103 posts tagged “saving money”
This is a really cool widget. Kudos to Savings Advice. Every time you visit my blog and refresh this page, you get a new money saving tip!
Be sure to join the programs above the tip. They are legitimate money makers.
New labels listing the carbon dioxide emissions associated with the production of foods, from whole wheat pasta to fast food burgers, are appearing on some grocery items and restaurant menus around Sweden. The same concept is being proposed across the EU.
Besides causing massive consumer confusion, the emissions impact of, say, a carrot, can vary by a factor of 10, depending how and where it is grown. Who is going to determine and regulate this? Will small farms & cattle ranchers be exempt? Will this lead to even more consolidation in the food industry?
All one can say at this point is the cost of producing food will be going up and producers will try to pass on that cost to consumers. I encourage my readers to grow their own food. Then take steps to learn how to can, freeze, and dehydrate that food. Even apartment dwellers can do simple gardens with the Topsy Turvy and Chia Herb Gardens
A governor, or speed limiter, is a device used to measure and regulate the speed of a machine, such as an engine. I have taken that concept and applied it to finance. You put in place a governor that limits the speed at which you could potentially lose money.
Here is how I apply it:
- I try not to buy disposable products. Why throw money in the garbage?
- I place stop loss orders for every stock/ETF I own at 4.5% below its cost basis. My upside is not capped but my downside is.
- I play video poker with a $2 bankroll. If I lose it, I'm done. But I have the potential of winning much more with 4 deuces or a natural royal flush
- I use alternative income streams rather than bet everything on a single business venture. Collecting aluminum cans, getting paid to read email, getting paid to watch Internet ads, getting paid to search, and getting paid to post tweets has no explicit downside risk
All I did was sign up for newsletters and submit my date of birth. Look what I got this week:
$5 off from my local butcher
$10 off my food/beer bill at Rock Bottom Brewery
Free Blizzard from Dairy Queen (a $3.73 value)
Free swirl shake from Arby's (a $2.60 value)
Free Chinese buffet (an $8.50 value)
Total Savings = $29.83! :<))
If you want to save this kind of money on a weekly basis, be sure to follow me on Twitter or subscribe to my RSS feed on Twitter.
- Think vertical – just keep a step stool handy
- Hang stuff – use pegboard or hammer nails between floor joists (in the basement) and hand stuff that has a handle/hole
- Think square – square containers can be stacked and don’t waste volume like circular containers do
- Be creative – use the space under a couch, under a bed, or under the stairs for your non-perishables – use a storage trunk as a coffee table
- Keep track to avoid duplication through labels, writing on boxes, and arranging items logically
- Buy foldable furniture like futons, card tables, folding chairs
- I have found that I double my freezer space simply by taking the frozen contents out of the boxes that they are purchased in
- When saving things for future use, save only the small, useful parts like screws, nuts, bolts, springs, and washers
- Buy things that have multiple uses – a bike can be both transportation and exercise
- Clean house every spring and have a yard sale – if something doesn’t sell, call the Salvation Army
- Ride Sharing Board – you can find out who needs to get home this weekend, and if it’s a place you’d like to visit, you can share gas expenses
- Dumpster Diving – when the spring semester ends and the dorms are vacated, often a treasure trove of furniture is left behind
- Surplus and Salvage Barns – colleges are often getting rid of old desks, chairs, and computers – and if you don’t like dumpster diving, look here instead
- Great entertainments at discount prices – from music to theater to guest speakers – it’s all right there
