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How do you learn best?
This question came up at a meeting I attended this week. 
One person there said that information on a piece of paper is just not enough to help her understand something. She needs another person to walk her through the steps of a process until she’s confident enough to do it herself.
She’d probably love the ever-increasing selection of YouTube videos that teach you to do everything from writing a blog to cooking a meal to building your own didgeridoo.
I’m just the opposite. I learn by reading. I need to see the words on a page. A few months ago, I checked out a book at the library about how to use iTunes, so I could learn to transfer my music library to a new computer. The librarian was surprised that I was getting a book on this subject and suggested that I just go to YouTube and find out how to do this.
Judging by the popularity of homemade instructional videos on YouTube and other sites, I’m in the minority.
25% off used CDs and DVDs at FYE 
Cannot be combined with other offers. fye.com reserves the right to cancel this promotion at any time. Not valid on pre-orders or used Blu-Rays. Valid online only for used merchandise.
Enter coupon code USED25JUAU.
Valid through: August 31, 2010
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$10 off orders over $100 at J&R Music and Computer World 
Enter coupon code GEICO10.
Valid through: September 30, 2010
See other J&R coupon codes!
Got ebooks?
Today is the release of the highly-anticipated Amazon Kindle 3. 
(Anticipated by whom, you ask? Well, by me, for one. When my husband decided to order one for my birthday, he discovered that the Kindle 2 was all done and the Kindle 3 would be released at the end of August.)
I’m hoping for a visit from the UPS guy soon, and in anticipation, I’ve been queuing up free ebooks from Amazon’s site for weeks. In addition, there are a couple of ebooks that I plan to purchase just as soon as I get that Kindle out of the box, charged, and ready to use.
My husband is all for the use of ebooks around here, since he thinks I have too many books. I beg to differ–you can never have too many books! In his estimation, if I purchase my books in electronic format, there will be fewer books “cluttering up” the house.
I’ve got to wonder, though. Studies have shown that children who grow up in houses that have several hundred books (mine certainly qualifies) do better in school than their bookless peers. Part of that, I’m sure, is that these children have grown up seeing their parents read, and more than that, enjoy reading. Will I be setting the same example for my younger son if I’m using something that looks more like a video game than a standard book? Either way, I’ll still be reading!
Students: Free Amazon Prime for 1 Year at Amazon 
Join Amazon Student and receive a FREE Amazon Prime membership for one year (a $79 value!). It’s free for students; simply provide your school and major to sign up.
Valid through: October 14, 2010
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Free $20 gift card with purchase of the Borders Kobo eReader 
Valid through: December 31, 2010
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Last week, there was an article in my local newspaper about a teenager and his dad complaining of the closure of a skateboard park in a nearby town. They imply unfair treatment of skateboarders by local police and whine that people don’t accept the skaters because they look/dress/act different.
And because the skateboard park was closed (due to unsafe conditions) in December, this teen seems to believe that the police shouldn’t bother skaters who want to take their tricks to Main Street, which is crowded with shops, pedestrians, and car traffic.
The teenager in the article is 17. He’s old enough to respectfully approach the township officials and find out what needs to be done before his favorite park can reopen. He’s old enough to organize a fund-raiser or get his friends together to work on cleanup or construction, and even to make a commitment to the kind of ongoing maintenance a skate park requires.
Instead of whining about the lack of a place to play, and taking his games to Main Street (where people could get hurt and property could get damaged), this young man could be channeling his energy into finding solutions to the problem. If that happened, chances are good that people wouldn’t continue to misjudge him and his fellow skaters, but rather admire their initiative and civic spirit.
As my favorite character from the movie Robots always said: “See a need, fill a need.”
Free Ground Shipping on orders of $100 at Vans.com 
Enter coupon code VANSSUMMER.
Valid through: August 31, 2010
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UltimateCoupons Exclusive!
15% off your order at The Sports Authority 
Eligible items will have the following note on their product page: “Ultimate Coupons – 15% OFF Your Entire Order”
Valid online only.
