The Family That Sweats Together Stays Together

Post written by Bridget Strub.

photo courtesy of Yoppy

More than a few weeks ago I wrote an article about being stuck in bad eating habits. Since we’re all still a little hung over from our Thanksgiving indulgences I figured today would be as good as any to give an update on my self proclaimed “stuck-ness.” I should preface this article by saying that I just downed a 44-ounce cup of Mountain Dew and an entire theatre size box of Tropical Typhoon flavored Mike an Ikes. Surprisingly enough, though, this could shape up to be a pretty positive report.

You should know something about me. I have a hard time making commitments to things, luckily not my relationship with Pete, but in virtually every other area in my life. I once had seven jobs in one year. I was only fired from one of them thank you very much. I’ve written and rewritten a five-year plan over ten times in the last five years. And my latest achievement? I’ve had five different gym memberships in the last four years – three of them being in the last year.

At the end of last school year I joined the gym at my Alma Mater St. John Fisher College. It was the best deal in town, it was right on my way to and from work, and they had TVs in front of all the cardio machines. There is absolutely no reason why I shouldn’t still be going there. But, in August the Bills took over campus and I was scared I’d run in to T.O., no, not really, but it was such a hassle to get there so I stopped going. Even when fall hit and the Bills were well into their pathetic season (minus their game this past Sunday) I continued to stay away. My excuses were plentiful, and every time I drove past Fisher and saw it stare me down on 490 the guilt was as heavy as my newly accumulated pounds.

At that point I joined the Iron Butterfly in Victor because I figured I should try working out in the morning before school so I didn’t have any excuse in the afternoon. Turns out that 5:30 am has a whole new batch of excuses to offer someone whose husband is still snoring contentedly in the warm bed. Most recently, about three weeks ago, I joined the JCC in Brighton thinking if my gym was closer to me I wouldn’t have as hard of a time waking up to go in the morning. That was a stupid assumption. It’s not easy to get up in the morning. In fact, I still hate it. There have been a few mornings that I have consciously decided to sleep in. But rather than give up for the day, I’ve made sure to go to the gym after work on those days. I’ve even been there three consecutive Saturdays when their doors open so that I can put in an hour and half or more of workout time. I am proud to say that in the twenty-one days I’ve been a member there, I’ve worked out eleven times. That’s because they have one thing that none of my other gyms ever had.

The JCC has a huge room filled with a wide variety of cardio machines. They have three weight rooms and more fitness classes than I could attend if I were a contestant on the Biggest Loser. They have a pool, a nice, clean locker room, and a program that provides new members with three private sessions with a personal trainer to help orient you to the facilities and you to meet with a personal trainer a few times to get oriented to the weights and you set up a plan that allows you to achieve your goals. Amazingly enough, all of those things are not what keep me going back. The only reason I have stuck to my commitment to the JCC is the fact that Pete has joined with me. He has been committed to waking up with me each morning and sweating it out with me. While we’re there we rarely work out together, but it’s been so nice to have someone there encouraging me along the way. It’s made all the difference in fact. On the days I can’t wake up, I go to the gym after work, because I know Pete will be waiting for me at home wondering whether I followed through with my commitment or not.

Our commitment to self-improvement has even carried over, somewhat, to our diet as well. Pete and I both love our sweets. In fact, they are a “usual” on our weekly grocery list. But this weekend Pete stopped and questioned our choice as we grabbed two half-gallon containers of Turkey Hill Ice Cream from the freezer. That pause alone is a huge improvement in our eating habits, but the fact that we actually put them back is a true testament to the difference working out together has made. I’ve noticed that I push myself harder, stick to my goals more closely and feel more encouraged than ever all because I know Pete is there.

It’s so important to have accountability in an area that you’re trying to improve in. Even if that accountability still lets you down 44 ounces of Mountain Dew and a box of Mike and Ikes after dinner. Hey, I’m not saying I’ve got it completely down just yet, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be perfect, but I’ve felt the best I’ve felt in awhile in the last few weeks. The scale hasn’t gone down too drastically yet, but my mindset has shifted, my relationship with Pete has gotten stronger, and I’d say I’m well on my way past stuck and that is something I can stay committed to.

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Get Outta Town!

