• mental_floss talks about the history behind the foods we eat at Thanksgiving
• Opera Phantom explains how Professor Max Bazerman convinces his MBA students to buy a $20 bill at well above face value.  It’s a really interesting example of loss-aversion
• The Amateur Economist offers up some suggested sites to help you with Black Friday
• But what will happen if you don’t get the gift you want?  WalletPop grades the return policies of the top retailers
• Bloomberg points out that stocks are currently at their cheapest value since the Reagan era.  But that still doesn’t mean that you should buy
• Looking for something fun and free to do during the Thanksgiving holiday?  gHacks offers up a list of the best free first-person games

If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been a bit absent from the blog, recently.  I’ve been working some heroic hours in order to wrap up a project before Thanksgiving; and am hoping to resume a more regular posting schedule in the near-future.  In the meantime, here are a few quickies:

• Thanksgiving will cost more this year:  According to Forbes, the cost of a typical Thanksgiving dinner will rise by about 5.6%.  Even though commodity costs have been falling, producers find themselves in the fortunate position of being able to raise their prices.
• Security software providers get some competition:  Microsoft has announced that it will offer free anti-malware with every copy of their operating system.  In concert with this, Microsoft will also be ending their paid security service, OneCare.
• Looking for Gift Ideas this Holiday Season?  MakeUseOf.com has compiled a list of 50 tools and resources to help you pick out gifts, cards, and everything else you’ll need this season.
• Money Saving Tips for a Turbulent Economy:  Bill Sardi over at LewRockwell.com has compiled a list of money saving tips that are all based on the notion that you can save money by buying higher-quality, more durable goods.

Thanks to Chris for the suggestions!

Money Ning hosted this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance, which included my recent posting on 12 Fun and Free Entertainment Websites.  Among the more interesting articles were:

• Chief Family Officer’s holiday shopping tips for the coming season
• Fire Finance’s investing article on which stock market indexes to choose
• Just Thrive offers up 5 recession-proof ways to get hired
• The Happy Rock offers up a tip on how to Get 25% Cashback on eBay Purchases

If you have an opportunity, check them out!

• Christian PF offers up 6 tips for a debt free christmas
• Reuters reports that the mortgage portfolio owned by Bear Sterns is generating cash as expected.    This means that the mortgage debt could be worth a lot more than people think, and that the fears of Bear Sterns failure back in March may have been unwarranted.
• The Wild Invester points out that when times get tough, people turn to cheap forms of entertainment.  Perhaps it’s time to buy Nintendo stock?
• Million Dollar Journey lays out 7 financial tips for newlyweds.
• And finally, Financial Ramblings offers up a simple tip to help keep your home warm this winter.

Gift cards are more popular than ever.  In 2007, it's estimated that $97 billion of them were purchased.  And the reason for their popularity is simple:  Of those that purchased gift cards, 85 percent wanted the recipient to be able to select their gift and over half had did know what to buy.

But there are several downsides:

• Expiration – Some cards expire or are subject to administrative feeds after a set period of time – usually 18 months.  This directly erodes the recipient’s purchasing power over time.
• Inflation – Unlike cash, which can earn interest while sitting in a savings account, gift cards do not accrue interest over time.  This means that inflation will slowly eat away at the purchasing potential of gift cards if not used immediately.
• Risk of Bankruptcy – If the issuing retailer files for bankruptcy, then it’s likely that the gift cards they issued will lose their value.  This happened within the last couple of days for holders of Circuit City gift-cards.  And happened last year with Sharper Image gift cards.  In the case of the later, Sharper Image wrote off about $62 million worth of gift cards.  Ouch.

There is a simple way to avoid all of these potential pitfalls, however.  Simply give cash in lieu of a gift card.

• The Seattle Times talks about how social finance sites like Mint and Wesabe are helping people save money
• Computerworld tests several aftermarket laptop batteries to see if they work as well as their brand-name counterparts
• Lifehacker offers up 10 online freebies and deals
• Now that the price of oil has dropped by half, Seeking Alpha wonders what happened to all of the Peak Oil believers
• Laura Rowley offers up eight budget-trimming tips for a down economy

People often talk about the large stack of Christmas expenses that show up for payment in January.  But Christmas need not be costly.  In light of the current economic climate, I’ve compiled a list of tips that you can use to help save money during this and future holiday seasons.

• Set Limits - Christmas doesn’t have to be expensive.  If you’re going to be exchanging gifts with family and friends, then consider agreeing up-front to pre-determined spending limits.
• Make It Yourself – Sometimes, the best gifts are those that cannot be purchased anywhere at any price.  Consider baked goods, home-brewed beer…or, if you’re handy at arts and crafts, some sort of useful knick knack or decorative item.  Also consider using homemade wrapping paper, or simply wrap gifts using the Sunday cartoons that you’ve saved from the newspaper for a humorous touch.
• Check Online Pricing  - Before you buy, check online for the best pricing.  Sites like Froogle and Price Grabber can help you ensure you’ve found the best price on a given item.
• Pay Cash – Credit card debt can be expensive if you end up paying interest over time.  If you simply pay the minimum amount due each month, an expenditure could end up costing you several times the original cost by the time the card is paid off. If at all possible, pay cash for your gifts, or pay the card off as soon as you receive the bill. 
• Use Those Rewards Points and Gift Cards – If you’ve got gift cards stashed away or points that you’ve accrued on your credit card, then consider using them.  Unlike cash, you don’t earn interest on those points, so inflation will erode their value over time.  Likewise, some programs will expire unused points or left over cash on gift cards after a set time period. 
• Ship Early – If you need to send a gift, then ship it early in order to take advantage of less expensive ground-shipping rates. 
• Book Travel Online and Early – As mentioned previously, there are lots of good travel sites around that you can use to help you find deals on travel.  If possible, book three or more weeks in advance in order to take advantage of the lowest airfares.
• Cut Your Own Tree – Instead of spending $75 or more on a live tree, consider buying a tree permit and chopping your own at a nearby National Park.  Such permits typically run $10 to $20; and taking a drive out into the wilderness can be a cool experience.
• Go Artificial – Instead of buying a fresh tree every year, consider investing in a nice artificial tree that you can use for many years.  Even though they tend to cost more than live trees, they will pay for themselves over time.
• Stock Up After The Holidays – After-Christmas sales tend to be a great opportunity to stock up on clearance-priced cards, ornaments, and decor.  Take the opportunity to plan ahead for next year by shopping early; and you could save a few bucks in the process.

The Mighty Bargain Hunter hosted this week's Festival of Frugality.  Among the more interesting articles were:

• FruGal's article suggesting that frugality is vogue at the moment.
• GRACEful Retirement talks about the economics of the Tracfone.
• not the jet set offers up tips for doing Halloween on the Cheap.

If you have a moment, check them out!

WhiteFence is an interesting service that allows you to shop for and compare essential services that are available in your area.  If you’ve considered switching providers – say from one cable provider to another – you can use WhiteFence to do side by side comparisons to see which one is best for you.  In addition, they can help you find and transfer services if you are in the process of moving.

Thanks to Chris for the tip!

• Lifehacker provides a list of the five best file compression tools.  Hint:  The best one isn’t WinZip.
• Thinking about a career change?  HowStuffWorks reviews 10 high paying dirty jobs.
• MSNBC explains why the strong decline in gas prices may not trickle down to prices at the grocery store.
• Even with the jobless rate continuing to climb and stock prices in the toilet, Kiplinger points out 10 things that are going well.  Among them:  Fire sale prices on new automobiles and more affordable housing.
• And finally, The Motley Fool offers up a list of 10 things to do while waiting for the end of the financial apocalypse.