Nicknames for Errors in Stamps - An Introduction

Errors, Freaks, and Oddities (EFOs) have an enormous appeal in philately and some even qualify as gems.

Error stamps can be categorized as

1. True Errors – occurs when one or more production steps are missed in certain production runs for a particular stamp. Examples include missing colors, missing perforations, multiple printings, and incorrect design orientations. In general, stamps with errors are generally command a much higher premium than the same in perfect condition and,
2. Design Errors – are stamps with incorrect design including erroneous facts, language errors, and other design problems.

Freaks are an odd design for one or more stamps that result from a random problem in the production process. Examples include mis-cuts, color shifts, and/or faint colors, missing perforations and/or faint perforations, etc. Generally, the more unique the occurrence the more higher prized the freak becomes.

Oddities are stamps unusual in other respects. Examples comprise of unusual, misspelled, or inverted cancels, plate variations from worn-out areas in the printing plate or other causes, etc.

Below are nicknames for some of the most famous stamps with errors:

Term	Explanation	Sample
Gronchi Rosa - Italy	Italian stamp released April 3, 1961 with an error in the map showing Peru – the border with Ecuador is incorrectly mapped.
Inverted Head 4 Annas - India	First issue of India – October 13, 1854 – The head in the first few sheets of printing was shows inverted – this error made the stamp scarce & famous
Inverted Jenny - USA	A US 24c stamp issued May 10, 1918 with the airplane (Curtiss JN-4) in the center of the design inverted. Only one sheet of 100 is known to have this error
Inverted Swan - Western Australia	A 4p Western Australia stamp issued in 1855 with an invert error – the frame is inverted and so the design appears inverted
Post Office – Mauritius	1d and 2d stamps of 1847 (~500 copies each), so named because of the wording “Post Office” in place of “Post Paid”.
Treskilling Yellow - Sweden	An 1855 stamp with a color error that holds the record for auction sale price – only one copy is known to exist

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Last Updated: 07/2011.

Entered Direxion Financial Bear 3X ETF Shares (FAZ)

We bought Direxion Financial Bear 3X ETF (FAZ) shares today at $19.67. We did a couple of round-trips on Direxion Financial Bull 3X ETF (FAS) shares earlier in the week as we twittered previously – those trades were modestly successful. FAZ is the bear equivalent of FAS – The ETF tracks the daily performance of Russell 1000 Financial Services Index at 3X inverse leverage. This is again another speculative trade and the holding period is expected to be a few days.

Below is our updated portfolio - it is about 35% in the red. Our cash position is at 13%:

Stock	Buy Date	Buy Price	Current Price	Current % Of Portfolio	Unrealized % Return	Yield as % of Portfolio Value
Altria (MO)	Various	16.69	17.21	4.79	3.14	0.38
Philip Morris International (PM)	1/4/2005	32.19	38.30	8.60	18.97	0.45
Kraft Foods (KFT)	Various	24.03	23.07	4.28	(4.01)	0.23
Pfizer (PFE)	Various	24.37	14.38	6.67	(40.99)	0.30
ICICI Bank (IBN)	5/18/2006 and 08/01/2008	25.28	14.79	6.86	(41.49)	0.30
Advantage Energy Fund (AAV)	11/2/2006	11.22	2.70	1.25	(75.95)	0.17
Central Europe & Russia Fund (CEE)	Various	39.23	16.36	5.31	(58.29)	0.03
Patni Computers (PTI)	8/10/2007	20.85	5.49	2.55	(73.69)	0.08
Itron Inc. (ITRI)	11/07/2007	85.01	49.08	4.55	(45.23)	None
Anthracite (AHR)	11/09/2007	7.97	0.43	0.20	(94.60)	0.00
ClickSoftware (CKSW)	11/09/2007	4.61	2.89	3.69	(19.96)	None
Harvest Energy (HTE)	11/28/2007	21.01	4.09	1.52	(80.54)	0.22
iRobot (IRBT)	12/18/2007	18.65	8.96	3.32	(51.55)	None
LDK Solar (LDK)	01/22/2008	30.49	7.76	2.16	(74.55)	None
Aegon N.V. (AEG)	04/28/2008	15.99	4.97	1.38	(68.91)	0.00
LM Ericsson (ERIC) Call Value	05/05/2008	11.83	7.50	5.56	(36.59)	0.15
TD Ameritrade (AMTD)	05/21/2008	17.68	14.72	5.46	(16.76)	None
Trina Solar (TSL)	Various	24.90	12.19	5.65	(51.05)	None
Costco (COST)	08/01/2008	62.28	48.46	4.49	(22.19)	0.07
Frontline Limited (FRO)	10/06/2008	36.95	19.92	2.77	(46.08)	0.17
DryShips Incorporated (DRYS)	02/09/2009	6.96	5.11	3.32	(26.62)	0.00
Direxion Financial Bear 3X ETF (FAZ)	03/26/2009	19.67	18.64	4.32	(5.23)	0.00
Cash				13.08
Total Portfolio					(35.89)	2.54

• For Altria and Philip Morris International, assumed spin-off ratio of 30.83:69.17. Altria is yet to supply the cost-basis info
• For Ericsson, we wrote April 7.5 covered calls on them at 0.95

Below is a summary of transactions during the year:

Stock	Buy Date	Buy Price	Sell Date	Sell Price	% Gain (Loss)	% Portfolio Return*
DryShips (DRYS)	Various	11.66	01/29/2009	8.96	(23.29)	(1.39)
DryShips Feb 15 Calls (OOCBC)	01/29/2009	0.20	01/16/2009	2.50	922	0.58
Companhia Siderugica Nacional (SID)	Various	11.03	01/29/2009	16.01	44.86	1.73
Taiwan Semi Feb 7.5 Calls (TSMBU)	Expired	NA	01/09/2009	0.90	NA	0.77
Taiwan Semi (TSM)	7/27/2006	8.70	03/03/2009	7.76	NA	(0.78)
Direxion Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS)	03/16/2009	5.09	03/19/2009	6.53	28.31	1.26
Direxion Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS)	03/23/2009	5.94	03/23/2009	6.22	4.63	0.19
Direxion Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS)	03/24/2009	6.45	03/24/2009	7.12	10.30	0.44
Realized Gain/(Loss) YTD	-	-	-	-	-	2.80

• % Gain/Loss Relative to Portfolio Value at Beginning of Year + Deposits
• The table assumes realization of profits associated with selling options only after the option is exercised or expiry.

