Money Tips Network

What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to summaries of five or fewer words. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question.
1. Finding health insurance
2. Dealing with food inflation
3. Thinking about job offer
4. Enough shopping around?
5. Return of premium life insurance
6. Craigslist scammer
7. Debt after death
8. Costco math
9. List of principles

Here's an interesting infographic on the crazy way we work.

I'm going to pick out a few of their facts and comment on them.

70% of American workers experience stress-related illnesses.

I can relate to this.

I never knew what a toll stress was taking on my body until I retired. I could literally feel the stress melting away over time. It took about six months for me to fully de-stress after working almost 30 years.

Of course, too much stress is not good for any of us. In this way, our jobs are slowly killing us every day.

33% more heart attacks occur on Monday mornings.

Uh, yeah. Because 1) people hate their jobs and 2) there's a lot of stress there. No surprise here.

I want a raise. It's a thought that most people have at some point or another. After all, you're an outstanding employee. You work hard. Of course you deserve a raise.

A yearly or biyearly raise is common, but not a guarantee.

The seemingly straightforward task of trying to book a hotel can turn into a complicated ordeal if you're not sure how best to go about it. Just choosing from the large number of booking sites out there can be a puzzling undertaking in itself.

Tax season is upon us, which means millions of Americans will be stressing out about filing their IRS forms correctly and whether they will receive a refund this year.

But just because getting ready for Tax Day can be emotionally taxing (see what I did there?) doesn't mean it has to be.

The Mediterranean diet can fix several of a consumer’s problems, but not their budget.

Incorporating dietary staples of many countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, the Mediterranean diet places heavy emphasis on plant-based foods (fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts) and swaps in oils for butter, herbs and spices for salts, and fish and poultry for red meat.

When my wife proposed it this year — as we have a few weddings coming up and enjoyed a bountiful holiday season — my initial response was “of course, that’s what I always ate.”

Student loans are not just a burden to young college grads, but to those nearing retirement age as well. Many Americans who have to choose between saving for retirement and paying for a child's college education opt for the latter.

That can be a problem.

Traveling with kids can seem prohibitively expensive.

Designer suits, handbags, shoes, and accessories — these are often visual displays of wealth and success.