With the beautiful weather comes the desire to get out there and do things – things that often cost money. Going out for ice cream, or a drink, or even cruising around in a car all have a cost associated.

As I sit alone in Halifax’s gorgeous Public Gardens (oh to have hang-out friends that don’t move away) I can’t help but wonder how many activities cost absolutely no money (or very little) and yet are enjoyable. Some are obvious, and yet we often take the expensive route for some reason.

For the sake of this entry I’ll focus on two things that do not require companions, as much of the time I don’t seem to have any. In addition to helping you save money, they may even lead to some earnings as well.

1. The Write Way

Considering that this entry is the product of my having sat down to write, I’ll recommend this one first. While you may not consider yourself a writer, per se, it is beneficial to express yourself via the written word.

You don’t even need a particular subject or genre of writing – just get it on paper. You’ll be surprised at the quality of your own thoughts when you let them spill from your pen. Writing soothes the soul, as far as I’m concerned. You might even discover a hidden passion, and be able to create something worthy of selling.

Recently, my co-blogger Henry reviewed a website that allows freelancers to bid on jobs, creating an online community to enable employers and freelancers to connect. This inspired me to mention a website that I discovered that may very well enable you to publish some of your writing, should you choose to try it out.

Once upon a time it was a very daunting and time-consuming task to write a book and send it off to publishers. If self-publishing, it could get very expensive.

Enter this website, and many others like it I’m sure. With LuLu.com you can publish a WIDE range of things, such as paperbacks, comics, cookbooks and much more.

There are no setup fees and it’s possible to publish only as you need books. You can also view some of the books that others are publishing through LuLu. It is a veritable community of publishers and readers. The winner last year of a Web 2.0 Award in the Books category, this website could help YOU make money from your ideas. Check it out!

2. Take Your Pic

If writing is not your thing, try taking some photographs. You don’t have to own an expensive digital camera, or even a digital camera at all. A standard 35mm cam (even a disposable one) will serve the purpose.

In this age of instant gratification it can be nice to take photos that can’t be seen immediately. It might encourage you to take your time and be selective of your shots. A lot of us have snapshots or candids of our friends, but not enough of us explore the world around us via the camera lens. You’ll see things you’ve previously missed – even within yourself.

If you’ve ever searched for photos online you’re no doubt aware of the fact that some websites exist for the sole purpose of being a catalogue of images for professionals and amateurs alike to make use of (for a price). One such example is iStockphoto.com and I’ll let them tell you exactly what they do:

iStockphoto is the internet’s original member-generated image and design community. Find your inspiration on the world's leading royalty-free stock destination. Search for over 3 million photographs, vector illustrations, video footage and Flash files. Buy stock or sell stock — or both.

I joined the site about a year ago when I was at the peak of my photography interest. I honestly have not uploaded anything yet, but I do receive emails from iStock that give all kinds of tips and tricks related to photography. It is in their interest to help you become a better artist, to increase the quality of their product. If you’re interested I highly recommend checking out the top downloads and considering why they might be.

Clearly, beautiful images sell well but try to consider what themes or ideas buyers might be after. Things like freedom, innocence, beauty, success or struggle are all things that someone might need an image to represent. Other times it’s simple: they need a good frog pic.

If you search the Internet, you will find dozens of other similar websites to the two that I have mentioned. I personally think these are some of the more popular ones, but feel free to dig around and even use several of them. Don’t be afraid to try your hand at writing or photography. You might find a hidden talent! You might even be able to blog about stock photography, like best-selling microstock photographer Andres Rodriguez has. Above all, have fun with it.

Is It Time To Break From Online Life?

The other day, on a gloomy afternoon, a friend of mine and I went to the library and played a little game. I know what you’re thinking: how does the library have any connection to games or anything remotely related to fun?

Well, I hope to convince you that sometimes it’s nice to face books, and not computer screens (as I write to you on the Internet and you read it on your computer screen). So the deal was that we had to find books related to four topics we had agreed upon, with a fifth that was a wildcard of our own choosing. Before the 25-minute time limit expired on the workstation, we had to find the titles and would then proceed to embark on our curiosity-quenching quest. Upon finding the books, we’d compare to see who found what – the goal being to have the more interesting book.