Solid State Netbook Computers – Best Values & Review

This is a follow-up update on the review performed late last year on the best laptops and netbooks. Solid state netbook computers were not part of that evaluation as at that time they were priced slightly higher. Currently, their price range match well with their hard-disk equivalents.

Having less movable parts makes solid state netbooks travel-friendly over standard netbooks employing a hard-drive. They also score higher in portability in home environments where a laptop can be found perched just about anywhere and is a draw for students too.

Acer and Asus are the primary manufacturers of Netbook computers with solid state storage option. HP has an offering in this category. Below is a comparison of the flagship solid state products from these manufacturers.

Best Value Solid State Netbooks:

Feature/Product	Acer Aspire One AOA110-1995	Asus Eee PC 901	HP Mini 1115NR	Dell Vostro A90
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Best Price	$296.99 (white only)	$279.99 (pearl white only)	$299.99	$379
Processor	Intel Atom 1.6 GHz Processor 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz	Intel Atom 1.6 GHz Processor 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz	Intel Atom 1.6 GHz Processor 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz	Intel Atom 1.6 GHz Processor 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz
Memory	1 GB DDR2 SDRAM , 2 GB Max	1 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 2 GB Max.	1 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 2 GB Max.	1 GB DDR2 SDRAM, 2 GB Max.
Solid State Storage in place of a hard drive	8 GB NAND Drive, 8 GB SD card included for use in dedicated memory card slot (SD & MMC).	12 GB SD memory in dedicated memory card slot (SD & MMC)	16 GB solid-state flash memory (NAND) storage	16 GB solid-state flash memory (NAND) storage
Additional Storage Option(s)	Multi-format expansion slot - Secure Digital, MultiMediaCard, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO and xD-Picture Card.	20 GB Asus online storage.	Memory Card Slot (SD & MMC)	Memory Card Slot (SD & MMC)
Battery	3-cell – rated for up to 2.5 hours	6-cell – rated for up to 6 hours	3-cell – rated for up to 2.5 hours	4-cell – rated for up to 5 hours
Weight	2.5 pounds	2.43 pounds	2.23 pounds	2.36 pounds
Dimension	9.8 (W) x 6.7 (D) x 1.14 (H)	8.86 (W) x 6.90 (D) x 0.89 - 1.54 (H)	10.3 (W) x 6.56 (D) x 0.99 (H)	9.13 (W) x 6.77 (D) x 1.15 (H)
Other Feature Summary	3 USB 2.0 ports; 1 VGA, 1 Microphone, 1 headphone, AC Adapter.	3 USB 2.0 ports; 1 VGA, 1 Microphone, 1 headphone, AC Adapter.	2 USB 2.0 ports; 1 Microphone, 1 headphone, AC Adapter.	3 USB 2.0 ports; 1 Microphone, 1 headphone, AC Adapter, optional bluetooth, security cable.

The common features applicable to all of the models described are:

• Windows XP Home pre-installed
• WI-FI Wireless Card.
• Graphics Media Accelerator Chipset.
• Wireless 802.11b/g card.
• 10Base-T/100Base-TX Fast Ethernet LAN with RJ-45 connector
• Webcam.
• 8.9” Display.
• 1-year warranty.

The table below compares the Intel Atom 270 processor used in all the three solid state Netbooks in this review with the Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core Mobile Processor T3200 which is a popular processor used in many laptops:

Processor	Type	L1 Cache	L2 Cache	Clock Speed	System Bus	Others
Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core Mobile Processor T3200	Dual Core	64 KB	1MB	1.6 GHz	533 MHz	Dual Core true parallel processing enabled. Execute Disable Bit Virus Deterrent Technology and Intel Speedstep Power Management Technology Built In.
Intel Atom 1.6 GHz Processor 512 KB L2 Cache, 533 MHz	Single Core	32KB instruction & 24KB data cache.	512 KB L2 Cache	1.6 GHz	533 MHz	Enhanced Intel® SpeedStep Technology, Low Thermal Design Power, Power Optimized Front Side Bus.

Summary:

These Solid State Netbooks are priced on the average around $200 lower than the best value priced Laptops/Notebooks. The processors in these devices are less powerful with limited upgrade possibilities. Pricing, size, and weight all being lower makes Solid State Netbooks a good choice for students, frugal families, folks with an external LCD monitor/keyboard/mouse environment in place, and frequent travelers willing to forgo a little performance. The intended mobility of the machine should be assessed ahead of a purchase as these companies also offer a hard drive version of these products with larger storage but can be flimsier in the event of a hard fall. They are priced almost similar for the comparable features as discussed in our review.

