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Volume 5 - Issue 1 Winter 2010

You can contact SPRINGBOARD® by mail, phone, fax or email; we are always here to help.

Mail: SPRINGBOARD®Nonpro�t Consumer Credit ManagementP.O. Box 5438Riverside, CA 92517-5438

Phone: 1-877-Wise-Plan (1.877.947.3752)E-mail: [email protected]: 1.951.781.8027Website: www.credit.org

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Smart Choices for a Brighter Financial Future

Smart money choices lead to a brighter �nancial future. Many people howeverfeel they lack the knowledge and understanding necessary to make wise �nan-cial decisions. In fact, a national �nancial literacy survey found that 41 percentof U.S. adults age 18 or over gave themselves a grade C, D or F on their knowl-edge of personal �nance. In response, Springboard has added additionalresources for consumers to use in obtaining �nancial education and knowledge.

~ Financial Instructional Training (FIT) Academy - The FIT Academy(www.�t.credit.org) o�ers free, online courses with embedded audio. Eachcourse o�ers a pre and post-test to measure percentage of knowledgegained. Once a course is completed, the participant will receive a certi�catefrom Springboard acknowledging completion of the course.

~ Follow Springboard on Twitter - Receive daily "tweets" on family budgeting,money management and personal �nance. To receive Springboard's daily"tweet" messages, follow these instructions:

- Go to Springboard's Twitter web page- Log into your account or create a new account- Select follow CreditDotOrg

Understanding money matters does not have to be di�cult. Springboard encour-ages consumers to �nd a platform that is convenient for them and engages theentire family in opportunities to learn about important �nancial matters.Springboard also o�ers free educational seminars and materials to help con-sumers better manage their personal �nances. Please visit the "Resources" sec-tion of our website at www.credit.org or for those without internet access pleasecall us at 1-800-947-3752 for printed copies of our educational materials .

Todd Emerson, President and Chief Executive O�cer

Nonprofit Consumer Credit Management, Inc.

Springboardwww.credit.org

®

The Dollar Stretcher

From the Editor’s Desk:Finding the Positiveby Gary Foreman, editor

Trying to change our behavior isoften a challenge. Especially ifit's a long-standing habit that's

been repeated thousands and thou-sands of times. But, just because it's achallenge, doesn't mean that it can'tbe done. In fact, when you stop tothink about it, even behaviors thatyou've had for years can be changedin a month or so. That's pretty remark-able.

How many people do you know whoalways seem to find the negative?

Whether it's the dessert at a restrau-rant, the guest list at a party or thepresent they received from Aunt Mary,they'll always find something to beunhappy about. No matter how goodeverything else was. I admit that I findit tiring to be around people like that.It's almost as if the negativity hascompletely drained their life force andis now going after mine!

One good thing does come out ofhanging around them. It's a greatreminder for me to check my own atti-tude. Have I become negative? Do Ialways look what's wrong? Are mywords often critical? If so, it's time tochange my perspective. Because thatnegativity will quickly begin to sap myenergy and color everything I see.Noticing what's happening gives mean opportunity to get back on track.And, hopefully I'll be smart enough totake that opportunity!

ps: I know that it's harder to see thegood if you've just lost your job orthere is sickness in your family.There's no denying that's true. But, it'sequally true that those are the exacttimes that it is even more important tofind some positive things to thinkabout. Being able to see the positive isgreat medicine. And medicine is mostneeded when times are truly tough,not when the going is easy.

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The Dollar StretcherP.O. Box 14160 • Bradenton, FL 34280-4160Phone: (941) 761-7805 • Fax: (941) 761-8301Publisher: Dollar Stretcher, Inc.Editor-In-Chief: Gary Foreman

The Dollar Stretcher is published monthlyAnnual subscriptions $36.00 (US$)Group rates available on requestReprints for non-profit classes also availablePlease call for informationCopyright 2010 Dollar Stretcher, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The Dollar Stretcher does not assumeresponsibility for advice given. All adviceshould be weighed against your ownabilities and circumstances and appliedaccordingly. It is up to the reader todetermine if advice is safe and suitable forhis own situation.

We all strive to be healthier in our everyday life,so why not take that concept a step further? Ifyour finances are badly out of shape and in

need of a makeover, use this 12-step program to losethe debt and create a lean, mean financial machine.

Lose the Weight

1. The first thing you can do is to shed unwanted baggage. Cut out any overspending. A good way toget a handle on your spending is to write down everypurchase for at least a month. Account for everycent. A pattern will emerge and you should be able tospot areas to forgo, or at least cut back on.

2. Pay off debt to lose financial flab fast. Sit down withall your bills and loans and list the amounts you owe.Stop charging now. You can start with the biggestamount or the smallest. Just commit to paying it offas fast as possible. Once you get one balance paidoff, start to work on the next amount in line, addingthe previous payment to that.

3. Spend less than you make to even up the scales inyour favor. If you can’t afford something now, saveup until you can or find something comparable youmay already own. Give yourself the edge of a cushion of cash for a smoother financial journey.

Develop Your Core

4. Now that your debt is getting under control, you’vecurbed unnecessary spending and you are spendingless than you make, you can move on to the nextarea. Set some goals with your money. Identify whatyou need and what you want. Once you establish thedifference between needs and wants, you will neverput yourself in debt again.

Create a lean, mean financial machine

Financially Fitby Shaunna Privratsky

cont. on pg. 4...

l iving better...for less

5. Pay yourself first. Start an emergency fund, if youdon’t have one already. Set aside a certain amountevery month, before you pay the bills. You caneven have a percentage taken out of your paycheck and automatically deposited into a savingsaccount. You will probably not miss it, but themoney will be there if you need it.

6. Make sure you are covered. Get coverage for yourhome, autos, health and even life. We all hope thatnothing bad will happen, but if we prepare for theworst, we will be protected in case it does.

Build Some Muscle

7. Save for your retirement. It’s never too late to start,but the earlier the better, thanks to compoundinterest. You can save triple if you start saving regularly in your twenties, rather than in your forties. Imagine retiring a millionaire!

8. Work on your credit score. This is a three-digitnumber assigned to your financial health. It is usedincreasingly to determine how credit worthy youare, and can affect the mortgage you qualify for,the job you land, and the car you can drive. Thefastest way to boost your score is to pay every billon time. Do this for six months and your score willbe pumped.

9. Use debt to your advantage. Hey, you just got yourdebt paid off! There is such a thing as good debt,like buying a home. When you responsibly sign amortgage and make timely payments, you areshowing you are able to handle credit wisely. Youcan also deduct your mortgage insurance, andpossibly other expenses, on your taxes. The equity you build in your home improves your credit score and builds those financial muscles.

Financially Fit cont...

cont. on pg. 5...


Bodybuilding

10.To maintain your financial health, keep on thehealthy track. Continue saving, both in your retirement fund and your emergency fund. You mayalso want to save for college for your kids, or buildother savings accounts for special goals, like adream vacation or a second home. As your savingsgrow, your sense of well-being and peace of mindgrows as well.

