Paul Michael's blog

Do you know how to use a parking meter? Serious question.

I thought I knew the answer to that. Admittedly, I’ve only been driving for seven years and rarely park in downtown Denver, where most of our parking meters are located. But I had

Bit of fun turns into $10,000

In my recent post about eBay Motors, I recounted the story of a seemingly worthless car that sold for over $226,000. But this next story is bizarre. What turned out as a sarcastic

Hoopde for sale. Starting price - $500. Winning bid - $226,521.

I love stories like this. It gives me hope that one day, something “worthless” sitting in my garage will instantly fill up my daughters’ college funds. In this case, the seemingly

What will you do when gas drops below $1.50 a gallon?

Several months ago, I wrote an article asking what you would do when gas prices skyrocketed. Now, the price of gasoline is in freefall. It’s already dipped below $2/gallon in some

Use only what you need

That’s the advice from a beautifully-executed campaign from Denver Water, right here in my own backyard of Colorado. The campaign (created by Sukle Advertising, a very smart, strat

Musings inspired by the crappiest of films — Demolition Man.

I saw that film about 15 years ago, and I remember liking it at the time. I also liked stone-washed jeans and neon t-shirts, but I have since come to my senses. However, one nugget

Blood, gore and hairy warts; a DIY Halloween makeup guide.

It looks like we’ve got a little Halloween fever here at Wise Bread. Following on from Andrea’s great story on homemade costumes, I thought I’d add some flavor with homemade Hallow

Sears goes a little crazy - sweaters starting at 99 cents!

Very quick and super deal for you folks, to follow my vent on mortgages. And considering what I was saying, we need to save every penny we can. Anyway, Sears is going a little gaga

Should We All Just Stop Paying the Mortgage?

Should you take advantage of the $700 billion bailout plan to help struggling homeowners and stop paying your mortgage?

Download the 451-page bailout proposal

Well folks, I hope you have plenty of time on your hands. The initial 3-page document that Bush and Paulson put forward has grown somewhat. It's hardly surprising, considering how

In times like these, separate the want from the need.

I remember saying to my dad, a long, long time ago, that I really needed a whole bunch of He-Man action figures for Christmas. Oh, and Battlecat, too. My dad looked at me, a hopefu

The most important FREE piece of paper you'll ever receive.

It is the foundation for the way the United States Government is organized. It is the supreme law of the U.S. And It was adopted on September 17th, 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvan

How I got two CEOs to listen to my complaints

Here’s a shining example of how Wise Bread writers not only read each others stories, we also follow the advice. And in my case, it worked like a charm. I’m two for two, and I plan

Could the last person to leave America please turn out the light.

I don’t know about you, but I’m more than a little worried by recent economic events. First Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, then Lehman Brothers, and now an $85 billion loan to AIG. So

My disgusting fake game show asks "What would you do for money?"

I’ve written before about morality and pride taking a back seat to cash rewards. With today's game shows scraping the bottom of a very deep barrel, it amazes me what people will do

To change the bulb, just remove the bumper. Wait, what? - UPDATED.

I was warned. I had been a loyal Honda owner for my entire driving life. But, after realizing that my Honda Civic Coupe was just too awkward for my growing family, I started lookin

51 Uses for Coca-Cola – the Ultimate List

I was trawling the Internet recently searching for a way to remove a grease spot from a favorite shirt of mine. How it got there, well, I blame a faulty fork and not my clumsy mout

Would you sell your vote?

Being a humble Green Card holder, I don’t have a vote here in the US (makes me wonder about that old “no taxation without representation” line, but that’s another story). Anyway, a

One genius little button that's saving me a whole bunch of time

How many times do you click on a link to an article, video, image or anything else of interest and want to visit the homepage of that site? It happens to me all the time. Sometimes

Regifting: A Simple How-To Guide

As the saying goes, one man's trash is another man's treasure. It's OK to regift as long as you follow a few simple guidelines.