Asus Eee PC 1000 as a higher end option. The major differences compared to the Asus Eee PC 901 are the following:

1. Linux preinstalled in place of Windows XP home edition,
2. More Storage – 40 GB solid state in place of 12 GB.
3. 10.2” LCD screen in place of 8.9” LCD screen.
4. 6-cell battery rated for 8 hours in place of 6-cell battery rated for up to 6 hours

The above features make it a strong offering at roughly $100 premium over Asus Eee PC 901.

CTL IL1 7-inch Laptop is an alternative in the lower price range (~$200). The unproven Via C7-M 1 GHz Processor, relatively unknown manufacturer, and the 7” screen makes it a hard choice to recommend.


Overall, our pick for the best value among solid state netbooks is the Asus Eee PC 901. The new HP Mini 1115NR is a competitive model but their Flash drives are known to fail quickly. The Acer Aspire One is not as feature-rich as the ASUS. The Dell Vostro A90 is new and as such is unproven. Also, the price compared to the feature-set make it a notch below the competition in terms of overall value. Intel’s Atom chip performs well with Windows XP, which comes preinstalled. With the ASUS, there is also an option to purchase the Linux version of the product for the same price. The approximate $300 pricing is an outstanding value for the full-fledged features it offers. This choice is well suited especially for those that are already setup with an external LCD monitor/keyboard/mouse. As a laptop alternative, there is a matter of getting used to the smaller screen-size and keyboard. Compared to the performance of laptops/notebooks, the processing power and RAM limitations are the major differences, but on Windows XP, with an upgrade to a 2 GB RAM, the setup would amply suffice for most users.

Sale Report:

1. Mini Notebooks at Amazon.com.
2. Mini Notebooks at ebay.
3. Outlet Center sale at BestBuy.com.

Last Updated: 6/2009.

Stamp Collecting - Nicknames

Our last week’s post focused on common terms applicable to variety/types of stamps available. There are also numerous terms used for specific stamps – usually famous ones because of their rarity or due to an error. Below is our list of the most common among them that should allow any budding philatelist to stand his ground in a “bourse”:

Nick Name	Description	Sample
5 Kings - Greece	1963 Greek stamp depicting the five kings - King George I, King Constantine I, King Alexander, King George II, King Paul.
Admirals - Canada, New Zealand, & Rhodesia	Depicts King George V of Great Britain in naval attire.
Bantams - South Africa	Midget stamps released by South Africa as a cost-control measure during WW II
Basel Dove - Switzerland	First tri-color stamp ever issued. Issue Date: September 30, 1854
Bluenose - Canada	Canadian postage stamp of 1929 depicting the Schooner Bluenose.
Bull’s Eye - Brazil	First three stamps of Brazil. Third stamp of the world by a country after the Penny Black & Penny Blue.
Cape Triangles - Cape of Good Hope	Cape of Good Hope triangular stamps issued between 1853 and 1864. The 1861 one penny vermilion and four penny blue have color errors in some (one penny in blue and four penny in vermilion) making those rare and very valuable. Also called Woodblocks.
Chalon Head – Canada	Issued first by Canada in 1851 followed by many other colonies between 1853 and 1870 portraying Queen Victoria’s portrait by Alfred Edward Chalon. The New Zealand issues are also known as Full Faces.
Cottonreel - 1c Magenta - British Guiana	Only one copy known to exist. Issued in 1856, the stamp features a sailing ship in black on magenta paper
Cowries - Uganda	A typewriter made stamp issued in March 1895 on very thin paper – only a few copies survived but forgeries are plenty
Milbury – United States	Issued by the postmaster of Milbury, MA in 1847. It is a 5c stamp depicting George Washington. The stamps issued prior to the issue of general US stamps are called Postmaster issues.
Missionaries - Hawaii	First postage stamps of the Kingdom of Hawaii issue between 1851 and 1852.
Penny Black - United Kingdom	World’s first postage stamp issued by a country – Issue Date: First May, 1840.
Penny Red – United Kingdom	1841 stamp that was issued till 1879 – imperfs & minor variations exist but the stamps are relatively plentiful.
Penny Blue – United Kingdom	An unissued postage stamp of Britain made December 1840.
Two Pence Blue – United Kingdom	A rarer stamp than the penny black issued May 1840 – 2nd postage stamp issued by a country.
Perot Provisional - Bermuda	First stamps of Bermuda – only 11 copies are known to exist
Red Mercury - Austria	Austrian newspaper stamp issued 1856 and replaced in 1858
Scinde Dawk - India	1852 stamp issued in the province of Sindh
Z Grill – USA	1868 1c stamp depicting Benjamin Franklin with the “Z” grill variety pressed onto the stamp – only two known copies – most valuable US stamp at $3M.

Read More...

Last Updated: 07/2011.

Exited Direxion Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS)

We exited our position in Direxion Financial Bull 3X (FAS) shares today at $6.55. As we mentioned previously, this was a speculative trade and the holding period was expected to be a few days. Ultimately, it worked out as the financials rallied briefly following the Fed meeting – the trade provided a return of just under 30% in four days.

