scfr's Personal Finance Blog

DH asked if I would cook our turkey yesterday (Wed), and at first I resisted because it would go against tradition, but DH reminded me that we were not having company over, that it is just the 2 of us, and we can do as we please, so I decided "why not?" I also went ahead and made instant pumpkin pudding ... slaved for a whole 3 minutes making that! I'm glad I went ahead and cooked yesterday, because it freed up my time today.

We had turkey yesterday, leftovers today, and will have more leftovers tomorrow. Then, I will pick the bones and freeze the remaining meat for sandwiches and soup.

We had talked about going to a movie today, and I was interested in "Australia," but when the reviews came out they were pretty tepid and I did not want to spend $14 for 2 matinee tickets to a movie that is only so-so, so we decided to skip the movie.

We came up with a much better idea. The weather was lovely and I knew traffic to downtown would be light, so we decided to go take a long walk with our dog at the Town Lake Hike & Bike Trail in downtown Austin. It was one of the things on my "To Do Before We Leave Austin" list.

For anyone interested, here is a link to a map of the trail:

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/downloads/tlake_kiosk.pdf

"Town Lake" is not actually a lake but part of the Colorado River which runs through downtown Austin. Lady Bird Johnson worked to have the trail developed as part of her national beautification efforts. It winds through over 300 acres of parks that run along the river.

The trail is a bit over 10 miles, but we of course did not attempt to do the entire trail. We walked for 1-1/2 hours and probably covered over 3.5 miles. It was beautiful; it was sunny and the leaves are still on the trees, tho many fell as we walked. We all got good and tuckered out, especially our 4-legged little man. There were many other dogs for him to check out, lots of things to sniff, and squirrels to chase. He even got scared off by an irate goose when he got a bit too close!

We noticed several families BBQing and having Thanksgiving picnics in the parks. Only in Texas, eh?

Our only cost was the gas to drive us there and home again. I just love exploring places I have not been to before, especially if I can learn something new or get out and exercise in nature. It's the best of frugal fun!

After we got home and ate our turkey leftovers, DH had a bit of work to do and he recruited me to help him out a bit. The thing about being self-employed is that when there is work, you do it, no matter what day it is. It does not mean that you do not get time off ... my DH has plenty of free time to go to the driving range and hit balls, for example ... but he works at least a little bit every single day, 365 days a year. And I help him out whenever he wants my help. We are truly thankful for the work; it pays for the turkey and the gas to Town Lake and all the other necessary and good things in our lives.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

We went to NASA / Johnson Space Center yesterday. It was G-R-E-A-T! We went on/to:

- Tram Tour (which included stops at Mission Control, the Astronaut Training Facility, and Rocket Park)

- Blast Off (where we got a live briefing of current spaceflight activity, especially interesting since Space Shuttle Endeavour had lifted off on its way to the Space Station just one day prior --- this included an outline of NASA's future goals)

- Living In Space (where they had mock-ups of the parts of the shuttles' interiors and explained and demonstrated how astronauts carried out their daily lives in space including activities such as eating and sleeping, and the always asked question "how do they go to the bathroom?")

- Starship Gallery & Artifact Museum (where we saw a nicely done film about the history of and reasons for space travel, then went to the museum which was just amazing) --- That is where I "touched the moon." Those of you who have been there know that there is a little piece of moon rock that they let visitors touch.

DH also tried out some of the flight simulators.

We wanted to make it a day trip to avoid having to pay for a hotel, so we followed the recommended list of "Must See" Attractions" for a shorter visit. There were other things to do and see, including several opportunities to drop some extra money on amusement park type rides. But we stuck to the things that were included with our admissionn fee, were more educational in nature, and were highest up on the "must see" list. As it was, with driving back and forth from the Austin area, it was a rather long (13-plus-hour) day. While I could have gladly spent another 1-2 hours there, going to other movies & visiting other exhibits, I still felt like we got the full experience.

For anyone who has the opportunity to visit Texas (or anyone who lives here and has not yet been), it's definitely worth the trip! For you parents, they have many activities for children (many included with the admission cost), and the kids we saw all seemed to be having an absolute blast.

We spent $5 on parking, $18.90 for 2 admission tickets (I bought tickets in advance on-line when they were having a 1/2-price sale), $15 for lunch, and I spent $3.49 at the gift store (2 postcards to send to family and 2 rubber wristbands that say "Failure Is Not An Option" for DH & I). Transportation back & forth was our biggest expense, but quite a bit less now than it would have been several months ago thanks to the lower gasoline prices.

The last couple weeks have been quite busy with work, my playing social secretary some evenings to some customers of DH's who visited from overseas, and our pup having to go to the vet to get something checked out and then needing a bit of extra attention & meds (he probably has developed allergies because of our move here --- hopefully they'll go away when we move to Cali). I have a draft blog entry going on quite a few things which includes mostly a bunch of boring numbers, but I just hadn't had the time or energy to finish it up. (Blogging about touching the moon is much more interesting.) But I will get to that next week!

NASA has the goal of landing a man (or woman) on Mars right around the time DH & I hit standard retirement age. If they can achieve that goal, then surely DH & I can achieve our goal of a secure retirement, right? As they say in Mission Control: FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!

Today I got a 5-lb bag of Nutro Max dog food. They were offering a rebate for the full purchase price; however, as usual with rebates, I had to pay sales tax, and I had to pay postage to mail off my rebate.

So, that bag of dog food wasn't free ... it actually cost me $1.21 (plus a couple cents for the envelope) ... no cost for gas to the store, because I walked over to PetSmart after DH & I were done looking at digital cameras at another store. Even tho' it wasn't free, for $1.23 (or so), I think it was a good deal, especially considering the look on my dog's face when I brought it home!

