From the category archives:

money

The $1 Family Meal

March 10, 2010

My husband is a great cook, and prepares most of our family meals.
He’s not one of these food show followers who makes a different gourmet recipe every night of the week with the rare vegetables he picked up at the farmer’s market on his way home.
He’s more of an intuitive cook. A guy who can [...]

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“Unautomate Your Finances”

March 9, 2010

Adam Baker, one of my fellow writers at Get Rich Slowly has a new personal finance guide out as of today, for sale on his website, Man Vs. Debt.
With a title like “Unautomate Your Finances,” Adam’s approach would seem to be the opposite of my new banking scheme, where I used my automated banking to [...]

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Keeping a Journal

February 10, 2010

Yesterday I wrote about several steps to making a life change stick. Then in the shower this morning, I thought, “Oh! I need to write more about journaling vs. simple record-keeping.”
And sure enough, the first comment on yesterday’s post was from the always thoughtful Rebecca Weger, saying, “The most important piece for me is around [...]

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How to Change Your Life

February 8, 2010

I have a post up on Get Rich Slowly today about getting the ball rolling with financial management, where I talk about “cross-training” skills from one area of your life to another.
Here, I want to just quickly lay out a recipe I use for making meaningful personal change in any area. You may recall, personal [...]

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All I Want For Christmas is January

December 13, 2009

I’m feeling pretty bah humbug this year. I’m tired, broke and grouchier about the weather than usual. The holiday season feels less like a joyful opportunity to reconnect and more like a train wreck of social, family and financial obligations.
But tis the season, so I’m bucking up and doing my frugal best to be festive. [...]

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Explaining Bank Fees To A Little Kid

December 10, 2009

When I had my blowout with Wainwright Bank last week, I had my kids with me. Of course. The toddler was sleeping, thank the gods, but my five year old stood there and watched wide-eyed while I tore into the banker about social justice issues and customer service problems.
I was, comically and entirely coincidentally, wearing [...]

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Groceries For Me!

December 3, 2009

The manager at my local Wainwright branch called today. Since I happened to be in the neighborhood (ironically making a deposit in my new checking account down the block), I went in to talk with her in person.
Maria was extremely polite and apologetic. She refunded my fees, and offered to help me set up a [...]

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Wainwright Bank Stole My Lunch Money

December 2, 2009

Dear Wainwright Bank,
You appear to have stolen my grocery money.
I was surprised and alarmed to see, when I checked my bank balance this morning, that I had been charged $92.97 in overdraft fees. My statement clearly shows that no overdraft took place.
I showed my bank statements to a manager at your Davis Sq branch and [...]

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My Big Question: Is Free Trade a Good Thing?

November 24, 2009

Today I have the dubious honor of having one of my questions about how the world works picked apart by a man with a very big mind: Steven Landsburg, author of the new book, “The Big Questions”, and a fascinating blog that goes with it.
Steven is an economist. To say our areas of expertise don’t [...]

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