I’ve never had a student loan, so I never had to think about student loan consolidation, but I know a lot of people who have.
Were it not for the availability of these government loans, a lot of folks could never afford to go to college.  Like anything else, the loans can be abused, though, […]

Have you ever noticed how, the more you need to borrow money, the harder it is to qualify for a loan?
I know, lenders are not in the charity business, and they want to reduce their risks as much as possible, but if I didn’t need the money, I wouldn’t try to borrow it in the […]

The more I think about it, the more inclined I am to find a good, reliable way to just work at home.
Marisa has really inspired me to look for ways to use my writing for steady income, but I know there’s still a long way to go before I can rely solely on this.  Nevertheless, […]

Numbers and I have a mutual understanding; if they don’t bother me, I tend to leave them alone, too.
The problem is that I’m having a hard time keeping track of everything I have, owe, or need.  Budgeting has never been  my strong suit.
Maybe I should try harder to manage my finances.  It’s not like I’m […]

Four of West Virginia’s 55 counties have racetracks, including the ones immediately to our north and to our south. Head north to play the ponies, south if dogs are more your style. And each of the four tracks has video slot machines, governed by the state’s lottery commission.
Since neighboring states are also picking […]

Like everyone else who has a website, I’m interested in generating more traffic to my blog. To this point, I’ve been very fortunate to see those ranking numbers get better all the time, but I realize that there will come a day when I hit a plateau and those improvements will stop.
That’s why I’m […]

I admit it. I tend to be an impulse shopper. Whenever I see something shiny, I decide right then and there that I simply can no longer to continue living on this planet without it, and there I go, troddling over to the checkout line with my eyeballs all glazed over. At […]

What would you do if you hit the lottery?
I’ve thought about it quite a bit, and here’s what I would do.
First, everybody close to my heart would be debt free.  And there are contributions to be made:  the Church, a scholarship, the public library, the animal shelter, and a few other worthwhile causes.
If there’s any […]

I sure hope the economy around here gets better quickly.
My unemployment benefits will run out pretty soon, and with my finances being what they are, I’ll definitely have to find another full-time job that pays better than minimum wage.  The problem is that precious few of them exist here in the heavy industry “Rust Belt,” […]

As you well know, I love shiny things, and nothing is quite as shiny as a brilliant gold coin.
As an investment, gold and silver have always been near the top of the “desirable” list. The problem has been with knowing when to buy, and when to sell. And the market is notoriously volatile as […]