Over the weekend I upgraded to Headway 1.6 (from 1.01) and had a blast using the visual editor to update everything on my site.

I am still not done, but that doesn’t mean I am not interested in feedback.

If you ask why the change from the “orange” site? Well on top of people finding the “guy” creepy (for those not in the know, that was a photoshopped image of Vic Sage, The Question), I felt it was time I made my site more professional.

I had a long convo about the positives and negatives about this yesterday with J. Money. I don’t want to turn off people that appreciate my non-professional writing style. In fact, I am still going to be dropping F-bombs (that’s “fuck” for all of you good people in the Midwest), but like a really bitchy hot chick, I am trying to seduce readers with the sites good looks, and have them ignore the fact I can be a prick at times.

I should mention, I am going to be learning a lot from this new design. It’s a lot more flexible and I am able to test a lot of different ideas I have had. I am going to be coding things properly instead of using some of headway’s awesome features. It’s nice to have something easy to use, but I think I prefer me some nice HTML at times.

I am hoping to be done with the revamp of the site this week, then start to work on some backend stuff for another week. It’s gonna be fun.

Hope you all had a good weekend.

For those not in the know, there are two awesome bloggers that have put their genius together and created a new Web Design company called Shatterboxx.  Those two bloggers are Jamie Varon (from Twittershouldhireme.com fame and Alifeintranslation.com) and Nicole Antoinette (Nicoleisbetter.com and fellow Untemplater author!).

If you haven’t read either of their stuff, you are certainly missing out.  Their writing is some of the most fun and wittiest i have seen on the internet and makes me wonder just what “Awesome Girl Tree” they both fell from and if i am allowed to camp out underneath it.

For full rules of the contest and her announcement, check out Jamie’s site HERE.

If you are too lazy to read the post (which makes you really lazy!) you can enter in the following ways:

• Follow  @shatterboxx on Twitter
• Tweet about the contest then come back here and leave a comment on this post with a link to your tweet(s). Sample tweet: Win a gorgeous custom blog designed by @shatterboxx ladies @jamievaron & @nicoleisbetter. Contest details here: http://bit.ly/9jaRmO
• Blog about the contest then, again, come back here and leave a comment on this post with a link to your post
• Sign up for the Shatterboxx Media monthly email newsletter

Best of luck to these lovely ladies and to you at winning their contest!

January’s happy hour last week was hosted by the fine people at TurboTax.  They traveled all the way to Busboys and Poets on 5^th and K to meet up with DC’s best and brightest.  A good time was had by all, with discussions ranging from the all things personal finance, blogging, and the NFL Playoffs (at least within my conversations).

The night went on with good food, great drinks and a few giveaways (some of which you may see returned to you readers in the near future!).  There was even some promotional material about a TurboTax iPhone app that will file your taxes for you (I thought this was pretty damn cool!).

As the evening wound down, I unfortunately had to take off a bit early, but I heard stories of Chelsea, J. Money (no surprise there) and a blogger who shall remain nameless (but I promise you, you’d be shocked) closed the bar down with a couple of shots.

It was great to see the old friends and to meet some new people that helped put the whole shindig together.

In attendance:

• TurboTax Chelsea – TurboTax (@TTaxChels)
• Turbotax Bob – TurboTax (@turbotaxbob)
• Scott Gulbransen– ScottGulbransen.com (@prgully)
• Dave Donohue – Outcast PR (@davedonohue)
• Rob Pegoraro – The Washington Post (@robpegoraro)
• Frank Gruber – Tech Cocktail (@frankgruber)
• Jen Consalvo – Shiny Heart Venture (@noreaster)
• Mrs. Micah – Finance For a Freelance Life (@mrsmicah)
• GingerLatte – Girls Just Want To Have Funds (@gingerlatte)
• J. Money – Budgets Are Sexy (@budgetsaresexy)
• Shawanda Green– You Have More Than You Think (@theycallmecheap)
• Mike – Clever Dude (@cleverdude)
• mapgirl – mapgirl’s Fiscal Challenge (@mapgirlsfc)
• Pinyo – Moolanomy (@moolanomy)
• Jim Wang – Bargaineering (@bargainr)
• Brian Scheur – My Next Buck (@brianscheur)

I look forward to next month’s happy hour where we can all get together and… well… drink.

