40% Off One Book At Border’s

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 30, 2008

For those readers that still shop for books at brick and mortar stores, here is a nice little coupon for Border’s. 40% of one book. Click here to view the coupon. You need to be a member of their rewards program, but it is free to sign up in stores.

This sale is only good through Wednesday the 30th of January.

This deal was sent to The Happy Rock by Big Will over at Leesport Flea Market, a deal and eBay consignment site for the Reading, Pennsylvania area.

» Filed Under Money Savers

What Candidate Will Be The Best For Your Finances?

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 27, 2008

With primaries and caucuses in full swing and a new president on the horizon, I thought it might be helpful to start some discussion on who will be the best for our finances. This isn’t about who you like the best, or even who you want to vote for, but who will be the best for your personal finances. This includes things like job availability, income rates, interest rates, mortgage rates, taxes, and other related issues.

For me, I think the biggest issue affecting my personal finances is taxes. From 7% sales tax in NJ, to income tax, to having to pay both sides of social security taxes on The Rockette’s income, capital gains taxes, tolls, and on and on, I can’t thing of a bigger drain on my money. This is especially true, since I have no choice in the matter. With anything we consume(housing, autos, gas, food), we have choices. Not so with taxes. The more you make the more they take. To change taxes you need an administration that is focused on fiscal responsibility, smaller government, and giving the people more control not less. Even though I voted for Bush in 2004, this administration has failed me horribly. Government has gotten bigger and exerted more control, and spending has gone crazy.

I personally don’t think the lot of Democrats will move the US towards a place that will tackle these finance questions for me with the exception of more fiscal responsibility and less war. It also doesn’t seem like the front running Republicans are touting platforms that would affect these financial issues. Huckabee and the Fair Tax has some potential or is at least an attempt. So, who else is left? Ron Paul. Yes, he is quirky, but his ideas and his record shows he genuinely wants a smaller government, less spending, and to return the power to the US residents. These goals would totally support my major financial goals. The media doesn’t give him much coverage, but he does have a great website if you want to check out his positions.

I know that I am not focusing on a lot of issues that may be important for others, but those are my issues. There is plenty of room for debate. What is your focus, and who best supports your financial goals.


{democracy:2}

» Filed Under Personal Finance

How Much Does Adoption Cost? – Less Than You Might Think

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 23, 2008

The average infant adoption in the US can vary from $5,000 to $30,000 and on average costs $15,000 – $20,000. Our two newborn infant adoptions cost us about $11,000(0 after credits) and an estimated $15,000($2,000 after credits). This article will not break down the different costs associated with adoptions, but it will list multiple ways that adoption expenses can be considerably lower than those numbers suggest. I am speaking from experience since the expenses of our first adoption were more than covered by the programs/tips below.

First and foremost, the Federal Adoption Tax Credit that was signed into law by George Bush in 2002. The adoption tax credit offers an $11,390 tax credit in 2007 for qualified expenses on all domestic and foreign adoptions. For us, we were able to use all but $200 of tax credit in one year with some special planning. The credit alone covered almost all of our adoption expenses. The big downside is that the credit often comes a full year after you incur the expenses. About.com does a nice job explaining the adoption tax credit.
Adoption Subsidies. Any child adopted out of the United States foster care system with special needs will receive Medicaid and a monthly subsidy based on the severity of the disability. The average subsidy is about $350 a month. With this government bill the US government is able to save billions and provide better care for our children at the same time. Adopting.org provides a nice overview of subsidies.
Employee Adoption Assistance. You mileage will vary from company to company, but many companies have programs that will provide a cash assistance payment for adoption. The programs seem to be rarely mentioned and remain buried in a manual sitting in an HR office somewhere. Rules and benefits will vary, but my company provides employees with up to $2,000 per adoption. One painless form and a copy photocopies and we were awarded the full $2,000.
Medical Costs Related to Pregnancy. Again, the amount mother’s will have pay from conception to birth will vary greatly depending on your health coverage and area, but they can often cost people thousands of dollars. There is no need to worry about things like co-pays and partial covered hospital visits procedures when adopting.
Physical Costs of Pregnancy. These would include lost productivity for the mother, lost time at work, and any medical complications that may arise.
It’s just plain worth it. This isn’t a savings per se, but more of a perspective shift that makes any money you have to spend pale in comparison to the experience. If you are fully committed to providing a loving household for a child who may not otherwise be given that opportunity, than the monetary side of things tends have less sting. Also along these lines, many people often support your actions and are willing to help out in ways that you don’t even expect.

That list might be longer than you thought it would be, given the huge numbers that are often thrown around for the cost of adoption. I hope it helps provide a clearer picture of the true costs of adoption. Let me know if I missed any, or your thoughts.
Source : Adoption Guide

» Filed Under About Me, Children and Money, Money Savers

Let’s Welcome The Happy Pebble Jr.

