Weekend Reading: Moon Festival Edition

With school kicking in and work busier these days, and with the temperatures dropping outside, it finally feels like summer is over.

On the bright side, it will soon be time for apple picking, as well as the beautiful change of seasons once the leaves start changing color.

So many birthdays are also in September, so the onset of the fall also reminds me of the passing of time and of the continuous advancement of the circle of life. Dear reader, what does the fall mean for you?

Recent posts of the week

• Fighting Terrorism and Violence Through the Spread of Good Ideas: Remembering 9/11
• Planting a Seed of Savings
• Economic Reader: Moon Festival Edition
• Debt Reduction Strategies

I am honoured to be a Plutus Awards finalist. Haven’t voted yet? Don’t worry; there is still time to vote for your favorites!

Weekend Reading

Career in crisis. Mich from Beating The Index writes about a career in crisis. There is no rest in life — we need to continually update our skills and be prepared since companies can always fall. This is something I think about as well, since I am comfortable, but being comfortable shouldn’t come at the expense of career progression and taking care of oneself and one’s family. What would you suggest to my friend Mich?

Here are some interesting articles on the topic of our careers and the workplace:

• Can Long Hours of Work be Deadly? (Squirrelers)
• I Pissed Off a Recruiter Today. Is Salary a 4-Letter Word? (Darwin’s Money)

 
Love and war. Sandy from First Gen American writes a riveting story about her uncle, a man with an amazing life journey that took him through love and war, from poverty in Poland to the slave camps in Nazi Germany, and then all the way to America. You can’t miss out on this compelling story, which Sandy has broken down into three parts:

• My Uncle’s Story: Love During War
• Uncle’s Story Part 2: Digging out of Poverty
• Uncle’s Story Part 3: Family and the Sad End

 
7 Links project. I nominated Balance Junkie for the 7 links project after Everyday Tips and Thoughts kindly nominated me and I wrote up my own 7 links. Here are her seven links:

• 7 Links Project: Balance Junkie Version 2.0

I know you’re busy, Andrew, but I’m still waiting for yours! 😉
 
Parenting. Taking care of the young and raising the next generation is such an important task. Parents: Are you taking the steps to give your kids the best possible future? Here’s some great reading on this topic:

• A $$$ Tale of Two Boys And A Super Mom (Andrew Hallam)
• Leaving Kids At Home When School Shopping? (Everyday Tips and Thoughts)
• Parents, How Are You Screwing Up Your Kids? (Dr. Dean)

 
Economics. I recently did a small roundup on economics in my Moon Festival economics reader. Here’s what fellow bloggers had to say about recent events involving the economy, government interference, and the crazy action on the markets:

• Banning Short Selling – A Failed Policy (Invest In The Markets)
• Do The Machines Control The Stock Market? (Money Reasons)
• I’m A Criminal (well, I might be soon) (Thousandaire)
• Renters Should Pay More Taxes (Financial Samurai)
• The Government Can’t Actually Create Jobs (My University Money)
• WEALTH AND ECONOMICS; Community versus Country Club (Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance)
• Why Real Estate Investors Should be Shaking in their Boots (Money Mamba)

 
Here are some more great reads from my fellow bloggers:

Carnivals

• Best of Money Carnival #120 (Mom’s Plan)
• Canadian Finance Carnival #54 (Canadian Finance Blog)

Thanks for the Friday #1 pick!

• This Week in Money: Overcoming Procrastination (Credit Sesame)
• TOTALLY MONEY CARNIVAL #36: FOOTBALL IS BACK EDITION (Money Beagle) Thanks for the editor’s pick!

Investing

• 6 Dividend Blue Chips With Great International Exposure (Dividend Monk)
• Are Financial Newsletters Worth The Money? (101 Centavos)
• My favourite international equity ETFs (My Own Advisor)
• What is Passive Dividend Income? (Sustainable PF)
• What Is Simple Interest and Compound Interest? (Canadian Finance Blog)

Lifestyle

• Climate Change Can Be Positive for Your Life (Balance Junkie)
• Sleep Patterns And The Importance Of Tracking (PF Firewall)
• The Persecuted Majority vs. The Vocal Minority (Nicole & Maggie)
• “Wolf Dogs” Kept As Pets (Frugal Zeitgeist)

Personal Finance

• How to Attend Conferences Without Going Broke (Car Negotiation Coach)
• Money 101 : Forgiveness Is The Key (Mastering Money 101)
• Money Fail: Broke on Thursday (Hope to Prosper)
• The Ultimate Peace, Adventure, and Hedonism on a Budget (Young & Thrifty)

Retirement

• Three different definitions of retirement and the resulting confusion (Early Retirement Extreme)

Hope that you all enjoyed the weekend, and have a great week!