If you ever feel like there is nothing in the house to cook for dinner, but you have a few eggs in the refrigerator, then a frittata might be what you’re looking for. It is a simple meal that gives you the protein that you need to help you feel satisfied at dinner. Here is a recipe for an easy […]

Shhh, insider secret: Consumer product companies want you to be slaves to trends.  Companies that produce automobiles, clothes, furniture, electronics, etc. are all dependent on repeat business (in marketing terms: retention rates) and the only way they can get customers to buy a product again is to argue that their older product is outdated and now has a newer version available.  […]

There’s something about Warren Buffett that makes me feel warm and tingly all over and it’s not his net worth of $62 billion!  Rather it’s a combination of his personality, habits, and life philosophy.   I first saw Warren Buffett on Charlie Rose (he and Charlie are very good friends) and become captivated with him from the get go (I remember […]

With temperatures beginning to drop and cold winds battering against our 83 year old house, we’ve been giving serious consideration to replacing our original, single pane, wood windows.  Our windows also include storm windows that, at one point, guarded against strong gusts of wind (but they are pretty much non-functional at this point). We do like the aesthetics of our […]

There have been some great blog posts on the web this past week focused on happiness and savings, frugal living, how to talk about sensitive money/job issues, etc. and here are the best of the lot: – Trent @TheSimpleDollar talks about Happiness and Saving for the Future – JD @ Get Rich Slowly posted a nice article on great wine […]

One of the first things I do in the morning (even before I have a cup of coffee and say good morning to my wife!) is turn on NPR (National Public Radio).  Listening to the news wakes me up and gets my brain going in the morning and I’m grateful that NPR is available as a free (well, somewhat free; […]

I received a recent email from Dee asking how to prepare real meals (i.e., not your standard sandwiches, tuna, and fast food items) in a practical way and I’ve been giving the question some thought.  Cooking is not rocket science, but it does require that you 1., care about the quality of the food you purchase and 2., set aside […]

Trent over at The Simply Dollar blog had an interesting post this morning on “A Long December”; that is, how, for many American’s December will be a tough month given job cuts, gift buying pressue, investment/401K performance, and the poor economy in general. Trent’s post got me thinking about my childhood and how my parents (pic: that’s my mother on […]

As I sat in my home office this morning the book, “The Millionaire Next Door” stood out prominently on my wood bookshelf.  The book stands out because it’s a classic in the personal finance world and can be easily understood by everyone.  I often re-read chapters of the book and can really identify with most of the content in the […]

Given that most of you will likely be interacting with family and friends on Thanksgiving Day, I thought I would offer some “how to” tips on getting along with your dinner companions: – Be nice. Getting along with people is not rocket science.  If you’re coming across as cold, snobby, and unwilling to engage in a conversation, you’ll most likely be […]