1. Doggy play date at the park (fun for the humans as well as the dogs)!

2. Free breakfast and coffee at Ikea. Available at most locations this weekend (Sat, Sun, and Mon) until 10:30am.

http://info.ikea-usa.com/seizethedays/

While there, get some doggy clean-up bags. I reuse my newspaper bags, but it's never enough. Ikea's price is 3-cents per bag ($1.49 for a roll of 50), which is the best I've found anywhere.

3. Watch a Netflix movie on-line. That's a feature they added awhile ago, and I haven't done it yet, but should in order to take full advantage of my membership since there's no extra charge.

4. Renew my library books on-line (gotta avoid those fines). Read same books.

5. Introduce DH (who has been out of town again, coming back today) to the new chart on the refrigerator for tracking Food & Drink expenses (both consumed at home & eating out) ... I added a cute (free) clip art picture to it, hoping that would be the spoonful of sugar that makes the medicine go down.

Will he get on board with the idea of squirrelling away $25 a month for 3 months from the alloted amount so that I can fulfill my wish of having a very expensive Sunday brunch ($29.95 per person plus tax & tip) at Fonda San Miguel before we leave Austin?

6. Wash my down comforter. I love having a front-loader machine. Used to take my comforter to the cleaners, but now I can do it myself. (Note to newbies to the world of frugality: A diehard frugalite would rather wash a comforter in the tub than take it to the cleaners. I'm more a "moderate frugalite".)

7. Make Soap Balls using the little slivers I save from the ends of soap bars. (I've been doing this since I married DH. I'm the type of person who will use a bar of soap to the very end, perhaps squishing the last little bit on to the new bar. But DH doesn't like that, so I go ahead and replace a bar when it gets low, but I save the slivers and make balls.) I may not have balls when it comes to investing, but I do when it comes to keeping clean!

Hope eveyone has a great weekend.

John Bogle (founder and former CEO of Vanguard) appeared on CNBC's Squawk Box this morning. The moderator described him as a "patient, long-term investor" which makes him my kind of guy and I'll admit to being a bit of a "Boglehead" (fan). Based on my notes (of which I do not guarantee the accuracy), this is a summary of what he had to say.

On the Economy: He said that he really does not know what will happen with the economy in general. (He mentioned that it is crucial the "toxic" assets get written off of banks books but said something like he does not know the best way to make that happen.)

On the Stock Market: He said that this is the most speculative market in the history of finance. He said that the speculators are betting that other speculators will bet the market is going to get worse, and that is driving the market down. He said that if the speculators want out of the market: "Let 'em out." He said that the fundamentals of the market, what he referred to as "boring stuff" that the speculators don't care about, dividend yields & book value, are sound, and they are what will eventually turn the market around. And when will that happen? Again, Bogle said he does not know for sure (and no one does), but that he thinks it is probable that we are about 1/2-way through the current market decline.

On Individual Investors Who Are 5 or so Years Away From Retirement / Asset Allocation: He says that if there are individual investors who cannot afford to lose even one penny of their investments, then yes, they should get out of the market ... But he also mentioned that they never should have been in that position to begin with. He said that people should have had a percentage of their portfolio in bonds that is the rougly same as their age. (In other words, a 75-year-old would be holding about 75% of their portfolio bonds). He said that people who had set up their portfolios prior to this market downturn in a way that is consistent with what he recommends "are hardly being impacted" (they have lost a few percetage points but it is tolerable for them).

Super Target's offering a pretty good deal. 4 Kashi items for $11, and you get a $5 Target gift card at the register. So that translates to $6 for 4 Kashi items, or $1.50 each. You can buy any combination of Kashi item: cereal (hot or cold), granola bars, cookies, crackers, or frozen entrees. I forgot to take note of how long this offer is going on (sorry).

I bought 2 boxes of Vive cereal (full retail $3.99 each) ... would have gone for a granola, but they were already sold out ... and 2 boxes of cookies (full retail $3.09 each) ... yum, yum.

As mentioned previously, one of the things I really wanted to do while I was visiting my mom was fill in her "Letter of Instructions." Mom has the "proscratination paired with perfectionism problem" that I sometimes struggle with, and had been promising for several years to fill out a "Letter of Instructions" for me but just had not "gotten around to it."

Over the course of my 15-day visit, we had several sessions where we sat down in her office and worked on the LofI in 2 or 3 hour stretches. She talked and occasionally retrieved information while I wrote.

A couple times we came to sections of the LofI where Mom would say something like "You know ... I'd really like to sit down and write you a much more detailed letter about this." I just replied "That would be great, and I would love to have it. But in the meantime, let's just fill this out, and it will do for the time being. It will be better than nothing." To tell you the truth, I doubt very much that I will ever receive those detailed letters.

One critical piece of information was missing, but I received in from her by Email this morning, so the LofI is done!

I am very relieved. I feel much, much better prepared to handle her estate effectively when that time comes.

My trip was also helpful for me in that I was able to come to peace with the fact that my Mom is not going to do anything to reduce the amount of STUFF that she has (way too much stuff by almost anyone's standards). My sisters and I have all tried to encourage her to sell, donate, or get rid of things, but it has not worked. We've also tried very hard to encourage her to stop buying so much stuff, because frankly she can't afford it as far as any of us are concerned (except for Mom herself). But it hasn't worked, and I don't think her habits are ever going to change, so no use beating our heads against a wall. At least we know we tried. Someday I am going to have to deal with the mountain that is my mother's stuff, and there is nothing I can do about it but deal with it when that time comes. C'est la vie. (Or, for the benefit of Paulette Goddard and her studies, "shoga nai" as the Japanese would say, which literally translates to "It can't be helped.")

