investing in gold

I don’t know a lot about the stock market and I would not know anything about it if not for my husband who owns some stocks. He was the one who explained to me how the whole thing works. I don’t often check changes in the stock market but I do check the currency conversion almost every day and I am disappointed to say that since a few months, the Euro lost a lot of its value and unfortunately for me, I earn Euros.

They say that the value of gold moves alongside the value of Euro so that means, gold is much cheaper now than before and that further means that now is the best time to buy buy gold bullion because as soon as the value of Euro picks up, like it seems to be doing recently, the value of gold will also pick up and when that happens, people who bought gold bullion can sell their gold at a higher value.

Investing in silver is also not such a bad idea because like gold, the value of silver is getting higher. Experts say that it is the best time to invest in silver and, especially, gold right now because the gold bar has a proven ability to diversify investments, protect wealth and preserve one’s purchasing power.

rewarding myself

Finally, I am on summer break.

That was a year of hard work and I am glad I got through it. There were times when I thought… I should just quit and be a bum but every time I get those ideas, I also find the courage to continue. Work life here in Europe is stressful. Everybody demands something from you and you just have to fulfill all these demands.

So I am thinking of rewarding myself for a job well done. First, I thought of buying an ipod touch 32G but hubby already has one and I am free to use it anytime I want. We don’t need two ipods in this house. And on the other hand, my iphone can do all the things an ipod can do so an ipod is completely unnecessary.

A Macbook Pro would be a really good reward but it is quite expensive too and I am not sure if I really want to spend my hard earned money on such luxury. My reasonable side is telling me that I don’t have to spend that much on a new computer but my diabolic side is telling me to go on with it since it looks like I will have to go through another year of hard work again.

MacBook Pro or no MacBook Pro, I hope that I still have enough patience to do the same job for at least another year.

taking care of your eyes and your pocket

I’ve been bothered by recurring headaches lately. At first I thought it is because of stress and the changing weather but I realized that it is because of my eyes. Looks like I need a new eyeglass prescription. I think I need a new pair of eyeglasses again. The contact lenses I bought for 204 Euro can be thrown away too. My gosh! It’s really expensive to have a pair of bad eyes.

Good thing though, Zenni Optical offers really cheap BUT quality eyeglasses. You could buy a pair for 8$. Yes, 8$! The glasses I am wearing now cost me around 370 Euro and because I paid that much, I continuously use the frame even if I am not really contented with it anymore. Whenever I get new a prescription, I just get the glasses changed to fit my new prescription.

With the price and the quality of the eyeglasses they offer at Zenni Optical, I am not surprise that there are a lot of satisfied customers. An honest review on Zenni Optical published in TheExaminer.com details one happy customer’s experience with Zenni Optical. Of course, the review also points out not just the pros of buying a pair of glasses at Zenni Optical but also the cons so if you’re thinking of buying a pair of glasses at Zenni’s, this article might be interesting for you.

If you care about your eyes and your pocket, Zenni Optical is the place for you.

wiener philharmoniker

The “Wiener Philharmoniker” is a well known Austrian coin. We got one as a gift from my husband’s grand aunt on our wedding day. At first, I thought it was just a commemorative coin but later, I learned that it is also made of 24 karats gold.

People buy such coins to invest their money on gold. Gold prices fluctuate constantly but that’s the good thing about it. When the financial crisis happened last year, the value of gold went down but many says that it was the best time to buy gold coins because when the economy picks up, the value of gold will also do so.

The value of gold moves alongside the value of Euro. It means that when the Euro is doing well against the US Dollar, which is the case for several weeks now, gold value will definitely climb up.

I wonder what’s the value of our Wiener Philharmoniker now? I don’t like to sell it (ever) but I am curious because if it’s really a very good investment, we might consider buying some of these coins.

Practicality on Eye Care

A New York Times article published on the 29th of January, 2009 about saving on eye care mentioned ZenniOptical.com as a good place to get the cheapest eyeglasses from. I think Zeni Optical deserves such mention because they really offer the most competitive prices for eyeglasses.

A lot of people say that we should never be stingy when it comes to eye care because we only get a pair eyes for the rest of our lives but spending around $500 or more on eyeglasses or contact lenses a year is just so grand and not all of us can dish out that much. Sometimes people postpone their eyeglasses’ upgrade to their new eye prescription because of the fact that they can’t afford it.

So for those of you who are not so lucky to get a perfect 20/20 vision, you can get your spectacles from Zenni Optical for better prices. The eyeglasses shown in the photo is my personal choice because of its classic design, its availability in different color, and believe it or not, it costs only 8$. That is to better illustrate how cheap specs are from Zenni Optical.

Also you have to know that when you purchase from Zenni Optical, you yourself will be the one to input the specifications of your eyeglasses. So once you get your prescription from your doctor, you can directly set your browsers to ZenniOptical.com and order your eyeglasses there.

Remember it is not about being stingy… it is about being pratical.

Something About the Economic Crisis

Here I am again talking about the recession. I can’t help it because the news about recession is everywhere—on TV, on the internet, in magazines and newspapers! Another reason is because we feel it. We are affected by it.

My husband still has his job but he comes home everyday complaining how much work he he has because their company can’t afford to employ additional staff and he is sad because some of his colleagues are being laid off.

My mom, on the other hand, complains that she’s not getting a lot of job orders anymore. The root of her problem is–a lot of her contractors are closing down. Now she is terrified of losing her business too.

One prominent business man in Europe decided to end his life because his business empire is way down the bend and the government denied his request for financial assistance. He is not connected in any way to me but that news is simply troubling.

Business owners in general are in chaos. They don’t know whether to continue or just close down. Then there are loan sharks who give out loans to struggling business owners putting these poor business men in deeper problems.

If you are a business man, will you take a loan or not?

My take on this is… if you honestly believe that business can generate a positive working capital after availing some sort of business loan then go ahead and get a loan but be careful when choosing where to avail financial assistance. Loan sharks are everywhere in times like these so choose wisely.

Take Advantage of the Recession

When else is the best time to buy stocks and real estate properties other than now? I believe that the economy cannot get worse than how it is at the moment so whatever you invest now will increase its value as soon as the economy picks up again.

A friend of ours who owns a house in Detroit is now selling his house for a quarter of the house’s original price. That’s to illustrate how cheap real estate properties are this time. If I were to buy a real estate property now, I’d just get one of those cheap houses in the market but for those of you who like to build their homes from a scratch, there’s Schumacher Homes. This company is known for quality home construction, exceptional value and award winning designs so if you want a house that is built for your family,  consider contacting them.

How’s Your Business Doing in this Downturn?

Obama has been inaugurated and many believe that he can turn the economy from its current situation. I, too, personally believe that Obama will do everything he can to stop the rapid decline of the economy and twist it to face better direction but he needs a lot of time to do this. I have read somewhere that we should be out of this downturn by the first half of 2009 and I want to believe that but experts in economics said that that is simply unrealistic. According to them, getting out of this recession could take years.

When it first came out, I didn’t give it a thought. The economic crisis in the US didn’t get my attention until recently. Now I am deeply concerned mainly because we ran a small business back home and as tiny a business as it is, it is affected by the crisis. My mom said that the business could still struggle a few more months then after that she might be forced to take some sort of a loan to continue it until the economy starts to pick up again.

A lot of people who run a business are now facing a dilemma. They have to choose between closing down and seeking some sort of financing. Those who have faith in the economy and their business take small business loans but even if such is very tempting at the moment, business owners should be very careful about where to get loans. They have to choose a loan that will help their business cope with the downturn and not push their business further to the ditch.