Over ten years have passed and I have noticed a change in my surroundings. Now all of East Hampton and its surrounding villages have become the home of the rich and famous….well, in some cases, not so famous.

As I drove into my favorite vacationing spot, I felt an immediate calm cover me like a warm blanket and it felt good to be home again. Even though my days spent here were not as long as they used to be, nonetheless, the room was the same; the patio was the same, but the landscape had changed somewhat. Although impeccably manicured, the lawn and the trees didn’t invite the species of birds I remembered, nor did the squirrels seek as many chances to come out into the open as much as they had before. Even the family of bunnies never showed their cute faces. As I sat on my veranda and looked out at the beauty of nature, it all seemed too familiar and offered nothing new, nor did it bring me solace as it once did.

What was missing? Perhaps I had outgrown this tiny town or perhaps it had outgrown me. I thought about ideal places to retire and I suppose if one could afford it, this would be the ideal place. More than that, however, I thought about other places I had been in my life and wondered if I could take that step and retire to another city, country, or island.

Most of the places I had been were just as expensive to live in, while there were other places which could afford me the opportunity to live comfortably and continue to participate in those areas of my life that are important such as reading, writing, music, and nature.

In researching the many ideal places to retire, I found college towns to be quite within my means. Quaint towns where neighbors actually greet each other, participate in community affairs, and take advantage of university classes as well as other activities which not only enhance but enrich one’s life. Coming from a suburb in a big city, one could very easily get lost if one wanted to. In college towns, however, I suppose you can hide, but not for long. The student life, the rich history of the city, or the close knit community is not only enticing but offers a glimpse into what can be and not what one merely settles for.

As I left East Hampton, I knew I would not return. I drove slowly through the town with all of the expensive shops and restaurants, antique stores, and specialty stores and thought while this is a nice place to visit – it is not the ideal place to retire.

As we grow older, (retirement is not mutually exclusive to age), it seems we should look for an ideal place to retire that feels like home, where we have no qualms about meeting new people or becoming interested in new things. Home is wherever you are; all of you – mind, body, and soul.

So for all future retirees who are thinking of relocating to an ideal place to retire, keep looking for that one place that when you arrive – you too feel the calm of a warm blanket cover you on a winter’s day. No whistles; no brass bands, just the comfort and serenity you feel as you settle into your ideal place to retire. Then you will instantly know you are home.

Why, who wouldn’t love getting paid to buy products that they use everyday?

Here’s how I do it.

I purchase an item that has a rebate offer (either a store or manufacturer rebate) while it is on sale and use a coupon during purchase. That’s it! Using this formula I almost always come out ahead. When all is done, I’ve gotten back more than I actually paid for the item.

Even when I do have to pay for the items like deodorant, shampoo, soap, toothpaste, and toothbrushes it’s about 50 cents for a item that would cost up to $2 -$4 originally.

Am I the only one out there that gets excited about this? I doubt it! At least I hope not. That would make me “Crazy”, wouldn’t it? But a lot of folks just don’t know how to combine money saving measures to maximize savings.

My local drugstore (which by the way is a national chain) often advertises items free after rebate. Hey, that cuts down on a lot of work for me. Easy Money! I e an also lucky enough to have a grocery store in my area that offers rebates and offers double coupons (sometimes even doubling $1 coupons as a special promotion). Needless to say, with six mouths to feed (myself, my husband, and four kids) I’m lovin’ that idea!

As the editor of www.simpledebtfreeliving.com, I’m always looking for new ways to save money. Visit us and follow one of the e-mail links to share your ideas or just let us know how excited you get about frugal living! Let me know I’m not the only one. Then we can put my family’s worries to rest. They think I’m really crazy.

Here are a couple other ways that I save on items we use everyday:

1. Always use items that are reusable rather than throw away

For example: Reusable coffee filters, cups and plates, and my favorite pet peeve -

The great sandwich bag conspiracy

The major manufacturers of sandwich bags would lead us to believe that it takes rocket science to keep a sandwich fresh. Ask yourself this, How long do you need to keep that sandwich fresh anyway? It’s not like it’s going to the moon. It’s just going to the office or school for a few hours.

The most practical way to approach this is to purchase reusable sandwich size containers. This is also very environmentally friendly reducing a great deal of waste. If however, these have trouble finding there way back home ( which is likely if you have children), you can save substantially if you purchase the plain old pleated sandwich bag that cost a mere fraction of the razzle dazzle zipper kind. Your mother used these for years and years with great success. I have used both methods for years and have never received a complaint of a stale sandwich!

You’ll find that doing these little things like, using real cups and plates instead of paper or plastic throw away, and recycling containers for storage or even to use in craft projects, can save a lot of money. Each by itself may seem minor, but when put together amount to tremendous savings over time.

2. Don’t buy it if you won’t use it. Things like small kitchen appliances, repair tools, and gardening tools are good examples. We know they’ll make our life easier if we just had the opportunity to use them.

There are 101+ small countertop kitchen appliances available to chop it, grind it, mix it, open it, bake it, grill it..well you get the message.

