America is the land of opportunity – a land of prosperity where hard work is usually rewarded with positive results and advancement possibilities. However, the status quo in the U.S. seems to be that people will live right up to their income level and delay saving for “some other time.” In general, when it comes to a lack of savings, it is often a matter of high spending rather than low income. Of course, there are exceptions; situations when we need to spend more due to employment loss or unexpected healthcare bills, etc. For the majority, our lack of saving is due to excessive spending – a habit we need to get under control. So, I wanted to share a few simple strategies that can help increase savings without significantly changing your quality of life.
For all of the things that seem to be going wrong in the world, there is one thing that is very right: When the chips are down, Americans are there to lend a hand.
For some reason, many bad things have happened in the month of April. A few examples: President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 15, 1865. The Titanic sank on April 15, 1912, claiming 1,500 lives. The Columbine School Shooting happened on April 20, 1999. Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968. The terrorist attack on the Boston Marathon also occurred in April.
During my years of teaching film appreciation classes at the Flint Institute of Arts, no course attracted as high an attendance as the one I led on the cinema of Alfred Hitchcock. While Hitchcock (amazingly) won no competitive Academy Awards during his half-century career, “The Master of Suspense” did win the respect of the film-going public – and the admiration of filmmakers like François Truffaut.
By now, the excitement is brewing amongst high school juniors and seniors as they prepare for the biggest dance of the school year – Prom. Once the “big question” is asked and everyone has their date, it’s time to start coordinating ensembles!
The push to promote the “summer” movie season’s initial blockbuster didn’t start during the Super Bowl telecast. But if you’d been living under a rock prior to football’s Big Game, you were informed via ample buys of incredibly costly ad time about Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.
There’s a side to vacationing that isn’t all that much fun. Or relaxing. There are aspects of planning a trip that are frustrating, stressful, and sometimes, downright infuriating. They include picking the vacation spot, and coordinating the transportation.
Eight years ago this month, my husband Rick and I were married in Key West, Florida. The ceremony was small – just my husband, his best man, my mother, my matron of honor and me … and a half dozen or so drunks who happened to be passed out on the beach nearby.
As I write the story about Women’s History Month, it got me thinking about the women in my life who have inspired me. They weren’t famous – not a movie star or politician – I’ve been inspired most by everyday, ordinary women.
Six years have passed since the financial collapse of 2008 and 2009, and I feel it appropriate to re-visit some of the lessons learned during that crisis period. One of the most important lessons: operate your financial investments from a position of strength. A prime example of this strategy in action is the concept of buying low and selling high.
You’ve been invited to witness the union of your friends and family … amazing, right? After Saving-the-Date for an upcoming wedding, the next question is: what on Earth will you wear? We understand the stress of figuring out what is appropriate – something that’s dressy enough but doesn’t upstage the bride, and when you add seasonal restraints on attire, it can be even trickier. Here, we show you two dresses that can cover all four seasons, giving you more bang-for-your-buck during a whole year of wedding celebrations.
