Budgeting your monthly expenses in order to get the greatest return on your income (and perhaps, even put aside some for saving!) doesn’t have to be extremely hard.

Various budgeting programs are available for use. Money management programs provide you with a usual package that allows you to enter your cash inflows and outflows, categorizes your expenditures, and at times, presents to you analysis of your spending behavior. Through these programs you can also input the various payments you have to make monthly, and subsequently track if you’ve paid your dues on time. Moreover, some programs also offer you a tax form draft that will help you make sure you’re not missing out on any dues or any deductibles, for that matter.

Another budgeting tool that you can utilize are coupons. Various stores and magazines contain coupons that you can use to get discounts on various products. Should there be a need to purchase a particular product for which you have a coupon for, you will end up saving a fraction of what you might have had to spend on a regular purchase.

Lists—whether on a piece of paper, on your cellular phone, or on your personal digital assistant (PDA) will help you keep focused on what you have to buy, and in effect, keep track of the purchases you make. A classic example is your regular grocery trip. Prior to making the trip, plan out the week’s entire menu and identify what food items and materials you need to purchase that are unavailable in your pantry. Then, make a list of other household items that you’ve run out of (or are eventually going to run out of before you can make the next trip to the grocery). Armed with these lists, you can go to the grocery and know exactly where to go and what you’re going to buy. Without these lists, you will walk idly along aisles, and will likely pick up various food items that you won’t likely need in the immediate future, or already have at home.

A filing system is perhaps one of the best budgeting tools you can have in your home. With simple, labeled file folders, you can put together your bills, your receipts, and whatever bank documents are issued to you when you save or pay. By putting together your bills, your credit card receipts, and the like, you are able to keep track of how much you owe and when your payments are due.

Effective budgeting tools are those that best address your needs as a consumer. Create your own budgeting tool or find a program to do it for you—just make sure it suits your lifestyle.

Summary:
There is nothing like an impending crisis to make you realize how much you take for granted.


Keywords:
hurricane season, self help, advice, hurricane rita, vickie milazzo


Article Body:
As the hurricane season looms and I think about the tragedy and devastation of the 2005 hurricane season, I can’t help but realize how much we take for granted.

It’s easy to appreciate life when things are going great. And as the distance of time separates me from the last hurricane season, I realize how easy it is to stop appreciating the simple and most important things in life – a drink of water, my husband’s smile.

Why is it that we lose sight of these things until a crisis brings them into sharp focus? My mom’s untimely death from breast cancer made me face my own mortality. At age 35 I scheduled my first breast biopsy. When I learned that everything was fine I was grateful for every breath I took.

There is nothing like an impending crisis to make you realize how much you take for granted. During the evacuation prior to Hurricane Rita, I closed my company and, like many of my friends, collected those belongings essential to my life (it’s amazing how few really are essential) and packed them into our car. My husband Tom and I took what may have been one last look at our home and drove away from almost all of our material items.

As we drove to a safer haven away from Houston, then returned just 32 hours later, I realized how much I take for granted. Things that were in short supply before we evacuated were now almost impossible to find after we returned: canned soup, canned meats, bottled water – even fresh fruit. Almost all the gas stations, restaurants and movie theaters were closed. I realized how grateful I am for all these things. Something as simple as electricity to run my fridge and air conditioner is now on my appreciation list. How fantastic it was to be able to sleep in my bed upon my return to my intact home and how comfortable it seems now. My office, my staff and my friends here in Houston are also high on my appreciation list.

Now almost a year later, with everything back to normal, I know that mindful awareness and appreciation of every delicious morsel of life is harder. Nevertheless, last year’s hurricane season did teach me one important lesson – it’s not good enough to celebrate and appreciate only the best things in life. Now I remind myself to find joy and power in the mundane, simple and routine things.

In honor of all of those people affected one way or another by hurricane seasons, join me in making all of your life your best every day.

Summary:

The best clone golf clubs may be the best thing for your game no matter what level of player you are. Pay less for the same quality and performance as the leading brand names.

Keywords:

best clone golf clubs

Article Body:

If you are searching for the best clone golf clubs, there are a number of things you should be aware of. This is where the real value comes in to play when talking about golf equipment deals. Do not be mistaken by thinking these are low-grade clubs for the beginner golfer just because they are offered at a third of the price of top selling gear from companies like Callaway, Ping and comparable gear. The best clone golf clubs are made using the same top quality materials.

Whether you are in the market for irons, wedges, putter or woods, buying the best clone golf clubs may very well be the best option for you. If you are the type of person who doesn’t give in to popular brand names, but stands by quality and performance, then the low price you will pay for clones will be a big bonus. These clubs are designed to look, feel and perform like the top brand named clubs, but will come to you at up to a third of the price.