11.Look out for scams that will try to trip you up. Get-rich-quickschemes can part you from your hard-earnedcash faster than flushing money down the drain.Identity thieves may try to benefit from your highcred i t score o r ge t a ho ld o f your accountinformation. You may be phished on your computer,where a false company sends you a legitimatelooking e-mail. You click on it, and it asks for personal information in order to scam you. Watch outfor these tricks and safeguard yourself.

12.Keep your financial plans up to date. Make sure youare on track with your retirement savings and thatyou are moving along with your goals. It may beworth it to hire a trusted financial advisor to guideyou on your financial journey.

It takes some effort to become financially fit, but it isworth it. When your finances are healthy, your life runssmoother. By taking charge and following these twelvesteps, you can be the picture of fiscal health in 2010.

For more money-saving advice from Shaunna, please visitThe Discount Diva http://shaunna67.tripod.com/id21.html andsign up for the free newsletters.

Financially Fit cont...


We all know that there are cer-tain days, months, or sea-sons in which product prices

are reduced. Shopping during thosetimes is one of the best ways to saveyourself some money.

Certain money-saving opportunitiesare obvious. Clothes arealways onsale at theend of eachs e a s o n .Getting in atthe beginningof and end of aseason saleallows you abetter selectionthan you can get duringthe last few days of the sale.However, it is often worth the trip backto the store when you know they aregetting ready to clear the out-of-sea-son items off the sales floor. At thispoint, you can sometimes purchaseitems for 80% to 90% off. That makesit worth the wait and the additional tripback to the store. The same is true forshoes and seasonal accessories.

You can usually get the best buy onjewelry around Christmas, Valentine’sDay and Mother’s Day.

Cookware, dishes, and small kitchenappliances are usually on sale aroundMay and June because they are pop-

ular wedding gifts. These items mayalso be on sale at the end of the sum-mer as college-bound students needsome kitchen basics to take withthem.

Back-to-school sales are good forpurchasing not only school relateditems but also for restocking your

home office with supplies likecopy paper, paper

clips, pens, sta-plers, file fold-ers, and otheroffice related

items.

Large appli-ances are

usually on salein September and

October as storesmake room for new

models. Buying what would be con-sidered last year’s model can saveyou a substantial amount of money.

Furniture goes on sale at varioustimes throughout the year. Of course,the best time to buy outdoor furnitureis at the end of the summer. Grills arealso at their lowest prices at this timeof year. Dining room furniture and liv-ing room furniture is more likely to besale priced in the fall season as peo-ple begin spending more time indoorsand start planning for holiday visitors.Recliners are popular gifts for

cont. on pg. 7...

Your calendar could help you save money

When to Get the Best Dealsby Veronica Hunsucker


Mother’s Day and Father’s Day sothey are priced at the lowest duringMay and June.

Plants and flowers are drasticallyreduced by August. Some of theseplants simply need a little extra careto be beautiful again. Some that youbuy can be planted in August to bringbeauty to your lawn next spring andsummer. Some reduced plants caneven become indoor plants to liven upyour home during the winter. Gardentools are at their lowest prices at theend of the summer. You can savemoney by doing some early shoppingfor gardeners on your Christmas list.

If you love chocolate, you’ll want toremember that chocolate is always onsale after a holiday. If it’s just thepleasure of eating chocolate thatyou’re going for, then the holidaypackaging won’t matter to you at all.

Not only can you save money by pur-chasing items during a certain monthor season, you can save money byshopping on a particular day of theweek and even at a certain time ofday.

Monday is a good day to get discount-ed items at the grocery store, espe-cially the meat and bakery section.Wednesday is one of the best daysfor buying gas and mornings are thebest time of day for buying gas.

Best Deals cont...


Thursday is a good day for shoppingfor clothes. Some items are markeddown so that hopefully they will selland be out of the way for new thingsto be displayed for weekend shop-pers.

To be a truly frugal shopper you mustkeep your eyes open during everyshopping trip to spot unexpected saleprices. You shouldn’t buy somethingyou don’t need or can’t use simplybecause it’s on sale. However, if youneed it, can use it, or can make it agift and it’s on sale, buy it at thatmoment rather than pay full pricelater.

The scam behind fat-free half and half

Money for Nuthin’by Rich Finzer

Nope, I‘m not referring to that classic tune by DireStraits, rather I’m calling attention to one of thegreatest marketing ploys of all time. This partic-

ular voyage of discovery occurred during a recent visitto my neighborhood grocery to buy some good old reg-ular half and half, the best buddy a cup of coffee everhad. As I reached into the dairy case to grab a quart,my eyes were immediately drawn to several varieties of“fat-free” half and half. One brand, which featured ayoung female Native American princess on the contain-er, even touted itself as “gourmet” fat-free half and half.If you’re getting a bit confused at this point, don’t worryas I was confused, too. So I figured I’d engage in a lit-tle research on the subject.

After Googling on the phrase “Half N’ Half,” I eventual-ly found a web site at www.recipezaar.com that listedthe commonly accepted definition of just what consti-tutes half and half. According to those folks, the stuff isa 50-50 mixture of whole milk and cream with a butterfat content between 10-12%. So any product that triesto pass itself off as “fat-free” half and half is the equiv-alent of advertising the Mojave Desert as the world’slargest ocean-free beach! There just isn’t such a thing.The best part was that the fat free stuff was priced $.50more per quart than genuine half and half, which wasgoing for $3.29. Incredible.

Translation: fat-free half and half is nothing but skimmilk. If you do the math, it means a gallon of the stuffwas selling for over $14! And you thought a gallon ofgasoline was expensive when it broke through the $4barrier. Admittedly, calling the stuff “gourmet skim milk”just wouldn’t have the same kind of sizzle. So payattention when shopping for dairy products. We allknow that you can’t get something for nothing, butcrafty marketing and creative labeling now make it pos-sible, as the boys in the band would say, to spend“Money for Nuthin.”



Hang Laundry Inside

Hang your laundry in your home. I pur-chased two of those collapsible dryingracks, and during the winter months, Irarely use my dryer. I’ll hang a load ortwo a night, and by morning, they’recompletely dry. It adds moisture to theair and saves us money, too.Christine

Turn the Exhaust Fan Off

One of the easiest ways to increase themoisture in your home is to seal the gapsaround your window and doors. This willdecrease the number of changes of airthat take place in your home. Outsidewinter air is usually dryer than the airinside the house in the winter.

The next step would be to run yourshower with the exhaust fan off. This willincrease the moisture in the air near thebathroom. If you have a fireplace, placea cast iron pot with water on top andkeep it filled. A pot on the stove withwater and a few cinnamon sticks will notonly add moisture but also a nicearoma.Dennis

Keep Houseplants

Keep houseplants, as many as youravailable light and space will allow.Keep them watered appropriately andmist them one to three times daily withjust an ordinary spray bottle and water.This will serve to humidify your sur-roundings and remove pollutants asthe plants grow.

Also, you can add moisture as well asgood scents by keeping a pot of soup,stew or beans going.

Especially around the holidays, Ialmost always have my smallest cookpot on the stove filled with the rind of acitrus fruit and some cinnamon, clovesand maybe allspice (whole or pow-dered). Kept just below a simmer, it willmake the place smell inviting for a fullday.Anna Marie

Soup

I live in the desert and winters can beextremely dry. This is the time of year Imake all sorts of stock and soups andeither consume them or freeze them.

