Welcome to the Yakezie Carnival, which is hosted by members and challengers of the Yakezie Network – The Largest Personal Finance and Lifestyle Blogger Network. This weekend marks the beginning of the 2012 MLB postseason. In the American League, you have the Yankess (as usual), the A’s, the Tigers and the Orioles. In the National League, you have the Giants, the Reds, the Cardinals and the Nationals. Now, I don’t know about you, but I grew up in the 90′s watching the Braves and Yankees battle it out seemingly every year for the World Series title. To see teams like the Orioles, Nationals and Tigers in the playoffs is a shock to me. As a die hard Mariners fan, the 90′s were our glory years, so it’s a bummer they don’t make the playoffs any more. Oh well, if the Tigers can do it, anyone can, so there’s always hope for next year

Speaking of a shock, have you looked at the prices for the World Series Tickets? I went to Stubhub to look up postseason tickets for the Yankess (because, let’s face it, the Yankees will most likely be in the World Series) and I could not believe the pricing. The crapiest tickets left started at $299 per ticket, and the best tickets on the field cost up to $7,888 per ticket!!!

But hey, if you been rocking your budget and saved up for it, go ahead and blow over $15,000 for you pair of tickets. But let me tell you, it’s the beer and hot dogs that are crazy expensive, so make sure to stay frugal

And now, let’s check out some awesome posts from around the blogosphere:

Lance @ Money Life and More writes What Would You Do? Pay Off Higher Interest Rate or Variable Rate Loans First? – My girlfriend has a few different student loans as I discussed in our debt pay down strategy. They are at different interest rates and to complicate things further some have fixed rates and others have variable rates.

John Schmoll @ Frugal Rules writes Are Credit Cards Really That Bad? – The post discusses how when used wisely, credit cards can be a great tool to help manage your finances.

Melete @ Adjunctorium writes A “Fulfilling Job”: Fantasy and Self-Deception – 101 Centavos recently published one of the best round-ups in the history of PF blogging, my own rant aside. Among the links to various new-to-me sites and well-written posts, he included my lengthy complaint about the amount of unpaid work entailed in adjunct (and any other) teaching. Predictably, one of his commenters remarked on how “rewarding” teachers think their jobs are. Another compared low teaching wages with the low pay of medical interns and residents! The idea that teaching is

James Petzke @ This Is Common Cents writes The Common Cents of the Latte Factor – The Latte Factor is an important thing for many people to take a look at in their lives.

Drew @ Objective Wealth writes The Best For Wealth – Reason Or Faith? – Examining the dichotomy of get rich and wealth literature, between those based on facts and reason, and those based on feelings and faith. So which is best?

Roshawn Watson @ Watson Inc writes Breaking Bad Financial Habits – Our financial lives consist of patterns. that doesn’t mean that the habits themselves can’t change. Here’s why we must break bad financial habits.

Michael @ Financial Ramblings writes Why Do Gas Prices Keep Going Up? – This post looks at gas price fluctuations and the impact of media coverage on our perception of those same fluctuations. The bottom line is that prices fluctuate wildly in the short term, but you only really hear about them when they’re increasing.

Chris @ Money & I writes Flat rent rant – A little flat rent rant coming from a newcomer’s point of view and some thoughts on becoming a ‘financial criminal’ after personal bankruptcy in the UK.

Maria @ The Money Principle writes Why I don’t have aggressive investments – I have always had good intuition for and understanding of risk. Too chicken to use this in spread betting, property and aggressive investments. Change?

Ashley @ Money Talks Coaching writes Too Hard To Save? – On the way home from the bloggers conference I sat in the middle row between two guys.

CAPI @ Creating a Passive Income writes 5 Reasons why Passive Income is too Good to be True – Are you thinking about focusing on passive income? While it is possible, don’t ignore these warnings about passive income.