Today is an awesome day for the blogosphere.  A new collaborative effort has been launched by the likes of Jun Loayza, Adam Baker, Cody McKibben, Carlos Miceli, Monica O’Brien, Andrew Norcross and Dariane Narbor.  These individuals have a message for the rest of us and they plan on conveying that message through the newly founded Untemplater.com.

Untemplater is going to mean something different to each of us.  The writers putting out content will be discussing topics in personal finance, mobile lifestyle, self improvement, and business.  There is going to be something for everyone at Untemplater.

The Writers

The people running Untemplater are not always going to be writing for the site.  In fact, they are deferring to individuals in their respective blogging niches to discuss the topics at hand.  I am unfamiliar with a lot of the writers outside of the personal finance niche, but I look forward to reading their content in the coming weeks an months.

As far as the people you have likely heard of from the personal finance community is J.  Money from Budgets are Sexy, Laura from Green Panda Treehouse, Wojciech from Fiscal Fizzle and Martin from Studenomics.  The best news yet is that I will be joining these four outstanding writers to give my perspective to the readers of the site.

What I Hope to Learn

I don’t exactly break the template when it comes to my own life.  Outside of the fact that I am a 20something that actually gives a shit about his finances, I am pretty much the model template.  College, grad school, job, job + part-time job, better job, etc.

That isn’t always going to be the case though.  One doesn’t break the template lifestyle overnight.  Surrounding myself with the individuals that have asked the following questions and then answered them in their own way are likely to inspire me to make wholesale changes to my life (taken from Untemplater.com):

10 Thoughts for Creating Your Own Untemplater Lifestyle This Year:

1. Most people are content to live a comfortable lifestyle, doing something they’re not all that passionate about in order to pay the bills and do what they like on the weekends.  But, ask yourself if that’s really what you want.  Or do you want more? The Untemplater lifestyle means prioritizing your passion over money, over status, even over creature comforts.
2. Realize that nobody else is going to come along and magically fix all your problems and pay all your bills for you.  That is a destructive Disney fantasy that isn’t real.  In the new economy, “job security” is an oxymoron.  You’ve got to establish a personal brand and maintain your reputation online even if you just want to remain employable.
3. Remember what Tim Ferriss says in The 4-Hour Workweek: we don’t really want to be millionaires.  Instead we want to experience things we think only millions can buy.  But money isn’t the only currency, and by bending the rules of your reality, it can frequently be easier, cheaper, or even free to accomplish the things you want.
4. Stop playing the game, stop trying to keep up with the Joneses.  Embrace minimalism, detach your value from the things you own, and ignore others’ expectations.  When you accumulate stuff just for the sake of having possessions, they begin to own you.  More likely than not, you can invest more time and money into the experiences you want to have—time with friends and family, philanthropy, travel—and live a much more fulfilled life.
5. Just because everyone seems to do things one way doesn’t mean you have to.  And just because a majority of people seem to use a certain set of tools to get the job done doesn’t necessarily mean they’re the right tools for you.  Seek unconventional solutions that willmake the life you want possible.
6. If you still want to discover what kind of work you’re truly passionate about and excites you when you get out of bed in the morning, take weekend retreat to somewhere nearby where you can get away from your normal routine, consider a media hiatus (don’t read the paper, watch the news on TV, or read your favorite blogs online for at least a few days) and do some self-talk and search in yourself for what you really care about.  How can you provide real value to the world in a way that will return to you and provide
7. With the increasing availability of free and cheap wifi internet access all around the globe, it’s becoming increasingly possible for anyone to work from home, the coffee shop, or anywhere.  Leverage the different purchasing power of currencies around the world, and you can vagabond your way around the globe while you do freelance work from your laptop!
8. Social media makes it much easier for anyone with enough motivation to share their ideas with a global audience and build a successful business online these days.
9. If you choose to build an Untemplater lifestyle free of dependence on any one location, if you live abroad or go on extended travel, just by immersing yourself in the unfamiliar, you’ll experience an increased rate of learning, creativity and resourcefulness that will serve to reinforce your abilities as a producer, rather than a passive consumer—sharing and adding something to the world, whether that’s in the form of a business or something else.
10. Even though everybody seems to do it, there is no law that says you have to play by the rules or follow the crowd.  Your time here on this earth is a finite resource, precious short—how will you choose to spend it?

