear aunt, what is the difference in matrimonial affairs, between the mercenary and the prudent motive? Where does discretion end, and avarice begin?

Eizabeth Bennet, Pride and Prejudice Photo: Jennifer Ehle as Lizzy, Pride and Prejudice (1996), BBC/A&E

~ Taxes ~

• The Financial Blogger presents How To Withdraw Money From Your Holding Without Paying Taxes – The Split Dollar Strategy
• Personal Finance Reviews presents 2009 Income Tax Brackets
• My Journey to Millions presents Did you Forget your RMD this Year? All may not be lost

After all that romancers may say, there is no doing without money.

Isabella Thorpe, Northanger Abbey Photo: Carey Mulligan as Isabella, Northanger Abbey (2007), WGBH Boston

~ Real Estate & Mortgages ~

• Mighty Bargain Hunter presents Running through payback time on a mortgage refinance
• Stumble Forward presents Mortgage Refinance Tips That Could Save You Thousands
• The Credit Toolbox presents Why Would You Choose A Variable Mortgage Rate?
• Funny About Money presents Can’t Sell the House? Try Swapping
• Debt Free Destiny presents How to Get Ready for Your First Home
• Growing Money presents Rental Property Update December 2008

Money can only give happiness where there is nothing else to give it.

Marianne Dashwood, Sense and Sensibility Photo: Kate Winslet as Marianne, Sense & Sensibility (1995), Sony Pictures

~ Reviews ~

• My Dollar Plan presents Have You Checked out Lending Club?
• The Dough Roller presents How to Buy and Sell Loans on Lending Club’s New Trading Platform
• Christian Debt Help presents Sharebuilder promotion and review

And to marry for money I think the wickedest thing in existence.

Catherine Morland, Northanger Abbey Photo: Felicty Jones as Catherine, Northanger Abbey (2007), WGBH Boston

~ Other ~

• Money Beagle presents Wasting Money on Poorly Timed Traffic Lights
• LivingAlmostLarge presents A difference between rich and poor
• Centsability to Wealth presents Insurance- The Fortress the Protects Your Financial Army
• Steadfast Finances presents When the Expense of Plastic Surgery is Justifiable
• Free Money Finance presents Four More Uses for Gold Dollar Coins

He is rich, to be sure, and you may have more fine clothes and fine carriages than Jane. But will they make you happy?

Mr. Bennet to Lizzy, Pride and Prejudice Photo: Keira Knightley as Lizzy, Pride & Prejudice (2005), Working Title

* * *

This wraps up the Jane Austen Edition of the Carnival of Personal Finance. I hope you enjoyed the pictures and quotes as much as I did putting them together. Again, be sure to enter our giveaway for a free 6-month print subscription to the Wall Street Journal which ends this Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 11:59PM EST! Thanks for stopping by!

A Parting Shot

Photo: Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma, Emma (1996), Miramax

Related posts:

• Friday Fun: Calvin and Hobbes Lemonade Stand Economics Lesson & WSJ Giveaway Reminder
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #15
• Hosting the 3rd Edition of the Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Recent Blog Carnivals (February 2009)
• Finance Blog Carnivals of Late

Update 7:20PM January 30, 2009

The winner is Lisa Spinelli! Thank you all again for participating in my first giveaway!

Update 9:00PM, January 24, 2009

This contest is now closed. We will tally up the entries, select a winner and announce the result shortly. Thank you to everyone who participated.

I am excited to announce our first blog contest here at Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth until October 2008). Next month marks our first blog anniversary and I am quite pleased with the success that we have experienced in the past year and the direction in which we are headed.

The Prize

I wrote a post a while back on how I received a free subscription to the Wall Street Journal by completing surveys. I have now earned enough points for another, so for this first contest (of many to come) we are giving away a 6-month print subscription to the Wall Street Journal, a $129 value, to one lucky winner. We just had our own 6-month subscription to the Wall Street Journal and have been very impressed with it.

