Probably one of the better investments these days are Cd’s. There is a lot of competition, so I went out to the Internet to find the best CD rates and found selectcdrates.com I found the best cd rates out there from across the nation. For example, the I learned the federal funds rate today is 2.87% and that six month cd rates are around 4.44%. This site allows you to look up by state and by how many years you are looking to invest, say a 3 or 5 year Cd. Plus, they have a great FAQ page for the banking and cd industry. They also have a wealth of tips on such things as cd ladders and check clearing times. You will get a good education here and begin to make good strategies on which cd to buy.

No matter the economy, paper will always be in high demand. I appreciate the idea of a paperless company, but in reality there will be paper needs regardless. A leading suppliers of used Pulp and Paper Equipment is www.surpluspaperequipment.com. This company is a world wide leader in the marketing and selling of surplus Paper Machines, Vacuum Pumps and hundreds of other pieces of equipment with a experienced staff to meet our current economic changes. They are more than company that sells they equipment, they also service the the paper industry in the dismantling and transportation of used or surplus Pulp Mill Equipment. Surpluspaperequipment.com provides an “Asset Recovery Program” along with another unit called Surplus Paper Inc who specializes in Plant and Equipment liquidations. Plus, they offer the opportunity not only to shop their inventory but you can also post your surplus equipment for sale. I love niche companies like this, that target a select industry and do their very best to service them. This company is well known in the industry and a firm you can trust when these type of matters arise. I was also impressed with the format of the website as well. It is easy to navigate and when looking at the items for sale, the pictures and images do a good job showing the current condition of the used equipment. I also like the idea of registration of new users to keep the integrity of the site solid.

One must take into account when building a gas powered power plant, the amount of water needed to create and steam and for cooling. Rebecca Smith had another great article in the WSJ today. She discovered that a megawatt of power generated by wind turbines can save 200-600 gallons of water as compared to gas fired power. This can be huge for dry areas in Washington, Colorado, Nevada and the article goes into state line issues where one could be taking a resource from another state. So in the last post that discussed the fact that gas fired is cheaper than clean coal and nuclear, it is because the water is so cheap or is it? Don’t forget that Nuclear power does demand more water than the gas fired plant too. Wind turbines and solar is the future of our country and we need to take into account the whole picture and not just dollars and cents. Perhaps we need a balance approach where we use all resources. I guess that is why I do not make the big bucks at the DOE! Perhaps we could all use a little less in our natural resources going forward, perhaps we could all make a difference and take notice of the power and water we use at home.

Does your Mom deserve something special on May 10th? Maybe a nice white gold chain or a pair of diamond earrings might make them smile on this special holiday coming up? I think jewelry is a great gift and it is also a gift that holds value. Many of you know I like to play in the stock market and buying something now that will be worth money later, is the way I like to roll. Jewelry fits into that thinking and its investment that can be worth more in the future. Not to mention, jewelry makes a great gift for all the ladies out there. I think they all like jewelry and with the right stones in them; they know just how much you think of them with a ring or bracelet on Mother’s  Day. So if you haven’t thought much about the perfect  gift this year; look to the jewelry department for your Mother’s Day answers!

More people are adding broadband to their homes which has increased the use of home PCs for more applications like downloading movies and watching TV over the internet. There are multiple providers and you should shop around as you will find different services that may be just right for your situation. For those that do not have cable service or are tired of the DSL land line service then you may want to consider HUGHES NET for your satellite provider. Sometimes your bandwidth can suffer due to poor performance of your PC and you may not be realizing the full potential of your high speed connection. For Windows XP users there is a little trick that you can do to help increase your broadband speed. PLease do not attempt this if you are not familiar with making changes to your system.

For a cheap broadband deal check out Hughes Net where you can get a cut your phone cord to the internet and see speeds up to 50X faster. As of this post the folks at Hughesnet were offering Free standard installation and $100 back by mail in rebate. This satellite service is backed by their 30 day money back guarantee as well to make sure that your purchase is what you need. You can find a list of FAQ’s on their site to answer most of your questions like “Can I use my existing Direct TV satellite to receive Hughes Internet service?” The answer is no because the signal that they each receive is different and contain different priorities. This has it’s advantages in that if your TV goes out you will still be able to have internet. This is something that we have heard some cable customers dislike that when their cable goes down they are left without internet as well.

