I had a great vacation in Bali (definitely got my dose of Vitamin D…probably enough to last me a year lol).

Bali was absolutely beautiful… everything about it was beautiful.  I have never seen any place so lush and fertile before.  The people were amazingly friendly, accommodating, and honest.  Most people we met were genuine, friendly, humble, and SO laid back.  Since everyone else was so laid back and the scenery was so serene, the normally frantic me was forced to chill out a bit.  Which is a good thing…haha.

I can see why Elizabeth Gilbert from Eat Pray Love fame “found” herself in Bali.  It’s just so beautiful.  Speaking of Eat Pray Love, I had to visit Ketut Liyer in Ubud.  He was depicted just like the movie and the book, he even pulled out his medicine book like he supposedly did all the time in the movie!

Of course I had to see what he had to say about my future.  Unfortunately because of the massive fame that has become of him, the local Balinese say he has memorized the English phrases and fortune telling and therefore he says the same thing to each tourist.  He told me that I was very verrrrry pret-ty, that my cheeks were good which made him hap-py, and that my lips were sweet like suuuu-gar.  He also said the exact same thing to every other English speaking tourist coming to see him.  It was a little disappointing but still a tourist novelty and a pretty cool experience.  His wife didn’t tell me to find a good man, but she did hustle and bustle about preparing dinner.  She also had a disgruntled look on her face like she meant business LOL.  Ketut is certainly doing very well for himself and has become a little bit of a business tycoon!

PF Blog Love

• My Wife Quit Her Job shows us how to start and find products to sell online

  

• Free From Broke shows us how to Hedge against inflation with education
• The Wealthy Turtle shows us 7 mothers day presents that will land you a night on the couch
• Planting Money Seeds shares 5 of the biggest lies freelancing clients could be telling you
• Out Of Your Rut talks about going global with an online business.
• Stupid Cents reminds us that there are opportunities online but watch out for scammers
• Balance Junkie shows us the purpose and the pessimism of no
• My University Money explains lifestyle inflation
• Financial Highway is GIVING AWAY $500 for sharing you best money saving tip
• Bible Money Matters shows us 50 Easy Ways To Save Money Every Month

 Carnival Fun

• Self Directed Investing For Retirement Carnival – Socialism is Winning Edition
• Festival of Frugality #336 – Bee In Your Bonnet Edition
• Totally Money Blog Carnival #65 – Success, Wealth & Happiness Edition

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Others can offer you tips on how to make $10,000 in 4 hours a week online (most likely it’s by showing others how to make $10,000 in 4 hours a week online), and I have to admit that my advice pales in comparison to these promised riches. I can tell you that my method for how to become an online freelancer is fairly easily to reproduce, and nearly anyone can do it. It is always interesting to me how many good writers I see trying to make a living on the internet, yet failing miserably. In many ways, they have become the victims of cheap English content outsourcing. If you want to make money by freelancing online you have to find a way to stick out from the crowd, otherwise you will simply be competing for $3 per 500 words and giving yourself carpal tunnel for peanuts. (more…)

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Hello loyal readers of the incomparable Young and Thrifty blog. I know some of you are already deleting this site off of your “favourites” list and tsk tsking at the thought that you won’t get to see as much of one of your favourite personal finance bloggers going forward. To be honest, I wouldn’t blame you. I’ve watched a ton of bloggers decide that the demanding schedule that blogging can take up is just too much for them at a certain point in their life, and decided to let their blogs go for one reason or another. Few blogs are ever the same after the initial author leaves, and I won’t guarantee that this one will be exactly as you remember it. For this I am sorry, yet upfront and honest.

WAIT, Come Back!

All of that being said, it’s not like I’m some stranger guys/gals! You’ve seen me around here for almost a year now as a staff writer and serial commenter, so I think I have somewhat of a grasp for what you peeps want to see written about. I’ve also read enough of the original Y&T’s work that I am familiar with it, and I hope to try and deliver the same high-quality content that we all know and are accustomed to. I’m not exactly new to this whole personal finance thing. I have written over 200 articles over at My University Money, and am a consistent staff writer at Canadian Personal Finance Blog, Sustainable Personal Finance, and Invest It Wisely. I promise that I will put my fill effort into making sure that Y&T continues to give readers great value every time they stop by, even if you do notice subtle changes.

