The app itself is called MyNewPlace--you can find it in the iPhone app store by searching for "MyNewPlace"--and you'll find the Notes & Photos feature on each property's listing page.
This is a phenomenal post, Julie! I especially loved the organic rap video. Those ladies look like they had a ball making it. Thanks for the link too, by the way.
Earthworm castings is worm poop and sells for big bucks. A small bag sells for around $25 around here. Buy some red wigglers or try to get some off freecycle.org and they will go to work processing your kitchen scraps and creating worm castings. They also readily multiply and can be sold as bait worms.
I want to amplify the parking comments for vacations. This is a critical step in places like Disney World due to the vastness of the parking and the blur of a busy vacation. It would also apply to airport parking, since you could be away from your vehicle for days. Also, be sure to get your license plate in the pic--the Unofficial Guide notes that there are a whole lot of similar-looking white cars rented in Orlando (and probably other places, too).
One thing we did learn, though--it's a real drag digging back through the pics to find that one of the car. Our solution was to use my cell phone's camera for the car location, and our regular cam for everything else.
A low tech solution I've found that works miracles for the organizationally unmotivated is a good old fashioned accordian file. It keeps everything neet and organized in A-Z order, and if you have more than the file can hold, it's time to prioritize and toss!
At the end of one year, put a large rubber band around it, and file it under 2007, 2008, 2009 etc. Neet and easy for simple minds like mine.
As a full-time traveler, I have found my beloved digital camera useful in a number of ways (beyond taking pretty pictures):
1) I use it as a backup of official documents, such as passports and identification. That way if it goes missing, I have somewhere to start. Sometimes I also need to provide a copy of my driver's license for example, and all I have to do is print out the picture.
2) It makes a great alternative to a scanner. I had to fill out an application for insurance not so long ago, and I was able to take photos of each page and email them in, instead of scanning and emailing them.
3) And as Jamie G indicated above, taking a picture of a document you mail in (for example for a rebate, or anything else that you might like to retain a copy of without wasting paper), is a great use of a digital camera too. I have done this many times.
My clunker doesn't qualify. It was passed down to my wife & I by her dad... and he was smart enough to not get a car bigger than he needed.
I just bike all journeys with less than 50 pounds of cargo shorter than 5 miles. I worked it out and I can pretty much own any car but a Hummer and still burn less gas than I would were I to be driving a Prius on all of those trips.
The weight loss and sexy muscles aren't bad either.
I really liked this story and relate quite well to this entire subject. I grew up in a lower-middle-class family "Down South" with five kids and learned the "clean your plate" lesson quite well. It was only when I was 18 and went away to a Northeastern college that I realized there was indeed something, well, gauche, about the whole notion of the clean plate, whether that meant sopping up the extra sauce or gravy with a roll or just plain not leaving any leftovers. I am now in my early 50s and having spent my entire adulthood in the NY/NJ/CT area, it seems to have grown increasingly more abundant. It shows up in wierd places and my wife (a truly misplaced Depression baby) sees it a lot as a stay at home mom. She was quite upset when the room mother at our son's holiday party tossed the six hardly-used Wilton cake-icing containers into the trash without asking her first. Then, when you DO ask, they make you feel like a pauper or a street person.
There is something cultural to it: I have noticed that the people of the Baby Boomer generation and younger are the worst offenders. It's almost as if they are still rebelling against the scarcity and frugality "imposed" on them by their parents - when in fact a lot of it is just plain common sense. If there could ever be a bright note about the current recession, it might be a correction in people's attitudes about abundance!
Connie, perhaps you should learn to read. I specifically said it was a debit card even in the title. I have several credit cards, and none of them had an initiation fee or monthly fee. It depends on what type of credit cards you get. Yes, there are overlimit fees, but you can avoid that by not spending over limit.