To tell the truth, I wondered at first if it would be a little boring, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it offered more than just stodgy finance reports and stock graphs. I especially enjoy the Personal Journal section that covers a wide range of topics pertinent to everyone. I believe this paper could be a great benefit to our readers, especially in these times when keeping abreast of all news and information on the economy is so important.

The WSJ is delivered 6 days a week and is packed full of interesting news (both national and international) and useful information on business and personal finance, investing and more:

• Summaries of breaking stories, coupled with 24/7 online updates.
• Expert insight on the market and economy and how both can impact your everyday finances and personal investments.
• Expanded coverage of major global stories, political events, medical breakthroughs and emerging technologies.
• Arts, food & wine, real estate, travel bargains, and weekend getaways.

Ways To Enter

Do each of the following once for 1 chance to win. (For every 1 you do, you earn 1 entry. The Email Subscription earns 2 entries.)

Please leave a comment to let me know which entry method(s) you used.

Please make sure you read the Contest Terms below.

• Leave a comment on this post stating your 2009 financial resolutions or goals.
• Subscribe to our RSS feed and leave a comment below to let you know you did so, or
• for 2 entries instead of 1, Subscribe to our email feed and leave a comment here using the same email address with which you subscribed. (All current email subscribers gain an automatic entry.)
• Blog about this contest and link to it from your blog. Leave me a comment here to let me know.
• Follow me on twitter – @PenelopePince. Leave a comment here with your twitter username.
  
• Tweet about this contest and leave a comment to let me know you did so.
• Vote for this post in Tip’d, PF Buzz or another medium and leave a comment here.
• Bonus Entries: Leave comments on other posts on our blog. If you’re new to our blog, visit our archives for our earlier posts, which are some of the best we have produced. The comment(s) must show some thought and not just “I agree” or “Great idea.” Come back to this post and let me know which post(s) you commented on. Each approved comment will gain you an additional entry.
• If you like contests, be sure to check out  Single Guy Money’s $100 Target or Walmart Gift Card Giveaway.

Contest Terms

• We’re sorry, but this particular reward from my survey company is only available to new subscribers to the Wall Street Journal in the contiguous U.S., so we apologize to any readers from Hawaii or Alaska and those who have already subscribed to the WSJ in the past. If you have been a subscriber in the past, you are not eligible to receive this free subscription. We will hold other contests soon.
• The contest begins now and ends at 11:59PM EST on January 24, 2009. Comments to this post will be closed at this time.
• 1 winner will be randomly selected using a random integer generator at random.org.
• We will contact the winner via the email address used to comment here.
• The winner will have 4 days to respond with necessary contact information for the subscription. We will send a 2nd notification email after 2 days if we have not heard back.
• If the winner does not respond after 4 days, a new winner will be selected from amongst the entrants.
• If this prize happens to go out of stock from our reward provider at the end of the contest period (though it shouldn’t), we will offer a replacement prize.

Prize Terms

• Again, this particular offer from my rewards program is only available to new subscribers to the WSJ. If you are already a subscriber or have subscribed in the past, you are not eligible to receive this prize. We are sorry, but we will run other contests soon.
• It may take 6-8 weeks for the first issue to arrive.
• Your WSJ will be delivered 6 days a week by postal mail or early morning carrier depending on your location.
• While we will do our best to ensure proper initiation of your subscription, we are not liable for non-delivery due to:
  • Incorrect mailing and contact information provided by the winner
  • Ineligibility of the winner to qualify for the subscription
  • Loss or error on the part of the postal service or delivery personnel
  • Any other matter beyond our control
• Any issues with the delivery of the subscription will have to be addressed to the Wall Street Journal.

Don’t be scared off by these terms. We didn’t have any problems with our subscription. In fact, we began receiving our issues within a week or two of starting our subscription and have learned a lot from it.

Good luck to all and happy new year!

