As many of you know I am getting married this fall. Getting married brings about many changes, including moving for many. Starting in August I will be moving and as I get settled Weakonomics may miss a few posts. Not only that but starting today I’m also on the first of two short vacations (one in the mountains, one at the beach). As a result of this and some other changes from now until September Weakonomics might suffer a little bit.
There might not be much suffering and if everything works out you readers shouldn’t notice a single thing. But I did want to make sure you were aware of this. Between my iPhone and access to some public internet I should always be connected and have access to my email. If you notice a problem with the site, shoot me an email or tweet me and let me know. As a matter of fact, the best way to keep abreast of what is going on is to follow me on Twitter. If I’m short on posts I will post an old article and tell you at the bottom it’s an old one. If you’re interested in submitting a guest post on Weakonomics I’ll happily accept them. Email me: philip [at] weakonomics [dot] com with an idea or two.
Once I am settled in the new place I’ll tell you more about where I am or what I might be doing. In fact, I think I might either tell you where I am or what I’m doing. But not both. If that feels like a teaser, good. I might set up a poll or something to see what readers are more interested in knowing about me.
Now for some additional announcements. You may have noticed some new advertisements on the site. Good. I want to take a moment to talk about all of the products and services currently offered with Weakonomics. As previously stated (link), in the interest of full transparency between readers and advertisements I want you to know that I only use ads for companies I personally use or would use if the situation warranted.
iTunes: Everyone knows what iTunes is. I love it for downloading apps on my iPhone. I love even more when I get an iTunes giftcard. I can use it for more apps but I’m more inclined to use these for music. Remember iTunes also has movies and TV shows to download. Put them on an iPod, iPhone, or just watch them on the computer.
Examiner: This site was new to me. Basically you can work for them as an examiner contributing articles about a specific topic to the local site. If you know a lot about a specific subject you should consider applying to be an examiner.
Allstate: They provide me with my car insurance. Insurance is a commodious service and it’s hard to differentiate from one provider to another. I chose Allstate because of their local offices which allows me to call a local agent with questions. They know me and recognize my number. If you’re considering buying direct from websites make sure you check the prices of the local guys first. Allstate was the cheapest of all, including the direct sites which don’t offer the benefit of local agents. Also, never once have they tried to upsell me on additional insurance or any of that kind of crap you’d expect.
Electric Orange Checking from ING Direct: I’ve used ING Direct since 2004 and have been a happy customer this entire time. In the last year or so they introduced Electric Orange, their version of a traditional checking account. I jumped on it and set up an account to handle all my Weakonomics business. Since it’s a checking instead of savings account I was also issued a debit card. This means when it comes to making purchases associated with the site I just use my ING Debit card. This is the best thing to happen to banking since… well online savings!
Updown: I’ve talked about UpDown before (LINK!!). It’s a social network that allows you to buy stocks and ETFs and try to beat the market. You’re using fake money so there is no risk if you burn through the $1 million you get to start with. The upside is that if you’re good and can beat the S&P 500 in a given month you actually make money. That’s fun. I change my holding around every couple of days however most of it is indexed to the S&P 500. I try to make value purchases however must admit many of my returns have come from simply playing the volatility of Citi stock. Here’s an update on how I’m doing: Since starting in March I’m up 23%! That rocks. However the S&P 500 is up 38% over the same time. I beat them in March and am tied at 2.3% for July, but every other month the S&P beats me. It’s still fun and you learn a lot. So sign up, it’s free!
Vistaprint: Vistaprint and I go way back. I first ordered some stuff from them back in college. It was so long ago I can’t even remember what it was. Today they’ll print just about anything for you from business cards to banners. Most recently, The Sheconomist ordered some return address labels for our wedding. Super cheap prices and fast service make Vistaprint the go-to source for anything you need printed.
Netflix: Like I really need to explain Netflix. Rent your movies through the mail, keep them as long as you want, return in the mail. You don’t pay the postage, which rocks. You can now watch some movies online as well. With a few different plan options and a free trial you have every reason to at least give it a shot. If you’ve got a Blu-Ray player they have those movies as well. Much cheaper than actually buying those expensive HD discs.
Hostgator: Hostgator provides the hosting for my website. Every time you go to a website a server (dedicated computer) holding all the files, code, and databases for the site serves it to your computer. You can do this on your own but hosting providers like Hostgator are dirt cheap and offer a lot of features that make a moderately tech savvy person look like a coding genius. I’ve really enjoy Hostgator and to date am not aware of any downtime for Weakonomics. As a bonus, their servers draw electricity from a wind farm in Texas. This mostly relieves green-guilt in my book, but I like to support companies that pursue this sort of thing. Thank you Hostgator. (PS, you might not have noticed this ad before, check the bottom of the page).
Goldline International: This company approached me about allowing them to advertise on Weakonomics. They are an online seller of gold and rare coins. Though I do not own any gold in such forms many choose to do so. If you want gold to have in your hands then this is a well-known source and has been doing business since 1960.
As I’ve said before, I am not paid to say any of this like a traditional advertisement. If you sign up or make a purchase by clicking the ads I receive a referral credit. If you have any questions about any of these products or services please contact me. And if you ever hear something really bad about one of them let me know so I can identify the issue and determine whether or not the end the relationship.
Don’t forget, I’m around, but will sometimes be busy doing busy things and sometimes busy doing nothing for the next month. Cowabunga!
 By The Weakonomist |
The Weakonomist is the founder of Weakonomics. Clicking the picture of the puppy will tell you more about him. If you like what you're reading consider subscribing to the blog, following him on Twitter, and checking out the related posts below. Please consider a donation if you really enjoy Weakonomics. Also keep in mind that nothing I say can be construed as financial advice. |
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