Celebrating the best in personal finance! Flexo from Consumerism Commentary devised up these Plutus Awards, and they encompass everything from the best savings account to the best personal finance blog around. And many of you nominated Budgets Are Sexy for 7 incredible categories!!! Un-fing-believable (you can't see me right now, but I'm tipping my hat and paying you some major respect).

Here are a few of the categories we're up for: "Best Personal Finance Blog for Generation Y or X," "Best Multi-Part Series" (for the blogger showdowns), "Best Micro-Blog" (@BudgetsAreSexy), "Best Designed Personal Finance Blog," and "Blog of the Year!"

Thank you guys so much, it means a lot :) You can check them out and vote here, but regardless I'm totally honored to be in the mix with these guys. My congrats to Enemy of Debt, My Next Buck, Man vs. Debt, The Centsible Life, Squawkfox, Good Financial Cents, Well-Heeled, Financial Samurai, the infamous Punch Debt in The Face, Bargaineering and all others who've also been nominated. Cheers!

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging, thank you

I cannot freakin' believe it. It seems like just the other day I was buggin' Clever Dude & Mapgirl for some blogging tips at over drinks ;) I even remember my very first commenter - Chicky from Chicky Finance! (remember her?). Two years of writing almost every single day, crazy man.

And I'm still just as excited today as I was 2 years ago. A bit more busier (like, 10x more!), but it's been completely worth it. Every single day. All your comments, tweets, emails, guest posts - everything continues to inspire me and keep me on track, esp. financially. You think twice about spending crazily when you know you'll be blogging about it later!

So this achievement is more about you guys than me, because without you I'd have been long gone by now ;) No one likes talking to the wall! haha...and while I may or may not blog full-time down the road, I can honestly say I'm 100% happy with what we've accomplished up to this point. Everything forward is just gravy. Here are some interesting stats over the years:

• Budgets Are Sexy has over 765 posts.
• Gathering over 5,000 comments!
• We've had one site redesign.
• And recently hit 1/2 Million page views! (Damn)
• Been featured on the front page of MSN, on Consumerist, LA Times & even a magazine!
• Even better, our net worth has more than doubled from $58,000 to $138,000.
• Courtesy of wiping out all debt (except mortgages), and maxing out 401(k).
  
• And I've somehow kept my anonymity?!
• And more importantly, my job ;)

Who knows what will happen over the next 2 years, but from our very first post to today's, it's been an incredible journey and I can't wait to keep on going! You all are brilliant and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. THANK YOU thank you THANK YOU!

God Bless,

Labels: about j., blogging, thank you

Yes, but I'm starting to question myself. I wake up - think about blogging. During work - I think about blogging I blog. When I get home, I tweet/email/do blog stuff. For someone who naturally doesn't like to write, it's all very strange to me. (although my wife would say this is more like "talking" and networking than "writing," and I think it's true.)

I liken it to my early years when all I thought about was women ;) But now that I'm married, it's more like having a mistress instead - a mistress that goes by the name of Budgets Are Sexy! Ow ow! At first I thought it was just a phase, but here we are 2 years later and my passion is only growing for her. It's just so damn exciting! The question though, is whether I'm addicted. And I just may be.

Which brings me to my point today - I think I need a vacation. More specifically, I think I need to join all our friends on a 10-day Eurotrip this Spring! (didn't see that one coming, huh?). The more I learn about money, the more I realize the importance of spending it on things you truly value - and not to hoard it. I always TRY to keep this in mind, but the reality is I don't. I save and save and save, and then I get addicted and never want to spend any of it! Haha...I'm not saying it's totally bad, but it's def. not the most healthy.

If there's one thing I have never regretted in life it's traveling. And even more so with my crazy friends and all their crazy significant others. It may slow down my millionaire plan for a bit, but traveling always repays you back in "life experiences." And in all honesty that's a lot more important to me than more money in the bank.

So instead of making up excuses and worrying about missing all my money AND my blog stuff, I'm gonna say F it and just do it! Yes, I WILL go on that trip with all you, friends :) This blog will be fine without me for a little while, right? And doesn't the iPhone work in Europe anyways? haha... it will surely be expensive, and you know I'll blog about it later, but I think it would be stupid of me to pass on such a once-in-a-lifetime adventure like this. As the saying goes, you can always find ways to get more money, but you can never get your youth back!

Labels: blogging, life, travel

Today I'm caving into peer pressure and doing a BudgetsAreSexy "Best of '09" edition. I know it's a little late, but it's not like I follow the rules anyways :) We've got a lot of new readers on the site, and I think it would be cool to dive in and see what the most read stories were last year. A great way to catch up and get to know each other, eh?

Below are the Top 10 most visited posts from 2009 - with a few swapped out like my "about" page and some of the other navigation links up there. Half of these were on my top list too, but a few surprised me. Here's what we've got:

1. Confessions of an Online Poker Player - Definitely one of the most buzz-worthy articles since this blog has started. Only problem being, it wasn't written by ME! Haha...if you were around back in August, you'll remember this was a post a friend of mine did for us so we could get a behind the scenes look on what it's REALLY like playing poker as a living.

2. How much do you pay for car insurance? - A cool post where I explore the average costs of car insurance, along with a our own. Even more interesting though are everybody's comments and amounts THEY pay too. Including a crazy friend of mine who blows through $1600 every 6 months!

3. The awesomest compilation of weird & crazy jobs - And also one of my very first media mentions! I asked around the internets for people's craziest jobs they've done, and then combined them with mine for an all out fun & entertaining article.

4. Living the Minimalist Lifestyle - Is it possible? - This was by far one of my personal favorites of '09 :) I remember being so in the mood to write it, and then having fun drawing up the little diagram too. I still haven't quite mastered the minimalist lifestyle (or even to the half-way mark) but I continue to work at it a little each month and one day it'll all come together.

5. 20 Black Friday tips on Wacky Wednesday - I thought about taking this one out since it's seasonally focused, but after re-reading it you could really apply most of these tips to just about *any* shopping trip.

6. Net Worth Updates - This is something that's REALLY kept me going. We don't get a chance to talk about money so openly in our daily lives, so it's nice (at least for me) to throw it all out here and get some real-number discussions going. It may hold me back from going un-anonymous, but I think it's truly the piece that holds everything together. All the how-to's and ways to save are awesome, but this is the one place where you can see whether I put my money where my mouth is - literally ;)

7. Where, oh where, does our $exy money go? - Similar to my net worth statuses, this is another post dedicated to all you voyeurs out there! haha...It's also the one that can make you feel better if you're not spending the roughly $6,000 a month we are. Or at least what we were last January. I'll have to redo this again soon to see how much we've changed.