Post written by Bridget Strub.

photo courtesy of Joiseyshowaa

For the four years Pete and I have been married, we’ve made it a habit to go away for a night every three months or so. You might be wondering how we can afford weekly date nights and nights away every three months. This type of behavior doesn’t fit in to our normal spending behaviors. For a couple who slept on a ten year old mattress for the first four years of marriage, counts every dollar each month in a strict budget, and lives in a $60,000 home, you wouldn’t think we’d live extravagantly enough to sleep in a hotel every three months. The truth of the matter is, though, we can’t afford not to do these things. Our weekly date nights help keep us connected with each other from crazy week to crazy week. But, some of the most pivotal moments of our marriage have occurred while we were away from our regular setting and able to relax in an out of routine sort of way.

When we get away, we’re able to step back from the inevitable funk that accumulates in our everyday life and reassess where we’re at as individuals and as a couple. We’ve stuck to this pattern pretty much since our first day of marriage. I attribute the fact that our love still feels new and exciting to this tradition. If we hadn’t taken the time to do these things, I’m convinced our relationship would be at a very different place than it is today. When we’re able to shut out the rest of the world and look at each other as the people we fell in love with five years ago, the world seems to set itself right. We’re able to work out the little things that creep in where they shouldn’t. We can dig up the underlying junk that’s been lying hidden for a while. After all that, we’re able to just breathe a little and dream about where we’re going in the future.

If you’re married and haven’t taken the time to get away on a semi-regular basis, my advice to you is as simple as the Nike motto. Just do it. There are plenty of hotels, bed and breakfasts, or inns that offer a one night’s stay with a hot breakfast for little over a hundred dollars. We’ve become pretty partial to hotels like Wingate by Wyndam and Homewood Suites. They have an indoor pool and hot tub that help speed up the relaxation process, and the guessing game with room quality and cleanliness is taken out of the equation.

The one variable that we encounter with each stay is where we’ll eat dinner. We’re typically at the mercy of the location of our hotel and what we can find near it. This week, our hotel was in the middle of a field, kind of creepy, and right next to a Quaker Steak & Lube. I have a fundamental problem with Quaker Steak & Lube simply based on the fact that its name and logo is so closely associated to a car oil company. The thought of eating food from there kind of creeps me out, even if they do have some of the best wings around, or so I’ve heard. I thought we’d be stuck there, but we were miraculously saved by an incredible suggestion to try Coppertop Tavern in North Syracuse, NY.

I didn’t let myself get my hopes up as we drove through Syracuse in pursuit of our dinner. I’d been burned before by the seemingly unique restaurants, and was a little nervous this would be another experience like that. This experience was immensely different though. I immediately fell in love with it as we sat in the corner booth of the old-fashioned tavern and read through the menu. There were plenty of mouth-watering options ranging from hefty burgers, crispy pizza baked in a stone hearth, creative salads, and other tavern favorites. Our expectations were high as we ordered. We thought that if they could pull through with good food we would have the perfect restaurant experience. We were not disappointed.

Pete chose Chicken DaVinci, a huge pasta dish with two full chicken breasts smothered in pesto and mozzarella and a side of three servings of pasta. I decided on the Italian Chopped Salad, a mound of lettuce with all of my favorite salad toppings; artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, pepperoni kalamata olives, garbanzo beans, banana peppers, and tomato bruschetta that soaked everything with the perfect blend of seasoning and juice so that I didn’t even have to use the dressing that came on the side. In addition to all of that, we received a basket of warm garlic bread made in the stone hearth.

Our dinner was absolutely delicious. Flavors did the fox trot in my mouth as I crunched through my salad. We both had portions left over that we were able to eat for lunch the next day. That’s no surprise for me, but it says a lot that Pete couldn’t finish his meal. Our bill came to $30.45, tax and tip included. And that definitely set the tone for a great rest of our get away!

If you ever find yourself in North Syracuse, maybe on a getaway with your special someone, make sure you stop in to try the Coppertop Tavern, it’s well worth the drive!

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Caffeine Dependency

Post written by Veronica Kipfer.

photo courtesy of emdot

Three months ago…. “beep, beep, beep, beep, bee…….”.

“Give me five more minutes…. five.. more…”

… 40 minutes later …

I have now sacrificed any sensible time to make breakfast, including brewing my own coffee. I rush to put myself together while hoping to match a pair of socks on my way out the door. Since five minutes turned into forty, I now have just enough time to frequent the local Tim Hortons for my large, double-cream-double-splenda with a hint of either mint or hazelnut. I know this small dose of caffeine will jump start my productivity once I get to work.

