So it’s been like 2 months since I bought Dell Studio Hybrid computer to hook up to my television via HDMI.  It’s been working great, albeit a bit slow.  It’s a fantastically stylish little guy available in several primitive colors.

Dell Studio Hybrid

Turns out, a newer version with a better graphics card and more RAM is available.  I found the original receipt, haphazardly disassembled the unit, threw the components into the original box, and then piled packing materials on top.  After explaining to the clerk that this computer “would not run Oblivion“, I flashed my receipt, and got my money back.

What happens to my settings, and all pictures, documents, and other files that accumulate on any computer after using it for a while?  Nothing.  I make a point to save stuff like that to my NAS unit, which lives behind the couch next to the router.  Therefore, when I decide to return a computer, I just restore it to factory settings via the enclosed recovery CD.

I’ve been doing this for a while now.  Why committ to a $1,000 computer when it’s worth $500 in six months?  Why not take advantage of Sams Club’s wonderful 6 month return policy on desktops? (varies by location, some only offer 30 days).

All my docs, music, work files, movies, securely go to the NAS.  All bookmarks get synced by FoxMarks from a central location.  The firewall is constantly updated and tweaked on the router.  Thus, the computer becomes a swappable terminal!  I am now rocking an Acer Aspire X1200 desktop that will go back to Sams Club in about 8 weeks.  It’s a ballsy little machine with 2 gigs of RAM, 2.2GHz Athlon clock, and most importantly, HDMI output not available on its peers — not even on Dells and HP’s.  Five bills later, and I am watching the content off the intertubes on my television.

Best of all, I’ll get a newer one of these when I get tired of it .. ahem, when the new model comes out.

Found a cool link: it’s Black Friday Sears ad.

I am pretty big into the day after Thanksgiving sales because of the awesome deals one can find.  For instance, two years ago I snagged a 42″ Panasonic plasma tv for $700 … and a sweet nVidia graphics card (normally $250) for $70 because the store mislabeled the pile of them.  I’ve bought most big ticket items on that day exactly because of the availability of deals (because I was willing to be patient).

Thanksgiving this year is Thursday, November 27, 2008.  Black Friday is Friday, November 28, 2008.

I’ve also found Ace Hardware Black Friday Ad.  I have a love-hate relationship with tools — on one hand, no one needs five different 13mm wrenches.  On the other, if you don’t have the right tool for the job, your simple home improvement or car repair project can quickly disintegrate into chaotic, panicky series of trips to the store.  Plus, the tools are EXPENSIVE.

It’s going to be interesting to see what kind of deals retailers roll out.  The retail sector is in shambles due to reigned-in consumer spending, and the remaining standing retailers must be freaking out about the best way to lure in consumers.

If you watch the news, everything looks grim.  The housing market is shot, credit is tight, banks go bankrupt, 401k’s are losing value, etc.  Presidental candidates pontificate about “average, hard-working Americans”, tax cuts, and character issues.

So how I am handling my business in light of all this?  Here’s a few things I am doing, but please, take this with a grain of salt, as this is only one guy’s action plan.  Please remember that I’ve lived through the breakup of the USSR and the crisis of mid-90′s in Ukraine and Russia.

• I shut off the television. A reasonable person would agree that in the world where all news is controlled by just a few gigantic entities, chances are that ALL news is skewed.  One guy owns the entire News Corp, for Christ’s sake, how “fair and balanced” do you expect him to be?  The rest of the news outlets are divvied up between GE, TimeWarner, Disney, CBS, and Viacom.  That’s right — from about 50 in the 80′s to just six.  Get your news from the Internet.
• I expanded my garden.  I grow upside-down tomatoes in 5 gal. buckets, and compost all organic waste my household generates.  I got cucumbers, green peppers, peas, spices, sunflower, radishes, and lettuce.  It’s no “Depression Garden” (no chickens and pigs), but it will do in a pinch.
• I am hoarding cash. There is no safe investment now.  However, I did make a few bucks buying Freddie Mac at $0.40 and selling it at around $2.00.
• I am aggressively reducing my leverage. I’ve been paying down debt with the highest interest, while making minimum payments on cheap debt (student loans).
• I am taking any side job I can. Between IT consulting, web design, SEO, constuction, I stay busy — (see stockpiling cash item above).
• I bought a weapon. Academy has some decent shotties for under $200.  When the riot police and the military is doing riot control, I’ll be able to defend the castle — get your fucking head blown off if you enter uninvited.  God bless Texas.
• I am hoarding dry goods.  We thought the ruble would not devalue and there will be no shortages in 1990 USSR … guess what happened next.  It never hurts to stock your pantry with rice, flour, sugar, tea, some water filters (or filtering pitchers), batteries, lightbulbs, soup, chicken stock.  When Asia is flooded again and the commodities are sky-high, I’ll be laughing.

