Carnival of Money Stories, Autumn Edition

Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~George Eliot

While spring is frequently thought of as a time of growth and change, fall is the time for recharging our batteries. It's a time to hunker down, contemplate our place and plan for the future. Are you where you want to be financially? Perhaps the slower pace of fall will give you the time you need to decide on the changes that will get you where you would like to be. Hopefully reading this week's submissions will give you some ideas!

Budgeting

The Financial Blogger has some Tips on Budgeting for a Wedding. Hopefully you can enjoy your special day without having to spend the rest of your life paying for it!

"Vacations are Expensive, Should We Go or Stay?", is the question being asked at Gather Little by Little. Although I disagree with his premise that people in this country have a feeling of entitlement about vacations (Europeans take a lot more vacations than Americans do), I certainly agree that you'd better be able to afford that vacation before you pack your bags!

Money Management

Darwin's Finances gives us the benefit of the lessons he learned at his father's knee, so to speak, with Money Habits to Live By. Sometimes it's good to get a refresher of the basics!

I generally decline to do an Editor's Pick when I host a carnival but this week The Amateur Financier gets my nod for his well-written, entertaining story about, “What Christmas Ornaments Taught Me About Money”. Good job AF!

Falling a little close to home, The Smarter Wallet also gets an Editor's Pick with “How Baby Boomers Can Earn Extra Income”. More fall out from the economic crises.

Life Excursion learned what “living to your income” means and has decided that regardless of his income he needs to live as he did when he was in college. He now believes Living Off the College Mean is the way to go. I think that may be taking frugality a bit far but good for him if he can do it!

Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn. ~Elizabeth Lawrence


Shopping

Did you ever have a bad case of buyer's remorse? Budgets are Sexy does. In My Worst Buyer's Remorse Story, he reveals that he regrets buying a house. It's a good lesson. Regardless of what we constantly hear, home ownership is not the right choice for everyone!

Are you shopping for a good rental car deal? Christian PF was and got a heck of deal. He's sharing How to Get The Best Price on a Rental Car. If you're willing, putting in the time can really pay off.

The Digerati Life is giving us some options in, “Green Living: Ways to Recycle and Buy Used”. It's always good to look at all possibilities.

Housing

Having trouble getting a re-fi? The Dough Roller can relate and shares 7 Lessons Learned from a Failed Attempt to Refinance a Mortgage. Tough lessons!

Drawing a possibly controversial conclusion, Evolution of Wealth finishes the tale of Bob or Jim? What's your take?





I trust in Nature for the stable laws Of beauty and utility. Spring shall plant And Autumn garner to the end of time. - Robert Browning


Investing

Money Blue Book is taking a look at E*Trade, with whom he has been a long-time customer.

Business

On the Internet Business Blog we are urged to expand our universe and think outside the box in terms of our future career choices.

Credit

In what is unfortunately an all to common occurrence, Ask Mr. Credit Card relates a tale of poor customer service in “Sister Act”. What's happening out there?

Are you getting all those Change of Terms notices from your credit card companies? CashMoneyLife answers a reader's question about an escalating interest rate in “What Should I Do?”



Youth is like spring, an over- praised season more remarkable for biting winds than genial breezes. Autumn is the mellower season, and what we lose in flowers we more than gain in fruits. - Samuel Butler


Other

Quite Worrying About 80% of Your Life, says Frugal Green, who references the Pareto Principal in his article about focusing on what's really important in your life. You know the expression, “Don't sweat the small stuff”? That in a nutshell, is the point!

While drawing no conclusions, Free Money Finance tells the story of A Real-Life Financial Meltdown. It's a tale of poor choices made during the economic downturn. Hope it's not your story!

Baker over at Man vs. Debt has a vlog post on Dave Ramsey's evangelical approach to financial management. Baker is asking “Is Christianity the Only Path to True Financial Peace?” His video essay dealing with this topic is interesting and based on the high number of comments he received, thought- provoking to his readers.

“Is Capitalism Always the Answer?”, asks The Happy Rock, in an excellent and also thought-provoking article. He got some predictable, “you've lost me as a reader” comments but also some good intellectual responses, including one which argues that the ability to choose your path is a feature of a capitalistic society. I have to say I agree. I doubt his good readers will leave him.

That's it for this week folks. I hope you enjoy the articles mentioned here. If your article was included, don't forget to link to the carnival from your site and promote it on whatever social networking avenues you frequent.

Did your perfectly reasonable, well written article not make it? It probably was not written in any sort of narrative voice and therefore was not a story. Try again next week by submitting your best story on a money related topic here!