Ignoregon.com - Blog Posts From Oak Grove http://ignoregon.com/rss/oak grove Aggregated Blog Posts From Oak Grove Tue, 7 Feb 2012 07:40:55 +0000 en Can Money Buy Freedom? http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/06/can-money-buy-freedom/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/06/can-money-buy-freedom/ Mon, 6 Feb 2012 06:00:00 +0000 On Saturday, my friend Tyler hosted a blog meetup. I first met Tyler several years ago. He was a GRS reader who dropped me a line to see if I’d meet him for dinner. I said “yes” — as I almost always do. Now, several years later, Tyler runs a successful blog of his own. [...] Reader Story: Why I Lied About Money http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/05/reader-story-why-i-lied-about-money/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/05/reader-story-why-i-lied-about-money/ Sun, 5 Feb 2012 06:00:00 +0000 This guest post from Aloysa is part of the “reader stories” feature at Get Rich Slowly. Some stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success or failure. These stories feature folks from all levels of financial maturity and with all sorts of incomes. You can read more from [...] Q&A: My Current Financial State http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/03/qa-my-current-financial-state/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/03/qa-my-current-financial-state/ Fri, 3 Feb 2012 06:00:00 +0000 Fridays are typically “Ask the Readers” days at Get Rich Slowly, but today I’m doing something a little different. I’ve made a couple of big revelations lately, and those have generated a lot of questions. Today, I’ll answer a handful of these questions in order to give an outline of how I’m managing my money. [...] How to Spend a Tax Refund http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/02/how-to-spend-a-tax-refund/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/02/how-to-spend-a-tax-refund/ Thu, 2 Feb 2012 08:00:00 +0000 This post is from staff writer Sarah Gilbert. For the past two years doing taxes has not been bearable: it’s been terrific! I’ve used an online e-filing service for several years now after many years of taking great pleasure â€" really! â€" in filling out the paper forms, just because it gets the money to [...] Let Go of the Spatula: Reconsidering Wedding Registries http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/01/let-go-of-the-spatula-reconsidering-wedding-registries/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/02/01/let-go-of-the-spatula-reconsidering-wedding-registries/ Wed, 1 Feb 2012 08:00:00 +0000 This post is from staff writer Tim Sullivan. My brother, my best friend, and my girlfriend’s sister are all getting married in the upcoming year, so I’ve heard a lot about wedding registries lately, and there seem to be many pros and cons. Personally, one of my least favorite things in life is going to [...] How and Why I Sold Get Rich Slowly http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/31/how-and-why-i-sold-get-rich-slowly/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/31/how-and-why-i-sold-get-rich-slowly/ Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:00:00 +0000 When I started Get Rich Slowly — on 15 April 2006 — it made very little money. It earned a few pennies per day. Slowly, the income grew. A few pennies per day turned into a few dollars per day, and that turned into tens of dollars per day. Eventually I was making enough money [...] How to Donate Your Body to Science http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/30/how-to-donate-your-body-to-science/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/30/how-to-donate-your-body-to-science/ Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000 This post is from GRS staff writer Donna Freedman. Donna writes a personal finance column for MSN Money, and writes about frugality and intentional living at Surviving And Thriving. A basic burial averages close to $6,600 in the United States. Many people worry about the financial burden this places on their families. There is a [...] Reader Story: The Money Fix http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/29/reader-story-the-money-fix/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/29/reader-story-the-money-fix/ Sun, 29 Jan 2012 06:00:00 +0000 This guest post from Christine is part of the “reader stories” feature at Get Rich Slowly. Some stories contain general advice; others are examples of how a GRS reader achieved financial success or failure. These stories feature folks from all levels of financial maturity and with all sorts of incomes. This reader story is a [...] Automating Savings on an Irregular Income http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/28/automating-savings-on-an-irregular-income/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/28/automating-savings-on-an-irregular-income/ Sat, 28 Jan 2012 09:31:00 +0000 This post is from staff writer April Dykman. One of the tenets of personal finance is to pay yourself first. And one of the most sure-fire ways to make sure you do that is to automate your savings: setup your checking account to make an automatic deposit to your saving accounts. Automation has been incredibly [...] Ask the Readers: Basic Financial Frameworks? http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/27/ask-the-readers-basic-financial-frameworks/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/27/ask-the-readers-basic-financial-frameworks/ Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:00:00 +0000 One common request from new GRS readers is some sort of central location where they can find a list of introductory articles to guide their progress. This is a great idea, and I’m working on it. Some of the GRS elves are working on a “Guide to Money” that will provide some of this info, [...] Spare Change: Submit Your Story Edition http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/26/spare-change-submit-your-story-edition/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/26/spare-change-submit-your-story-edition/ Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Like a hibernating bear, I feel like I’m waking from a long winter’s nap. For the past few months, I’ve been dormant, not just at Get Rich Slowly but at my other sites as well. I’ve had so much happening in my personal life that it’s been tough to find the mental energy to write [...] 