Many times, the best clone golf clubs can be custom fitted to your body style and swing. Having them tailored to your specifications will ultimately give you optimal performance on the golf course where you demand it the most. Please take the time to research what clones can do for you before you go out and purchase a set of expensive clubs that may not be right for you, you'll be glad you did. It can save you a lot of money and a lot of unnecessary strokes.

Every new release of a product gets the interest of a particular type of people. While men seem more interested in technology and women in beauty products, while teens are fond of games and music and adults more of books, the marketers precisely know, before launching a new product, the main target of their new item. For example, the iPod video is one of the new releases which defiantly have a specific type of buyers.

The target buyers of this new device are, for sure, young people and adults which are trying to buy a great present for their children. In this example, the critics say that in many cases, the adults do not know the features of the new device well and all the things that it can be used for. So, one of the most important worries that parents should have is the fact that some children might use the iPod to directly download (as this new iPod video allows to do so) some materials from sites destined to adults only. More precisely, the target customers of the iPod video are somewhere between the ages of 16 and 30, but there are various categories which don’t fit in this group, too. Among these, there are the people above 30 years which want to remain modern and keep focused on the new releases in the technology department. Even more, there are various customers which own an iPod from the 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th generation and simply want to upgrade their item and to be able to watch clips and movies on the device, as well.

On the other hand, the sales so far clearly indicate the fact that the new iPod video is bought more by men then by women. In many cases, the iPod is bought in order to be offered as a gift for various occasions, as it is consistent, original and useful.

Due to the fact that the new iPod video represents quite and investment, there are rare cases in which teens might purchase one of these with their own money. Still, parents seem disposed to pay the necessary amount of money in order to see their children happy. The sales of the iPod video showed the fact that the device sells best before Christmas and before the summer holiday. Due to the fact that the usage of the new iPod video is one of the most pleasant ways to spend the time, (as it offers both video and audio possibilities), the iPod is intensely used while people are on vacation.

The new iPod video has a lot of fans so far and even more people are interested in the new features that the iPod can provide, thinking of purchasing the item themselves. So far, the sales say that the number of the buyers is increasing and the people become more and more receptive to the device and its capacities. At the same time, people adapt fast to the new technology, so they expect even more from the next iPod of the Apple Company. Due to this, the team of engineers already works on the next and more optimized iPod, which will bring, besides many new features and accessories, an innovative new capacity, which will surprise the market.

Usually the main motivation for planting a fruit tree is just the joy of maintaining a tree and eating the delicious fruit that comes from it. However, in my personal experience it is possible to go on a quite lucrative venture with fruit trees by operating a fruit stand or participating in a farmer’s market.

When I moved to Florida, I was slightly depressed at the fact that I had just left behind years and years of hard work to get my lawn to the point it was. However, I was able to healthily channel this depression into the desire to get a new and more beautiful garden and lawn setup going. The house I moved into was nice, but the previous owner obviously had no gardening prowess. The lawn was barren of any features besides grass. Lots and lots of grass.

I decided that since I was now in a new climate that I had never experienced before, I would grow some trees that I didn’t have the opportunity to grow before. I decided to do the truly Floridian thing to do, and get a few orange trees. It was a lot easier than I had imagined. I’ve had some rather disastrous experiences with planting trees in the past, and planting the orange trees was no problem at all. I decided to go with Valencia oranges, just because they are the most popular orange to grow and almost everyone is able to grow them successfully.

After I picked out what type of orange I wanted, I decided to get three trees. It took me about 3 days to dig all the necessary holes and install the trees. It was a flawless operation, and I truly felt like an expert. The trees grew healthy and straight, and produced fruit at the time of year they were expected to.

For the three or four years, my orange trees didn’t produce very much fruit. Sure I never ran out of oranges for my own personal usage, and I drank almost nothing but orange juice, but I didn’t have the ludicrous amount that you might expect from 3 trees. I wouldn’t say I was disappointed with my trees. I was happy to be getting any fruit at all. But I had heard of people getting thousands and thousands of oranges from several trees, and I was slightly baffled as to why I wasn’t so fortunate.

About a year after that, my orange trees really took off. I walked outside one day to see about 5 times as many oranges as I had grown in any previous seasons. I thought I was seeing things, but they all stuck around. I harvested so many oranges that year, I hardly even knew what to do with all of them. That was when my neighbor suggested to me that I sell at a farmer’s market. I found out the time that they go on, and rented a spot for my truck (some farmers markets allow you to come and sell for free, but mind charged rent just to park your truck).

Within the first day at the farmer’s market, I had made back all the money I spent on the original trees. My oranges were truly a hit, and I was getting more customers than any of the other participants. After that week, I didn’t miss a day at the farmer’s market. It wasn’t enough money to live off of, but it was a good amount for just selling some oranges. Besides, what else would I have done with them? I certainly couldn’t have eaten them all by myself. So if you have an excess of fruit, you should never throw it away or try to eat it all by yourself. Take it to the farmer’s market and try to get some extra cash for your gardening labor. If your products are delicious, you might just be a hit with the consumers.