It amazes me to think about these things, but now knowing people that have broken the mold and ended up being happier for it, I can’t help but be intrigued.

Today is the first day of a journey; a journey that doesn’t have a destination yet.  I hope you all unstrap those seatbelts and join me.

When you head over to Untemplater, please be sure to download their manifesto.  It will give you a good background for the site and the people that are working behind the scenes to bring you the content.

Well it’s a week overdue, but today I wanted to give a quick recap of the DC Personal Finance Happy Hour for December. It’s been a couple months since I saw two regulars and two new bloggers were there (new to me, I am sure they existed previously).

Attendees included:

• Mrs. Micah from Finance for a Freelance Life – I don’t think a description of her is even worth attempting to write. She is beyond awesome and maybe the most helpful blogger I have encountered (it’s a tie with J. Money). She is amazing and we always have great chats, especially about comics and personal finance, which gets me all hot and bothered. Keep tabs on her Micah, or I may try to steal her away.

• Craig from Budget Pulse. If you don’t know Craig by now, then you aren’t trying hard enough to follow the personal finance community.  From his new weekly twiter chats to his frequenting bloggers’ sites, he is all over the place. We also had a fun conversation about movies in which Craig stated Gladiator was the best movie of the decade.  Sorry Craig, I just don’t buy it.  If you want to read more about his movie thoughts, check out his other site, The Movie Banter. (FYI – Craig’s favorite movie of all time is Airborne – the early 90s rollerblading movie, so you already know he has bad taste. Go check his site out for more.)

• DebtHater arrived again to Recessions with good news from her day. Last happy hour we held at the DC hotel/dive bar DebtHater again showed up with good news. I have no doubt where she will want to hold the next happy hour!

• I met Small Budget Big Style for the first time at the happy hour. Unfortunately my platonic crush made it hard to spread the love past Mrs Micah, and I didn’t get a chance to talk to her much. I hope she makes it to the next one so we can get to know one another.

• The lone first time attendee that I hadn’t met yet as well was MPP from My Pretty Pennies. Other than having that terrified “I don’t know what any of these people look like” look on her face as she arrived at the bar (we have all been there), she fit in with everyone nicely. She does seem to have quite the crush on J. Money though (who’s excuse for not attending was his wife’s birthday – priorities man).

Here’s to a good month, and I can’t wait to meet some new bloggers and see some old friends next month.

In this event I delved into each emotion (compassion, love, rage, willpower, fear, death, hope and avarice) and gave my opinion on how each relates to personal finance. Below is a recap of each article that you can find scattered throughout the blogosphere today.

Willpower – At Debt Free Adventure you will find my story of how my willpower lead me to change from a hyper consumer with a gambling problem to someone with their finances under control and keeping my addictions at bay.

Fear – When making decisions where several thousands of dollars are at stake, its normal to feel a certain amount of fear. At Bargaineering you will read about eleven different fearful situations and suggestions on how to mitigate fear in those scenarios through preparation, education and some creative strategies.

Rage – Relationships and money don’t play well together. At Poorer than You I go in depth into ways to discuss finances with your partner so that no one’s feelings get hurt. With so many marriages ending in divorce because of money, it’s important to find ways to communicate openly and effectively.

Hope – You know what you are getting when you head to Budgets Are Sexy. There I discuss how hope is nothing without taking action and how there is no better day than today to make small, measurable improvements to your life.

Death – The time is coming for Congress to start debating the Death/Estate tax. At Free Money Finance you will find the current taxation rules as well as ways one can circumvent paying taxes on a large part of their estate when they pass.

