Best Of Buck: 2009 Year End Edition

Usually when I write up a month end best of list I just pick out five or six of my personal favorites and that’s that. For the 2009 year end batch I decided to let the readers pick my ten most popular posts of the year, via my Google Analytics data. So here they are: my ten most visited posts from 2009.



1) 10 Free Barter & Swap Sites 

2) The Ten Best Freebie Sites 

3) Can You Make a Living Without a Job? 

4) Nine Ways to Find a Job or Work at Home 

5) Ten Best Home Improvement and DIY Sites 

6) Free Online Personal Finance Course 

7) 10 Interesting Ways to Make Some Side Cash 

8) Five Free Software Programs For Everyday Use 

9) Best Sweepstakes Sites 

10) My Ten Favorite Homesteading Books 

I don’t know if I would have picked any of these personally. I probably would have included some essays and posts on subjects near and dear to my heart. What the top ten most popular have in common becomes quickly apparent: people like numbered best of lists, free stuff, and ways to make money. Not too surprising, and duly noted by this writer for 2010.

Will The New Frugality Last?

At the end of every recession since World War Two Americans have discarded their forced frugality and rediscovered their appetite for spending. Companies began hiring again, production and purchasing of consumer goods increased and everything returned to normal. So there is really no reason, historically, to believe the end of The Great Recession will not witness the same kind of recovery, right? That could very well be the case, but for that to happen this recession will have to experience what all of the others did; namely, an end.

Before I lost my job of 18 years over two years ago it seemed that at least half of my coworkers had taken out home equity AND 401(k) loans to buy new cars, go on vacations and to remodel their houses. When the subject of credit cards would come up there would be an almost proud comparison of who had the most debt. I would garner an occasional snicker or pitiful look when I would mention having very little debt and no loans, as if I was too stupid to know what I was missing out on.

What my coworkers were doing seems to have been pretty common all over the country. When both the housing and stock markets collapsed what remained was all of that loan debt. Personal debt is at around $14 trillion, or around $125,000 per household. For this recession to end as the others did consumer spending needs to rise and companies have to start hiring. No increase in spending because of massive debt loads means no new hiring, and that will continue to be a huge roadblock to an end to this recession.

So will the new frugality last? My vote is yes, whether some like it or not, it’s here to stay for awhile.

Weekly Roundup

This is a final reminder to Buck List readers to take advantage of the offer of a free online personal finance course. Visit my original post on the offer for details.

Travel Chums is a free travel companion matching site. Sign up and create a profile and you then have several options to meet others that are compatible to travel with.

Clicker is a database of “more than 450,000 episodes, from over 6,000 shows, from over 1,200 networks, tens of thousands of movies, and 50,000 music videos from 20,000 artists.”

Post of the Week – A personal finance post I found to be exceptional.
Kiplinger’s offers solid advice on four ways to trim your spending.

If you have kids that are ready to learn about money management and financial responsibility Kids Money is a great resource to start with. I know a few adults that could benefit from it as well.

Target Barter “is an online interactive Barter/Trade Clearing House serving business people, professionals, and individuals who trade their goods and services.”

Sign up for free with Deal Taker and use their email notifier to receive their latest deals, freebies and coupon offers.

Weekly Reminder – A reminder of a useful article you might have missed.
I wrote this post on how to give your doctor a checkup.

Merry Christmas

The plans are made, the baking is done, and the gifts are wrapped.

Today is the day for it to all come together.

Best Wishes and Merry Christmas to you and yours.

Finding Dolly Freed

For those of you who don't know the name Dolly Freed, you might be interested in learning a little about her. If you know the name you most likely have read her book, entitled Possum Living, and you may be interested to know she has finally resurfaced, sort of.

BACKGROUND

Dolly was born circa 1960 and lived in Florida for her first eight years. Her parents divorced around 1974 and she quit school (encouraged by her dad because he knew she was the self-educating kind) with a 7th grade education. Her mother Marie kept Dolly's younger brother Carl, and remarried. Her father, Frank, found himself an unemployed “electronics technician” and circumstances led he and Dolly to a ½ acre lot outside of Philadelphia, where the majority of her book takes place.

