sacred bird » money

another jobs report

180 — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 05:47:19 +0000

here’s the list of the 8 lowest paying jobs in the u.sa. according to data collected about national averages . interesting, the list of jobs used to be summer jobs for youngins but the article says that the jobs are now “are survival jobs for midcareer folks who have been downsized.” courtney cox probably got paid more per hour to be in bruce’s video the back in 1980 when the video was made. next time you’re doing anything that involves entertainment, your house, or putting something in your mouth, remember this.

food preparation and service (includes fast food): $8.71/hour

dishwashers: $8.81/hour

cashiers: $9.15/hour

hosts and hostesses: $9.23/hour

amusement park attendants: $9.57/hour

movie ushers and ticket takers: $9.43/hour

farm workers: $9.51/hour

personal and home care workers: $9.75/hour

[msnbc]

in under the radar…out under the wire

180 — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 05:57:37 +0000

remember when we mentioned the spy ring last week? seems the f.bi. busted the ring when they figured out that one of the members of the spy ring was making a break for it–he was leaving the country. i think i know why he was checking out: next week, u.s. passport fees will increase. that’s right, if you want to get your passport or visa renewed, you should get it done before next week because 27 of those fees are changing to cover the true costs of the services which, according to u.s. law “must be recovered through collection of fees.” so if you want a new passport for that quick getaway, you’ll required to shell out a couple extra bucks (follow the link below for the full list of fees).

type of passport | old fee | new fee
Passport Book – adult | $100.00 | $135.00
Passport Book – minor | $85.00 | $ 105.00
Passport Book Renewal – Adult | $ 75.00 | $110.00
Passport Card – Adult | $45.00 | $55.00
Passport Card – Child | $35.00 | $40.00

i say, enjoy america–remember that you don’t need a passport to go to some lovely u.s. destinations.

[us bureau of consular affairs]

to the victor belongs the spoils

180 — Mon, 10 May 2010 07:50:40 +0000

ellen barking made history in 2006 when she sold the jewelry given to her by her ex-husband ron pearlman. seems that ms. barkin wanted to wash than man and memories right out of her hair but she didn’t want any of the money going down the drain. the jewelry was auctioned at christie’s and she made a whopping $20M bones. the auction was spoofed in the hugely popular movie sex and the city.

want to get rid of the memories of that dude or chick that broke your heart? want to make him or her pay? well, here’s your solution for those of you that don’t have mega jewelry, but a few baubles that you’d like to unload for cash. a company called out of your life will take the jewels off of your hands and send you some money in return. the company’s website says

“There are zillions of reasons why you’re better off without him. And one major reason you’ll be better off without his bling: all the fine jewelry he gave you is worth money! You may be asking yourself, “Why do I need to sell my diamond engagement ring?” When relationships end, engagement rings, earrings, pendants, watches or tennis bracelets suddenly lose their sentimental value. So why not sell it for a payment from a trusted source?”

once you make the decision to sell, they’ll send you a break-up box that you’ll return to them with your jewelry inside of it. they’ll value the jewelry and send you a check for the value. if for any reason you’re unhappy with the appraisal, they’ll send you your jewelry back, no questions asked. something tells me if this was around when barkin was unloading her stuff, she would have needed an armored hummer to escort her jewelry to the auction house.

more bang for your buck

180 — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 05:08:29 +0000

the book The Design of Everyday Thingsthe design of everyday things is a go-to for me in my 9 to 5 job. this story about different uses for everyday things caught my eye, especially since we’re always looking for ways to save a few pennies. real simple magazine highlights 101 uses for everyday things. it outlines uses (some well-known, some not) for things like lemons, newspapers, olive oil, dryer sheets, coffee filters, velcro, vinegar, baking soda, ziploc bags, and salt. i didn’t know that salt (pictured here in close up) can be used to accelerate the chilling of champers–to quote martha that’s “a good thing.”

there’s also a website called AltUse (alternative uses for everyday things) that catalogs these things and takes contributions from the community.

another image courtesy of kevindooley

just like the founding fathers?

180 — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 01:14:24 +0000

the tea party movement has had a bright light shone on it in recent weeks: the final stop on the tea party tour landed in washington dc on tax day, the day after sarah palin spoke at a rally in boston. liberals think they’re crazy nut jobs and conservatives think they’re patriots. here’s the real story (or as real as it gets in a poll) on the group of folks that make up the tea party revelers:

18% identify as republican, white, male, and married, and older (more than 45 years)
they’re angry with washington (other republicans say they’re dissatisfied)
they think the taxes they paid in the prior year are fair
they send their kids to public school
they think social security and medicare are worth the cost to the public (explained as–they pay into the system so they want it)
they don’t think sarah palin is qualified to be p.o.t.u.s.
they’re likely to fill out and return their census forms
they are more inclined to think that the current p.o.t.u.s. is favors the poor and blacks and that black people’s problems are over-emphasized
90% think the country is headed in the wrong direction economically
55% think that somebody in their household will be out of a job in a year (even though they think they are better off than the rest of the country financially)
they don’t want a third party (they’ll stay republican, thank you very much)
they say the goal of the movement is to reduce the size of government

here’s a link to the wikipedia reference on the founding fathers. much like the tea partyers, they were more white, wealthy, and educated than most. in contrast though, they were established political veterans. what do you think? how much were these dudes like the tea partying dudes?