Jester @ The Ultimate Juggle writes DIY Home Repairs – I am no carpenter. I grew up in a time where my Dad told me it was worth my time to bring my car to the shop instead of try and fix it.

Kyle @ The Penny Hoarder writes Finding The Best Credit Card Rewards – There are a lot of places that claim to know the best credit card for rewards, but the truth is that the best rewards for credit cards are truly up to the individual who uses them. The reason is that each person values things differently.

Sustainable PF @ Sustainable Personal Finance writes Landlord Issues: Things to Consider Before Buying a Rental Property – Our Old House When I bought my first house in late 2004 I did so intending to use the basement area in the new addition as a room rental.

A Blinkin @ Funancials writes How Can I Bet Against the Stock Market? – How to bet against the stock market with put options, shorting stock and inverse ETFs.

Daisy @ Add Vodka writes My Expensive Rescue Dog – We got F, our “new” rescue dog about a month and a half ago and she has been great. She fits right into our little family and gets along great with our other dog, T.

Jon Rhodes @ Affiliate Marketing Tips writes 23 Sure Fire Ways To Increase Your Traffic – This post shows you the best ways to get traffic to your website or blog.

Invest It Wisely @ Invest It Wisely writes Explore All of Your Options Prior to Attending College – I have seen this first hand as an educator and I have developed a hypocrisy that is ill-fitted for my career path. I, no longer feel that a college education is the most logical step post-high school.

Kanwal @ Simply Investing writes Which Company Has Increased Their Dividend Over 1000%? – In late 2002 this stock was selling for about $15 to $18 a share, and the dividend was $0.19 per share. Remember a dividend is a cash payment made to all share holders. So if you bought 500 shares in this company back in 2002 for $15 each, you would receive $95 (500 shares x $0.19) in dividends just for owning those shares.

Rich @ Growing Money Smart writes 401K Fight Club Rule #1 – Always Take The Free Money Offered By Your Employer’s 401(k) Company Match! – There is a pile of 401k match money sitting on a table with a sign that says ‘Take me, free money’… So why aren’t you???

Tushar @ Start Investing Money writes Investing in Egypt’s future – With Europe and the USA facing huge economic challenges and barely registering any meaningful growth, investors around the world are looking more and more at alternative markets in which to place their capital.

JP @ My Family Finances writes Yes. Parents Should Open a 529 Plan for Their Children – The simple fact is that if college costs continue to grow at current rates, you’d have trouble saving too much money. Don’t let the magical final number get in your way of starting a 529 Plan.

Jessica Moorhouse @ Mo’ Money Mo’ Houses writes Haters Gonna Hate: Dealing with Cyberbullying and Other Negativity from the Interwebs – As much joy I get out of blogging, I sure can’t stand the all the cyberbullies and forum trolls that come along with having an online presence. Haters gonna hate, but I sure as hell won’t let them bring me down.

Hank @ Money Q&A writes Three Things You Have To Do Immediately After Selling Your Car – I sold my beloved BMW this past weekend. There were a myriad of reasons why ranging from maintenance costs, love of driving, lack of car payment, lower insurance premiums, smaller gas bill, looking for something fun, and a host of

ETZ25 @ Entertainment Timez writes Biking For Charity – Triple Win – Read how my family goes biking for charity every year and how this year, I got to go too! I view the form of entertainment as a triple win!

PPlan @ Provident Plan writes Does God Want You to Drive a Hybrid? – Hybrid cars are becoming increasingly more affordable and popular. Find out why you should consider buying one.

Edward Antrobus @ Edward Antrobus writes Are Store Surveys Worth the Time? – Only 1% of people who receive survey offers from stores complete them. By taking store surveys, your chances are 100x better than you think they are!