POSSUM LIVING

Dolly and her father lived on that ½ acre for five years making very little money, yet living very well because of their self-sufficient and extremely frugal lifestyle. Her book detailing the experience was published in 1978, and has since become a homesteading and self-sufficient lifestyle underground classic.

I came across a digital copy online a few years ago and enjoyed the storyline as much as the frugal tips and recipes. She wrote the book with a refreshingly open, street (and garden) smart and occasionally precocious point of view, no doubt a reflection of her self schooling. It is a gem of a read, even the long pork part.

POST POSSUM

After a short documentary by Nancy Schreiber and an appearance on the Merv Griffin Show she for the most part disappeared. As the years passed speculation swirled about her whereabouts, if she was still alive and if Dolly Freed was even her real name.

A top Amazon reviewer claims to be her brother, while it seems her mother stuck with her candle making business. But not a word from Dolly.

FOUND

After 30 years the long out of print Possum Living is being reprinted by Tin House Books, with an afterword by Dolly herself. According to the About Dolly section of the web page promoting the reprint “Following her success as an author, Dolly Freed grew up to become a NASA aerospace engineer. She aced the SATs with an education she received from the public library and put herself through college. She’s been an environmental educator, business owner, and college professor. She now lives in Texas with her husband and two children.”

The contact page even gives an email address for her, and the site says a blog is coming soon. Considering all of that I would consider Dolly “lost' no longer.

Ten Frugal Last Minute Gift Ideas

If your current financial situation is not allowing for traditional, material gift giving it’s time to think outside of the (gift) box. Even if you are buying traditional gifts some of the following ideas could make for a nice bonus gift. Offer them in the form of a hand written coupon or note.

Give a free night of baby sitting, giving the parents some needed time off.

Present a coupon for one house cleaning.

Offer a coupon to mow, snow blow, shovel snow, rake leaves, clean gutters. You get the idea.

How about a hand written promise to cook and deliver a full meal.

Offer a house sitting and/or pet sitting voucher for someone on vacation.

Give an oil change coupon, with you providing the oil and service.

Offer a computer help coupon to a less computer savvy friend or family member. We all have a few of those.

If you are trained in a particular profession, or just really good at something, offer your skills to help with a project.

Consider giving a book, movie, music or game from your collection that you no longer want.

Regift something you previously received but don’t want.

Weekly Roundup

This is a reminder to Buck List readers to take advantage of the offer of a free online personal finance course. Visit my original post on the offer for details.

I have been online since 1996. That could sound ancient to some, while the real old timers might still consider me a newbie. As my mom used to say, it’s all relative. Anyway, the same year I first surfed the wild web saw the birth of Zoho, and my, how it has grown. Never heard of it? Wondering what it is? One click will reveal it all.

If you have something unusual to sell or are looking for an item that is a little off the beaten path, Bonanzle might turn out to be a helpful site. You can also import your items from both eBay and Craigslist to the site.

Post of the Week – A personal finance post I found to be exceptional.
Here is a very good post on gift ideas for people who have everything.

If you are currently, or soon will be in the market for a cell phone, cell phone plan, accessories, wireless cards, netbooks or ringtones make sure to visit Lets Talk. My two favorite features on this site are the side-by-side cell phone plan comparisons and the user reviews.

If you enjoy sweepstakes take a minute to check out HFMUS Sweepstakes. It’s a running feed of all sweepstakes offered by Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S.

Weekly Reminder – A reminder of a useful article you might have missed.
This post might give you a few different ideas on how to use your library.

Why a Weekly Menu Matters

There is one main reason we make out a weekly menu: to avoid unnecessary trips to the grocery store. I have found that when we are unprepared we almost always choose meals that involve a trip. Paying attention to what's in your pantry and freezer and basing your weekly meals around what's on hand can be a real money saver.