Below is our updated portfolio - it is about 40% in the red. Our cash position increased slightly to 18.5%:

Stock	Buy Date	Buy Price	Current Price	Current % Of Portfolio	Unrealized % Return	Yield as % of Portfolio Value
Altria (MO)	Various	16.69	16.69	5.04	0.03	0.38
Philip Morris International (PM)	1/4/2005	32.19	37.21	8.18	15.59	0.45
Kraft Foods (KFT)	Various	24.03	22.16	4.46	(7.80)	0.23
Pfizer (PFE)	Various	24.37	13.70	6.89	(43.78)	0.30
ICICI Bank (IBN)	5/18/2006 and 08/01/2008	25.28	13.34	6.71	(47.22)	0.30
Advantage Energy Fund (AAV)	11/2/2006	11.22	2.46	1.24	(78.08)	0.17
Central Europe & Russia Fund (CEE)	Various	39.23	14.70	5.18	(62.52)	0.03
Patni Computers (PTI)	8/10/2007	20.85	5.45	2.74	(73.88)	0.08
Itron Inc. (ITRI)	11/07/2007	85.01	45.74	4.60	(46.26)	None
Anthracite (AHR)	11/09/2007	7.97	0.36	0.18	(95.48)	0.00
ClickSoftware (CKSW)	11/09/2007	4.61	2.89	2.91	(37.31)	None
Harvest Energy (HTE)	11/28/2007	21.01	4.30	1.73	(79.54)	0.22
iRobot (IRBT)	12/18/2007	18.65	8.58	3.45	(53.60)	None
LDK Solar (LDK)	01/22/2008	30.49	4.85	1.46	(84.09)	None
Aegon N.V. (AEG)	04/28/2008	15.99	3.71	1.12	(76.79)	0.00
LM Ericsson (ERIC) Call Value	05/05/2008	11.83	7.50	6.04	(36.59)	0.15
TD Ameritrade (AMTD)	05/21/2008	17.68	12.63	5.08	(28.58)	None
Trina Solar (TSL)	Various	24.90	8.07	3.97	(67.59)	None
Costco (COST)	08/01/2008	62.28	45.12	4.54	(27.55)	0.07
Frontline Limited (FRO)	10/06/2008	36.95	19.34	2.92	(47.63)	0.17
DryShips Incorporated (DRYS)	02/09/2009	6.96	5.32	3.75	(23.61)	0.00
Cash				18.42
Total Portfolio					(39.14)	2.54

• For Altria and Philip Morris International, assumed spin-off ratio of 30.83:69.17. Altria is yet to supply the cost-basis info
• For Ericsson, we wrote April 7.5 covered calls on them at 0.95

Below is a summary of transactions during the year:

Stock	Buy Date	Buy Price	Sell Date	Sell Price	% Gain (Loss)	% Portfolio Return*
DryShips (DRYS)	Various	11.66	01/29/2009	8.96	(23.29)	2.64
DryShips Feb 15 Calls (OOCBC)	01/29/2009	0.20	01/16/2009	2.50	922	0.58
Companhia Siderugica Nacional (SID)	Various	11.03	01/29/2009	16.01	44.86	1.73
Taiwan Semi Feb 7.5 Calls (TSMBU)	Expired	NA	01/09/2009	0.90	NA	0.77
Direxion Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS)	03/16/2009	5.09	03/19/2009	6.53	28.31	1.26
Realized Gain/(Loss) YTD	-	-	-	-	-	1.66

• % Gain/Loss Relative to Portfolio Value at Beginning of Year + Deposits
• The table assumes realization of profits associated with selling options only after the option is exercised or expiry.

Economy, Business, Credit, and Debt at The Roundup #5

Welcome to the March 18, 2009 edition of Economy, Business, Credit, and Debt The Roundup.

Qwoter.com presents Top 3 Successful Investing Factors - Stock Tips & Investment Advice - Qwoter posted at Stock Market College - Investment Advice & Stock Tips, saying, "Although there are many things an investor can do wrong in the markets, there are only a few things he or she can do right. We are all well aware of how important risk management, discipline, and a good investment method can be. Yet without a doubt, they are all useless in the hands of a trader who is psychologically inept or self-destructive. It is unfortunate that investors still believe in the myth that a better system will make them better investors."

DebbieDragon presents Driving into Wealth posted at 7 Millionaires in Training.

Ben presents Preparing for a Layoff: Job Tips for Staying Employed in a Recession posted at Money Smart Life.

Savings Toolbox presents Finding Yourself unable to Make Your Mortgage Payments? posted at Savings Toolbox.

Destroy Debt presents More Grocery Shopping Saving Tips posted at Destroy Debt.

Deposit Accounts presents Get the Most Out of Your Tax Refund posted at Deposit Accounts.

Tushar Mathur presents Zecco: Free stock Trades ? posted at Everything Finance, saying, "For a while, Zecco had one great advantage over a lot of other online stock brokerages — the offer of free stock trades if you can handle a small requirement. Just open your online stock brokerage account with them for $2,500 and you would be entitled to 10 free stock trades per month."

Simon Stapleton presents How To Find Work in Your Dream Organization Using Facebook And LinkedIn | SimonStapleton.com posted at Career & Personal Development for CIOs, Technical Professionals and Self-Professed Geeks, saying, "By combining your LinkedIn profile with Facebook ads, you’ll discover an effective way of getting yourself in front of potential employers who use Facebook (and let’s face it, who doesn’t?) It’s a guerrilla job-hunting tactic that enables you to search the hidden job market and find or even create the best jobs before they hit the job sites."

DebtLite presents What Are the Root Causes of Debt? posted at Debt Advice.

Dave presents Where Should I Put My Money? posted at Cheapo Groovo.

Martin Russell presents Marketing Bad Luck posted at Word of Mouth Marketing, saying, "I have just come back from Melbourne, Victoria. Great to be there for the live event, and to meet everyone (including a few of my subscribers too whom I had never met before.) But the whole event had a slightly different atmosphere, because Victoria has just gone through Australia’s worst ever natural disaster."

Shaun Connell presents How to Pick a Niche posted at Make Money Online, saying, "Before you get a website, you have to find your niche. A “niche” is a specific topic that you’ll base your entire website on. The topic might be “financial planning” or “baseball” or “knitting.” Regardless of the topic you choose (it can be anything) it needs to meet a few common criteria."

apply4-credit presents Credit Cards and Their Dirty Little Secrets posted at Apply4-Credit.

cody butler presents Investing, Learn The Secret To Financial Freedom posted at Dream Life Coaching Blog. Ask your questions..

