Decoding Bundled Services

I have always been a big fan of puzzles. Not the lame kind where you put together a picture of a fruit basket at your Aunt Betty's house because she doesn't have a color TV, but the kind of brain teasers that get you thinking or guessing. Except for Rubik's Cubes. I have always been bad at those, probably because I am not a super smart Rubik's Cube solving robot. But can't a man dream?

Even though many of us enjoy giving our minds a work out, I'm sure that like me, you don't appreciate it when ordering home services feels like a brain teaser. Knowing what you want and what you can afford isn't exactly easy to figure out, given the myriad of options available. What makes this even harder is that providers are often promoting bundles of high-speed Internet, TV or phone for one monthly price, but it's not always apparent if this is a good deal or not. Many providers advertise bundles as a way of saving money on your bills, but is that how it often works?

Fortunately, the answer is "yes".

6 Ways to Take a Green Spring Break

For many students and parents around the country, this week (or next, depending on where you live) is that lovely part of the year known as Spring Break. It's the time when people pack themselves in mini-vans or airplanes and go crash on beaches far and wide, all in anticipation of summer, which lies just around the corner. Or if you're a teacher like my wife, sleeping in and hanging out with friends. Either way, sign me up for one of those next year!

While Spring Break and vacations in general are often highlights of the year for those of us who need a reprieve from the real world, traveling can be an activity that turns ridiculously wasteful in terms of the environment. From the way we recycle, eat and relax, there are plenty of ways to make our down time more eco-friendly. Here are 6 ways to be green on Spring Break.

What to Watch for When Choosing a TV Plan

I've said it before, and I'll continue to say it as long as I'm alive or before I'm cryogenically frozen for the future — TV is great. When I say TV, I mean both the actual physical box and the service that it provides. I'm sure there is a very official definition of it somewhere, but I can't be bothered by the ten seconds it takes to Google things when I am in a writing frenzy. Instead, I'll come up with my own definition. Ahem...

TV - noun. A box from which magical visual goodness flows, illuminating all in its bright and bathing glow.

I didn't mean for that to rhyme, but it's all good. Anyway, I spend a great deal of time (more than I'd care to admit) watching TV, and for TV watchers like me, it's important to consider the right kind of service when choosing what to have in your home. Here are some things to consider when choosing a TV plan.

Saving Money on the Mortgage

The original title of this blog post was going to be about making "biweekly" or "bimonthly" mortgage payments, but since there seems to be confusion about which term is correct, I thought I'd go for something a bit simpler. Moving right along...

Paying the mortgage every month is always a stressful time around our household. Mainly because we are always trying to figure out whether we have enough money to put more down on the principle, so we can gradually shave off some of that lovely interest. However, a great money saving blog called The Simple Dollar offers a different solution that I took a liking to.

Choosing the Right Fire Extinguisher

Moving into our house last year, my wife and I had to make sure we had the bare essentials. These usually involve things like lawn equipment, cleaning supplies, home repair tools and the like. However, one thing that we didn't consider at first was a fire extinguisher. While as many as 75 percent of homes have a fire extinguisher of some kind, there are many out there that don't know their classifications, and at worst, how to use the extinguisher itself.

For the uninitiated (I am including myself in this category), This Old House has put together a list of tips and tools on how to choose and use fire extinguishers. It covers the three types of fire extinguishers (A for flammable items such as wood or cardboard, B for flammable liquids and C for electricity) as well as other useful pieces of information for fire safety newbies like myself. I think the most interesting portion of the article would have to be the section that recommends the size of fire extinguisher that is appropriate for different places. If I'm being honest here, I'd admit that I didn't know fire extinguishers came in as many sizes as This Old House lists. The more you know, right?

To read more about fire extinguishers, I'd definitely recommend checking out This Old House. How many of you have fire extinguishers in your home? Do you know how to use them?

Installing a Programmable Thermostat at Home

If the weather where you live is as volatile as it has been lately in Houston, then you may understand the pain of always having to fiddle with the thermostat in your home. I know that in my previous apartment unit, the thermostat was hard to read, which resulted in a temperatures that I was never quite satisfied with. The unit in our house is better, though it is also old and not always accurate. Through all of this, I've learned that if there's anything that can mess with both electricity and natural gas bills, it's a fickle thermostat.

One way to save money on those monthly bills is through the installation of a programmable thermostat. That way, you can manage when your heating/cooling is running during hotter or colder periods of the day, effectively cutting off the wasted energy when you are not at home or sleeping. This can cut your energy bill substantially, and is well worth the the time it takes.