11 Things You May Not Know About Retirement Accounts http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/26/11-things-you-may-not-know-about-retirement-accounts/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/26/11-things-you-may-not-know-about-retirement-accounts/ Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000 This is a guest post from Robert Brokamp of The Motley Fool. Robert is a Certified Financial Planner and the adviser for The Motley Fool’s Rule Your Retirement service. Robert contributes one new article to Get Rich Slowly every two weeks, and photocopies his face and other body parts. I don’t know you personally (yet), [...] How to Stock Your Liquor Cabinet on the Cheap http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/25/how-to-stock-your-liquor-cabinet-on-the-cheap/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/25/how-to-stock-your-liquor-cabinet-on-the-cheap/ Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000 This post is by staff writer Tim Sullivan. It’s Friday night. A few friends and I are debating whether or not to go to the college bars down the street to get a drink when my friend Steve chimes in that his apartment is just up the way, and says, with his chest slightly puffed, [...] The Calculus of Convenience http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/24/the-calculus-of-convenience/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/24/the-calculus-of-convenience/ Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:00:00 +0000 For several years now, I’ve lived in a sort of financial sweet spot. After paying off my debt, I realized that Kris and I had everything we really wanted or needed, so we never had to buy much for the house (except when something broke). But now that I’m on my own, I’m finding all [...] A+ Preparing the Hard Disk for Installation, XP/2K http://kiloseven.blogspot.com/2012/01/preparing-hard-disk-for-installation_23.html http://kiloseven.blogspot.com/2012/01/preparing-hard-disk-for-installation_23.html Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:44:00 +0000 In Windows XP/2000:• To use all of the space in the disk, make sure that Unpartitioned Space is highlighted and press Enter  â€¢ To use only part of the space, press C to Create Partition, and specify the partition size on the next screen. Press Enter after specifying the desired size.• To use an existing partition, arrow to that partition so that it becomes highlighted and press Enter. Be careful, whatever partition you select for the installation will be formatted.• To delete a pre-existing partition, press D, then press Enter at the next screen, and finally press L to confirm.After partitioning is complete in Windows XP/2000, you need to format the partitions. Normally, you would select NTFS. Select FAT if the partition is under 32GB in size. If you specify FAT, the partition will be FAT16 if it is under 2GB in size and FAT32 if it is 2GB or larger. Windows XP offers the option to perform a quick format (saves time) or a regular format (takes longer but verifies the entire disk surface). Windows formats the partition with the file system you specify and continues the installation process. How We Paid Cash for Our First Home http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/23/how-we-paid-cash-for-our-first-home/ http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/01/23/how-we-paid-cash-for-our-first-home/ Mon, 23 Jan 2012 06:00:00 +0000 This is a guest post from Cystal Paine, the Money Saving Mom. Paine is a wife, homeschool mom to three, self-proclaimed minimalist, and wannabe runner. For practical help and inspiration to get your life and finances in order, visit her blog, Money Saving Mom, or purchase a copy of her brand-new book, The Money Saving [...] A+ Preparing the Hard Disk for Installation, 7/Vista http://kiloseven.blogspot.com/2012/01/preparing-hard-disk-for-installation.html http://kiloseven.blogspot.com/2012/01/preparing-hard-disk-for-installation.html Mon, 23 Jan 2012 01:57:00 +0000 There are three different file systems supported by Windows Vista/XP:    • NTFS    • FAT32    • FAT16 (also known as FAT)Which file system should you use for the operating system installation? Most of the time you will use NTFS, unless you want to install to a pre-existing FAT32 partition and do not want to lose data during the installation. The largest FAT32 partition that Windows can format during installation is 32GB; larger partitions must be formatted as NTFS. FAT16 is supported so that Windows can access other devices such as memory sticks or older hard drives, but chances are you won’t come across it very often.Keep in mind that much of the data security of Windows comes from the use of NTFS. If NTFS is not used to prepare a drive, encryption and compression are not available, nor is user-level or group-level access control. Windows Vista and 7 can be installed only or NTFS drives.When prompted, you have the option to use all the unpartitioned space on an empty hard disk for Windows or to use only a part of the space.In Windows Vista/7:    • To use all of the space in the disk, make sure that the disk and partition you want is highlighted and click Next    • To use only part of the space, click Drive Options (Advanced), click New, specify the partition size, and click Apply    • To use an existing partition, highlight the desired partition and click Next. Be careful; whatever partition you select for the installation will be formatted and all data on that partition will be erased.You can also format partitions from here; they are automatically formatted as NTFS. In addition, you can extend pre-existing partitions to increase the size of the partition but without losing any data.