Who We Are

“So who is this guy?” you might be wondering. Well it’s actually guy(s) – plural. My mother always said that it takes at least two capable gentlemen to do what a woman does, and in this case she is proven right! My pen name is Teacher Man (TM) and my co-pilot is JB. You can learn a little more about us here. The current plan is for JB to keep his role as the mastermind behind the scenes, and for yours truly to do the bulk of the writing here at Young and Thrifty. I’ve enjoyed interacting with everyone on this site as a staff writer over the last year and I’m looking forward to doing this on a permanent basis. I don’t know how Y&T did everything here on her own, and I know that I definitely enjoy the tag team approach that JB and I bring to the table.

Don’t Call It A Comeback – ‘Cuz She Never Left!

The best part of this whole transition thing for you guys and gals is that the incomparable original author you’ve grown used to reading is sticking around! As you can read about in her “stepping back” post, she will still be a steady voice on the site for the foreseeable future, and I’m very grateful that she is sticking around since I’m a fan as well as an associate!

A Perfect Fit

Some other questions many of you might have are why us? Why do we want this blog, and how did this all happen? Well… it’s kind of a unique story. JB and I weren’t really in the market to be buying a blog. We’re not big businessman and we had never bought a blog before; however, when Y&T came to us saying she was looking to sell, it just made sense on so many levels. I like writing about personal finance topics for a broad demographic, and some of my preferred topics weren’t fitting in perfectly with our original site that was built primarily to help students. While the student population is a broad spectrum, this blog represents a great opportunity to explore personal finance for young adults, in a broader, more general sense, and I am extremely happy for the opportunity to do that. There was a neat sort of poetic symmetry to the idea we proposed as well. The original Y&T and I would essentially switch writing roles, and this site makes a perfect companion to a site that gives out tips primarily aimed at young students. Basically, we can now help you out as you prepare for post-secondary education or the workforce, then help you when you begin that journey, and finally, Young and Thrifty covers topics all through adulthood!

JB and myself are really excited to take on a major challenge in keeping up such a high class blog, we hope you’ll give us a shot before changing channels. We think we’re pretty young, and pretty thrifty, and with the original Y&T around to keep us in line I really like our chances going forward. I love hearing what an audience wants to read so please don’t be shy in emailing or commenting and letting us know what’s up. As a little celebration and a way to make a good first impression, we figured it never hurts to give away free swag, so please stay tuned for a fairly epic (by personal finance standards anyway), giveaway in the next couple weeks.

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So with the new federal budget the Canadian government decided that the penny is useless and that the Royal Canadian Mint will stop producing pennies.  Hence the “a nickel for your thoughts” edition, because pretty soon, there won’t be any more pennies!

In addition, the federal government plans to cut a lot of public sector jobs and increase the age of OAS payments from 65 to 67.  I think there are probably going to be a lot of pissed off seniors out there!

Short rambling for me today but I hope y’all enjoy your weekend!  Anything planned?  I might watch Hunger Games this weekend- anyone seen it yet? Good or bad?

PF Blog Love (Canuck Edition in light of the Federal Budget)

• Invest it Wisely is celebrating 2 years as a PF blogger and is giving away an iPad 3 (sponsored in part by yours truly!  I wonder if I can enter the contest too?)
• Boomer and Echo shares his thoughts on a lifetime plan for managing your money
• A Loonie Bin had a great post on why man can’t invest by yield alone.  Except I think he means man and woman (sorry, feminist inside me roaring)
• Sustainable Personal Finance writes about how playing games taught him about personal finance
• Million Dollar Journey shares 10 ways to save money on groceries without having to resort to coupons
• Dividend Ninja had a post by Teacher Man on should you invest in Dividend Stocks or ETFs?  (I KNOW its better to invest in ETFs but I can’t help myself with dividend stocks!)
• My Own Advisor explains what it means to pay yourself first
• Canadian Finance Blog shares 6 Ways to save thousands on your next mortgage
• Modest Money talks about starting a side business
• Fabulously Frugirl shares her PF Confession and Teenager jobs (inspired by a post of mine!)

Carnival Love (to me)

• Carnival of Personal Finance
• Totally Money Blog Carnival
• Carnival of Financial Camraderie

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Young people are reckless.

It doesn’t matter if you’re part of the current generation Y or if you are a millennial, or if you are a baby boomer reminiscing about the days you did LSD.  Part of being young is about experimenting, testing your limits, and seeing for yourself.  Young people are less risk averse than older people, but probably because older people have been there, done that, and they have too much on the line (e.g. a family to raise, a caring spouse, a mortgage payment etc!).

Young people take risks without thinking about the consequences, either due to being over confident, or just plain arrogance.

What does this mean?

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