Luckily for us, the guys over at Microsoft Hohm have put together a handy video that demonstrates the installation process for a programmable thermostat. We've written about Hohm before, so if you've never been there, it's definitely worth checking out to see how you can find some savings each year. In the meantime, check out the video.

So, who out there has a programmable thermostat in their own home? What have your experiences been? Tell us in the comments!

Saving Money at the Grocery Store

As many of you know, there are plenty of ways for you to save money in your day-to-day spending. Whether it's through car pooling or the way you use water and electricity, you can find all kinds of opportunities to pinch a few pennies. One place where you can always use more money saving tips is the grocery store. CBS News has put together a list of tricks to turn you into a savvy food shopper.

• Check the bottom shelf — Since eye-level is where most shoppers do their spending in the grocery store, many companies pay to have their items stocked there. Check the bottom of the shelf for more cost-effective items.
• Mind the end-cap — Just because certain products are on display at the end of the aisle doesn't mean they are on sale. In addition, check the expiration date on these products. There's a chance the retailer has put less fresh items there in hopes of selling them before they go bad.
• Convenience costs money — Sure, you can buy pre-cut chicken or shredded cheese, but it's always cheaper just to buy the full product yourself and then cut it or separate it out later.

For more tips, read the CBS News article, How Supermarkets Lure You To Buy More.

Another way to cut your grocery bill in half is to use coupons. Clip them out of flyers and newspapers or print them online from the following sites:

• Coupon Cabin
• Kroger
• Coupons.com
• Randalls
• Coupon Mom
• Target
• Retail Me Not
• Safeway
• Smart Source
• Winn Dixie

Do You Use a Lawn Service?

As recent apartment-renters-turned-homeowners, my wife and myself are having to become accustomed to maintaining a yard. While we don't have the most gigantic of lots, it definitely adds a whole new side of homeownership that I wasn't quite expecting. You see, I haven't had to mow a yard since high school, really, so this prospect was foreign and surprising. Suddenly, we have to worry about freezing pipes, flower beds that get affected by freezes, a banana tree, and pecans.

After the first few weeks of taking care of the lawn, it became apparent that we just didn't quite have the time to do it justice. It was frustrating to see our grass growing higher while all of our neighbors' yards were perfectly trimmed. So, for the first time in both of our lives, we actually hired a lawn service to come out and take care of it for us. To be honest, we couldn't be happier, and the time and stress we save is more than worth the money.

So what about you guys? Do you hire a lawn service to take care of your yard work? Or do you do it yourself?

Have a Green Valentine's Day

Typically Valentine's Day is associated with the color red – red roses, red boxes of chocolate and red heart-shaped jewelry. I say be different this year and go green – enjoy an energy conscience celebration with the one you love.

Here’s how to be an environmentally friendly Cupid.

• Cook a Romantic Dinner – Make your Valentine’s a feast-for-two in the microwave, or prepare cheese or chocolate in a fondue pot, two low energy ways of preparing small meals. Also by not driving to a restaurant you will have lowered your carbon footprint for you and your sweetie.

• Homemade Gifts – Using recycled items to make Valentine's cards and gifts is the way to go. Also the gift is more memorable to your sweetheart.

• Take a Moonlight Walk – Taking a walk with your sweetie is not only special, it's environmentally friendly.

• Snuggle Up – Turn down the thermostat and curl up with your loved one.

• Go Organic –  Purchasing organic flowers and chocolates is a pesticide free way of showing you care.

High-Speed Internet Customer Service Links

High-speed Internet. It's rampaging across the world like some kind of monster movie, only the monster is awesome and lets you watch gems like Brendan Fraser's goofy clapping while browsing your favorite Web sites. This high-speed monster is a kind monster, and likes to give you lots of bandwidth.

Even though high-speed Internet has seen rapid growth in the last few years in the U.S., it is not quite everywhere, and is continuing to move from home to home. It's becoming the norm now to have faster Internet, so much so that people are expecting free WiFi at hotels and in other publicly visited places.

In fact, high-speed Internet is one of WhiteFence's most ordered products for the last couple of months, which still surprises me. I suppose I've been used to having it for a few years, so I forget that other people might not have made the plunge yet. Seeing as how there are dozens of providers out there providing all these megabytes to PCs (and Macs, I know) across the country, I figured I'd post links for their high-speed customer support centers all in one place. That way, if you've got any questions about a provider, you can check it out.