Passive Income Earner @ The Passive Income Earner writes Understanding a Reverse Mortgage – For some reasons, I am hearing more and more about leveraging a reverse mortgage as a retirement plan. I wanted to understand the details of a reverse mortgage and share my findings with you.

harry campbell @ Your Personal Finance Pro writes Investing in I Bonds: An Intro to I Bonds for Young Investors – Believe it or not, the money in your savings and checking accounts is actually losing money. It doesn’t even matter what bank you have. Whether you bank online, or brick and mortar; they’re all losing money due to inflation. Inflation usually won’t appear all of a sudden, but it can systematically eat away at your returns over time.

Shawanda @ You Have More Than You Think writes 4 Hardcore Strategies to Torch Debt, Rack Up Cash, and Build Wealth Now – To reach financial freedom, don’t pussyfoot around your money problems. Tackle them like a boss. Go ahead: Complete online surveys.

TDB @ Tax Deduction Blog writes Are Flexible Spending Accounts worth it? – This is just what we need … one more thing to stress about in our lives! I’m talking about the flexible spending account, happily, not available to everyone. In the twisted tangle of rules and regulations that is the federal tax code, the flexible spending account (FSA) can really sneak up and bite you in…

BARBARA FRIEDBERG @ Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance writes HOW TO BECOME A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT-PART 1 – Make money, work from home, and become a virtual assistant. Part 1 of 3 part series on Becoming a Virtual Assistant.

Jen @ Master the Art of Saving writes Earn Money Online: BeRuby – BeRuby is another place for those who wish to earn money online. Read about this great option!

John @ Married (with Debt) writes Threats to Debt Freedom – The biggest threat to debt freedom is…going back in debt, and that’s one of my biggest worries now that we are debt free (minus the house). I don’t plan on going out and borrowing any money in the near future, but I guess that’s the idea.

TRL @ The Retired Landlord writes Traits of a Profitable Rental Property – Find out what makes a successful rental property more profitable than others. Knowing these three traits can make a huge difference.

Ted Jenkin @ Your Smart Money Moves writes How Much Does That Tooth Cost? – My son is now at the age when the baby teeth start falling out. I forgot how exciting this event is for kids.

Joe @ Midlife Finance writes Giving So It Helps – Want to help something or someone you care about? Donating to a charity, helping a local cause out, or aiding someone you love…there are practical ways to do it that not only help the recipient, but give you concrete ways to make the best of it.

Aloysa @ My Broken Coin writes Why I Chose To Live in a Small Home – Our homes tell our stories. They tell us who we are, what we value, what we care about, who we love, and what we dream about. Our homes expose who we are. About a month or so ago, I finally admitted to myself that our one-bedroom condo is a perfect place for me. It probably comes as a surprised to some of you because you know me as a spender and a shopaholic. Read my thoughts as to why I choose my small house!

Jennifer Lynn @ Broke-Ass Mommy writes The Saving Conundrum. Are Savers Financial Losers? – Well are Savers also financial LOSERS? Read more to find out, perhaps you’ll be surprised!

MR @ Money Reasons writes Frugal Weight Loss Update 210 – Another goal cross-over on my relaxed but effective weight loss program! Read how I’m down 40 lbs in less than 6 months and creating an optimal lifestyle!

Debt Guru @ Debt Free Blog writes Getting Used to Debt – Find out how and why people grow accustomed to debt and ways you can pay off your debt as soon as possible.

Don @ MoneySmartGuides writes Being Frugal and Dating – Being frugal and dating is hard to do. It’s a fine line that you have to walk. Step too far to one side and you come off as cheap.

Evan @ My Journey to Millions writes October 2012 Net Worth Update as well as a Home Sale and Purchase Update – From September 2012 to October 2012 my net worth increased 2.70% Year to Date my net worth has increased 37.15%

Roger the Amateur Financier @ The Amateur Financier writes Guest Post – How to Earn More Money – There’s a lot of ways you can improve your financial situation. Most of the time, blogs like this focus on how to save money or invest your savings to earn more money. But it’s also possible to earn more money if you know what to do.