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 21, 2008

The Happy Rock Garden welcomed its fourth member on Friday night, a second adopted son Julian. I will dub him The Happy Pebble Jr. to go along with our first Happy Pebble.

He was born on Wednesday the 16th and we brought him home on Friday night. It all happened quite fast and unexpectedly which just adds to the joy and excitement! Family and children are more amazing than I could have ever dreamed. Cheers!

On a separate and unrelated side note, I will be taking requests for guest posters. I will be sleeping way too much that I won’t have the time to produce the same level of quality content, especially with my MBA finishing in just over 8 weeks. Email me with a general topic and an estimated time of arrival, and I will choose a handful of authors to submit articles. Thanks.

*Note : That is not a picture of our children.

» Filed Under About Me, Misc.

Tips To Kickstart Your Debt Reduction

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 17, 2008

For those of us who have a mountain of debt or a small income, the journey to get out of debt is a long process. Along the way it is easy to become bored, sidetracked, depressed, or even to give up. Keeping on track is not easy, I know from experience. It took us 4 years to destroy our 70k in debt, but I learned a few tricks to help keep us on track. I wanted to share a list of tips that will help you deal with the down times during your debt destruction process.

Find your motivation. I have said before, purpose one of the biggest motivators. It will fuel our passion. What I am talking about here is reflecting deeply on the positive benefits that you will receive when you are out of debt. Things like looking at pictures of your children and thinking about the security and family legacy you want to leave behind. Or maybe allowing yourself envision being able to quit the job that you hate, the stress that will be removed from your life, or the freedom that you will gain. One final trick that helped me focus was to listening to the Dave Ramsey Show. Hearing others struggles and successes and having the zero debt principles reinforced really renewed my focus.
Accountability and friends. Lean on your spouse or friends when you are weak. Hopefully you have relationships that can relate to your struggles and offer support. Many a time during our journey, either the Rockette or I felt week, but the other would carry the burden for a while. If don’t have those type of relationships, it would be worth trying to find some friends to walk through the struggle with you. Blogs and web forums can be an awesome way to connect others on similar journey. Maybe even starting your own blog could inspire you.
Track your progress. By this point in the journey you should have a strong understanding of your finances and how much debt you have left, but sometimes we lose perspective. If you have $15,000 left out of 40k, it is easy to forget that we have already come more than half way and focus on the tough struggles ahead. I found it amazingly cathartic to have my debt listed on a nice big shee to help provide perspective and and satisfaction as we crossed off each debt. Hanging the list on the refrigerator or in your office can also be a great reminder and motivator.
Increase your income. If you haven’t thought about it yet, think of ways to boost your income. Often our debt feels so insurmountable, because we have such a little shovel. Consider delivering pizza or doing some other side jobs for a while to give you an extra push. Remember, this isn’t a long term solution, but a short term answer to help clear up your debt. If you keep your purpose and goals in mind it makes the burden a lot lighter while you put in the extra effort. You could even try selling some of your stuff on eBay or craigslist. Maybe it is even time to ask for a raise, what you can do to get a raise, or overtime.
Try an experiment. Ideally the experiment should support your debt reduction, but it doesn’t have too. What this accomplishes is helps distract you from the pain that you are feeling, and breed confidence to help fuel your debt reduction. Often the change in focus can be quite fun and exciting. Some great examples of experiments would be canceling cable for a month, not watching TV for a week, cash only spending for a month, cooking all your meals at home, quitting coffee, volunteering, etc.
Treat yourself. Some people respond to this idea more than others, but often giving yourself a small, and I mean small, reward after a big goal or during a sluggish time can help get the juices flowing. Going out to the movies or a play, taking a long weekend to a cabin, or buying a video game are all great ideas. Remember to save and pay cash for whatever you purchase.

Hopefully this list provides you some good ideas to help kick start your debt reduction plan again. If you have any comments or other tips to offers readers, please feel free to comment.

» Filed Under Debt Elimination, Psychology of Debt

Does TurboTax, TaxCut And Other DIY Tax Software Really Save You Money?

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 13, 2008

The obvious answer is…….Yes! The not so obvious answer is that it might cost me well over $300 dollars this year.

First, the software can usually be purchased for next to nothing after rebates or through other programs. SlickDeals is a great way to scour the net for a deal on the software you want.

The other factor to take into account is your time and stress in having to deal with taxes yourself. The time and stress will be extremely personal decisions that we each must measure for ourselves. The only thing I will say is that the software tends to be fairly straightforward and not as scary of some people might think.

Finally, the last thing to take into account is the risk and cost of mistakes. I can tell you from first hand experience that making one honest mistake can quickly destroy years of frugality. I am currently fighting to lessen the fines from not realizing that I had to pay state taxes by April 15th, even when you file for extension.

