Recession Busters - #60

1. I enjoyed watching Clara's "Poor Man's Meal" video. Clara Cannucciari is a 93-year old grandmother who prepares affordable Depression meals in her state of New York. Her family used to depend on cheap staple food items to live through the Depression era. This is the recipe for her Poor Man's Meal: 1. Peel and cube a couple of potatoes, 2. Fry the potatoes in a pan with a little bit of oil and 1 onion chopped, 3 . Cut up some hot dog weiners, 4. Stick the weiners into the pan with the potatoes, add a little bit of tomato sauce and about half a cup of water, 5. Cook everything together until the potatoes are soft. Clara's grandson and his friends love eating this meal.

2. Consumer Report mentioned a a few recession busters on their site: 1. Run your dishwasher, washer, & dryer in the early morning or late evening, because they give off excessive amounts of heat, and this can cause your air conditioner to work harder to cool your house, 2. Use your ceiling fans more often, since they use up less energy, 3. Plant trees outside your house, since they can block the summer sun from entering through your windows.

3. I have recently been adjusting my air conditioner to 77 degrees whenever I leave my house in the morning, instead of turning it off and then turning it back on when I get home from work. Raising the thermostat to a higher degree when I leave my house causes the air conditioner to use less energy to cool the house back down to 73.

Money & Finance #59

1. I haven't checked my credit score in a few years, but I plan to do that soon by visiting annualcreditreport.com. I read the article on credit reports and learned that the best way to keep a good credit score is to pay your bills on time. I also learned that the main type of credit score is called FICO, because it originated with the Fair Isaac & Company.

2. The only time I have ever made a spending budget was when I bought my truck six years ago. I had to calculate the monthly payment that I could actually afford. My truck is now paid off, so that's a huge relief, but it's starting to break down on me. So, I may be shopping for a new truck very soon.

3. The most useful information that I read on the TCDRS website about my retirement benefits was that I get a 7% guaranteed rate of interest, and the ups & downs of the market do not affect my account.