Avarice – Have you ever seen someone showing off an expensive purchase giving you reason to shake your head and ask, “Why would you even bother to own that?” At Consumerism Commentary I look at 6 different items that represent conspicuous spending – owning to be seen owning them.

Love – Love is the one emotion that will make us forget about all the personal finance rules we have learned from one another. At Mrs. Micah’s Finance for a Freelance Life I look at ways to prepare yourself for the worst case scenario in case you are forced with having to aid a loved one in need regardless of the financial ramifications.

Compassion – The recession has had everyone down this year. However, during the holidays people tend to be a bit nicer and a bit more giving.  At Get Rich Slowly you will find 9 suggestions on how to give back to your community that won’t break your bank.

I really hope you enjoyed this series. It was a lot of hard work to produce in a short amount of time. I wouldn’t have been able to pull it off if it wasn’t for each of the bloggers that hosted an article (so please make it to each one of their sites at some point today!) and my friend Baker from Man vs. Debt (who encouraged me throughout the process). If you enjoyed reading today’s articles throughout the blogosphere, you should subscribe to my feed for more blogging goodness. Have a happy thanksgiving and see everyone next week!

Images created by Gorzki and Ed Benes, Rob Hunter, Nei Ruffino, Doug Mahnke

Green Lantern is property of DC Comics

On a weekly basis there are scores of great articles written in the personal finance blogosphere. However, what I look forward to most out of all my fellow writers is the ideas they have for recurring series. From Ramit’s Money Diaries, JD’s Garden Project and my own Friday Financial Foul Ups, you know what to expect each time you stop and read one entry from the series. Today I am going to list some of the most enjoyable on-going series in the PF Community.

In this list you will see series about frugality, cooking meals on less, net worth updates and other creative ideas that my fellow bloggers came up with. If you want to participate in an ongoing series that accepts submissions from other bloggers and individuals I have provided a way to contact each individual at the end of my description.  I hope you enjoy looking through these series on a regular basis.

Weekly Series

These series you can expect to find weekly on their respective sites:

Mondays

• Mailbox Monday hosted at Centsable Money – Corrie talks about freebies that you can receive in your mailbox each week.

Tuesdays

• Tell us Tuesday hosted at Almost Frugal – This series talks about one specific aspect of personal finance and asks the readers to tell them about how that aspect is involved in their financial lives.
• Tightwad Tuesdays hosted at Being Frugal – Lynnae focuses here on trying to pinch some pennies and even make a few throughout this series.
• Tuesday Top 5 hosted at Econ4U – Econ4U looks to give 5 easy steps to help you manage a different aspect of your finances each week.  Big props to these guys at this organization.  Loved the fact that I had a coaster served under my beer from Econ4U discussing my credit report!
• Twitter Tuesday Profiles hosted at Out of Debt Christian – Are you curious to know more about the people you follow on twitter?  If so, check out this series where Alison asks some very good questions to the guest she is profiling. Tweet Alison to Participate.

Fridays

• Free Food Friday hosted at Frugal Bon Vivant – Want to know where to score some free or really cheap grub?  Check this series out and eat for less!
• Frugal Friday hosted at Five Pence Piece – Here are some of the simplest and most beneficial ways to save money now, and in the future.  Definitely a good starting place for the frugally inclined.
• Fiction Friday hosted at A Frugal Friend – Need to know whats out there in terms of great children’s books, A Frugal Friend will help you out.
• Friday Financial Foul Ups hosted at My Next Buck – What can I say?  I’m the boss!  If you have made a financial mistake and want to share it to the world so others can learn from your “foul up”, contact me and I would be more than happy to run your story.  Plus you get a permanent nifty link on my Foul Ups page.
• Frugal Friday hosted at Joe Taxpayer – Joe gives some tips on how to save money and become wiser when spending your hard earned cash.
• Frugal Friday hosted at Keeping the Kingdom First – More frugal tips can be found here from Alyssa.  My favorite post: A Frugal Date Night.

