Electrolux sells a front-loader pair under their Frigidaire brand and as a Kenmore set that goes for well under $1,000. You don't get the heater in the washer or the fancy electronic displays and such, but they work well, they're reliable, and they do save water and detergent and spin pretty much as well as their more expensive brethren/sistren. Worth considering for anyone who is in the market for a new washer who can stretch the budget a bit. Congratulations, Kevin, on the energy savings. Sometimes we have to look back over time to see just how much we've changed. :-)

If my employer said I could have restaurant coupons instead of my paycheck I'd say NO. I tell Discover that I want the cash that i EARNED (for using their card) and not coupons. I consider choosing coupons over cash as 'buying' the coupons. I hope you don't think that mortgages are good things because they save you on income tax! I think we just have to agree to disagree on this and let people get back to using this thread for it's purpose. So I'm done. Thanks for the coversation!

Car with standard transmission uses about 5 - possibly 10% less fuel. Skilfully done, car drivers can save even more. When you see a traffic signal turn yellow ahead - there's no law that says that you have to keep your foot continuing to push on the throttle! Then hit the brake, about a hundred feet from the intersection. Foot off of the throttle: coast toward the light. If you know it fairly well, you may be able to arrange to arrive close to the last car in the line just as it starts to move forward, and it takes less fuel to increase the speed while rolling that to start rolling from a standing stop. I often push in the clutch and turn off the ignition when I see a light go yellow ahead ... and can often manage to keep the car rolling as I approach a red light when it turns to green. Some say that coasting with the engine off is illegal in their jurisdiction, so best check with the legal people before you try that: the police here say that I am to be in charge of my vehicle at all times. No jack-rabbit starts when the light turns green, either. Try to arrange to travel with a friend driving a car that tells immediate fuel economy levels, get him to make a jack-rabbit start from a light that just turned green - and see your jaw drop as you see what mileage per gallon is being obtained at that point. Try to drive as closely as possible to the same speed, and a few miles/kms. per hour under the speed limit ... but not so far under as to be a hazard to the free flow of traffic. That's made easier by leaving a cushion of space between you and the car ahead ... and try not to get too incensed when other drivers pull into that hole in your lane, stealing your cushion. ole joyful

I had a message on here (or was it "Household Finance" a while ago about why I don't like earning interest. The size of the pot doesn't increase. If I buy quality stocks, I expect there to be a good possibility that the price on most of them may rise, given time, and I don't need the money right away. Something over 35 years ago I bought stocks at $4.00+ (possibly $2.00+) per share and I can sell them now for $75.00 more or less, depending on the day or week. I don't need to answer to the Canada Revenue Agency till I either sell them (or die) - neither of which I plan to do this week or next. Since the $10,000. I might have loaned to the bank 15 years ago on a 5-year certificate that I later renewed twice will only pay me $10,000. when I redeem it, I have a problem. That $10,000. would have bought me a decent car, 15 years ago - not now. In 1947 my Dad bought a new Ford Monarch for $1,600. So I need to add part of my current interest earnings to the pot in order to maintain its purchasing power. Usually, the amount that dollar-denominated money earns doesn't change much, either - interest rates have stayed fairly stable. But the dividends that the bank paid on their stock that I bought was about 6 cents or a dime, 37 years ago - but a few years ago advanced from 80 cents to 90 cents, then $1.00, later $1.24, $1.48, $1.64 - and now are $2.40 per share. In Canada, I've paid a lower tax rate on that type of income for many years - and the government just anounced that they're going to make the tax rate lower. Plus - I have to pay top rate of tax on interest income. Also, the only return that I can expect on dollar-denominated asset is earned now - and taxed now, in addition to being taxed at the top rate. I prefer to let that increase in value develop in solid stocks, and not pay tax on it till I sell it. And then at a lower rate. Have a great week, everyone. ole joyful