Personal Finance Advice

I spent last week in Las Vegas visiting with an old friend. Besides catching up, I also planned to visit a number of timeshare presentations to write a series about what you can expect if you attend the timeshare presentations to get the freebies and the type of manipulation that occurs (and in the process I probably became the first person in history that was actually turned away from a timeshare presentation). In between all of this I looked for other things that might make for a good money related post.

While I was looking, I came to the conclusion that if you are ever going to start a religion, the one to start is with a money God. I sat down to eat some frozen yogurt at the South Point casino and stared in amazement for the next hour as people walked through the casino doors, rubbed the statue’s tummy for good luck and placed coins and bills around the statue. While certainly not on the scale of the annual New Year visit to the God of Wealth in Japan, it just reaffirmed that when people are playing games of chance, they will seek any perceived advantage that they can get and part with additional money if they think it might in any way give them an additional advantage. While this certainly isn’t good money management skills, it does show that if you are ever in the situation to begin a new religion, creating a god of money or wealth is the way to go.

Money Posts of Interest

Here are a few money posts and articles I came across this past week that I thought were interesting:

Are Expensive Batteries Worth The Extra Cost? at Wired Magazine. The detailed and tested results may surprise you.

German Secret to Success (Little debt, frugal habits and a government that is intensely focused on high production, low inflation and extensive social services) at LA Times.

How I make Money on Craiglist at Price Economics. A great, detailed look at how one person has created a business using Craigslist and common sense.

The Story of How I Doubled My Debt (In One Day. Last Week) at Add Vodka (how can you really go wrong with a blog name like that?)

Money Mistakes & Smart Moves I Made in College at Young Adult Finances. It’s always good to go back and review what you did right and wrong with your finances, and it never hurts to learn from others.

The Negative of Wealth at Simple Island Living who asks that people learn from their mistakes.

Do You Have the Courage to be Wealthy? at Watson Inc. Most people don’t think of money related issues as having to do with courage, but when you think about it, they certainly can.

Carnival Reading

Some of the money and personal finance carnivals that have listed plenty of posts for those looking for additional reading:

Festival of Frugality hosted by Squirrelers who chose “101 Simple Pleasures That Don’t Cost A Dime” as a Editors Pick.

Carnival of Personal Finance hosted by Matt About Money.

Carnival of Financial Camraderie hosted by Young Adult Finances.

Total Money Carnival hosted by Passive Income to Retire.

Carnival of Financial Planning hosted at Credit Cards Canada.

Yakezie Carnival hosted at Little House in the Valley.