Thankfully once I get to work and the double-double is history, there are free coffee stations every 50 yards in our office. I buy half and half for the remaining 4 cups of coffee I will consume before the day is over. I will not drink Coffee mate creamers or use that powdered creamer at all. I learned that these creamers are made with hydrogenated oils, and are not even dairy products. It’s my personal opinion that the body can digest either half and half or milk better than hydrogenated oil. After researching hydrogenated oils I have decided It’s not something I want in my body.

Hydrogenated oil is:
Hydrogenated oil is oil in which the essential fatty acids have been converted to a different form chemically, which has several effects on the oil. Hydrogenated oil is far more shelf stable, and will not go rancid as quickly as untreated oil. It also has a higher melting point, and is often used in frying and pastries for this reason. Finally, the chemical structure of the oil is changed, which scientists in the 1990s began to realize could result in health effects.

I am learning the importance of independently being dependant in God. I cannot depend of God through someone else’s belief. Hearing great sermons or reading inspiration books is definitely profitable to my spirit, but until I make it personal, until I make it real to me, it will just be information. Once it’s been made personal I can begin to believe that information.

Let’s take a look at Abraham for example. He believed God. He didn’t believe in God. He just believed. His example of faith is what we need to mirror. Do we believe God and ever promise he has give us or are we acknowledging that God is real, and His word is real, and maybe it applies in some areas? We need to cash in on all the promises of God every time we gain more understanding in a certain area.

Learning to be dependant and trust in God in the plans he has for us needs to happen for breakthrough in finances, relationships, ministry, health, workplace, etc. We begin to realize that no matter what curve balls come our way we are still on the straight path because our trust is in the ONE who has it all under control…. we can live life at peace at all times. Settled. Knowing that everything will be ok, especially right now the way things are going in our world…. recession, foreclosures, H1N1, etc.

For a month and half now I have not had coffee, or caffinated teas. I chose to take a “fast” from caffeine because I was depending way too much in it’s ability to keep me alert and awake. I love coffee. Anyone who knows me will testify to that. There’s not a room in my house without a vintage mug, or something that resembles my love for coffee. So I hope you can imagine how hard this decision was. Instead I have transitioned into drinking herbal non-caffinated teas, or I will warm some apple cider mixed with water to cut back on the sugar in the cider. I’ve realized most of the time I was just craving a warm cup or something in the morning. I also increased the amount of water I drink in a day. Eating spinach on a regular basis has also given me lasting energy.

I have since believed that my help comes from the Lord, he is my sustainer, I sleep and awake again because HE sustains me. There is a time and place for everything, a time for every action under the sun. Psalm 121:2, Psalm 3:5 and Ecclesiastes 3:1.

I don’t miss the caffeine, but I do miss the coffee I will start drinking coffee again soon. I will not however have 5-cup days anymore. Maybe a cup in the morning, some around lunch and decaf at dinner. Most importantly I will not be depending on the caffeine to keep me alert and awake.

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Where is Your Focus?

Post written by Veronica Kipfer.

photo courtesy of adriarichards

I would like to follow in Patrick’s lead from his post yesterday, Two Words You Never Want to Say. I too managed to neglect introducing myself in last week’s post. As you already know, my name is Veronica. Since Patrick mentioned he is a newlywed, allow me to mention that I am single, I work as an Office Assistant. It’s not my dream job but it’s a very good job for now. One day I will own my own coffee shop, be married with a family… etc, but this is not a time for me to expose all my future hopes and dreams to the world, maybe next week. (or not) I went to school, majoring in Psychology, for about two years before it became clear that wasn’t the right path for me. It wasn’t until I left school, as I am sure is true for most young adults, that I discovered what my passion was. I discovered where my life was heading and it became my focus to do everything in my power to get there.

The mind intrigues me. As I shared last week, I am a firm believer in positive thinking. Thinking positively takes focus. And focus requires determination, diligence and patience. Yes! Imagine that, focused people posses more patience than the unfocused. So what is focus and why should you care if you are focused?

According to dictionary.com, Focus is defined as, a central point, as of attraction, attention, or activity. Why should you care if you are focused? Let’s take last week’s article, Push Yourself, Don’t Quit and use it as an example of why it’s important to keep yourself focused. For those of you who may not have read the article, I shared how I found myself in a horrible mood, I changed the focus of what I was thinking about and just like that, my spirit began to lift and I found myself feeling much better even though circumstances may not have been so wonderful.

