Catherine Shaffer's blog
Posted March 25, 2009 - 08:44 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Budgeting
These are difficult economic times, but I'm getting tired of being told to spend my money on stuff, as if my personal saving habits are somehow ruining the economy. Instead of throwing money at retailers, let's throw it at people who really need it--the poor and disenfranchised who are most at risk in an economic downturn. Here are my top ten charity picks. I'd love to know what your favorites are, and will post a followup in a week or so with an updated list of recommended charities.
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Posted March 11, 2009 - 12:01 by Catherine Shaffer
Frugal Living, Life Hacks, General Tips, Lifestyle, Health and Beauty
Dental care is one of those big expenses that hits us in the pocketbook when we least expect it. Most people pay at least some of their dental bills out-of-pocket. Some people go in for a routine cleaning and come out with a schedule of appointments for thousands of dollars worth of restorative work. Traditional dentistry focuses on repairing the damage done by plaque-causing bacteria, but does little to address the underlying cause of decay and gum disease. A new trend called minimally invasive dentistry views these bacteria not as normal and unavoidable body flora, but as an aggressive bacterial infection that can be eliminated using a rational cleaning regimen.
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Posted February 18, 2009 - 07:41 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Frugal Living, Budgeting
A lot of people think that banks have high security, but the most fortified brick-and-mortar institution in my town is the local Comcast office. This is where you have to go to drop off broken cable boxes or pay your bill if it's late and you don't want your service turned off. The clerks work behind a thick shield of bullet-proof glass, and there are two-sided, bullet-proof boxes at every station for transferring equipment. Surveillance cameras are placed in the corners of the room, and a large poster by the door makes it easy to estimate your height as you leave the building with that bag of loot.
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Posted October 11, 2008 - 05:49 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Consumer Affairs
I've always believed that mastery of vocabulary is at least halfway to mastery of the subject. Words are power--the kind of power commonly wielded by eggheads with pocket protectors, but power nonetheless. In the past weeks and months, I've seen a lot of new vocabulary thrown around in the media, and most of us are too busy ducking and diving out of the way to ask what all these crazy words mean. So let's demystify the language of the new economics, right here, right now. Here's a list of common terms you might encounter in your newspaper, on television, or even in a blog.
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Posted September 30, 2008 - 07:08 by Catherine Shaffer
Frugal Living, Lifestyle, Budgeting, Credit Cards
Six months ago, I had plans. Lots of them. Career plans. Vacation plans. Financial plans. Then everything fell apart. My mother became ill. She had already been ill, having been diagnosed with cancer in 2005. However, her general health deteriorated drastically in March, and there followed five weeks of hospitalization, followed by a major life change. She moved in with me, and I became her primary caregiver.
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Posted April 5, 2008 - 19:00 by Catherine Shaffer
Frugal Living
I noticed Paul's interesting article (NEVER Pay for a Redbox DVD Rental Again ) about using Redbox codes to rent movies for free, and in theory, I am all for it. But we don't have Redbox nearby, and I would never manage to return a movie in 24 hours with my crazy life. Fortunately, I have a diabolical method of getting movies for free. Even free-er than Redbox free! Nowadays, I laugh as I drive by Hollywood video. Why did I ever pay $4 to rent a movie? Why, God, why?
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Posted March 13, 2008 - 15:31 by Catherine Shaffer
Making Extra Cash, Real Estate and Housing
The truth is that rents sometimes do not cover the monthly costs of owning the rental home, so how is it that these real estate gurus make their money? A lot of people think that it must involve unfair tactics, such as buying investment property at below-market rates from gullible elderly people, but there can't possibly be enough gullible elderly people to keep the whole industry going.
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Posted March 10, 2008 - 08:50 by Catherine Shaffer
Making Extra Cash, Real Estate and Housing
With dropping home prices, a long term investment in real estate is looking pretty attractive. Whether you want to buy rental property outright, or renting is your plan B when your house doesn't sell, the most important thing you need to think about before you become a landlord or landlady is risk. The concept of risk in renting property tends to draw blank stares. After all, you have insurance on the property. You have a lease. What's the problem?
