giveaway - Surviving and Thriving

Giveaway: Two $10 Starbucks gift cards.

June 29, 2020 by Donna Freedman

Hot enough for ya? Some cities are broiling right now and a cold, cold drink could be just the thing.

Up here it’s still a fairly chilly summer, and in parts of Alaska it’s always chilly. A hot, hot drink would be soothing.

Then there are those who believe in drinking hot tea in the summer to cool themselves off. I refrain from comment.

But two lucky will have their first $10 worth of Starbucks beverages covered.

Jerry Stiller and me: A minor celebrities story.

May 31, 2020May 31, 2020 by Donna Freedman

The recent death of comedian and actor Jerry Stiller made me sad. Most people’s deaths make me sad. But I happen to know that in this case, the cliche everyone spouts is true: He’d had a great life.

How do I know? He told me.

Years ago he and his wife, Anne Meara, were guests of honor at the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, Alaska. At that time I worked at the Anchorage Daily News, and was given the chance to interview them both before they got here.

Both of them were perfectly delightful. The conversation with Stiller went on for quite a while, and at the end of the interview he said he wanted to send me a copy of his autobiography, “Married to Laughter: A Love Story Featuring Anne Meara.” I thanked him and said that I appreciated the offer but that it wouldn’t be necessary.

He sent it anyway, with a personalized inscription, and I still have it.

At the end of the conference there’s always a tour from a glacier cruise company. Stiller saw me come aboard and waved me over. I spent the entire cruise sitting next to him and listening to him tell stories about his beautiful wife and his amazing children (actors Ben and Amy). He told me more than once how lucky he had been in his life, to have had such a wonderful marriage and incredible children plus the chance to do what he loved.

Sniffling yet? I am, too.

But that’s not the only point of this post.

Win a $100 gift card via #MayAtMacys:

May 4, 2020 by Donna Freedman

(Note: As a Savings.com DealPro, I will earn a very small affiliate fee for each person who enters the Macy’s gift card drawing.)

Want to win $100 worth of buying power at Macy’s? Now’s your chance. Savings.com is giving away five $100 gift cards during its #MayAtMacys promotion.

Obviously I can’t win, but maybe you can get a $100 head start on things like:

Graduation gifts
Baby- or wedding-shower presents (even if the parties are virtual)
Buying women’s or children’s underwear and socks to donate to the family shelter
New summer clothes
A bit of advance holiday shopping (never too early to get started)

This is a fairly quick-turnaround giveaway. You have until 11:59 p.m. PDT Thursday, May 7 to throw your name into the hat.

Giveaway: $50 worth of gift cards.

April 22, 2020 by Donna Freedman

I haven’t had a giveaway in quite a while, so I decided to put a $25 gift card up for grabs.

Then I changed my mind.

“Why don’t I give away three $10 cards?” I thought. “That way three people can win.”

And then I changed my mind again. Or, rather, the owner of the I Pick Up Pennies website — aka, my daughter, Abigail Perry — changed it for me.

“I’d be glad to kick in a $20 gift card,” she said. “That way, you can make it an even $50.”

That’s the end of the mind-changing. The first-place winner will get a $20 gift card, and three other winners will each get $10 gift cards.

Even a $10 gift card can be helpful when times are a bit tight, whether you use it to buy rice and beans or to order yourself (or someone else) a little treat to brighten the day.

And if money isn’t an issue right now? Lucky you, and consider passing along the card to someone in need, or in need of a treat.

What kind of gift cards? That’s up to the winners.

Well, to some extent it’s up to the winners. The scrip options are Amazon, Walmart or Target. I can send them electronically or have them mailed. Your call.

National Bacon Day giveaway.

December 30, 2019 by Donna Freedman

(As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This revenue helps keep the blog lights on.)

Apparently today is National Bacon Day. If you were to ask DF, he would likely insist that every day is National Bacon Day. (He eats a lot of the stuff.)

Some people believe that bacon is bad for you. It probably is. But if you need a reason to believe in bacon, check out this interesting factoid from National Today:

Bacon contains a nutrient (we know, we’re surprised too) called “choline.” It’s been known to increase intelligence and memory, fight Alzheimer’s Disease, and protect the heart from developing lethal problems.

We never thought our favorite food could get any better, but then we learn about its health benefits. Thank you, bacon; you’re the gift that keeps on giving.

I’ve been collecting porcine prizes for just such an occasion. The winner of the National Bacon Day giveaway will receive the following delights:

Makin’ Bacon game. This is touted as “a delicious dice game for the whole family.” I’ll let the winner be the judge.

Wooden sign. It says “Bacon is duct tape for the kitchen.” Agreed!

Bacon Strips Adhesive Bandages. Yes. Someone invented Bacon Band-Aids.

“I Love Bacon,” by Jayne Rockmill. This cookbook has recipes for every meal of the day, and also for desserts. (My dear partner, who has been known to make Peanut Butter and Bacon Cookies and Bacon-Molasses-Cayenne Peanut Brittle, approved this message.)