Here were the results:

1. I actually had a lot of fun doing this.

2. I ended up borrowing 5 books.

3. I learned some crazy things previously unknown to me.

4. I spent NO money in the process.

5. I got away from the computer screen for a bit.

Alright, so the example above may be entirely too geeky for your taste, but the fact is that libraries don’t have spam, x-rated links, flashing windows and other distractions that exist online. As I looked for my selections, I did not come across books titled Congratulations You Are the 1 000 000th Visitor of This Book or Win a Free Binder. There were no books that popped out of the bookshelf, trying to get me to read THEM instead of the books I searched for. Mind you, I DID end up finding other books but this didn’t involve being taken away from the task at hand. In short, it was nice to learn things - with good company - without all the nonsense that can come with researching online.

If you are fortunate enough to have a local library, I strongly suggest that you take advantage of its many benefits. In addition to books there are also:

· audio books - have someone else read the book TO you

· CDs - remember these round relics?

· DVDs (VHS?) - why pay to rent them?

· Instructional classes - learn a plethora of useful skills

In all likelihood, all of these things are available to you at no cost whatsoever. I have probably watched over 200 movies courtesy of the library (over $1000 in savings) and have discovered (re-discovered) tons of music as well. The only cost is late fees, and those are entirely within my control. Take some time and catch up on some blockbusters or classics, and save loads of cash in the process. I know I have, and will continue to.

What do YOU do that costs you very little money but provides much enjoyment? I’m curious!

I've put together this video about 10 easy tips to waste more of your money! If you're into wasting money, definitely follow these tips and you'll be well on your way to an emptier wallet.

You are, aren’t you? You may not want to admit it, but I’m willing to bet you cringe a little at the thought of going into a bank and discussing your money with someone. Well, you should re-think your position if that’s the case.

Unexpectedly Exciting

I recently sat down with Laura Dingwell, an Account manager at my local RBC branch, and I can honestly say it was one of the best-spent hours of 2008 (even better than half of Lost’s season finale). Well, that’s a close one. Depends which half. Anyway, my intention was not even to blog about it, but I left feeling so invigorated and empowered that I had to share it with all of you. Seriously, go talk to someone. You owe it to yourself.

A Little Help, Here?

My goal was to make sense of money and figure out how to make it work FOR me rather than against. This will differ from person to person, but let me share what I took away from my meeting with Ms. Dingwell. First of all, it turns out that I had met with her years ago to discuss my Royal Credit Line, and upon recognizing my name she made a point of checking to see why I seemed familiar. Maybe it was curiousity, but I think she genuinely cares about her clients. I certainly felt that I was a person and not just some numbers on a computer screen. Here are the top three things Ms. Dingwell motivated me to do:

1. I’m starting (later than I’d like) an RSP!

   Using the RSP Calculator found at the top of this page (seriously, this thing is pretty cool) she showed me, reluctantly, the difference that 8 years – from 20 to my current age – has already made on my future savings. It’s scary. The amount has roughly been cut in half. Do it NOW! Well, finish reading this, THEN go. I’m not kidding. You’ll be glad you did. Laura (I think she’d be cool with me calling her that) stressed the importance of starting earlier than later. If you’re unclear about just how an RSP works, here's a great page on RBC's site about the specifics.

2. I’m starting an ACTUAL savings account!

   While I do have an account that is called a savings account, it contains the money I use on a regular basis. Attached to my debit card, it is no place to put money I wish to protect from my spending. RBC has a High Interest E-Savings Account, which clearly has a higher interest rate than my current savings account. The plan is to have $25 from each paycheque automatically transferred into this account, as well as into an RSP. And the beauty of it all is that I can get it all done within a few mouse clicks and nickname all my accounts to reflect what they are (rather than generic “savings”). $50 a month may not be much, but it’s better to do SOMETHING rather than nothing at all.

