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I drove by the corner gas station today, as I do everyday on my way home from work, and I couldn’t help but notice that the price of gasoline rose another few cents over the weekend. This time the sign was unapologetically advertising a price of $4.179 per gallon. You know, I hate that sign. Some days I feel like it is taunting me — especially the ones when I have Continue reading It Could Be Worse: 9 Everyday Items More Expensive Than Gasoline by Gayle B. Tate Gayle is the founding owner and director of G. B. Tate & Sons Fine Art. His services include authentication and appraisal of fine art, and he has worked with federal authorities and art insurance companies to solve and prevent art fraud issues and theft in the marketplace. You are invited to visit his web site at http://www.gbtate.com. Scams? Continue reading An Expert Shows How to Avoid Common Marketplace Art Scams Inflation? What inflation? The fact is, for those who are willing to look close enough, we are actually being confronted by a serious bout of deflation — at least when it comes to the size of the containers sitting on our supermarket shelves. With prices continuing to rise in the face of the depressed economic climate, manufacturers continue to find themselves caught in a classic dilemma: either raise prices and risk losing Continue reading Looking for Inflation? It’s Hiding In Smaller Package Sizes. You know, some guy named Ripley once showed me that things aren’t always what they seem. For example, a banana tree is not a really a tree at all, but a massive herb that can grow as tall as a four story building. If you think that’s something, koala bears aren’t really bears — they’re marsupials. And next time you visit New York City, keep in mind that an egg cream contains Continue reading The Grand Illusion: How Cheaper Gas Ultimately Costs You More You might think that credit cards for people with excellent credit are universally the best products available, and that the quality of a credit card naturally rises in accordance with the credit level required to get it. You might believe that high fees and lacking rewards simply come with the territory of having bad credit, and that this is a natural trade off. You might also assume that Continue reading Beware: A Credit Card for Excellent Credit That Doesn’t Fit the Bill It’s been said that if the palm of your right hand itches, you’ll soon be coming into money. On the other hand (seriously, no pun intended), it’s also been said that if your left palm itches you’ll soon be paying out money. Don’t laugh. There are folks out there who actually believe this stuff. What is funny though is if you do an internet search, you’ll find there is no consensus at Continue reading 10 Old Wives’ Tales Masquerading As Financial Rules of Thumb by Gayle B. Tate Flickr Photo Credit: robin.elaine When Marvin Gaspar came to my office for his appointment to discuss an appraisal, I had little clue where I would end up on the roller coaster ride he was about to take me on. Marvin was a claims adjuster from an insurance company who was asking about appraising an artwork. He showed me a few photographs of a Miró (Joan Miró – Spanish, Continue reading 5 Key Tips to Consider Before Deciding to Buy Art Insurance Flickr Photo Credit: Michael Gwyther-Jones Yesterday I was at the gas station and I observed a soccer mom topping off the tank of her bright yellow Hummer. And when I say “topping off,” I mean really topping it off; she must have squeezed that hose handle a dozen times. Each time she did, the gas pump reacted with one of those obnoxious attention-getting retorts warning her that the tank was full. Thunk. Thunk, thunk, Continue reading Money Mirages: 6 Money-Saving Ideas That Are Anything But By Ebenezer Scrooge Flickr Photo Credit: alancleaver_2000 Every year, especially around the holidays, I get hit up by solicitors asking me to donate to charity. The requests come from every direction. When people aren’t knocking on my door with their hat in hand, then the requests come by mail and on the television. It’s not just the professional solicitors either. Hobos often approach me in parking lots looking for a handout. Hardly Continue reading Donate? Humbug! 8 Reasons Why My Favorite Charity Is Me. |
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Why Bottle Redemption Fees Belong In Your Local Landfill
Alright, I’m just going to come right out and say it: I hate California’s bottle and can redemption law. Frankly, I find it to be a complete waste of my money.
Now before you write in to tell me how ashamed I should be, and what a terrible steward of the earth I am, you should know that despite my aversion to my state’s bottle redemption law, I still dutifully recycle.
That’s
Continue reading Why Bottle Redemption Fees Belong In Your Local Landfill