Back in Black for 2010!

Back in Black for 2010!

Hello, Hello! Frugal Frank on the Blackside is back in 2010 in full force.
Well, from my last blog my predictions are on point. We are seeing a turnaround in the economy,employment is coming back slowly and health care reform is coming soon. These will be wins in President Obama's corner. Remember, we have got to back him on Healthcare. Write your senators and blog the news sites. Trust me, even though it will be a flawed bill, there should be enough loops holes to get what we want down the line. For those of you who took my advice, I hope you are feeling better about your financial situation. I have got to share a great story with you. I went to my second home for Christmas(yes! see what being cheap can get you) with the family and open things up for the Holiday and settled in to watch some movies on my 42" LCD Olevia Flatscreen. I watched it for 3 days and it went black, sound but no picture. I then found out that Olevia had gone bankrupt. Now being the cheap person that I am, I did not buy an extended warranty just took the 1 year with manufacturer but I did purchase it with my American Express card which extended the warranty for an additional year. Now repeat after me, "The Lord is Good., When? All of the time." I purchased this TV on Dec. 22, 2007, It died on me Dec.20, 2009. The people at American Express were great. After contacting them and supplying the correct info. I had my money to purchase a new set by New Years day. So I will get an extended warranty on the new set and keep my AmExp card. But again you know me, I quizzed the repair about my broken set because it gave a great picture. For those of you in the know. The LCD's only have 3 replaceable parts, back-light, power supply, main board. My board was shot and parts are expensive. He said that if I wanted to try and salvage, I may be able to find the board on Ebay. These parts are plug and play and I might be able to do it. I have the set in storage and I will let you know how it goes. I am purchasing a new set and at the present I am looking at Vizio and Samsung. I had to watch broadcast on tube with a DTV converter during the holidays but I was good. I will discuss broadcast in a later blog. Frugal Advice: Drop Blockbuster and Pay per View; get a library card and use Redbox. Most libraries get the latest movies a few weeks after the retail stores and you can reserve up to 10 copies online. This is a great way to save money and support your local library. And with the Redbox kiosk, you can get new releases for a $1.
Peace Out,
Frugal Frank OTBS

The Return of Broadcast! Save $1200 a year

The Return of Broadcast! Save $1200 a year

Frugal Frank OTBS checking in,

I was listening to some Moms Mably while at home during the Holidays(I hope someone out there remember Moms) and enjoying the simple things in life with my wife and kids. Ladies for the record, my wife is a strong sister who is also my best friend. She has to be to tolerate my cheap you know what. After listening to the comedy tape, I turned on the news and heard the hoopla going on between Time Warner and Fox. At that point I was thankful that I fired my cable company a year ago and you should do the same. With the change of Broadcast from Analog to Digital, you can now get better picture clarity than cable or satellite and its free. I purchased a DTV converter and an RCA amplified antenna and I pull in about 26 channels in my area. You will get at least two stations on each channel, Spanish channels,CBS,NBC,ABC,Fox, CW and at least 3-4 PBS channels. I also get two movie channels; THIS, ION If you want an on screen menu, go with Dish Network DTV or one from Radio Shack. You get show descriptions and a few days worth of programming. I don't know if you can still get the government coupons which were worth $40.00 but would try. If you have a New LCD or Plasma TV all that you need is the amplified antenna and you need a good one to get great reception.Regular rabbit ears will only get you a few stations. I put my antenna in the attic and then spliced all my cable lines into it, that way I have cable like access in all the rooms in the house. Straight airwave broadcast on an LCD Flatscreen is awesome especially the NFL games. Remember, if you don't have a flat screen you can buy one in 6 month with the $100/month savings. I would take a new flat screen without cable any day than a tube or old large screen with cable. This is not your grandma's broadcast analog. The digital broadcast is awesome. We just need to get more programming. I bet someone in New York, DC or Boston would bring in 60 channels. So, go ahead, spread the word and join Frugal Frank OTBS, fire your cable or satellite company.

Peace Out, Frugal Frank OTBS

Also, I love comments. I get excited when you talk frugal to me.LOL