Focus is something that has been very important and influential in my life over the last year or so. I grew up as an overweight child and it held me back from fully living my life. I remember being in middle school and dropping out of soccer. Did I quit? Yes. Did I want to quit, absolutely not! Over the last year I’ve been focusing on my lifestyle habits and choosing healthier options. Ok, let’s all face it, we’d all rather make excuses for why we can’t make healthier choices. I’ve heard many, here are just a few examples, “I’ve tried that diet… I can’t do the no-carb thing… I don’t have time… I just can’t keep it up…”

First, I’d like to say every single one of us cannot use the same health plan to lose weight, maintain weight or put weight on. Whatever it is you want to do, you’ve got to make it work for you with your body. I’ve had many people tell me their opinions of what has worked for them, and their magical food they ate that helped them drop that last 5lbs that seems to always stick around. While I welcome all advice from others, I have to stay focused on my goal, to be healthy.

I joined a biggest loser competition last year at my office and nothing motivated me more than that. Just like NBC’s The Biggest Loser, we would weigh in once a week, Monday mornings of course. Each week I would wait in line for my turn to weigh in. I was shocked how many reasons, or excuses rather, I was hearing for someone’s 2lb weight gain, or why they didn’t lose this week. “Well I had a party on Saturday and then the family was over Sunday for dinner and the whole nine yards.” It’s amazing how quickly we can excuse our behavior. For anyone that watches The Biggest Loser, change is a must! The overweight contestants join the show because their focus was off. Maybe they’re a single mom, trying to raise a few kids. Or maybe they’re a busy Dad working two jobs, whatever their story is, they’ve all made choices to lead them to where they are when they first join the show. I see The Biggest Loser helping these contestants change their mental focus the most. Yes, they train them in proper nutrition and workouts, but most importantly they help re-align their focus.

Since a little over year ago, I’ve dropped roughly 70lbs. It has taken a lot of work, and focus. It also took a year. Staying focused will produce amazing results if you keep going, refuse to quit and push yourself.

Let’s say you’ve attained what you were focusing on. Don’t stop there! Get a new focus that incorporates your previous focus and build on your achievements.

I’d like to share with you a tool I have found very helpful. It’s called “The Daily Plate”. You can find “The Daily Plate” on livestrong.com This is an amazing tool that allows you to enter your weight, the amount of weight you would like to lose or gain, your activity level etc. It then gives you an approximate calorie intake and allows you to track your daily food and exercise. This helped me stay focused to lose the 70lbs. A great thing about “The Daily Plate” is the breakdown of carbs, fats and sugars. Helping you make sure you are getting a healthy balance. Enjoy!

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Life, Liberty, and The Pursuit of Food (or happiness, they really are the same thing)

Post written by Bridget Strub.

photo courtesy of 27147

Food has always been a passion of mine. Not the crazy expensive, you need an overactive pallet to appreciate it, type of food. Rather, I love the good ol’ fashioned stuff. Give me a slice of thin crust pizza, a heaping plate of creamy beef stroganoff or a big bowl of ice cream drizzled with caramel and I’m the happiest girl in the world.

In fact, I like food so much that when I eat an especially good meal I sway. I can’t help it. Like my dog’s passionately wagging tail when the word “walk” is mentioned, I rock from side to side when I’m digging in to some really yummy eats. It may not happen every time, but if I’m absorbed in my meal there’s no stopping the sway.

I dream of spending countless hours in a gourmet kitchen inventing award winning meals or desserts with ease like they do on cooking shows. I imagine my family applauding my newest dish and complimenting me on how easy I made it look or how beautiful the presentation was. I often daydream about opening my very own café complete with unique varieties of paninis and salads, a wide array of drinks, and delectable pastries (all with really fun names of course!).

While I aspire to these things, I need you to know up front that this is not at all reality. In fact, before we get any more attached to one another there are a few things you should know about me:
• I once ruined EZ-Mac, therefore proving that it’s not necessarily all that “EZ”.
• I collect cookbooks, but rarely use them except to look at the pictures and dream about what I could possibly make.
• I often blame my cooking incompetency on the kitchen we inherited in the house we bought a few years ago. It’s pink and has nasty tile countertop. I don’t like going in there so of course I can’t practice my craft!
• The extent of the weekly meals I prepare for my husband and I consist of a pretty plain rotation of pasta, baked potatoes, salads and the like. I thought I was doing pretty well the other night when I added peppers and sausage to the pasta. I was pretty proud of myself.
• When making macaroni salad I misread the 1/8 teaspoons of salt I should’ve added for 1 ½ tablespoons. Don’t try that at home, your face might scrunch up and never go back to normal.