Finally, I was able to help my brother's finances out a bit. He has been buying trail mix to snack on at work (at $2.55 per bag), and has been buying Vitamin Water to drink when he works in the yard (at $1 per bottle). I took him to Costco where he bought a 4-lb bag of trail mix for $10 that I broke down in to 20 little baggies (or 50-cents per bag), and a case of 24 bottles of Costco's Vita-Rain water for $12 (again, 50-cents per bottle). That saved him $53 bucks.

I also looked over his employer-sponsored retirement plan and made some suggestions to Mom on possible changes ... He was very aggressively invested, and Mom had no idea (never looked at the statements ... just filed them away). Mom told me she has already called and changed his investments to a more conservative mix.

Lest you think all I did was fret over financial matters, we also had lots of fun: played w/ my niece & nephew the 2 days they were there, took daily walks, went shopping at the farmer's market for great fresh produce, played board games, watched movies on TV, went out to eat a couple times (including a very nice dinner at PF Chang's which was a birthday gift to Mom from me) and visited a museum.

This investment's a guaranteed winner. And best of all, anyone can do it. Car maintenance. (What? You expected me to say I bought tulip bulbs?)

Yesterday I took my Camry in for its 120K mile tune-up. In addition to routine maintenance (oil change, radiator fluid change, tire rotation) there was a long list of things Toyota recommended should be checked out. Based on the lookover results, dirty transmission fluid was flushed and 2 accessory belts were replaced. Total "investment" was $377.

---Knock on wood---

Hopefully my investment will pay off in the form of a car that doesn't breakdown suddenly on the freeway, needing to be towed, causing me to incur unnecessary expenses, and making me miss pay because I can't get to work. And hopefully my investment will pay off in the form of a car that is still going strong at 200K miles (allowing me to keep my money in the bank, earning interest, instead of buying a replacement vehicle).

Today we attended a Home Tour in a nearby community where a builder was giving away $25 gas cards. In addition to the gas card, we got free drinks and snacks.

Awhile ago, we visited the model homes of a builder who was giving away Target gift cards.

I think we will see more and more of these giveaways if the home market remains soft.

Here in Austin, the housing market is still relatively strong compared to the rest of the country. I can only imagine the freebies that can be found in more depressed housing markets.

Might be worth skimming the real estate section of the Sunday paper, even if you aren't in the market for a new house.

DH has been gone on a month-long business trip. He gets back tonight! Yea! I'm so excited that I woke up this morning before the alarm went off ... Just like a little kid on Christmas morning! There are some feelings that no amount of money can buy, and this is one of them.

Other good news:
- The post-spa-treatment breakout has cleared up ... just in time (barely)
- I went the entire month without eating takeout one time ... pat,pat,pat on the back for me
- I've selected a charitable organization in the area to volunteer with. (This is something that really helps me feel connected to a community, and I've been looking for a good one here in Austin.) I'm attending my 2nd meeting at the end of this week
- I tried Jeffrey's nifty "towel in the dryer" tip and it worked very well ... I will be doing that from now on to cut my electricity usage (thanks, baselle, for the confirmation that it worked)

Issues I'll be dealing with (together with DH) in the coming days are:
- We are going to see the pre-foreclosure house together ... I'm a tad nervous that DH is going to love it a bit too much ... I think it's probably just too much (size & cost).
- We are going to test drive a Smart Car and if we like it, will decide if we want to go on the wait list for one (we are getting by finewith one car right now, but know we will want a 2nd car eventually ... I've read about the Smart Car and think it would make a perfect 2nd car ... Since the current wait for a Smart Car is 12-15 months, that would force us to stretch the one-car-only business out a bit longer but would allow us to know that it is not a forever thing.)
- We have accounts at both Wachovia & WaMu. Both are on the short list of banks that are potentially the next to fail. We need to talk it over and decide if we are comfortable keeping those accounts or if we want to close one of them. (I don't see any need to close both.)
- Now that DH's busy season is wrapping up, it's time to decide if we want to purchase shares of Vanguard's Tax-Exempt Money Market Fund. I've been researching CD rates as well, as that is our alternative.
- DH's business account is not FDIC insured. I've been nagging him for months (maybe over a year in fact) to change it to a FDIC insured one. He didn't think it was a big deal, but the Indymac Bankclosure was the wake up call he needed to make him realize how important this is, so getting him set up with a different business account is now priority number one.

Hope all is well with all of you.

What Would Amber Do?

That was what I asked myself when I was driving home, tired and hungry after running errands. DH is on a long business trip so it's just me, and I wasn't in the mood to cook because I was hungry and just wanted food. I started hearing the siren song of the Whataburger drive-thru calling to me.

Then I started thinking about our friend Amber, and how she has done such a great job over-coming the eating out habit ... She's a real inspiration ... Hence the question I asked myself:

What would Amber do?

I don't actually know what Amber would have done, but thinking about her inspired me to go home and zap a Smart Ones frozen dinner (that I had bought on clearance at Super Target for $1.18) in the microwave. Saved myself a few dollars, and probably did my health some good as well.

Thank you Amber!

1. Spa Treatment: "The procedure" was today. It turned out very well, tho my face now feels a bit itchy and I can see major breakout starting along my jawline. I'm glad I had this done when I can lie low for a few days. I was a bit red for a couple hours after, but fortunately that calmed down because DH called and asked me to take care of some business for him this afternoon that involved meeting someone. The good news was that I ended up spending only $41 (including tip), not the $50 I had expected. I knew the price of the procedure, but for some reason had mentally added $4 to the price. Also, either tax was included in the price or Texas does not charge sales tax on services (this is the first time I've had a service performed in Texas so I don't know). I had researched spas on Citysearch, looking for customer-recommended spas nearby, narrowed it down to 3 spas, and then checked their rates on-line. The one I chose had a Citysearch coupon for first-time customers. Not only did I get $10 off but I also got a "free" body lotion that normally retails for $28. Not the sort of thing I'd normally buy, but I was happy to take the freebie. Thanks for all of your positive comments on my previous entry. I now feel perfectly fine about my little "secret-self-esteem-boosting-expenditure."

