(Thanks to Larry Ballis for contributing to our blog)
Back in the days of the Great Depression and World War Two, people were told to share baths (no wonder there was a baby boom). If you are a student, then why not share a bath or shower with your partner to save money? Don’t go knocking on dorm room doors asking to bathe with strangers, especially if you are not a student.
Hit up your parents
Ask your parents for food when you visit. They are more than often going to be willing to give you all the food items they bought because they looked good at the time. Don’t try to sway their sympathy by showing them your bony ribs and pretending you are too weak to walk.
Group Activities
Group shopping events involve packing one car with students and everybody doing their shopping at once. The money saved with the car trip alone will help repay most of your student loans. This trick does not work if you and your friends ride scooters.
Cheap liquor
Learn to love cider. Cider is very cheap and the cheaper it is, the worse it tastes; after the first few slugs you won’t notice the taste. You can buy loads of it for just a few dollars and drink all night. If it comes to the point where you are fermenting apple juice underneath your dorm room heater, consider being a teetotaler for a while.
Savvy gadgetry
Switch to a pay-as-you-go cell phone. It will discourage you from spending loads on your phone, and there is no chance of you lending your phone to your tipsy friend while she argues for six hours with her boyfriend in Mexico. For the boys, cancel any contracts with any (ahem) websites. If you want to see hot women, then go down to the beach in summer.
To avoid the high prices of Apple products, you can glue a piece of glass to an iPad cover to pretend it is a real iPad, but remember to make part of the glass reflective, so you can pretend you are live chatting with your twin.
Budget love
Convince your partner that you are a romantic; you enjoy long walks in the park because you like to see your partner’s eyes twinkle in the moonlight, and not because you don’t want to pay to go to the movies.
For the guys – walk her past a large rose bush and pick a flower for her because it’s romantic, and not because real roses cost $12 each.
For the girls – give him a foot rub after he gets out of the shower and ask for a night in with a DVD because it’s romantic, and not because you don’t want to end up paying for all the drinks, and the cab fare, when he asks to go out clubbing again.
Long walks on the beach are romantic and candlelit suppers in a swanky restaurant are too commercialized and cliched; (at least, that is what you tell your partner when you want to save money).
Larry Ballis
Larry loved college and university so much that he has three degrees in sociology, psychology and theater studies. When he’s not contributing to college resource sites such as DegreeJungle.com, Larry enjoys playing chess, and supporting his local theater group.
The good people at Jalopnik have put the call out for submissions for your favorite Soviet-era sports cars here. If you’re a fan of retro-futurism or, well, just weird and awesome looking cars, it’s well worth a look.
Our favorite so far is probably the Tatra 607 submitted by user MatePetrany:
Probably just because it reminds us of the Lotus driven by Patrick McGoohan in The Prisoner. Granted, you’re not exactly going to be doing a lot of carpooling in this bad boy, and it probably won’t save you any money on gas, but man we’d like to take her around the block a few times. There’s a ton of other weird Cold War area vehicles in the comment section.
This is just a friendly reminder this holiday season that Exxon Mobil hates your children and wants you to die.
Ok, that’s an exaggeration. They don’t actively wish you harm. It’s just that they’re willing to kill your children in order to make a buck. But it’s nothing personal. And don’t forget that your tax dollars are currently lining their pockets with $10 billion in government subsidies.
It’s this level of honesty from fossil fuel companies that we’ve come to know and love.
Seriously though, it’s Exxon. They could tell you they’re starting a campaign of cannibalizing babies, starting with your neighborhood, and you’re still going to give them money because you HAVE TO. As long as you keep guzzling the sweet, sweet crack-rock of cheap gasoline, you’ll do whatever the hell they want you to.
Unless you, I dunno, try carpooling.
Just saying.
There’s a fun video of the Tesla Model S burning rubber.
Heh. Yeah. It’s neat. We’ve even got a few users with Tesla’s registered on the site, so if you want a chance to check out how she rides, go ahead and register yourself now. Go ahead. It takes two seconds. And you might end up riding in someone’s Tesla…
There’s a great infographic that Carpooling.org put together that really captures the potential financial savings you can reap by carpooling.