Jon the Saver @ Free Money Wisdom writes Protection for your Money – Protection of money is not exactly a hot topic these days. Heck, most people don’t even save their money! Use some fundamentals to ensure that your money stays safe.

Rod @ ROD Blog writes Ally Interest Checking Account Review – Ally Interest Checking Account is a great free alternative to traditional big bank checking accounts. Here is a list of features and disadvantages.

Corey @ 20s Finances writes Actual Cost of an iPhone 5 – The iPhone 5 has hit the markets and is ready for consumers. Have you calculated how much it will cost you to own the iPhone 5?

Wayne @ Young Family Finance writes Prepaid Cards – The Perfect Gift? – Are you looking for the perfect gift for someone? Whether it is for Christmas or for their birthday, you have many options. A few years ago, you were left with very few options. It was either a specific item that you made or purchased OR cash. That was it. Only a couple options.

SBB @ Simple Budget Blog writes Common Budgeting Mistakes – Find out the common budgeting mistakes and how to avoid them to keep your budget in control.

Miss T. @ Prairie Eco Thrifter writes How to Have a Green Christmas – Your Christmas holidays don’t need to suffer at the expense of being green. There are numerous ways you can reduce your impact and still enjoy the season.

Crystal @ Budgeting in the Fun Stuff writes Closing Costs for a New Home – Here is Your Arm and Leg… – We are closing on our new house in a couple of weeks. Here are our closing costs and what we will have left in our emergency fund.

Luke @ Learn Bonds writes Reading the Signs in the Current Bond Market – Investors are currently facing difficult choices: lower their expectations and/or take more risk. Is this the solution?

Daniel @ Sweating the Big Stuff writes Lifestyle Inflation – What To Consider Before Telling Yourself Yes – Thinking about upgrading your gadgets? Ask yourself these 5 questions before you take the plunge.

Jason @ Work Save Live writes What Does Life Insurance Cover? 4 Ways to Help Your Legacy – Today’s post will be a little different as I’m going to integrate video for the first time ever here on WSL! So, before you skip down to today’s post, please take 1 minute and watch the video below: What Does Life Insurance Cover?

Beating Broke @ Beating Broke writes 20% Off Quickbooks 2013 – Limited Time – Intuit, the company that makes Quickbooks, has just released the newest version of their Quickbooks software, Quickbooks 2013. To celebrate the release, they’re giving everyone 20% off. You don’t need a coupon code, or any sort of rebate, just go over and buy it directly from them, and they’ll give you 20% off.

krantcents @ KrantCents writes Plan for the Unexpected! – What do you do when the unexpected happens? Things happen and you cannot do much about it. You cannot plan for every expense, but you can plan for the unexpected! You can set aside savings for the unexpected as an emergency fund. Things happen such as illness or your car breaks down.

Jason @ Live Real Now writes The Evils of a Reverse Mortgage – If money is tight and you have no prospects, a reverse mortgage may be a valid consideration. A better consideration would be to take out a traditional loan and make monthly payments out of that lump sum, or sell your house outright and move someplace more affordable.

Jonathan @ Save $100K writes A Personal Case Study: Three Hacks I Used to Break Through the Trap of Tradition – The life hacks I used that free me from traditional ways of thinking.

IMB @ Investing Money writes Real Estate Investing- A Viable Investment Strategy? – Find out if real estate investing is a great option for you. It may take more time, but it has a lot of benefits.

PITR @ Passive Income To Retire writes Real Estate Limited Partnership – Limited partnerships can be quite confusing. Find out the basic qualities of a limited partnership and the benefits of a real estate limited partnership.

Amanda L Grossman @ Frugal Confessions writes Nuggets of Information I Took Away from Popular Financial Books – I used to think that I needed to soak up every piece of information and tip that came my way—otherwise, I was wasting my time and potentially someone

Ray @ Squirrelers writes Career Lessons From the Football Replacement Refs Situation – We can often learn lessons from different areas of life. Here’s one: we can learn some career lessons from the recent controversy surrounding the replacement referees in football

Corey @ Steadfast Finances writes The Cost of Raising a Child – Raising children are expensive. You should consider ALL the costs before jumping in with both feet.

