(Photographer’s conception)
Another carnival? Believe it. The Totally Money Blog Carnival is the brainchild of Crystal, founder of Budgeting in the Fun Stuff, who describes herself as “a late-20s, very happily married woman who is the definition of middle-class”, lives in Houston and owns 2 dogs.
(The “very happily married woman” part has to be to thwart cyberpervs, right? Otherwise it’d be an endless barrage of “Yeah, like, uh, Crystal…just a note to tell you that I really like your blog and I was wondering if you, like…hey, I’m going to be in Houston sometime, we should get together sometime.”)
Anyhow, Crystal gets it. And by “gets it” we mean “isn’t scared to let Control Your Cash host a blog.” Yes, Bank Nerd is taking a week off. So here goes. Actual blog posts from actual bloggers (and a couple of Indian remote assistants, evidently):
Every time we hear Roger the Amateur Financier, we can’t help but think of Roger the Engineer, because we’re a) huge Jeff Beck fans and b) old. This week Roger reviews an awesomely titled book, Getting Loaded, and includes a helpful explanation of the expression “don’t judge a book by its cover”.
Speaking of awesome names, Odysseas Papadimitriou gave us a guest post last week. (It seems the moniker Greeky Grecian had already been taken.) Anyhow, he’s back with a WalletBlog exclusive on the death of free checking. Thank you, Senator Dick Durbin, for proving government’s beneficence yet again.
Sen. Durbin and his cronies Sen. Chris Dodd and Rep. Barney Frank aren’t even close to done yet, either. Marjorie at Card Hub explains how when our elected representatives cap debit card interchange fees, it forces card issuers to find other revenue. And means merchants can ultimately set minima for card purchases. How convenient.
Phil at PT Money gives us an audio offering this week, his interview with a guy who makes money hosting online video contests and who looks like a contemporary Freddie Mercury.
(Submission deleted due to atrocious spelling. Unless Warren Buffett legally changed his name to Buffet between the 2nd and 3rd paragraphs, stay consistent. Also, the plural/possessive apostrophe thing. Shame, because the content wasn’t horrible.)
Our first list post! Stupid Cents recites 7 things you shouldn’t do when you receive a windfall. Briana draws on her windfall-receiving experience to let us know that gambling away what you receive is not a good idea. Repeat, NOT a good idea.
For a blog whose founder and logo both sport big smiles, Jim Yih’s Retire Happy Blog has something of a downer post on retirement. You might have to support your kids, or your grandkids, or your grandparents, or your…you know what? Do the smart thing and keep working until you die.
If you’re like us, you find it insulting that you’re still receiving mail in 2011. Tim at Faith & Finance looks at the staggeringly obese white elephant that is the United States Postal Service, and offers some suggestions to keep her viable. Good luck.
Dr. Dean at Millionaire Nurse Blog offers 15 recommendations on what not to do financially when a natural disaster takes you out. Our favorite line: “Stay calm…someone needs to be the Russell Crowe in the family.” Isn’t he the actor who screams at hotel desk clerks and throws telephones at them?
Another one. This is from Jen at Master the Art of Saving. She’s the only lady in the history of the internet who blogs about trying to both save money and lose weight.
We looked at this last post late at night, and initially thought that the uncapitalized rothira.com was the website of an underpublicized Japanese monster who does battle with Godzilla and Rodan. Instead, it’s Kevin Mulligan’s blog about…well, you can probably figure it out. This week he argues that you should automatically reinvest your dividends, unless you shouldn’t.
This week’s “infomercial masquerading as a blog post” is from Glen Craig at Free From Broke, who reviews the awesomest company ever, TD Ameritrade.
There’s nothing more fun than when ladies touch on sports. Our carnival matriarch, Crystal at Budgeting In The Fun Stuff, shares the story of Prince Amukamara. He’s a rookie defensive back for the New York Giants (she left that part out, they’re the team that has those pretty blue uniforms with the red trim), who learned how to haggle at a car dealership instead of pulling a Floyd Mayweather and throwing his money wherever it will land. Prince proves that not all sociology graduates (Nebraska, ’11) are financially inept.
His last name is Vachon, and his blog is called The Frugal Toad? That one took us a second, but we got it. This week he explains buying a car vs. leasing. (Helpful hint, Monsieur V.: if you’re assuming your readers don’t know what a lease is, they probably don’t know what the acronym MSRP means.)
Now THIS is what we’re talking about. Shaun at Smart Family Finance again runs the numbers on how college grads make more money than people who only have high school diplomas. Of course, he didn’t bother breaking down those college degrees by discipline. The women’s studies major who’s in a better financial position than the licensed electrician who got a 4-year head start on earning money while not incurring student loans has yet to be born. Also, going to college apparently still isn’t enough to help a professional writer distinguish between homonyms.
Ever wonder how sites like Beezid can auction off iPads that sell for $5? Bob at Christian PF explains the inner workings of this unseemly sector of commerce.
Scott McCartney at the Wall Street Journal, er, Dough Roller, examined the major airline loyalty programs and figured out which ones make it easy to redeem your rewards.
If you buy stuff in bulk, you can save money. But you need to have a place to store it, and you shouldn’t buy perishables that will rot. There’s a freaking revelation. Thank you, Kelsey at MoneyMom.com.au.
(One submission per customer. Read the directions.)
One of our new favorites is Shawanda Greene at They Call Me Cheap. She sums up her submission more succinctly than we could: “How to make money if you have a criminal past, you’re an illegal immigrant, or you have bad credit…there are no excuses for not earning money.”
Tired of squandering money on cigarettes, extended warranties and vehicle undercoating? Kyle Berks at the oxymoronic Safe Online Payday Loan tells you how to find “reputable” lenders who will charge you triple- or quadruple-digit interest. It seems he’s serious.
Are all Australians retarded, or just the ones who submit to carnivals? Andy Boyd at MyBusiness.com.au thinks you should learn your company’s rules on personal use before using your company credit card. Another secret of the universe uncovered, right here.
Finally, our Editor’s Picks:
Tangible investment advice that you can apply? No way. Dan at ETF Base has it. Shorting Treasury bonds isn’t for everyone, but Dan shows how to make it work (and more importantly, discloses everything.)
Sure, you think you know what an income statement is. But if you can’t tell the difference between one and a balance sheet or a cash flow statement, you need to read this magnificence by Nelson Smith at Canadian Finance Blog. Now might also be a good time to mention that CFB hosts next week’s Carnival. Oh, and that Nelson’s own Financial Uproar is hosting the Carnival of Wealth.
From T-bonds to their more ephemeral cousins, T-bills. Everything Finance explains how even though Treasury bills are the quintessential safe investment, they might not be for you.
Paula at Afford Anything says what we’ve been trying to articulate for years: The world is oversaturated in money management advice, and yet so many people are deep in debt. Why? Where are we screwing up? She nailed it. Amen.
Darwin at Darwin’s Money rounds out our Editor’s Picks, with this colorfully illustrated post on how old people are screwing us over with their incessant refusals to hold onto stocks and to die.
Next week, the Totally Money Blog Carnival sets sail for Canadian Finance Blog. ‘Til then.