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #14
• Friday Fun: Calvin and Hobbes Lemonade Stand Economics Lesson & WSJ Giveaway Reminder
• How I Got a Free Subscription to the Wall Street Journal
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #15
• Wall Street Journal Giveaway Winner and Carnivals of the Week

The topic for this month’s PF Bloggers Group Writing Project is our Favorite Christmas Memories. My favorite memory is our first Christmas in our own house, which was 2006. We bought our house in November 2005, but we had to travel out of the country to attend a cousin’s wedding – actually we were bridesmaids for the wedding – so our first Christmas in our house was 2006.

On Black Friday 2006, we went to Walmart for some shopping, and because we take our dogs everywhere with us and they were in the car, Madoline and I took turns going in to shop. Madoline went second, and when she came out, she had an 8′ Douglas Fir in a shopping cart. Thus began our Christmas festivities. We moved the dogs to the front seat, put the backseat down and shoved the tree into the car and it fit just perfectly with the tip of the tree at the dashboard. We drove the 50-minute trip home with Madoline and the 2 dogs in the front passenger seat (one sitting on the floor and one in her lap), the tree at my elbow and the whole car smelling like Christmas.

Wrestling the tree out of the car, sawing off a bit of the bottom and putting it in the tree stand was a bit of an ordeal, but we finally got it standing almost completely straight in our music room (a dining room for most people). This was our dogs’ first Christmas (they would turn 1 on January 5) and while they had no idea what Christmas was, they could tell it was exciting and were all over the place as we got out the ornaments and decorated the tree.

Because this was their first Christmas, we made them Christmas clothes and dressed them up for pictures. After the hours we put into making the clothes, we had to make sure we got lots of good pictures because they would grow out of them in a matter of weeks. Here are some of our favorites.

 

Since this was our first official Christmas with the 2 of us and our new family, we decided to allow ourselves a budget of $100 to shop for each other. In previous years, since living on our own, we either skipped presents or had small budgets of $20 each. This year we went all out. We took a couple of shopping trips to the mall where we again took turns going into stores to buy each other presents, then had to make the other personal look the other way while we put them in and took the out of the trunk.

After we got home, we snuck our gifts to our rooms  and then rooted around the house for boxes to put them in, wrapped our presents and put them under the tree. (This is my favorite part.) We also did some shopping online and whenever the mail carrier rang the doorbell, we ran to the door to make sure the other person wouldn’t see anything. Madoline couldn’t decide what else to buy for me when she still had $40 left, so I ordered the Ticket to Ride German Map Ediition as a present for both of us.

On Christmas Eve, we each opened one present. I wanted to play the Ticket to Ride game so I chose that one as the one I wanted to open but made Madoline open it. We stayed up till 4 a.m. playing that game and whenever we play it now, I think about that Christmas. When we got up on Christmas Day, the first thing both of us wanted to do was to continue playing Ticket to Ride, which we call by it’s German name which is a lot more fun – Zug um Zug [tsoog-oom-tsoog]. So we played Zug um Zug and then each opened a present, then we’d play another game, open another present, one of which was Carcassonne (another of my favorite German strategy games), and so on.

Because our business is mostly seasonal and centered around major holidays, we decided to take a vacation after we shipped out our last Christmas orders (our Christmas rush started the beginning of November and ended around mid-December). We spent the couple of weeks after Christmas hanging out, watching movies, playing games, drinking Earl Grey tea and eating chocolate.

We had also gotten presents for our dogs – little stuffed animals toys that they could play with while we relaxed – and we got enough to give them each one for each of the 12 days of Christmas starting on Christmas Day and ending on Epiphany, their birthday. On their birthday, we baked them a carrot-oatmeal-peanut butter cake which they enjoyed and smeared all over my bed.

That was our first Christmas in our own house, and thus far, my favorite Christmas memory.