What do you do to make living comfortable?

Dry Winter Indoor Air

cont. on pg. 10...

A Solution for Dry Air?

It seems every year I end up buying a humidifier and it turns out to be a waste ofmoney. Does anyone have any frugal suggestions for putting moisture into the airwithout having to run an appliance? I already put wet towels on my heat registers.Toni B.

Gentle simmering all day does the trick.In addition, if you have a fireplaceinsert like I do, I put a kettle of warmwater on and it gently steams awaywhile the fire is going, usually at night.The cooking activity heats up the smallhouse during the day and the fire con-tinues to keep it warm at night withenough moisture added to the air at noadditional cost.Jennie

Evaporation Is Key

In order to add moisture to the air:

~ If you don’t have toddlers in thehouse, after your bath, leave thewater in the tub with the door open,so that the water can evaporatesome and add moisture. After anhour or two, drain the rest of thewater. Don’t take baths? Duringyour shower, close the drain andgather water in the tub. Then leavethis in for a few hours.

~ Make sure your windows and doorsare weather stripped and locked.This allows less moist air to escapethe home. The locking closes thewindows and doors better, thustightening the seals.

~ After washing dishes, allow thewater to stand for a while. Don’thand-wash dishes? When using the

dishwasher, a l low i t to a i r dryinstead of electronically dry. Also,when hand-washing, al low the dishes to air-dry instead of wipingthem dry.

These are just a few ideas to help youadd moisture to the house. Thinkabout the ways you use water andhow you try to get rid of it. Let it goaway naturally while adding moistureto your home, saving you energy andhealth.Jari

Vent Dryer Inside

If your electric clothes dryer is insidethe house (as opposed to the garageor basement), consider an internaldryer vent. They’re inexpensive (ourscost about ten dollars), they recycleheat into your house, and they addloads of moisture back into the house.We use ours every winter and neverhave a problem with dry air staticbuild-up. To keep the lint from flying,we place a section of old panty hoseover the holes in the internal vent. Itworks wonderfully.Jeanne


Indoor Air cont...

We’ve all done it. We’re tempted to pur-chase an item with a rebate. The after-rebate price is good, but we wonderwhether we’ll really receive the rebate.Because without it, the price offered isnot the best deal available.

Although estimates aren’t easy to find,it’s generally assumed that between 40and 60% of all rebates go uncashed.Some consumers forget to send themin. Others have their rebate requestsrejected. Still others neglect to cash therebate check when it arrives.

Any rebate that’s not cashed is pureprofit for the company. This is definitelya case where your loss is their gain. Andit’s a big gain. Published industry esti-mates conclude that rebates are worth$6 billion each year. So there’s roughly$3 billion in uncashed rebates yearly.

Most companies generally do notprocess their own rebates. They hire afulfillment company to do that job forthem. These firms are experts at whatthey do. There was a time when fulfill-ment centers bragged about how manyrebate requests they disallowed.They’re less open about it today.

Why 50% of all rebates go uncollected

Beating Rebate Rejectionby Gary Foreman

living better...for less

Many rebate forms are designed to becomplicated. Their purpose is to tripyou up. Fulfillment centers know whatmistakes consumers are most likely tomake in submitting rebates. And theyhave the legal staff to tell them whatmistakes can disqualify a rebate. Theinstructions are often written with theintent of making it hard to collect therebate.

So what’s a consumer to do? Start byshopping around. A little patiencecould turn up a sale without rebate or asimilar product at a price that’s com-petitive to the rebated item.

Look for “Instant Cash” rebates.They’re not subject to the same prob-lems as regular rebates. Typically,they’re paid out when you pay for theitem. So any doubt about collecting therebate is eliminated.

It would be nice to know which compa-nies deal honestly with consumers onrebates. A quick Google search onlyturned up a couple of sites attemptingto track a company’s rebate perform-ance. The only way to deal with theuncertainty is to do business with reputable

After Epson failed to send my promised rebate and ignored my follow-up let-ters, I stopped buying items with rebates. If they want to put something onsale, they can lower the price to the consumer. The rebates are just a racket

and I refuse to play their game. I make sure I tell the sales clerks this when they rec-ommend a product with a rebate.GG in CA

cont. on pg. 12...

Rebate Rejection cont...


companies. This is surely a casewhere the offer is only as good as thereputation of the company offering it.

There are some rebates to avoid.Avoid any that require your originalreceipt or do not provide contact infor-mation.

Follow the rebate directions exactly. Ifit says to staple this to that, make surethat’s what you do. And, no, a paperclip isn’t the same as a staple.

Submit rebates as quickly as possible.Make copies of everything that yousend in. If the rebate is sizeable, sendit via certified mail with return receipt.

Save product boxes until the rebate ispaid. And track your rebates. A simplefolder for the copies you made will dothe job. Be prepared to write follow-upletters if necessary.

If your original rebate was rejected,send in copies or your original applica-tion with a polite letter demanding therebate. Keep a copy of your letter inthe “open rebate” folder.

You can also take your complaint tothe manufacturer. Fulfillment centersare set up to handle (ignore?) cus-tomer complaints. The manufacturermay be more willing to help you. Youcan usually find their contact informa-tion by searching on the company

name and “customer service depart-ment.” Be polite but persistent.

If the company is unwilling to help,there are outside authorities you cancall on. The Federal TradeCommission recommends that “if therebate never arrives or arrives late, filea complaint with the Federal TradeCommission, the state AttorneyGeneral or the local Better BusinessBureau.” You can reach the FTC at 1-877-FTC-HELP or ftc.gov.

Should rebates be a part of your frugalshopping toolbox? That’s really up toyou. Some shoppers enjoy the thrill ofthe game. Their letters demanding arejected rebate be paid are literaryworks of art. Their quest for the elusiverebate check would please IndianaJones.

But, if you’re not the adventuresometype or very short of time, stick to salesand coupons. No rebate checks foryou. But you just might keep your san-ity!

Gary Foreman is a former purchasing man-ager who currently edits The DollarStretcher.

Don’t let your enthusiasm overpower your common sense

Maternity Clothingby Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

Congratulations! You’re having ababy…and a wardrobe. In addi-tion to all the things necessary

for your coming attraction, Mom, you’regoing to need some new clothes. Here’show to dress affordably and fashionablyin the coming months.

Put off wearing mater-nity clothes as long aspossible. Many first-timers don’t have anoticeable bump forfour months. Duringthe summer, knitshorts with elasticwaist bands and long,tie-back jumpers anddresses can be veryforgiving, and duringthe cooler months,leaving pants unbut-toned (secure with arubber band loopedthrough the button-hole and over the button) with layeringpieces stretch your present wardrobe.

Consider the other styles you alreadyown that will accommodate your comingbump: empire waists, trapeze shirts,baby doll styles, and low-rise pants andshorts that can rest under your belly.You may need fewer things than youthink.

Borrow from your husband’s (or broth-er’s) tees, sweatshirts, sweaters, outer-

wear and, depending upon the guy’ssize and your size, shorts and pants.