3. I’m creating a savings account for BILLS!

   The final step of my trifecta is to set up another E-Savings Account, in which money for bills shall reside. The idea is to separate it from MY money, as we are all guilty of looking at our account balance and falsely believing more of it is ours than is actually the case. You might have $1250 in there but in the next month $1100 might be spoken for. Wouldn’t it make sense to remove at least an approximation from this pile, as to reduce confusion? Laura tells me that paying FROM an E-Savings Account is quite costly (the site says $5.00 each), so it would be wise to automate a transfer back to my general savings account and to pay the bills from there instead.

Now It’s Your Turn

Well, there you have it. It may not seem like much, but compared to my previous habits (and I suspect many of yours as well) this should help straighten out my finances. You may not like ANY of these ideas, but the point is that I was inspired to take these steps after speaking with Ms. Dingwell. I would highly recommend that you make an appointment to see someone, so you can tap into your financial truths. Seriously, bankers aren’t that scary. You might even have fun, as I did in my meeting!

Second edition of Behulsive Compaviour: Qwertyous Communication. More to come!

While researching Emergency Funds for my follow-up to this entry, I came across a poll at SavvySugar asking whether Starbucks should do away with the tip jar. Having worked several jobs that incorporated tips, I figured I would weigh-in on the topic. I’m sure most of you encounter someone who works for tips, at least once a week. Servers, baristas and bartenders all have their hourly wages bolstered by tips, but let’s take a closer look.

Who Deserves A Tip?

Once upon a time tips were given to those who delivered exceptional service. Having been a server in a busy waterfront restaurant I can attest to the amount of work that goes into it. I had people bus my tables, seat guests, deliver food to me and make my drinks and I STILL ran off my feet much of the time. Even then, I sometimes only received a couple of dollars for (what I considered to be) my excellent service.

And yet, in a matter of minutes of busy morning-time coffee rushes it’s possible to make that same couple of dollars in tips. I’ve done the coffee thing as well, and it’s not that difficult when it runs smoothly. Even less difficult is opening a bottle of alcohol or pouring a glass of draught. This isn’t to say that bartending isn’t challenging, but people often tip as much (or more) for those simple tasks as to someone providing service on a full meal. Seems backwards.

How Much Should You Tip?

The industry standard is 15% of the tab, which in my province is roughly the sales tax. Personally, if I receive excellent service I like to reward that person. Being busy with other customers can be expected, but incompetence or rudeness will lower my tip. Consider a server who spends an hour taking care of you, clearing dishes, refilling drinks, making recommendations and ensuring an overall pleasant dining experience, all the while managing to do the same for multiple tables. It can be tricky business.

If the bill was $23 (after tax) then 15% would be $3.00, and yet it is not absurd for someone serving drinks to earn that much on 6 drinks, which may take a total of less than one minute per drink. Why don’t we value food service as much as someone helping to intoxicate us?

What About The Exceptions?

In addition to having been a server and slinging coffee, I have also worked at a fast food establishment. I can honestly say that I worked as hard, if not harder, serving those customers as my coffee customers. And yet, no tips. It simply wasn’t even an accepted practice. Why does this double standard exist?

EDIT: Upon recently visiting a popular fast food place and NOT lovin’ it, perhaps I see why there’s no tipping.

Back to the poll, approximately ¾ of respondents say that Starbucks should do away with tips. I wonder what their reasoning is. If it’s because they’re a large company, so are many other (tip-accepting) coffee places and restaurants. If it’s because the prices are higher, then I guess we should stop tipping when we buy other items that carry a high profit margin.

The article mentions that Eric Felten, of the Wall Street Journal, claims that the tip jar subsidizes the company's payroll costs, which I can understand. Such a large company, that no doubt makes hefty profits, could surely afford to pay employees higher wages if taking the tip jar away required them to do so. And yet, the same could be said about countless other companies.

What are YOUR thoughts? As a trainer of mine used to say: Any questions, comments, concerns? Rants, raves, or reviews?

What Steps Have YOU Taken?