We were waiting on the social security number for our son after his adoption was finalized, so I filed extensions for both sets of taxes. Everything was fine until a few months ago the NJ Division of Taxation sends me a bill for over $300 dollars in interest and late penalties. This is over 30% penalty considering that the bill was about $900 dollars. Silly honest mistake that I really should have known better, but hopefully NJ will remove the late penalties and the bill will be under $100 dollars. A severe mistake could increase your risk of getting audited which would most likely cost you much more in stress and fees for representation.

I am not here to get everyone to their local CPA, but I want everyone to consider all the sides when deciding between tax software and using a professional. I may still do my own taxes again this year, but I will make sure I am a bit more careful if I don’t use a professional. More and more I am learning the effeciencies that come from focusing on your own area of expertise and letting other focus on theirs. That is great in theory until you have to shell out $200 to get your taxes done. I will follow up our decision as it gets closer to tax time.

» Filed Under Finance Software, Frugality, Money Savers

The Vegetarian Experiment – The Happy Rock Goes Veggie In January

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 11, 2008

That’s right, the whole Happy Rock Garden is going vegetarian for the rest of January. I mentioned that I am not fond of resolutions, so here is an example of one way to spark change without resolutions. Experiment! I will track being vegetarian for the month and the associated costs. Updates when appropriate.

I got the idea from Steve Pavlina’s 30 day raw food experiment. Even though his experiment is quite off the beaten path, I am finding his raw food chronicles extremely interesting. Like most things in life there is a path that has gotten me to the point were I am willing to give up meat. I personally love meats of all kind, even Scrapple! I not even ‘doing it for the animals’.

Why am I doing it then? Here is why:

First and foremost I have seen the benefits of eating healthy. In the college cafeteria I must have had 2-3 plates of French Fries and multiple deserts each day. Since I met my wife, I have eaten more and more healthy with each passing year. With each passing year my energy level, mental clarity, and emotional states have seen equally positive results. We already eat vegetarian dinners 1-2 nights a week, so the change won’t be as extreme as you might think.

I have experience a body of evidence that has piqued my interest as to the positive health benefits as eating very healthy. Things like the potential for less colds, injuries, cancers, and weight along with positive benefits like more energy, vitality, sex drive, mental faculties, and a positive emotional disposition. Interesting science data like this chart that compares human anatomy to that of carnivore, omnivore, and herbivore that seems to support that humans are designed to be mostly if not all herbivores. Books like The China Study and Eat to Live are also very intriguing. We even have friends of ours who tried the Eat to Live diet for a while and reported feeling better than they ever had.

Lastly, why not? I am grateful to live in a country that affords me the ability to try out better ways of living. If I miss meat or don’t see the benefits, it is only a couple weeks. The process and the learning will be quite valuable.

We started on Monday the 7th, and so far I do feel really good despite not getting my normal amount of sleep. I haven’t experienced any detox symptoms, which can occur as your body adjusts and purges any unwanted materials.

I have quickly adjusted to eating, and I don’t feel hungry all day. In the past when I have eaten vegetarian meals, they just wouldn’t hold me over for long. I am probably eating less food(calorically) than before and my snacking has changed to fruit.

I will do my best to track the financial side of eating vegetarian, but I am not sure 3 weeks or so will provide enough data for accurate comparison. I suspect the cost won’t be too different, because quality meat is often quite expensive. I will also track my weight, which started at 200 pounds(my highest weight ever). I have lost 3 pounds in 4 days, but I suspect that might equalize in the next week. If people are interested in recipes, leave a comment and I will get the recipes from the Happy Rockette. I will say that having an awesome wife who enjoys cooking is a huge blessing and greatly appreciated. The meals have been extremely interesting and pleasurable, and the meal I ate for lunch yesterday at work was getting lots of attention just from the scrumptious smell.

If you have any questions of comments, feel free to ask away.

» Filed Under Experiments, Food, Health

Cash Only Spending Experiment Analysis

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 9, 2008

Time to clean house. I have been carrying this dirty laundry around, since August.

In July I started an all cash experiment to test the Dave Ramsey argument that you can save 12-18% just by spending cash. View the cash only experiment details here and the benefits of spending cash here.

Some readers have asked me for the results of the experiment while back, but I admit I have none to offer. It took a few months, but I am finally willing to admit that the experiment was a failure. I apologize.

We didn’t fail to complete the actual experiment. We did go all of July without swiping plastic once, but what broke down was my ability to analyze the results. I still have an envelope with the receipts I was able to save from the experiment, but I don’t think I will be able to glean much from the incomplete set of data.

The truth is that the no cash month was such a radical change in my habits that I was beat down by the end of the month. I didn’t have the energy to stay on top of things during the month and I was so discouraged at the end of the month that didn’t complete the analysis. I think part of me didn’t want to see that it saved money, because I wasn’t ready for the change. Another part of me wasn’t sure that I had been diligent enough in my record keeping to make the data meaningful.

