A NOTE FROM RANDAL

Hello Everyone,

Welcome new subscribers and thanks to all of you who have been sharing The
Frugal Life News with others!

Our son, Ben, told us about eBates.com where you can shop and earn rebate checks. They send you a cash check. You can shop at over 800 stores and besides the rebates, some stores have exclusive coupons, free shipping offers, and limited-time sales!

We don't do a lot of shopping but we are doing more of it online to simplify, so it's nice to get money back and save the gas. The rebates are up to 25% off.

You get $5 just for joining and if your friends sign up and use it, you will get $5 for every referred user. Nice way to earn extra shopping dollars. If you choose to sign up and use eBates, we'll be using the bucks on our ISP service to continue to provide you with this newsletter. Pretty cool!

Here's the eBates link

Frugally yours,
Randal

FRUGAL FINANCES

Five Sure-Fire Financial Strategies for a Lifetime of Debt...
that make you believe you're building wealth.

First in a Five-Part Series

Sure-Fire Financial

Strategy Number 1: 'Pay Yourself First'
The Strategy: It's your paycheck! Carve off a piece to save for yourself before you pay any other entity. Financial experts routinely recommend 10%. This way you're assured of having some money to show for all of your decades of hard labor.

The Reality:
This is technically impossible in societies where your employer is forced to withhold taxes from your paycheck before you get a peek at it. The best you can do is pay yourself second; but, 'Pay Yourself Second,' has about as much marketing appeal as, 'We're Number Two!'

This is also empirically impossible... if you have debt. I say, "Empirically," because whenever I ask my DebtIntoWealth class participants if anyone is managing to save 10% of their income, only 1 hand goes up -- in a class of 20!

Some argue 401K contributions are a form of paying yourself first since dollars are contributed "before tax." They have a point. But what's the point of paying yourself first if you're restricted from accessing your money?

The Flaw:
Technicalities aside, if you're attempting to follow this strategy you are, by definition, depleting the amount of money available to pay other entities. If you're really aggressive, the entities at the end of your list get minimum or no money.

Suppose the entities at the end of your list are debts...

Minimum or no money paid to a debt creates very expensive debt, which consumes an ever increasing part of your paycheck until it once again becomes impossible to pay yourself first (or second).

Banks love the, 'Pay Yourself First,' strategy. While you're struggling to scrape up a few dollars to lend to the bank at 4 or 5%, the bank is collecting 13 or 14% on money it lent to you.

If your business depended on extracting maximum interest from debtors while paying minimum interest to savers... and they're often the SAME people... wouldn't you love a strategy that delayed debt payoff, too?

The Solution:
Pay Yourself LAST!
Pay OFF your debtors first.
Then you have a much better chance of successfully paying yourself first... uh... second.

Greg Moore is the Architect of the Debt Freedom System,
"DebtIntoWealth -- Lessons from My Journey to Debt Freedom."


Free Lesson #1 - Debt Freedom Course

Pay off all of your debt in 5-7 years using the money you already make. Find out why financial guru and best-selling author, Suze Orman, is advising her millions of followers to "Pay Everything Off as Fast As Possible!"

FRUGAL HOME COMMUNICATIONS

Long Distance, Prepaid Phone Cards, Cell Phones & Internet Service

3.9 Cent Long Distance With No Access Numbers to Dial
Prepaid Phone Cards
Plans for Cellular Phones
Internet Service
No hidden fees or charges!
Shop for Long Distance, Cell Phone & Internet Service

FRUGAL CAR

Biodiesel fuels have been in the news and are becoming more popular as gas stations are beginning to provide these more environment-friendly fuels. If you go with the straight vegetable oils, you can run your car for free other than collecting the used oils from a nearby restaurant. There's lots of options for saving money on fuels. Here's some links to help you research this topic.

Benefits of Biodiesel and Finding Suppliers
www.biodiesel.org

Recipes to Make Your Own Biodiesel Fuels
www.biodieselcommunity.org

Conversion kits allow you to use straight vegetable oil. Here's a few links to places you can buy these kits from:
www.frybrid.com
www.greasel.com
www.plantdrive.com
www.greasecar.com

FRUGAL HOW-TO SECURE YOURSELF

State Security Freeze Laws

A security freeze lets consumers stop thieves from getting credit in their names. A security freeze locks, or freezes, access to the consumer credit report and credit score. Without this information, a business will not issue new credit to a thief. When the consumer wants
to get new credit, he or she uses a PIN to unlock access to the credit file.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing financial crimes. Nearly 10 million Americans fall victim each year. The Identity Theft Resource Center reported in 2005, on average, an ID theft victim of new account and other fraud spent 60 hours resolving problems brought on by ID
theft, those victims of existing accounts spent an average of 15 hours resolving problems. A 2003 Federal Trade Commission study found that identity theft also costs U.S. businesses nearly $48 billion annually, and consumers an additional $5 billion per year.

