Ah, November and December: the two months of the year (back to back, naturally) where we are
encouraged to eat hearty, shop ‘til we drop (for others!), and travel extensively to see friends and
family. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year … which means that January and the months
following the holidays are, to put it simply, not. So after the presents have been opened with care, the
tinsel has been taken down and the tree thrown out on the corner for the garbage men to collect, how
do you deal with post-Christmas debt? Here are a few tips to get you started:

Take a breath. The damage probably isn’t as bad as you think … and even if it is, there are still ways to
deal with the after Christmas carnage. You’ll have to total up all your bills in order to begin fixing your
finances (though, in the future, planning a holiday budget and then sticking to it will help you once the
holidays are over). Gather up the credit card bills or your statements and add it all up. Subtract any
money that you can afford to help pay for your spanking new debt, which will give you an idea of how
much you’ll need to pay it off.

Freeze! You’ll only make things worse if you keep spending after the holidays. This means that you’ll
have to stop using your credit card until you’ve paid off the debt: stick to your cash supplies, checks, or
use [Read more…]

The Action Movie Buff – If he’s into action movies, there’s a good chance he’s spent some time thinking about the zombie apocalypse. Help him prepare for that day with…

The Trivia Guy – Does he always know the answer (or at least pretend like he does) to everyone’s random questions? He’ll love plying everyone in sight with this quiz-format book.

Forget all those obsolete sports stats and useless action movie facts. Test your knowledge in the real categories that make a man, from finance and negotiation to etiquette and domestic skills. Do you know what a “master cylinder” is? Or what do when a shark is about to attack? Each chapter has a quiz followed [Read more…]

1. Kindle Fire. This is the “it” gift of the year and absolutely everyone will find something to love in this amped-up e-reader. It may not have all the bells and whistles of a tablet, but it has a handy touchscreen, provides easy access to Amazon’s library of books, music, and movies, and comes with 5GB of free cloud storage space. And at $199 it’s a lot more affordable than some.
2. Charging at home and on the go. If you’re tired of finding devices charging all over the house and your hubby is constantly trying to recall where he left this gadget or that one as he heads out the door, make everyone’s life easier with a charging pad (like Duracell’s MyGrid) so that all he has to do is drop his devices in one place for wireless charging. And if an overnight charge isn’t enough and he’s constantly looking for a free outlet to power up his electronic gadgets, help him out with a sunny alternative. Voltaic offers one of the best solutions on the market with their clip-on solar panel that can be attached to several different types of bags (it can easily go from a shoulder pack to a messenger bag with just a few clips).
3. A new TV. What guy [Read more…]

The holidays are here again, and with them the attendant orgy of spending that puts thousands of
people in the poorhouse every year. But before you go on a massive shopping spree to secure pricy
gifts for everyone from friends and relatives to business associates and social acquaintances, perhaps
you should take a moment to sit down and think about just what it is you’re really doing. Do you really
need to spend your hard-earned money on all of these people? Half of them don’t even expect to get
something (and they won’t reciprocate). And the rest wouldn’t want you going into debt for gifts they
don’t really need (or even want, in some cases). So perhaps it’s time to rethink your holiday strategy by
formulating a budget – and sticking to it! Here are some tips to help you out.

1. Be honest about what you can afford. Hey, we’re in a recession. You’re not the only one
looking to spend less this year, so don’t worry too much about what other people are going
to think if their gifts are somewhat less lavish than in years past. Whether your budget is a
hundred dollars or a thousand you can find ways to make it work. But you have to start by
setting yourself a strict limit and finding a plan to make it work so that you don’t “accidentally”
overspend.

2. Use cash. Unless you want to enter the New Year with a mountain of credit card debt (and
spend the next six months paying double for every gift, thanks to interest), think about locking
up your credit cards this holiday season and buying only with the extra cash you have on hand.
You may have to be frugal and get creative, but it will definitely [Read more…]