Archive for April, 2009

Cash in on Global Warming

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009
Check out this trendy little eco-friendly ride. Stuff like this is going to save our planet! Found at www.tirekick.com.

Check out this trendy little eco-friendly ride. Stuff like this is going to save our planet! Found at www.tirekick.com.

Do it before it is too late! No matter where you stand on the global warming debate, you have to admit, it is always a good idea to make money. And, it may just as well end up that certain industries stand to develop and expand a great deal due to the scary predictions of some scientists.

Although I’m sure you’ve heard it all before, here is a typical children’s fairy tale story about global warming that replaces real concerns, people, and events with cute little analogies; and also includes a strong moral in hopes that the children will do better than the writer’s generation when they are older:

Once, there was a group of…ummm…duckies. These cute, soft, little yellow duckies wanted to live comfortably; so they cranked their thermostats, drove their cars without any catalytic converters, and burned coal with abandon. Eventually, some smart, er, scientist owls with big ol’ glasses told them that the earth was in danger of warming too much because they used plastic bags at the grocery store instead of paying for the fabric bags; and they were not using a cap-and-trade system that effectively work as additional taxes for the government, so no one had any incentive to stop harming the poor planet. Then, everyone, including the smart scientist owls with the big ol’ glasses, died because the ocean got too full and they drowned. The end.

Catch the moral? It was: if you don’t get in on the game of making money on global warming early enough, you will die before you are rich. While it is unlikely that you are going to sell fabric bags or start you own cap-and-trade system, there are still some things you can do.

Obviously, you sell stuff that is “environmentally friendly”. For example, if you can get people to buy battery acid, that would be environmentally friendly because it wouldn’t be going into the ground; it will be in people’s homes. The trick, I guess, is creating a product that people would actually want to buy with the added twist of it being good for the environment. It doesn’t matter if it actually is good for the environment, really, just that it is less harmful, or appears to be less harmful. People will pay a lot of money to look like they are saving the environment, and I encourage you to exploit that.

Here is such a great example, it makes me feel all fuzzy. You could buy a Lexus LS 460 L or a Lexus LS 600h L, if you had a lot of money. They are the same car inside and out, but the second example is a hybrid car with a gigantic battery that takes up half of the trunk and gets you 6 mpg better in the city. What is the price difference? With the same features, it is $21,333. That is one expensive battery. You sure are paying a lot for your trunk space to be halved. Now, don’t poo poo too much, those people are saving the environment! Sure, the hybrid version still only gets 20 mpg in the city, but it is so much better than what the non-hybrid gets. Never mind that you could get a regular old Toyota Corolla and still get 30 mpg, or better yet, a bicycle that gets infinity mpg. You are making a statement! And that statement would take 31 years to make up the initial cost difference in gas savings.

Now, all you have to do (the “you” I was referring to when I was talking about the car is some reader other than you), is come up with your own little eco-friendly product or idea and sell it to the masses. Do it before it is too late and we all die of global warming on this God-forsaken rock.

Or until the whole thing blows over and everyone realizes it is a total crock. Either way, you have to work fast.

Shoe Wear Fare

Sunday, April 12th, 2009
These shoes are cool, and an important status symbol to some people. But how important are they to you?

These shoes are cool, and an important status symbol to some people. But how important are they to you?

Right now, I am going to tell you how to retire rich. I am not getting anything out of telling you this, and it is simple math, but hold on tight, ’cause this is going to be one wild ride. I promise.

There are literally a million ways we can save money in different areas of our lives. When we factor together all of the little choices we make on a day-to-day basis; that is how we spend our money, and ultimately, live our lives. From saying yes or no to upsizing your drink at the local cinema, to deciding which lender to go with when buying a house; these decisions dictate how much money we spend and how much we ultimately have. This particular post is one of serious nature, should be taken as so, and for everyone living paycheck-to-paycheck, this is especially for you.