8. Blogger Showdown #1: J.D. Roth vs. Trent Hamm - This one surprises me....I knew the start of this series got popular, but in the Top 10? I'll take it! It's good to know you all enjoy these as we're about to drop another Blogger Showdown tomorrow - woohoo!

9. Ahhhh! We can't refinance our 1st mortgage :( - This was one of those rare times I just lost it and decided to rant...there's not many things that get me riled up like this, but I had to let it out so I could move on ;)

10. To combine, or not to combine finances? How the married do it - I get into how the Mrs. and I handle our finances, along with some of the reasons behind it. And I'll give you a hint - we like to keep a little independence. Or what I like to call, some "do whatever the hell you want" money!

Labels: blogging

I've mentioned before that I've got my phalanges in a variety of projects around town, and one of these has just launched! I'm no founding father, but I do believe it's going to change a lot of lives so I'm excited to be a contributing writer :)

Baker over at Man vs. Debt summed up the site perfectly, so I am stealing from him:

Untemplater.com is a multi-author site focused on helping GenY'ers answer that one burning question… "What the hell am I gonna do with my life?" Content will fall into Business/Entrepreneurship, Personal Finance, Mobile Lifestyle, and Self Improvement categories.

Excited? No? Well check out the Free UNTEMPLATER Manifesto the founders pulled together. It's a great snapshot of what you can expect from Untemplater, and will hopefully inspire change in ya.

Labels: blogging

Here it is baby, our very own BudgetsAreSexy Newsletter! You might not be as excited as I am (after all, it is pretty nerdy), but I promise each and every one of you should get something out of it :) That is, if you enjoy talking finance yes? Or at least getting free money.

You'll get a financially loving email personally delivered to your inbox once a week (and only once a week), and some will be packed with giveaways!

Here's what else the V.I.P. Newsletter will give you:

• Updates on anything cool! Like top secret news, fresh tips, blurbs, ideas, quotes, new blogs/projects in the works, etc.
• Random Giveaways. Books, subscriptions, gift cards, you name it... always on the look out for free stuff for you!
  
• A list of all my posts for the week. I know, I know, you just can't get enough ;) I figured I'd help out and list them in case you missed any though, that way you can click on just the ones you find interesting.
• Coupons and special promotions. You wouldn't believe the offers people want to pimp on my site. Some I list, others I don't, but I'll start including them here in case they help YOU.
• Requests for your help! Like, say if I need a specialist in money laundering or something? Or perhaps your thoughts on a new financial gizmo or poll in the works? I want to give you the opportunity to play as big a role in BudgetsAreSexy as you like.
• Other awesome stuff. Stuff that I can't think of right now ;)
  

{If you can't see the web form, click here to sign up}
Thanks everyone! See you on the other side,

Labels: blogging, vip newsletter

Man, lots of great stuff going on this week! Budgets Are Sexy got featured in the L.A. Times (Holler), was made into a Comic Series!, and had an awesome time answering some fun (and unique) interview questions over at Clarifinancial. AND and AND.....drum roll please.... I've started working on a new blog!!! I can't give it away just yet, but it'll be a fun little side project still centering around finance and PERFECT for those with A.D.D. ;) Which, is like 90% of you, right?

OH! And I'm also gonna start a new Budgets Are Sexy newsletter! This is still in the works as well, but it'll probably go out once a week (only) and feature special giveaways, news, tips, and anything else we come up with JUST for those who sign up - cuz you'll be V.I.P. like that. So yeah, all good things to think about (and if you have any ideas of what you'd like to see in said V.I.P. newsletters, let me know!) Are you excited yet? You should be :)

Fave Articles:

1. 45 of the weirdest college scholarships @ Zen College Life - Hahaha...sure are weird!
2. 3 Reasons you are poor @ Big Fat Moneybags - There's def. some truth to this.
3. Top 10 financial stories of the decade @ My Dollar Plan - Wish I could forget ;)
   
4. Why The Affordable Home Really Isn't @ Wisebread - Homes are expensive!
5. Getting rich quickly will make you poor @ Quick Sprout - So don't win the lottery? ;)
6. Frugally and naturally fighting Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) @ Fighting Foreclosure - I know what you mean. Gotta get lots & lots of sunlight!

Carnivals Participated in:

1. Festival of Frugality - hosted by Negotiation Board.
2. Carnival of Personal Finance #235 - the "Cinderella" ed. by Well-Heeled With a Mission
3. Carnival of Twenty Something Finances - hosted by How I Save Money.
4. Money Hacks Carnival XCV- the "Tiger Woods, We Hardly Knew Ye" ed. hosted by Len Penzo.
5. Carnival of Money Stories #32 - "Winter is Here" ed. hosted by Canadian Finance Blog.

Labels: blogging, in the media, weekly roundup

Just when you thought finance couldn't get any more exciting - the guys over at Credit Card Finder come up with a whole new PF Comic series! And lucky ol' me gets picked as one of the featured bloggers ;) I can now retire! haha...although I must admit I'm much uglier in real life....so uhh....yeah. Click the image to start the adventure! (and keep your eyes open for the 3 easter eggs)

Labels: about j., awesomely awesome, blogging, lottery

I've been blessed like crazy since launching Budgetsaresexy. We have have received over 350 THOUSAND hits since the debut in Feb '08, and 600 posts later we're still rockin' :) And it's all because of YOU, the readers & fellow pf bloggers, that this blog is still around. Seriously, I appreciate every last comment, tweet, email, everything. THANK YOU! You sure know how to get a brother excited.