It's funny to see a 50's tv show portaying happy small town America and the picture we see now. Decayed family atmosphere, pulpit pimps asking for money, and the dead american dream corrupted by Washington and Wall Street every day we breathe. Yes, it gets worse as a terminal cancer patient losing their body weight and physilogical functions. I am a former oilman and I can tell you "WE are sold out and screwed". We are a fearful nation scarred to go to bed at night because we have created a monster known as the media that tells us what we are, what we need, and what is righ or wrong. I blame me first and then pittiful you, begging for your Latte, I-phone, and winter home we need so flipping bad. Then, we turn the screws and give less and take more and say "how is this crumbling and why are WE the elite making less". Because we are Filth-pigs who manipulate weak minds. We steal your tax money through subsidies, laugh when you vote for our corporate affiliated officals, and loop our money between friends. We have names like "honorable, corporate, secret society, good ole boys,traders, and academia". To clarify myself, I got away from this thinking and was ostracized by those who corrupted me into this process of corruption. Don't believe the lies= war for freedom=saudi-american oil group, EPA=closing of refineries and increases in oil prices,Mafia-caddo parrish louisiana-arbusto. nuffsaid. go back to sleep morons
The program worked great for me. I had an older Dodge Ram 1500 truck that threw a rod. Apparently this happens a lot because it was difficult to find a used engine and once found was expensive. A new engine with a guarantee cost only $500 more. Even with the bad rod, the truck still ran and therefore qualified for the klunker program. Used vehicles have become so popular that I was unable to find a decent used vehicle at a good price, so for me the program was a winner.
I think that often times people want to be someone they are not and then when they get to the top they crack and can't handle the pressure.Success is in your mind and with that in mind the sky is the limit for everyday life.You may be doing what you really love right now and might find out after 50 years later.Granite I am 25 YEARS OLD I understand alot and stay up on the news and in theses times you should be happy to have a place called home. duzi33@hotmail.com
As for the final recourse, it depends on where you live, as to whether small claims court etc will be viable options. It also depends on the amount of the outstanding account. Sometimes (if it is a smaller amount) it makes more sense to write-off the debt (which can be a tax deduction in some cases).
This post saved my home life and my sanity in 12 hours. It helped me get peace in my own home and it showed me that almost all the companies I deal with are willing to bend and break the law. I have been on the receiving end of many horrible threats this entire summer. Predictions of gloom and doom and the loss of my home, marriage, and my ability to take care of my kids. In just 12 hours they have changed their tune and I have gained control and no longer have fear in my life daily. Fear, they use it so easily as if it was a just another tool. I am done being a victim and done being threatened
@Michael Dell - Thank you so much for your perspective on haggling. It is my stance that if a business can afford to negotiate, they will. If they authentically set their profit margins so there is no leeway, then they will not budge on price (but most businesses do indeed have that margin). So although I don't believe that haggling will lead to depression, I may be naive.
Goodness knows, most of the rest of the world outside of North America EXPECTS to haggle, and paying the asking price is almost never done.
Consumerist blog suggested that you take a picture of your mail-in rebates to show that forms were filled out correctly and the receipt was included, along with any other requests for proper refund application. I thought it was a good idea!
As the founder and current COE of Dell Inc, I can tell you from a macroeconomic perspective that constant haggling is a economic weakness that lies at heart of our country in the 21st century. The foundation of our economic superiority is built unpon the massive spending of our people, which satisifies and encourages both small and large businesses. Businesses, in turn, expands and hires more workers to accelerate production and innovations. The demolishing of such key structure will not only result in a national depression but also have a critical impact among the rest of the world.
Taking advantage of far fetched discounts for yourselves such as haggling is both selfish and morrally wrong. Furthermore, it has an significant negative impact among everyone else.
Thanks for the shout-out about the MyNewPlace apartment search iPhone app!
The app itself is called MyNewPlace--you can find it in the iPhone app store by searching for "MyNewPlace"--and you'll find the Notes & Photos feature on each property's listing page.
This is a phenomenal post, Julie! I especially loved the organic rap video. Those ladies look like they had a ball making it. Thanks for the link too, by the way.
