Poor Ruth Madoff.

Bernie Madoff’s wife is now crying broke because she has been stripped of all but $2.5 million in assets. In New York her duplex apartment was worth $7 million.

The fascination with money and its excesses are intriguing. Last week, I read an article about the lack of skilled trade workerswho are needed and the positions pay $22 an hour which would be over $45k a year. Additionally there were other engineering positions that employers were having difficulty filling which paid $50k+ a year. In the East, people were crying that you can’t afford anything on that wage. While in other parts of the country $45-50k annually might not get you into a fancy country club but you wouldn’t be broke either.

How far money will go depends on your location in the country. Real estate prices in larger coastal cities may be higher than in the middle of the country, though decent homes in good neighborhoods can still be had for people making $50k a year.

Mrs. Madoff who was allegedly not a part of her husband’s business dealings still gets to keep five times more than the maximum payment that claimants may receive toward their investment losses.

In most parts of the world, $2.5 million dollars does not make you poor. In a relative sense when you had more and lost the majority of your holdings, then a paltry $2.5 might seem like a poverty level when compared to $65 million or more. Yet, for people who lost their live savings to leave with $2.5 seems like a dream.

Ruth Madoff’s salon and florist (among others) no longer want her business, so she may not have to worry about her $2.5 going very fast. Some buildings don’t even want her to live there, so her millions may go a lot farther than originally thought. If people can survive on $50k a year, R.M. should be able to do it as well.

This morning before 8 a.m., it was 80 degrees.

Last week it was on the cool side for June. This mean it is time to turn on the air conditioner.

To save money but still stay cool, close the blinds or drapes and run the fan. This way the air conditioner doesn’t have to work as hard. The newer more efficient energy star air conditioners make a difference in your electric bill. Just because it is 90 outside, doesn’t mean that you need to have your air conditioning set at 68. Air-conditioning units also remove humidity from the air so a 72 or 74 degree setting with a fan going and shades drawn will make it very comfortable inside.

If you have peak periods of sun near your home, keep the curtains drawn during that time. Even if it is early, the sun can really heat up your home and your air conditioner will have to work harder. Generally, there is enough outside light, so you don’t have to turn the lights on either.

Fans do not use as much electricity as air conditioning units. If you aren’t home during the day, use a timer to turn the ac on an hour or so before you get there, so the house will be cooler. Keep the shades and blinds closed during the day so that your home won’t be as hot.

For walkers, runners and bikers, don’t go out in the peak of the day unless you have to, and drink plenty of water.

Stay cool!

Here are a few interesting articles and websites.

• Charitable Giving Declines

I could have told you that since instead of junk mail, I have been getting pleas via snail and email from organizations I have never donated to, donated to in the past or never knew existed.

• Russian Recession Plagued Town Revolts

This is what happens when a quarter of your town is out of work overnight – they protest.

• Fewer Foreclosures in May

The number is still very high.

• Go BYO.com

This is a listing for area restaurants that allow you to bring your own wine. Even if you order the least expensive glass on the menu, that can still be about half the price of your entree. The site lists corkage fees and lets you search by location. There are BYO sites for 10 US cites.

Fed up with the Recession?
Bad news… saving and cutting back may have been a fad for some. Spending less on everything isn’t flying with some people.

• You Can Still Retire Rich

Short version: work, continue to save, start saving if you haven’t already. Also, did I mention you may have to work well into your 60s? You’ll have more money though.

• How the US Surplus became a Deficit

HINT: The current president’s predecessor’s policies had a lot to do with it.

We all have those silly things that we do to save money. They may take time, or not be appealing to anyone but ourselves, yet we do them anyway.

Things like reuse a piece of foil that you used to cover a dish while warming or cooking something in the oven. If it’s still clean, why not use it again?

• Saving scraps of soap, material, pieces of paper to reuse.
• Collecting things from a friend to reuse for a project.
• Buying larger quantities or sizes of food than you will actually consume.
• Taking things just because they are free.

None of these are necessarily bad, but if you don’t reuse the items that you are saving or in the case of food (or materials) waste the extra – are you saving money? Buying an item just because it’s cheap or free is wasteful in itself and cheats another person who really wants the item.

For a little money saving humor – check this out!

Are you spoiled? Money magazine talks about people who spoiled their kids by giving them everything they want and not giving them an allowance. The change in the economic climate has changed that for many people.

If you don’t have kids, could it be that you were spoiling yourself? The kids who formerly had carte blanche and no stringent budget are finding that having a budget isn’t fun. Adults may feel the same way too. Who does like to have a budget. A budget doesn’t have to be the death knoll for fun, it can be an epiphany for your spending habits.

Are weekly shopping binges or trips to the mall not really your style? What about dining out or weekly happy hour with friends?

Unpoiling yourself can save you some money but don’t completely stop spoiling yourself. An occasional treat may be within your budget but you need a budget to really figure out what you can afford. Cash is always great way to spoil yourself. If your money to spoil yourself is less that what you had been actually spending, budget some money for spoiling yourself and put that aside in cash.

Completely unspoiling yourself may not be a daunting task and very difficult at first, but it is possible to pare down the truly excessive things or at least try to avoid the temptations.