Find out if your state allows this:
www.consumersunion.org/campaigns//learn_more/003484indiv.html

There's also a campaign for better protection if you'd like to take action in your state:

Make Your Own Cleaning, Health, Bath and Beauty Products
Essential oil kits allow you to make your own safe non-chemical home and beauty products. Making your home less toxic for yourself, children and pets.
Health, Home and Beauty Essential Oil Kit

FRUGAL PETS

Natural Remedies and Herbal Heartworm Programs
Robin Sockness has worked with thousands of pets over the many years we have referred to her. She's great at what she does because she's seen such great success with her own pets and those she has helped. Herbs are safer and less expensive so it's a win-win situation for all. Herbal prevention programs available also. Get more information on Robin.

Healthy Pet Foods
Pet food ingredients can create a lot of health problems for our pets, and that can cost a lot of money with recurring health issues feeding the pockets of our veterinarians. Be an informed pet owner when it comes to what's in pet foods. You already know that you feel better if you eat right. Help them to feel better too.

Information Links for Pets
Healthy Pet Corner provides informational links for dogs, cats, birds, horses, rabbits, and reptiles. Visit Healthy Pet Corner now.

FRUGAL TIPS

Great Way to Store Grocery Bags
I found a great way to store grocery bags. I use left over kleenex or puff boxes and stuff full of bags. They can then be stored anywhere. Throw one in the trunk of your vehicle and you will always have a bag when you need one. I go to sams club and can grab the bags easily to get groceries into the house. I need a bag there it is. Never know when you need to put a dirty pair of shoes in a bag or dirty clothes or what ever you need one for it is there. Another great container is a plastic potato chip container like pringles or lays stax. Keeps the bags organized and easy to find when you need one.

Deodorize While You Kill Bacteria and Viruses
Get the anti-microbial properties of essential plant oils to kill germs without bleach and toxic cleaning products. The plug-in AromaBall makes it quick and easy. Read more about the AromaBall for killing germs and deodorizing without chemicals.

FRUGAL LEARNING

Singing Success At-Home Study Course
The Singing Success Vocal Training Program, by celebrity vocal coach Brett Manning, is the only vocal training program that guarantees a full octave increase in your vocal range. And you can do it at home. You'll learn to sing as easily as you speak, completely eliminating vocal strain, and you will learn to master the techniques of vocal style, including runs, licks and trills. 100% guaranteed. Get a full refund if it doesn't do all it promises.

The best thing about it is that you can try it out and send it back for a full refund if it doesn't do all it promises to do. Read more about the Singing Success Program.

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE FORUM
Give your advice for these questions at the Frugal Life Community Forum.

Cleaning Forum
1. I'm looking for any suggestions to remove ball point ink from my new leather car seat. Thanks in advance

2. The product is called The Original Quaker House Rust & Stain Remover: for fabrics, toilet bowls, metals, urine stains, sinks, and carpets. . All that is written on the bottle is that it's by Quaker Cleaners in Houston, Texas. I learned about the product on this website and it was written by Marcia Horn Noyes. Marcia if you are reading this please help me or anyone else. I want this cleaning product!

HOME BUSINESS IDEAS
Nature's Sunshine Herbs and Supplements
Make Your Own Bath & Beauty Products
Flint River Ranch Oven Baked Pet Foods
Healthy Pet Net Foods and Supplements

FORWARD TO A FRIEND
If you enjoyed what you read today, please forward this newsletter to your friends by clicking on the white envelope below --- or send them the link to this site.

COPYRIGHT, LEGAL DISCLAIMER & REPRINT INFO
© 2006 Randal J. Watkins

Information in The Frugal Life News (TFL) has been derived from sources believed accurate and reliable. In no event shall *The Frugal Life,* Randal Watkins, or the corporate sponsor, Sunshine Life Center, Inc. staff be liable for any damages whatsoever resulting from any action arising in connection with the use of information herein.

There is no remuneration for suggestions, tips, or ideas submitted by readers. All suggestions, tips, and ideas, submitted for publication in The Frugal Life, become the property of The Frugal Life, notwithstanding similar rights of the reader submitting such suggestions, tips, or ideas. TFL publishes readers' names with their suggestions, tips, and ideas unless a reader requests otherwise at the time of the submission.

Forwarding and Use of This Newsletter
You may forward this newsletter in its entirety and/or use this copyrighted newsletter on a website if you include the following credit:

Editor, Randal J. Watkins, of TheFrugalLife.com, provides this free newsletter to subscribers. Visit The Frugal Life website to subscribe or find frugal information to live well on what you already have. http://www.thefrugallife.com

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