for flyin’ out loud

180 — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 05:33:45 +0000

full disclosure, even years later, i’m still bitter about the time i spent on planes –damn you phl, ord, and ual. here’s the latest news on an industry that is so screwed up, you’d actually wish britney spears was your flight attendant–at least you’d be entertained.:

pockets empty

the geniuses at spirit air are charging $45 bones for carry-on items (that’s items that’s are stored in the overhead bin). passengers can keep $15 if they pay for the carry-on online. what’s more scary is that airline experts think that this may catch on.

dignity deflation

the um, ‘people’ at ryanair are going ahead with their plans to charge people for using the loo. it’ll cost about a buck 40 to ‘go’ or, in some cases ‘do it.’ the airline says they’re making the change so that they can remove some toilets and add some more seats to the plane.

the feds will put strict fines on airlines that keep people sitting on tarmacs for more than hours and refuse to give them food and water after 2 hours. at least they’ll be one less airline that can do this (see next story).

vacation-killers

british airways employees put their strike on hold as did the pilots at lufthansa. unfortunately the american workers got wind of it and are weighing their options.

inbreeding

the worst airline ever (united airlines) is trying to merge with another one. apparently they’re deep in merger talks. even more unbelievable, when the announcement hit the airways, united’s stock price was up to $20 bucks.

i’m beginning to think obama administration has something about that high speed rail plan i’ve called dumb.

shaken and stirred

180 — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 18:34:44 +0000

remember earlier in the decade when everyone was abuzz about the bar in new york that has the unisex bathrooms with the changing doors (watch a video here)? there’s a new bar in new york that has people shaken and stirred. it’s called the exchange bar & grill. the bar’s takes a unique approach to pricing — prices rise and fall like the stock market “Customers can move prices for all beverages and bar snacks such as hot wings ($7 for 6 pieces) or fried calamari ($9). The prices will fluctuate in $.25 cent increments, but will most likely plateau at a $2 change in either direction.” bar prices are displayed stock market-style on a ticker tape that hangs over the bar.

the bar’s owners levent cakar and damon bae hope that the strategy will make the customers flock to the bar because of the good deals on the food and drink. it comes as a particularly good time as “Restaurants in New York and across America have had a tough year because consumers have slashed discretionary spending in a tough economic climate” so says reuters.

the bar hopes to attract banker-types that want to extend their trading into the evening hours. let’s hope they don’t start using lucrative and complex strategies to make money off of beers.

photo via boston.com

maybe it uses the energy produced by a star

180 — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:59:42 +0000

which is a LOT.

a secret federal investigation revealed that many products labeled with the energy star logo aren’t in fact energy efficient., “In a nine-month study, four fictitious companies invented by the accountability office also sought EnergyStar status for some conventional devices like dehumidifiers and heat pump models that existed only on paper. The fake companies submitted data indicating that the models consumed 20 percent less energy than even the most efficient ones on the market. Yet those applications were mostly approved without a challenge or even questions, the report said.”

for example, one such product, labeled an energy efficient air purifier was an electric heater with a feather duster affixed to the top–it received the stamp. the crack team at the government revealed that the automated system that hands out the stamps acts as an “initial screen” for products but they really only ’spot check’ certain items.

of course, the government says they’ll get right on this to make sure that the products that are certified energy star are indeed energy saving and good for the consumer and the environment. let’s just hope that when they hold the meeting to discuss the problem, some angry senator doesn’t designed to end the meeting because it happens after the sun goes down.

happy jack!

180 — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:58:54 +0000

have you heard about the magicjack that device you can use as a home phone for $20 bones a year and make unlimitted nation-wide calls? i was a little skeptical about it (i’m paying a lotta money for supposedly cheaper internet phone service courtesy of my cable company) until i came across this article in consumer reports that said it’s actually a good product. here are the details:

cost: $20 bones for the usb device, $20 bones a year for service.
how it works: plug the usb device into your computer and make calls through the interwebs (kinda like voice-over-ip-voip). messages go to voicemail when the device is un-plugged.
what you need: a high speed internet connection.
results: “Our tester made dozens of calls with Magic Jack over several days. Calls went through with no problems, and voice quality was generally clear, though less so than with a good corded phone. Some interference occurred when the tester tried talking while downloading a large file or playing an online game. If you can live with that, we think the Magic Jack is a great deal.”

sounds like we should all call our current providers and say “buh-bye”; run to the nearest cvs and buy the happy jack; return home and put on your snuggie and give mom or dad a call to hear about such exciting things as the weather, what mrs. johnson did with mr. smith, or how you’ve failed to meet expectations. at least this way, it will save you money you can spend on your shrink.

here’s the situation

180 — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:54:58 +0000

yesterday we talked about the money spent on health care lobbying and on monday we shared with you reactions to health care bill by some influential politicos. today it’s all about the regular joe (mostly living in certain parts of florida, long island, and new jersey). at the 11th hour, a 5% tax on cosmetic surgey (boobs, botox, nose jobs, lipo) was removed and replaced by a 10% tax on tanning beds (i can’t believe people still use these things). the 10% tax will raise an estimated $2.7B bones over 20 years (again, didn’t know people still used these things). supporters of the tax, like the american academy of dermatology hope that the tax will discourage, the use of tanning beds–they’ve been linked to skin cancer. in fact, “indoor tanning before age 30 has been associated with a 75% increase in the risk of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, according to a review of medical literature last summer by the international agency for research on cancer, part of the world health organization.”

hopefully the tax will convince dj paully, ‘the situation’, snooki, and the rest of the crew on the jersey shore from frequenting these establishments. riiiiiiight.