Having a large and varied batch of recipes is also a big help; twenty chicken recipes will stand a better chance of including one that has what you have on hand than only five recipes, so it's good to branch out with plenty of options. To that end I decided to gather all of my recipe posts in one place, namely this post. I hope you find something here you can use!

Friendship Soup Mix

Homemade Noodles

Homemade Bread

Newman Stew

Pat’s Corn Chowder

Mom’s Mac and Cheese

Chipped Beef over Chow Mein

Hamburger Casserole

Tuna and Noodle Casserole

Chicken Enchiladas

Related Reading:

Don’t Eat Out, Find a New Recipe

Pumped Up Frugal Tips: Credit Cards, Light Bulbs and Homemade Gifts Edition

Once a month I take a different look at some popular but somewhat wimpy frugal tips and try to beef them up. Yeah!

Credit Cards

Wimpy Tip: Put your credit card in a bowl of water and freeze it to keep from using the wicked thing. That idea might have made a difference before microwaves were invented, but it’s just kind of silly today.

Tip on Steroids: Grab that credit card by the corner and run it through the shredder. The next time you feel the urge to splurge you will have to go through the hassle of ordering a replacement card.

Light Bulbs

Wimpy Tip: Replace all of the old light bulbs in your house with Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs. Were is the challenge in that?

Tip on Steroids: Remove all of the old light bulbs in your house and only replace half of them with CFLs, leaving the other sockets empty. It might be a little dark here and there, but the savings will add up in no time.

Homemade Gifts

Wimpy Tip: Use your God given crafty talents to make Birthday and Holiday gifts.

Tip on Steroids: If you are not artsy-fartsy, pretend to be. Take a few crayons and scribble all over some paper. Give the drawings out as presents, explaining you have seriously taken up abstract art.

Is It Tougher To Save Money Or Make More?

As I have been struggling recently to both make and save money I got to wondering which was tougher for me, and for others. A person must, obviously, have an income before any saving can begin. Before I lost my full time job over two years ago both making and saving money were locked into auto-pilot. When I received my annual raise I would increase my savings account direct deposit accordingly. Most of my coworkers would talk about something they would now be able to buy, such as affording a new car payment, or to throw more money at a credit card or other bill, or increasing a service such as going to a more extensive cell phone plan or bumping up to the next cable TV plan. Rarely was there any mention of saving anything at all. Being locked into the consumption culture made it much tougher for them to save.

When I lost my job I decided, because I had saved some money and received a generous severance and transition package, to try to make money outside of the usual boundaries; namely, not working for someone else. I had dreamt before, like many others, of striking out on my own journey of self-employment. I had read many accounts by others about their struggles to make it on their own and a reoccurring theme was how long it takes and how hard it is. In the back of my mind I always thought there was a little self-aggrandizing going on in making it sound so hard. Two plus years into my money making experiment I have to tell you they are not exaggerating at all.

When you work for someone else everything is already in place for you to begin your job, from the actual building to tax withholdings to a weekly schedule and the tools you need to perform your duties. Strip all of that away, including automatic raises and savings plans, and imagine having to build up and create all of it yourself. It’s intimidating, frustrating, and occasionally, when everything goes right, one of the best feelings you will ever experience.

As for which is tougher for me now, saving money or making more, I have to say my focus is entirely on making more and there is no savings plan. I don’t make enough to save any. So currently it is tough to make money and nearly impossible to save any. But I’m working on that.

Has the Great Recession and the “new frugality” changed your money making and saving habits? Which is tougher for you: to make more or to save it?

Weekly Roundup

This is a reminder to Buck List readers to take advantage of the offer of a free online personal finance course. Visit my original post on the offer for details.

Weathergal is “bubbly and fresh, and she will make you smile while you learn a quick fact or two.” Check out her site for weather facts, definitions of weather terms, videos and travel episodes exploring global weather phenomena. You can also sign up for free text alerts.

cashURwheels is “the only marketplace that connects private vehicle owners with advertisers directly.” If you have ever thought about plastering your vehicle with ads to make some extra money visit this site to see how it works.