Ask other moms you know if you canborrow their maternity clothes. Checkout Freecycle.org and Craigslist.com

for free duds, too.

Avoid splurging atthe maternity cloth-ing stores; they cap-italize on the enthu-siasm of new par-ents-to-be. Goahead and windowshop for ideas andpricing, but leavethe credit cards athome. Shop eBayand the clearanceracks at outletstores for greatdeals by comparingwith retail prices.

For career wear, stick with items thatmix and match well, like jackets andcoordinating (but not matching) pantsand skirts, so you won’t have to obtainas many garments. Dressier tees with-out rib knit necklines look nice underjackets or dressy sweaters.

Select maternity dresses that tie in theback, not ones fitted with darts, sincethe former will adjust as your tummygrows. Classically-styled jumpers anddresses that layer nicely span seasons


cont. on pg. 14...


sive cotton sports bras or nursing brasuntil you figure it out.

If your shoe wardrobe consists of heelsand sloppy sandals, obtain a few pairsof low-heeled shoes with good treadsto prevent falling while pregnant or car-rying the baby after he/she is born.Swollen ankles and feet may alsorequire setting aside the darling peeptoe pumps for more forgiving footwear.Just as with clothing, shop the clear-ance racks and eBay for deals.

After your last pregnancy, sell whatev-er maternity clothing you can on eBay,craigslist, or at a consignment shop oryard sale.

Pregnancy and parenting will bringmany changes to your life, but crashingyour clothing budget doesn’t have to beone of them.

Deborah Jeanne Sergeant writes from herhome in Wolcott, N.Y. Her web site iswww.skilledquill.net.

Maternity cont...

and may be worn for subsequent preg-nancies at other times of the year. Forexample, a jumper may be worn with alight-weight tee or a long-sleeved shirtto transition from summer to fall. Selectbasic styles, not fads, so you can wearthe clothing for more than one preg-nancy and so they will retain a greaterresale value.

Most women look about six monthspregnant after giving birth, even if theygain only the recommended amount ofweight because it takes roughly sixweeks for the uterus to shrink back toits normal size. Therefore, choose afew maternity tops that allow for breast-feeding via a button-down front, wrapstyling or a loose cut that allows babyto nurse under the shirt.

As for underwear, you should be ableto wear low-cut styles for most, if notall, of your pregnancy because they willride under your burgeoning belly.Maternity briefs that come up to thewaist have a built-in stretchy panel butare the most expensive way to go.

Your tummy expansion isn’t the onlycoming alteration. Most women experi-ence a temporary or permanentchange in bra size during pregnancyand definitely after. Since it’s hard totell what kind and size of bra will offeryou the greatest comfort, coverage,convenience and support both now andpostpartum, buy just a couple inexpen-

save money and improve your healthwithout compromising on taste. It’swin-win!

Vinegar and Tomatoes

Vinegar and tomatoes are bestfriends. Mixing balsamic or wine vine-gar with tomatoes will make themboth taste great, and it’s very easy.Adding vinegar to most tomato disheswhile cooking can add another dimen-sion to the flavour, and vinegar isincredibly healthy. If you don’t usevinegar regularly in your cooking, buyyourself a small bottle and add itwhenever you use tomatoes. As withall new ingredients, start by adding alittle, and if you like it, add more!Remember wine vinegar does containa small amount of alcohol, so it maynot suit everybody.

A lazy chef doesn’thave to make badfood. Though

many techniquesused by profes-sional chefs arecomplex and timeconsuming, someare very simpleand can make a bigdifference to your cooking.There are lots of quick, easyways to make your food taste bet-ter and are no more difficult thanadding salt or pepper. Here are a fewof my personal techniques for makingyour food go further.

Mix Meat with Other Things

Being a meat lover doesn’t have tohurt your wallet or your waistline. Youdon’t have to go hungry to improveyour diet, just be a little smart aboutyour cooking. Meat mixed with some-thing else can be just as satisfying asmeat on its own. The basic rule is tochop it up and add it to other things.Let’s take bacon for example. A fewslices of bacon tastes great, but oneslice of bacon chopped up and addedto boiled cabbage tastes pretty good,too. And it tastes a lot better than aplate of boiled cabbage on its own.Shredded beef goes great withspinach or mixed greens. Since veg-etables are much cheaper than theequivalent volume of meat, you can


Could a few cents turn an ordinary meal into a gourmet delight?

A $10 Mealby James Konik

cont. on pg. 16...

$10 Meal cont...


Just Save One

When adding anything from a tin orpacket, I always save a tiny bit. Why?Because it won’t make much differ-ence to this meal, but adding a tinybit of something can quickly turntomorrow’s plain dish into somethingspecial, such as a single sliced olivein mashed potatoes or a splash ofcream in soup. Little touches can goa long, long way. Restaurants do thisbecause it improves the perceivedquality of the food, and it only takesfive seconds to do. There’s nothingstopping you from doing the same athome.

Herbs

Herbs are truly wonderful things.They may look exotic and fussy, butthey’re not. A small jar of basil costs$2. You open the lid and put a tiny bitin your cooking. Instantly you havebetter food. Stock up on herbs andexperiment. Use a tasting spoon fornew ingredients if you’re worriedabout ruining your meal. Once youlearn what tastes good with what,you’ll never look back.

Potatoes

If you’re seriously stuck for cash, buya bag of potatoes. Think potatoeshave to be boring? Not at all.Everyone knows you can add nearly

anything to a baked potato like butter,cheese and beans for starters, butthe same is also true of mashed pota-toes. Cold meats, herbs, choppedvegetables can all turn an ordinaryside dish into something spectacular.For the patient, roasted potatoescoated with olive oil, sprinkled withherbs are difficult to beat.

Follow your nose

Only you know what you think tastesgreat. If you have an idea, try it. Ifyou like it, great! If not, try somethingelse until you find what works for you.Experimentation is key in cooking.You don’t have to use a whole dish asa test. Just separate a small amountinto a bowl or spoon, add somethingand taste. If it’s good, add to thewhole dish. You can make great tast-ing food this way without a recipebook. Just follow your instincts!


Spend time, not money, on exercise

Can’t Afford a Gym?by Nicole Palacios, BSc, BCRPA SFL, ACE

If you’re tired of spending more than$40 a month on a gym membership,then why not cancel your member-

ship and pocket the extra money? Youcan easily exercise everyday for muchless than a monthly pass costs you; forthat matter, you can even work out forfree! If you think there’s no way to exer-cise without spending money, then keepreading.

Exercise is one of those great activitiesthat can be done with little to no equip-ment, as long as you know what you’redoing. And if you don’t, you can alwaysfollow along with someone that doesknow, with a little help from your VCR orDVD player.

So if you’re at yourwits end when itcomes to the pileof bills sitting inyour office, andyour expensivefitness plansseem like theyneed to be puton the backburner for now,don’t worry. That isnot the case. Withsome simple steps,you can work out andsave money doing so.The following activitiescan be done for as little aszero dollars:

Free: Start a walking group withfriends.