I will give an example, as I often do, that accurately portrays this broad concept on a local level. Here’s the hypothetical situation that will affect your life drastically: you’ve worn down your last pair of shoes, and your on the hunt for some new ones. You are thinking about several options, all of which have their pros and cons. Let’s say your just going to go with some standard sneakers. You have the option of getting Air Jordans or even these Nike sneakers, that they only made 40 of, with an estimated resale value of $1000 or more. Realistically, however, you have narrowed your choice down to some Air Jordans from Foot Locker for $159.99 or some Dunkman Game Time by Shaq treads sold at Payless for $29.99. Real shoes, real prices.

Let’s pretend you get those Shaq shoes instead of the Air Jordans, which although you really want you just don’t need, and save yourself $130. That is a lot of money, right? You could use that to pay a little of your rent, or have a few nights out with friends. Already, your on a roll as far as your decision-making is concerned. However, let’s say you invest that…I know, in todays market, that is pretty much a dirty word, but time and time again investing has been proven the best method to get a return on your money without any real work involved.

So, you take that $130 and you put it in, let’s say, a hedge fund that earns 8% over the long term. Not bad, so you’ve just made about $10 your first year. That is a meal for two at McDonalds! For fun, however, let’s just say you keep it in there since you were 20 and you’re approaching retirement at 65. How much did your $130 earn you in that time?

It is more than you probably think it is, and I’m going to tell you, I promise, but let’s add a little fun to it. Ok, so you bought your shoes, but let’s say that every year you buy new Shaq shoes instead of Air Jordans and save yourself $130 every year. That’s really good, but let’s say you invest that money in the same place as well. At your retirement party at 65, somebody comes up to you and says “Hey, what happened to your Air Jordan money, did you save it, invest it, or did you buy 45 years worth of worn-out old-fashioned shoes? I did some math, and if you saved it without interest, you’d have $5,850 by now!” You say that you invested it, but you haven’t checked it since then. You knew it was making about 8% every year, but now you go over to a computer and you look while your chowing down on your retirement cake. How much did you make?

$58,415.05.

That is a difference of $52,565.05 between just saving the money under a mattress and investing it. If you had even just socked away $130 that first year and never put any more money in, you would have $4,149.66. Still a great return on your original investment.

And that is just shoes.

$58,415.05

Just shoes.

Think about it.

One Man’s Trash…

Friday, April 10th, 2009

I don’t know about you, but I hate the thought of landfills ruining our countryside and smelling up our beautiful country. But you know what I hate more? A lack of money. Combining these two hates may just be a great way to make money. You ever notice on your street on garbage pick-up night, all those crazy appliances, bookshelves, and rotten old couches sitting out front? Yeah, ninety percent of the time they ARE old trash, but sometimes people have good stuff that just isn’t worth selling for them. For them, you’ll note I said.

Next time there is a garbage pick-up night, head down to your favorite ritzy side of town and scout out thrown out stuff on the side of the road. It won’t be easy, you might need a spot light, one or two like this will do nicely. Ok, so, you spot a couch or something. What do you do? Hop out and get it!

Oh, you thought it was more difficult than that? It really isn’t. If you need a friend to help, then by all means use one. As a general rule, you probably can’t honestly sell this stuff. Rich people get rich by not throwing away money. The main reason why you are out there is if the item is good, but too big to reasonably ship. If I were you, I’d use Craigslist.com to sell the stuff and leave it in your truck or car so you can deliver it to the person that buys it. Unless, of course, you just want to keep the items for yourself-after a short amount of time, you could have a pretty tricked out apartment or house with some slightly used, slightly abused stuff. What is more bachelor-paddy than that!

Kudos if you are trying to use this method without being a bachelor or bachelorette. I really commend you, but I doubt that if you keep it up (the running around in the middle of the night with a giant searchlight trying to pick up people’s garbage), that your relationship will last that long. But, like I said, kudos for trying.