Tushar @ Finance TUBE writes Closing On Your First Home: What to Expect at the Closing Table – Today we will talk about Closing on Your First Home: What to Expect at the Closing of your first home? Well it is such a huge investment and you might be wondering who would be represent at the Closing Table.

SFB @ Simple Finance Blog writes Do You Really Need Quicken? – What are the advantages and disadvantage of Quicken? Is it better than free online tools like Mint? Who will be best benefited by using Quicken?

Eddie @ Finance Fox writes Saving Money on Home Renovations – Increase the value of your home or just want to make your house more livable until the housing market bounces back, home renovations are the way to go

Suba @ Broke Professionals writes Highest Paying Jobs 2012 – Highest Paying Jobs 2012 is a post from: Broke Professionals if you enjoy it, please visit us and subscribe to the Feed. When I decided to go back to work in the early 1980′s, I did a bit of research to see what the highest paying and most available jobs were at the time. If found in information rewarding, so I thought I’d do likewise.

Todd @ Financial Mentor writes The Essential Wealth Building Principle Revealed By Roth IRA Conversions (It’s Not What You Think!) – Explains a unique and important wealth building principle using Roth IRA conversions as an example. Learn how you can accelerate your wealth plans…

Teacher Man @ My University Money writes Spending Money On Campus Food – It’s just that it’s so easy not to make lunch in the morning, and then at night there are so many other things to do. Hey, it’s just going to happen this one time anyway right?

Young @ Young And Thrifty writes Should You Invest In Apple? – I love Apple and have pretty large exposure to it. Now some of you who’ve been around here for a while might be scratching their heads. After all, how can a guy that has an ETF eBook sign up on the right hand side of his blog suggest a specific stock to buy?

Robert @ My Multiple Incomes writes My Monthly Income Stream Report – September 2012 – The biggest lesson I learned this month actually came on Saturday when I was putting this report together. I was thinking about the $30k challenge I had committed myself to at the beginning of the year over at Online Money Bloggers. I really thought that it would be a difficult feat. Last year I made a total of $11,779 from my multiple income streams, and only about $5,700 came from websites and what I’m doing online. This year I’ve already made $42,373.60 through my multiple income stre

Robert @ The College Investor writes What Keeps You Up at Night? – Do you worry about money? About not having enough? Not saving enough? Not investing enough in the right ways? As trite as it sounds, it does get better. Usually it doesn’t get better overnight. The trick is to keep striving, and the worry will fade.

Jeff Rose @ Good Financial Cents writes 7 Ways To Find Free Money And Unclaimed Property Online – Indiana Jones racing through some foreign land seeking his next archaeological find is an adventure that this treasure seeker would never get tired of. Who doesn’t get excited about finding a treasure? Especially, if it’s free money! Whether it’s finding a $20 bill in the parking lot of the mall or an old bond that your grandparents bought you, it’s always a nice treat to add some cash to your wallet and get free money.

Josh Thompson @ Becoming Your Own Bank writes The Most Successful Strategy to Never Retire – Want to make sure you pay high fees and put your money at risk? Well you may already be in the boat if you are listening to the generic so called financial gurus on the radio and television. Buying term and investing in mutual funds may be about the worst strategy to date, yet it is still being touted as the way to go. Here are the facts and the statistics you may not be aware of…

J.P. @ Novel Investor writes Your Projected 2013 Federal Income Tax Brackets – Before this year ends one of several scenarios will play out. Until then we can estimate what the 2013 federal income tax brackets will look like under each scenario.

Little House @ Little House in the Valley writes Be Handy, Save Money! – Mr. LH can take things apart, oil, tighten, fix parts then put the object back together good as new. It has saved us a lot of money in terms of not having to replace fans, vacuums, and many of our appliances through the years.

