9.21.2007

Nobody works harder...

The wife and I like to save together.

We bike to work; saving on gasoline, & gym costs. When not biking, we carpool in a 4-cylinder Honda 4x4 SUV (24 mph top). Rarely do we drive more than 80 miles in a given week (some days we don't drive at all). Even-though most of our driving is city for which we get lower gas mileage. We offset the cost by seeking the cheapest gas prices from one of 5 gas stations we drive by. Also by the low cost of maintenance on a Honda (second highest resale vehicles in the US).

We clip coupons and use credit card rewards. Diners card gives Buy one, Get one offers. Or $5 - $7 discounts at "nicer" restaurants. We have probably saved over $100 (Diner's Card only costing $25) already this year. We use Speedy Rewards, 4 cents off gas and purchase it with our Menard's Big card for extra rewards (coupons).

Menards Big Card

The wife uses grocery coupons from the internet. Print off only the coupons you need. Usually can be used with other discounted offers and sometimes don't expire for 3 months.

-We get Free by mail coupons. Signed up for Noodles & Co. "Noodlegram" every year we get 2 Buy one, Get one entree. Also get a free cookie with the "I Voted" sticker on Nov. 1st. Menard's Big card offers free (or very cheap) hardware with rewards.

We often check the best price online (incl. groceries via Simon Delivers). When we consider purchasing some type of luxury. We usually spend days if not weeks seeking the best price. We use websites PriceGrabber & Campusi. We pay attention to daily internet deals from REI-Outlet, NewEgg, DealHack, & especially SlickDeals.net. -This might annoy a few of you that recently bought some items without checking for the best deal.



We prefer to see movies at the $1.50 theater (went to some free midnight showings last month). Or a triple feature drive-in ($7.50 a person to watch 3 current movies on a large screen). Or McDonald's RedBox. (Free movie rental with codes)



We take an effort to only buy what we would use, even if it is a "deal of a lifetime". Learning from our wasteful spending habits in the past questioning whether a purchase is important enough to use capital that might be better used in the future.

We expect to be compensated when service or product does not live up to expectation. And plan to follow through with a complaint. This year alone we got an upgrade to the latest Treo (755p), $55 cellphone credit, & $30 Comcast credit.

**Also keep in mind that there are website forums that also mention where good deals are found. (e.g. BargainShare.com)

On top of saving money we both have hobbies that have income potential.

-The wife sells scrapbooking supplies. This supports what could be an expensive hobby. She gets a percentage of what her client base purchases. It is also provides tax write-offs for purchases we would have done anyway (computer, camera, vacations, &c...).

-I track investment markets.

Below I have included some websites that give you a serious advantage in these markets.


StockFetcher 2.0
Significantly better than StockCharts.com Stock Scan. Programable scans allows you to custom a scan that has provided you with individual results. Not some overused predefined indicator results that a Contra-trader might use against you.

FXStreet: Currencies at a glance
Comments, Hourly Charts, Analyst Sentiment, Forum, & News Analyst comments all on one page. Perfect for someone who would like to ease themselves into the foreign exchange market. You can look here for some possible trade ideas.

In the past I have subscribed to InvestorFlix for some investing advice. Just like NetFlix, you rent different seminars (with PDF document of the seminar notes) then return them when you are done. You can rent 2 at a time and when you are done just mail them back in the envelope. Costing only $20 a month. An entire year costs $240. Each seminar would cost at least $500, some over $3000 to attend. This would have saved me at least $4,000 -possibly $10,000+ on training. These are different seminars with different perspectives from different people. You can learn what you like and create your own strategy.



Cut wasteful spending, Start saving, Start investing ... your time and your money... to eventually get what you want out of life!

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