Michael Haltman presents The Annual Report From The Oracle Of Omaha posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, "By year end, investors of all stripes were bloodied and confused, much as if they were small birds that had strayed into a badminton game. As the year progressed, a series of life-threatening problems within many of the world’s great financial institutions was unveiled. This led to a dysfunctional credit market that in important respects soon turned non-functional. The watchword throughout the country became the creed I saw on restaurant walls when I was young: “In God we trust; all others pay cash.”"

CreditCardAssist.com presents Things You Must Know About Credit Counseling Agencies posted at Credit Card Assist.

debt kid presents Debt Paid Down Last Month posted at DebtKid.

Debt Free Destiny presents Is it Possible or Legal to Create a New Credit Identity? posted at Debt Free Destiny.

Matthew Paulson presents Common Mistakes First Time Home Renters Make posted at American Consumer News.

Debbie Ducker presents Your Children and Grandchildren Must Learn to Save Money posted at Ducker Promotion Ezine, saying, "Teach your children how to save money at an early age and you will save them a lifetime of heartache."

Leave Debt Behind presents How to Pay Down Your Debts Quickly posted at Leave Debt Behind.

Tisha Tolar presents Getting Bored With Yourself? posted at Empowering Mom.

Brian Tubbs presents Mastering The Adwords Cash Mountain. posted at Website Traffic.

Debbie Foster presents Money From The Internet - Absolutely! posted at Internet Income - The Journey.

Andrew Rondeau presents Can You Make Money On The Internet? posted at We Build Your Blog, saying, "These 4 factors determine whether you will make money online (or not)"

Debt Freedom Fighter presents Looking for Low Interest Refinance Loans? posted at Discover Debt Freedom!.

Britannica Blog presents A "Size Zero" Pill? Too Good to Be True? posted at Britannica Blog, saying, "Is a pill that promises such rapid weight loss that ”your closest friends won’t recognize you” too good to be true? Yes, yes it is. Not only too good to be true, but too dangerous to be tampered with."

JD presents The Global Debt Disease & How It Affects You posted at debthelpcreditrepairpro.com, saying, "The world, Americans included, is suffering from a serious disease - the disease of excessive debt. The problem has been an availability of very cheap credit in recent times, and no real regulation on who can or cannot take on debt. It has meant that many people have taken out credit cards and loans that they can barely afford. Sometimes, this has led to people taking large loans or mortgages for real estate they cannot realistically afford on their salaries. In other cases, it has resulted in people taking on several credit cards and blindly purchasing products & services and just “charging it”."

Phil B. presents The Merits of a Much Higher Gas Tax « Phil for Humanity posted at Phil for Humanity, saying, "If a tax were placed on gas to keep the price at least $4.00 per gallon, then this would have a lot of consequences… some good and some bad."

Brian McKay presents CD Rates posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "Finding a decent rate on a certificate of deposit account these days isn’t an easy thing to do. CD rates have been coming down so fast recently the average 12 month CD rate is nearing just 2.00%."

Carrie presents ING Sub-accounts for Travel and Auto posted at Less is More.

Lance Cooper presents Obama's Stimulus Plan Is A Complete Joke posted at Recession Thoughts, saying, "The presidnet's stimulus plan is nothing more than government waste, and government waste will not 'pump prime' the economy into recovery."

Ella Moss presents New Economy, or Buy American, Stupid! « Zodiac Times posted at Zodiac Times, saying, "So, the new stimulus package is passed, hopes are up, markets are down, and recession deepens. Everyone is blaming the housing market, unscrupulous bankers and inept previous administration.
But very few seem to understand the true roots of our woes, and how deep our economic problems go."

Relax presents The happy way to spend money posted at The Wise Curve, saying, "we are happier when we spend money to gain experience than buying material goods"

Jacqulyn Richey presents First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit posted at Las Vegas Real Estate News, saying, "A comprehensive look at first time home buyer tax credit in the new bill."

Buck Weber presents Offer Your Services for Barter or Cash posted at THE BUCK LIST, saying, "Offering basic services to neighbors, friends and family is a time honored form of making some side cash, bartering for something you might need or trading a skill for a skill."

Mark Smith presents Close Your Home Sale Without Trouble - Vox posted at how to sell your own home’s blog.

Lauren Rose presents Debt Relief Grants from the Government posted at No Debt Anymore .org, saying, "A close look at debt relief grants from the government, including loans, bursaries, benefits and assistance."

Viraj Sawant presents Office time for your internet business posted at New-web-business.com, saying, "How To Use Your Office time for your internet business"

Mike presents Great Depression Myths posted at Great Depression Version 2: Bear Market and Economic Depression, saying, "With all the comparisons between our current financial and the Great Depression, it is time to dispel some basic myths about the Great Depression"

keevisr presents What Are Cheap Debt Consolidation Loans? posted at Loan Info Central, saying, "Cheap debt consolidation loans are loans that save the borrower money. This allows the borrower to pay off their past debt and only have one smaller monthly repayment without high interest rates and extra fees. They are meant for those who are trying to consolidate high interest debt such as multiple credit card debt, etc, into one lower monthly payment that is more manageable. They are cheap because of the lower interest rates involved."

Len Penzo presents Evaluate Your Options Before Selling Gold Jewelry posted at Len Penzo . Com, saying, "When it comes to converting gold to cash you have multiple alternatives from which to choose. But which one is the best option? This post weighs all of your options and breaks out the pros and cons for each..."