Saturdays

• Subscriber Swap Saturday hosted by No Debt Plan – Looking to reach a broader audience?  You should talk to No Debt Plan about swaping subscribers.  No Debt Plan interviews another blogger and vice versa and they put their results on each others page.  It’s an awesome way of saying, “I think this person is cool, so check ‘em out.” Contact to participate.
• Super Savings Saturday hosted at Money Saving Mom – The title is exactly what you get here weekly: Super Savings.  Forget clipping coupons, you can spend an entire Saturday cartoon looking at all the deals people have gotten throughout the week

On-Going Series

These series may not be weekly, but they are often enough to get you excited each time you see an entry.  Keep an eye out for these posted regularly:

• This is What Frugal Looks Like hosted at Almost Frugal – This great series looks at different ways people can incorporate frugality into their lives. Contact to participate.
• How To Fight Debt Collectors hosted at Bargaineering – Jim has been giving strategy sessions with those going to war with debt collectors.  His articles are an amazing resource for those that are dealing with collectors.
• Financial Peace University hosted at Borrow From None – Borrow and his wife have been going to Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University at their local church and have been recapping each session.
• Blogger Showdown hosted at Budgets Are Sexy – This has been a very popular series that J. Money has put out.  He pits two bloggers against one another answering questions that are not typically asked.  At the end, readers have a chance to vote for who they think had better answers. Contact to participate.
• Would You Rather hosted at Budgets Are Sexy – J.’s other ongoing series is a blast and makes people think.  His last WYR – Would you, for $15,000 cash, go without sex for an entire year?  The comments that people leave make this series a diamond in the ruff.
• Did They Say That hosted at Christian Finance Blog – This series has some of the best money quotes you will read from histories biggest figures.
• Ways to Save Money hosted at Clever Dude – Tons of ways to save money here by the cleverist of clever dudes.
• Debt Testimonials hosted at Debt Free Adventure – Matt is collecting debt stories that share similar experiences to himself.  Did you end up in debt and are working your way out of it, Matt and his readers want to hear your story. Contact to participate.
• Depression Cooking with Clara hosted at Dough Defender – This is a fun series, complete with videos.  Clara, a 91 year old grandmother, who lived through the depression, shares the recipes she ate as a child.
• Career Diaries hosted at Fiscal Geek – I am really looking forward to more entries to this new series that Paul has kicked off.  Thinking about a career change?  Well here Paul and his guests tell all about what to expect in the highlighted career. Contact to participate.
• GRS Garden Project hosted at Get Rich Slowly – For those that are thinking about starting a garden, check out JD’s posts about how much money he has saved and spent on his garden project throughout the year.
• The Money Diaries hosted at I Will Teach You To Be Rich – This series is based off of New York Magazine’s Sex Diaries.  Ramit collects stories of individuals spending habits over seven days and posts about them. Contact to participate.
• Coupon Myths hosted at Keeping The Kingdom First – Do you rarely use coupons?  Kingdom First Mom breaks down common misconceptions about finding and using coupons.
• Feeding a Family on $50 a Week hosted at Moms Need To Know – During a recession, who doesn’t want to feed their family on less.  Here are some steps to decreasing your food bill and to feed your family for less than $50 a week.
• New York Stories hosted at My Open Wallet – There is no better place to look for stories about people than New York.  Herer My Open Wallet takes a look at New Yorkers and how they are working through their financial situations.
• Wealthy Blogger List hosted at Suburban Dollar – This series could go under the net worth section, but it is ongoing and is more than just an individual’s net worth.  Curious about how your favorite bloggers are doing financially, odds are Suburban Dollar is keeping track of them in this series. Contact to participate.
• Banks That Suck hosted at The Centsible Life – Did your bank screw you recently?  Do you hate banking at a certain institution?  If so, Kelly shares your pain as she takes on the establishment letting people know which banks suck, and which don’t. Contact to participate.
• How To Projects hosted at The Greenest Dollar – Looking for some fun and creative projects at home that are environmentally friendly? Heather supplies several for you to give a try in her on-going series.
• $1 Dinners hosted at The Pennywise Family – I cant wait to read more in this series as who wouldn’t want to make a dinner that only costs $1?
• Keys To A Great Retirement hosted at The Wise Buck – If you are looking for a monthly strategy session on how to have a great retirement, you shoul definitely check out Mike’s blog.  His series just kicked off, but I am expecting great things in months to come.
• Expense/Income Tracking hosted at Tight Fisted Meiser – Not quite a net worth update, but entertaining none the less.  Looking at people’s expenses each month really makes me think about how I am spending my own money.