If you like walking and have somefriends who also enjoy it, get togethertwo to three times per week and go fora brisk walk. Try out a new locale eachtime to keep things interesting. All youneed are the shoes on your feet and agood attitude. If walking is too lowintensity for you, bump up the altitudeand head out for a hike. This is a greatopportunity to spend time with friends,and get your daily exercise accom-plished. Best of all, it costs nothing!

Free: Bike to work or wherever youneed to go.

Most people have adusty bike looming in a

garage or basement.Dig it out, pump upthe tires and getyourself a lock.Instead of spend-ing money on gas,

parking, and insur-ance, use your bike

to get you whereyou’re going. Not only

will you be getting agreat workout, but you’ll

also be putting moneyback in your pocket. You’realso going green, so you’re

helping the planet as well.

cont. on pg. 18...

Exercise cont...


probably won’t miss out when it comesto the quality of your workout. As longas you don’t mind foregoing the towelservice and filtered water, you shouldmanage just fine.

Save: Group personal training.

Maybe you have a hard time exercis-ing on your own, and you enjoy usinga personal trainer. Well, trainers canadd up over the long run. You’ll payanywhere from $50/hour up to$80/hour depending on where you live.If you want to utilize a trainer and savemoney, why not buddy up with one ortwo friends and split the cost? Mosttrainers do offer a group rate, so this isa great way to save without giving upthe personalized attention that a train-er can give you.

As you see, saving money on fitness isnot as hard as it may seem. There aremany great options for free or lower-priced exercise. With a little imagina-tion and a lot of enthusiasm, yourworkout can be both healthful and costefficient.

Nicole Palacios is a group exercise instruc-tor, personal trainer and freelance writerwith a Bachelor’s degree in ExerciseScience.

Free: Borrow fitness DVDs fromyour local library.

If you live in a city with a library, all youneed is a card to be able to borrow avast array of fitness DVDs. With a newprogram in your hand every week,you’ll be able to beat the exercise dol-drums and save big bucks on payingfor all those drop-ins at the local gym.If you’re feeling really creative, youcan take exercise books out as well,and use their helpful tips to create yourown program at home or outside.

Free: Volunteer in exchange for amembership.

Some community centers, like theYMCA, need volunteers to work intheir centers. In exchange, they maygive you a free membership to usetheir facilities. This is a great way togive back to your community, and get aterrific gym membership as well.Contact your local community center tosee what they offer.

Save: Give up the private gym andgo to your community center.

If you can’t give up your gym member-ship just yet, think about exchanging itfor a different one. Private gyms gen-erally cost a lot more than your localcommunity center. With many of thesame programs and equipment beingoffered at the community center, you

One of the joys of college life isthe freedom it brings, but unlessyour folks are dishing out big

bucks for you to blow, spending moneyis hard to come by. Evaluate yourresources and turn them into cash.

You’ve got brains and brawn. Find aneed and offer a service. Can you trimhair? Can you troubleshoot computerproblems? What about doing lawn orgarden work? Baby-sit? Type up otherstudent’s papers? Tutor a course youdid well in? If you have a pick-up truckand a strong back, offer moving servic-es. Make it known you’re available. Agirl in our dorm stocked her small fridgewith high caffeine sodas. She was justthe person to know during exam time,especially since she undercut vendingmachine prices.

Sell your plasma. Check out venues inthe good old Yellow Pages. You shouldbe healthy, at least 17, and weigh 110pounds. Eat something within two hoursof the procedure and come well hydrat-ed. Make sure you haven’t taken aspirinor products with aspirin for two daysbeforehand. A single exchange can netyou from $9 to $20. Even though yourbody replenishes plasma quickly andyou may give up to twice weekly, bemoderate, as your veins can be tough-ened up from constant poking.

What about refereeing? Cash in onyour skill at a particular sport.

Investigate local venues, youthleagues, or even your own campus foropportunities. The pay tends to bedecent and you get some exercise toboot. If your time is more flexible, con-sider coaching younger kids for pay.

Collect metals and resell them.Copper is great, but a bit hard to comeby. Aluminum (as in cans) isn’t bad.Make friends in places that sell sodas,or pick up cans off the streets. Wecleared about $45 over three monthsof evening strolls through town. Somestates have cash back policies onglass and plastic bottles, too.

Resell your textbooks. This is a greatincentive to keep your stuff in greatshape. You can certainly do betterthan the school bookstore “buy back.”Try www.cash4books.net or a likeservice. They offer free shipping and apreliminary evaluation on what theytake. Or post the books on the studentcenter bulletin board and sell directly.Bring it up a notch and sell otherthings you no longer need like CDs,video games, and even computers. Allthese can be listed on Craigslist forfree and on Amazon or eBay at a cost.If you’re a fashionista, take your goodcondition clothes to a consignmentshop.

Now you have a couple of ways to lineyour pockets without having to callhome.

Ways to bolster your spending money

5 Ways for College Students to Make a Buck by Olivia Fox



Setting goals has made a major difference in their financial life

My Story: Why I Set Goalscontributed by EF

For 2009, I listed my major goals ona whiteboard that is in my homeoffice so I could look at it every

day. By April, I had actually accom-plished all but a couple. Those I hadn’taccomplished showed considerableprogress was being made. I ended uptyping up the goals that I was still work-ing on, added a couple new ones, andprinted it out to read at my desk everyday. Then I erased the dry erase board,so I could use it for other things.

Now I am in the process of puttingtogether my version of a vision board. Iwent to an office supply store andbought a white three-section presenta-tion board very inexpensively. I’m clip-ping pictures and words that inspire meand relate to my goals. Once done, it willhave a prominent place in my office, soI can view it regularly and be motivatedto keep taking action.

Another thing that has helped me inaccomplishing goals is spending timeevery day when I first get up and go tobed reflecting on what I really want and“seeing it” in my head. That was difficultat first but has gotten easier with prac-tice. I also spend time being silent andletting ideas come to me. When I haveideas come to me, I write them downimmediately in a cheap notebookbought for that purpose. Ideas come tome during sleep, when I am takingwalks, in the shower, etc. The more Ipay attention to them the more aware I

have become when a good idea oropportunity is presented. I journal abouta lot of things, including being more spe-cific with my goals. Elaborating on themmakes them even clearer in my mindand motivates me. I break down a goalinto baby steps and then take action. Ido put dates on when I want thingsaccomplished, but am flexible whenthings come up that push them back.Also, sometimes my goal changes or Idecide it isn’t something I really want.Again, being flexible is important. One ofmy goals was moving to a specifichouse. I wrote an entire story as if I wasalready living there with my husbandand three cats. I did move into thehouse and it really is much like that storybut even better!

I write down the things that I want toaccomplish each day. Some of theminvolve my goals and I make sure thatthese are listed as priority to get donefirst. Self-care is essential in being ableto accomplish goals. The reason is thatif you don’t care for yourself first, yourself-esteem will be low and you won’t beable to help yourself or anyone else.This isn’t being snobby or egotistical. It’sabout keeping yourself in the best phys-ical, mental, and emotional state possi-ble so you are more effective.

Positive affirmations are helpful, as ispositive self-talk. Writing down accom-plishments is important, so that on“down” days, I can look back to see how

cont. on pg. 21...