Raj Patel presents Student Loan Debt Forgiveness Options posted at DebtGoal, saying, "A presentation of options and strategies for reducing and eliminating educational debt."

Celes presents Passion or Money? posted at EmbraceLiving.Net, saying, "If given a choice - Would you choose a lucrative but hollow career or pursue a passion that is less lucrative? Would you work in a high paying, high flying career which you are not fully passionate about or embrace your real passion instead?"

Silicon Valley Blogger presents High Yield Savings Account Interest Rates: Changes Ahead? posted at The Digerati Life, saying, "Thanks!"

David presents Maintaining Your Accounts posted at Personal Finance Ology, saying, "An important aspect of personal finances is managing the resources you have. Knowing what you have keeps you in charge of your finances and empowers you to make better financial decisions."

Michael Miles presents Double your income doing what you love - book review posted at Effortless Abundance.

Expat presents Things You Must Do While You Travel In Germany posted at A Germany Trip, saying, "Top tourist destinations in Germany."

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of

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Carnival of the road to financial independence #5

Welcome to the March 17, 2009 edition of road to financial independence.

Frugal Living

MoneyNing presents Counter Intuitive Way of Lowering Your Spending posted at Money Ning, saying, "It might not make sense at first but it absolutely works! Curb your spending today."

Insurance Toolbox presents Do You Have to Pay “Charged Off” and Other Old Debt? | Fine-Tuned Finances posted at Fine-Tuned Finances.

Kathryn presents How to Save Money on Dining Out | eHow.com posted at KathrynVercillo on eHow, saying, "Reducing what you spend on dining out to create wealth for yourself."

Peak Personal Finance presents Rent to Own Advice posted at Peak Personal Finance.

Wenchypoo presents The Consumer’s Guide to Functioning in an Economic Cycle (L-O-N-G) posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo's Mental Wastebasket.

PFCreditCards presents Priceline Gets You the Cheapest Hotel Deals posted at PF Credit Cards, saying, "A real world example (mine) that shows you why I love priceline so much!"

Sigrid Landau presents Find Printable Food Coupons posted at A1 How To, saying, "For many years the best way to find coupons was through the newspaper and that is still a good way to find good coupons. But now with the Internet you can find printable coupons that you want."

Tom Tessin presents Budget Cooking for your Family posted at FSC Blog, saying, "Cooking can take a lot out of many people's budget. Find out how you can cut back by more than 50%."

sherin presents 15 Financial planning mistakes posted at Investment Internals, saying, "The most committed financial planning mistakes"

FMF presents Six Places to Spend More Money posted at Free Money Finance, saying, "Sometimes you need to spend more rather than less..."

Abigail Perry presents Through the looking glass: A look at perceived frugality posted at i pick up pennies, saying, "Many times, our self-image can get in the way of realistic expectations and planning. Because we want to believe that we'll be frugal, we don't plan enough for our own fallible natures. By being more self-aware, we could probably all save ourselves a lot of time, energy and money."

Passive Income

Paul Gallion presents The Next Generation of Viral Marketing posted at Paul Gallion, saying, "Use these to advertise your business and earn at the same time"

Peter OBrien presents Adsense Templates - Top 6 Features to Look for in Adsesne Templates Packages posted at Professional Adsense Templates, saying, "To help you with all of this work, look for a good adsense templates package. A good package will have some of the work all ready done and make it easier for you to complete the other tasks. Here are the top 6 features for any adsense templates package:"

Praveen presents Another Round of Website Sales Page Testing Completed posted at My Simple Trading System, saying, "How to increase sales from your website, based on the results of testing various versions of an online sales page."

Reducing Expenses

Mike Lares presents Poker Articles About Online Poker Rooms posted at online poker, saying, "You love to play poker but you hate to lose money, especially when the hands you have been dealt lately have been pretty bad."

Kathryn presents 25 Fun Ways to Spend Your Free Time Without Spending Any Money posted at Promotional Codes - Free Discount Codes, Voucher Codes, Promotion Code for UK Websites, saying, "How to stop spending money on entertainment but still have a lot of fun."

Chris presents Cost of Living Chart - Goa, India (in Rupees, Dollar and Euro) posted at nomad4ever.

Junior presents What To Do If You Can?t Make Your Car Payments posted at Car Commentary, saying, "Tips if you are in the unfortunate situation of being unable to make your car payments."

Finance Tips 101 presents Why Take The Risk Of Day Trading posted at Finance Tips 101.

KCLau presents How to Refinance your Home Loans Smartly posted at KCLau's Money Tips, saying, "Lists several reasons why home owners would benefit from switching their loans to a new loan with lower interest rates"

Raily Arena presents Four Home Staging Mistakes of Neglect You Need to Avoid posted at How to Sell Your Own Home.

Jim DeSantis presents You Are A Banker And A U.S. Automaker posted at On Line Tribune | Front Page Blog, saying, "In an old Hollywood movie, actor Burgess Meredith's
character said he invented - "conspicuous consumption".
This is what we have become and this is at the heart
of our economic disease - conspicuous consumption
without regard for the consequences."

Nate Desmond presents 12 Ways to Waste Money in College posted at Debt-free Scholar.

Beth Dargis presents Save Hundreds of Dollars this Month posted at My Simpler Life - Simple Living.

ishanbansal presents 10 Tips to Reduce Car Expenses posted at Save Few Bucks, saying, "Expenses on your car are one of the biggest drain on your wallet. We sometimes do not realize the complete impact of these. However, if you try to add up the all the expenses that we have to do on our car every year (including insurance, gas, any repairs, state inspection etc.), you will be really amazed with the amount. So, I decided to write this article about some Money Saving Tips to reduce Car Expenses."

