Money Hackers Carnival #20, Chicago style

Welcome to this week’s Money Hacks carnival! Putting my own Chicago spin on the list, I’m showcasing some of the city’s sights, compliments of Flickr. Enjoy!

EDITOR’S PICKS, along the Chicago River/Trump Tower, image by spudart

**J. Money presents Start Investing by 26, Retire a Millionaire by 67 posted at Budgets are Sexy. I totally agree. If there’s one thing this almost-26-year-old girl (I’m talking about me, here) knows, it’s that you should invest now.

**I couldn’t agree more with FMF, who presents How to Hire a Good Tax Professional posted at Free Money Finance. Personally, I found my fantastic, saves-me-tons-of-money accountant through a referral.

**Think looks don’t matter? Think again. Silicon Valley Blogger presents Get Hired, Get a Raise and Get Paid More By Improving Your Appearance posted at The Digerati Life.

***It’s always possible to start saving/investing, and this article shows you one way to do so. FFB presents A CD Ladder Plan For Beginning Savers posted at Free From Broke.

**If you love your pet as much as I do, you’ll want to take a look at Amanda Milne’s The Undeniable Pet Insurance posted at Value For Your Life.

CAREER/INCOME, with the foggy Windy City, ala OZinOH

Paul Piotrowski presents Why Does it Feel Like You’re Going Backwards posted at Inspired Money Maker.

BlogDebt presents Want extra money to save? Increase your means! posted at Blogging Down Debt | Becoming Debt Free One Post At a Time.

Passive Income Investor is inspiring with Monthly Passive Income Finally Breaks $3,000 Barrier posted at LIVING OFF DIVIDENDS & PASSIVE INCOME.

DEBIT & CREDIT, with Millennium Park, photo taken by StuckinCustoms

Madison presents Best Travel & Hotel Rewards Credit Cards posted at My Dollar Plan.

Card Blogger presents The Best Credit Cards posted at My Credit Card Blog.

Ken Clark, CFP presents Four Neighborhoods That Will Pay For Your Child’s College Education posted at Saving for College - About.com.

Ray presents How To Generate Valid Credit Card Numbers posted at Money Blue Book Personal Finance Blog.

Ryan Suenaga presents Money Hacks Challenge: Maximize Rewards or Time Your Cards? posted at Uncommon Cents.

Heather Allen presents Beware Online Credit Fraud posted at The DebtFree Playbook Blog.

GBlogger presents Is Big Brother Lowering Your Credit Because of Your Drinking? posted at CAN I GET RICH ON A SALARY.

INVESTING, next to the Sears Tower, taken by Cowboyneal

Steve Faber presents - Stock Market Terms – The Top10 Market Terms You Need to Know (Part 1) posted at Debt Free.

MoneyEnergy presents Gold Dividends: 11 Mining Stocks That Pay Them posted at MoneyEnergy.

Todd presents Weber’s Law posted at HarvestingDollars.

The Shark Investor presents I’d Be The Growlingest Bear on the Internet If Only I Were a Bear posted at The Shark Investor.

Raag Vamdatt presents Residential / Commercial Property for a Non Resident Indian (NRI) :: RaagVamdatt.com :: Financial Planning demystified posted at RaagVamdatt.com.

The Financial Blogger presents How to trade commodities? posted at The Financial Blogger.

Slackerwealth presents Procter and Gamble, A Case for Going Long posted at A Slacker’s Quest for His First Million.

Joe Manausa presents Understanding Trends In Real Estate posted at Tallahassee Real Estate Blog.

SAVING MONEY, next to the beautiful Cloud Gate, photo by ancawonka

LAL presents Matter of Perspective posted at LivingAlmostLarge.

Sean talks about the subject on everyone’s mind lately with his Locking-In Low Gas Prices vs. Locking-In High Fuel Efficiency posted at Financial Ramblings.

Tanesha Morgan presents The Basics of Life Insurance posted at Personal Finance Analyst.

PFI presents Financial Benefits of a DVR posted at Passive Family Income.

Curt presents Trick Yourself into Saving Money posted at PennyJobs.com.

Lisa Spinelli presents “I Haven’t Saved a Dime,” or “Will I Have a Heart Attack When I Retire?” posted at Greener Pastures.