2. In-Laws: A while back I blogged about getting a retirement gift for my in-laws.

http://scfr.savingadvice.com/2008/06/08/retirement-gift-for-...
FIL was supposed to have loose ends wrapped up and be officially retired by June 20th. Guess what? He's still working! Since MIL has already moved to their new home, he had moved in with SIL. But apparently he decided he had overstayed his welcome, so he is sleeping in his office. Good grief! I really don't know if it is because there is a holdup on the portion of the business he is selling, or if he just is emotionally unable to stop working. Take note everyone, especially you self-employed folks: As retirement approaches, create a set-in-stone exit strategy for yourselves. I wonder if it would help if we told him that we were going to give him a nice gift, but that he won't be getting it until after he has actually retired?

3. House Hunting: I went and checked out a home that is in pre-foreclosure ... the sellers are trying to do a short sale. It's a really lovely home but I think it's too big and too much money, but DH is REALLY interested in it so we'll be going back to see it after he returns from his trip. Sad situation for the sellers tho ... It's a really lovely home yet they only lived there for about 1-1/2 years. It never ceases to amaze me how so many people managed to get themselves so over-extended.

Harris Interactive is a research company that conducts surveys on a variety of topics, not only consumer products but also "issues" such as health care, finances, politics, etc.

I've been doing HI surveys for several years. When you do surveys, you earn "points" that can be redeemed for rewards. In the past, I redeemed my points for gift cards at Target or Olive Garden. (Cash previously was not an option, so I figured that gift cards were the next best thing.)

I just completed a survey and when I went to redeem some points, I was pleasantly surprised to see that 800 HI Points can now be redeemed for a $5 Paypal credit. This is a brand new option. As far as I'm concerned, that's as good as cash!

If you'd like to join the HI panel, here is the web address:

http://www.harrispollonline.com/

If you're like me and check your mutual fund balances only on the last day of the month ... today is the day ... have you looked yet?

I just checked mine ... a 4.4% drop compared to end-May.

Oh well ... My grandpa told me that his father (my great-grandfather) told him that the price of a stock only matters when it is time to sell. And for those of you doing the math, yes, those words came from a man who was buying stock back in a day when very few people did, long before mutual funds. I will heed the words of my ancestor and not sweat it.

P.S. - I'll tell you what I AM sweating, tho. The 4.75% locked rate on my Wachovia MMA expires on Wednesday. I will miss it dearly. They're offering a 7-mo CD at 4.00% APY. I may go for that. They also have a 12-mo CD at 4.25% APY. (Both have a $5K min)

For anyone who is thinking of downsizing their home, is struggling with fitting their life and stuff in to a smaller home, or (especially) is thinking they need to move to a bigger house because their current one is getting too small, I highly recommend the book "Downsizing Your Home With Style" by Lauri Ward (copyright 2007).

I found this book on my last trip to the library. I was familiar with Ms. Ward from an appearance on Oprah and her book "Use What You Have Decorating" and was already a fan. Ms. Ward explains to us every day folks how to create beautiful home interiors in an affordable way, emphasising using what we already own.

This book exceeded my expectations ... It's great! It is chock full of practical strategies and specific tips for ... as the sub-title says ... "Living Well in a Small Space."

If what you currently own won't fill all of your needs, there is a section at the back of many of the chapters called "Good Buys" that tells you specifically where you can buy certain recommended items.

I just loved the pictures. While they were all of attractive rooms, it was easy to see that a "real" person lived in each and every one. You could even see family pets in some of the pictures. There wasn't anything in any of the pictures that I couldn't imagine having in my own home. I don't know about you, but I don't care for looking at the "home" mags because the glossy fancy pics tend to be of rooms that look so overdone and expensive and not necessarily welcoming. The pics in this book, in contrast, were of attractive inviting rooms that I could imagine living in. The cover pic that you can see below is quite a bit fancier than any of the other rooms pictured. I'd love to post some, but am concerned about copyright violations.

I find it much easier to take money-saving steps when the payoff is readily apparent:

- Clip a coupon, save a buck at the grocery store.
- Take a defensive driving course, save 10% on my car insurance.
Etc.

Where it's more challenging is when the payoff amount isn't really known, I just know that I'm saving "something." And if you throw in the fact that taking a particular step to save money is something I think of as a bit unpleasant, then it gets really hard to get and stay motivated to do what I know I should.

Those are the times when this blog really helps, because accountability comes in to play. And it seems "challenges" appeal to my competitive nature and help me stay interested.

Back in late-January when I was pondering our electric bill, I came up with a "Steam Free Mirror Challenge" for myself:

http://scfr.savingadvice.com/2008/02/11/steam-free-mirror-ch...

I am proud to say that except for one day when I was having a bit of rough morning and decided a steamy shower would be good therapy, every morning since starting the challenge my mirror has been steam free!
I know I'm saving on my electric bill, but I have no idea how much. My "payoff" is getting to brag here!

And now I have a new challenge for myself that I came up with while thinking about the rising price of gas: to only pump gas in the morning!

I know pumping gas in the morning when it is cooler (and therefore the gas is denser) can save you money (Edit note: I edited this from "quite a bit of money" to just "money" ... please see comments below). And I live in a hot place where the difference in temperature between the am and the pm can be 30 degrees. I know I should pump my gas in the morning. Problem is, I am not a morning person.
In order to pump gas in the morning on my way to work instead of on my way home from work, I am going to have to get my lazy self out of bed 15 minutes earlier.