Here is the list of mentions so far across all media, big blogs, "top" lists, and now magazines! (well okay, there's just 1 right now in that last department but still! SEXY!):

In The Media:

Consumerist: 2009: The year free office holiday parties went bye-bye (12-24-09)
MSN Money: Weirdest College Scholarships (Editor's pick! 12-23-09)
MSN Money: Uncle Sam will pay for your golf cart (linked 12-18-09)
L.A. Times: Bloggers share their tips for frugal living (12-13-09)
MSN Money: The $100 Scratch-Off Lottery Project (12-1-09)
WSJ: Mint.com Launches 'Money Tweets' Delivering The Best in Personal Finance... (11-12-09)
CNN Money: Mint.com Launches 'Money Tweets' Delivering The Best in Personal Finance... (11-12-09)
PC World: Mint Puts Twitter To Work (11-12-09 in the picture! haha...)
MSN Money: Why Are You Asking About My Salary Again? (11-10-09)
MSN Money: Cheap And Last-Minute Halloween Costumes (10-30-09)
Wise Bread: 3 Ways Paying Off Credit Cards Is Like Playing Beer Pong (10-22-09)
Consumerist: What's the Difference Between a HELOC and a Second Mortgage? (10-16-09)
Oregon Live: Links: I-Bond rates and Premier Bank's 79% interest credit card (10-16-09)
Scholastic Parent & Child Magazine: September Issue (1st Magazine Mention!!!)
Wise Bread: Top 5 Articles of the Week (9-17-09)
MSN Money: Should Wedding Guests Pay For Their Meal? (9-14-09)
Consumerist: Saving Money Is Better Than Sex (8-27-09)
Everyday Money (MSN): Survey says: Saving money is better than sex (8-27-09)
MSN Money: Secrets Of An Online Poker Player (Editor's Choice & hit front page of MSN! 8-7-09)
Consumerist: Pitfalls Of Being A Pro Poker Player (8-5-09)
MSN Money: How Do You Manage Your Financial Success? (7-3-09)
Glamour: Little Miss Fortune: Sex, Love & Life (Blogroll!)
MSN Money: Money Lessons Learned The Hard Way (7-31-09)
MSN Money: Money Genie Can Fix Your Financial Mistakes (6-3-09)
The Art of Manliness: How To Be A Financial Stud (Quoted) (5-26-09)
MSN Money: Your Choice: Butt-Ugly And Loaded Or Poor And Sizzlng HOT (3-17-09)
MSN Money: The Awesomest Compilation Of Weird And Crazy Jobs Ever (Front page of MSN! 2-5-09)
MSN Money: It Pays To Blog About Bad Customer Service (12-16-08)

Interviews:

Clarifinancial: Fresh Perspective Interview With J. Money (12-14-09)
No Debt Plan: Subscriber Swap Saturday: Budgets Are Sexy (2-28-09)
A Gai Shan Life: Interview: J. Money of Budgets Are Sexy! (2-19-09)
FiLife (A WSJ Partner): Pocket Profile: J. Money From Budgets Are Sexy (2-12-09)
Studenomics: PF Blogger Interview: J. Money (2-5-09)
Holly Is Stopping Shopping: Five Frugal Minutes With...J. Money At Budgets Are Sexy (10-13-08)
Budgets Are Sexy: Interview: Me on Me (haha... 2-12-08)

"TOP" Lists:

Technorati: Top 100 Business/Finance Blogs
Wise Bread: Top 100+ Most Popular Personal Finance Blogs
Facebook (Networked Blogs): Top 50 Blogs in Personal Finance (#2)
Facebook (Networked Blogs): Top 50 Blogs in Budgeting (#1)
Facebook (Networked Blogs): Top 50 Blogs in Budgeting (#8)
Credit Card Finder: Top 25 Most Badass Personal Finance Blogs
The Happy Self: 10 "Un-Boring" Financial Blogs You Need To Read
Fire Finance: Top 100 Personal Finance Blogs - Ranked By Traffic
Evan Carmichael: Top 50 Debt Blogs To Watch In 2009
The Debtress: The Debtress 100 Best Financial Blogs
10 Links A Day: Money Blogs - Saving Money is the New Black
Efinancial: America's Top Financial Bloggers
Online Degrees Hub: 100 Inspirational Blogs For Life After College
Political Calculations: The Best Blogs We Found in 2008
PaydayLoans.org: 50 Best Financial Blogs

Twitter Stuff:

Mint.com: MintLife Blog | Personal Finance News & Advice
Wisebread: Top 100+ Most Popular Personal Finance Blogs On Twitter
The Debt Hawk: Top 100 Personal Finance Bloggers On Twitter
Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan): Tweeted me :)
The Dave Ramsey Show (@ramseyshow): Retweeted me :)
David Bach (@AuthorDavidBach): Tweeted me!

Other Fun Encounters:

CreditCard Daily: "Mo Money" Comic series, featuring J. Money! (my own comic!)
UnFunded: A Man's Opinion (J. Money on fashion.)
Suburban Dollar: Wealthy Blogger's List (PF blogger net worth comparisons)
Budgets Are Sexy: Interview with Ramit Sethi - NY Times Best Seller & Blogger!
Budgets Are Sexy: Famed Financial Planner Deena Katz on whether Budgets are Sexy?

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging, in the media

Hello, hello my good friends! It's Friday and it's gonna be a helluva good day :) Some of you might have forgotten, but a few months ago I wrote about charity and giving back, and asked if you'd share some of your own favorite charities with us. Well, I'm happy to tell you that a new project is finally in the works!!! I can't give away all the details right now, but I'm INCREDIBLY excited about it and I really REALLY think you guys will like what it's about.

This last year and a half at Budgets Are Sexy has been amazing, and every day your comments, emails, tweets, posts, and life lessons inspire me that much more. I love what this community's about, and I can't thank you enough for allowing me into your life. Seriously, I'd give each and every one of you a hug right now if I could. Or even a beer, depending on your sex ;)

My hope with this next project is to give back as much as possible, and to inspire people to keep coming together and making a difference. This economy has taken a toll on a whole bunch of our lives, and we need all the love we can get!

So get excited friends. We're gonna make this world a better place, and I need each and every one of you to help me out with it. I'll keep ya posted...

Labels: blogging, charity, thank you, updates

Then swagger on over to Wellheeled and spit it out! Your PF Blog Crush can be any personal finance blog written by a member of the opposite sex (or the same sex) and it doesn't matter if they are attached or not - it's just for fun ;) I've already left mine, so get on over there and check it out...who knows, maybe she'll feature a "Win a date with ____" next?

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging, randomness 3000

In particular, a Personal Finance Blogger? I recently came across an interesting headline: "Asher Roth went to rap because of what he listened to, not what he lived. Does it matter if he's good? Can he be good? Does he have flow?" That really got me thinking...

For anyone not familiar with Asher, he's the star behind the hit song I Love College. He's white and he raps, kind of like Eminem. The difference being, Em & others grew up on the streets and Ash takes notes from those who grew up on the streets.

What occurred to me though, was that I just may be the Asher of pf blogging ;) Not in that I've made it big or anything, or because I wish I could rap (which I do), but more in that I don't have a main story to back me up. I haven't worked my way out of $XXXXXX.XX debt, nor have I filed for bankruptcy or struck it rich being a .com mogul. In other words, I don't rap (write) from my experiences on the street (in debt).