Such A Boring Name For Such An Important Thing

Let’s start calling them “****-hits-the” Funds instead. That’s what they are, right? You may recall that about a month ago I wrote about Emergency Funds. Well, here’s a follow-up to that entry. The topic is still pretty hot in the blogosphere, and that may have to do with the fact that the world is facing an increasing number of disasters and catastrophes, thus validating the need for such funds. Or maybe it’s just one of those topics that is SO important that there always remains something to be said. Either way, here I go again.

You Better Ask Somebody

Just today I went to my local RBC branch to make an appointment to analyze my accounts, and see what I can do to make the most of my situation. The goal is to slowly set some money aside for myself. The main thing I am looking to do is to separate my current savings account from money I actually want to save. I know for a lot of students a savings account doesn’t really hold savings, so much as a pool of money from which all expenses come.

What Can 4% Do?

My other employer sets aside my 4% vacation pay (Emergency Funds are nowhere near as fun as a vacation, though) as opposed to including it on my paycheque. While there’s not THAT much money in my Vacation Pay, in the roughly 10 months that I have worked at that job I nonetheless have access to money that was put aside automatically for me. The point is that a small percentage of monthly earnings can accumulate quickly, and I didn’t miss that 4%.

Where Will That Extra Money Come From?

For those among you that feel you don’t really have any extra money to put towards such an Emergency Fund, SavvySugar has some advice on how to find some surplus coin, over at her blog. While a couple of the points may be straightforward, the idea is that we all have things that we do that are wasteful and by cutting back on such things, extra money then becomes available.

Should Debt Come Before An Emergency Fund?

Over at I’ve Paid Twice For This Already, there is an important question asked that I think sums this debate up perfectly. The whole blog entry is well worth reading, but consider what the author has to say:

Be honest with yourself - what would be the psychological ramifications for you of having to increase your debtload if (when) an emergency happened?

Make Sure You Have Easy Access

FrugalDad (one of the hottest names in money-related blogging right now, and sort of my blogger idol) makes a great point about making sure that at least some of your *gulp* Emergency Funds can be accessed quickly and easily. After all, if there is an EMERGENCY, there’s no time to waste with transfers and 2-3 days for processing times.

Well, that’s my kick at the Emergency Funds can. Hopefully at least a few of you have decided to consider doing the emergency funds thing. It’s like sooooo chic right now. Do it. You know you wanna.

This entry is dedicated to someone very dear to my heart, who recently moved to follow her life path. We have the type of relationship that allowed us to share many things, and that is the message I want to communicate in this blog entry. I hope that you have someone in your life with whom you can undertake the challenge that I am about to put forth.

Dare to share!!

What does this mean? Well, I’ll tell you. My friend and I would often get together and talk over food and drinks. Being the money-conscious people that we are, and thanks in large part to her suggestions, we would often share these. Surprisingly, even pizza slices (they can get pretty huge in Halifax, mind you) were adequate when shared. In addition to feeling like we had eaten enough, there were other benefits. Thanks, Crystal!

Save Your Money

You’ll be shocked at how much money you can save by sharing meals, rather than each ordering full-sized portions. It’s a great feeling knowing that you can dine out without worrying about how rent is going to get paid.

Reduce Waste

Not only did we save money by choosing to share, but we always felt satisfied afterwards.

And we could take comfort in knowing that no food was wasted. A lot of plates return to the kitchen, only to be emptied of leftover food. Sharing helps cut down on this waste.

Reduce Your Waist

There is no denying that I love food. I don’t like leaving any food on my plate, and that can be a problem when it leads to eating more than is necessary. It’s a fact that our portions are generally oversized in North America, so try sharing with someone who is willing.

Enjoy Dessert

You’ll have enough room left (without stressing over money, since you saved on the main course) for dessert. You may even shed a couple of pounds in the process if you consume enough of the main course to feel full rather than consuming a full portion just because it’s in front of you.

In honour of my friend I will, from this point forward (assuming I can find someone else who wants to share with me), call this act of splitting costs and portions “crystallizing”. Maybe. At the very least I will think of her when I do it in the future. I hope you find your own precious Crystal and dare to share. I’m glad I did.

Here's a short webcomic that I've started to work on called Behulsive Compaviour.