Goals cont...


much I achieved. Reading things that areinspiring and helpful on an ongoing basisis valuable. Ongoing learning of newskills and a broad range of information isa big help in achieving goals as well.

Along with this, avoid the gloom-and-doom naysayers who would bring yourspirits down. If there are people in yourlife like this that you have to be aroundat times, be aware of this and set upboundaries for yourself. Find positivepeople who are accomplishing things tobe your mentors and friends. Hangaround supportive people who willencourage you and also give you a pushwhen you need it. Listen to your self-talkand work on making it more positive. Allof us have times when we just aren’t atour best or experience what we per-ceive as failure. Realize this is normal inour human experience and that failureshows we are trying. Look for the les-sons when this happens. Take risks. It’snecessary to learn to be more comfort-able with being uncomfortable some-times in order to succeed and have afulfilling life. Comfort zones need to beexpanded. It isn’t easy, but it is wellworth it.

Lastly, pay attention to all the environ-ments you spend time in for home,work, and play. Decorate your space ina way that resonates with you andmakes you feel good to be in it. Realizeyour uniqueness and your tastes and leteverything you do reflect them in the

foods that you eat, music that you listento, clothes that you wear, the colors thatyou choose, etc. Use all of your physicalsenses plus your intuition to guide you.

Goals should be made in many cate-gories. People who have passion and alot of interests in life tend to not getbored and are happier, more successfuland satisfied with their life. When youdon’t set goals and then work towardsthem, you just let life happen to you.That is not nearly as fulfilling and won-derful as experiencing the amazing lifeyou can have once you begin planning itto suit you. Do not let the “I don’t haveenough time” excuse get in the way ofsetting goals and taking action. What’simportant to you in life always shouldtake top priority in your life. It’s not easywhen you first start to make the neces-sary changes, but it does get easier.Once you do this consistently, you willexperience many “magical moments.”You will have things come together foryou easily at times. In fact, they willcome together in better ways than youcould have imagined. I have heard itsaid “aim for the stars and you might hitthe moon.” If you don’t aim for anythingin life, then you are settling for amediocre experience. Choose wisely.

My Story is a regular feature of The DollarStretcher. If you have information that canhelp others save time or money, please sendit to: My Story c/o The Dollar Stretcher, POBox 14160, Bradenton FL 34280.

Save space, money, and time on laundry

Saving in the Laundry Roomby R. Kellogg


Awhile back, we took a goodhard look at how we weredoing our laundry and asked

ourselves what we could do to savespace, money, and time on laundry.Here’s what we came up with:

Saving space:

Originally our family had one giantclothes hamper in the bathroom, andthat was it! Once it was full, we’dhave a choice to make. Do we sortand wash all the clothing now, eventhough there will not be very manydelicates and whites and those loadswill be small? Or do we try to pull outthe colored clothes and wash them,saving the whites for later? When wehad a baby, some weeks the laundrywould spill over the top and then oneof us would finally cave and run afew loads. Well, I didn’t like the lackof order to this system or the chaos itoccasionally brought to my bath-room. So I came up with a betteralternative and asked my husband,who is handy, to build a laundrysorter for me. It has saved on spacein the bathroom and eliminated themess!

Here’s how it works: Our washer anddryer are in the garage. I asked myhusband to build me a four-bag laun-dry sorter. Target and other storesthat sell home goods often will sell

laundry sorters you can assemblewith plastic pipes, or they sell laun-dry bags, which we purchased forour own sorter. With the four bagshanging in the garage, I can takedown the laundry bag from the bath-room hamper when it gets full andsort the clothes into the followingcategories: colors, whites, delicates,and towels. The colors bag fills upfaster than the others, so we run thatone more frequently. My bathroomhamper no longer overflows and wehave a streamlined process in placethat takes some of the headache outof laundry.

cont. on pg. 23...

Saving money:

My mother-in-law pointed out that itdoes not take a full cup of detergentto clean a load of clothes. A quartercup of powder or one good squirt ofliquid is sufficient to clean mostloads. An exception might be whenyou’re trying to get some stains out. Iremoved crayon from clothing byrunning a load with extra soap andhot water and after two washes thecrayon came out!

Dryer sheets can be used at the rateof one half sheet per load. By regu-larly cleaning out the lint trap on mydryer, I help the machine run effi-ciently and the clothes get dry faster.

Using coupons and shopping salesor discount stores is a good way toget laundry soaps, stain removers,and dryer sheets at a good price.Check out the prices at your localwarehouse store and see how theycompare to the discount stores.Sometimes there is a cost-per-ouncesavings for buying in bulk.

Saving time:

Not every item of clothing needs tobe washed after each use. If it issmelly, stained, spilled on, or wornmore than three times, wash it! But ifthe pants you wore one day are stillclean, you can prolong the life of the


Laundry Room cont...

garment and save laundry time byhanging them back in the closet andwearing them again another day.

Flylady suggests running a load oflaundry a day. I find this works prettywell for me. Or I’ll run two loads oneday, then wait a day or two and runtwo loads again. Since my sorter andwasher/dryer are in the garage, I canput a load in when I head out for themorning, move the batch to the dryerwhen I come home, and then foldwhen I have time in the afternoon orevening. By working it into my dailyroutine like that, I do not have to beat home for a “laundry day” to get allof our family’s clothes clean, thusfreeing up my schedule and ensuringwe always have clean clothes towear!

Keep the cost of beverages low and the variety selection high

Creative Stretching in the Kitchen: Beveragesby Donna Miller

Water is one of the most reason-able beverages for a tightbudget. We drink a lot of it. We

have a faucet filter and use glass orstainless steel bottles for carrying thewater around with us. Bottled water istoo expensive and not good for eitherour health or the environment, so noneof that plastic bottled water for us.Filtered tap water, as good, cheap andpure as it can be, can still get boring andsometimes you just need another flavor.With a little creativity and stretching, youcan add variety without breaking thebudget. The following are some of thethings that we use to keep the cost ofbeverages low and the variety selectionhigh:

Tea: Whether herbal, green or black, teais one of the other most reasonable bev-erages to use. A tip to stretching it is tolet the tea bags steep in the boiled waterwhile still on the burner and then until ithas completely cooled. This makes astronger base to add water to, usingless tea bags. Also for variety, you canbuy some of the sugar-free flavored teamix or a flavored tea bag and add a little(not the whole amount) to your plain teaconcentrate after the steeping process.We do this with peach teabags, raspber-ry teabags, etc. Just use one instead ofonly that flavor. The rest is regular tea.

Coffee: I am a coffee addict. Yes, it’strue; I need my coffee in the morning. Itreally is the warmth more than the caf-

feine, so decaf works the same for me.Either way, it can get expensive to delveinto the “specialty” coffees, creamers,etc. There is no way that I will regularlypay for a $5 coffee at the local (okay,hour away) Starbucks, but my tastes arestill that high, so I’ve learned to impro-vise.

For regular morning coffee, I add halfthe amount of grounds the second dayto the previous day’s grounds and makeas usual. So, if I used four tablespoonson Monday, then I use two tablespoonson Tuesday morning and make thesame four cups. This stretches the“cheapo” grounds even further.