* * *

About the PF Bloggers Group Writing Project

The Personal Finance Bloggers Network is a group of personal finance and frugal living blogs. The Group Writing Project is a monthly project wherein each blog will write a post on a pre-determined topic and publish it on the same day of each month. Be sure to visit thePF Bloggers Group Writing Projectpage for the others!

Extended Group Writing Project Invitation

If you are a blogger, we would like to invite you to write your own post on this topic and submit it for listing with our entries on our Group Writing Project pages. Please visit the following page for details on how to participate in our Extended Group Writing Project

Related posts:

• Frugal Christmas: Skipping the Tree and Presents This Year
• Holiday Blog Carnivals
• Free Printable Templates: Christmas Candy Stripe and Plaid Carrier Gift Bags
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Free Printable Templates: Holiday Snowflake Gift Tags, Treat and Mini Carrier Bags

If this is your first time here, please have a look around and consider subscribing to our RSS feed, which can be delivered in various forms of web based readers as well as email.

Our Fourpence Worth is all about frugal living and making smart choices in personal finance. We write about things we have learned and are learning as we strive for financial freedom and we offer tips for saving money in various aspects of life: personal, home improvement and decoration, family, money management, pet care, frugal recipes and more, as well as our opinions on current affairs related to our subject.

To give you an idea of the kind of topics we write about, here are a few of our posts that have done quite well in the blogosphere:

• My Favorite Money and Time Saving Websites
• Simple Solutions to Staying Out of Debt
• Resisting the Urge to Splurge
• Monopoly Game Expansions for Learning Money Management and Investment Principles
• Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklist
• Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets
• Fast & Frugal Recipe: Yakisoba (Japanese Chow Mein)

Check out the “Most Popular Posts” section on the sidebar to the right (below “Categories”) for more popular posts. To learn more about us and this blog, please visit About this Blog and More About Us.

Thanks for stopping by!

Penelope and Madoline

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Related posts:

• Pecuniarities News: Top 100 Finance Blogs, MSN Smart Spending, FrugalFocus and Consumer Safety
• No-Air Conditioning Summer Part 1 – How It Started: No-Heat Winters
• Our Fourpence Worth has moved. Please update your feed readers.
• Make It Do: Frugal Forever
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers

(This list will be updated to include future inclusions for the month of June 2008.)

Descending chronologically by inclusion date

• June 25, 2008
  Finance Fiesta 4: Cerveza Edition
  Article: Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account
• June 23, 2008
  Carnival of Personal Finance #158 : Vampire Slaying Edition
  Article: Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account (Editor’s Pick – double thanks!)
  
• June 16, 2008
  Carnival of Personal Finance #157: Third Anniversary Edition
  Article: Frugal, Fun and Productive Summer Activities
• June 12, 2008
  Finance Fiesta: The Margarita Edition
  Article: Lottery Tickets: Worthy Investment or Waste of Money? (Editor’s Pick – double thanks!)
• June 10, 2008
  Festival of Frugality #129 – Try a Little Harder This Week Edition
  Article: Frugality to the Extreme: Would You Eat Out of the Dumpster?
• June 9, 2008
  Carnival of Debt Reduction #143 — The History of Debt (Editor’s Pick – double thanks!)
  Article: Simple Solutions to Staying Out of Debt
• June 5, 2008
  Welcome to the First Finance Fiesta! – Miles Gracias por la “Honorable Mention”!
  Article: Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets
• June 3, 2008
  Festival of Frugality #128: No Debt Plan Edition
  Article: Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklis
• June 2, 2008
  Carnival of Personal Finance #155 — Time With Family
  Article: My Favorite Money and Time Saving Websites (Editor’s Pick – double thanks!)
  