Sicorra @ Tackling Our Debt writes What is Debt Consolidation, and How Can It Help You? – When you are in debt, it can be difficult to know how to manage the situation. With so many accounts, and payments, and interest rates, it is easy to become discouraged. One way you can deal with this issue is to consolidate your debts.

Deacon @ Well Kept Wallet writes Why it Pays to Check Your Cell Phone Bill – This might be a shock to you, but there can be charges on your cell phone bill that you never authorized. The other day I was going through our bill and I discovered that there were charges for $9.99 from two different companies that I have never heard of before.

Marie at Family Money Values @ Family Money Values writes Six Reasons to Work in a Small Company – In this presidential election year, there is enormous focus on adding jobs to the economy. Many of those jobs come via new businesses – start up companies. Pretty much all of these start up companies are small. If we are successful in providing the environment in which these new businesses thrive, then you may very well have an opportunity to work in a small company – but should you? Here are six reasons you might want to.

Jacob @ My Personal Finance Journey @ My Personal Finance Journey writes Financials of a College Football Game – How much money changes hands as a result of a big (Division I) college football game? The purpose of this post will be to try to find a numerical answer to this football-financials question!

Everything Finance @ Everything Finance Blog writes Four Ways You Can Save Money by Cutting the Cable (and Survive) with Kids – I do not have cable. I actually enjoy it, and I think more people would too if they tried it. Back to your kids. They will survive if you cut the cable, and you may be surprised by how much they do not miss it.

Steve @ The Loonie Bin writes Video on Dividend Investing – I really enjoyed learning how to make these videos and as you can tell from my first one, I’m getting a little better at it. The written word can be entertaining, but I’ve always enjoyed animation and find it’s such an amazing way of expressing yourself.

Miranda @ Financial Highway @ Financial Highway writes How to Make Money – Even the best of times, one of the most common questions asked is, “How to make money fast?” While an increase in income can ease the way things work in your personal economy, it won’t necessarily solve all your problems. You will still need a plan for the wise management of your financial resources.

Darnell @ Excess Return writes The Risk and Rewards of Investing in Gold – With the recent rally in gold prices investors are wondering “should I invest in gold?” Investing in gold may have its rewards, but there are also risks.

Steve @ Canadian Personal Finance writes Top 6 Financial Cliches That Can Make You Rich – It is kind of funny how we often overlook the ultimate cliches that might actually make bill pay easy on our pockets, that is make us richer and help us afford more. So what are those little things that are applied to your daily schedule can make you rich? Before we discuss that in details here is some food for thought.

FMF @ Free Money Finance writes More Thoughts on Making Millions More – My post discussing making millions more by growing your career hit a few nerves. Not that that’s a bad thing all the time, but I got enough comments that made me realize I wasn’t being completely clear. There were several points that I assumed or neglected. So I’m adding the following thoughts to hopefully clarify my point of view on the topic.

Mich @ BeatingTheIndex writes Touchstone Exploration: Growing Oil Production in Trinidad and Tobago – Touchstone is a junior producer with about 2,000 barrels of oil from the island nation of Trinidad & Tobago. Take a closer look at an established producer in an island flush with oil.

Philip @ PT Money Personal Finance writes Should You Pay Off the Mortgage(s) Early? – I take a look at our specific financial situation and share our rationale for possibly paying off our mortgage early.

John Schmoll @ Frugal Rules writes How to Easily Determine Your Risk Profile – Knowing your risk profile can go a great way in terms of helping determine what your investment plan should be.

Steven @ Grocery Alerts writes Best Products to Buy in October – October is a beautiful time of year with the leaves slowly changing colours and the fun of Halloween. I wanted to share some ideas for products that are some good buys this month including camping equipment, air conditioners, turkeys, outdoor furniture and certain produce.