I was thinking last night about the economy and how it has effected everyone. I am curious, this year do you plan on saveing more or spending more. I personally will be spending more as long as I have the money to do so. Now I’m not just talking shopping for clothing, but just in bills and other debts. I also do plan on buying a new computer, a good printer fax thing and lots and lots of clothing as I’m also trying to lose weight, you can follow that progress on my loss my gain.

So what do you think you will do this year when it comes to spending or saveing? What do you hope to be able to do?

I love how you can always find a great deal on TV. There are just so many out there. If your looking for a good network to use I would check out Dish Network. We have them and though we have had some issues, it’s been mostly with our local phone company and not Dish itself. We have a very small package as we are trying to save money, but we still get a good amount of channels. Before we had everything but movie channals and I loved it. The service is really good as when we did have problems that Dish could fix they fixed them quickly.

Now of course there are many Dish Network deals out there, many may depend on your area and what is offered there. I know we don’t get the same deals as more populated areas because much of what the deals contain are just not offered yet. This is yet another downside of living in the middle of nowhere. I believe there is even a clause on their website that states something like Dish Network offers may vary or something. They still are worth checking out if your looking for an alternative to cable or if you want more then just basic TV. The programming is good and so far I’m happy with the service I have gotten. They are much easier to work with then the cable company we had in the past. I still can’t seem to get though to anyone at my old cable company. Apparently they are just too busy ripping people off.

Yes I am suggesting you sing in the shower and telling you it could save you money. Many people enjoy singing in the shower and if you add a shower timer in all your bathrooms and you can save yourself some cash. Why? Well many people shop when they are stressed. I know I do and for many people singing in the shower is a way to de-stress and relax. This means you are less likely to impulse buy and more likely to think about what you really need, not just what you want to buy. A few months ago a friend of mine was trying to figure out why she had no money. I told her she shopped too much and eventually we came up with this singing in the shower idea.

Personally I sing whatever song comes into my head, a lot of them are ones I make up. My friend sings opera, pretty poorly, but that doesn’t matter in this case. It relaxes her and she has found she actually has money in her savings account at the end of the month. I think this works so well because bathrooms are considered a more private place, it’s warm and the sound of water, the warmth of water and the echo your voice makes can just be very refreshing and relaxing. What would you sing in your shower?

There are probably many things on your list for the end of summer, school shopping, last minute vacations or getting kids off to collage. Some of you may be teachers getting ready for the start of the new school year. What else could you possibly add to your list?

Yard sales, you should go to a few and have one yourself. Not only can you find things cheap at a yard sale, but you may even make some new friends. If you have your own sale you can make some cash and get rid of all of your junk. We had one this past weekend and though we only made $250 it was worth it. We live in the middle of nowhere and if we can make that much so can most of you reading this.

If your not sure when to have one check with your local community, many places have yard sales over labor day weekend or they may have a festival coming up and you can do something then. Either way you really should add these two things to your list as it can help you get a deal and get some money.

Many people on the internet have no clue that a wonderful type of site exist that can help them find with they are looking for without having to hunt though search results. This handy site is called a web directory, what a web directory does is list out websites based on a category, some directories are just general directories that list everything while other directories may be a business web directory or one just for shopping sites. Yes you can find directories for just shopping online. It’s helpful if that is all you want to do.

I myself have a blog directory where you can find blogs according to subject. I have many different categories included in my directory, most directories do and I suggest you look at a few to find many different sites that will fit your needs. If it’s a shopping blog you are looking for it’s easier to use a blog directory then a general one, though many do have a blog section they may not break it down or you may have to really hunt for a blog.  If your shopping for kids you may want to check out a directory just for kids things. There are many out there and they are not hard to find.

I myself use directories a lot to find things I’m interested in, from interior design to books and movies. Many times I use directories to find reviews of products I’m thinking of buying. It seems that when I search for these same products all I get is buy it here results and not reviews of the product. If you have never used I directory you really should check one out they are very helpful and very easy to use, they are kind of like a phone book, except that directories can be searched using a nice little search box.

It’s that time of year again, the kids are heading back to school and college students are leaving home and heading to the dorms. With money being very tight this year many people are looking to save money on collage expenses. One place you should check out is Phat Campus a discount college textbook site where you can find almost anything. I have done a few searches myself for books I may need next year and I found 2 of them. The other books I found though could still be useful so I have kept note of those as well.

Another great thing about Phat campus is that you can also sell your books on their site, make you money at the end of the term.

Now is a great time to prepare for winter, winter related items are still on sale or at least cheaper then during the winter season. Save money on your heating bill by buying electric blankets, these help you save money by enabling you to turn down your heat. Electric Blankets keep you warm where your at so it doesn’t waste energy by heating up areas you are not. Turning down your furnace even 5 degrees can save you hundreds of dollars.

Another great way to save money is to upgrade your water heater. If you check out the new water heaters available you may find that you can get a model that is more energy efficient, something that can help you any time of the year. Another great water related item to check out is a water softener, these will help keep your clothes looking newer longer, if you have well water a softener is a must to have.

As always check out deals and find the product that works right for you, check stores other then the big boxes and look online, sometimes research can find you a great deal on things for your home.

Everyone is saying it: Shop around for the best deals. Most people though do not and it’s really sad. In order to get the best deal you need to know what is out there. Now that doesn’t mean you have to switch companies or services but sometimes calling up your company and telling them that you have looked around is enough for them to lower your bill.

Lets use car insurance as an example. I always shop around for car insurance I have found for my needs that my company is usually cheaper, they also offer a discount to existing members when they renew. A year ago I shopped around and found that another company was around $10 a month cheaper then mine. I called my company up and talked to them, telling them I saw this price. They gave me a $15 a month discount just to keep my business. It works, now you go out there and see what deals you can find.

A friend of mine recently got engaged, but they just don’t have money for the ring that she wants, they spend a lot of time looking at engagement rings only to find they just can not afford them. So she decided that she would make a ring until they can actually save up for the one she really likes.

She has made hers out of metal, but you could use yarn or any other material that you like. This is a great way to show that you are engaged and her home made ring looks really unique and different. She gets complimented on it a lot and a few of the people she has met are doing the same thing. Many were just going to skip the ring, but now they have something to show that they are getting married.

What do you think, would you wear a home made engagement ring?