I do, however, have plenty of experience in saving money and budgeting as you can see from any of my net worth updates. That doesn't mean I'm a pro or a financial guru, but I feel like it should give me some street cred out there. At the very least it helps me to convey my messages with a little more conviction.

Would I be a better blogger, though, if I DID come from a financially crazier background? Yeah, probably - as long as I've overcome it all. I'd certainly have more interesting stories to share :) I'd like to think that it doesn't hinder me any more than it does Asher, though. He raps about what he's passionate about (women and beer apparently), and I do the same. Only difference being that one's a little more exciting than the other, and brings in a few more Benjamins.

So I say no - you don't need a story to be respected as a pf blogger. You could use it to your advantage if you did, like Dawn @ fighting foreclosure, but it shouldn't drag you down any. If you love what you do, it'll definitely shine through.

Labels: about j., blogging, life

In case you haven't noticed, BudgetsAreSexy is looking a bit different :) Not sure if I'll keep this format or not, but you'll probably see a few changes coming in and out until I'm pretty happy with it. I figured it was time for a change after a year and a half w/ the same template. Plus all the content is pretty much the same anyway, just moved around a bit. What do you all think so far? Can you read it all okay? Thanks for stopping by and helping my little baby grow ;)

Labels: blogging

1 year, 3 months, and 500 posts later, this little blog is still around baby! Never in my life have I continued a hobby for so long ;)

I must give you all MAD LOVE for coming out and supporting this site each and every day, you guys are so wonderfull! Without you I'd just be another mumbling fool on the internet - so THANK YOU.

While this blog has transformed into an umbrella of finance-related topics, it was my good friend the budget who got the party started. So it's only fitting that I drop some knowledge about them to commemorate this most beautiful day ;) An excerpt from my feature in The Art Of Manliness blog:

"Maintaining a budget is key in becoming financially studly. If you know where your money is coming and going, you'll know your strengths & limitations. And if you know your strengths & limitations, you can outwit your opponent at any time! Plus, you'll be able to make quick decisions on the spot which girls love. And you know what else girls love? Confidence. And this,my friend, is what the budget gives you."

Yup, I still owe it all to the budget ;) That booger's gotten me to stay on track and allowed me to keep doing my financial thing! And so has a lot of other bloggers around town - their advice and point of views have created a wonderful learning environment for all, and I'm proud to serve on the same internets w/ them (you can find my favorites in the blogroll).

So with that, I leave you with some nifty little stats from these 500 posts, along with this week's financial round up & carnivals. God bless you all!

Current subscribers: 812
Twitter subscribers: 1,562
Total EVER page views: 234,145
Total EVER visitors: 137,460
Number of times I check these stats on a daily basis: 15 (down from 792)

I also gotta give due credit to all those bloggers who continue to send over some great traffic! Here are the TOP 10 all-time refferers (minus google, stumbleupon, etc) along w/ previous rankings:

1. My Money Blog (1)
2. Give Me Back My Five Bucks (2)
3. Bargain Briana (6)
4. Fabulous Financials (-)
5. MSN Smart Spending (3)
6. Clever Dude (4)
7. Chicky Finance (5) *no longer blogging :(
8. Single Guy Money (8)
9. Dinks Finance (7)
10. Always The Planner (-)

And Now, My Favorite Reads O' The Week:

1. Un-Broke: What You Need To Know About Money - Don't forget, the ABC "Money 101" special airs TONIGHT from 9-10pm! Check the link above for awesome-a$$ sneak peaks - Christian Slater, Will Smith, Seth Green, and more. Can't wait.
2. How To Spend Like A Frugal Millionaire - This piece from Yahoo Finance is all over the pf blogosphere, and for good reason. The author interviews 70 millionaires for the inside scoop.
3. Are You Doing Bad Things With Your Money? - Haha...that title says it all, brilliant.
4. 10 Revealing Q&A's By John Chow & Shoemoney - 2 online money-making masters share their answers side by side. Pretty interesting stuff.
5. "Amazing Grace" video - A heartwarming 32 sec. commercial from Salvation Army :)

And lastly, the Carnivals O' The Week:

1. Carnival of Personal Finance #206 - "Memorial Day Stars & Stripes" by Greener Pastures.
2. Festival of Frugality #179 - "Memorial Day" ed. hosted by Suburban Dollar.
3. Carnival of Debt Reduction #139 - "New Credit Card Rules" ed. hosted by PT Money.
4. Carnival of Money Stories - "A Road Map to Money Health" hosted by WalletPop.
5. Money Hacks Carnival #66 - "Family Summer Vacation" ed. by Passive Family Income.
6. Carnival of Pecuniary Delights #9 - "Organic Gardening" ed. by Passive Family Income.
7. Carnival of 20 Something Finances - "May 25th" ed. hosted by How I Save Money.

Thanks again to each and every one of you!!! May we have another 500 posts to look forward to! But for now, it's time to go celebrate Mrs. Budgetsaresexy and I's 1 year anniversary together ;) For anyone still around from those days, here was my wedding day post. haha....

Now if you'll excuse me, I have some babies to make relaxing to do.

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging, budgets, link lovin, thank you, updates

You know that joke - "Do you wanna hertz donut?" - where you answer "Yes" and then get punched in the arm? Well, that's what came to mind when reading today's email about a $195k inheritance getting knocked down to $95k - "Hurts Don't it?"

As I do for all my blogalicious readers w/ crazy conundrums, today we shall feature an email along w/ my un-spellchecked and top of the brain answering skillz.

Well okay, there's definitely more thought and time that went into it than that, but you get the point - I just copied and pasted my answer here instead of tweaking it up to be blog-presentable. But that's okay, right? You're not reading the NY Fabulous Times up in here or anything. You're on a blog w/ "sexy" in the title for goodness sakes ;) But enough rambling, on to the show!

How would you advise a 20 year old girl that had $195,000 invested (inheritance) last year, only to be screwed by the economy and now has only $95,000? Should I keep it in there?? My stocks are spread evenly throughout, I don't belong to just one particular company.

I also get a check from my mom's SS for $1,400 a month. After bills, I'm left with around $800 or so. I have no job, as I can't work right now because I go back and forth to [edited] all the time. Long-distance relationships can be a B-word sometimes.. I'd love to find work online, though.