Stock Investments

Investing School presents Beta and Alpha Returns for Us Sane Investors posted at Investing School, saying, "Beta and alpha calculations might be just the ticket for you to succeed in investing."

Jeonard Cook presents how to sell your own home - Be A Master Negotiator When Selling Your Home posted at how to sell your own home.

Debt Wizard presents Making Money Is Easier Than Saving Money posted at Money Help, saying, "If you are trying to firm up your finances, trying to make some extra cash may actually be easier than just saving money."

Patrick Smith presents Buying new versus used posted at Real World Advice, saying, "The pros and cons of buying a new versus a used car."

Den Levin presents Get Ready For The Crowding Out Effect | Credit Makes The World Go Round posted at Credit Makes The World Go Round, saying, "With the US government projected to have the highest deficits ever, businesses will have an even tougher time borrowing due to the crowding out effect."

Abdulrasool Sumar presents Borrowing from Your 401k Plan - Advantages & Disadvantages - Basics of Borrowing, 4 Reasons to Borrow, Media & Myths on 401(k) Loans posted at 401k, saying, "Financial advisors will never advise you to borrow money from your 401(k) retirement plan, afterall this is the nest egg that you will need when you stop working upon retirement. Other financial advisors will tell you borrowing a 401k loan from your own retirement account is more like an act of robbery! While it is encouraged not to ever borrow from your 401(k), there are advantages of doing so on the flip side; this is what we will explore in this article."

The Investor presents Stocks vs corporate bonds posted at Monevator.com, saying, "Do stocks AND bonds both have a place in your portfolio?"

Gold Investor presents Gold/Silver Ratio | Gold Investing Info posted at Gold Investing Info, saying, "If you are going to invest in precious metals, it is useful to look at the gold to silver ratio."

Aussie Investor presents Australian Stock Of The Week - McMillan Shakespeare Limited posted at Australian Stock Market Today, saying, "Stock markets all over the world have been decimated in recent times, and Australian shares have been no different. But investing for the long term requires patience and an eye for quality. So with that in mind, this week I have a look at McMillan Shakespeare Limited, one of the better quality stocks at the smaller end of the market."

The Smarter Wallet presents A Stock Trading System For Shorting Stocks: How To Short Estee Lauder posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, "Thanks!"

sri2701 presents Value investing and The Small Investor posted at Mind Meditations.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of
road to financial independence
using our
carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our

blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags:

road to financial independence, blog carnival.

Added Direxion Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS)

We used about 30% of our cash to add Direxion Financial Bull 3X (FAS) shares to our portfolio. The ETF tracks the daily performance of Russell 1000 Financial Services Index at 3X leverage. That is a capitalization weighted index of 200+ large financial services companies. By nature, FAS is extremely volatile because of the 3X leverage and corresponding daily return. For example, if the underlying index moves 3% in a given day, FAS would move 9%.

This is a speculative trade and the holding period will most probably be in days rather than months or years. Also, leveraged indexes are not suitable for longer term holding periods in any case – we will look into these products in greater detail in another post.

Below is our updated portfolio - it is more than 40% in the red:

Stock	Buy Date	Buy Price	Current Price	Current % Of Portfolio	Unrealized % Return	Yield as % of Portfolio Value
Altria (MO)	Various	16.69	16.91	5.37	1.35	0.41
Philip Morris International (PM)	1/4/2005	32.19	37.16	8.98	15.43	0.47
Kraft Foods (KFT)	Various	24.03	22.87	4.84	(4.84)	0.25
Pfizer (PFE)	Various	24.37	14.15	7.49	(41.93)	0.33
ICICI Bank (IBN)	5/18/2006 and 08/01/2008	25.28	12.63	6.68	(50.03)	0.29
Advantage Energy Fund (AAV)	11/2/2006	11.22	2.73	1.44	(75.68)	0.20
Central Europe & Russia Fund (CEE)	Various	39.23	14.18	5.25	(63.83)	0.03
Patni Computers (PTI)	8/10/2007	20.85	4.87	2.58	(76.66)	0.07
Itron Inc. (ITRI)	11/07/2007	85.01	44.30	4.69	(47.95)	None
Anthracite (AHR)	11/09/2007	7.97	0.76	0.40	(90.46)	0.00
ClickSoftware (CKSW)	11/09/2007	4.61	2.87	3.04	(37.74)	None
Harvest Energy (HTE)	11/28/2007	21.01	3.78	1.60	(82.01)	0.20
iRobot (IRBT)	12/18/2007	18.65	7.77	3.29	(57.98)	None
LDK Solar (LDK)	01/22/2008	30.49	4.36	1.38	(85.70)	None
Aegon N.V. (AEG)	04/28/2008	15.99	3.16	1.00	(80.23)	0.00
LM Ericsson (ERIC) Call Value	05/05/2008	11.83	7.50	6.35	(36.59)	0.16
TD Ameritrade (AMTD)	05/21/2008	17.68	12.27	5.19	(30.62)	None
Trina Solar (TSL)	06/06/2008 and 07/31/2008	45.61	7.50	3.97	(69.88)	None
Costco (COST)	08/01/2008	62.28	42.12	4.46	(32.37)	0.07
Frontline Limited (FRO)	10/06/2008	36.95	16.95	2.69	(54.13)	0.16
DryShips Incorporated (DRYS)	02/09/2009	6.96	3.80	2.81	(45.43)	0.00
Direxion Financial Bull 3X (FAS)	03/16/2009	5.09	4.87	5.15	(4.32)	0.00
Cash				12.46
Total Portfolio					(43.89)	2.63

