Credit Scores and

Marshal McLuhan, the man credited with coining the phrase "The Medium is the Message", was responsible for another interesting quote:


Money is a poor man's credit card.


For my whole life I have been of the strong opinion that credit is something to be avoided. Actually, let me restate that. Debt is a thing to be avoided. This was drilled into me since I was very young. It appears that there is a long history in my family of ridiculing people who get into debt. Anecdotes abound about people who won the lottery and were deeply in debt 2 years later. Also athletes - like Michael Vick, I hear, is about $10 million in debt. How can someone make so much money and still be in debt?





One good way to avoid debt is to avoid credit cards.


We are sparing with our credit cards and we never spend more than we can pay off. In fact, the only reason that we got them was to help build better credit. Having 3 sources of revolving credit that you pay off each month that are well below their limits will help your credit score.


It is difficult though. And if you just carry the cards around with you counting on your good sense to keep you from using them too much, there is a good chance that you'll fail.


Turns out there are some good reasons for this. This story on MSNBC suggests that not only is it easier to use a credit card, but that using a credit card induces euphoria!

Economics of Blogging: Where New Blogs Come From

I have created several blogs. I am not a veteran blogger, but I've been around long enough to know that blogs are an awful lot easier to start than they are to finish. Once you get all of the technical issues out of the way you learn that it can be difficult to get your authentic voice out.

I feel good about my progress. There is a certain level of confidence in knowing that you can throw one of these things together and have a platform for your thoughts. I never really trust people who profess to work on the web and don't have their own little chunk of the internet staked out. It took a while to get here though.



Feeling pretty good about myself until my sister-in-law throws up a successful pie blog on her first attempt. Compelling theme, authentic tone, wonderful pictures, and fun! She made it fun.

The economics of blogging seldom work out. If you're doing it for a hobby then you've got the right idea. There is no shortage of people that will sell you a sure-fire system of making money on the internet. If you want to make money blogging then you have to master the art of developing and monetizing an audience. This means time.

Fortunately there are other benefits of blogging. You learn to write better. You can use your blog to help establish yourself in your field.

The purpose of this blog is none of the above. I'm going to talk about what I find interesting. Investing, personal finance, economics applied to your time and money. I expect that a weekly state of the market point of view would be useful. And I will also throw in a 'what I'm doing this week' so that you can make wise decisions with your time and your money like me.

Getting my finances into shape was a wonderful adventure. I love talking about it - telling complete strangers about the best approach to mutual funds, how to stick to a budget, risk analysis, etc.

In the middle of such an adventure you want to tell everyone everything about it. And that was when I realized what blogs are really for. Blogs are for people who need to talk about something without burdening everyone in their life with the information.

When to Buy Whensday

A study of economics usually reveals that the best time to buy anything is last year.
-Marty Allen


Interested in the art of when to buy? End of the year is coming up so it is time to make any last minute purchases to get some money off the books and avoid taxes. How much difference does it make though? Doesn't it seem like you're going to get taxed on that money either way - either you enjoy the tax benefit this year or you enjoy next year. Perhaps next year you will be smarter about tax planning so you don't have to resort to a last minute buy. 


It is apparently the perfect time to purchase a Macbook Pro - my technology purchasing consultant explains that the best time to purchase is when the new model comes out. Apparently the price doesn't change throughout the year so if you purchase it on the last day that the old technology is available you are paying the same amount as the person who purchases the new technology a day later.

Should I get it?