I guess that's why it's called a challenge, eh?

EDIT - Additional comment: I'm also thinking about letting my tank get lower between fill ups, just so I'm dragging less weight (gasoline in the tank) around to improve gas mileage. After going through a 5-day widespread power outage and being unable to buy gas without driving over 30 minutes and waiting in line, I started filling up somewhere between 1/2 and 1/4 full. But I'm thinking maybe I should go back to waiting until it gets below 1/4 full to refill. Does anyone have an opinion on this?

Can anyone point out a flaw in my logic? I keep thinking I must be missing something.

I know buying & using reusable bags instead of getting plastic bags from the grocery store is all the rage right now, and I completely understand why. I totally get the whole "reduce, reuse, recycle" philosophy. I've been washing out and reusing my plastic baggies all of my life. I use the plastic bags the newspaper comes in as doggie pooper scooper bags. When I go to the farmer's market (where I'm just getting one or two items per stall) I bring a tote and put my produce in there directly. On the rare occasions I hit the outlet stores, I'll get a bag from the first store and tell other stores to skip the bag and just put my purchases directly in the first bag.

But for my household, I just haven't been able to figure out how giving up plastic grocery bags makes sense. We are a 2-person (and 1-dog) household, and the trash gets emptied every day. The trash has to be placed in tied-off plastic bags. So I use the bags from the grocery store, and I double bag because there are often little holes in them. On most days, we don't even fill up a grocery store sized bag of trash. I need all of my grocery bags for my household trash! The only way I could give up plastic grocery bags would be if I went out and bought replacement plastic bags, and I can't see the logic in buying something to replace the exact same thing that I get for free. And given that most store bought trash bags are for large size trash cans, they might end up using even more plastic and that would be most environmentally unfriendly.

If we were a big family and needed big trash bags and had to buy them, it would be an entirely different story. But we're a small family with small daily trash accumulation.

I think my logic is correct, and I think in our case in makes sense to keep getting plastic grocery bags, but I do feel a tad sheepish when I see all of these wonderful people walking out of the store with their "green" bags while I tote my old-fashioned plastic.

Am I missing something?

And may I just say a big thank you in advance to anyone who answers ... not only for your insights, but for understanding why stuff like this matters to someone like me (or should I say people like us).

Before I leave for work in the morning, I make my lunch and fill up a travel mug full of coffee.

I had a couple days off and I guess that threw off my routine. This morning I forgot my coffee! So, I decided to use the vending machine at work for the first time ever, and shelled out 65 cents for a cup of java. Necessary expense? Certainly not. But I decided it would be better than going through the entire day without coffee.

I remember back in my early 20's I would have spent the money without even thinking about it ... I probably would have been buying a cup every day, in fact. Now it's a conscious decision, every time I choose to spend money.

Oh, and speaking of spending money (a bit more than 65 cents this time) ... DH has found what he thinks is a fantastic deal on a foreclosed house, and on paper it looks good. We are going to take a look at it this weekend. We'll see what it looks like "in person" ... it's in a neighborhood we like very much, and it just might be a real bargain, but it's a bigger house than I was hoping for.

(Back in December I wrote a short blog entry about how we got a 10% discount on our car insurance for taking a defensive driving course. It was a snoozer of an entry ... hastily written, and only one SA regular responded. But a funny thing happened ... It turned in to the blog entry that never dies. At least once a month, a non-SA person posts a question or comment on that entry, wanting to find out how they can take the course. Obviously, it's something people are interested in learning about and somehow it's attracting non-regulars to this site, so I thought I'd re-write what I learned, and I will try my best to be more concise, in the hopes that it will be more useful.)

First of all, I would like to state for the record that I do NOT work in the insurance field, and am in no way an expert on car insurance. I am just a consumer of car insurance who discovered a way to get a lesser-known discount on her car insurance. The following is what I believe to be true, but if any of you experts out there catch any mistakes or have anything to add, please feel free to chime in! Okay ...

Each state in the USA has different laws when it comes to car insurance. Some states require that auto insurance companies offer a discount to consumers if they complete a "defensive driving course." In some states, the discount must be offered to all drivers, in some states it is offered only to drivers over a certain age, and in some states it is not offered at all.

Taking a defensive driving course may be much easier than you think. Although how you take the course varies by state, it's very likely you can just complete the course on-line, in the comfort of your own home, in just a little bit of time.
(If memories of driver's ed class back in high school are holding you back, don't let that stop you ... It's nothing like that!)

The course need not be expensive. We paid $19.95 to take the course. You can shop around for the course. You can probably find a qualified course for around $20, so if you're finding prices much higher than that, keep looking. And if you are over a certain age (this will vary by state too), you may qualify for a discounted rate on the course.

The primary driver of the automobile must take the course. So if a husband and wife have 2 cars, they both must complete the course to get the discount on both cars.

Here is how getting the discount worked for us: My husband & I live in Texas. Our car insurance is through Geico. In TX, all residents are eligible for the defensive driver discount (there are no age restrictions). We have only 1 car and my husband is the primary driver, so he took the course. He took the course offered by Geico, on-line. We paid $19.95 for the course, and as soon as the course was completed and he had passed the on-line test, a 10% discount was applied to our car insurance policy. His course certificate is good for 3 years; after 3 years have passed, if we want to continue receiving the discount, he will have to retake the course. I should also add that my husband felt he got some very useful information from the course, so though the main goal was to save money it also hopefully helped make him a safer driver.