Luckily enough for me, I married a pretty patient man. He grew up on a farm, with a mom who can cook like it’s nobody’s business. He was used to real homemade food. The kind you think of coming out of the oven piping hot on holidays while your family is sitting around the table laughing and enjoying each others’ company. That was his daily encounter with food. He’s been more than kind when I’ve had my many mishaps in the kitchen, and never once tries to compare me to his mom. He is, however, pretty bad at hiding the thrill in his eyes when his mom asks us if we want to come over for dinner. She doesn’t even have to tell him what she’s making, he’s already drooling.

That being said, my husband loves food just as much as I do, maybe even slightly more. We established a pretty awesome tradition early on in our marriage of going on a date each week. At the end of each week we go out in hopes to put the craziness from the week behind us (we’re both teachers…there’s a lot of craziness that happens in a week!) and remember why we got married in the first place. I love date night for many reasons, but one in particular is that we get to enjoy food from various eateries around Rochester.

We used to explore all around the city (and beyond) to find fun, unique food. However, after four years we’ve gotten into a pretty big rut of eating primarily at chain restaurants or the few places that we’ve loved since the beginning. So, in attempts to help us branch out a little more we will be trying out new eateries in the next few months and I will be sharing our experiences with you. I will attempt to offer some advice on places you can go to get good real-people food. The type of food you can get on a budget (because we are which could make this a bit tricky). I might even share with you other food things that come up throughout the week, but only if you’re lucky.

Here’s the deal though, I tend to get distracted pretty easily. I have random thoughts flying through my head most of the day. Some are brilliant ideas, others just strange, lots are observations I have of the things or people around me. So, don’t be surprised if the randomness creeps into my entries. I’ll do my best to stay focused, but the random is part of what makes me me, so try to bear with me! My last disclaimer is that I can’t commit my husband to eating “strange” food for a crazy long time (he really likes familiarity), so we might have to break our “non-chain” rule every once in awhile.

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Upromise: Free Money for College

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

Upromise is a very easy way to save money for college. There are several ways in which you can save money, and the great thing is that, you don’t even have to think about it. Once you sign up and register your credit cards (don’t worry it’s safe), you just go about your normal spending habits and save money.

Here’s how it works. Basically you register your credit cards, shoppers club cards, etc., for any company that is part of the Upromise program. When you buy certain products or eat at eligible restaurants, a portion of the purchase price will be deposited into your Upromise account. It’s that easy.

Amy and I have been doing it for probably about 6 years and we have $300 in our account. Now maybe you were expecting more money, but again, we signed up 6 years ago and I forgot about it until I received a recent email statement. The great thing is that I haven’t done anything different in these last six years to try to help Upromise. In fact, I should probably have a lot more, because for about half the time I forgot to update Upromise with my new debit cards we receive routinely from the bank.

Another great feature is that you can have family and friends sign up as well. For example, your parents can create their own Upromise account and pass their savings on to your little one.

What if you don’t have a child yet? Are your kids already through college? Doesn’t matter, you can still start saving now, and then when you do have kids or grandkids, you can move that savings into a 529 plan that can be used for their college expenses.

I’ve spent probably about 1 hour on the last six years on Upromise signing up, and registering new cards. That has earned me $300. I suppose if I spent a little more time actively finding places to spend my money that support Upromise, I’d have much more, but I like the idea of not having to do anything extra to earn free money.

Check it out – it will certainly be worth your time.

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How to Turn Cheap “Choice” Steak into Gucci “Prime” Steak

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

photo from steamykitchen.com

It’s Independence Day weekend and chances are, you have plans to get the grill out. There’s nothing like a backyard barbecue to celebrate your freedom. So check out the following tips to cook up a steak that John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and Thomas Jefferson would be proud of.

Check out the article How to Turn Cheap ‘Choice’ Steak into Gucci ‘Prime’ Steak at SteamyKitchen.com. If you enjoy a good steak, I promise you’ll enjoy this article and will be salivating by the time you finish reading it.

If you get a chance to try this out this weekend, let us know how it goes!

