Finance Gets Personal

Carnivals I Participated in This Week:

Carnival of Personal Finance, hosted by Money Ning, which included my post Financial “I Never” with Finance Girl (I had a fun time writing this post, but no, I wasn’t really taking shots).

Carnival of Twenty Something Finances, hosted by The Bag Lady, which included my post Childhood Money Memories, Part I as an editor’s pick. This post was also included in the Carnival of Money Stories, hosted by The Financial Blogger.

Money Hacks Carnival, hosted by Mommy Gets Paid, which included my post Why Did We Buy This House Again?

Great Reads Around the Personal Finance Blogosphere:

Snowflaking Will Melt Your Debt and More! from My Super-Charged Life - for anyone wondering what “Snowflaking” is and how to implement it, this is a great compilation!

There Are No Victims In the Housing Bust from Pinching Copper - read through the comments too - this has turned into quite the controversy.

Was That $1,000 Really Free? What We Are Doing With UPromise from Can I Get Rich On a Salary - here’s a good overview of the UPromise college savings program, from someone with more than $40 in their account.

The Freeloader’s Toolbelt: 50 Tools to Help You Get Anything Free Online from Free Geekery - awesome list of freebie links! I think I’m going to sign up for some free magazine subscriptions.

My posts were included in three carnivals this week. Check them out:

• Debt as a Symptom of Sexual Addiction was an editor’s pick in the Carnival of Personal Finance, hosted by Stock Trading To Go. My post on Charity Showers was also included (I think I screwed something up with the submissions this week - I’m not really trying to “stuff the ballot”).
• When Did You Finally Hit Rock Bottom and Decide to Get Out of Debt for Good? was included in the Carnival of Money Stories, hosted by Chief Family Officer.
• My Mattress is Pathetic was included in the Money Hacks Carnival, hosted by Bible Money Matters.
• I forgot to submit anything to the Festival of Frugality, but you should read it anyway. Flexo of Consumerism Commentary, the carnival host, announces that he is quitting his day job to blog full-time.
• After Hitting Rock Bottom, An Epiphany! was not included in the Carnival of Debt Reduction, but I’m guessing it’s because I referred to Dave Ramsey as a crazy bastard.

Here are some posts from the various carnivals that you might enjoy:

• Don’t Get Scammed! Reduce the Risk of Identity Theft from the The Digerati Life. Now, this is what Dave Ramsey should be focusing more of his attention on.
• Five Ways Fantasy Baseball is Like Personal Finance from Free From Broke. I’d like to draft Warren Buffett, please.
• The Lazy Cheapskate’s Guide to Saving the Planet from Five Cent Nickel. Call me stupid, but I didn’t know cruise control saves gas.
• Even More Reasons Why You Can’t Trust Your Real Estate Agent (the follow up to Why You Can’t Trust Real Estate Agents When Buying a House and Why You Can’t Trust Real Estate Agents When Selling a House) from Quest For Four Pillars. Things that make you go hmmm…

Photo Credit: exhibition-ism by striatic, used under Creative Commons licensing

Ray Roman at Money Intellect was kind enough to interview me for this week’s Friday Blogger Spotlight. So, please stop by and learn more about me!

In other Finance Gets Personal news, my posts were included in three carnivals this week:

• Money Hackers Carnival includes my post Snowflaking: 100 Ways to Come Up With More Money for Your Debt Snowball as a “Best of Carnival” pick
• Carnival of Money Stories includes my post Are Children’s Birthday Parties Getting Out of Control?
• Carnival of Personal Finance includes my post 10 Signs You Have Financial OCD

MSN Money’s Smart Spending blog is featuring my post, 10 Signs You Have Financial OCD, in Are You Obsessive-Compulsive About Money?

Thank you, Karen Datko, and welcome new readers.

Lynnae of Being Frugal is hosting the Carnival of Finance #144, which includes my post 10 Signs You Have Financial OCD.

It’s my first carnival, and I’m excited to be included! Be sure to check out all the other great posts.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!