• For Altria and Philip Morris International, assumed spin-off ratio of 30.83:69.17. Altria is yet to supply the cost-basis info
• For Ericsson, we wrote April 7.5 covered calls on them at 0.95

Common Stamp Collecting Terms - An Introduction

Philatelic glossary is an extremely packed one that entire books are devoted to explaining them. This post focuses on some of the frequent terms that apply to a variety/types of stamps. Below is our list:

Term	Explanation	Sample
Album Weed	A forged stamp
Back of the book (BOB)	special stamps such as officials, revenue, postage dues, etc. that are listed in the back of stamp catalogues.
Backstamp	A post mark applied to the back cover by the post office while the mail is in transit.
Bilinguals	Stamps with inscriptions in two languages
Bisect/Trisect/Quadrisect etc. (aka Fractional Usages)	A stamp perforated into two or more parts (authorized by postal service) that represent part of the face value of the original stamp. Used by postal agencies during temporary shortages of common lower-denominated stamps. Only has additional value when it is cancelled and in cover.
Blind Perforations	Stamps with light perforations that has the perforated paper still left in tact
Bogus	A worthless stamp –stamps created for non-existent countries, countries with no postal addministrations, etc.
Canceled-to-order (CTOs)	Stamps issued by certain governments as a means of revenue in large quantities in full sheets with a pre-cancel or the cancellation imprinted as part of the production process. These are usually sold to dealers at a large discount to face value and usually has minimal collectible value.
Changeling	A stamp whose color has changed due to exposure to sunlight or chemicals
Cinderella	A label that looks like a stamp
Classic	Any stamp issued between 1840 and 1940
Commemoratives	Stamps with a commemorative design issued in limited quantities compared to Definitives (see below)
Copyright Block	A block of stamps with copyright notice in margin
Counterfeit	A forged stamp intended to deceive postal authorities
Cross Gutter Block	A block of stamps containing the intersection of vertical and horizontal gutters.
Cut-to-shape	A non-rectangular stamp
Definitives	Stamps issued in large quantities for an extended period of time
Dummy Stamps	Stamps produced by postal departments for training and/or testing purposes. Usually have inscriptions indicating the status
Europa	Stamps with “Europa” inscription representing European Unity through participation in the Conference of European Postal & Telecommunication (CEPT) association.
Fake	A regular stamp altered in some way to make it appear more valuable
First Day Cover (FDC)	An envelope with a cancelled stamp sold by philatelic bureaus on the day of issue. In many countries including the US, FDCs can be bought in a range of date as opposed to just on the day of issue.
Forerunner	A postage stamp from another region/country used in a location not issuing regular stamps
Frama	A stamp auto-produced by vending machines
Hologram/3D stamp	Stamps that appear three-dimensional
Imperforate	Stamps without perforations (holes that separate one stamp from the next one in a block issued by the post office
Line Pair (LP)	Two stamps with a line of ink separating them
Never Hinged (NH)	A stamp without hinge marks in the back
Newspaper stamp	stamps issued for prepayment of mailing rates for newspapers and other periodicals
Non Denominated	Stamps with no face value inscription
Obliterations	Overprint on a stamp intentionally intended to deface the design
Occupation Issues	A stamp issued for use in an occupied territory
Official	Stamps issued specifically for use by government authorities
Omnibus or Joint Issues	A design/subject depicted in stamps from two or more postal administrations celebrating a common theme
Overprints	Stamps that have overprints on top of their original design.
Par Avion	Stamps imprinted with ‘Par Avion’ – French for mail transported by air
Perfins	Stamps perforated through the face with initials or other symbols
Plate Block	A set of stamps with margin showing plate number joined together
Plate Number Coil (PNC)	A stamp with plate number printed on it.
Postage Due	A stamp issued to collect unpaid postage
Precancels	Stamps cancelled by postal authority (for collectors) before use in mail
Presort Stamp	A stamp discounted compared to first-class postage rates for use in business mailers
Proofs	Trial impressions from pre-production runs
Regional	Stamps issued for a specific region of the postal entity
Reissue	A stamp issued again after it was no longer being issued
Remainders	Issues remaining with the postal authority after it is no longer sold – these are sometimes sold at a big discount to face value to dealers with a pre-cancellation.
Replicas	Reproductions of stamps (made for collectors – not suitable for postage)
Reprint	A stamp printed from the original plate for official purposes. Usually identified from the original issues by some mark.
Revenue or Fiscal Stamp	Stamps issued as proof of payment for certain taxes (not valid for postage)
Se-tenant	Stamps joined together that differ in design, value, or surcharge
Self-adhesives	Stamps with pressure sensitive adhesives.
Semipostals & Charity Stamps	Stamps with a surcharge added as support for charitable or other causes
Souvenir Sheet	A sheet of stamps with a commemorative design embellishment
Space Filler	A stamp in poor condition
Special Stamps	A third classification in addition to Definitive and Commemorative for stamps that are issued in large quantities compared to commemoratives but not for an indefinite period of time as with definitive usually signifying holiday season (Christmas) and/or religious/political themes.
Specimens	Stamps with a “SPECIMEN” overprint. These are distributed for identification & publicity purposes.
Speculative Issue	Stamps issued for collectors. Two or more stamps joined together with one stamp’s design inverted compared to the others.
Triptych	A se-tenant strip of three stamps together forming one design
Surcharge	An overprint that changes the value of the original issue
Used vs Unused	A stamp that has been used in mail as opposed to a mint unused stamp
Wing Margin	Stamps with selvage attached usually on one side

Many countries also maintain an indigenous set of philatelic terms and nicknames for specific stamps that apply to their region.

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Last Updated: 07/2011.