For that special flavor, I’ve been knownto sprinkle cinnamon, nutmeg or cocoaon top of the grounds before setting thecoffeepot to “on.” A little vanilla, mapleor almond extract to the water makes anice switch as well.

At times, when the small samples of fla-vors I cannot make go on sale (for $.50a pop), I add a tablespoon of that to myregular grounds. The flavor is actuallyjust as strong.

Flavored or regular, leftover cooled cof-fee (yeah, like that happens often)works great for homemade frozen cof-fees and lattes!

Concentrated Frozen Juices: Theseare often a less expensive and healthier


cont. on pg. 25...


Beverages cont...

For $200-$400, a parent can pur-chase all the cloth diapers andaccessories they need from birth

to potty training, versus spending about$2000 for disposable diapers. Still,some cloth-diapering parents reportspending almost as much as they wouldon disposables. Why? Sometimes theylack restraint, but often, they needknowledge. You buy cloth diapers earlyand infrequently, so it’s too late to learntricks to be frugal when your child is 18months old. Here is what parents shouldknow before their first diaper purchase:

1. Your mom bought cloth diapers foryou at the nearest baby mega-store.You probably should not. Today, diapers in brick-and-mortar storesoften are designed as burp cloths.

2. Try first. Sunshinediapers.com andJilliansdrawers.com offer samplers

cont. on pg. 26...

beverage choice than the bottled orpowered mixes. Look at the ingredientsand compare if there is high fructosecorn syrup and additives.

We also tend to dilute the frozen OJ orother fruit juices to stretch them longerand the taste is just the same.

Homemade Lemonade: This is a fast,cheap and healthy beverage thatstretches any kitchen budget. Lemonjuice is high in Vitamin C. We make ourown lemonade with two slivers of lemon(for looks and freshness), 1/3 cup lemonjuice, 1/4 cup organic sugar and 20drops of liquid stevia. Put all previousingredients in a two-quart pitcher and fillthe rest to the top with filtered tap water.This is a great treat over those pow-dered mixes! It’s lower in calories thanmost lemonades and still a great bever-age for anyone!

I hope you’ll give these creative, budget-stretching ideas a try and broaden yourbeverage variety without broadeningyour kitchen budget!

Donna Miller is an author, teacher and entre-preneur. Her favorite roles are that of wifeand mother to three home-school graduates.The Millers own and operate Millers GrainHouse <www.millersgrainhouse.com/store/>which offers Organic and Chemical-freeWhole Grains, Bosch Mixers, the NutriMill,instructional tutorials, recipes and more.

Saving money on diapers

Frugal Cloth Diaperingby Jacqueline Harris-Stone

5. L o o k i n t o o n e - s i z e d i a p e r s (abbreviated as OS) that fit a babyfrom soon after birth to potty training.Examples include Mother-ease f i t teds , Wonderwraps covers , Gro-Baby all- in-twos, and BumGenius 3.0 pockets.

6. Newborns are often too tiny for one-size or even small diapers for two toeight weeks, but they outgrow newborn d iapers wi th in threem o n t h s . S o m e p a r e n t s u s e disposables for the early days, someinvest in a returnable newbornsampler package, and some buynewborn covers and prefolds. Mostpeople find a prefold folded in three(trifolded) inside a cover containsnewborn poop just fine and certainlyworks better than disposables. Startwith an infant prefold from birth if youdon’t mind bulky diapers; otherwisebuy newborn prefolds, which can beused for doublers later.

7. The elastic on used covers is oftenstretched or worn-out, so buy withdiscretion and only at a deeply discounted price. Newborn diaperswork for several babies, but mostother sizes wear out during a secondchild’s use. Used fitteds are fine. Agood cover will make up for even theworst elastic. Second-hand pocketdiapers or all-in-ones/twos mayhave elastic or Velcro problems during their life with you. However,

cont. on pg. 27...


Cloth Diapering cont...

containing different styles, and givestore credit when you return them.Or, buy one used d iaper f romD i a p e r s w a p p e r s . c o m b e f o r e investing in more. Diaperpin.compublishes detailed reviews, includinghow diapers fared long-term.

3. Diapers with a waterproof cover (all-in-ones, all-in-twos, pockets) aremore l ike ly to be accepted by daycares.

4. Make sure to calculate the total costwhen evaluating a diapering system.Non-waterproof diapers (fitteds, prefolds, contours, and flats) requireone cover every two to four diapers.Pocket diapers need inserts or, alternatively, infant prefolds. Fornight, you’ll probably need doublers(absorbent material you lay in the diaper). A snappi (this generation’sversion of the diaper pin) makes fastening easy for prefolds, contoursor flats.

these can be repaired, and if you’rehandy with sewing, buying damageddiapers is a good frugal choice.Cottonbabies.com sometimes hasrepairable new diapers in theirclearance section.

8. People are unlikely to buy cloth diapers for your baby shower. Raisethe odds by specifying exactly whatyou want and where i t can bebought.

9. Always accept free diapers. Make itknown you plan to cloth diaper, andsomeone may g i ve you t he i runsellable diapers. (Diapers areunsellable with cosmetic damage orholes, neither of which affects performance.) Also try Freecyclea n d t h e f r e e - f o r - s h i p p i n g listings on Diaperswappers.com.Mirac led iapers.org passes ondiapers to moms in need, and somecities offer financial incentives to buycloth, as it saves disposal costs.

10. It’s fairly easy to make your own diapers.

11. Reselling will help you recoup 50-70% of your costs. One mom I knoweven made a profit. Just don’t expectto sell on eBay. You’ll be banned forselling used children’s underwear.

12. Skimp on accessories. Skip the diaper pails and liners for a garbage



can and a laundry bag. Cut up af l eece baby b l anke t t o make protective liners. Diapers generallywash well with cheap detergent, aslong as it’s not soap-based. (CheckPinstripesandpolkadots.com fordetergent reviews.) Or buy Charlie’sSoap in bulk.

13. You never need to buy wipes foryour baby, not even cloth ones.Instead, cut worn-out clothes intofour to eight inch squares. (T-shirts,sweatshirts, socks and towels workwell .) Serging stops the edges fraying, but if you don’t serge, wipesstill last about a year when washedwith your diapers. Baby washclothsalso work well.

14. Line drying protects elastic, and thesun takes out most stains, evenmeconium. Do, however, machined r y d i a p e r s m a d e w i t h P U Loccas i ona l l y on h i gh hea t t omaintain their waterproofing.

cont. on pg. 28...

15. With all the cute patterns available,it’s easy to buy when you don’t needto. Keep it in perspective. As mymom keeps reminding me, “This issomething they poop in.” If you needmotivation to keep your diapers to aminimum, put all the money yousave with cloth into a college fund.Your chi ld may well have a ful lsemester of college paid for at age18.

Diaper Types

Today’s cloth diapers are as unlikethose of the last generation as a type-writer and a computer. Instead of soak-ing and boiling, modern parents usewashing machines. Instead of diaperpins, the diapers fasten by Velcro orsnaps. For many parents, folding is athing of the past. Here’s a look of theseven basic types of diapers availableto choose from.

