Howard Marks is famous among many investors for his Client Memos as the chairman and cofounder of Oaktree Capital Management. He even weaved many of the older ones into a book, which I read and reviewed. I now try to read every one that comes out. … [Read the rest]
Howard Marks Oaktree Client Memo, November 2013
Chart: Gift Card Popularity Still Rising, Returns Dropping

Here's a chart from a Businessweek article showing how the percentage of people buying a gift card for the holidays is still increasing, while the percentage of people making a holiday return is dropping. Does this mean that gift cards are … [Read the rest]
Starbucks $5 eGift Card: Buy 1 Get 1 Free w/ Visa
Starbucks is running a holiday promotion where essentially if you buy a ($5 minimum) eGift code, you get a $5 eGift code free. Perfect if you use the Starbucks app to store your codes. Limit 1 per person. Must use a Visa card. Now through … [Read the rest]
Capital One 360 Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2013 Savings and Checking Promotions
Capital One 360 has a few Black Friday weekend deals including a $125 bonus for their 360 checking account and $75 bonus for 360 Savings Account. New customers only - you can get one checking bonus and one savings bonus per person. Good from now … [Read the rest]
$100 Target Gift Card for $90
I have no idea how long this will last, but seller giftcardmall on eBay is offering a $100 Target gift card for $90. Limit 2 per eBay customer. Free shipping of physical gift card. Seems legit to me. I bought two, we'll see how it … [Read the rest]
Amazon.com 30% Off Any Print Book
Get 30% off any one print book with coupon code BOOKDEAL, must be sold and shipped by Amazon.com. Expires December 1, 2013 at 11:59pm PST. Max discount $10. Books can be the gifts with the highest ROI. ;) Visit this link for more information. … [Read the rest]
Capital One Sharebuilder Black Friday and Cyber Monday Promotions: Up to $1,000
Online stock brokerage firm Capital One Sharebuilder announced a few Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions this year. Please note the valid dates on the promotional codes below. I'm full of tryptophan so I'm just going to pretty much copy and … [Read the rest]
My Wisest, Most Frugal, Longest-Lasting Purchases From Amazon

If you've been shopping at Amazon.com for many years like I have, a fun activity is to look at your order history which it appears they keep indefinitely. I have purchases dating as far back as 1999, with many questionable ones sold off long ago on … [Read the rest]
Blog Flashback: 5 Years Ago, S&P 500 at 750

How time flies. Almost exactly 5 years ago on November 21st, 2008, I was sitting alone in yet another hotel on a business trip in a city that I can't even remember. CNN was on TV as I wrote the following in a blog post with the title S&P 500 at … [Read the rest]
True Cost of Holiday Shopping Calculator
Time for my annual Black Friday Buzzkill calculator! ;) Can you hear that sound? Sleigh bells a-jingling? Carol singers? No, it's credit cards a-swiping as part of what is now officially BUY BUY BUY season. Here's a mental trick that I use to … [Read the rest]
Unexpected and Wise Advice From Financial Advisor Ann Kaplan
I'd never heard of Circle Financial or Ann Kaplan before reading this Businessweek interview, but I found myself bookmarking it for later as she gives a lot of unexpected advice that you usually don't hear from a financial advisor. For example, … [Read the rest]
Barclaycard Travel Community: Share Stories for Bonus Miles
Barclaycard recently started a "Barclaycard Travel Community" at BarclayCardTravel.com. Although it's obviously another "social media" attempt to promote their new Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard (actually a pretty good travel card … [Read the rest]