Dorian Wales presents 10 Tips on More Efficient and Economic Use of Air-Conditioners posted at The Personal Financier.

Anand presents How to Master Money & Wealth | Money Management posted at AnandDhillon.com - Self-Help for Self-Mastery.

Coupon Artist presents Stockpiling Food: How to Buy and Organize a Food Stockpile posted at artofthecoupon.com.

Anand presents How to Master Money & Wealth | The Key to Financial Freedom posted at Anand Dhillon’s Self-Help Blog.

Brooke asks for tips on saving money on school supplies, Halfway Thru Summer Already and… posted at Dollar Frugal. The winning tip will get a free one-month banner ad on her site.

Larry Russell presents Living Expense Tracking Methods posted at Pasadena Financial Planner.

admin presents Don’t Chase High Interest Rates posted at Best Interest Rate Banks.

Lauren presents 10 Tips on buying a new car or used car posted at FGC Auto Blog.

TAX & ECONOMY, with Navy Pier, another photo compliments of StuckinCustoms

jim presents How to Get Old W-2 and 1040 Tax Forms posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

The Happy Rock presents Have We Finally Hit Our Gas Price Tipping Point? posted at The Happy Rock.

KCLau presents How inflation affects your life? posted at KCLau’s Money Tips.

Toni Graybill presents The Road to Wealth is Stuff posted at Maximize Health and Wealth.

And, last but not least is everything else: RETIREMENT/ GENERAL / PHILOSOPHY / MONEY, next to a classic Chicago landmark, the Marshall Field’s clock, photo by atelier_tee

Wanda Grindstaff presents Retirement or Lifestyle - It is Your Choice! posted at Creating Abundant Lifestyles.

Fred Black presents Toilet Paper Millionaire! posted at Fred Black: Internet Business Blog..

Cash Money Life bares all with What’s in Your Wallet? posted at Cash Money Life.

C. King presents Why Soft Selling Appeals To Cultures With High Femininity posted at Get International Clients.

So Cal Savvy presents A day at the beach posted at So Cal Savvy.

Aryn presents The Documents You Need: List of Accounts posted at Sound Money Matters.

My Weekend Wallet

I’ll start with a confession: I almost never have cash on me, unless someone has paid me back for something. Even then, just give me a few days and I’ll spend it on something, probably food. My former co-worker tells me this is terrible, that everyone should carry cash, everyday. I know, I know, I tell her. But I won’t. I just never do. If I have it, I spend it, and I probably won’t remember on what. Credit/debt works for me because I can track it.

Besides, where don’t they take Visa nowadays?

Anyway, now that that’s out there, here’s a record of my credit card’s action this weekend, just because I find it entertaining. I did stop and get $20 from the bank (shocking to me), but only because I was anticipating the only-cash-unless-over-$10 policy at the Greek place. Turns out we didn’t go there, but my cash is now gone, of course:

Friday (half day!!):
Movie with friend at budget theatre: $4
Cake with friend (I paid since he paid for lunch): $8.50
Shopping (when did it stop being fun?), buying nothing: $0

Saturday:
Cupcakes with friends: $4
Greek pita at my favorite place for Greek pitas in the city:
Pizza at my favorite pizza place: $15
Grocery store: Sunday paper for my parents and two pints of gelato: $10.95

Sunday:
Treated to lunch at Wendy’s: $0

Total spending: approximately $42

$4.19

More than the cost of a medium-sized cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee.

More than four candy bars from the vending machine at work.

More than a round-trip ride on Chicago’s El.

More than a milkshake.

More than a bottle of nail polish or a new chapstick.

= The cost, right now and climbing, of ONE gallon of gasoline in my neighborhood.

What are prices like by you?

4 adults, 3 cameras, 1 gorgeous kid = great weekend

My friends just left a little while ago, after a very fast, very fun day-and-a-half together. Here’s how I did, money-wise:

Friday night dinner, Lou Malnati’s: $20
Saturday cupcakes for everybody: $13.23
Lincoln Park Conservatory: FREE
Lincoln Park Zoo: FREE
Dinner at The Cheesecake Factory, me and my brother: $42.00

Total cost: $75.23

And it really was priceless. Every time I see my friend’s little boy, he’s bigger and more beautiful, smarter and more curious.