118th Carnival of Debt Reduction - Winter Solstice Edition

Welcome to the 118th Carnival of Debt Reduction - Winter Solstice Edition! This week in Earth's orbit, our hemisphere is the tilted away from the sun - minimizing our precious daylight hours. Since most of our days will be night this week, I thought we should look to the stars to guide us through debt reduction. I'll be highlighting some of the constellations that will be visible at winter solstice (December 22 at 1:08 am EST).


Editor's Picks with Ursula Major

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The Big Dipper is perhaps the most distinctive pattern in the year-round night sky. It is part of the Ursala Major constellation, Latin for the Great Bear. You'll be able to see Ursala Major on the solstice. Look in the north-east sky you'll see her tail pointing down to the horizon.

Lynnae presents 12 Days of Christmas - Personal Finance Style posted at beingfrugal.net. She kicks off the 12 Days of Christmas with the first principle (and possibly the most distinctive pattern) of debt reduction - spend less than you earn. Very well done!

paidtwice presents Why the $1000 Emergency Fund? Choice #1 posted at I've Paid For This Twice Already.... I couldn't agree more with this post. An emergency fund really should be the first step in any debt reduction plan. Once you have enough to cover the small stuff, attack the debt!

NCN presents The Mortgage Mess - A Few ‘No Credit Needed’ Thoughts posted at No Credit Needed. The mortgage mess does really seem like a sign of a deeper problem.

FMF presents Help a Reader: 401k or Debt posted at Free Money Finance. This is a pretty common dilemma for people in debt but really if your company offerers to match your contribution the choice is clear. There are a lot of good comments here and be sure to check out the link to the previous discussion.


Fight Consumerism with Orion the Hunter

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You may recognize Orion the Hunter by the three inline stars that form his belt. The bright orange star at Orion's shoulder is Betelgeuse, the north west corner of the Winter Triangle. Orion will be visible high in the southern sky Friday night.

The Happy Rock presents Can We Buy Meaning During The Holidays? posted at The Happy Rock. If you're anything like me, this time of year is emotionally conflicting. Its hard not to get sucked into the consumerism cycle. Its hard to avoid the consumerism cycle without feeling like a scrooge.

glblguy presents Thank God for Credit Cards! posted at Gather Little By Little. Yikes, these words from a minister's wife? This time of year I'd think she'd be more thankful for her faith, family time, time off work, anything but credit cards!

Jennifer Derrick presents Spaving - The Road to Ruin is "Spaved" With Good Intentions posted at Saving Advice Blog. I've definitely been guilty of spaving. Being totally focused on debt reduction has helped me to be more aware and deliberate about my spending, but I'm still tempted to slip up. Sometimes its just better to avoid browsing all together!


Save $ with These PF Tips and Canis Minor

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Canis Minor is said to be the smaller of two hunting dogs following Orion in the sky. The bright star, Procyon, in this constellation is the north east corner of the Winter Triangle.

Blaine presents Frugality, America's worst nightmare posted at BlainePower.com. He's got some good points here, living frugally can do wonders for someone looking to get ahead. Nothing wrong with buying in bulk to save on groceries either. Rice... Chili... Underrated.

Free From Broke presents Family - Can't Live With 'Em...Unless It Helps Debt posted at Free From Broke. Sounds like your family really helped you out of a bind - thats great! Hopefully you continue to take the time to show them how much it means you now that you're back on your own.

Ryan Russell presents YES, it is possible to save money on utility bills! posted at My Money Thinks. There are some great tips and links in this article. Check it out.

Madison presents Creative Debt Reduction Strategies posted at My Dollar Plan. Some interesting ideas here, read for yourself.


Use Credit Wisely with Canis Major

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Canis Major is the larger of two hunting dogs following Orion in the sky. The star at the dog's neck, Sirius, is the brightest in the night sky. Sirius is the southern corner of the Winter Triangle.

Justin presents Should You Use Credit Card "Convenience Checks"? posted at The Daily Compass. Wow, I never realized that stolen card regulations don't apply to these. Scary!

Ryan-Careonecredit presents The Cost of Credit: Understanding APR and Balance Calculations posted at Care on Credit. Understanding the game can help you out tremendously. As I began learning how APRs worked I found mistakes in my statements. The companies will correct them IF you call. Don't be taken advantage of!



The Impact & Entrapment of Debt with Ursula Minor

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Ursula Minor contains the star group commonly called The Little Dipper. Like Ursula Major, it is visible year-round. The tip of the Little Bear's Tail is Polaris, the North Star. To find the Little Dipper just follow the two star at the end of the Little Dipper up out of the cup. The next bright star you see is Polaris.

Ryan Healy presents Debt Is a Hole in the Ground posted at Debt Reduction Formula. Nice analogy. Paying off debt takes time and hard work!

Harrison presents Reasons Why People Dream Living Debt Free But Still Living in Debt posted at Journey To Financial Freedom. The things we realize when that light finally goes on in our head...


Other

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Maybe not related to debt reduction, but good reads nonetheless.

teaspoon presents HELOC + ESPP (or 0% Credit Cards) = FREE MONEY (15% to 60%+ returns)! posted at www.TeaspoonFinance.com - Financial wisdom, one teaspoon at a time....

Edith presents What is a Cap Rate? posted at Stewart Hsu.


*Just a note, constellation images were taken from a free open source program called Stellarium (and slightly modified to fit this carnival). Its pretty nifty, check it out.