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Posted February 18, 2008 - 06:53 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Shopping, Technology
I've watched other Mac lovers fall away from the True Faith, one-by-one, but I never thought it would happen to me. However, yesterday when we brought home the newest addition to our Mac family, an 80 Gb iPod Classic, it would be my turn to be disillusioned. After you pay the hefty $249 price tag, plus an extra $30 for a wall charger (they used to bundle those in for free), plus $55 for the composite AV cable for your TV, plus any other little extras you may need, there is a hidden cost that blows up in your face when you get it home.
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Posted February 15, 2008 - 16:14 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Budgeting, Lifestyle
In my previous post about the hardships of life on a six figure income (queue strings), I mentioned in passing that we had a $4000 veterinary bill for our dog. A couple of people mentioned veterinary health insurance. Nala was actually too old to have qualified for insurance at the time she died. We would have had to have signed her up when she was younger. After Nala died, I checked out veterinary health insurance plans, hoping to save ourselves the same ordeal with our new puppy, Chewie. When I studied details of several plans, I concluded that these insurance programs are not a good deal for pet owners.
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Posted February 13, 2008 - 08:08 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Frugal Living, Career and Income, Budgeting, Lifestyle, Making Extra Cash
Nowadays, six figures is still above average, but its buying power in terms of lifestyle may have eroded even more than the value of a dollar, as those of us within striking distance of six figures have learned to our regret.
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Posted February 11, 2008 - 07:10 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Frugal Living, Deals and Coupons, Shopping, Food and Drink, Budgeting, General Tips, Deals, Coupons
First, I will commit heresy by saying that I no longer write a full weekly menu.
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Posted January 14, 2008 - 10:11 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance, Frugal Living, Shopping, Budgeting
A new study out today in PNAS confirms what we always suspected was true. The higher the price you pay for a product, the greater your subjective experience of pleasure in the product. For a tightwad like me, that's a no brainer. Of course people think that expensive stuff is better. Most of the time, I feel a smug satisfaction knowing that I can enjoy the same quality for a fraction of the price, or free. But here's the kicker. That pleasure experience is real, according to Caltech researchers Hilke Plassmann, John O'Doherty, Baba Shiv, and Antonio Rangel. At first I felt that this was clearly the devil's work, but as I was polishing the cobalt blue enamel on my Aga range this morning, I had a change of heart. Maybe, sometimes, pleasure is worth the price we pay for it.
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Posted January 3, 2008 - 07:00 by Catherine Shaffer
Personal Finance
The trouble started innocently enough. For as long as I can remember, Grandma bought a lottery ticket each and every week. She promised us, her children and grandchildren, that when she won (not if), she would solve all of our financial problems. Grandma was the ultimate giver. She was generous with her time, her love, and especially with food. A child of the Great Depression, she has a love of abundance, and a dread of hunger and deprivation. It is her personal tragedy that these motives led her to total financial ruin late in life, as she willingly handed her life savings, over $100,000, to con artists and thieves.
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Posted December 29, 2007 - 11:56 by Catherine Shaffer
Frugal Living, Shopping, Deals, Coupons
Couponing and bargain shopping are not for everyone. It takes some time to clip the coupons, organize them, and keep track of sales at all of your favorite stores. But since I've gotten into it, I realized I was missing out on some very simple deals. A number of retailers and manufacturers run perpetual sales or coupon deals on products such that you would be a chump to pay full price for them.
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Posted December 28, 2007 - 15:37 by Catherine Shaffer
DIY, Green Living
What if there was a way to honor the beauty and intentions behind your received Christmas cards, while at the same time allowing you to get rid of the darned things without guilt? By cannibalizing the cards your friends and family send you, you can save your conscience, save the earth, and save a buck.
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