Chrysler-love

October 5, 2008

“She’s a beauty!” he whistled.

I looked up from the book I was reading, ready to give the husband an earful for shamelessly ogling (and worse, praising) another female. Imagine my amusement when I realized he was referring to the chrysler 300. Silver and sleek, the car is indeed a beauty. Forget ostentatious. The car is retro in design and all-American in its appeal. It’s a fresh take on the classic sedan formula - large, in charge, encased in provocative sheetmetal, and more importantly, attractively priced.

The chrysler 300 was introduced in 2005. The model the hub is drooling over, however, is the most recent one. The 2008 version comes with upgrades and they’re not minor ones, mind you. They have side airbags, an optional Sirius Backseat TV, softer surfaces, and a reconfigured instrument panel. There are other good things about the 2008 model, too. It has an amazingly roomy interior and a dramatic exterior. It provides good handling, excellent drive quality, and powerful acceleration.

So what’s the catch? Most good things always have a catch. In the case of the chrysler 300, we were able to spot only one: fuel consumption. Obviously, its powerful acceleration comes at a trade-off, and at a time and place where fuel costs an arm and a leg, that is a costly trade-off indeed.

Still, I’d have to agree with the husband. The chrysler 300 might not be avant-garde in design nor a striking, attention-grabbing red in color. But demme, she is a beauty!

Plastics for Students?

I can’t count the times I’ve moaned and bemoaned about how purchase-happy credit cards make me. But really, a plastic in my hand turns me into a shopping fiend. The first time I got a credit card, I went crazy and ran up outrageous tabs buying shoes, dresses, and trinkets - all things bright, shiny, colorful, and pretty. By the time I got billed for those impulsive buys, them pretty things I buried myself in debt for lost their appeal.

I’ve a more sensible relationship with my plastics now, thank God. I only whip them out when I absolutely have to and for the past five months, I haven’t used them at all! It’s not that I stopped wanting things; I still do. I just pay for them in cash. Still, if there’s one point in my life when a credit card would have been a lifesaver rather than an unnecessary temptation, it would have been my college days. Show me a student who’s not always short of funds and I’ll show you Santa’s shaving cream.

Student credit cards are the answer to delayed allowances, health emergencies, and other expenditures parents forgot to factor in when they wired their sons’ and daughters’ stipends. I was always short of funds when I was in college. The only reason I didn’t starve was because I was thinner than a stick and thus needed little nourishment. Oh, and my then boyfriend (who is now my husband) kept me well-fed but I digress. The point I’m trying to make is this: wouldn’t it be nifty if students hereabouts can get their own credit cards? Of course, they’d have to be responsible for everything they purchase on credit. After all, it’s their card so it’s their purchase, their responsibility; and while they might be tempted to go on a charging spree in the beginning, they would eventually learn that with great purchase limit comes great responsibility. They will also learn that not all credit cards are created equal — and that they can have their pick of the best ones from StudentCreditCards.com and other similar sites.

Bills One, Bills All

October 4, 2008

Debt is debt, right? It doesn’t matter where you run up ginormous debts on or with - it’s still a debt, yes? The answer is no. If you have long-standing balances on, say, five credit cards, you pay a small fortune in interests and charges alone. Why not consolidate all these debts instead?

Debt Consolidation is the process of replacing multiple loans with a single loan. Simply put, you borrow money - thus putting yourself in debt - to pay off several debts. The good thing about debt consolidation is that while you would still be in debt to an institution, you only owe one entity. Then, too, you put yourself back in good standing with the credit card companies you used to owe money, too. Most importantly, you get to save on interest charges. Debt consolidation loans come with lower interest rates and longer payment periods.

Make no mistake about it, however. Consolidating your bills does not wipe them out for good. Rather, you simply lump them together under the best terms you can find given the circumstances. The good news is that most groups that offer debt consolidation loans also provide counseling. So, on top of getting a loan, you can also get expert help in becoming debt-free someday. Now if only there is also such a thing as stress consolidation, life would be just peachy.

A Trilogy on My Window

October 1, 2008

Doesn’t it ever get to you how annoyingly bright sunlight is in the mornings when all you want to do is sleep? How light filters through windows no matter how much you try to block it with thick curtains? It gets to me. I’m no vampire but it gets to me, and for that reason, I’ve taken to shopping for blinds online.

Blinds are the perfect way to keep my room cozily dark especially during mornings when I don’t feel like waking up - not just yet, anyway. They’re much more adequate than curtains and recently, I learned they make cute window treatments, too. Forget the industrial type of blinds. Over at smith+noble, I found colored Wood Blinds that one can order in just about any color. Honeycomb shades, natural woven shades, roller shades, fabric shades, flaming reds, a restful green - you name it, they have it. Even better, these blinds can be custom-painted to match any wall color, stain, or fabric that customers ask for. All one has to do is send a color sample!

So now, I’m torn between custom-colored wood blinds and trilogy blinds.

 

The colored ones look so pretty but the trilogy blinds would provide a more restful feel to my room. Trilogy or colored? I think I’m going with trilogy. Trilogy is a lovely name to call a thing with. Even better, I can get it within 13 days of ordering. Oh, and the site says these blinds provide insulation and noise reduction, too, but they’re so pretty I’d buy them even without those.