Let me know what you think!

If you’re anything like me you enjoy watching movies on the big screen. Some movies just have to be seen in the theatre in order to fully immerse ourselves in the experience. It’s no secret that movie theatre profits have dropped since the emergence of the anything-you-wanna-watch-you-can-pretty-much-find-online age. In many cases, the quality of these movies is pretty terrible, but I think viewers have become increasingly willing to sacrifice that quality if it means saving money. After all, it’s pretty expensive going to the movies, right?

Tickets

I have personally seen the price of movie tickets increase from $7 and some change to the current $10 price for adult tickets, in the span of a few years. A lot of people (myself included sometimes) complain about the cost of movie tickets, but honestly it’s not that much more expensive than renting movies from the larger movie chains. I would much rather see certain movies on the big screen, even if (for some reason) there are still times when the picture has lines, pops, scratches and other visual annoyances. In the age of HD everything, I would like to see a much clearer picture, but compared to my 17” laptop screen it’s a pretty fair trade-off for the chance to enjoy a larger-than-life picture.

There are ways to spend less money on tickets, such as attending matinee shows, special screenings and trying to hunt down coupons. I’ll admit that these do not always amount to huge savings, but $10 is a decent price to pay for a good show. The problem is, of course, that not all movies are created equal. I recently read an interesting article online that gave an explanation for the pricing structures that movie theatres employ, and it involves everyone’s favourite complaint – the cost of concessions.

Food

Think about it. What is popcorn? It’s mostly made of air. And the fountain drinks are sugar, water and some carbonation. The average cost of getting a reasonably-sized combo of these two is probably anywhere between $8-$10. Add that to the cost of the movie ticket (transportation, babysitter, etc) and you’ve got a pretty expensive night out, especially if the movie consists of all the funny (scary, thrilling) parts from the trailer plus 1 hour and 40 minutes of filler. But the article that I mentioned above gives the following as the reasoning for the higher-than-seems-humanly-reasonable price of concessions, based on research from Stanford and the University of California:

The findings empirically answer the age-old question of whether it’s better to charge more for a primary product (in this case, the movie ticket) or a secondary product (the popcorn). Putting the premium on the "frill" items, it turns out, indeed opens up the possibility for price-sensitive people to see films.

Makes sense, doesn’t it? Either they charge more money for the food (that you don’t HAVE to buy, although it sure is tasty) or more for the ticket. If the ticket was even more expensive, then less people would attend movies altogether, which would then increase costs even more. By charging more for the food, it ensures that those who wish to watch movies without buying food can do so without spending $15-$20 on a ticket. And it’s not like owning and operating a movie theatre is cheap. Have you seen the size of these things? Now comes my favourite thing to complain about, the arcade/entertainment area and the scandal that is TOKENS.

Entertainment Zone

Remember the good old days when you’d hop on your bike with a pocket full of quarters and ride on over to Simon’s General Store? You’d run in, excited to be young and alive, go into the basement and you and your friends would spend hours pumping quarters in Golden Axe, Outrun, Street Fighter and of course Double Dragon. Ah, nostalgia.

“Hey boss, I have a great idea to make more money on arcade games.”

(boss urges industrious employee to continue)

“Well, you know how currently games take quarters and people can get 4 quarters for a dollar? What if we did away with that system and replaced with one that required the customer to use tokens instead.

(boss asks what the difference is between getting 4 quarters for a dollar and getting 4 tokens for a dollar)

“No, no. You don’t understand. They would only get THREE tokens for a dollar!!”

And thus began the beginning of one of history’s greatest (or, worst) scams. Seriously, this drives me insane.

First of all, nothing in these arcades is really worth playing except one thing: air hockey. And in most cases, it takes tokens. Alright, I’ll play your little game I guess. Except that, yup, it takes 4 tokens. But 1 dollar equals 3 tokens. So you have to put in 2 dollars, which gives 6 tokens. Six minus four leaves two tokens. And what takes 2 tokens?! NOTHING takes 2 tokens! Except maybe those impossible-to-win-no-matter-what-you-do games that tease you with stuffed animals that can NOT be grabbed onto with that joystick-controlled claw. So you bring them home, in hopes that the next time you go back you will bring them with you. But you don’t. So they win. You paid for something that you never even got to use.