All-in-one - Similar in looks and ease toa disposable, all-in-ones are popular fortheir convenience. It’s great to have atleast a few of these for babysitters.

All-in-two - Like an all-in one, but theabsorbent material snaps out for fasterdrying time.

Pocket diaper - A waterproof outer layerand an inner layer of fleece are sewntogether to form a pocket, which isstuffed with a removable absorbent

insert. The absorbency can be cus-tomized to the baby, making these anespecially popular choice for night dia-pers. When all parts are assembled, it’ssimilar to an all-in one.

Fitted diaper - The absorbent cloth is fit-ted to the baby with elastic and snaps orVelcro. Unlike the previous diapers, itdoes not contain a waterproof outerlayer.

Contour diaper - Like a fitted, this diaperis shaped like an hourglass to accom-modate the baby’s shape, but withoutelastic or snaps to fasten.

Prefold - A piece of cloth that has beenfolded and sewn, with double layers inthe center for more absorbency. It maybe folded and fastened around the baby,or held in place with a waterproof orwater resistant cover. Many parents findprefolds and covers an economical andeffective diaper choice. Indian andChinese prefolds are the mostabsorbent; other types may not beabsorbent enough to work well for yourbaby.

Flat Diaper - No longer commonly used,this is a flat square of cloth, usually bird-seye cotton or terry, that requires intri-cate folding and pinning. This is whatthe previous generation used. They canbe useful for camping trips, and somemoms enjoy the challenge.



Some studies indicate 40% ofAmericans over 65 will needtime in a long-term care facility

and that 70% of those 65 or older willneed some type of in-home healthcare (www.bankrate.com).

With that said, it’s obvious we all mustdecide what to do about long-termcare insurance coverage. There’s nodenying it’s a large expense, whichwill certainly burden many house-holds in this economy, but can we gowithout it?

If you are considering a policy at all,following are the minimum questionsyou should ask your insurance brokerto get the ball rolling. (Some generalanswers are provided and may ormay not apply to the specific policyyou purchase.)

1. Is long-term care insurance medical insurance? No, i t is coverage to help someone getassistance with ADLs (activities ofdaily living).

2. Who shouldn’t purchase long-term care insurance? Anyone whois living on Social Security or othersupplemental insurance, Medicaid,or who thinks they will not be able tokeep up the annual premiumsshould not consider this type ofinsurance.

3. What does it cover? Generally, itcovers assisted living facilities, daycare for adults, nursing homesand Alzheimer’s facilities, hospicecare, and home care.

4. Is it true that premiums are higherthe older you are when you purchase a policy? Yes, that’s whyso many young people today arebuying i t , though premiums fory o u n g e r p e o p l e a r e f a r f r o minexpensive. However, you still canpurchase it when you are older. Justbe prepared to pay more.

5. Should my policy cover all typesof care settings? Yes, because youhave no way of knowing what youwill need, if and when the time comes.For ins tance, i f you purchase coverage for only a nursing homeand then need another type of care,it will not be covered. (Make sureyour policy includes coverage forADL standby assistance.)

6. Do I need to add an inflation protection rider to my policy?Depend ing on the age o f the purchaser, yes and no. As a rule, ifyou are in your 50s-60s, then yes. Ifyou are 70 or older, no. Remember,too, that such a r ider can add signif icantly to the cost of yourpolicy, but it does give you about 5%inflation protection per year.

10 important questions you need to ask the experts

Long-Term Care Insuranceby Linda Shapero


cont. on pg. 30...

that these days of service have beensatisfied before benefits are paid.

It’s important to note that there are manyvariables in policies between insurancecompanies. You should be sure tospeak to an insurance expert, preferablyone who is an independent brokerrather than one who is bound to a partic-ular company, before making a decision.

You may also want to familiarize your-self with care facilities and in-home careoptions in your community to determinewhich ones you think would be suitablefor you or a family member.

Last but not least, make sure you don’tsign anything unless you fully under-stand what you are signing. Ask a lot ofquestions and have someone with youwho can also listen to all the details toprevent misunderstandings from occur-ring.


7. What is meant by the “benefitperiod” and the “daily benefit”?The benefit period is the length oftime payments will be made oncethe coverage is started. Considerthat the average nursing home stayis anywhere from two to three years;therefore, a period of less than twoyears is undesirable. The dai ly benefit is the amount of moneyallowed for care on a daily basis andcan be as low as $50 to $250 ormore, depending on location andamount of premium paid.

8. What qualifies me to go on long-term care? In some cases, theinsurance company makes thatdecision. In other cases, it’s your private doctor. This is an answer thatwill vary greatly from policy to policy.

9. Will my health history affect thecost of long-term care insurance?Mos t l i ke l y, i n bo th cos t and coverage, i t wi l l . However, i t isimportant to be up front about anyconditions you have for which theymay later deny coverage, and besu r e t o ask how p re -ex i s t i ngconditions are handled.

10. Is there generally a waiting periodbefore benefits are paid? Mostpolicies do have a waiting period,which can range from 20 days to 120days. They may also require proof

Long-Term Care cont...


Readers’ Tips

She Likes Wool

Instead of buying an electric blanket, Ibought a wool blanket for $5 at a churchsale. I think wool is great; I wash it gen-tly in my washing machine, and it’s verywarm. It’s only drawback is that it’s itchy,so you need to layer with a sheet. I alsouse flannel sheets in the winter and canturn my thermostat down to about 58degrees. The actual temperature when Iget up in the morning is about 60degrees. Margaret P.

Save the Car Mats

Living in the cold and snowy north, ourcar mats get very full of sand, salt, slushand grime in the winter. I started puttingold towels over our car mats in the win-ter to protect them. I wash the towelsevery month or so until spring arrives.Our 16-year-old Dodge Spirit has itsoriginal car mats that look like new! Brenda N. in Rochester, MN

Air Travel Charges

To make your checked suitcases weighless, be sure to board the plane wearingyour heaviest items (hiking boots, heavycoat, etc.). You can take your feet out ofthe boots as soon as you’re seated anduse your coat as a blanket. DMH

Manual Programmable Thermostat

I’ve been looking at programmable ther-mostats but can’t fit one into the budgetjust yet, so I made my own. I took abusiness envelope and wrote “HEATand ELEC” on one end. I tucked it intomy mail holder by the door, so it’s thelast thing I see when I leave the house.It reminds me to turn down the thermo-stat and turn off the powerstrips, whichrun my “phantom” electricity hogs likeTV, VCR, and computer. Jessie in SD

Cook’s Sick? No Problem!

Normally at this time of year, I get reallysick after a child in our home has beensick with the flu. Since I am the one whocooks, if I get sick, then my dear hubbieorders in pizza or makes a special trip tothe store to buy pre-made meals ofsome kind.

This year I am going to be prepared. Ihave been making extra big batches ofmy family’s favorite soups. We eat ameal of it and freeze the rest. Then onthe morning that I notice that I am sick, Ican pull a meal’s worth of soup out ofthe freezer along with some frozen dayold rolls bought on sale. My family canheat up the soup for supper because itis so easy. No more take-out when thecook is ill. Cammy G.

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