06.28.08

Recycle your compact flourescent lights

Posted in green at 5:06 am by Paloma Cruz

The Big Green Purse is reporting that the Home Depot is recycling compact fluorescent light bulbs. Good news for those of use who have been using them but were worried about what happens when they have to be replace.

Simply bring in your expired, unbroken CFL bulbs, and give them to the store associate behind the returns desk. The bulbs will be handled by an environmental management company that will coordinate CFL packaging, transportation and recycling to maximize safety and ensure environmental compliance.

06.24.08

ordinary news & links

Posted in Finances at 10:57 pm by Paloma Cruz

A vacation you can afford
Get Rich Slowly gives some great advice on being a tourist in your own hometown. Tips:

  • Set a budget.
  • Grab a guidebook.
  • Book a tour.
  • Be adventurous.
  • Chat it up. Talk with the actual tourists.
  • Be unreachable.
  • Swap houses.
  • Think outside the box.

Cool clothes for big kids
BusinessWeek has an interesting article about retailers filling the need for plus-sized children’s clothes. I hadn’t considered the fact that the national trend for bigger kids would produce a related need in clothing. Nice to see that this is finally getting addressed, although slowly.

06.20.08

ordinary news & links

Posted in News at 12:02 am by Paloma Cruz

Sears gets a new image
The Associated Press reports that Sears is trying to get hip1, and catch a higher portion of the teen customer base. Why? Because, especially in today’s economy, “what’s certain, experts say, is that the chain led by financier Edward Lampert desperately needs to reinvent itself if it’s going to survive”.

An MBA or an MFA, or whatever
In a very timely post (as I continue to wrestle with the idea of going to get my Master’s Degree) Penelope Trunk, Brazen Careerist, gives us Seven reasons why graduate school is outdated:

  1. Graduate school is an extreme investment for a fluid workplace.
  2. Graduate school is no longer a ticket to play.
  3. Graduate school requires you to know what will make you happy before you try it.
  4. Graduate degrees shut doors rather than open them.
  5. If you don’t actually use your graduate degree, you look unemployable.
  6. Graduate school is an extension of childhood.
  7. Early adult life is best if you are lost.

Footnotes:
1 = Story found on the Houston Chronicle. Article may expire in a few weeks.

06.03.08

tips on being thrifty

Posted in Finances, News at 1:27 am by Paloma Cruz

The Houston Chronicle’s Shannon Buggs has some great tips on being thrifty:

  1. Make your home energy efficient.
  2. Don’t buy gasoline with a debit card.
  3. Don’t carry balances on gasoline credit cards.
  4. Plan daily commuting.
  5. Bring your personal life back in-house.
  6. Step away from the cutting edge.