During the summer when food inflation was high, there were a lot of news reports about package shrinking. Instead of raising the price, companies just give you less and sell for the same price. That makes it easier for them to hide the price increase. This is still going on even though the inflation pressure […]
Price Matching Policy and Time Limit
There are enough chaos in the financial markets. I’m not going to post anything related to investing this week. There’s plenty to read and digest about Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and AIG. I believe all eyes are on WaMu now. Should a business stand firm on its price matching policy? That’s the question for today. […]
Recession and Wii
I want to buy a Wii. I played a Wii at my sister’s place and I liked it. Now I want to buy one but I can’t find one. Except on eBay, where it’s sold above MSRP, the Wii is out of stock everywhere. When they come into stock, the units are sold out immediately. […]
The Cost of Being Green
I love the Om Money column in the Yoga Journal magazine. It’s the first thing I read in every issue. The column features a question from a reader answered by two money experts. A previous column prompted me to write Unsure About Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) last year. Here’s another good question in the September […]
Farmers Market and Brown Eggs
I don’t know why I missed out for so long. I visited the farmers market in my town for the first time last weekend. What a pleasant experience! There are a lot of vendors selling produce. The fruits and vegetables don’t look as neat as those in the grocery stores but they taste a lot […]
How Do You Find Good Home Improvement Contractors?
This is a question for my readers who are also homeowners. Help me out here. How do you find good contractors for home improvements and repairs? I know the standard answer is "ask your friends and neighbors." But how do they know if someone is good? I’ve used a few different people for different things […]
Habit Changing Is Hard
I’ve seen many stores selling those environment-friendly reusable shopping bags made of cloth or thick plastic, but I’ve seen very few people buying them, and even fewer people actually using them. I think bringing your own shopping bag is a great idea. Most of the shopping bags are used for no more than 5 minutes. […]
My Flexible Spending Account Sent Me a Debit Card
As if I don’t have enough cards in my wallet, the vendor for my employer’s health care Flexible Spending Account (FSA) sent me a MasterCard debit card. I’m supposed to use it for items eligible for reimbursement from the FSA. The pitch from the FSA vendor is that I won’t have to file reimbursement claims […]
Better Gift Cards
It’s holiday time. Many stores are pushing gift cards and gift certificates. I heard a radio ad for a lottery gift card! You give someone a gift card so they can buy lottery tickets. Isn’t that insane? The lottery has long been said as a tax on the poor. You give someone a gift so […]
A Different World
I’m traveling on business again. I read this interesting letter from a reader in the US Airways Magazine. I added the link so you will see what he’s talking about. “On my US Airways flight, I would typically call my situation “unfortunate” -sitting on the runway for over an hour waiting for take-off. However, I […]
Salute to the American Consumers
If you read financial stories in the media you must have come across the talk of a forthcoming recession, like this article on Bloomberg, Recession Hits U.S. Profits; Economy Might Be Next. The lead paragraph reads “U.S. corporate profits are in a recession, and the entire economy may not be far behind.” I went shopping […]
What To Do If Your Health Insurance Says Your Treatment Is Not Covered
Last Friday, I happened to pick up a copy of the Wall Street Journal somebody left on the train. There was an intriguing article on the front page — How U.S. Health System Can Fail Even the Insured. It’s a long story but the story line is familiar. A Mrs. Barbara Calder has a rare genetic illness but […]