I ALSO hope to be getting this woman's full policy, 100k, for a car accident I was in 2 years ago. IF I get the full amount, I'll have about 50k left AFTER fees and medical bills.

Please, send me advice!
Nevada Queen

RE: Investing - Yes, I'd totally keep that money invested, ESP while things are so low right now and you have *plenty* of time to earn it all back and THEN some. As the saying goes, "buy low, sell high". If you quit now, you've lost the rest and you'll probably want to get back in again down the road when all is "normal" again and the prices are high. Of course, no one can say for certain it'll get back up there, but history shows it will - and i bank on that.

That being said, what I would do is meet with a financial adviser and see which investments would work with what you want out of it. They may tell you stuff you already know, or they could even suck balls, but even so it may help you sleep better at night. I'd check around your friends and ask for references and then set up a meet & greet with one (which should be totally free btw) and see what they say. I'd happily spend a few thousand over time if it means earning much more in the long run, ya know? just make sure to go w/ someone you trust and makes you feel comfortable.

And if you DO get that extra $50k from that accident? Then having a plan ready to go for it will do you nicely. and that's something a planner can help you with.

RE: Online work - Have you thought about blogging? if you're passionate about it, you could start earning a little somethin' somethin' on the side from doing that. It always takes more work than people think, but it's def. do-able, esp if you don't have a 9-5 gig. If you don't like writing, maybe try picture blogging or celebrity bashing ;) haha....or celebrity loving for that matter. anyways, the point is - if you can learn how to navigate the online world, you can then use that for future jobs down the road, not just for blogging. Learn Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, online marketing, etc. it's all fun stuff and won't bore you to death.

I hope this helps! Keep in mind I'm no sexpert, so don't punch me in the face if anything goes awry from any of this ;) And keep us updated - we love hearing how this stuff turns out! How about you guys out there? Have anything to add to this?

Labels: advice, blogging, crazy economy, financial advisor, in the real world, inheritance, reader mail

Yup, your boy J. Money (or Jay Monee in this case) is on Facebook. Just signed up this week so I'm pretty excited.

Kinda weird starting out from scratch since it's not linked to my personal account, but at least I can interact and get to know all you better :) It's also cool seeing a whole mess of other bloggers on there too, so you might come across some of your fav's.

Here are my new Facebook pages. Be my friend?

• Facebook: Jay Monee - my "under cover" personal page.
• Facebook: Budgets are Sexy - via Networked Blogs app.

I also have some sort of "business page" up too, but not sure how popular those pages are...The first 2 links up there are the good ones, at least to me ;) So there you have it - yet another way to connect w/ the Budgets Are Sexy team! (aka me) Check us out on Twitter too if you haven't already. Sometimes I talk about finance stuff, but usually I find myself spitting out random nonsense.

Okay, i'm done whoring myself out now. Have a most wonderful Easter Weekend out there folks, and don't do anything I wouldn't do! Or at least don't get caught doing it ;)

Labels: about j., blogging

Yup, just 12 hours ago I was surrounded by some of the raddest personal finance bloggers in the DC area. And I must admit, it's a LOT more interesting talkin' face to face than over the interwebs. I couldn't believe it, there are *real* people behind these blogs! haha....


And guess what? They like beer! Well, some of them do anyways....a Mr. "Clever" dude likes pink drinks with umbrellas in them. But I don't judge, I happen to drink blush wine. And since this wasn't my first time attending one of these gigs (i was sooo nervous the first time), I was able to kick back and soak up all the knowledge & gossip a bit more ;) These guys really know there ish!

Here's who showed up, in order of my eyeballs seeing them:

1. Me - Rockin' the hawk & downing the miller lights (@ an irish pub too, luckily I didn't get flogged)
2. Clever Dude (Mike) - Someone told him that he looked the complete opposite of me and I laughed a bit....kinda felt bad for doing so, but then i realized that he called me an "M/M Fanboy" on this blog today. If you don't know what that is, leave it that way ;) I wish I could take back 30 mins from last night.
3. Mrs Micah / Blog Crafted (Mrs. Micah) - Still an expert in wordpress/blogger conversions & a basin full of knowledge! If you ever need any code or SEO help, give her a shout.
4. Counting My Pennies (Megan) - Yes! I finally got to see the elusive Megan in real life :) We happen to work within blocks of each other, so it'll be interesting to see how many times we actually cross paths now that we know what we look like. I wish I could tell you what she does for a living, but my lips are sealed. But I'll give you a hint: She's not a Hooker, nor a Private Eye.
5. Amelia's Healthy Life (Amelia) -Super friendly and a warm soul. First time I've met her too, but been a fan of her goals and healthy lifestyle choices for quite a while now.
   
6. Debt Hater (DH) - Tall & fabulous! And a keen dresser too I must add. Plus she hates debt (obvi) so she's got it going on over there.
   
7. Girls Just Wanna Have Funds (Ginger) - Been a big fan of her blog for months now, so I was really looking forward to meeting her in person. She's def. as friendly & smart as she appears! And her husband who came with was pretty chill as well. Except that he said the Bears will win the Super Bowl next year, and we all know it will be the Redskins.
8. Mapgirl's Fiscal Challenge (Mapgirl) - Still a huge Caps fan and as bouncy as ever :) She also gave me some pretty good advice last night, I'll have to put it into play...
   
9. Budget Pulse blog (Craig) - A new face & blog for me! He's also working on a movie blog which sounded pretty cool. I don't stray too far from the PF niche, but hopefully his blog skills can extend over & help him get up there with the big dawgs. He also likes Penn State. a lot.
   
10. Bargaineering (Jim) - Oh wait, that's right he ditched us...hope kickball was worth it buster! (I don't blame you though, kickball is awesome. Our league doesn't start up for another 3-4 weeks)
    

So overall a most wonderful night out. If you ever get a chance to meet up with your own PF favs, I def. recommend it. Not only do you learn a helluva lot, but you get to talk about FINANCES :) And the more you talk about it, the more comfortable and confident you get! So get out there and start chatting ya bunch of Cathies.....or at least keep reading Budgets are Sexy - I'm liking this gig more & more every day.

Labels: blogging, life, personal finance

Budgets are Sexy now has an official theme song...and it's a Rap! (did you doubt?) This all started when we had a rap off between Credit Goddess & BP last week for the personal finance crown. We never declared a winner, but it's safe to say they both spit the maddest rhymes and legitimately shared the glory!