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Buying a Car: Good Husband, Bad Wife

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

photo courtesy of Kim Guanzon

I really enjoy buying a new vehicle. And by new vehicle, I mean new to me. Our most recent purchase, which was actually three years back, was our Lexus RX300. Now if you are like most people, when you hear the brand Lexus, you are assuming we must have paid a pretty hefty price tag for that SUV. Well, I think we made out like a bandit – only paying $15,000 for a four year old Lexus with 40K miles. Here was our experience, with a little advice mixed in.

Tip #1: Only buy used: First off, I need to share this. Only purchase a used vehicle. It is mind boggling how quickly your car’s value will drop in the first two years. In fact, over the lifespan of your car, the biggest drop will occur in the first three years. So why not have someone else incur that loss.

Tip #2: Dave’s Advice: Dave Ramsey gives a few great rules to go by. First, only buy a new car if you are a millionaire. Millionaire’s are the only people who can afford to purchase something that will drop in value so drastically. Secondly, your total value of car(s) for your family should not exceed more than half your annual household income. So if you have a MiniVan worth $29K and a second car worth $22K (which comes out to $51K, you better be making about $100K a year. Simple rule. Good rule. Live by it.

We were looking on the wrong lots. Some very good friends of ours purchased an RX300 and I fell in love with it. They found a great deal and encouraged us to look for one. We went all around the city trying to find a used Lexus RX300 and besides the Lexus dealership we had a tough time coming across them. That’s one one dealership gave us some great advice, which paid off. Look on the Higher End lots. No one is going to trade in a Lexus for a Ford. But you likely find someone trading in a Lexus for a BMW or Mercedes. So down the road to the BMW dealership we went and there she was. Sitting there surrounded by her more snobby four wheeled companions.

Know your Price. We had a budget for our car. It was $15K. We wanted to buy the best car we could for our $15K. It didn’t matter what the monthly payments were to us, or how long the dealership could stretch them out to give us the right monthly fee. We were more concerned about the overall price. This way we could compare apples to apples. You see, you can pay $240 a month for a $15K car, or a $32K car. That all depends on how many years you want to pay.

It was late and our car had a date. We pulled on the lot about 10 minutes before closing time. The salesman who came out to help us slipped and told us the Lexus had been there a while and was due to go to Auction the next day. So it was sell it or lose it for them. I told him, if he was willing to sell it for $15K, and the test drive went well, we’d buy it tonight. His eyes lit up, he grabbed his jacket and the key, and we were off on our test drive in a matter of minutes.

Ready to walk away. Amy and I loved the car. It rode perfectly and we were ready to buy. (I failed to mention that we had done plenty of research up to this point. We had test driven multiple RX300s and we knew the average price for the same year and amount of miles from other dealerships was about $23K). But most importantly, we had a price of $15K. I made it very clear. If he could do $15K, we would buy immediately. The key for us was being able to say ‘No’. It’s very easy to get caught up in the sale and buckle.

Tip #3: Your most valuable weapon: I believe your most valuable weapon is the word ‘No’. Don’t put yourself in a position where you have to buy a car. Give yourself enough time. Have a set budget amount. And be ready to walk out the door. Up to this point we had walked out of three dealerships that had cars we wanted, but would not go below $19K.

Good Husband, Bad Wife. We had Hannah with us and it was quite late, so Amy decided to stay in the truck with Hannah and I went in for the negotiations. At this point we stumbled upon an incredible strategy which we didn’t realize until after. As I sat at the sales table, sipping my free bottled water, the salesman punched all sorts of numbers into his calculator and rustled through important looking papers. And then he looked at me. “I can do 21 for this car.” Wow 6 thousand to go. It didn’t seem likely. I started to get up and explained this was way over what our budget was and reminded him the number I told him up front.

He ran some more numbers and came up with a new number of $19K. I told him the other dealerships we were at were offering at least that price and I would head back to them. This didn’t sit well with him, so he did a few more quick calculations and told me $18K.

This is when our strategy fell into place. I told him I had to check with my wife and headed out to the truck. This put Amy and I in a unique position. I didn’t have to be the bad guy who was turning down his price, and Amy was removed from the pressure the salesman was trying to apply.

Amy opened the window and I leaned in and shared with her the disappointing amount. We both agreed we were sticking to our budget and would have to keep looking. So I went back in and informed the salesman that my wife would not except his offer. Our price was $15K.

