Fist Pump Friday: I Love You Like A Blogger Roundup – 10/30

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Happy Halloween weekend, EOD Nation! There will be plenty of ghouls, ghosts and goblins out and about this weekend.  Scary stuff, right?  You know what’s not scary? My finances. Yeah, yeah, yeah…I know, stop groaning.  But seriously, on a holiday that’s meant to be full of scary costumes, your finances are nothing to be afraid of.  Turn on the lights, blow the dust off your spending tracking spreadsheet and get to work.  I’m sure there’s plenty of us that could stand to give our budget a thorough scrubbing.  Am I right? I think it’s worth a fist pump…. Posts That […] Read more »

Marriage And Finances: Compromise and Delayed Gratification

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My wife is coordinating a ladies night out to take place mid-November. The original plan was for the group of women to start at our home, have dinner at a nearby restaurant, then head downtown to an art activities place to paint and drink wine. Since there will likely be alcohol involved, there was some discussion about safe transportation. My wife began investigating the option of renting a party bus. After talking to several party bus companies and comparing services, options, and prices she gravitated towards one specific services. Even the cheapest service was rather expensive, but my wife was […] Read more »

Fist Pump Friday: I Love You Like A Blogger Roundup – 10/23

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Last night Vonnie got her hair colored, and since it was all styled we felt like checking out a new restaurant that recently opened in the area.  As you well know, I’m not a huge fan of restaurants, but they did have  chimichurri beef skewers on their appetizer menu.  Since this was something I hadn’t ever had, it fit the bill (no pun intended) of a justified meal out.  That and my wife looked smokin’ HOT.   Even more than usual. On the way home, she asked me how we could possibly be OK with our entertainment spending.  She had just […] Read more »

Sex Sells, But I’m Not Buying

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I had a couple of hours to kill after dropping my son and his friends off at a concert venue, so I headed to a nearby mall to complete a few errands, and then find a place to sit with my laptop. As I explored the mall, I walked by a kiosk a number of times, where several people were engaging passers-by to sample whatever they were selling. The first time I walked by, a man asked if I wanted a free sample. I just shook my head and kept walking. The second time a woman stretched her arm out […] Read more »

Fist Pump Friday: I Love You Like A Blogger Roundup – 10/16

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After a few weeks of above average temperatures, fall definitely hit Minnesota this week.  It’s still been pleasant with highs in the 50’s and 60s but with talk of freezing temperatures during the nighttime, and leaves falling from the trees, the colder weather is here to stay.  Which means it’s time to close down my sprinkler system for the season. For years I borrowed an air compressor from one of several friends or neighbors that own one.  Last year was the first year I actually paid someone to come and do it for me, and I did it again this […] Read more »

Fist Pump Friday: I Love You Like A Blogger Roundup – 10/9

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I received an email last night from my daughter’s middle school orchestra teacher reminding us the instrument rental contract and fee was due today.  This was news to us since we had received zero previous correspondence regarding the contract and fee.  We knew it was coming, but this year has been different from other years.  Every other year the teacher has been at schedule pick up day at the end of Summer.  We pay our fee then along with all the other beginning of the school year fees.  Except this year, she wasn’t there.  There was a sign that indicated […] Read more »

How To Get Out of an Underwater Car

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You have probably heard the old joke that a car loses value the second after you drive it off the lot. Guess what? Edmonds did some research and found it’s not a joke. They showed how a new $29,873 Nissan dropped in value by $2,559 – about 9 percent – in a matter of minutes.  The study also showed the new car depreciated by 19 percent in the first year and 42 percent in three years. That’s a loss of $12,467 in thirty-six months – or $346 a month! A driver who puts no money down, or traded their car […] Read more »

Unexpected Parking Costs While Traveling

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The vehicles that many of us own can be a source of great convenience, and at the same time great frustration. They allow us to get to where we want to go, when we want to go there. But there are also many costs associated with owning one. First you have to buy the thing, then there’s fuel, insurance and maintenance. We all know all about those, they’re factored into everyone’s mental perspective as the cost of ownership. But over this last weekend, I encountered three separate occasions where I had to reach deep into my pocket for funds to […] Read more »

Fist Pump Friday: I Love You Like A Blogger Roundup – 10/2

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My favorite weekend of Fall is here!  It’s Twin Cities Marathon (TCM) weekend!  I’m not running the marathon this year….but I am running.  A. Lot.  I have a 10K and 5K tomorrow (Saturday) and a 10 mile on Sunday.  I’m hoping to fist pump across the finish line just as I did when completed the marathon last year (it’s the picture I use for my Friday posts)!!!! After this weekend, I’m looking forward to things slowing down for awhile. The big calendar on the fridge shows no plans for the remaining weekends of the month.    I’m hoping to do […] Read more »

How Overpriced Is The Olive Garden? The Post Where I Say “Hell No” To Takeout Pasta

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It’s no secret that I dislike going out to eat. To be specific, I don’t like going out to eat just to order something that I could make as good at home, at significantly less cost. I don’t mean to dwell on this subject, but eating out is just such a colossal waste of money.  The absolute worst offender is anything pasta related, including a favorite restaurant of my wife and daughter; The Olive Garden. Look, it’s not The Olive Garden’s fault that they garner such hate from me, it’s just that taking a family of four there for dinner […] Read more »

Fist Pump Friday: I Love You Like A Blogger Roundup – 9/25

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Last weekend I ran a half marathon in my hometown of Rochester, MN, finishing in a personal best 1:51:07 – 23 seconds faster than my goal time!  Next weekend I head up to the Twin Cities area (about an hour north) to run three races (5K, 10K, and a half marathon) during Twin Cities Marathon weekend.  Sandwiched in the middle is this weekend…..which I plan on using to sand my deck and spend as little as possible to save up for next weekend.   I’m hoping to again avoid the temptation of buying some not-needed shoe insoles.  LOL. Fist pump […] Read more »

How to Find the House You Love

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house you love

“I wish we could move this house to…” You could fill in the name of a neighbourhood or a city of your choice. Still, this is one of the most hopeless sentences in the history of human interaction. My mum used it at least once a week. Every time she wanted to go to the theatre and there was no one to watch with her. Every time she wanted to see her granddaughter and remembered that she is 250 miles away. Every time she wanted to have a coffee and a chat with her sister and remembered that she’d have […] Read more »

The Grocery Shopping Trick Guaranteed To Stop You From Eating Out

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I like to reserve dining out for special occasions, or for those instances where we absolutely cannot eat at home. Sometimes, holding myself to this standard is difficult. The thought of convenience is powerful. The best weapon against spending unnecessarily by eating out is having great food in stock at home. But having great food at home can cost money in it’s own right, which is why I’m always on the lookout for great sales at the grocery store. I’ve found a great trick that helps me get great food on sale and keep us from going out to eat […] Read more »