But more importantly, this proves that personal finance CAN be fun - which is why I got into this in the first place :) So while I didn't produce this new theme song myself, it marks a proud accomplishment for this blog, and gives me great hope for further education! And with that, I present to you the slickest beats this side of the Mississippi - courtesy of my boy D. Ninja over at PunchDebtInTheFace.com:

(if the player doesn't show up, click here to listen)

"Budgets Are Sexy Rap" Lyrics:

(Welcome to the Budgets are Sexy rap...
Brought to you by your boy at Punch Debt in the Face...
Punch Debt in the...in the...in the...)

Shout outz to the peeps who find themselves in a mess
Listen' up now, out my mouth comes the hotness
Rapping about money can be a lengthy process
But with my lyrical flow, P.F. is what I address

Budgets are $exy is the name of this website
Go ahead and look around this is your invite
J. Money be blogging every morning, day, and night
If you follow his teachings you'll end up all right

A flow about money is what you're sure to get
follow these three rules to help evade debt
spend less then you make, avoid using credit
and you'd be a fool not to save for retirement

Budgets are $exy is for the simple man
No need for big words, just a clear-cut game plan
My path to debt freedom this is where it all began
Forever I remain a sexy budget fan

He's a baller shot caller making graphics and displays
Posting up fun little pictures each and every day
Using art in the message he plans to convey
J. Money's musings are like a finance buffet

The name of the game is personal finance
Making love with money is my favorite kind of romance
To fight off nasty debt one needs to take a strong stance
Follow J's advice and your bank account should enhance

(This has been a Punch Debt in the Face production...
Budgets are Sexy baby........haHAAH!)

Thank you all for your continued support! And mad ups again to Punch Debt in the Face for making this white boy's dream come true :) Let's continue speaking the good word, and having fun with this stuff...

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging

Welcome to Subscriber Swap Saturday! The basic idea here is to get the subscribers of one blog to subscribe to the other blog for at least a week, just to try it out. If after a week you don't find that blogger's content enticing - then just drop it like it's hot.

The main hope here is that over time you'll find several writers you weren't familiar with who provide some meaningful content to ya. Of course, you'll only see one writer here on Budgets are Sexy since I'm interviewing the creator of it, but you get the point ;) You can bookmark the link for future Saturdays though! You can read more about Subscriber Swap Saturday at his get out of debt blog, and you can read his interview with me here.

********************************************************************************************************************
No Debt Plan is about getting and staying out of debt with a plan. Kevin, the author, is passionate about budgeting, saving for the future, and using goals to reach financial freedom. You can subscribe to his blog by RSS or email. Here are his answers to my bloggy questions!
********************************************************************************************************************

1: What would you say your 3 favorite things about blogging are?
Kevin: Easy! Helping others, sharing knowledge of my passion, and making money. It's a great combination. I'm not making a ton of money, but it is nice to be rewarded after a year plus worth of posts.

2. You seem to know a lot about cutting back debt and keeping it off. Do you work in the financial sector during your "real" job?
Kevin: Absolutely not. It's a myth that you need to work in finance or business to understand money. I work as a recruiter in the IT staffing industry. I sit at a desk all day and try to put job seekers together with company's hunting for workers. I started from scratch with understanding finance. My Dad got me a subscription to Money Magazine and I lucked out with a great Intro to Finance course in college. The simple math of investing X dollars for Y years at Z return = millions of dollars... that really got me hooked into learning more.

3. What is your all-time favorite financial vehicle (or product)?
Kevin: Wow. A very interesting question. I really have never thought of which one was my favorite... they all play a role. Savings accounts are great especially when you earn a decent rate. Stocks and mutual funds are interesting, but you aren't in much control of that. I'm very tempted to say credit cards because they work wonderfully for us, but I can't... too many people have been burned by them.

How about the 30-year mortgage? I've written in the past that I think a 30-year mortgage trumps a 15-year mortgage. Many people disagree with me, and I understand why. The 15-year is by far the less expensive option. But if you take the 30-year and pay it like it was a 15, the results are very similar plus you get a little bit of added flexibility in your payment. That is, if you had to stop the extra payments you could. It would only save you a few hundred dollars per month, but every little bit counts if you get into a financial pinch.

4. How about your least favorite?
Kevin: It's a tie between adjustable rate mortgages and whole life insurance. I can't decide which one I hate the most. ARMs are terrible ideas all around. You're basically hoping to move or refinance before it resets. That ties into the whole thought process of housing prices never go down. And we've all learned how true that is.

Whole life insurance is just flat out stupid. I don't care what the pitch is. It's stupid. When you run the math and calculate all of the fees involved you end up earning 2-3% per year at the best. You are much better off getting an incredibly inexpensive term life insurance policy and investing the difference elsewhere.

5. Every now and then I allow myself to slide and spend $ on some pretty stupid stuff. What sorta "stuff" would someone catch you picking up?
Kevin: I read this question out loud to my wife and she went "Pfft, nothing! You don't spend money on anything."

While that is awfully nice of her and somewhat true, I do splurge occasionally. I recently bought a Blackberry Storm when we renewed our contract. I don't need it, but it's a cool device. (Plus I hope to be running a business sometime soon where a Blackberry will come in quite handy.) People might also catch me snagging some PC games or upgrading my desktop equipment (for PC gaming). This isn't constant -- every few years or so on the hardware -- but I do splurge on it.

Oh, and I do have a 1978 BMW sitting in my garage that I plan to work on once I finish my MBA. I just don't have time for it now.

6. You often write about getting a good budget in order. Is it fair to assume that you also find the budget sexy? ;)
Kevin: Uh, yes. Quite sexy doesn't begin to touch it. Budgets are incredible. If people would take the time to sit down for a few hours... just once... and look at their spending... I guess I just feel like that would be enough for many people to realize they have a problem.

Don't get me started on Excel spreadsheets and FV (future value) calculations. Oh snap!

7. Do you ever think about finance so much that you sometimes question your sanity? (don't worry, I do all the time)
Kevin: I'm glad to hear you question my sanity all the time ;)

I do think about finances a lot... not in a brooding, I MUST HAVE MORE type of way. I feel like I am more aware of our financial goals than most people are. (Primarily because most people don't have financial goals.) So I don't spend my time going out and partying. The cost isn't worth the benefit to me.

8. What bands/music are you currently listening to?
Kevin: I listen to a lot of music on Pandora. I have a Christian station set up that plays a lot of Casting Crowns and Chris Tomlin. The second station I have setup plays Coldplay, John Mayer, and similar artists.

------
Thanks for the honest & fun answers my friend! And remember, you can check out my interview over at No Debt Plan.