If you want to find out if you are eligible to receive a discount on your car insurance for taking a defensive driving course, my recommendation is that you contact your insurance company and ask them ... Ask them if they offer the discount for folks of your age in your state, and ask them if they offer the course themselves, and if so how much they charge. When you have completed the course, follow up with your insurance company and make sure they have applied the discount. When each insurance bill comes in, check it to make sure you are getting the discount each and every time.

If you are a Geico customer, check out Geico's state-by-state information at the following web site:

https://www.geico.com/information/states/

Click on your state's name. About 2/3 way down the page, you will hopefully see something that says "Save a little green," with a link to information for "authorized defensive driver program in ---(your state)---"

Even if you are not a Geico customer, if you check this link, you may at least be able to get some information about whether the discount is offered in your state and if there are any age restrications.

If you end up saving some money as a result of this information (and I hope you do), please come back and share your story! Drive safely.

1. Fresh Produce: After cutting back some on fresh produce over the winter (and substituting with frozen stuff ... generally speaking much better nutritionally than canned), I really started missing it, and am so glad that it is now "in season" time and I can finally start finding deals on fresh again. I feel like DH & I are on a fresh fruit & veggie binge! On Saturday I went to a local farmer's market where I got a squash (a local variety whose name I forgot ... something like tatate), corn (is there anything better than fresh-picked), onions, tomatoes, sweet peppers (another local variety, name forgotten), and a huge grocery bag full of leaf lettuce. I spent $11, and felt it was worth every penny! Not only am I enjoying the flavors and nourishment, but becoming familiar with the local products is a way to learn about a place, so the farmer's market trip was part of my immersion in to life in my new state & town. (On a side note, whenever I travel I love to visit grocery stores. I always get a kick out of learning how people in different regions and countries eat at home. To me it's as fascinating as visiting a museum. And hey - it's free, so I guess that qualifies it as a frugal bit of sightseeing, doesn't it?)

I've also found moderately good deals on fresh fruits other than the old standbys of apples & bananas: $2 for a pint of blueberries, $2 for a container of raspberries (6 oz), and $1 for a whole pineapple (sale + coupon combination). I've been told I must buy Fredericksburg (TX) peaches as the season here comes early, but I've yet to do that ... I was disappointed when the farmer's market did not have any.

2. Grocery Shopping At Randall's: Here in Austin, the biggest grocery store chain is HEB. There is also Randall's, which is a bit more expensive but has very nice meats & produce and I've been told has the reputation for being a tad more "upscale." (We also have Whole Foods, which is headquartered here and is appropriately also know as Whole Paycheck ... for obviou$ reason$, I do not shop there.) I think Randall's is in some way a part of the Safeway family because they have the same private labels (such as Lucerne). Since it's a bit out of the way and more expensive, I had not shopped there. However, as new residents we received two coupons in the mail for $10 off if we spent $50 or more (pre-discount). So, off I went twice recently with my list & the store circular & coupons & a notebook where I kept a tally of all of my purchases as I shopped, because I did not want to go over $40 ($50 - $10). I succeeded; spent $41 both times. Both times, I got funny looks from the store managers, but both cashiers gave me "Atta Girl" type comments. The receipts said that I saved 51% and 53% respectively, but I thought that was a crock since the prices were a bit higher than the stores I would normally shop at (HEB, SuperTarget, and Costco), and since I always shop sales and use coupons. I felt like I truly saved 17-18% over what I would have spent elsewhere, and so it was worth the trip! Does anyone else think that some stores inflate their pricess so that they can trick consumers into thinking they are saving a ton of money when they look at a receipt that says "You saved 53%!"?

3. Bye-bye Sub-$100 Power Bills ... Hope to See You Again: Just got our power bill for May ... $98. Since we are in AC season (Texas has been in an early heat wave for the past couple weeks where every day is mid to high 90's), I know we can kiss power bills of less than $100 bye-bye until fall. We definitely used the AC during May, but will certainly be using it more in the months ahead. We really try to walk the line between comfort and frugality when it comes to the AC. We keep it at 80F during the day and move it up to 85F at night (because for some reason our bedroom stays a couple degrees cooler than the rest of the apartment). That may seem a tad warm to some of you, but we have ceiling fans that help and we're willing to live with feeling a bit warm and are just grateful to have AC at all. I am hoping to keep our power bill under $125 for June, and under $150 for July & August, but since this is our first year in Texas I really have no idea what the final numbers will be.

Want to get a free skin cancer screening?

"Olay, the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) and Marcia Cross have joined together to invite you and your girlfriends to get a free skin cancer screening"

Visit www.SkinCancerTakesFriends.org to see if there is a dermatologist in your area offering free screenings.

Although it says it is for "girlfriends," if you're a man who is intersted it certainly wouldn't hurt to ask if you are eligible.

As much as I love SA, I'm finding that I keep taking breaks from the forums more frequently and for longer periods of time.

It may just be my imagination, but the forums seem to be devolving in to a bunch of people fighting over who is right, and they are becoming downright uncivil.

Today was the last straw. I think for the sake of my stress levels, I should take a permanent break from the forums and just stick to the blogs (which of course I still LOVE).

This is what set me off. Someone wrote in a post "This board is retarded." Personally, I find that to be as offensive as any racial slur (and I live in multi-racial family so I've heard it all). Having a brother who is developmentally disabled no doubt makes me more sensitive to this than other people, and I have always been offended by that term even when it came from immature kids, but to hear it coming from an adult in what is supposed to be a civil discussion board ... Ugh!

It really seems like this site has split in to 2 worlds: The great folks who truly want to support each other and exchange ideas on the blogs, and the nasty bickering folks who are just trying to see who can scream louder than the others on the forums.

Am I the only one noticing this?

It really is a gift to require so little to be blissfully happy, don't you think?

