A $96 hold on the debit card … for one tank of gas

I overheard a conversation at customer service at my financial institution as I was standing in line for the teller.  Someone had an issue with their debit card. The cause was a $96 hold from a gas station.  The customer service rep then said that they recommend that customers choose the “credit” option rather than … Read more

One more unit pricing gotcha: dosage

After church today we went into town for a few things.  We stopped in at Costco. One of the items on our list was gummy multivitamins.  (Yes, I know, these are quite a bit more expensive than tablets that get chased down with water.  However, if these get people to look forward to taking their … Read more

Ten more ways being fat costs money

A couple of days ago, I asked my fit Facebook friends for recommendations on a starter strength training plan to complement an aerobic exercise plan.  Because I’m Really Serious This Timeâ„¢ about losing weight. When I heard the story of a North Dakota woman who was to hand out “fat letters” to obese kids instead … Read more

When welfare meets unjust enrichment

In the middle of last month, a maintenance power outage caused the Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) system to go down in 17 states.  One side effect of this was the disappearance of spending limits on the cards at checkout. Xerox, the company in charge of those servers and for providing EBT services to state governments, … Read more

Choose your life’s mate wisely

This might seem to be a bit of an odd post on a personal finance and bargain website. But it’s one of the more important choices that people make in a lifetime. The choice of your spouse (or the choice not to marry) will change your finances for the rest of your life. I was … Read more