Last week I started a contest to give away my copy of The Maui Millionaires by David Finkel and Diane Kennedy. I didn’t exactly give the book a glowing review, but there might be some value for someone else. (Plus, it’s free!) There were 40 entries, and the only requirement was to name someone whose company or conversation is worth $30,000, though I allowed quite a bit of freedom for those who wouldn’t pay that kind of money for anyone’s companionship. There were some great answers:
* “I’d like to sit down with Albert Einstein to discuss his thoughts on String Theory. I would not pay $30k to do it though.” (Jeremy)
* “I’d really like to meet someone like Jon Stewart.” (Matt #1)
* “I’d pay 30k to meet YOU, flexo!” (Teresa)
* “Shakespeare. The guy’s genius is unmatched, except perhaps by Cervantes or Jesus.” (Leo Babauta)
* “I think you’d pretty much have to go with one of the Big Guys. So, I’d probably go with Jesus.” (Chris)
* “I would love to meet Jesus so he can heal me. I’ve been sitting in this chair way to long.” (Michael Monaco)
* “Hmm if I had 30k, I’d probably wanna kick it with Jesus for a day.” (Jay)
* “Have dinner with Jesus and bring DaVinci along to paint the portrait of the entire dinner party…” (Yo–Yo Mama)
I did detect a theme, here. Personally, I was pulling for Teresa. The Fates had other plans, however. I used random.org to generate a random number between 1 and 40, and the number picked was 36, corresponding to a comment by Matt (#2):
I think I would pay 30K to hang out with Larry David for a day.
Now the very strange thing is I happened to be watching Curb Your Enthusiasm, a television show produced, written by, and starring Larry David when preparing this post. What a coincidence! Congratulations, Matt. The Maui Millionaires, plus a bonus book, will be on the way this weekend. I hope you enjoy it and manage to get more out of it than I did.
By the way, the attached image should be proof the number was randomly selected.
Did you have any horrible consumer-related experiences with companies this past year? Is there a company you feel should be dragged through the mud? Nothing brings a corporation to the ground faster than a web award, and Consumerist is delivering the punch. Send them a comment with you story — or leave a comment here and I’ll compile a bunch and send them to Ben Popken in a nice package.
Last year, Halliburton was awarded the coveted prize. Who will win this year? Wal-Mart? Best Buy? Comcast?
A few weeks ago, I heard the news that credit card numbers were stolen from T.J. Maxx computers. Coincidentally, I had shopped at that store recently. In fact, it was the first time I had shopped there in many years.
This was a good reminder for me to check my credit report. Last night, I visited AnnualCreditReport.com to get one of the three free annual credit reports all citizens of the United States are entitled to by law.
It’s important to keep an eye on your own credit report. Not only is it interesting to see which companies are pinging your report to determine which offers to send you through snail junk mail, but there may be errors on the report requiring correction.
AnnualCreditReport.com is the only portal you can use to take advantage of the three free yearly reports. Once you enter your personal information, you can choose one of the three credit reporting agencies to view that company’s report. The best plan for me to is to spread my credit checks throughout the year: Experian in January, Equifax in May, and TransUnion in September.
If you use a scheduling program like Microsoft Outlook, it’s very easy to set up reminders so you are warned when it’s time to get your next report.
I’m happy to report that my credit has not been compromised as a result of shopping at T.J. Maxx. Neither has it been compromised by a recent security breach by a third party vendor working with my employer. I’ll continue checking every several months to make sure nothing unexpected appears.
Update: Consumerist mentioned that a class action lawsuit was filed yesterday against T.J. Maxx due to the security breach.
Credit cards stolen in the breach have been used in Florida, Georgia, and Louisana, as well as Hong Kong and Sweden. Driver’s license data was stolen as well. Hundreds of thousands of credit cards have been reissued due to the theft.
Here is the news piece.
I’m a fan of using financial reports to analyze my personal financial position and progress. I’ve done this so far using basic reports, like the balance sheet and income and expense report. When investors and decision makers analyze companies, they also look beyond these statements. There are a number of ratios or comparisons that tell a better story, especially when these ratios are examined over time.
One of these is the working capital ratio, also known as the “current ratio.” This ratio describes how well one can meet short-term debt obligations. It answers the question, “Will I be able to make all of my payments this year?” The working capital ratio compares current assets and current liabilities. When evaluating businesses, for assets and liabilities to be “current,” they are either convertible to cash within a year (assets) or due to creditors within a year (liabilities).
For personal finances, I think using a month for this comparison rather than a year tells a better story. That’s how I’ll perform my calculations. In order to determine working capital ratio, I’ll use the numbers from the end of 2006. Read the full article →
Now the very strange thing is I happened to be watching Curb Your Enthusiasm, a television show produced, written by, and starring Larry David when preparing this post. What a coincidence! Congratulations, Matt. The Maui Millionaires, plus a bonus book, will be on the way this weekend. I hope you enjoy it and manage to get more out of it than I did.
Luke Landes founded Consumerism Commentary in 2003 and has been building online communities since 1990. Luke, also known as Flexo, has contributed to PC World Magazine, US News, Forbes, and other publications. 
This Week in the Archives
by Luke LandesHere are some more nuggets from the past of Consumerism Commentary. Click through for instant 2005-style gratification. From January 22-31, 2005: * My 401(k) Contributions * Olsen Twins Buy Out Their CEO * 2004 Investment Performance Here is one from this week in 2004: * The Power of Residual Value That’s it for now.