As you know this site is dedicated to utilization of Renewable Energy for a variety of reasons. I was pleased to find that there are companies out there who not only put together great home plans for thie purpose but have now embraced going Green. I found www.houseplansandmore.com and discovered that they are serious about making luxury and yet energy efficient homes. I appreciated their page dedicated to Green Homes and a page for their “Featured Green Home Plan.” They are serious about using the Sun and great materials to reach their goals of Green Homes. Plus, they include a very unique way of shopping for home plans by selecting your first, second and third most important feature you are looking for. Then you look at great photographs and images of the home itself. Its just amazing. When looking for a log home plan www.houseplansandmore.com offer a variety of styles that meet your time of setting be it a outdoor getaway or a large family home. If you are looking for a luxury home plan I think you will be very pleased to see the detail they put into a dream home for contemporary or traditional homes. I felt I was back in college in Washington DC with a few of their plans! Just stunning. Again, with www.houseplansandmore.com I impressed because they understand the future of going Green and take it seriously. The site is very easy to use, nothing hangs and have a multitude of links to all kinds of styles that you may be looing for!

Step right up with palm out and hat in hand. Now Daimler has had to seek foreign aide to shore up its bottom line. Abu Dhabi and now has a 9.1% stake in the renowned German Auto Maker. I guess even that segment of society has decided that luxury can wait and hence sales have fallen. I love the quote in today’s WSJ, “The best time to invest is when people panic” said the chairman of Aabar Investments. Wow, how would like to be sitting in Stuttgart and reading your largest stake holder basically you are in a panic. Oh, that must just ruffle the feathers a little! I should not be so harsh I guess. I am jealous of Mercedes, their innovation, their safety, their commitment to Formula 1. I’m hard pressed for words on the new economy because looking at the Daimler model, they are now 15 percent owned by the Middle East. Kuwait Firm IPIC has 6.9% too. How will that board meeting look like now because I would have to think that they would want some board seats. Interesting. What will American have to do now. Aabar said they do not want any American Auto makers but will they look at GE or other blue chips instead? I think back to my America For Sale post. Could I be right?

Have you ever wondered just how you would go about filing a home insurance claim and making sure that you had received the very best in settlement claim payouts? Probably not until the catastrophe happens, like a tree falling on the house or a fire etc. Step back and imagine for a moment trying to figure out just how much you lost, what items cost to replace, structures to be removed to waste and structures to be rebuild, the costs etc etc. The list goes on and on. I found mysmartclaims.com and I am very impressed. Their program is simply the finest and most professional out there. Their program is so comprehensive and developed to make sure the claim was accurate and that you received the right amount of money needed to replace your loss. Their Public Adjuster program is what you need to look into after you receive your settlement paperwork from your insurance agency. You have rights when buying home insurance and one of them is the right to re-open a claim within so many years depending on your State. In Florida you have 5 years, you will need to look into your state. You pay their $299 fee and begin to walk through their program. If you do not recover more than the cost of their fee, you get your money back. That is why I love these guys so much. This is what believing in your product should be all about! This is a very well made web site, along with informative graphs to show you the cost of their service and a lawyer plus some examples what other customers were able to recover after using their system. If you have an old claim you are still upset about, look into your state laws and if you are in the right time frame why not use this service because of the money back guarantee. It just makes good common sense.

Step right up with hat in hand and palm out. Dear Mr Government, so sorry that I loved the capitalist system and enjoyed its fruit for over 100 years, but now times are tough, brother could you spare a billion? Is this what we have come to. When the free market pushed back on government with the modern day dont tread on me lines, we now find ourselves at their mercy. The government I guess is now our insurance policy. Was Marx right all along, if so please feel that tremble under your feet because you do not want to swallow the Marx medicine anytime soon. I read now that automobile parts suppliers will need billions from the government but I do see that Ford wants nothing to do with it and good for them. Perhaps they will be the golden child in the new business textbooks to be written on how the weather the storm without a war to bail you out nor a government with their string-tied money.

Nothing like have the likes of our wonderful Senators at your board meeting. Then there is GM which said in the WSJ in re the billions for suppliers, “Wll help reduce the risk of vehicle production disruptions.” OK, the reason their is a disruption is because no one wants to buy your car. If they did, you would have good suppliers. Oversimplified you say? No, let the market forces do their work or do not get in the game. So now my next goal is to come up with a do dad government cozy item like you see around coke cans. What will they look like??

I have to admit that I am using more bill pay methods online but with my new business up and running, I am going to need personal and professional checks to buy. Another friend recommended carouselchecks.com where you can find Checks here for sale in variety of professional and personal style format. With the purchase of business checks, they are now offering a free Logo and a free free binder. I really like this professional format to pay my supply stores and employees. Our family loves all the Checks with sports themes, kittens and especially the American Pride line. For the businessmen out there, there are especially checks for payroll and accounts payable. They also have computer Voucher checks you must take a look at. Carouselchecks.com has live online help to walk you through the process and offers great security to stop fraud. This is the last thing you need in the new economy where desperate people do desperate things. They also offer return label stickers, Ink stamps, checkbook covers and laser jet starter kits. I really like this well made site. It is easy to navigate and find the information you need. Plus, the pictures they use are very professional and are made from classic scenes using great photographers and artists. I think you’ll enjoy your shopping experience here!