So, as you can see it’s not all THAT bad. You just have to know how to control the spending and decide what’s more valuable to you. Do you want food and games? Then you’re going to have to cough up some dough (these two words don’t even come close to rhyming!). For now, I’m off…to the movies, I think. Have a marvelous week.

Numbers Don’t Lie, But Do They Fib?

The other day my friend Andrew told me about this great deal he had found in a flyer from a local big box technology store. Being the tech geek that he is, and knowing I could appreciate the item he was coveting, he showed me a bluetooth mouse and exclaimed “Dude, it’s only $19!”. Usually, I would agree that $19 is a phenomenal price for such a device, but being the skeptical frugalitarian that I am I examined the details of the offer:

regular price: $89
instant savings: - $30
mail-in rebate (MIR): - $40

Total cost: $19

MIR-er, MIR-er On The Wall…

Personally, I detest mail-in rebates (and even their first cousins, the online “easy” rebates) and refuse to buy products that have them. As consumers we often look at the bottom line without considering where the savings come from. In Andrew’s case, with the mouse, the price is not $19 plus tax. The price he will pay is ($89 - $30, or $19 + $40) plus tax and then the mail-in rebate comes off. So in Nova Scotia that would be $66.67 minus the $40 MIR, which equals $26.67. For any of you mathematical naysayers out there, I realize that this amounts to a mere $5.20 more than if the item had been $19 plus tax. Regardless, that’s almost a 25% increase over how we see calculate things when simply using the $19 as the price point.

In many cases, the difficulties that often arise with these non-instant rebates are not worth the potential savings (not everyone who applies for these follows all the appropriate steps required to actually RECEIVE the rebate). If you’ve ever tried qualifying for one of these you may recall the agility and flexibility required to jump through the many hoops. While I will readily admit that $40 is a substantial amount to save and that many customers will have no issues in redeeming them, I am still personally hesitant. It should be obvious to most of you that companies count on a large percentage of customers NOT redeeming their rebates. In fact, only about 50% of customers actually do.

…Who’s The Fairest Of Them All?

The rebates that are especially deceiving are the ones that involve mailing in for $7 (or some other minimal amount that customers likely won’t bother with). And yet, how many people would consider the $5.20 mentioned above to not be a big deal in our miscalculations of savings, and yet somehow see the $7 as something they insist they’ll mail in for? In fact, I am willing to bet that some of you recently bought something that had a mail-in rebate valued at $10 or less, and that you never bothered to fill it out. It’s no use looking for it, it’s too late now. If you had, though, and spent an hour clipping, filling it out, mailing it, checking on the status and then cashing the cheque you essentially would have worked for less than minimum wage. Some retailers, like Best Buy, have realized how annoying these MIR’s are and have decided to opt out.

I used to work in a call centre and dealt customers mistakenly calling into our department looking for their rebate status. I was in sales and service, but would routinely try my best to get the information from the rebate people. I can assure you that my contacting them helped tremendously, so if you ever have problems try contacting the place from which you bought the item to see if they can help at all. So many of these customers were extremely upset with the numerous complications that would arise in the rebate process. That experience made me vow to stay away from these tempting - but often elusive - “discounts” and save myself the unnecessary stress. That, to me, was worth more than saving the couple of dollars offered by the rebate.

Dude, The Math

It remains to be seen whether Andrew will decide to purchase the mouse and how that rebate process will go down. If you gain nothing else from this post, just remember to consider whether a mail-in rebate is really worth the potential problems. Should you decide to take advantage of these rebates, here are some tips to help you out. Don’t let the ads suck you in with their slick numbers when the reality is that you’ll likely end up paying full price, due either to your own unwillingness/forgetfulness to send in the required documentation or the mountain of obstacles in recovering what is rightfully owed to you. And no, that asterisk in the title doesn’t lead anywhere – much like many of the ones I see in ads