2008 was a fabulous year in music. Which means it will also be a fabulous Christmas (or Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivous) for you if you know what to ask for. Here are the top 5 CDs I hope to find under my tree on Christmas morning…or, since it is 2008, the CDs I’ll buy with my iTunes gift card that’s in my Christmas stocking. Read More »

[College kids are notorious for being poor. And why shouldn’t we be? We take out student loans to pay for private universities, can barely balance a part-time job with our full-time courseload, and the only “balance” we’re familiar with refers to the number of points left on our dining hall cards. Oh, did I mention many of us tend to splurge every extra penny on PBR’s at the campus bar?

If you disagree with everything I just said, you probably don’t need this column. But if you’re nodding along because you’re officially an adult and still don’t know how to manage your money, then you might want to pay attention every week, because I’m going to (try to) get you through this, and make you a successful saver and a wise spender.]

I’ve been writing a lot about how to manage your money in bank accounts and with credit and debit cards. That’s the tricky stuff. As poor students, we are good at finding bargains and at least trying to make our money go a long way. That said, it’s easy to fall into certain traps when what we think is a good “deal” comes our way…and we end up paying dearly. Here are some scams to avoid in order to really save some dough.

1. Gym Memberships.

Beware of whatever type of deal a gym is trying to pitch to finagle you into joining. Why? Because they are probably lying. Okay, I’m bitter about this one. I needed to join a new gym at home for a couple of months, so I signed up for free guest passes at all the gyms in my area so I could work out for free and not buy anything. Next thing I knew, a Bally’s rep was selling me a special offer: $25 a month for a membership that I could transfer anywhere. He told me that if I got back to school and didn’t want to make the trek to the nearest Bally’s, I could freeze my membership for $4 a month, and when i started using their clubs again, I could continue to pay the dirt cheap fee.

The reality? Only the first transfer would be free, so I’d be paying in the future for every new Bally’s I tried to switch to; the “freeze” thing didn’t exist, and I was forced to pay the monthly fee even though I wasn’t working out; I’m stuck in a year contract, and now I have an express hatred for Bally Total Fitness Clubs. Needless to say: gyms are definitely places to read the fine print. Read More »

Some call shopping a sport. And I agree. I mean, think about it. In order to get the job done right, one needs skill, technique, timing, and so much more. The only equipment you really need is a good, comfortable pair of shoes and a nice big purse (preferably with a fully-stuffed wallet and possibly a granola bar for some nourishment), and now there’s a new piece of equipment that’s going to make shopping a whole lot easier.

To get this new piece of shopping equipment, all you have to do is pull out your cell phone! No, not so you can chat it up with your friends as you bargain hunt, but so you can find the best deals on everything you’re shopping for. A new service called Pongr automatically tells you where you can get the best price on almost any item. Um, amazing?

According to the Pongr website, all you have to do is take a camera phone picture of the item you want (if it’s a book, CD, DVD, or video game) or type the UPC code or product description into a text message (if it’s clothing, shoes, electronics, or purses) and either e-mail your query to ping@pongr.com or text it to SHOPP. You’ll automatically get a text message back telling you where you can get the item for cheapest. If it’s online, you can purchase the item right from your phone and if it’s a brick and mortar store, Pongr will give you directions to the store. Read More »

When I was in 6^th grade I made a mixed tape for my boyfriend. Side A was filled with songs I loved (and taped off of the radio); side B was songs about love (which included a lot of Mariah Carrey and a few jams from California Dreams). I decorated the tiny white label with pink hearts and our names. I adorned the outside of the tape case with glitter, stickers and a picture of the two of us at the most recent Bar Mitzvah. It was so romantic.

Soon, mixed tapes turned into CD mixes. People were tossing out their tape players and trading up to the Disc-Man and 6-CD changers. For me, CD Mixes were far superior to their antiquated predecessors. The CD’s shape and size provided much more space for decorations/proclamations of love. I was making mixes for everyone (friends, lovers) and everything (workouts, power hours); but I didn’t realize that my days of CD mixing were also coming to an end.

With the advent of the MP3 player (namely, the iPod) came an end to an era. People were getting rid of their standard music players of choice in favor of the smaller, sleeker MP3 players. Sure, I bought one (I am actually on number 3), but with this shift into the future I was yearning for the old days. I missed my mixed tapes!

I started scouring the internet for a tape player. I wanted to bring back the glory! Then I realized that just because I bought a tape recorder to make the tapes didn’t mean that the recipients would have tape players to play em. And then I found this. Read More »