It certainly was an interesting week in the news.
First, you have a cruise ship lose all power and drift for a while in the Gulf of Mexico before two tug boats could slowly pull it back to safety. Passengers slept on the deck of the ship, had no working toilets, and food started to get low.
Then you have a meteor unexpectedly exploding in the air over Russia with the equivalent power of 20 Hiroshima-sized nuclear weapons.
Lastly, you have an aspiring electric car maker sparring with the New York Times’ reporting of its vehicle.
But a piece of news that you might have missed, but is likely more important to you personally: The National Foundation for Credit Counseling launched a Spanish version of its online tool called MyMoneyCheckUp. The tool aims to help consumers evaluate different areas of the personal financial lives such as planning for retirement, saving money, budgeting, and credit management.
You input some data about yourself and your habits, and the tool gives you a report of things you should keep doing as well as serious risks you are currently taking.
Tracking all four of the above money topics is critical in life. Here are some reads to guide you in some of them:
Beating Broke | The Joneses and Jealousy
Krant Cents | Budgets and Diets Are a Waste of Time!
Good Financial Cents | How A Cushy Job Can Be Your Ticket To Financial Freedom
Wise Bread | Almost 40 Everyday Things You Can Wash in the Dishwasher
CNN Money | Who pays for damage from a meteor?
Finance Fox | Things to Know Before You File for Bankruptcy
Money Mamba | Warren Buffett’s Secret from the Heinz Deal
Bloomberg | 401k Balances Reached Record on 2012 Stock Market Rally
Life and My Finances | Don’t Sell Your Gold!
Untemplater | How One Couple Went on a Romantic Dream Vacation for 95% Off
Financial Samurai | Recommended Net Worth Allocation Mix by Age and Work Experience
Free From Broke was featured in the following carnivals:
Carnival of Money Reasons Exciting New Year Edition | The Ultimate Juggle
Festival of Frugality #374 – New Blog Edition
The cruise ship issue makes you think twice about cruising! The meteor makes you realize you cannot control everything. I saw the Tesla car the other day in southern California and I really liked it. The only thing that stops me is the price tag! Thanks for the links, I am in good company.
It’s pretty crazy hearing about that cruise. And the sunken cruise ship off Greece didn’t happen long ago either.
I’m trying to find a cruise deal for two somewhere around South America as we speak!
I hope I am not a fool but I just booked a cruise. I hope last week’s disaster was a single isolated incident.
As unbelievable as recent events have been it’s probably still a small percentage of all cruise ships. And every person I know that’s been on one has loved it.
Thanks for the mention.
Much appreciated!!
You’re quite welcome!
A really clever article – liked the way you used the unexpected happenings in the news to make us aware of how risky life is.
Great recommendation. Online tools usually tackle basic computations and self-assessment only but here there is even habit correction or a more well-rounded approach.