You start saving money immediately with just one more person in the car, but as you can see, the savings really start to pile up once you’ve got two or three people in the car. I used to have a 40 mile round trip between home and school in high school as a kid. Turns out I could have saved $100 a month just by driving with one other person. Hmm, $100 a month times nine months, times compound interest, times 17 years = I COULD HAVE RETIRED BY NOW.
Well, no, probably not. But $2,000 not spent on gas when I was 17 and diverted to a high interest savings account would be a nice little bit of scratch to have right now.
If you have a longer commute to work (and there are lots of people spending more than an hour in their cars each way) or if you pack a third person in the backseat, the savings really start to add up. In fact, if you drive 100 miles or more round trip, you could be saving about $340 a month just by taking two Amovens passengers with you. That’s over $4,000 a year, and potentially much more if you live in an area with a High Occupancy Toll Road or have to pay for parking. Putting that money in an interest-bearing account in your 30s would put you well on your way to a decent retirement nest egg.
So give your pocketbook, and the planet, a break. Find a rideshare partner at Amovens today. You’ll save yourself a few bucks everyday and, more importantly, be doing your part to save the planet.
We’ve got a great guest post from the good folks at officespaceforrent.org on some ways that you can make your commute a little less hellish. Our favorite method is obviously to ride with a friend, but there are lots of things you can do to keep your blood pressure down:
For workers who live far from the office, a long commute can test their sanity. Whether by train, bus or car, the daily commute can become a nightmare for many people. Fortunately, there are many methods individuals can use to reduce the stressful impact of each commute.
Commuting Entertainment
Many workers turn to entertainment to keep their minds occupied during an arduous commute. Drivers in their own vehicles can listen to a CD or mp3 player as they drive. Audiobooks and radio programs also make good companions for a tiresome commute. Bus and train riders can also listen to music or read a book while traveling. Having a number of entertainment options available can help a commute pass more quickly. Savvy workers can even use the extra time to get ahead of their daily work before they even arrive at the office.
Workers who commute by car can also use the time to talk to a friend or loved one. With hands-free telephone technology, drivers can chat with their spouse as they commute to and from work. Commuters who choose to carpool can have engaging conversations with their fellow passengers.
Plan Ahead
Many commuters can ease their long commute by staying informed. Before leaving work or home, a commuter can check the Internet to see the traffic conditions for her route. While driving, she can tune into a local news station on the radio to learn about any accidents on the road ahead. If there is an accident, the driver can use her knowledge of alternative routes to get around the obstacles. Avoiding major slowdowns on the commute can help a commuter get to her destination faster. Additionally, a driver can also plan to complete a few errands before heading home from work. By the time she begins her drive home, the majority of traffic issues may have cleared up.
Comfortable Commute
Commuters can reduce the stress of their commute by making the journey as comfortable as possible. For drivers, this can include choosing a comfortable seat cushion for the driver’s seat. Commuters who travel via rail or bus can buy a neck pillow to reduce neck strain. A pair of earplugs can help a bus commuter ignore the noises of the crowd on a popular bus route. Wearing comfortable shoes and clothes can help improve the commuting experience as well.
Commute by Bicycle
Drivers who are tired of the endless hours spent in gridlock traffic can try commuting by bicycle. This method of transportation does not work for all situations, but it can help many workers get more fresh air and exercise every single day. Riding a bike to work allows commuters to bypass clogged roads. In an effort to reduce the overuse of cars, some cities have taken steps to make commuting by bike easier and less dangerous. These methods include creating more bike lanes on roads and placing bike racks in convenient locations.
Alternate the Route
Some commuters can reduce their commuting stress by trying alternative commuting methods. For example, a commuter who usually drives his own car can take the bus once or twice a week. The commuter will save on money and be able to accomplish tasks he couldn’t do while driving, such as reading a book or using a tablet. Drivers can also mix up their routine by taking a different route to and from work each day. With this method, commuters will see different things each day. Bus commuters who tire of riding the bus with high school students can drive occasionally.
