Money Wasting, Money Wasting

If you haven't taken the time to keep a detailed account of your daily expenditures for a month (or a week at least) you really should do it as it may really open up your eyes to where all that money goes that you supposedly receive from those twice-monthly cheques. And as I'm sure you're well aware, it's not the monthly rent, car payment, cell phone bill, etc. that get ya (although they certainly do their part), it's the little things that really add up to suck the savings out from under you.

It's been called many things but most notably in recent years it's been trademarked as The Latte Factor by David Bach author of many best-selling financial literacy books. I would highly recommend you read at least one, my wife and I read Smart Couples Finish Rich. The title sounds rather petty and materialistic but one of the foundations of his financial planning approach is to view your choices based on your values.

Today I read an article outlining what various 'normal' expenditures can add up to including unused memberships, interest on credit cards, and daily lunches out during the work week. Here's a couple examples (Note figures are based on U.S. prices... add 20% for CDN):

1. Coffee -- According to the National Coffee Association, the average price for brewed coffee is $1.38. There are roughly 260 weekdays per year, so buying one coffee every weekday morning costs almost $360 per year.

4. Bottled water from convenience stores -- A 20-ounce bottle of Aquafina bottled water costs about $1. One bottle of water per day costs $365 per year. It costs the environment plenty, too.

5. Manicures -- The Day Spa Magazine Price Survey of 2004 found that the average cost of a manicure is $20.53. A weekly manicure sets you back about $1,068 per year.

7. Weekday lunches out -- $9 will generally cover a decent lunch most work days. If you buy rather than pack a lunch five days a week for one year, you shell out about $2,350 a year.

9. Interest charges on credit card bills -- According to a survey released at the end of May 2007, the median amount of credit card debt carried by Americans is $6,600. Rate tables on Bankrate.com indicate that fixed interest rates on a standard card average 13.44 percent. Making the minimum payment each month, it will take 250 months (almost 21 years) to pay off the debt and cost $4,868 in interest. Ouch!

The rest of the Top 10 Money Drains.

The Front Lines

Whether you agree with the foreign policy decisions that eventually led to the current wars in Afghanistan & Iraq the fact is that the wars were started, power vaccuums created and now peace keeping and simply completion of the initial missions is crucial as to not create complete and utter chaos in the region.

That being said most, if not all, Western reporting on the subject is viewed from a negative viewpoint and rarely is anything other than the latest fatality reported.

Michael Yon is a self-funded, independent journalist who has been embedded with several units from both the United States and British forces within the region. Michael has been with several units during ambushes and fire fights with unwanted results. To get a new perspective check out Michael's website. (Unfortunately he hasn't yet embedded himself with the Canadian Forces... I imagine there's not enough donations from our little country to support his projects.)

I really enjoyed the Death or Glory series: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV.

Crazyness: Part Deux

I've been posting a number of interesting and normally humourous video clips on my random blog. Today is no exception. Unfortunately this one can't be embedded but I'll provide the links below. It's a three-part YouTube series from Switzerland on "buggy rollin". What's 'buggy rollin'?! Well, it's basically one of the craziest things you could dream up.

Start with a medieval armoured suit, add in the following sports: street luge, roller blading, motorcycle riding, and anything else that might be considered completely psychotic and you've got 'buggy rollin', 31 wheels of 'buggy rollin'! My description doesn't really do it justice so here you go... Jean Yves Blondeau Buggy Rollin in the Swiss Alps:

Buggy Rollin - Part 1

Buggy Rollin - Part 2

Buggy Rollin - Part 3

Navigating your Greenity

How do we make choices that are more green? Choices that will help the planet or at least not damage it? How do we reduce our carbon footprint?!

There's so much information out there and I've discussed some of it before. Suggestions that most would agree with include walking whenever possible, buying organic, driving a hybrid automobile, and of course always using paper and not plastic.

This morning I came across some 'facts' excerpted from a new book by Chris Goodall titled How to Live a Low-Carbon Life. NOTE: I call them 'facts' as statistics can be tweaked to serve almost any end goal so as such take this with a grain of salt.

Shattering the great green myths

— Traditional nappies are as bad as disposables, a study by the Environment Agency found. While throwaway nappies make up 0.1 per cent of landfill waste, the cloth variety are a waste of energy, clean water and detergent

— Paper bags cause more global warming than plastic. They need much more space to store so require extra energy to transport them from manufacturers to shops

— Diesel trains in rural Britain are more polluting than 4x4 vehicles. Douglas Alexander, when Transport Secretary, said: “If ten or fewer people travel in a Sprinter [train], it would be less environmentally damaging to give them each a Land Rover Freelander and tell them to drive”

— Burning wood for fuel is better for the environment than recycling it, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs discovered

— Organic dairy cows are worse for the climate. They produce less milk so their methane emissions per litre are higher

— Someone who installs a “green” light bulb undoes a year’s worth of energy-saving by buying two bags of imported veg, as so much carbon is wasted flying the food to Britain

— Trees, regarded as shields against global warming because they absorb carbon, were found by German scientists to be major producers of methane, a much more harmful greenhouse gas

Sources: Defra; How to Live a Low-Carbon Life, by Chris Goodall; Absorbent Hygiene Products Manufacturers Association; The Times; BBC

Article Link.

One Crazy Thing, One Awesome Thing...

First... the crazy:




Don't worry, he's okay. But that must have really hurt. OUCH!

Second... the awesome:




Get your own Michael Vick Dog Chew toy here!