Check out my various projects and services at Itinerant Tightwad. I also have a monthly education newsletter.
Earthworm castings is worm poop and sells for big bucks. A small bag sells for around $25 around here. Buy some red wigglers or try to get some off freecycle.org and they will go to work processing your kitchen scraps and creating worm castings. They also readily multiply and can be sold as bait worms.
Part of a parent's responsibility is to prepare their children for the real adult world and that includes learning to handle money wisely.
I like the accordian file.. my problem is trying to fit it all in one. Motivating, anyway!
Thanks!
Linsey Knerl
I want to amplify the parking comments for vacations. This is a critical step in places like Disney World due to the vastness of the parking and the blur of a busy vacation. It would also apply to airport parking, since you could be away from your vehicle for days. Also, be sure to get your license plate in the pic--the Unofficial Guide notes that there are a whole lot of similar-looking white cars rented in Orlando (and probably other places, too).
One thing we did learn, though--it's a real drag digging back through the pics to find that one of the car. Our solution was to use my cell phone's camera for the car location, and our regular cam for everything else.
A low tech solution I've found that works miracles for the organizationally unmotivated is a good old fashioned accordian file. It keeps everything neet and organized in A-Z order, and if you have more than the file can hold, it's time to prioritize and toss!
At the end of one year, put a large rubber band around it, and file it under 2007, 2008, 2009 etc. Neet and easy for simple minds like mine.
Great uses, Julie!
As a full-time traveler, I have found my beloved digital camera useful in a number of ways (beyond taking pretty pictures):
1) I use it as a backup of official documents, such as passports and identification. That way if it goes missing, I have somewhere to start. Sometimes I also need to provide a copy of my driver's license for example, and all I have to do is print out the picture.
2) It makes a great alternative to a scanner. I had to fill out an application for insurance not so long ago, and I was able to take photos of each page and email them in, instead of scanning and emailing them.
3) And as Jamie G indicated above, taking a picture of a document you mail in (for example for a rebate, or anything else that you might like to retain a copy of without wasting paper), is a great use of a digital camera too. I have done this many times.
My clunker doesn't qualify. It was passed down to my wife & I by her dad... and he was smart enough to not get a car bigger than he needed.
I just bike all journeys with less than 50 pounds of cargo shorter than 5 miles. I worked it out and I can pretty much own any car but a Hummer and still burn less gas than I would were I to be driving a Prius on all of those trips.
The weight loss and sexy muscles aren't bad either.
I really liked this story and relate quite well to this entire subject. I grew up in a lower-middle-class family "Down South" with five kids and learned the "clean your plate" lesson quite well. It was only when I was 18 and went away to a Northeastern college that I realized there was indeed something, well, gauche, about the whole notion of the clean plate, whether that meant sopping up the extra sauce or gravy with a roll or just plain not leaving any leftovers. I am now in my early 50s and having spent my entire adulthood in the NY/NJ/CT area, it seems to have grown increasingly more abundant. It shows up in wierd places and my wife (a truly misplaced Depression baby) sees it a lot as a stay at home mom. She was quite upset when the room mother at our son's holiday party tossed the six hardly-used Wilton cake-icing containers into the trash without asking her first. Then, when you DO ask, they make you feel like a pauper or a street person.
There is something cultural to it: I have noticed that the people of the Baby Boomer generation and younger are the worst offenders. It's almost as if they are still rebelling against the scarcity and frugality "imposed" on them by their parents - when in fact a lot of it is just plain common sense. If there could ever be a bright note about the current recession, it might be a correction in people's attitudes about abundance!
Connie, perhaps you should learn to read. I specifically said it was a debit card even in the title. I have several credit cards, and none of them had an initiation fee or monthly fee. It depends on what type of credit cards you get. Yes, there are overlimit fees, but you can avoid that by not spending over limit.