I have wrestled with it and tried to slide it under the rug, but the spirit in me that desires change won’t let it go any longer. The Happy Rockette also added some words of encouragement.

Yes it seems silly that a trivial change like spending only cash got the best of me, but it really did stress a large number of ingrained habits and required a lot of energy complete. I am OK with failure as long as it is a pathway to growth. With this admission, I think it will become just that. The time and energy was by no means a waste. The next time I try the experiment again or even different experiment I will have more insight, wisdom, discipline, and knowledge to bring to the table.

Sorry to disappoint anyone that was truly interested, but I hope to resurrect the experiment again with much better results. Is there anyone that would be willing to join me in the next effort? With a little more planning and discipline I think we could get some meaningful data out of it. Data that can help save money and improve lives!

» Filed Under Cash, Experiments, Psychology of Spending

Top 5 Reasons The New Year’s Resolutions Fail

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 7, 2008

Like clockwork New Year’s comes and everyone fantasizes about some habit they want to kick or a good behavior they want to start. I was on the resolution train for years, only to realize I was lucky to make it to February. I am here to offer some reasons why New Year’s resolutions aren’t lasting recipe for change.

Resolutions are so common place that everyone feels like they need to do them. They get created out of habit rather than conviction, motivation, or passion. Even if the desire is there, the planning and preparation are often half hearted or non existent. Writing them down, planning, preparing, reading, and learning are crucial to creating lasting life changes. Half the time we can barely recall what the previous year’s resolution.
Resolutions are often derive from negative emotions. Changes that are built around positive results and motivation, rather then ‘stopping’ something have a much greater chance to be successful
No accountability. Everyone knows resolutions fail, but we try anyway without changing the formula. We rarely involve family, friends, or support groups and no one cares(even ourselves) when the resolution is abandoned by mid January.
Resolutions are overwhelming. Our unhappiness with the past year or our zeal for the New Year causes us to bite off way more than we can chew. The huge weight we create for ourselves serves only to drag us into hopelessness. Smaller specific goals are more likely to be achieved. Even the divide and conquer method can be a great help.
Resolutions are too broad/general. Vagueness usually leaves room for use to say ‘yeah, sure I did X in 2007’. ‘Spend less money in 2008’ is a admirable goal, but it is unlikely to have a significant impact on your life without quantifying how much you spend now, having a specific target goal, and measuring your progress.

That has been my experience with resolutions, hopefully yours is different. Is it?

What’s the alternative? The real goal is to create a life attitude and structure that constantly embraces and promotes self growth, rather than one that skates along the whole year until some arbitrary day where culture says you should try to change something about yourself. Is New Year’s a great time for reflection? Absolutely, but it should be just one many reflection and change points throughout the year, not a day that you need to make up for all the lost time of the previous year. Another alternative is 30 day experiments with proper preparation and motivation. They can be excellent ways to create positive self growth.

» Filed Under Accountability, Experiments, Habits, Motivation

The 5 Day 4 Night $200 Vacation

Posted by The Happy Rock on January 3, 2008

I finally had to return to work today after 11 glorious days off. The first half of my time off was spent with family celebrating the holidays, and the second half was spent with family on vacation in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. We stayed in a 7 bedroom cabin complete with hot tub, big TV, pool table, 3 floors, 7 bedrooms, and a view of the Sacandaga Lake. The trip was filled with lots of snow, hikes up mountains, great food, fun people, movies, wiiing, and more! I had a great time and feel rested.

How did we enjoy such a great vacation on such small budget? Let’s break down the expenses to see exactly how it happened.

$100 for gas and tolls. 280 miles and 5 hours one way to Hadley, New York.
$75 for food. Since we went with 7 other people, we were only responsible for two meals and our own snacks. Every meal that was prepared was really delicious, and we even ate healthy for a vacation!
$25 for miscellaneous. Rest stops, etc.
$0 for entertainment. The snow, hiking, wii, movies, hot tub, pool table, friends, professional masseuse(sister-in-law), food, jigsaw puzzles, and children gave us more than enough to do. Everything, especially the 20 inches of snow were awesome.
$0 for the house. The house was courtesy of my mom, The Happy Rock(er). Here boss provided free use of the house as a perk for being an employee.

You can say we got lucky with the use of the house, and we did, but those sorts of opportunities do arise when you network and help others. Some tips to help cut the other costs of vacation are to invite other people, so a lot fo the common costs are divided up. Also, plan to relax and go with the flow so that you can take full advantage of the ‘natural’ beauty atomsphere of the area. Finally, provide your own entertainment.

Can’t beat $40 a day for a wonderful snow filled retreat!

» Filed Under Friends, Misc.