Net Worths

Maybe it’s a bit nosey, but I like seeing how people are doing with regards to their net worth.  Here are the people that are willing to bare it all online for the sake of holding themselves accountable, and our own entertainment:

• Blunt Money
• Borrow From None
• Boston Gal’s Open Wallet
• Budgets Are Sexy
• Consumerism Comentary
• Dinks Finance
• Five Pence Piece
• Free By 50
• Mapgirl’s Fiscal Challenge
• Million Dollar Journey
• Money Beagle
• Money Blue Book
• My Money Blog
• My Money Shrugged
• Poorer Than You
• Punch Debt in The Face
• Spilling Buckets
• The Broke MBA
• The Finance Journey

This list was a ton of fun to create.  Look out in December or January when I go through some people’s archives and find shorter series that have come and gone that can add value to your personal finance lives.  Happy reading!

Hey all.  I am heading off to Israel for a few weeks.  I’ll be returning in late August and will resume posting .  There is a lot of things in the work for this site, including a new design, a new name, a new image and new content!  All things new, right?

While I am gone I want to leave you with some of my favorite blogs to check out.  This should keep you busy for the rest of the day if not the next few weeks.

• Budgets Are Sexy – I have linked to J’s blog a lot, but there is a reason for it.  His content is smart, edgy, entertaining and a bit crazy.  He deserves all the praise that he gets, and he gets a lot!
• Bible Money Matters – Peter has posted some of my favorite articles recently, especially his posts on Cash for Clunkers and his Lending Club review.
• Debt Free Adventure – Matt has recently earned a reputation of the hardest working PF blogger out there, and I would have to agree.  Matt is showing up everywhere, and the quality of his writing is always top notch.  He really energized the personal finance community when he openly sought to pay off his debt by receiving a loan through Lending Club.  I would have invested in Matt’s debt had everyone else not beat me to the punch!
• Man vs. Debt – Baker, in sports terms, is the rookie who is now competing for the most valuable player award.  He has only been blogging for a handful of months, but his approachable personality, smart writing style and his current adventure has boosted him to All-Star status.  I love reading his blog and hearing his insights on finance and his updates from living abroad.  Right now he is auditioning to be a staff writer at Get Rich Slowly and I wish him the best of luck.
• You Have More Than You Think – Shawanda has written some great stuff lately.  She is starting to write more frequently and you can really tell that she has a knack for blogging.  I am excited to see each of her new posts and always thrilled when she visits here to leave a comment on something I write.
• Kathyrn Vercillo – Kathryn is a professional blogger and writes on a host of topics.  When I say a host of topics, I mean it.  She can write about anything and do it with style.  Go to her homepage and you will spend a few hours browsing through all of her posts as each one is interesting, sharp and witty.

There are scores of other blogs I read. Eventually I am sure I will profile them all.  For now, that will entertain you for a week.  Couple that with my blog roll and that is a lot of high quality content to read until I return.

Enjoy the next two weeks!

Brian

Yesterday afternoon a bunch of us personal finance bloggers in the DC area got together for a happy hour at the appropriately named bar, Recessions.   A good time was had by all.

In attendance was several bloggers I have read and heard about but never met, DebtHater, James from DinksFinance, Shawanda from YouHaveMoreThanYouThink, and HC from the now defunct One Big Mortar Board.  MrsMicah was also there as the only hold over from last months debauchery at the Brickskeller.

Everyone was very enjoyable to talk to and to hear how their blogs are doing.  Dinks talked about his future blogging plans, HC mentioned why she stopped blogging, Shawanda talked about how her first few months have gone, DebtHater went into detail about her experiences at work yesterday (those that follow her on twitter surely heard about it), and Mrs.Micah was celebrating her 2 year anniversary!  Congrats to Mrs. Micah!