Simplify your life and narrow it down to a couple you just can’t live without. For me it’s my blender and my food processor. Although, I’m seriously considering a bread maker. Not quite sure if it’s worth the money yet. Especially when I’m so close to a bread outlet. But, you can’t beat the taste of fresh baked bread. I’m not counting the coffer maker it’s kind of standard equipment these days. I wouldn?t dare ask you to give that up! What am I crazy? Well , maybe..

It’s little things like the example above that identify frugal living.

3. Always get the best value for your money. Shop around. If this is a major purchase you will want to know what to look for. Research and compare products on the internet or in sale flyers. There’s nothing more challenging to the retailer than an informed consumer. That’s what you want to be. An informed consumer knows when it’s a good value! Informed Consumer - More Savings

Paying a regular allowance is a hotly contested topic. Should you pay a regular weekly amount or just pay your children for chores around the house? There is no reason you can’t do both. Providing a regular allowance can offer your child a sense of independence and understanding of money. However, you don’t have to give them too much and you can also pay them extra for certain chores, like mowing the lawn or extra cleaning around the house.

You don’t have to share every detail about your own personal finances (for example: I can’t believe my credit card bill is $3,000 this month!) but you also don’t want them to grow up completely ignorant about money. If you have a new job and want to watch expenses, this is something they ought to know. You can also share with them how much the grocery bill costs or how much the movie ticket costs but they don’t need to know how much the mortgage payment is every month.

A common used technique in parenting is giving children choices. This can be applied to money matters as well. A great example is a child’s birthday. You can offer them a big birthday party or a special gift (like a new bike) but not both. They don’t need to know the actual costs, but by becoming more involved in the process, they learn how to prioritize their financial decisions.

Teaching your children about the concept about saving is especially important. Once they start getting a regular allowance, you should encourage them to save a portion of it for special occasions. They may not do it, but where else are they going to learn about it? Once they get old enough (at least 8 years old), they can also learn the basics of investing with some fun games or children focused mutual funds. Junior Achievement offers some wonderful programs in elementary schools. At the same time, you can also introduce contributing to a charity. They can either give through their own money or you can give them a certain dollar amount and let them choose their own charity.

When they reach high school age, there are basics concepts of personal finances that should be taught. These include putting a budget together, balancing a checkbook, and the concept of time value of money (for example, interest growing in a savings account). These are all invaluable lessons they will apply for the rest of their lives!

However, the card holder has to pay the full balance within 30 to 60 days. Otherwise, an unpaid balance will be reported negatively to the card holder’s credit report and he or she will incur large fees on the account. The car holder’s account will also be cancelled in case of failure to pay the balance in full. Fortunately, large purchases may be given an extension that can be paid out over the course of a few months. Charges that are related to travel are usually allowed a thirty six month grace period. However, the interest rate of entertainment credit cards is rather high and is usually between nineteen and twenty percent.

People also refer to these cards as charge cards. Entertainment credit cards include exclusive credit cards such as, American Express and Diners Club. These cards hold far more buying power than Visa or MasterCard, even if they may not be as widely accepted. A card holder can also enjoy many additional benefits apart from credit with entertainment credit cards. Some cards offer insurance, catalogues, cash advances and other benefits.

People with perfect credit and earn over $100,000 per year have the best chances of getting entertainment credit cards. Credit card companies can trust these people to pay off their balance per the terms and they also have enough money to pay if they should default. Since entertainment credit cards are on the elite group of credit cards, they are difficult to get and cardholders have to keep their accounts in order. They have to remember that credit card companies report quickly to the credit agencies and also send accounts to a collection agency.

While technology allows for basic comparisons of insurance plans, the best way to pick a health insurance company is to do a lot of research, and then call a company’s customer service. One of the main things you want to pay attention to how they handle your questions. Are they polite? Do they answer your questions? Can you understand what the individuals are saying, or were the jobs out sourced to a country that might not have the best English training program? If you’re impressed with the service, then give that company a high mark and consider them among the finalists. If the whole experience is giving you a migraine, it’s a safe bet that may not be the health insurance company you want handling your claims.

Not every health insurance company is perfect, but there are some basic things you should want from a company that you are going to give your business to, and also trust to follow through on their part when you really need it. Here are three things you should absolutely be looking for from any insurance company you’re considering:

* Fantastic customer service. This should be a no-brainer. If a health insurance company is really interested in their customers versus their customers’ wallets, then they are going to have excellent customer service to help you out in any way possible.

* A Large Solid Network. This means that the company is well established, and you have no fear of them folding up and disappearing on you tomorrow. When you do need to use the insurance, you know they have the money to pay.

* Competitive Pricing. If their prices are ridiculously high, then why would you even consider a policy from them? The same service costs the same amount no matter what health insurance policy you have, so why should you pay an extra $200 a month to a company for the same coverage? It doesn’t make any sense.

Go through this check list and then look at the specific policies of the health insurance companies you are interested in. Once you have a policy you like with a company you trust, then everything should fit together. Health insurance companies are there to provide services for their customers, and in an age where expenses for medical treatments continue to sky rocket, it is critical to find health insurance companies who can provide the type of coverage that people need and can afford.