Yesterday my favorite guy treated me to brunch at IHOP with a BOGO coupon he found (no beverage purchases required ... just buy one entree, get one free). So glad I decided to teach DH about coupons!

After that, we visited 2 new home centers. At one we received a $10 Target gift card for visiting (we filled out a form and they will be mailing it)...We had seen an ad in the paper and knew we could get the gift card for visiting. At the 2nd place we got free drinks.

In the late afternoon I took my dog for a long walk.

After dinner at home, DH and I watched "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles" with Steve Martin & John Candy on TV. (Our current apartment comes with cable included.) We laughed our heads off.

So little spent. Just the cost of one entree + tax & tip at IHOP. The $10 gift card will more than cover the cost of the gas we used.

Such a divine day. Just like a mini-vacation. 'Tis a gift to be simple ...

If anyone knows how Costco sets their gas prices, please do share with the rest of us!

When we lived in Seattle, our Costco's gas prices were consistently a few cents less other nearby gas stations.

When we moved here to Austin, we initially found the Costco prices to be equal to the lowest-priced "regular" stations. So, I thought there was no difference and that it was a regional thing.

But just recently, since the latest spike in gas prices started, I have found Costco Austin's gas prices to be a bit lower than others.

Yesterday I paid $3.599/gallon at Costco, while other stations were charging $3.639 - $3.699.

The last time I filled up at Costco (about a month ago), the price was about 3-cents less than the stations.

This has me wondering if Costco uses a formula where they have a fixed profit they make, while maybe the "regular" stations are taking advantage and doing a teensy bit of "gouging"?

In any case, Costco is definitely shining right now as far as gas prices go.

What are you all experiencing where you live? Are you noticing a bigger price gap on Costco gas recently, or has the gap stayed the same as usual?

P.S. - As I was getting ready to leave Costco yesterday, a lady just about gave me a heart attack when she ran up right behind my car just as I started backing out and disappeared from view. Of course I hit the brakes ... She stood up and just stood there for a second staring at what I swear was a coin in her hand! For crying out loud, I'm all for picking up coins off the ground, but please don't put your life and my sanity in jeopardy like that! Wanna know my first thought? "That couldn't be baselle, could it? Naw - She doesn't live in Austin!"

When I was fresh out of college, I "inherited" 2 cats. Not knowing any better, I started out feeding them an el-cheapo brand of food from the grocery store. Then one of them developed a bladder stone and had to have surgery. The vet thought the stone developed because of her diet, and so the el-cheapo brand went in the trash, and I started paying much more attention to the kitties diet and making smarter choices. Thankfully, they never again had a diet-related condition. I learned the hard way (through pain & suffering for my poor cat and a big hit to the wallet for me) that when it comes to pets diets, prevention is indeed the best medicine.

Kitties crossed the rainbow bridge many years ago, and shortly thereafter destiny brought a dog into my husband & my life.

Now definitely older and hopefully wiser, when buying food for our dog, I put the emphasis on buying the healthiest possible food, but of course I also try to buy it at the lowest possible price. I shop for "value" rather than "cheap." He eats twice a day ... 12 meals each week are dry food, but twice a week he gets a can of wet food as a treat and as a way to provide variety (and hopefully improved nutrition) to his diet. He gets one treat in the evening (his reward for "doing his business" and then letting me brush his teeth), but even those are the healthy variety. His weight is perfect, and it is my sincere hope that he will never have a medical condition that is because of poor diet (because that would be my fault).

So I'm feeling like a good doggy mommy / minder of the family finances today ... I had a successful shopping trip to the pet supply store.

The Haul:
12 Large Cans of Homestyle
6 Large Cans of Wellness
4-lb bag of dry Science Diet Nature's Best

These were the deals:
Homestyle: case discount (10%) plus $5 off coupon
Wellness: buy 3, get 3 free rebate
Nature's Best: Rebate for full purchase price
Total Order Discounts:
- $10 store certificate received in mail
- 10% store member discount (which was free)

Net Cost (once the rebates come in): $12.50 (plus tax) plus $0.84 to mail in 2 rebate coupons.

For those of you without dogs, the Homestyle and Wellness brands of canned food are premium brands that normally cost a bit over $2 a pop. The Nature's Best dry food retails for $11 a bag ... it's not my dog's usual brand ... I usually buy him Costco's Kirkland Signature brand which is MUCH less expensive but also very good quality IMHO ... but when it's free (well, actually 42-cents for a stamp to mail in the rebate), then why not?

The rebate coupons are in the mail already ... I learned years ago to mail them as soon as I get home from the store (otherwise I forget).

Yesterday my 5yo niece called me to tell me she had slipped getting up from the table, cracked the bottom of her chin on the table, split it open, and had to get stitches under her chin, so now she is going to have a scar under her chin just like her Aunt (me).

After telling me about how the stitches really didn't hurt because they were "butterfly stitches" and that she was very brave and did not cry so her mommy bought her a toy, we started talking about her new allowance. She became very animated and explained how when she gets her allowance ($3) she puts one dollar in the giving bank, one dollar in the college bank, and one dollar in the spending bank (which she saves up to buy something like a toy).

I asked her what her favorite thing was about getting an allowance. I completely expected her to say that it was when she got to go buy a new toy. But she said: "I Like to put Money in my Bank!" And of course I replied: "Me too, xxx! I like to put money in MY bank!"

Now we have 2 things in common.

I know from the comments left after I posted about setting up my HSA that some of you are interested in them.

So .... here's a little tip that I learned the hard way and that I hope will help you:

The first year you have set up an HSA, you have to pro-rate your contribution based on how long you had your HDHP.

