30 second video: protect your emergency cash like a chess match queen May 22, 2008

New shoes, new iMac, & old cash worries:
It’s fun spending cash reserved for emergencies.
Even more than fun - it’s bloody easy!
It’s easy to break discipline & access those dollars meant to protect from rainy days. But since that approach has made my family more vulnerable financially, it’s time to rethink. [...]

my husband, me, & our financial habits make front page of business section in washington post February 10, 2008

photo by Lois Raimondo, Washington Post, 2/10/08

What a blast!
It was published today, in the Washington Post’s business section — with our happy mugs below the fold (& as the second photo in the online slideshow).
Talking with Post reporter Nancy Trejos was a comfortable, positive experience. She expressed a lot of interest in different [...]

2007 goals met & missed (plus recalling family mantra for ‘tell the truth!’) January 7, 2008

I heard that as a kid growing up from Oklahoma relatives - said when it was really time to tell the truth! I love it. And for whatever reason, it surmounts my agnosticism & paraphrases the need for honesty to this day.
In that spirit…:
Life balance goals met & missed (2006 vs 2007)
Come to Jesus 2006: [...]

stock market meets the drakestail & the millionaire mommy next door November 29, 2007

Good ‘ole Drakestail keeps saying the same phrase throughout the story, most seriously toward the King who owes Drakestail cash.
Quack! Quack! Quack! When shall I get my money back?
That’s how I feel when seeing our investments take dives with the shaky Dow lately. Wise folks emphasize the long view [...]

$1million by 2012: dream it, plan it, live it October 13, 2007

So it’s time to take ownership & aim big.
I remember once being fearless in the face of challenges and dreams — going after them was the fun rush of life. Then on the financial front - I learned how much it costs to retire, to retire with decent health care [...]

beckoning budgets & cursing like a turk September 24, 2007

Yikes it was a tough call — listening to that inner budgetary voice vs the call to wander lust.
For a few weeks, I planned on going with Sean to Istanbul and producing a few live Web shows like Jonny Goldstein does each week.
Yet the truth is, we already savored Hawaii this summer - an opportunity [...]

negotiation tactics & feeling strange: haggling down your credit card rate September 18, 2007

I called two weeks ago to request our credit card rate be reduced; they complied with a one percentage point reduction.
I’m torn on this whole issue. Because for the sake of true blue ownership — I knew the terms of this card and used it anyway, fully aware. Yet at the [...]

cooking with camera samurai: photographer pal teaches how to save $11k September 14, 2007

We’ll be in the kitchen tonight learning acorn squash & eggplant.
Look out for on-video results next week and more tips on how at-home dining can preserve your bottom line.
Have an awesome weekend.
More from:
Camera Samurai’s fine photo education;
DC Media Makers, a media literacy group specializing in online video; Carl & I are both members.

edelman’s financial planner, part 2: integrity trumps a short-term sale September 12, 2007

Last week’s Edelman rep owns a completely different philosophy.
After a few hours of reviewing our situation, he offered to draft an official financial plan - an $800 service. But he immediately said directing that $800 toward our debt pay off would be his first recommendation … vs investing it toward his fees at [...]

reviewing one’s portfolio, investing money, & the duh factor September 11, 2007

I meet with the administrator of our retirement plan tomorrow and look forward to nailing down:

what our monthly contributions should be to retire age 65 with 75% of current salary;
what our monthly contributions should be to retire age 65 with 100% of current salary (omg that seems nuts but heck why not know the number);
and [...]