It's funny to see a 50's tv show portaying happy small town America and the picture we see now. Decayed family atmosphere, pulpit pimps asking for money, and the dead american dream corrupted by Washington and Wall Street every day we breathe. Yes, it gets worse as a terminal cancer patient losing their body weight and physilogical functions. I am a former oilman and I can tell you "WE are sold out and screwed". We are a fearful nation scarred to go to bed at night because we have created a monster known as the media that tells us what we are, what we need, and what is righ or wrong. I blame me first and then pittiful you, begging for your Latte, I-phone, and winter home we need so flipping bad. Then, we turn the screws and give less and take more and say "how is this crumbling and why are WE the elite making less". Because we are Filth-pigs who manipulate weak minds. We steal your tax money through subsidies, laugh when you vote for our corporate affiliated officals, and loop our money between friends. We have names like "honorable, corporate, secret society, good ole boys,traders, and academia". To clarify myself, I got away from this thinking and was ostracized by those who corrupted me into this process of corruption. Don't believe the lies= war for freedom=saudi-american oil group, EPA=closing of refineries and increases in oil prices,Mafia-caddo parrish louisiana-arbusto. nuffsaid. go back to sleep morons
The program worked great for me. I had an older Dodge Ram 1500 truck that threw a rod. Apparently this happens a lot because it was difficult to find a used engine and once found was expensive. A new engine with a guarantee cost only $500 more. Even with the bad rod, the truck still ran and therefore qualified for the klunker program. Used vehicles have become so popular that I was unable to find a decent used vehicle at a good price, so for me the program was a winner.
Great article. I hope I can find the 3 Fs for my next job.
I think that often times people want to be someone they are not and then when they get to the top they crack and can't handle the pressure.Success is in your mind and with that in mind the sky is the limit for everyday life.You may be doing what you really love right now and might find out after 50 years later.Granite I am 25 YEARS OLD I understand alot and stay up on the news and in theses times you should be happy to have a place called home.
duzi33@hotmail.com
D.
Thank you for the comments!
As for the final recourse, it depends on where you live, as to whether small claims court etc will be viable options. It also depends on the amount of the outstanding account. Sometimes (if it is a smaller amount) it makes more sense to write-off the debt (which can be a tax deduction in some cases).
This post saved my home life and my sanity in 12 hours. It helped me get peace in my own home and it showed me that almost all the companies I deal with are willing to bend and break the law. I have been on the receiving end of many horrible threats this entire summer. Predictions of gloom and doom and the loss of my home, marriage, and my ability to take care of my kids. In just 12 hours they have changed their tune and I have gained control and no longer have fear in my life daily. Fear, they use it so easily as if it was a just another tool. I am done being a victim and done being threatened
@Michael Dell - Thank you so much for your perspective on haggling. It is my stance that if a business can afford to negotiate, they will. If they authentically set their profit margins so there is no leeway, then they will not budge on price (but most businesses do indeed have that margin). So although I don't believe that haggling will lead to depression, I may be naive.
Goodness knows, most of the rest of the world outside of North America EXPECTS to haggle, and paying the asking price is almost never done.
Consumerist blog suggested that you take a picture of your mail-in rebates to show that forms were filled out correctly and the receipt was included, along with any other requests for proper refund application. I thought it was a good idea!
Great tips here, thanks for this!
12. What’s your biggest weakness? The best answer... I AM A PERFECTIONIST!
ummm...this seems unsafe and unwise....good try though
Thanks for the comments, and awesome tips! I'm learning lots (you never stop learning as a traveler - that's half the fun!)
Great blog, you made some great points here, thanks for this!
As the founder and current COE of Dell Inc, I can tell you from a macroeconomic perspective that constant haggling is a economic weakness that lies at heart of our country in the 21st century. The foundation of our economic superiority is built unpon the massive spending of our people, which satisifies and encourages both small and large businesses. Businesses, in turn, expands and hires more workers to accelerate production and innovations. The demolishing of such key structure will not only result in a national depression but also have a critical impact among the rest of the world.
Taking advantage of far fetched discounts for yourselves such as haggling is both selfish and morrally wrong. Furthermore, it has an significant negative impact among everyone else.