Related posts:

• Hosting the 3rd Edition of the Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Recent Blog Carnivals (February 2009)
• May 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Hosting Festival of Frugality and Money Hacks Carnival Next Week

Anyways, here are some great posts by fellow financial bloggers from recent weeks:

PF Bloggers

• Living Almost Large gives us an amusing list of ways in which people justify purchases.
• Seb at Pinching Copper gives his opinion that the penny is worthless. Would you pick up a penny from the sidewalk?
• Kevin from No Debt Plan achieved his goal of going the entire month of May without the air conditioner. Good for you guys!
• Jonathan at Master Your Card gives us 7 Zany Ways to Stop Overspending.
• Ginger from Girls Just Wanna Have Funds gave us Things That Piss Me Off: Food stamp recipients pinched by high food prices that has stirred up a bit of controversy.
• And for a bit of fun, check out Future Millionaire’s (Start of Work Week) Money Funny – Cost of Pop Culture Icons Today about the Brady Bunch, which I am only a little embarrassed to admit was one of my favorite shows at one time.

Elesewhere in the Financial Blogosphere

• I really appreciated Get Rich Slowly’s Closing the Gap Between Dreams and Reality. It has inspired me to get proactive about my financial goals.
• Find out how No Credit Needed will save/make $20,000 by giving up his soda habit!
• Something that goes nicely in hand with my recent Vacation Preparation Checklist is a post from Gather Little By Little about Low Cost Summer Family Vacation ideas with money saving tips.
• Frugal Dad gives a nice Used Car Buying Guide for Teenagers for parents, but it has some useful tips for us grown-ups too.
• We’ve recently begun thinking about starting some investments, so I was really glad to come across The Simple Dollar’s warning about how The Methods You Use to Deal with Ordinary Life Will Fail You As an Investor.
• I was amused by Spam Sales on the Rise, Common Sense at an All-Time Low. I thought it was funny because I recently bought a can of Spam, not as a substitute for real, nutritious food (well, OK it did end up substituting for real food for a couple of meals), but for my cousin to try because they don’t have Spam in Taiwan. It was probably the first can of Spam I have ever purchased. (I grew up in Hawaii where they have something called a “Spam Musubi” which is a slice of pan-fried spam layered over a block of rice and all wrapped in seaweed. YUMMY!)

New Carnival in Town

Oh, and one last bit of news. Jonathan from Master Your Card has started a new blog carnival called the Finance Fiesta which runs weekly on Thursday starting June 5, 2008. If you have a personal finance related blog, be sure to submit your best article!

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3

Credits Cards Really Aren’t So Bad
(Re-Post: Original post date February 14, 2008)

In every online discussion I have seen about credit cards, there are always at least a few contributors whose only comments are “Credit cards are evil” or “No credit card is best”, etc. This post is mostly for those people.

For several years, we also believed that credit cards were bad, having been thus informed by our stepfather, a compulsive spender who is constantly in debt. But over the past few years, we have learned that credit cards are actually a good thing and provide many benefits and advantages:

• Building Credit History
  If you plan on buying a car or house in future, chances are that you will need a loan, and if you have no credit history, it can be difficult to get a good interest rate on a loan. Interest rates make a huge difference in the amount you end up paying or saving. Credit cards, if used responsibly, are a good and easy way to build a good credit history, which can ultimately save you thousands of dollars.

• Tracking spending
  Credit card statements provide an good way to track and analyze your spending habits. By charging all your purchases, you will have a printed statement of where every dollar has gone, a useful too for budgeting.

• Safer than carrying cash
  If you carry a lot of cash and lose your wallet, you can usually assume that money gone forever. If you mostly use your credit card and carry very little cash though, all you have to do is call the credit card company as soon as you discover the loss and you won’t be liable for any unauthorized charges to the card.

• Backup for emergencies
  Credit cards can be a backup source of funds for emergencies when you don’t have cash on hand. Though these should be true emergencies and not things like “fashion emergencies”.

