My Money Blog

Looking Back: A Year of Owning a Dog

Posted on May 16, 2006 // 25 Comments

It's been a year now since we've gotten our kid... err, dog. Cavalier King Charles Spaniel to be exact. I know this because we just had our annual vet appointment for more shots and a general exam. This got me to thinking how much we've spent on … [Read the rest]

Wife Got A Raise!

Posted on May 15, 2006 // 13 Comments

~8%, not bad. At least it's greater than inflation. I don't think it takes effect until July, but it's nice to know it's coming. To celebrate, we just ordered a new Nissan Xterra SE 4x4 - just kidding! I don't think we're going to do anything … [Read the rest]

SkypeOut Now Free in US and Canada

Posted on May 15, 2006 // 18 Comments

I finally installed Skype about a month ago, joining the techie elite. Actually the great thing about Skype is it's really easy to use. If my parents actually had internet at home I bet I could teach them to use it. All you need is a headset and … [Read the rest]

What Gas Saving Tips Really Work?

Posted on May 15, 2006 // 9 Comments

Although I'm still not worked up about gas prices personally, I still hear all kinds of tips to save gas left and right. But do they really work? Edmunds.com tests them out and gives us some hard(ish) numbers. Briefly: What worked Driving less … [Read the rest]

Thanks Mom

Posted on May 13, 2006 // 7 Comments

Given that money matters are hardly taught at school at all, much of people's financial knowledge comes from their parents. Given that I grew up in an apartment smaller than the one I live in now with just my wife, I learned quickly the value of … [Read the rest]

Free Equifax Credit Alerts via PayPal

Posted on May 12, 2006 // 9 Comments

Equifax and PayPal have teamed up to provide a basic credit monitoring service that is free to anyone. I say it's free to anyone because after you click on the sign-up link, there is no verification that you actually use PayPal when signing up. In … [Read the rest]

Swap Gift Cards For Free at CardAvenue

Posted on May 11, 2006 // 5 Comments

Got a bunch of gift cards you haven't used yet? Sell or trade them the new site CardAvenue.com. For example, you could swap an unwanted $100 Pottery Barn gift card you just got for a $100 Home Depot gift card that you could really use. I've already … [Read the rest]

Play Money Stock Portfolio Snapshot…

Posted on May 10, 2006 // 24 Comments

A while ago I set aside $5,000 to buy and trade stocks. I call it my 'play money', as the rest of my portfolio is painstakinly allocated into index funds. But I really don't do much 'playing' anymore. I just check the stock prices every few days, … [Read the rest]

Save Money on Prescription Meds

Posted on May 9, 2006 // 13 Comments

If you require prescription medication, and are like me and have lots of pharmacies around, you should really check out your next Sunday newspaper. Almost every pharmacy around here regularly has a $15-$20 coupon if you switch your prescription to … [Read the rest]

28-Day Treasury Bill APY Calculator

Posted on May 9, 2006 // 16 Comments

In my previous post on Calculating and Comparing Treasury Bill Returns, it was pointed out that my APY calculation was incorrect because the way T-Bills work, you can't actually reinvest all the interest into the next T-Bill. That is true, but what … [Read the rest]

APY to APR Calculator For Bank Interest

Posted on May 8, 2006 // 23 Comments

These days you usually get APY (annual percentage yield) from banks, but there are some times when you want the APR (annual percentage rate), which does not take into the compounding of interest as it is earned. For some reason I could not find an … [Read the rest]

Experiment: Life Without TV

Posted on May 7, 2006 // 34 Comments

After we moved, I didn't sign up for Cable TV as I couldn't find a good deal and was morally against paying the full price of over $50 a month again. So, we decided to try life without television. We don't watch that much TV, but we are definitely … [Read the rest]