Interestingly enough, Recessions seems to prove all the theories wrong that starting a tab causes you to spend more.  Throughout the evening, I purchased 4 drinks and a dinner platter and it cost $12 before tip (I think I owe HC some money as she reimbursed me for one of her drinks). It was a great night of good conversation, cheap booze and inexpensive food.   I really look forward to next months HH.

Today I spent a few minutes discussing my upcoming trip to Israel with Baker from Man vs. Debt. Baker offered advice as to how I should spend money in regards to souvenirs.  He also shared how he and his wife are handling similar situations with regards to photos and souvenirs while they are abroad.

1) What to do about photos. I currently do not own a camera other than the one on my iPhone.  Should I go purchase a camera specifically for this trip, or maybe should I bum photos off of some of the others in the group I am going with?

First, we have both a video camera and a digital camera.  My wife loves photography and is actively learning more and more when she can.  She’s taken all the pictures from our travels (http://manvsdebt.com/category/travel) on her Canon Rebel Xti, which she loves.

Although we had this before leaving, I’m nearly positive we would have bought a camera if we hadn’t.  That being said, I wouldn’t run out and buy something STRICTLY on the basis of your impending two-week trip.  It would depend on your future travel plans, needs for a camera at home (children, family events, etc…) and of course your current state of finances.

We’d sacrifice a large amount of luxuries before giving up our camera.  In our opinion, experiences are what makes life worth living.  The more pictures we take the more we can relive these experiences later.  Again, without splurging too much, I wouldn’t leave home without a decent camera.

2) What to do about souvenirs for friends and family. People keep asking me to bring them souvenirs from overseas.  While its a nice gesture, it also affects me in two different ways.  One, it costs money to buy them gifts. Two, I need to lug them around Israel for the rest of the trip.  I don’t want to appear cheap, but I also don’t want to blow a ton of cash buying things for other people, especially when I am on a tight enough budget for myself.

Our trip is a little different, because we don’t have a set schedule on coming back.  However, in general we have a NO SOUVENIRS policy.  It’s impossible to please everyone and to be quite honest, it’s a slippery slope.  Often you can’t bring home something for X, without also getting something for Y & Z.

That being said, If I had to bring something home, I’d make it either local clothing or currency.

We usually try to pack very, very light and have a “buy it there” policy if we need.  Depending on your destination, you can often get locally made pieces of clothing from street shops/vendors for cheap.  It’s cultural, serves a purpose, and can make a unique gift.

In addition, my brother serves in the Army and will often bring home currency from the different countries he’s been to.  He will either frame a “dollar” or potentially a couple unique coins in a frame or similar set-up.  Often times you can get stuck with coins anyway (most currency exchange only do notes) after a trip.  This could be a good way to give a select view a genuine gift.

Stay away from the tourist shops (as I’m sure you know).  If I see another $30 novelty boomerang, I’m going to puke…

3) What to do about souvenirs for myself. This trip is likely to be a once in a lifetime experience for me, I of course want to remember it.  However, same as above, souvenirs take up space (on the road and again at home), so how do I budget for these?  Should I not buy anything or maybe only buy one or two small items and keep digital photos as the souvenir (leading me back to question 1)?

We use the strategies above to handle this, as well.  Nothing will ever mean as much as the photos you take.  Be sure to take them as often as you can (even if you look like a tourist)!  Occasionally we’ll bring local clothing and currency for ourselves, too.  We also like to string together video or pictures and put it to some basic music.  We save the slide show for ourselves and even give copies to family (another good “souvenir” idea).  We’ve done this with most of our trips once we returned home!

I’d like to thank Baker for taking the time out to answer some of my questions.  Be on the look out for more of his writing on his blog as well as his next submission on Get Rich Slowly next week!

If you have been following Baker over the past few months, you will know he is currently on an adventure in New Zealand living/traveling with his wife and daughter.  At the moment, Baker is a candidate for the staff writer position over at Get Rich Slowly.  He wrote an awesome article on couchsurfing earlier this week that I highly recommend everyone check out and comment on.  I wish him luck as he is certainly a great asset to the personal finance blogging community.