Everything And Nothing

Second to One

Photo via Wikipedia

Ronald McDonald is second only to Santa Claus among fictional figures familiar to American schoolchildren, with a 96% recognition rate.

Learn the Lingo

AMT. APR. APY.

Sign up for the Term of the Day at www.investorwords.com and be confused by the financial jargon no more. You'll receive a daily e-mail each day with a new financial term and its definition.

Boost your vocabulary and your bank balance too! ;)

Cingular to Offer Cell Phone Banking

Cingular Wireless is planning to launch a mobile-phone banking service that allows users to check account balances, transfer money and pay bills on their cellphones the same way they do now on their computers.

The new mobile service is set to be available on Cingular handsets early next year as part of a deal between the carrier and Firethorn Holdings LLC, a closely held company that specializes in mobile banking.

Cingular's service works only if a user's bank makes it available for downloading off its Web site. At this point, Cingular says it is in talks with a number of banks but so far hasn't announced any deals.

[ via Sarmad Ali, The Wall Street Journal ]

A piggybank for the postmodern set

Karim Rashid designed this chrome-finished ceramic bank. It's perfect for the modern toddler on your list.

$20

Love and Marriage (and Money)

According to an article by Rebecca Webber in Glamour magazine (July 2006):

• A woman's ability to hold a steady job matters more than her age, previous marriages, maternal status, religion or race, according to the majority of men ages 19-35.
• 32% of working wives in the U.S. outearn their husband
• Women who outearn their husbands say they still handle 75% of the household chores. (Financially dependent wives shoulder less: 67% of the duties)
• A woman's chance of getting married improves by 7% when her income increases by $10,000.
• 36% of men on online dating sites seek women with higher incomes than their own (17% of men seek women with equal salaries, and 47% seek women with lower incomes)
• A woman is 60% less likely to divorce when she earns at least 75% of the household income.

Save In Style

Classic ceramic piggy banks are perfect for storing loose change. Coin slot on the top and rubber plug on the bottom. If you prefer something flashier or another animal or a personalized piggy bank, you can find it all at www.piggybankworld.com.

$26.95, piggybankworld.com

$22, piggybankworld.com

Many Happy Returns

Amy Kover had an interesting article in the latest edition of Women's Health magazine (March 2006) about money and happiness. She shared some fascinating statistics:

• While U.S. household income has more than doubled between 1950 and 2000, the percentage of Americans who describe themselves as very happy has stayed the same at 37 percent.
• Sixty-eight percent of online purchases are made by women.
• Seven consistent factors dictate our happiness: family relationships, financial situation, work, community and friends, health, personal freedom and personal values.
• Women who have more support from friends are five to six times less likely to suffer from depression than those who have a better relationship with their laptop. (Ouch.)
• The average American woman spends five years of her life in the bathroom.
• The bathroom is the most profitable interior renovation, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Forget Big Bird, kids: Buffett's coming

Warren Buffett, a.k.a. the Oracle of Omaha, will provide his voice and likeness to a 13-part animated series to be released on DVD beginning this fall called The Secret Millionaire's Club. The show, which is being produced by DIC Entertainment of Burbank, Calif., will focus on financial literacy - hoping no doubt to stave off the poor money choices of later life. 

DIC also has made animated shorts featuring Buffett that are shown at Berkshire Hathaway's shareholder meetings. DIC's program library includes Strawberry Shortcake, Madeline and Where On Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?.

Forbes.com recently noted that the DIC deal is not the billionaire investor's only appearance in cartoon form: His life became the subject of a Japanese manga, translated into English and published by John Wiley in 2004. The Japanese cartoon honor has been bestowed on only a few business icons, to wit, Microsoft Chairman (and Buffett bridge partner) Bill Gates and Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of Renault and Nissan Motor.

Opt Out

Did you know you can opt out of receiving the loads of credit card applications that you receive in the mail every day? I didn't.

If register at OptOutPrescreen.com, the official Consumer Credit Reporting Industry Web site, you will minimize the number of "You're accepted!" letters you get. You can opt out for five years or permanently.

Save the trees - and possibly your identity. (Minimizing the credit card applications coming to your house is one step toward combating identity theft.)

The Year of Giving Generously

Do you plan to make a big gift to charity some day? Do it now. Maybe. Congress has created a significant, temporary, tax break: Cash donations made to most public charities from Aug. 28 through Dec. 31 can be used to offset up to 100% of your 2005 adjusted gross income, up from the normal 50% limit. While the increase was passed in the name of Hurricane Katrina relief, it can be used for any charitable purpose. You can even honor an old pledge, so long as you deliver the cash by Dec. 31.