Ok, so, you’ve pretty much exhausted that outlet, or you want to move on to the next level. Next, you’d want to move on to the corporate level. Any going-out-of-business places, check out back for unwanted equipment, electronics, or employees. You can pick up the first two for free, and the last example you can probably get at a good price. I know you don’t really have any use for strange meat-packing machines or mining machines that can eat bulldozers. This is where the internet will continue to be your friend. Just use www.wotol.com to buy and sell your industrial machines!

I know you don’t believe me now, but honestly, none of these links go to sponsors. I just happen to like buying and selling industrial machines, and I just happen to like www.craigslist.com for buying and selling non-industrial machines and escorts.

But if they ever did want to sponsor me, I would not be against it!

Suing

Thursday, April 9th, 2009
I would be lieing if I told you this wasn't my lawyer. Found at www.arkansastonight.com.
I would be lying if I told you this wasn’t my lawyer. Found at www.arkansastonight.com.

If you have a lot of time on your hands, suing can be a great way to raise funds without looking like a cheap chump. I mean, all it takes is a little imagination to get a case on your hands. A word of warning, don’t sue McDonald’s because you spilled coffee on yourself or you’re obese. It has been done before, and it will only bore the judge, and any potential lawyers looking for a quick buck.

Oh, don’t be fooled. Those crazy lawyers will suck the money right out of you, but here’s the best part: they can only do so if you win a case; once you win, you and the lawyer split the profits much like a lotto pool. Since you really can’t win a case without them, lawyers are a necessary evil. They’re like taxes, or mother-in-laws, in that sense. However, if you do get a lawyer to represent your case, you know you have a shot of winning. Remember, the only reason a lawyer will get involved is if they think they can win; otherwise they won’t receive any payment and will be working for free. The laws vary state-to-state, but in the case of suing, this is a general rule among lawyers.

Ok, so, what are you going to sue for? If something honestly drastic happened to you, I doubt you would be reading this site right now; you’d be too busy preparing a case. For the people who are reading, though, you will probably either have to think back to an event that you could consider suing for, or create an event that provides the opportunity for you to sue. You can pretty much sue for anything, like I said before, just use your imagination. Some woman dropped a 6-pack of beer on her foot and, although she didn’t break anything, “it hurt”. She won the case.

You don’t neccessarily have to sue for money, if that is not important to you. I know it is the basic topic of this blog, but if you are really big on apologies, you could do like this guy did, and sue for just that. He’s sueing Dreamworks Pictures because the kung-fu panda character in the movie Kung-Fu Panda has green eyes. Which apparently give off the feeling of evil. I’m not knocking Chinese culture, but I’m not sure that is what this is all about. First of all, all the guy wants is an apology (which I think Dreamworks should give him to get him off their back), and he carries a stuffed panda around with him all the time. I’m confused if the guy is either really into pandas, a wack-job, or a five-year-old.

So, that’s basically all. Set yourself up in precarious situations, and, if you are lucky, something will fall on you. In some cases, although you are slightly more likely to lose, you can actually do something bad and sue someone else for mental anguish, which is what this gal did when she went to a haunted house at Universal Orlando (the fourth story down).

Apparently it was too scary. I’m not joking. That’s what she said. If you don’t believe me, read that story.

 As a final word, I’m planning on a lawsuit against all my readers for not telling all their friends about my blog. It’s really starting to give me some major mental anguish.

Netflix, Blockbuster, Hulu, Oh My!

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009
Now let's not judge a movie by it's poster. This might actually turn out to be a bad B-movie. Found at www.dreadcentral.com!

Now let's not judge a movie by it's poster. This might actually turn out to be a bad B-movie. Found at www.dreadcentral.com!

