Posted on July 29th, 2010 by by Jesse Michelsen
This week I have talked about using a sprinkler system and the importance of keeping the system properly maintained. I also brushed on air conditioning and comfort. Talking about both those things got me thinking about another aspect of maintaining a home, automation.
I am a big fan of automating my finances. I am a software developer by degree and automation is something that I really enjoy creating and using. It can really simplify things, when used properly.
On the other hand, when automated and forgotten, things get put out of mind and run their own course which is not always [...] Continue Reading…
Posted on July 28th, 2010 by by Jesse Michelsen
Here in Utah, the average temperature during the summer is only about 86 degrees. The record high is only 107 degrees which pales in comparison to many of the neighboring desert states. So when the major electric company here sent out fliers offering a cut on your electric bill if you signed up for a program called the Cool Keeper, it piqued my interest.
In general, I am not one to worry much about the temperature. I stay pretty comfortable at whatever the natural temperature is in the house, or even outside. Yea, sometimes I get hot when I’m outside [...] Continue Reading…
» 4 Comments
Tags: 2pm, ac units, air conditioners, air conditioning unit, average temperature, cold air, compromise, desert states, electricity usage, fan system, few degrees, fliers, member of the family, minute intervals, months of the year, neighborhood, peak electricity, sweat, thermostat, wallet
Posted on July 26th, 2010 by by Jesse Michelsen
Oh Summer, what a beautiful time of year. Here in Utah, the weather change is drastic, sometimes from the upper 50′s to the 90′s in one week skipping over Spring temperatures altogether, but it is a welcomed change from the bleak Winter cold.
As soon as the weather warmed up, my loving wife got out the Summer Honey-Do list. The first thing I did on the list was change out a broken sprinkler head at a cost of about $30 plus a couple hours labor digging, installing and tweaking the spray range. In previous years, I would have drug my [...] Continue Reading…
» 3 Comments
Tags: beautiful time, bleak winter, couple hours, couple weeks, honey, lawn maintenance, loving wife, maintenance tips, previous years, snow plow, spring temperatures, sprinkler head, sprinkler heads, sprinkler repair, sprinklers, time of year, top notch, tweaking, water bill, weather change
Posted on July 25th, 2010 by by Jesse Michelsen
I pride myself in being able to pay cash for most things. I am actually embarrassed when I buy a big purchase and put it on a credit card because I know I actually have the cash to pay for it (but use the credit card for points/miles) and I’m worried that the salesperson may think I am like every other consumer that comes into their shop and finances their large purchases. Not that I will ever see that salesperson again, but it does bother me to some extent..
So this week, I have to highlight this article about a [...] Continue Reading…
» 11 Comments
Tags: antenna, apple stock, business side, condom company, credit cards, darwin, dean, double dip, dr dean, family members, investment terms, len, millionaire, nurse, personal finance, receipt, role play, salesperson, stock market, warren buffet
Posted on July 21st, 2010 by by Jesse Michelsen
A good friend of mine was discussing the weather with me, yea really…and now that spring has finally sprung around here (Utah is a couple month behind), she was telling me all the things they plan to do to their home and yard this year. I instantly mentioned how costly landscaping is ..hey I write a personal finance blog, what do you expect
..and she told me, “Yea, my husband and I have to leave our wallets in the car when we go to such and such hardware store so we don’t buy anything we shouldn’t be buying”
I [...] Continue Reading…
» 9 Comments
Tags: car and drive, car savings, good friend, gum, hardware store, impulse, many things, money, personal finance blog, shame, shopping, store employee, ticke, wallet, wallets, weather