He slouched back in his chair and reminded me of the quality and features of the car we were looking at and tried to change the tune of our negotiations to focus on monthly payment. I re-focused our attention back to the $15K and reminding him that that’s all my wife would except.

Tire Leverage. One of the unique things about this particular car was that it had a full set of brand new snow tires in the back that the previous owner had purchased. At this point we had gotten the price down to about $15,500 and I brought that number back to ‘the bad wife’ for consideration. She again refused and said $15K. I once again told him she denied his offer and I chuckled inside as this was the very tactic we faced so often earlier in the day as salesmen would come back after their managers denied our offer. He finally buckled and offered $15 but with a condition. We would not get the snow tires.

We don’t want your stinking tires. With a little more pep in my walk I once again approached the tinted window of the truck that my wife sat behind and explained the offer. Amy told me to take it but get the better set of tires. I came back and sat down and placed my fingertips together as I shared my counter offer with a grin. We’ll take the $15K offer, but we get the better set of tires. Put the brand new snow tires on the Lexus and we’ll sign. It was a deal.

Our price and the 8 tires. He drew up the paperwork and must have realized how worthless a set of half-worn Lexus tires were to him and as he laid down the agreement in from of me, he grunted out that we could have both sets of tires.

The next day we came back and picked up our new (to us) Lexus RX300, which has earned almost 70 thousand miles since that day. Lexus’s or should I say Lexi, on average live to about 300,000 miles so at 110,000 today, she’s still baby.

Tip #4: Use the Strategy: I hope you enjoyed this article, learned a few good tips, and definitely consider using the Good Husband, Bad Wife Strategy the next time you purchase a new vehicle.

Tip #5: Bonus Car Buying Video: Check out this car buying video. It’s 5 minutes long and has some great advice for buying a new car. Rob Gruhl is pretty humorous too.

Disclaimer: The advice is very sound, but unfortunately there are a couple of profanities in this video.

embedded by Embedded Video

YouTube Direkt

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Camera Buying Tips

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

photo courtesy of vonSchnauzer

My wife and I were commenting recently on how popular professional cameras are recently. It used to be that every one had a point and shoot and it was very rare to see someone with a larger, professional series camera. But now, when you are walking around in any public area that’s worth bringing a camera, its not at all surprising to see about a third or more of the cameras are DSLR and slung over a shoulder.

One of our readers, brigetstrub, recently sent me the following Post Suggestion:

Hi Steve,
I was just wondering if you knew much about digital cameras. Not the point and click ones, but similar (on a much more amateur scale) to what [professional] photographers use. I’m thinking about getting one, and wanted to know what to look for. Any advice?!
Bridget

Well here you go Bridget – here is my Camera Buying Advice. Oh, and take it for what it’s worth, because I currently don’t own a Professional DSLR camera. (But it is on my wish list and I’ve done some research).

Go big or really really small… My first suggestion for buying a camera is to get an iPhone. That’s right a new iPhone 3G S. (My guess is that since I’ve been waiting to get an iPhone for so long Apple decided to put the ‘S’ for ‘Steve’ on this model so I would know it was the right time to get one). I’ve had my iPhone for about a week now and there is one absolutely huge benefit with the built in camera it has. It is always with me. The best camera is the one you have with you. Your large DSLR camera is of no use if it’s at home on the shelf when you need it. The other huge features of the iPhone is that the camera is amazingly good quality, and its extremely easy to share and organize your pictures. The drawbacks? There are three: Price, Zoom, and Flash. It has no zoom, so you aren’t going to get those far away shots. It has no flash, although it does quite well in low light, so dark pictures are out. And Price, actually might be as big a deal as you might think. How much does a DSLR cost? $900? $1,000? So the $30 extra a month for your iPhone adds up to $360 a year. That’s not too bad when you think about it. I realize there is a huge difference in picture quality between a $1,000 DSLR and an iPhone, but again my point was the best camera is the one you have with you.

A Professional’s Advice: Rebecca Johnson, who is a good friend of mine as well as a professional photographer along with her sister Rachel, gave me some good buying advice. She recommended looking on craigslist for older Canon models. Right now the Canon 50d and soon the 60d models are out. So look for a 20d or 30d on craigslist. You might even be able to find some great packages with a lens and/or flash.

More professional Advice: Trey Ratcliff or Stuck in Customs has some beautiful work and he also shares some equipment buying advice. He favors Nikon so it’s nice to get his take as well.

