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Filed under: Banks You've got to give this bank robber points for ingenuity and ambition. But, yes, yes, it's a terrible thing, and I hope he's caught. But still... a cautionary tale for anyone answering any classified ads where someone tells you how to dress and asks you to show up in front of a bank. Looking at it that way, knowing the outcome, it does sound suspicious, but I admit, if I had been in these unemployed persons shoes, I'll bet I'd have fallen for it, too. Why not? Who would think...? OK, so here's what happened earlier this week: A Craigslist ad featured a job opening for a road maintenance project in Monroe, Washington, and anyone interested should meet near the Bank of America in Monroe at 11 a.m. on a Tuesday morning, wearing a "yellow vest, safety goggles, a respirator mask... and, if possible, a blue shirt." About a dozen men showed up, and right about that time, so did an armored truck. Suddenly, one of the dozen men dressed in this yellow vest, goggles, mask and blue shirt stepped out of the crowd, blasted the guard with some pepper spray, took the money bag and then did a 100 yard dash -- with at least one bystander giving chase -- to a nearby creek. He escaped down the creek in an inner tube, and he remains at large. Meanwhile, the job hunters never did get their $28.50-an-hour job. Geoff Williams is a freelance journalist and the author of C.C. Pyle's Amazing Foot Race: The True Story of the 1928 Coast-to-Coast Run Across Americ a (Rodale). Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Food I've always been fascinated with how underground economies work due in part to my addiction to reading any story about prison escapes. I can clearly remember the mastermind doling out packs of cigarettes to keep someone quiet or acquire a critical piece of the escape plan. Indeed cigarettes were the de facto currency for prisoners, who cannot possess real currency, until smoking was banned in 2004. Since inmates can no longer barter with cigarettes they've turned to pouches of mackerel to fill the need for a common currency inside prison walls. Even though bartering isn't officially allowed inside prison walls, prisoners are expected to dole out a few pouches of mackerel when you get your haircut. The use of fish by prisoners to create their own economy is a reminder that virtually anything can be used as currency. Even outside prison walls we don't need to rely on government minted tender to complete transactions so long as there are willing parties involved. For all I know there's a subset of people in my town who would gladly accept Chuck E. Cheese tokens or Antartican Dollars for my daily needs . Continue reading Holy Mackerel! Fish make a slick currency in prison Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Fantastic Freebies Today's Fantastic Freebie is a subscription to Genre, a gay lifestyle magazine, courtesy of Nuwear. From the website: Nuwear is offering all our web visitors a free subscription to Genre magazine. Every month, the magazine throws a spotlight on the hottest, the freshest and the best-in entertainment, the arts, fashion, home design, automotive, technology, health and fitness, grooming and travel. Our readers are smart, stylish and tuned in. They're leaders. We engage them by looking at the world through their eyes and speaking to them in their own language. Loaded with intelligence, insight and an irreverent wit, GENRE is for the man who's a lot more than just out. Click here to fill out the form. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Food , Health Lately, I've been on an oatmeal kick. My kids and I can't get enough, especially after I started investigating the health benefits of whole grains and learned the easiest, most delicious way to get those grainy nutrients: soak thick-cut oatmeal overnight with a bit of whey, buttermilk or raw milk and cook it in the morning. It takes less than a minute the night before, and only a few minutes of active work in the morning, and I serve my oatmeal with fresh fruit in season, chopped-up nuts from local farmers, organic maple syrup, organic raw milk. Even though I'm using the luxi-est ingredients available and paying retail prices (often from the farmer's market, which is a pricey-but-sustainable choice), each serving costs me less than $1.50. Enter Starbucks and their "perfect oatmeal." For $2.45, I can pick two of three mix-ins -- dried fruit (sweetened with sugar), nuts or brown sugar. At $2.45 for what is essentially just a cardboard cup with some chopped-up grains, and with that smug name, I expected something great. After all, this whole line of foods is part of CEO Howard Schultz' mission to eat more healthy