And best of all, the reason we use our credit cards whenever and wherever we can:

• Credit cards can earn you money
  Credit cards can “make” you money in 2 ways:
  • There are many cards out there that earn you cash back or rewards. Some earn you as much as 5% cash back on grocery, drugstore and gas purchases. If you get a card with no annual fee (there are many out there), use it responsibly for regular purchases (not cash advances), and pay your balance in full every month, you can earn money without paying a cent to the credit card company. We have an American Express Blue Cash Credit Card that earned us over $300 cash back last year.
  • In addition to the cash back, credit cards also earn you money by allowing you keep your money in the bank longer. Depending on your billing cycle, you can charge your purchases and bills to a credit card and your money can sit in the bank earning interest for up to 6 more weeks. For example, our propane bill was due on January 30, 2008. Our credit card billing cycle ends on the 28th of each month. If we charge our bill to our credit card on the Jan. 30, 2008, it goes on the new billing cycle which ends on February 28, 2008, and the due date for that billing cycle is in mid-March 2008. So the money for that propane bill that was due and paid on Jan. 30, 2008 won’t actually leave our bank account until 6 weeks later. That’s 6 extra weeks of interest on money that would have left your account immediately had you paid by cash or check.

These are just a few basic reasons we use and approve of credit cards. However, if you know that you won’t be able to control your spending, then perhaps it is better to not go this route. If you need advice on applying for credit cards, visit your bank or credit union and someone can usually recommend a good card for you and help you with the application.

Continue reading for tips on choosing the right card and a few tips for safe and responsible credit card use.

Choosing the right card for you

If you have no or very little credit history, a low income, or a blemish on your credit record, it is possible that you won’t be approved when applying for a credit card. If this is the case, don’t keep attempting to apply for different cards as each denied application will hurt your credit rating and lessen your chances of being approved. Instead, go to your bank or credit union where you have an account and ask to speak to someone who can help you with selecting and applying for a credit card.

You may have to start out with a secured account with a deposit held as collateral and a low credit limit. After a while, perhaps a year, if you have responsibly paid your balances on time each month, your bank will probably upgrade you to an unsecured card with higher credit limit. Make sure you read the terms and conditions of your new card when this happens and check for changes in rates and fees, including annual fees. When Bank of America offered my sister an unsecured card a year after she got her secured card, the card came with an annual fee. There are many cards out there that don’t have annual fees, so why settle for one with an annual fee if you can save that $30 or $100 a year?

Today, there are credit cards for all sorts of people with all sorts of interests and lifestyle. If you travel a lot, you’d be interested in cards that offer travel benefits and discounts and rewards for flights, hotel stays and car rentals. For families and households, cards that offer cash back for household purchases such as utilities, gas, grocery and drugstores can save you a lot of money.

Tips for safe and responsible credit card use

• Never spend money you don’t have. Just because you have a $5,000 credit limit doesn’t mean that you have to use it all. In fact, for best credit practices, try not go over 1/3 of your total credit. Therefore, if you have a $5,000 limit, you should try to keep the balance below $1,600.
• Always pay on time and in full, not just the minimum payment due. If your credit card company has automatic scheduled payments, it may be a good idea to use it. Just make sure your bank account has sufficient funds on the due date.
• If you’re concerned about security and unauthorized charges, sign up for online banking and check your online statement every so often for suspicious activity. (We’ve never had any problems. There was only one incident when someone made a suspicious charge on my card and my bank caught it and contacted me to check if I had authorized it, which I didn’t, so they immediately canceled my card and sent me a new one.)
• Don’t leave your wallet, cards or card information lying around.
• Never send credit card information over email, instant messengers, etc.
• When using a credit (or debit) card online, make sure the site is SSL protected. You can tell by the little lock icon in the browser window – usually around the bottom right-hand corner.

Related reading:
Closing Your Credit Cards Can Hurt Your FICO Score

Related posts:

• Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth) 1 Year Anniversary
• Pay Bills Online and Save
• Closing Your Credit Cards Can Hurt Your FICO Score
• Why I Will Not Change My Mindset, Plus the Difference Between Justifying and Being Optimistic About Spending
• Credits Cards Really Aren’t So Bad