For example, I had my HDHP for only the last 2 months of 2007, so the maximum I was allowed to contribute to my HSA (for a family) was:

$5,650 (maximum allowed 2007 contribution) / 12 months of the year x 2 months I had the HDHP = $942

But of course this did not dawn on me and I over-contributed. (Got too excited about the potential tax savings, I guess.) As MonkeyMama would say - "Doh." Rookie mistake.

Fortunately, it was not a really big deal. As soon as Turbo Tax told me I had made a "boo-boo" I contacted my HSA bank, and filled out a Distribution form for the Excess Contribution, and they sent me a check.

If you open an HSA this year, save yourself a step and pro-rate your contribtuion!

I think the first rule of sensible spending is "know yourself." Do you like to change things up once in awhile, or are you happy wearing the same things until they wear out? Me ... I'm happy wearing the same things until they are no longer functional. So, I try to shop accordingly.

A watch & my glasses (and my wedding ring of course) are the only accessories I wear most days.

I have 2 watches --- The 2nd was a gift. 2 watches aren't necessary, but after I received the 2nd I realized it is nice to have both brown (Guess) & black (Seiko).

Anyway ... The older watch, the Guess brand, is I-don't-know-how-old ... I am guessing around 18 years. I just got the battery replaced ($10) and realized I have lost track of how many times I've replaced the battery or had the strap changed (because it broke or wore out).

Will most watches last forever, as long as you're just giving them normal wear and tear? Will the battery need to be changed more and more frequently as the watch gets older? Are watch batteries so standard that I can expect to always be able to find a replacement battery that fits my watch? Can I keep wearing these watches indefinitely?

How old is your watch?

I will be perfectly happy if I can keep wearing these same 2 watches until the day I die.

It's the same thing with my glasses. I get my prescription updated every few years, but I don't change the frames unless I have to. I have had to change the frame because either the frame broke (walked in to a bike rack sticking way out off of the back of a car and didn't see it - ouch) or I can no longer get lenses that fit the frames. Last time I bought new frames I narrowed it down to 2 frames, then asked the gals at Costco to help me choose. Knowing myself, I told them I'd like to update my look a bit, but not be too trendy because I would probably be wearing those same frames for at least 10 years, maybe more. They pointed out something about one of the frames that made it a bit trendy (was it the shape?), and that was all I needed to know to make up my mind. I bought the other pair.

Over a year ago, I posted on the forums regarding my older sister's financial troubles, the extent of which really became clear for me when she called to ask to "borrow" money to have her suffering cat put to sleep:

http://www.savingadvice.com/forums/general-discussion/26108-...

Thanks to all of the great feedback I received, I decided to "play it very cool" even tho' I wanted to jump in to "crisis mode!" I think I've managed to avoid turning her off by becoming preachy. She continues to make slow progress, and I keep my eyes and ears open for opportunities to offer support and make occasional gentle suggestions.

In addition to the steps mentioned on the forums (such as giving her a copy of Suze Orman's Women & Money), I've done a couple small things since then.

- When my other sibs and I went to DC, she decided to stay home to build up her emergency savings. Tho' we normally don't exchange Christmas gifts, I bought her a small souvenier gift in DC and attached a brief note telling her how much I supported her decision. She loved the gift.

- Sis is a hard-core environmentalist. She buys TP made from recycled paper. I knew better than to tell her to buy cheaper TP. But, when I saw that Costco started carrying TP made from recycled paper, I called her to let her know, and she thanked me. (She is not a member herself, but has friends she can tag along with when she wants to.)

- When I read a blog entry on "America Saves Week" (I am so sorry that I don't remember the name of the blog author) I sent her a little "FYI" with a link.

This is the Email I received in return:
thanks!

I've been doing the writing-down-every-penny-I-spend thang, to find the places I can cut a little to help save for my big trip with (name deleted). I honestly had no idea how much my couple lattes a week added up to until I did that........

Boy did that warm my heart!

Honestly, without the SA members' help, I know I would have come on too strong and just turned sis off. So thank you so much for helping me come up with a rational, reasonable approach.

DH is on a business trip, and had to lay over in Washington DC. [That was the only routing available to get the free ticket he wanted using his mileage.]

I had to practically NAG him to get him to go downtown and take in some of the sights. (I suggested he spend one extra day in DC, since he had to fly through there anyway, but he wouldn't hear of it.) He has never been there, and he is not a US citizen, so he didn't get what the big deal was, even after I showed him my pictures and brochures and tourist book souvenier and raved about it. I told him it's like The Louvre, Champs Elysee, Eiffel Tower, and Versailles all rolled in to one, only better! Since he only has this evening, I strongly encouraged him to take the Grayline nighttime bus tour so he could see as many sights as possible in a short time, even tho' it would mean buying a ticket and he would have had to take a cab back to his hotel from a Metro station. I told him "I know that will cost money, but I promise you that it is money you will never regret spending for as long as you live."

I'm happy to report that after much encouragement he finally decided he was willing to spend the money.

Unfortunately, the bus tour was sold out. But he did head downtown as soon as he checked in his bags. He rushed around seeing as much as he could (White House, Smithsonian Air & Space Museum, etc --- unfortunately I don't think he saw any of the monuments) and ended up with blisters on his feet! He called me from the Air & Space Museum quite exhilarated, saying "I could stay just here for hours!" And he has decided that if his flight tomorrow is overbooked, he will volunteer to get bumped!

Hopefully if something like this ever comes up again, he'll listen to me a little sooner! I'm all for saving money (and I certainly would have asked for the AAA discount from Grayline), but goodness, when you have the opportunity to have such an enriching experience, if it causes no strain on the budget, just go ahead and spend the money already!

Are you surprised to hear me say that? Some people think I'm a total tightwad, but I disagree. I will squeeze a penny till it screams, but I also am willing to spend when I truly think it's worthwhile.