As for your recent posts, they seem alright to me. Granted, I haven’t been following you for years and thus have a fairly limited frame of reference, but they seem coherent and logical, which is more than I can say for some bloggers.

I suppose dogs are a lot like kids in the way that unexpected expenses tend to pop up. Being prepared for and having a nice amount of reserve capital set aside for pet emergencies is a good policy.

As for giving a self-help book, you’re right, it can be done in a tactful, tasteful manner. If you do it right, the recipients might be appreciative. And your comment about not giving a completely new book is a good one, as well; something with a cracked spine and some well worn pages will sell the image of a book you love and want to pass on.

I normally don’t work a regular job, but I was offered a great position with great pay in an economy which isn’t doing diddly-poo to quote Jim Mora Sr. It would seem wrong to let the opportunity go by.

I haven’t been very proud of my recent posts. It may not seem like it, but it’s very much a stream of consciousness… little editing and thought into what I was going to write. I like to think I’ve done better in the past.

Sadly, I missed a lot of costs on the dog ownership front. We needed buy new trash cans with lids for one. For another there’s flea and tick (Frontline) and Inceptor (some kind of heartworm thing) that’s a monthly cost of around $20-$25. Small things keep popping up.

As for the Giving a Lasting Gift, I think offering a book on personal finance (or any self-help topic) can be very insulting. It has to be done in the right way and by someone who is very close. It’s possible you could present it in a “I just read this fantastic book… wish I had read it years ago… and I thought I’d share it with you” way (just be sure not to give a completely new book.)