I have highlighted video sites in the past, but Channels describes itself as the first DVR for web video, and includes an index of over 150,000 shows. And it’s free.

Post of the Week – A personal finance post I found to be exceptional.
Moolanomy offers some timely tips on how not to go broke over the holidays.

Search for cheap airline tickets and price comparisons on Cheap Flights. They also offer free travel guides and a deals alert newsletter.

If you have a need for royalty free stock photos, available for personal and commercial use, you will want to bookmark and use Public Domain Pictures.

Weekly Reminder – A reminder of a useful article you might have missed. Check out this post on how to get free TV show tickets.

How to Find Free Firewood

A good buddy of mine has a saying he likes to throw at me when we are camping and in the middle of breaking kindling and sawing found firewood. “A man who cuts his own wood is warmed twice.” While it is a thoughtful phrase in the spring and fall I usually want to smack him when it is uttered during a summer outing and I am sweating buckets. I have written before about how to find wood when camping, so I won’t cover that here.

While we don’t have a fireplace in our house we do have an outdoor hearth on our back deck and we usually try to take wood with us when we go camping, so I am usually on the lookout for free firewood. It’s my opinion that you should never have to pay for recreational firewood unless it is very scarce or you are physically unable to gather and cut it yourself. With the exception of cutting in a national forest I have used all of the following methods to find free firewood.

National, State and County Parks and Forests

Here in Iowa it is legal to pick up dead, fallen wood for campfires in most state and county parks and forests. Yes, there are forests in Iowa. While not free, some national forests issue permits to cut firewood. They are usually $5 per cord with a minimum number of cords required to be taken. Public land in the country can be utilized as well. If you see some dead wood on the edge of public land, such as a wildlife refuge or a public hunting area, just ask the local DNR officer if you can have it. They have almost always said “yes” when we have asked.

The Curb

Just a few weeks ago I was driving home from the grocery store and there on the curb was a huge pile of precut fire wood, with a sign declaring it free for the taking. I loaded up several dozen nice 4 to 6 inch diameter logs.

After a storm has torn through the area is a good time to collect firewood from the curb. I have also helped friends and neighbors cut up downed limbs after a storm, bartering my help with a chainsaw for the wood.

Illegal Dumping

If you get around the edge of town or along streams, rivers and wooded areas you most likely know where there are illegal dumping areas. I have found perfectly good, sometimes precut and already aged wood in these places. Not only are you getting free firewood, you are helping clean up the area.

Dumpsters and Businesses

I like to keep scrap lumber on hand to supplement my firewood supply. Sometimes I have gotten into a batch of hardwood that burns reluctantly unless aided buy some nice dry lumber. It also comes in handy if your firewood is a little damp. Dumpsters and business back dock areas can yield abundant pallets and packing crates that the owners would be more than happy to see disappear. Just go in the front office and ask what you can have.

Craigslist

A few months ago I did a little study on what you can find for free on Craigslist. The four cities I followed for a week (including New York City) all had multiple ads for free firewood. Go to Craigslist, find your city or state and type firewood in the search box.

Frugal Recipe: Chicken Enchiladas

This recipe is a newer addition to our family menu and we are happy to have it. The original version sounded a little bland so I added a few extra ingredients to spice it up. I think you will recognize them in the ingredients list. Just leave them out if don't like it a little spicy!

Ingredients

1 small onion, chopped and sautéed

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can green chilies

1 cup sour cream

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 cup mozzarella cheese

2 cups cubed cooked chicken

2 tsp chili powder

6 flour tortillas

Directions

Mix first nine ingredients and place 3 tablespoons on each tortilla. Roll up tightly and place seam side down in a 9 X 13 baking dish that has been coated with non-stick cooking spray. Top with any remaining mixture and bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

Can serve with a side of warm frijoles and Mexican rice.

Further Reading:

Tuna and Noodle Casserole

Eight Essentials For Winter Driving

Before the snow flies, and it already has here in Iowa, you will want to make sure your vehicle is properly equipped for winter driving and possible emergencies. To ensure you are fully prepared follow these eight essential tips for winter driving.

Make sure your car is well maintained and ready for the season. Good tires, battery, defroster and wiper blades are a must. The blower in my old F-150 doesn’t work so it’s going to sit out this season until I fix it.

Two new, solid windshield scrapers are a must. After just year or two they usually need to be replaced because the blades get ragged. Get a long one with a brush to remove snow from all around your vehicle and a short one for that down and dirty power scraping that is sometimes required.

Fill up your car before a major storm hits, and keep it at least half full during the season. During one particularly bad storm a few years ago it took me three hours to drive my usual 10 minute route home from work.

Jumper, or booster, cables. I carry these in each of my vehicles year round.

Blanket or sleeping bag. Years ago I bought some old wool blankets for camping. They were too itchy to sleep in so they were designated car blankets.

A fully charged cell phone could be your best friend.

I have been an AAA member for many years now and I would recommend it without hesitation to anyone, any time of the year. It can be especially helpful in the winter months.

Extra gloves and stocking cap. You might not have remembered to bring both when you left so keeping an extra set in your vehicle could really make a difference, and not just for emergencies. If you have ever had to clean snow off of your car without gloves you know what I mean.

Weekly Roundup

The Buck List participated in the Carnival of Savings 5th Edition. Check it out for some good personal finance articles. Thanks to the host for including my post.

Do you have a website in need of sprucing up? Go to Web Site Makeover Project and fill out their entry form. Every other month they build a new website for the winner.

Apnoti is an online shopping service that tries to find the best prices available on the Internet. They let you know “when a specific product you are looking for is being offered for sale at the target price you set.” Worth a look for this shopping season.

Alternative To is a gem of a site. They list alternatives to applications you can use on your computer or mobile phone. Make sure you bookmark this one.

Post of the Week – A personal finance post I found to be exceptional. Bankrate ran this short but informative article on supermarket alternatives.

Outright offers free, online bookkeeping for small businesses. I have not used it but they appear to offer everything you need to keep your books up to date.

If you have ever had to go through the sometimes nightmarish process of trying to find a quality home improvement contractor you are really going to like BidABuilder. This free site allows you to post your project on which fully vetted contractors bid.

Do you have a quirky idea for a toy, a gadget or something else? Send your idea to Firebox Inventor by December 31 and if your invention wins they will develop, manufacture and sell it on their website. You will receive 50% of their profits for the lifetime of the product.

Weekly Reminder – A reminder of a useful article you might have missed. This article gives some ideas on how to offer your services for barter or cash.

Where to Find Seasonal Work

While the unemployment rate currently hovers around 10% the “underemployed” rate is reported to be around 17%. If you find yourself in either of these categories or are just looking for some extra money this holiday season there are, surprise, plenty of companies hiring part-time seasonal workers. Companies currently hiring include UPS, FedEx, Toys’R’Us, Target, Olan Mills Studio, Macys, Radio Shack and AT&T, among several others. Check SeasonalJobs365 and SnagAJob for opportunities in your area.

If you are looking to make some side cash on your own a snow shovel or a snow thrower could soon become your best friends. A little word of mouth advertising around your neighborhood could bring in a good days work and several hundred dollars next snowfall. Raking leaves and cleaning gutters are another unpopular task that many people would gladly pay you to do before the snow flies.

Are you working a seasonal job or looking for one? What has been your experience so far?

Related Reading:

Nine Ways to Find a Job or Work at Home

Can You Turn Your Hobby Into Income?

Free Online Personal Finance Course

The Buck List has partnered with Capitalist Curriculum to offer a free online personal finance course to Buck List readers. All you have to do is visit http://classroom.capitalistcurriculum.com/ and read about the courses they offer.

When you decide on a course click Create an Account and use the referral code “thebucklist”.

From there log in and register for the first course, which will be totally free because of the referral code you used.

Take advantage of this great savings today, and feel free to leave some feedback in the comments section below.