The nice lady in the card store told me I didn’t need to give her any information because it was on my coupon. I left the store wondering exactly what information that was.
According to Jose Lejin, a technical expert I contacted, I needn’t have worried. The barcode with my information told her the coupon belonged to me and might have been tied to a specific promotion. There is a privacy issue here in that the retailer may know the time and place I redeemed their offer.

I was out for a walk along the coast when I stumbled upon a surreal sight: two luxury coaches wedged tight in a remote parking lot, and forty or so people clustered together, singing to a field of cows. To say I was taken aback would be an understatement.
I paused by a picnic bench to listen as they enthusiastically worked their way through a couple of tunes, until a voice called out that it was time to move on.

Despite my protestation, we went to a big box store today, COSTCO to be specific.
I am not a fan of these stores. They don’t save people money, they encourage spending and for some people waste as well. It’s all hard to resist, but I try, yet sometimes fail. Today I bought a three foot bag of popcorn and a bag of dried apricots-I never bought those in my life). 
These stores encourage people to buy what they don’t need and in volume that may not be able to use.

Would you “waste money” on something of questionable value? Something that receives only a passing glance or less, that is fleetingly or not at all appreciated, that is mostly discarded within days and is often a mere obstacle to the prize within? I bet you would and have, possibly multiple times a year.
I try to resist, but it is fruitless, we are cornered. There are other ways to approach the situation, but most of us are trapped by convention.

If you don’t already know, I live in Ireland, not exactly a country you’d associate with scorching heat. Because of this, Irish homes have never needed air conditioning, and mine is no different. Air conditioning in an Irish home is still something of a novelty.
The problem is, mother nature is slowly changing the rules. It’s still cloudy and mild more often than sunny and warm, but heat is creeping into our summers, and not the pleasant kind.

This morning I was at a high school graduation and one of the speakers-head of the BOE-started her speech by relating a local news story about an elderly lady photographed in the rain pushing a shopping cart to where it belonged. The lady was questioned why do that in this terrible weather.
Her quoted reply was, “I was taught to put things back where they belong, besides it’s the right thing to do.”
The curmudgeon feels vindicated 👍 Maybe it’s an age thing. 

Over the years, Suzie and I have approached clothing from fundamentally different financial philosophies. The clearest indicator lives in our walk-in dressing room: 36 feet of hanging rails for her, approximately four feet for me. We also share two 12-drawer dressers. Four of those drawers are mine. I’m told this is generous.
Then there is one of three spare bedrooms, currently serving less as a guest room and more as a textile archive, complete with vacuum-packed clothing.

I have written before that I could look at your grocery cart and find money to save and invest. Some people thought I was joking, but I’m not. My point isn’t about groceries, it’s really about finding money to save and invest, even small amounts over time. Groceries are just one example. I suppose I am promoting a bit of frugality and financial discipline in very modest ways. 
Initially my conclusion about groceries was based on many hours of observation,

I like to think of myself as a decent planner, and when I spend money I like to make sure I’m getting value. Both qualities were very much on display last August when I booked a trip to Valencia, Spain, to witness a total solar eclipse.
The planning had started years earlier. Solar eclipses are predictable to the minute centuries in advance, and I’d known about the Spanish eclipse long before it was on anyone else’s radar.

I confess. Sometimes I push the envelope of frugality so far it crosses into tightwad territory. I’ve recently taken a detour down that particular avenue with outcomes that, as I explained to my wife Suzie, were “not uniformly aligned with projected benchmarks.” I’ve taken to calling it taste bud training.
I’m a creature of grocery habit, same brands, same shelf, barely a second thought. So when my usual spaghetti was out of stock, I found myself actually browsing the pasta aisle for once.

I just finished reading Morgan Housel’s The Art of Spending Money, and it hit a different nerve than most financial books.
Most of us spend years talking about how to earn more, save more, invest better, and retire sooner. All of those matter. But Housel pushes a harder question:
What is the money actually for?
Is it buying back time? Peace? Family memories? Health? Independence? Or is it quietly being used to chase status,

I was in Barcelona today watching the world famous FC Barcelona win in front of their home fans. Being on my own, I headed back to the hotel after the game and caught the PGA Golf Championship on the screen in the hotel bar. With nothing better to occupy my mind, I started wondering how a golfer actually gets started on the professional tour.
After some googling and a conversation with Claude AI, I discovered a high-risk,

Have you ever watched a small, entirely avoidable expense reveal itself as a window into how modern spending actually works? I recently received a masterclass, courtesy of a Nerf gun, a glass light shade, and my own stubborn refusal to just buy a new kitchen fixture.
It started on New Year’s Eve, or early New Year’s Day, to be precise. Two of the twenty-something guests had discovered my grandkids’ Nerf gun stash and declared war. Being the mature,

Every evening Connie and I watch a few game shows, old ones. Sometime during the show the host asks the player “what will you do with the money if you win.” Sometimes there is group of players. 
Invariably the answer is something like…I always wanted to go bird watching in the Amazon, I’m buying a new motorcycle. Taking the entire family to Europe is high on the list as is buying a dream car. I’m  saving for a new tattoo.

I filled up the gas tank this morning and the total was over $81. I drive a 4-Cylinder Chevy Camaro. Chevy recommends premium fuel – I use the mid-grade.
Still, that’s a record for me. So, I started to reflect…
When I turned 16 in 1973 I applied for a job at a gas station/car wash. It was owned by my best friend’s dad. I hired in at $1.25 an hour. which bumped up to $1.40 after the first 40 hours.