Labels: blogging, interview

I've done many things in my years, but never did I imagine blogging would become one of them.

Especially pertaining to finance! Sure I loved money (who doesn't?) but writing? I've always thought of myself as more of a designer or a painter than one to pick up a pen or keyboard, but it works for me! Freakin' love blogging now...

You should have seen the look on my dad's face when I told him this blog made it on the homepage of MSN.com last week - he was like, "You? Write?" I told him it's not like i'm pulling down Pulitzers over here, but it does pass as a form of writing. Even w/ all my abbreviations and slang, and improper use of words like "ditty" and "hooker". It's journalism at its finest ;)

So like my other fellow birthday bloggers, I thought I'd share a whole mess of stats from the past year. Here's what we got:

• Current subscribers: 614
• Twitter subscribers: 494
  
• Total EVER page views: 145,455
• Total EVER visitors: 80,041
• AVERAGE monthly visits: 6,670
• AVERAGE monthly page views: 12,121
• Number of times I've referenced "bad boys": 41
• Number of times I've talked about bananas: 7
• Number of times, on average, I check my stats: 790 (rounded down)

And here's a cool collage from the different stat readers out there:


Of course, NONE of this is possible w/ out the best fans and readers in the world - YOU GUYS ROCK! I'm a much better person, both financially and personally, having you all around, and I seriously thank you from the bottom of my heart. I could really go on and on here, but I'll leave it at that. No use in spoiling my fortune by crying and getting called out as a panzy ;)

I also gotta shout out all those bloggers sending traffic and support this way. Here are the all-time top 10 refferers to BudgetsAreSexy (minus google, stumbleupon, etc) along w/ the #'s:

1. My Money Blog (2,225)
2. Give Me Back My Five Bucks (1,661)
3. MSN Smart Spending (1,462)
4. Clever Dude (1,169)
5. Chicky Finance (1,154)
6. Bargain Briana (989)
7. Dinks Finance (936)
8. Single Guy Money (936)
9. Financial Ramblings (681)
10. Saving 4 Later (611)

And here are the all-time top 10 keywords to the site - unfiltered! Should be more interesting this way than just listing those PF terms ;)

1. budgets are sexy
2. sexy
3. average net worth
4. sexy.com
5. million dollar club finance blog
6. budgetsaresexy
7. starbucks
8. sexy com
9. average net worth in america
10. receipt

I'm sensing a theme here! Unfortunately "grow a pair" and "ninja" came in at #14 and #18 respectfully this time, while "Alexis Krosky" (whoever that is?) came in at #73. The internet really is a crazy wonderful world :)

Some other cool stats to follow are the countries people are reading this stuff from! Here are the top 5 countries hitting BudgetsAreSexy (Besides the U.S. which is by far in 1st place):

1. Canada
2. United Kingdom
3. Australia
4. Saudi Arabia
5. India

Sexy, right?! The other 138 countries are pretty cool too, but that's for a whole 'nother post. And lastly, here are the most popular articles by month - based on page views:

• February '08: J. Money on Personal Finance, Life, and Sillyness
• March '08: My very own sexy budget (recently updated)
• April '08: My millionaire-to-do list! Ya gotta start somewhere
• May '08: America's net worth - where do you stack up?
• June '08: Would you rather...take $500k now, or $1 million in ten years?
• July '08: My 4 Favorite Pieces of Financial Advice E-V-E-R.
• August '08: 3 Things you should always keep in your wallet/purse/clip.
• September '08: Using your 401(k) as an Emergency Fund? Are you insane?!
• October '08: Bananas and Hair Spray tought me everything on inflation.
• November '08: What's up with your pictures, J? Did you get them? Tell us!
• December '08: Guess What??? We did it! We finally got our wedding pictures!
• January '09: Where, oh where, does our $exy money go?!

That about wraps it up. HAPPY BIRTHDAY Budgetsaresexy.com! You are one of my all-time best friends, and I hope we have many a years left together. And THANK YOU AGAIN TO ALL WHO READ THIS!!! Now it's time to party baby, you only turn 1 once!

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging

I, J. Money - the host of this blog, would like to cordially thank you for your patronage, and give you this nifty present in return. You might not know this yet, but legend has it that if you hang this on your wall, you will intercept all forms of financial luck! And for all others visiting, you can check out the link (& crazy amt. of comments) here - and you know i have mad love for you too :) Many thanks to all for visiting my site, and please to enjoy:

Labels: blogging, in the media, link lovin

Oooh la la, BudgetsAreSexy has won an award! I always thought #40 was the new #1 too! haha...But seriously, do you know what that means? Someone thinks this blog is all about learning and $hit ;)

I was also just alerted that we made it into Fire Finance's "Top 100 Personal Finance Blogs" at #64 - woohoo! I must admit it feels pretty good getting recognized like that, esp considering the list of top notch bloggers up on there.

If you haven't already, I'd def. recommend checking out both lists and seeing what the other bloggers are saying. We all write pretty differently, but the intentions are the same - to help people with finances! So i proudly accept both honors, and thank all of YOU for reading and keeping me going :) And while we're link dropping here, might as well shout out the carnivals this week:

• Money Hacks Carnival #48 - "Presidential ed." by Pimp Your Finances. *Editor's Pick
• Carnival of Personal Finance #188 - "Jane Austen ed." hosted by Pecuniarities.
• Carnival of Debt Reduction #175 - "Historic Moment ed." hosted by No Debt Plan.

I say it alot, but i seriously have mad love for you all. God bless each of you!

Labels: awesomely awesome, blogging, thank you, weekly roundup

And boy can you learn a lot from it! I've only been a twitterer (tweeter?) for a few months now, but i gotta say that i sometimes learn more in those quick little words than i do reading an entire blog post!

I think it has something to do w/ the conciseness of it all, and the fact you can read/skim them much faster, thus allowing more information into my little brain factory :)

And the best part is that once you get excited about a certain topic or headline there, you can usually click on the tinyurl provided for a more in-depth look! Of course, some say this all just perpetuates laziness and evil vocabulary (think lol, omg, lmfao), but i prefer to think of it as pretty tech savvy and another way of injecting some "cool" in ya. Those who don't adapt, fail right?