Bacon Bowls. According to the packaging, these dishwasher-safe items let you make “delicious edible bowls out of bacon!” They can be used in the microwave, toaster oven or regular oven.

Giveaway: The small flat-rate box of stocking stuffers.

December 2, 2019December 2, 2019 by Donna Freedman

(As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This revenue helps keep the blog lights on.)

Back in 2015 I received a press release about “fun and affordable” stocking stuffers. Specifically, about stocking stuffers “under $50.”

Wait. What?

I was pretty surprised to see suggestions like $50 iTunes cards and $30 bottles of perfume. So I wound up writing a piece called “12 ways to spend less on stocking stuffers,” which noted a dozen ways to spend little (or nothing) on fun gifts for the holiday sock.

This year I’ve come up with an even easier way to spend less on stocking stuffers: by giving readers a chance to win some.

I’ve come into possession of/already owned a handful of things that would make great stocking stuffers. Since I love doing giveaways – and since readers love getting something for free – I created the “Small Flat-Rate Box of Stocking Stuffers” giveaway.

The giveaway includes a $5 Starbucks gift card, which is enough to get some people to enter even if they don’t care much about the other items in the box. There’s just something universal about Starbucks cards, even if you – like me – don’t even drink coffee.

However, some of these other items in the collection should appeal to relatives, friends, co-workers or even the local family shelter.

12 days of giveaways from Savings.com.

November 22, 2019November 7, 2019 by Donna Freedman

(Note: This post contains affiliate links. I will receive a teeny-tiny finder’s fee for anyone who signs up for the drawings; this revenue helps keep the blog lights on. If that bugs you, feel free to enter the giveaway daily at this non-affiliate link.)

Planning your holiday shopping? Savings.com can help. The coupon/deal site’s “12 days of giveaways” promotion will award one $250 gift card every weekday from now through Friday, Nov. 22.

Which merchants are participating? So glad you asked.

The giveaway started with HP, the company that manufactures laptops, desktops, printers, monitors and accessories to keep us connected. The only printers I’ve ever owned have been from HP, and I’ve had great service from them.

My next printer will also be from HP – but unfortunately I’m not allowed to enter this drawing because I’m a Savings.com DealPro. You, however, can enter – and I hope a member of this community wins.

Here’s the list of future giveaway partners – again, one each weekday until Nov. 22:

Giveaway: Stacy Johnson’s retirement course.

October 31, 2019 by Donna Freedman

Do you know whether or not you’ll be able to retire comfortably, or at all? According to the Federal Reserve Bank, 25 percent of U.S. workers have neither pension nor retirement savings.

Now that’s scary. And just in time for Halloween!

Instead of the defined benefit retirement plans that many of our parents received, most U.S. residents rely on things like 401(k)s and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), which can be fee-heavy and which require you to invest your own money. Some employers offer a match, but mostly it’s on you.

Social Security is available for most of us, but it likely won’t be enough to live on. (And in fact it may not be fully funded by the time you retire; see Liz Weston’s recent article on this topic.)

Oh, and there’s always personal savings. Right? Or wrong. Some people don’t have a dime in liquid savings. Worse, some of them don’t have any kind of retirement plan other than Social Security.

Stacy Johnson, founder of Money Talks News, is concerned about two big issues surrounding retirement in this country: skyrocketing expenses and a shrinking safety net. That’s why he created a “retirement boot camp” for people aged 40 and older: a 14-week video course designed to teach you how to judge what you’ve already got and accomplish what you’ll need to have a secure, comfortable retirement.

Stacy is a certified public accountant and has also earned licenses in mutual funds, life insurance, stocks, commodities, options principal, securities supervisor and real estate. He has generously donated a copy of “The Only Retirement Guide You’ll Ever Need” for me to give away on my site. Who’s in it to win it?

Giveaway: The medium flat-rate box of FinCon19 swag.

October 15, 2019 by Donna Freedman

I’ve been home from the 2019 Financial Blogger Conference for weeks now, and for weeks a medium-flat-rate-box-sized heap of Expo Hall swag has sat on my desk, taunting me.

What’s up for grabs this year? All sorts of goodies, many of which make primo stocking stuffers.

I haven’t catalogued and boxed it up yet because Reasons. Now it’s done, and one lucky person is going to get a large selection of offbeat items courtesy of the expo hall at the annual financial writers’ conference.

Exhibitors lure you to their tables by putting out things like T-shirts, candy, reusable shopping bags and the like. And who doesn’t need a spare box of matches, or a bottle opener, or a little bag of custom M&Ms?

Plenty of people, I know. But again, some of these things are giftable as heck. In fact, I kept a few of them back for the annual shoebox Christmas giveaway organized by a local charity. You fill a shoebox with items homeless people have requested, then wrap it with Christmas paper and drop it off at the Tastee-Freez.

This year my shoebox will include hand sanitizer, lip balm, and a notebook and pens from the expo hall, in addition to the other stuff I bought. And here are the things that this year’s box-of-FinCon-swag winner will receive: