Spending Less

I test drove a brand new 2008 Acura TL the other day. Man, it was nice. It fit me, it had some power, it looked cool, I have enough money to put down and make the monthly payments, I could have walked off the lot with it-- I didn't, though.

For the past couple months I've begun looking for a new car. My Focus is getting close to 100K miles and I know it won't last forever. Once it starts to die and the repair bills get too high I want to be prepared and know exactly what type of vehicle to purchase. However, fancy cars and easy financing are tempting me at literally... every turn!

My friends know me as someone who preaches against financing. I like the idea of paying cash for cars, and I really love the idea of paying cash for a house. A part of me is like everyone else around who's driving fancy, brand new cars, and I can see myself driving one. I have an internal argument going on, perhaps every time I'm on the road and see the cars that are nicer, faster, and cooler than mine. People are spending big money on these vehicles, sometimes on the cost alone, and it's compounded by financing costs, interest, and opportunity costs.

There was a great article detailing reasons to buy a car with cash which I read last year and I finally rediscovered today. How to Buy a Car without Breaking the Bank is a great article by David John Morotta and Justin Harris on SavingAdvice.com. They talk about how it's better to accept your current car for a while longer or get into the least expensive car you're comfortable with and begin saving for your next vehicle immediately. You'll be inclined to spend less when you part with all your money at once, and you'll also gain all the interest on your money instead of pay all the interest to borrow the money.

Remembering that article is one of the things that keeps my financially sane side winning the internal argument of to buy or not to buy a fancy, brand new car. Think about how nice it'd be to retire a few years earlier, have less stress of making that next big car payment, and keeping more of your hard-earned money in your pocket (or, perhaps a high interest savings account, at least).

Check-out FatWallet for a forum on one time use coupons. There are a number of coupon codes, offers, and more for stores like Office Depot, Circuit City, and Dell.

Whenever I go to buy something I need (or want) online I'll usually do a quick search on Google for coupon codes to use. Many times they are expired or invalid so I find the forums to be a good place for more up-to-date codes sometimes.

FatWallet's One Time Use Coupon Codes forum

iGoogle is a personalized Google homepage to monitor news, information, RSS feeds, and more. Add the Local Gas Prices gadget to quickly see an overview of gas prices in your zip code. I had the gadget added and tested-out in under a minute and it's definitely worth a try.

To use iGoogle, you can use an existing GMail account or create a new iGoogle account.

And, while you're at it, add Young Professional Finance Blog to your iGoogle page also!

For under $50 you can do the most intense tour of any national park at Mammoth Cave: The Wild Cave Tour. Don't let the name fool you-- it's way more intense than the word 'wild' describes...

Following-up on my article last month, Adventure Trips Without Going Broke, I spent this past weekend exploring Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. Cave exploring, or spelunking as some call it, involves twisting and contorting your body as you walk, crawl, and struggle through narrow passages, rocky cliffs, and running water. For less than $100 you can spend the weekend camping in the park, do the Wild Cave Tour, and make some new friends.

The tour involved exploring some of the most cramped and more recently discovered parts of Mammoth Cave; parts like the "Cheese grater" (discovered by a tour guide named Mr. Sunshine), "Tall Man's Agony", "The Cathedral", or "The Man Hole". $48 books you a spot on the tour, but make sure you book it at least a few weeks in advance as tours usually fill-up. Also, be prepared to spend extra money if you don't have a couple pieces of important gear, namely knee pads and ankle high hiking boots (both of which are VERY important). You can expect to spend 6 hours exploring 5 1/2 miles of the cave up to 320 feet below ground so this tour isn't for those who don't want adventure. Beware there are some physical size limitations for participants and they are for good reason as those of you with claustrophobia would agree the tour goes through many very tight spaces. I'm a bit claustrophobic myself so the tour was both a physical and mental challenge, but I made it through and it was awesome.

While you're visiting try camping in the park's main campsite. For about $24 per night you can pitch your tent and have access to bathrooms, a fire pit, and a place to park your car. This was actually my first time camping and it only helped to enhance the experience of adventure. As one of our fellow campers discovered you can find some dead wood nearby or spend $4 at the park store for a small bundle. Showers are available for $2, but as our potent team could tell you aren't necessary with some wet-wipes and congested, cave-dust filled noses! Some of our fellow spelunkers and new friends who ended up camping with us may not agree with our foregoing the showers, but we did have to save money for a few other normal expenses like gas and food.

All-in-all, a $48 tour + $48 campsite for two nights + $4 of wood = $100. You may have some additional gear and travel expenses, but it beats the cost of flying down to the Amazon and getting malaria shots... for now, at least.

Yapta is a new service that tracks the price of your already purchased airline tickets. There's an unpublicized rule with the airline carriers that says if your existing ticket can be bought for a lower price, you are entitled to money back. Yapta will monitor your airline reservations through services like Expedia or Travelocity and then notify you if it finds the reservation price has dropped. It's then up to you to contact the airlines.