Well, once again I’ve spent hours watching about 30 movies nominated for Academy Awards for movies shown in 2024. Why do I do this? I think Hollywood and other film makers need to do a much better job in the movies they produce. Although there are some great movies among... Read more →

A fantastic thing happened. My daughter Mona planned a trip to Santa Barbara, California, for us to visit my long-time friend, Sue Lean, who moved there last March. Mona lives in Sacramento, so we drove the six hours to Santa Barbara for our visit. Our visit began with a trip... Read more →

Exercise is extremely important in lowering the risk of chronic disease and improving overall health. However, individuals are less likely to exercise during the winter months. Exercising in cooler weather actually has some advantages over exercising in warmer weather. For example, there’s no heat and humidity to deal with and... Read more →

Recently, I wrote about what prices might go up due to the tariffs President Trump is imposing. Among them are autos; laptops, tablets, and smartphones; furniture; appliances; shoes; books; carpet; and paper products. Also likely to increase in costs are fertilizer, cotton, wool, alcohol, bottled water, pet food, baby supplies,... Read more →

Some consumers have been stock piling food and other items for months in anticipation of prices going up due to Trump’s tariffs and other policies. With 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico and 10 percent on China, it will begin Saturday. When I went grocery shopping this week, I... Read more →

February is a good month to look for winter clothing on sale. One example is evening dresses. If one of your kids needs a prom dress, now would be a good time to go shopping. Prices will go up again when prom season begins. Since I’m walking often in the... Read more →

Are you a member of Amazon Prime? If so, you need to be aware that there may be recalled products sold on its website. Amazon, determined to be the distributor of the 400,000 hazardous products, is responsible for informing customers about the dangerous products it distributes and offering refunds, the... Read more →

It’s a consumer financial technique I recommend all the time on my blog and in my weekly newsletter: compare prices. The importance of continually doing it showed up when I was shopping with my daughter the day after Christmas at The Rack. I didn’t find any boots that fit, so... Read more →

It’s been quite a year, 2024. So much has been happening in consumer and personal finance. I’ve been writing my blog since 2008, with 5,200 articles posted and nearly 1 million page views. Thank you for your readership during 2024. Here are the top articles on my blog that people... Read more →

Happy New Year. It's going to be a challenging year for consumers, but with continuing research and action, we'll make it through. ln addition to reading my blog regularly, you can get helpful information from my free, weekly newsletter, "Helpful Money Tips for You." It will arrive on Thursdays in... Read more →