A few other Resources: If you aren’t in the market right now for a new camera, or maybe you just want a new lens, here are some resources to help you improve on the photos you are taking right now –

Improve Your Photos 60 Seconds at a Time

How to Buy a New Camera Lens

How to Buy a Digital Camera

One Last Tip: Owning a $1,000 camera does not make you a Professional Photographer. Nor does it make your friend a professional Photographer. Please people, if you are getting married, hire a professional photographer like Rachel Ann or Michael Demme. I have the benefit of seeing a lot of wedding pictures taken by both professionals and ‘friends with nice cameras’. Friends may shoot 60 nice pictures and about 3 incredible pictures. But professionals like Michael and Rachel shoot about 300+ incredible pictures consistently with every wedding they do. It amazes me with how many pictures they shoot, the high percentage of amazing shots they get.

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10+ Resources to help you become a Graphic Design Pro

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

photo courtesy of angelsk

I’ve really gotten into Graphic Design recently and one of the things I’ve found is that having the right tools and resources makes all the differences. I’m going to share my most commonly used resources I go to when I’m working on a project.

The most amazing software program when it comes to Graphic Design is Adobe Photoshop. So the majority of my resources have to do with PS. With the use of some high quality graphics, a few key tutorials, the right fonts and brushes, you can do just about anything and look like a pro.

Tutorials. The easiest way to learn some new skills is by having someone walk you through it. Each time I start a new graphic design project, I try to learn one new skill. I am often amazed at how easy some basic tricks are, and how much they impact your work. Here are some of my favorite places to check out new tutorials.

Tutorial9


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50 Incredible Photography Techniques and Tutorials

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

photo from SmashingMagazine.com

I came across this article on one of my favorite blogs – Smashing Magazine. It’s an incredible resource of techniques for your photography hobby.

With a tutorial for just about any photography style you want to attempt, this is a great article – 50 Incredible Photography Techniques and Tutorials – that should inspire you to try some new techniques and improve your overall photography skills. Enjoy!

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7 Must-Have Firefox Addons

Post written by Steve Otto. Follow me on Twitter.

photo courtesy of Mozilla

One of the best features of the free opensource web browser called Firefox is the ability to install ‘addons’. Simply click Tools -> Addons to find a link to Mozilla’s vast library of addons. It’s worth browsing through just to get an idea of what you can change or add to the browser. Here is a list of my top most useful addons.

WOT – Stands for Web of Trust
WOT is a great little tool that shows you a color coded rating for every website listed in your google search. Know what websites are safe to visit before you click on them. Sites are rated on Trustworthiness, Vendor Reliability, Privacy, and Child Safety.

Twitterfox – Keep up with your twitter feed right in your Firefox browser. Twitterfox sits in the bottom right hand corner of your Firefox window and with a quick click you can view your the recent tweets of who you are following or post your own.

Xmarks (formerly Foxmarks) – This is probably my favorite addon. It keeps all of your bookmarks synchronized. If you use Firefox at work and home, just add a bookmark at work and when you get home you’ll see it there too. It works as a great bookmark backup solution as well. Also, click on the Xmarks logo in your address bar to find similar sites. Awesome tool!

Morning Coffee – If you always open up the same websites each morning then this is the perfect addon for you. Just click on the coffee cup icon, and all of your favorite websites come up in their own tab. Even customize it by day of the week.

TinyUrl Creator – If you are not familiar with TinyUrl, it’s a website that allows you to take a rather long website address and shrink it down into a very short one. Very handy for twitter or even sharing through email. TinyUrl Creator builds this feature right into Firefox, giving you a menu option to easily create a tinyurl whenever you need.

Video Download Helper – The easy way to download and convert Web videos from hundreds of YouTube-like sites.
This works also for audio and picture galleries.

Cooliris – Full-Screen, 3D — Cooliris is simply the fastest and most stunning way to browse photos and videos from the Web or your desktop. Effortlessly scroll a “3D Wall” of your content from Facebook, Google Images, YouTube, Flickr, and hundreds more. If you haven’t already read my full review of Cooliris, check it out here.

2 Bonus Addons for Web Developers: If you do any sort of web development you’ll love these next two.

Firebug – Firebug integrates with Firefox to put a wealth of development tools at your fingertips while you browse. You can edit, debug, and monitor CSS, HTML, and JavaScript live in any web page.

Web Developer – Another great set of tools for the web developer including html and css tools that allow you to view or even edit on the fly any websites html or css code.

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