So yeah, twitter can be pretty helpful in finding some great personal finance advice and/or current news going on in our economy these days. Or even getting to know your favorite bloggers better! There's a billion other things happening over there too, but i tend to only stick w/ the pf gang...you know, to "fit in" and all ;) Check out some of the stuff going on there just in the past 24 hour or so:

• sincitysavings Does anyone know someone selling a soul?
• FrugalDad Frugal Dad Giveaway! Win a $100 Home Depot Gift Card http://tinyurl.com/5t8rgm
• thatonegirl Will just said, "Judging from the smell in the bathroom - there are some very unhealthy people in the building..."... It wasn't me.
• doctor_s I wish I was a teacher, so much more of a real impact than working in the business world.
• ThatFilipinoGuy My kids just saw Budgetsaresexy.com logo and said that's gross. Now they're covering their eyes. Grossed out by the word sexy. (me: wait, what?! haha...)

Okay, so maybe there's a bit more going on than just LEARNING all the time, but i promise you that does happen on there :) In fact, some people like to post a preview to every post they're about to have, or even coupons they just found out about. Def. not my style (i like to tweet about random nonsense), but it sure can be helpful. Here's a few examples of the more "helpful" ones so you'll believe me:

• BrunetteOnABudg Excess is *so* three seasons ago. Don't believe me? Just ask these rich people who want to fit in by acting broke http://tinyurl.com/66hcnb
• MoneySavingGuid Legitimate ways to make money working from home -- from MarketWatch. http://is.gd/7Row
• bargainbriana Cheap Batteries this week at CVS! Stock up for the holidays! http://tinyurl.com/43k8cq

So as you can see, there's a whole mess of finance activity going on up in thurrr. I won't tell you it's the greatest thing on earth or anything, but it's def. worth a peek if you haven't ventured out there already. And if you do, be sure to holler and "follow me" so you can stalk my every move and see what i'm up to...or not, that sounds kinda creepy ;)

Labels: blogging, link lovin, randomness 3000, twitter

I was recently asked to join a group of financial bloggers to discuss our opinions regarding a certain topic each week - thus getting a variety of perspectives. While i'm not sure how many times I'll participate throughout the weeks (some of this stuff makes my brain hurt!), I did give it the old college try on this last one ;)

The topic centered around the ABA's (American Bankers Association) disappointment with the way the "Credit Cardholder's Bill of Rights Act of 2008" read, basically stating that consumer protection legislation will lead to an increased cost of credit for consumers and small businesses, when more consumer safeguards are put in place.

That was a mouthful, right? You should try taking a stab at that link, it's pretty hardcore. And by that i mean b-0-r-i-n-g. But after giving it a good glance, and googling what all those big words meant (this is why i take blogging over "serious" writing anyday), I came to my own opinion...and, as you can tell, i answered in true J. Money style ;) Here's what we got:

The Question:

Should we be afraid of costlier credit if in exchange consumers get greater consumer credit rights and protection against sudden rate changes, elimination of huge fees and clear credit disclosures?

My Answer:
"Wow. I'm no expert in the field, but that statement really puts me off. Maybe it's because i manage a customer service department myself, but i am all for up-front & bold credit disclosures - regardless of the consequences that may, or may not, come to fruition down the road. Whether we should be "afraid" or not is a totally separate issue. It's like saying,

"I'm sorry grandpa, I can't help walk you across the street because i'm afraid that there's a chance i'll get hit while doing so. And if i get hit then i can't feed my family, and if i can't feed my family they will die. So, as you can see, I'm too afraid of helping you because of what *may* happen".

You walk that grandpa across the street because it is the RIGHT thing to do. Plain and simple.

Sure that's a pretty colorful exaggeration there, but the fact of the matter is that we can't lose sight of the MAIN objective here: helping the consumer. And if the end result IS higher costs for everyone, well that's the way the cookie crumbles. The only difference here is that the consumer is now more educated, and will at least understand what the hell is going on.

(So my answer is that it doesn't matter if we should be afraid of the consequences or not - we have to do what's right.)"

Haha...how'd i do? You can read all of our answers over at Get Out of Debt. The beauty of this sorta thing is that everyone's so opinionated, and thus no one is "wrong"! It's also cool to see such a vast assortment of writing styles :)

Labels: blogging, credit cards

Wanna know more about yours truly? Well you're in luck! I spill all the sexy beans on my first "real" interview over at Holly is Stopping Shopping :) I say "real" because it's a bit different from the fake time where i interviewed myself! haha...

Thanks Holly & FruGal!

Labels: about j., awesomely awesome, blogging

1) I have created a few new icons, and I welcome you to grab them & support the site! The first is a 125x125 icon, and the others are 80x15 similar to others like mybloglog, pfblogs.org, blogcatalog, etc. I give props to Blog Coach for the idea :)

Copy: <a href="http://www.budgetsaresexy.com"><img src="http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/ads/budgets_are_sexy_125x125.gif" alt="Budgets are Sexy" border="0" /></a>

Copy: <a href="http://www.budgetsaresexy.com"><img src="http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/ads/budgets_are_sexy_80x15_1.gif" alt="Budgets are Sexy" border="0" /></a>

Copy: <a href="http://www.budgetsaresexy.com"><img src="http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/ads/budgets_are_sexy_80x15_3.gif" alt="Budgets are Sexy" border="0" /></a>

2) I'll have another wedding photo update soon!!! And believe me, it is NOT going to be good. He is seriously pissing me off :(

3) It's also interesting to know that my post on The FDIC the other day is already outdated! It's insane out there, that's for sure, but I revised it to include the new $250k limit along with some other details.

4) And now, it's time for the weekly carnival update! (i know you couldn't wait any longer). Here are all those that i participated in:

• Carnival of Personal Finance - the "173rd" edition, hosted by Girls Just Wanna Have Funds. (Brilliant blog name, eh?)
• Money Hacks Carnival - the "Oktober Fest" edition, hosted by Fix My Personal Finance.
• Festival of Frugality - the "Benjamin Franklin" edition, hosted by Dollar Frugal. One of my all-time favorite founders of this Nation! The 1st is John Adams - that guy is the MAN.
• Finance Fiesta - the "Oktoberfest" edition, hosted by Living Almost Large.
• Carnival of Money Stories - the "Cartoon" edition, hosted by Living Almost Large.
• Carnival of Financial Goals- the "October 4th, 2008" edition, hosted by My Two Dollars. A new carnival i'm trying out!
• Carnival of Twenty Something Finance - the "October 6,2008" edition, hosted by Lava.
• Carnival of Debt Reduction - the "Bailout" edition, hosted by The Happy Rock.

Till next week....enjoy the weekend everyone!

Labels: blogging, updates, weekly roundup