Once again, a homage to NFL analyst Peter King…
- It may be difficult to believe, but I went to an MLM tasting party yesterday. As best I can tell, it is a legit MLM and it does not appear to be an illegal pyramid scheme (as opposed to One24). It was Wines for Humanity. The wines averaged around $20, which is pretty much the norm for any wine tasting. No one was recruited into becoming a distributor. In looking at the compensation plan today, I see that the distributor makes 17% of every sale, so that is the majority of payment. I think the FTC would be proud to call it a legit MLM.
- I really don’t like Facebook. I always considered their interface clunky and confusing. Also, I don’t like mix high school friends with college friends and all that stuff. I decided to give Google+ a few minutes this week and it is awesome. I particularly like how I can create various circles of friends and follow their streams or send messages to them. Some people may say, “Why do I need another social media platform with Twitter and Facebook?” I would respond that it’s time to ratchet down the Facebook and up the Google+ usage. I’m usually not a fan of pushing Google services since they already control enough of my data. However, they deserve credit in this case. They really seemed to innovate. If you have an invite look me up at Lazy Man and Money.
- I read this article about Facebook blocking users from exporting their data. That’s just another reason why I don’t want to support Facebook.
- I think some guy has his work cut out for him:
I’m pretty sure that she’s faking being a cat hoarder (in fact more research confirms she is acting). It’s still fun. - I think Barney Stinson invented the Hot-Crazy Scale specifically for cases like the cat lover above (again if it wasn’t fake):
- I think these Songify remixes are always funny.
- My wife and I picked up some bamboo sustainable sheets from Sears earlier this week. Egyptian cotton and thread counts just got buggywhipped. For around $45 we got sheets that are softer and more environmentally friendly than ones that cost $200.
- Last week you could find me at Moveable Feast. It’s a bunch of food trucks in one area. So you go get a couple of ribs from one place, some garlic noodles from another and, if you are like me, split a Cuban sandwich with your wife. You can top it off with a dessert from the dessert truck. It’s a little like a mall food court, but much more fun.
- I spent this morning trying to get Amazon’s Simple Email Service (SES) set up. Amazon needs to rethink the meaning of the word “Simple.” To get going, you need to verify your email address. This is usually done by having an email sent to you and clicking a link in your email inbox. To get the email sent to you with SES you have to install Amazon’s SES SDK, install 6 or 7 perl modules, and then install libcrypt-ssleay-perl and libnet-ssleay-perl (which seemed to be undocumented). Thanks to these SES Tips I was able to fix the last bug there. That’s Amazon’s definition of a Simple Email Service.
- I think the Red Sox are pretty fortunate to be in first place. I realize they are expected to be there with a 180 million dollar payroll. However, the Red Sox started the season with a rotation of Beckett, Lester, Buchholz, Matsuzaka, and Lackey. Lester, Buchholz, and Matsuzaka are currently on the disabled list. Beckett left the game early on Friday with an injury. For much of the season, Lackey has been the worst pitcher in baseball (highest ERA). After the All-star break most of the pitching should be coming back, but the injuries have made things interesting.
And now with the personal finance links:
Money Writers:
- Brip Blap goes over selling on eBay for passive income.
- Digerati Life shows how small purchases lead to big debt.
- Frugal Dad shares a frugal marriage, five years in the making.
- Generation X Finance says fight the urge to splurge!
- Million Dollar Journey posts top stock picks 2011 – Q2 results.
- Money Smart Life presents 6 investment costs you pay to play.
- My Dollar Plan on kids and money: a summer job for our niece.
- The Sun’s Financial Diary blogs heroes of the frugal freezer.
Top PF Posts:
- Free Money Finances asks how long do you expect to provide financial support to your college graduate child?
- The Smarter Wallet on making your own pasta.
- My Journey to Millions presents five things to look out for when viewing rental properties.
- Mighty Bargain Hunter asks did Momzilla have a point about having a modest wedding?
- Learn how to get started with investing at Not Made of Money.
- Get Rich Slowly shares a reader story: the product of frugal parents.
- One Frugal Girl on scrounging up money.
- Scott on MONEY asks should you do your own accounting or hire an accountant?
- The Simple Dollar Explains why the lottery isn’t the answer to your problems.
- Len Penzo dot Com with 18 amazing facts you didn’t know about your credit card!
- Saving Advice on the difference between “saving” and “not spending”.
Food trucks rule – have you ever considered investing in one? You’re sometimes looking for offbeat investment opportunities. I would think this would be a growth business. As restaurants are a high-risk business proposition, at least the proprietor can change locations at the drop of a hat.
My only hesitation with Google+ is the same as yours: Google is involved in too much of my digital life. Here’s hoping other alternatives to Facebook beging to show up, and soon. FB’s new “chat” feature has become the latest uber-annoying “tool”.
I have thought about investing in Dunkin Donuts truck to serve San Francisco. We don’t have Dunkins in CA and there are many people who moved here from other states that would love to drink the coffee.
I’m torn on Google+ myself, for much the same reason as you. I already depend on Google for my Gmail, Adsense, and Feedburner accounts, as well as being my default search engine. If Google were to go out of business tomorrow for some unexplained reason, I’d be in a world of hurt already. Having at least a few non-Google alternatives in my life is definitely a good thing in my eyes.
That said…I’m not a big fan of Facebook. From their crummy interface and questionable privacy policies to the proliferation of games that require you to harass your friends (and always seem to ensnare my fiancee), there’s a lot to dislike about it. If, a few months from now, it looks like most of the people I currently keep in touch with on Facebook are also (or solely) on Google+, I’d probably be willing to switch over, and would probably drop Facebook like a bad habit.
Also, great How I Met Your Mother clip; Barney Stinson at his philosophizing best!
If I were able to use Facebook in some productive way to communicate with people, I would probably stick with it over Google+. I have been unable to make much use of Facebook and Google+ seems to be much better and more organized.
If it were a tie, I’d go Facebook, but it’s Google+ in a landslide.
I never understood how anyone used facebook or linked in for “work” purposes. I do love me some bejeweled and zuma on facebook.
Google+ seems like a cool idea, my account is active but I am not really seeing why it is better other than the grouping aspect…it even looks the same.
Thanks for the mention