In suing their banks, customers argue that these charges are not only excessive, but unlawful, as they do not represent a genuine estimate of the loss a bank incurs, if, for example, an overdraft limit is exceeded. The typical response of banks to claimants has been, and still is, to stall for as long as possible - then usually pay up before the claim gets to court. It has, quite simply, been a big win for the little people.

In recent weeks, however, the battle lines have been more defiantly drawn. In May, Lloyds TSB won two cases against customers suing them for illegal charges. The first case, brought by builder Julian Rudd, was dismissed by a judge at Lancaster county court on 11 May, four days before a judge in Birmingham county court ruled against a similar £2,545 claim from Kevin Berwick.

The failure of both cases appears down to poor preparation on the part of the claimants; nevertheless, the banks have been quick to capitalise on success and launch a widespread counterattack. Financial institutions, including Abbey, the Clydesdale/Yorkshire group, HSBC, and the Alliance & Leicester bank, have reportedly been citing the Birmingham court victory to put customers off making a claim. And they even seem to have some support in the county courts, with Hull District Judge Ian Besford threatening to strike out claims by 20 bank customers suing for bank-charge refunds, on the basis that claimants are unlikely to succeed in light of the Lloyds TSB victory.

If you are still thinking about making a claim against your bank or building society, you may well now be feeling wary. At the very least, the Lloyds TSB cases demonstrate that you need to plan your case carefully and ensure you have all the relevant documentation/evidence necessary to support your claim.

But it is not all bad news. Despite recent court developments in the banks’ favour, most banks are still settling with claimants before cases reach court.

Nor are all judges viewing the banks so favourably as the Hull District Judge. In keeping with most other banks, Lloyds TSB failed to even turn up to the two cases that it won in May, relying purely on its written defence to secure a win. Judges are getting increasingly irritated by these non-shows. At Worcester county court, for instance, a judge recently told one bank-charges claimant, in whose favour he had just ruled, that this was the 50th time that a bank had failed to turn up before him.

This has led to some bank customers adopting a new strategy: asking judges to strike out a bank’s defence as an ‘abuse of process’. With banks often stalling and then settling cases just before they reach court, or with them not turning up at court at all, claimants are arguing that banks are wasting courts’ time. And it is a tactic that seems to be working.

In February, Maria Dobson, lodged a claim against Abbey for £3,865.86. Knowing that Abbey, in common with all other banks, was highly unlikely to turn up on the appointed court day, she put in a draft order, asking the judge to throw out the case on the basis that Abbey was abusing the system. Judge Burness agreed and struck out Abbey’s defence. More recently, in Rhyl county court, Judge Thomas made a similar order against Lloyds TSB demanding that it supply a list of all claims it has defended in court and all those not defended - otherwise its defence would be struck out. Given the bank’s record of non-attendance at such court cases, it was an encouraging sign for claimant Ben Manesh and for all other bank customers hoping to secure bank-charge refunds.

For sure, the process for winning refunds on your bank charges may not now seem as simple as it did earlier in the year. And if you are thinking of making a claim against your bank, you need to ensure you prepare your case thoroughly. But there are still plenty of success stories and victories to suggest that the little people’s fight goes on.

The first thing you should do is find your purpose in life and start walking in it. When you are walking in your purpose, you will find that all of your needs will be met. Everything you need to fulfill that purpose in your life will be supplied. Lets say your purpose is to start a business feeding the hungry. Money is a means for you to fulfill your purpose in a much larger and better way. With money, instead of only feeding the hungry in your neighborhood, you can do it on a state or national level. Regardless of whether your purpose in life is to start a business, nonprofit charitable organization, or get a good education, you will need money to do it. The money is there waiting for you, and you just need to know how to channel your energy to bring it into existence.

The second thing you should do is find money to finance your purpose. Each person should have several streams of income to finance their purpose. These streams of income could be your job, business, and investments. As the demands of your purpose increase, you will notice more money coming in from these streams. Guess what! If you do not have any streams of income, then you cannot expect to get money from them. No matter how much you earn from these financial streams of income, you must manage your money effectively.

You can have as much money as you want because money is an energy. You may need to change the way you think about money. You can start by visualizing yourself having fun with money, playing with it and spending it. This is how you draw money to you. When you say negative things such as “I don’t have any money to start a business.” “Where am I going to get the money from to start a business?” “I don’t know how to write a proposal to get a grant.” “They will never give me the money to start my business.” “I will never get the loan.” These are negative phrases and they send out negative energy. If you want money don’t think of it as something bad, but rather see yourself doing good with it. Think positively about money because it is your friend. Money is not evil – it is what you do with money that is evil.

Are you interested in starting a business?

To the new and experienced entrepreneurs, getting help with your small business is very crucial to your success. Getting the right help will cause you to avoid costly mistakes, and it can also help you to save a lot of time, money and energy. You will need to get the right help to form the legal structure of the business, financial, management, procurement/certification, marketing, pricing products, preparing a business plan, and more. If you are a business owner who is wondering if you can take your business to new heights, contact Dr. Waters at tina.waters@waienterprises.com.