If this sounds all-too-paranoid for your taste, and you think “none of this can possibly happen in 21st century America“, I’ll ask you “exactly what makes the Western hemisphere so awesome that it can’t happen to them?”  Why can’t a Great Depression happen again?

The economy?  It’s clearly in the crapper.

The democracy?  It’s in decline.

The military power?  Overextended between two undeclared wars.

If this is still too glum for you, or you’re some sort of an unreasonable optimist, what’s so wrong with having some cash on hand, and a pantry full of food?  However, there’s EVERYTHING wrong with entire generations accustomed to charging everything, from clothes to big screen TV’s.

If I’m wrong, you’ve have a cash reserve and enough food to not go to Sam’s Club for awhile, and certainly enough to help you in case another Great Depression hits.  If I’m right, you’ll depend on FEMA.  I hope none of us have to.

If you’re thinking about buying a house, and you’re like me, you’re going to do a lot of research.  When my wife and I bought our Austin home in 2007, I scoured the web for good information, talked to home-owning friends and their parents, and read first-hand prep experience (mymoneyblog.com).

Now that we’re happily in our home, I occasionally check for deals in an effort to find a good investment property.  However, regardless of whether you’re thinking of buying, or just learning, you’ll have to bone up on FHA loans, since there’s a pretty good chance this organization is going to insure your mortgage.

FHA stands for “Federal Housing Administration” and rolls up to Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  The entire point of FHA’s existence is ensuring the mortgages, so that the lenders still get paid if the borrowers default.  For example, if Chase Bank extend me an FHA loan and then I lose my job and Chase forecloses on my home, FHA will deal with Chase.  That’s really it — here’s the full source of information (Wikipedia.com)

If you ask me, this is a pretty relevant subject nowadays, since everybody and their uncle throws around “socialist” concepts and calling each other “socialists”.  At a risk of offending some people, I consider FHA’s activities a beneficial form of socialism, meaning that everyone helps you when you’re down, and when you’re up, you help someone else who is down … A sort of a “pay it forward” concept, like the healthcare systems in Canada and France.  Another upside is that FHA’s activities cost taxpayers nothing, since they are financed via mortgage insurance it collects until borrowers reach a certain percentage of ownership in the home.

Naturally, it acts as a catalyst for lenders because of the whole “guaranteeing that the lenders get paid” thing.

So what else is good about FHA loans?  Well, the down payments can be lower (as low as 3%), with no pre-payment penalties (great for sub-prime refinancers).

The downside is paying the mortgage insurance, which is where the “socialist” part comes in, so if you have enough cash upfront for a large down payment, you really wouldn’t take the fullest advantage of FHA’s offerings.  Also, it’s more of a middle-class kind of a hookup, so you probably won’t be able to buy a mansion.

I’d start reading at the FHA Mortgage Center site (http://www.fhamortgagecenter.com).  It’s a decent resource with wizards (which I love).  The site uses SSL and has a 1-800 number, so it’s legit in my book.

We have an FHA loan, and our down payment was 10%.  Bank of America actually waived our closing costs, paid our PMI, and gave us 6.25% on a 30-year fixed.  You can review the lending guide at the FHA Mortgage Center site (http://www.fhamortgagecenter.com/fha_lending_guide.html).  By the way, Austin home prices have been kind (knock on wood), and in the first year our home added $15k in value … Not sure how long this is going to go on for, but considering the rest of the country is down by as much as 20%, I’ll take the increase :)

Cya, Max