There are about six ways to Sunday to get your movie fix nowadays. Here’s a short rundown: Netflix, Blockbuster, Hulu, Kazaa, Youtube, iTunes, TiVo, Pay-Per-View, HBO, TV movies, Redbox, DVD’s, Blu-Ray, Quicktime, Windows Media Player, Torrents, and even the good ol’ fashioned VHS. Also, if you just have to watch a movie when it first comes out, and you do so under the strict assurance that I think it is highway robbery; by all means go watch it in the theater. Just to let you know, the John Tesh radio show said that theater popcorn is more expensive than filet mignon ounce for ounce. Just sayin’.

I guess the only thing you don’t have to worry about is HD DVD. Except, of course, if you actually bought a player. Now is the time to put it in storage right beside the Betamax.

So, what is a cash-strapped individual to do? You want, no, need to get that movie fix…I mean, they recently came out with a totally, completely Oscar-worthy direct-to-DVD movie starring Stephen Baldwin (yes, that Baldwin family) and Vanessa Johansson (yes, that Johansson family) called “Sharks in Venice”, so how are you gonna get your grimy hands on it? This is not a fictional film that I am making up. Truth is much stranger than fiction, my friend.

There are many ways to get a movie cheaply and, I suppose if it is important to you, legally. The absolute, number one way to get a free movie is this: bum one off of a friend. If you have no friends, then a co-worker or a member of your religious congregation of choice.

If you don’t have any friends, are out of work, and are an atheist, then there are other ways to get free movies. Hulu comes to mind. And let me tell you, we most certainly are not aliens that want to eat your, mmm, tasty rotting brain-flesh. If your not familiar with www.hulu.com, become familiar. It will become your sustenance for the next few days, I can guarantee it. You can watch free TV shows, and recently, they started adding somewhat decent older movies (like Robocop, for example). I must remind my loyal readers that most of the time, watching syndicated movies on Youtube, through Kazaa, in downloadable Torrents, and in other user-sharing applications are not really all that legal, or moral. But hey, if you like jail and hate God, be my guest.

Ok, so, you don’t have any friends and your internet connection is slow. I can still help you out, although you are running out of the cheaper options. Although Blockbuster is pretty much on the rocks, they still are offering some great deals. You can get an older movie for a buck a night, and new releases for two dollars the first night, followed by a dollar a night after that. However, if you don’t feel like signing up with a company that is on the verge of going down the tubes, there is always Redbox, if it is available in your town. For the unfamiliar, it is a system where you can get a movie out of a kiosk and keep it for as long as you want for $1 a day. Good if you plan on returning it the next day, bad if you lose the movie. Another great renting option, of course, is Netflix. If you don’t know what that is, let me tell you, we are in a deep recession and some guy with the middle name Hussein is our President. Welcome to the world.

Alright, so basically, what we have left for “cheap” options is watching movies on nights on your cable, or, free new digital television that you can get with a digital tuner. Remember, the digital transition was supposed to happen in February. But, to make it simple for the simpler folks, the deadline for all-digital transmission was changed to sometime in June, but some people are changing earlier, but you shouldn’t worry about it until June, unless you want to have some stations that are digital earlier, then you should get a coupon that takes 2 to 6 weeks to deliver and then you can go down to the store now and get one for $40 less and you can go home and plug in the standard TV, and you have to attach it to your antennae that you already have unless you want really good reception in which you’ll need a newfangled digital-optimized antennae, and if you have an HDTV or if you bought a regular TV of a certain size after sometime in 2006 you already have a digital tuner inside it, in which you won’t need another one, because you already have a tuner inside your television but don’t open it up and look ’cause there is a high risk for electric shock. Aren’t you glad they made it easier for us?

Ahem. I’m sorry for that little rant. I’m going back on topic now. You can watch movies for free on TV if you want, and even download them onto a DVR. The most popular example of a DVR that I know of is TiVo, but what most people don’t know is that, with the right software, you can turn your computer into a Digital Video Recorder for without a hefty monthly fee. So, now you can watch free movies any time you want. And nothing is sweeter than that, except if you had friends to bum some off of, of course.