Our Story: An Interview on Talk Credit Radio

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About three months ago, I was honored to be a guest on Gerri Detweiler’s Talk Credit Radio program.  I was thrilled to share Vonnie and I’s debt story and answer Gerri’s questions regarding  how it has changed our lives forever.  She has been generous enough to provide me with a link to audio streaming of the interview, and I wanted to share it with The EOD Nation.  Click on the picture of Vonnie and I below to hear the interview.                 I’d love to hear your thoughts on the interview, or answer any […] Read more »

I Improved My Marriage by Talking About Money

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I was describing how I used to hide our debt from my wife this past Saturday in an interview with Gerri Detweiler on Talk Credit Radio, when I said the words: “I betrayed her trust, and it’s taken a long time to recover from that.  In fact, we’re still recovering from it.” I may have typed similar words before in a blog post or two, but I don’t recall ever ever having said the words out loud. I didn’t particularly like how they sounded, but they were true.  The magnitude of our debt had been a huge secret for many […] Read more »

I Will Now Cease Any and All Complaining

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It was a 30 minute ride to and from the office during my two week stay in India, and since I wasn’t driving I had a lot of time to look at the scenery. I was surprised to see empty lots in the middle of a metropolitan area of millions of people. The driver told me that owners don’t want to leave their property empty for very long, or they’d end up with squatters which are almost impossible to get rid off. He pointed at just such an empty lot, which was dotted with small tin shacks covered with blue […] Read more »

I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 9/28

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It’s the last Friday in September. Whew! I don’t know about you, but it has been an action packed month. Four weeks ago, I was returning from my India business trip. Three weeks ago I was at #Fincon12. Two weeks ago I had gone to CareOne’s headquarters. After a recovery week, I’ve spent this past week playing catchup at work, and with my writing. We’re all busy, so I wouldn’t blame you a bit if you didn’t have time to check out all the financial blogosphere has to offer. But not to worry, that’s why I keep close tabs on […] Read more »

What Kind Of People Live Without Credit Cards?

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Businesses have stopped taking checks, and we’re constantly being bombarded with offers for credit cards that offer low introductory interest rates and rewards point programs of some sort. Some experts even tell us jumping on the credit bandwagon to build up a healthy credit score is a necessity. It seems as if we are being pushed towards swiping a card to make our purchases. But is it possible to ignore all of this and live a credit card free life? My friend Brad Chaffee, founder of this site, is dedicated to living a credit free, cash only lifestyle. While he […] Read more »

A Family Night At the Movies for $5.50

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We were operating on a shoestring budget due to overspending during some vacation activities the first half of July. My kids had been interested, and in my daughters case begging, to be go see Ice Age 3 Continental Drift as a family. Going to a movie can be an expensive excursion, especially if you visit the concession stand. Our usual movie going technique is go see the movie as a matinee, when the tickets are $4.50 per person. However, even that was more funds than we felt comfortable shelling out. With a little creativity, my family of four were able […] Read more »

How I Save Money At Subway

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I love Subway.  My whole family loves Subway.  In fact, over the last year, it has become tradition that I pick up Subway and bring it home for the family for Saturday lunch. We don’t eat out all that much, and it’s our way of saying, “How you doin?” to the weekend. I’m not sure if  they suddenly raised their prices, or if it was a gradual increase that just finally hit my breaking point, but a few months ago I noticed that Subway for my family of four was getting  kind of expensive for a Saturday lunch. Here’s an […] Read more »

My Class Reunion, Was It Worth It?

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Smokin’, drinkin’ and partying too, we’re the class of Ninetytwo! This past weekend I traveled to my hometown to celebrate my 20 year high school class reunion (yikes). My classmates who organized the reunion did a spectacular job putting together an entire weekend of events ranging from a golf outing, to an outdoor meet and greet, a dinner, a pool party and a reserving a special section at a community event involving live music and rib tasting. Vonnie and I had a blast at both my five and ten year reunion, so we were looking forward to this one as […] Read more »

Father’s Day Scavenger Hunt

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My wife knows better than to ask me what I want for Father’s Day, or for that matter any other occasion that involves gift giving. My answer is always the same, “The best present you could give me is to not spend any money on me.” She never listens to me. She has to get me something, even if it’s under the disguise of “from the kids.” She understands, though, that it’s not necessary, or in our best interest financially, to purchase an extravagant gift. Quite frankly, Vonnie has taken gift giving on a budget as a personal challenge. I […] Read more »

Baseball Season is Here, New Rules, and How Much Did You Pay For That Bat?

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I asked Tristan to bring me his baseball bag so we could check the condition of his equipment and see what needed to be replaced for the upcoming season. After all, tryouts started the next day. “Parent fail” for waiting until the last minute. Inspecting the equipment, we found he would need new baseball pants, cleats, batting gloves, and all sorts of other equipment. Not unexpected, as kids tend to outgrow these sort of things from year to year. Surprisingly, however, he’s used the same baseball helmet for years now. Why his melon doesn’t get any bigger is beyond my […] Read more »

Youth Sports: Are They Worth the Expense?

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My son has been involved in youth sports since he was three. We have run the gamut; gymnastics, karate, soccer, wrestling, lacrosse, and football. My initial goal in exposing him to youth sports was to have him expend some of his little boy energy in a way that was safe and fun for him. Little did I know the love for competition would blossom at such a young age; he is addicted… to thrill of practice, games, and being a winner. For those of you that don’t know me, I am a divorced single mom and my son is a […] Read more »

Togetherness Is The Best Kind of Family Therapy.

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It had been a really rough week for my family. A close friend of ours that lived in the neighborhood had passed away recently, and we had spent the entire week in crisis mode spending time with the family and other neighbors in support of each other. As most families, we have a daily routine. Dinner at 6:00, homework at 7:00, our favorite shows of the evening after that. That routine had been completely disrupted and my wife and I felt like our children had suffered from lack of attention from us. On my way home from work , I […] Read more »

Battle of the Sexes, Over Debt?

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In today’s world women are no longer “just staying home” to raise their children. I say “just staying home” as anyone that is a stay at home parent knows that raising children is one of the most difficult jobs you will ever have. Many women are both working full-time and raising their children out of necessity for their family. Whether you are married with kids, divorced with kids or widowed with kids it’s a tough dual role to play, for either parent. As a divorced single mom I know the challenges of going it alone and the debt that goes […] Read more »

Money Problems Are All I Have

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The caller ID showed an incoming call from the wife of a couple with which my wife and I are close friends. I answered the phone with a quickly forgotten  humorous remark as the voice on the other end was shaky, asking for a favor.  Our friend and her teenage daughter were having a huge argument and they needed a third party to step in and mediate the situation. Our friends are working through marital issues, and have recently separated as they attempt to work through them. Their teenage daughter has taken it especially hard, and is very angry.   The […] Read more »