As much as we love our long weekends, the longstanding complaint is gas prices will go up and the weather will be lousy. True to Murphy’s law, gas prices jumped up prior to the Easter long weekend. We were on holidays driving south to Salt Lake City where prices in the US also jumped. As…
Category Archives: Spending
Use Price Comparison Sites to Get the Best Deal
The following is a guest post. I’ll have my 2012 outlook up on Monday. Have a great weekend! ~ 2 Cents Looking for a credit card can be difficult because there are so many different types of cards that offer their holders different advantages. Some credit cards have rewards for making purchases from certain stores,…
America is the Most Indulgent of Any Other Country
The following is a guest post. While it speaks to American consumerism, there may be some food for thought for debt-laden Canadians here too. The economy is in shambles, and while many would like to blame the deterioration of our economy on big government and big business, a large percentage of the blame also lies…
Are Smart Meters a Dumb Idea?
It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer. ~Albert Einstein Last week our electricity meter was taken out and replaced with a smart meter. I live in Ontario, the first Canadian province to install smart meters for all homes and small businesses. The program has cost about $1 billion…
Hot Water Heater: Rent or Own?
Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action. ~Walter Anderson, The Confidence Course, 1997 Update: This story was included in the Carnival of Money Stories #74 posted at Sustainable Life Blog. Thanks! When we had our home built 7 years ago, we went with a rental for our hot water heater. I realize now that this is…
The Law of Diminishing Returns
You can never get enough of what you don’t need to make you happy. ~ Eric Hoffer Remember when you were a kid and you begged, pleaded with, and nagged your parents to buy you something for months on end? You wanted it so badly. It would solve all of your problems and provide you…
Buying a Car: Is It Wrong to Buy Foreign?
Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently. ~ Henry Ford Update: This article was featured in the Carnival of Money Stories – Starting a Sideline Edition posted at The Financial Blogger. Thanks! If only the government had followed the advice of Henry Ford when it came time to decide whether or not…
Preemptive Purchases: Wasteful or Worth It?
Today is the tomorrow we worried about yesterday. ~ Author Unknown Update: This post is included in The Carnival of Personal Finance @ My Journey to Millions. Thanks Evan! Have you ever replaced an item before it really stopped working? Recently, we bought a new washer and dryer. Our old ones were working fine, but…