himself; his cholesterol and weight were deemed too high by his physician . Oatmeal does, after all, seem a sensible and quick alternative to other fast breakfasts, like doughnuts, Egg McMuffins, and the like. But Howie! What's with all that sugar? And what's with the instant oatmeal? I tried a bowl and was flummoxed. First: it wasn't that good, what with the instant oats and the skim milk. Not only would you eat a lot of processed sugar were you to choose either brown sugar or dried fruit on your perfect oatmeal, using instant oats removes a lot of the good nutrients. So you'll be messing with your body's metabolism (processed sugars and highly-processed grains trick your body into thinking it wants more, causing overeating and directly contributing to weight gain), in addition to paying more than you could if you made it at home. Make your own oatmeal is cheaper, better for you, and it will prevent you from thinking you need a pastry too... and a grande mocha... paying off huge in lower health costs down the road. Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Ripoffs and Scams , Career Who wouldn't want to make up to $5,000 a week from home stuffing envelopes? You wouldn't, since you're more likely to lose money by signing on for such a scam. As the economy takes a turn for the much worse, those make-money-from-home schemes start to sound awfully appealing. Targeted to senior citizens, stay-at-home moms and low-income earners, these scams have been going on for years but have been jump-started with the help of the internets. It's as easy as buying a few well-placed banner ads on existing, otherwise legitimate websites. Indeed, just Google "Work from home" and see how many ads pop up, promising that you can make "$240 by tonight!" Forbes Magazine gives a great rundown on the kinds of scams taking people for a ride these days. Work from home-related complaints ranked among the Federal Trade Commission's top 20 fraud complaint categories between 1997 and 2005 (the latest figures available), according to Forbes. In those nine years, some 37,333 complaints were filed to the FTC. Continue reading As economy tanks, beware these make-money-from-home schemes Read | Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Borrowing , Debt , Simplification It's a credit crunch. A meltdown. A financial crisis! A banking collapse! While we're all panicking, what should we do? While Tracy Coenen points out that the credit crunch is overstated , I have to agree with Julie Tilsner, who suggests banning credit cards . But my plan goes even further: I don't want to borrow any money for anything. Not a major appliance "buy now pay in 2010!" plan. Not a new car. Not a home equity loan, a refinance with cash out, or anything. Having made all (or, well, many) of the financial mistakes a woman can make, I've vowed to only buy the stuff I can afford. If my dishwasher bites the dust (it did), I'll wash dishes by hand until I can find a good used machine for my budget or until my sister's erstwhile boyfriend installs the extra one he promised us. If my glass-top stove breaks (yep), I'll cook with the two burners whose glass wasn't totally shattered until I find the gas stove of my dreams on craigslist (anyone want to barter for homemade fig pear lavender jam?). If we need to get around town, we'll ride our bikes or the city bus. Need to go on a vacation? Need a new TV? No one needs these things. New school clothes? Goodwill. New roof? Guess I'd better start saving now. I've learned that borrowing money when you're broke is only going to make you more broke in the future. The stuff I earnestly told myself was an "investment" has turned out to be just stuff, much of which wouldn't even move for a few dollars at our family's yard sale. If only the nation's banks could learn that lesson. But they just borrowed money from their rich Uncle Sam. And you and I both know what happens when you borrow money from family... Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle , Transportation , Fantastic Freebies Interested in investing in green technology? Or do you just grocery shop like a savvy eco-lover? Either way you'll want to check out this freebie. Mantra Venture Group, a company that "facilitates investment in sustainable, commercially viable technologies," is offering a free tote bag in green or red . The company has a patent on converting carbon dioxide to fuel; whether or not you have the money to invest in that product, it's certainly an interesting venture and a snazzy bag that you can proudly store in your hybrid car or bike panniers. Every day, WalletPop will be bringing you information about a fantastic freebie. Like what you see? Check back tomorrow for more! Permalink | Email this | Comments