Just wanted to give a quick shout-out to Motor Trend’s 2013 Car of the Year. As fans of anything that can help reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, Tesla’s Model S represents a huge step forward toward a more sustainable future. It’s also freaking beautiful. I mean, look at this bad boy:
"Scotty, we need warp speed now"
I know, right? Zero to 60 in 4 seconds, 300 mile range, and only a 30 minute recharge time. Not only that, but we’ve already got Amovens users with Tesla on our site. So if you want to see for yourself what a ride in the Model S feels like, hop on over to the Amovens free site to find a Telsa owner near you willing to give you a ride.
Back in January, Leon Kaye at Greengopost highlighted 10 cities making strides towards sustainability goals this year. Although we’re all used to hearing about initiatives in places like Amsterdam, Portland, or San Francisco, Kaye highlighted some interesting cases of lesser-heralded cities that are nonetheless trying to reinvent themselves with an eye to achieving a more sustainable future. You can read the post in its entirety here.
Kaye’s article popped in to mind while reading David Biello’s piece in Slate asking whether cities can be both sustainable and resilient. Biello’s article is well worth the read if you’re interested in understanding some of the tensions inherent in trying to design cities that are both.
The companies on Kaye’s list are all dealing with the twin problems of sustainability and resiliency. Some of the most interesting cases Kaye mentions are the cities one would suspect least likely to be winning accolades for sustainability initiatives. Accra, Ghana, for example, gets the nod thanks to the benefit of having several non-profits either headquartered or maintaining a presence in the city. Meanwhile, Belgrade, Serbia scores points for its push for sustainable agriculture and access to green space. And Detroit (almost a third world country in itself) gets credit for a renewed focus on urban farming as the city’s population declines.
Hey gang, Friday, October 26 is International Carpooling Day. Of course, there’s no better way of celebrating than by logging on and finding a new ridesharing partner. But we wanted to remind everyone of some of the benefits from traveling with others.
6 Reasons to Rideshare
- Save Money. The average American spends close to $9,000 on their car every year. That’s your car payment, gas, tolls, parking, maintenance and insurance. There’s plenty of people out there who don’t own a car, or simply don’t feel like driving it every time they need to get somewhere. A lot of them are more than happy to pay you for the privilege of riding with you. So why not take a bite out of that nine grand by sharing your car with another passenger?
- Save Yourself from Boredom. Ugh. You’ve got to make the trip from New York to DC. Again. That’s four and a half hours with no traffic. And there’s always traffic. Having someone else n the car can go a long way toward staving off highway hypnosis.
- Save Your Health. Your commute is killing you. Literally. It causes unnecessary stress, insomnia and obesity. The good news is that just having someone else along with you helps keep your blood pressure down and your heart rate from getting too rapid. Also, you can do this.
- Cut Your CO2 Footprint. Just one carpool with two people traveling the average commute will save 3.55 tons of CO2 every year. Which is great, since that helps diminish climate change, which can cause all sorts of bad things like A SHORTAGE OF BACON.
- Fewer Traffic Jams. Admittedly this can only happen if we all take collective action. But the good news is that only a few people need to carpool in order to have a significant impact on the flow of traffic. Watch what happens when only 3% of drivers take alternate transportation.
- You Can Use the HOV Lane. This option offers much faster transit time, often with fewer tolls.
Convinced yet? Of course you are. So make sure to register with Amovens and start finding rideshare partners today.
And the winner of our FunFunFun Fest ticket contest is…
Brad Howe!
Not Brad Howe
Congratulations, Brad! Not only will you be saving money by ridesharing to the FunFunFun Fest, you’ll also have two free passes for the weekend waiting for you at will call.
You, too, could be driving in cars with attractive new friends
Don’t forget to keep an eye on this blog for more contests and free stuff. We love giving away concert tickets and backstage passes almost as much as we love helping you save money and make new friends (Not that you need our help making new friends. You’ve very charming. Everyone says so.)
The contest may be over, but there’s still time to save money on your trip to FunFunFun Fest. Just go to the event page here to find someone to help you split the costs of gas, tolls and parking. Because driving to see live music shouldn’t cost you an arm and a leg.