Discount does not apply to taxes, shipping and handling charges, gift wrapping or similar charges. Cannot be combined with any other promotional offer nor is this offer valid on previous purchases. Offer excludes Treadmills, Bikes/Ellipticals, Home Gyms, select table games, trampolines & accessories, electronics/optics, asics, Atec, Bauer, Bladez, Butterfly, Callaway, Carhart, Casio, CCM, Cobra, Coleman Boats, Columbia, DeMarini, Easton, Escape, Etyomic Research, Fly Flot, Footjoy, Front Porch Classics, Future Beach, Garmin, Goaliath, Goalrilla, Goalsetter, Ground Control, Hi-Tec, Heelys, Jugs, K2, Kettler, K-Swiss, Leatherman, Leisure Life, Louisville, Louisville Slugger, Magellan, Magnum, Miken Sports, Minolta, Mission, Mizuno, Mongoose, Motorola, Muzono Golf, Nike, Nike Golf, Oakley, Pelican, Pro Feet, Rawlings, Razors, Roces, Rollerblade, Salomon, SKB, Spira, Spring Step, Taylor Made, The North Face, Tippmann, Titleist, Trend Sports, Under Armour, World Industries, Worth, electronics/optics and select other items. If the coupon doesn’t seem to work on an item, the brand is probably excluded. Discount is not applicable to gift cards and gift certificates. Entire order must be shipped to a single address. Offer valid only while supplies last and not applicable to canceled orders due to out-of-stock merchandise.
Enter coupon code ULTIMATE15.
See other Sports Authority coupon codes!
I’d been watching them for miles as we drove down the highway late one summer Saturday night. 
The white beams made a pretty pattern in the sky; I didn’t even resent the fact that the resulting light pollution was ruining any chance I might have had to see a shooting star from the Perseid meteor shower.
Maybe that’s because I knew that they were signaling a sale. You know I like those!
I commented to my husband, “We’re getting closer to those searchlights. I wonder where they are?”
Since he was the one driving, it scared me a little when he replied, “What searchlights?”
Yikes.
A few miles later we found the source of the lights: a local auto dealership’s tent sale. Two days later we dropped off my husband’s car for maintenance at that same dealership–and the sale must have been a success, because what had been a full parking lot on Saturday night was fairly empty Monday morning.
Searchlights are always signals of some great, but short-term deals! Turn on the searchlights–we’ve got two of those right here!
TODAY AND TOMORROW ONLY!
10% off your order at DERMAdoctor.com 
Use coupon code MOBILE during checkout.
Valid through: August 27, 2010
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Free shipping on orders of $30 or more at Avon.com 
One use per customer.
This offer applies only to standard shipping charges and does not affect 2nd Day or Overnight delivery rates. A valid United States street address is required for all deliveries. Cannot be combined with other coupons.
Enter coupon code AUG30.
Valid through: September 26, 2010
See other Avon coupon codes!
A very happy birthday to my husband! Celebrating a birthday? You’ll like these birthday deals!
by Doug Desjardins
With its strong emphasis on apparel, back-to-school shopping is still a brick-and-mortar sales event. But online back-to-school shopping continues to grow thanks to new social-media promotions that offer free shipping and other perks for online shoppers.
According to a survey from the NPD Group, 50 percent of consumers plan to do at least some of their back-to-school shopping online this year, a 20 percent increase from 2009. “Online is now part-and-parcel of retail as a whole,” said Marshall Cohen, chief industry analyst for the NPD Group. 
The National Retail Federation (NRF) found similar tendencies in its back-to-school consumer survey. The survey found that 30.8 percent of consumers plan to shop online for back-to-school this year, a big jump from 22.2 percent in 2009.
“Many of today’s shoppers are smarter than any other generation before them, especially when it comes to finding the best price,” said Phil Rist, executive vice president of strategic initiatives for BIG Research, which conducted the NRF survey. “The affordability of online shopping gives parents an extra edge for the sometimes expensive back-to-school shopping season with price comparison options, free shipping offers and even coupons.”
Girls aged 13 to 17 are expected to be the most prolific online shoppers this year. According to the NPD Group, 67 percent of teen girls surveyed said they plan to shop online for back-to-school items and 42 percent expect to buy more products online than last year.
In addition to being active consumers, teen girls are providing retailers with free advertising through a new phenomenon known as “haul videos.” The videos posted on Youtube feature people – primarily teen girls – showing off the items they bought on their most recent shopping venture.
“Haul videos are blogs-meet-videos-meet-consumer ratings,” said Kirthi Kalyanma, a professor at Santa Clara University who studies retailing. “In product categories like cosmetics, where look and feel are important and are not that easily communicated by text, video blogs can be powerful.”
In a trend that began in late 2008, retailers continue to promote their sales and promotions on social media sites like Facebook and are using cell-phone messages to promote sales. Kmart is using text messages to update its back-to-school sales specials and J.C. Penney is targeting iPhone users with short videos that feature customers showing off their back-to-school purchases in a nod to the haul video trend.
“Retailers are trying to make it as easy as possible for consumers to spend their money,” said John Long, a retail analyst for Kurt Salmon & Associates.
Retailers are helping to make it more affordable with exclusive online offers and free shipping on some items. Continuing a promotion it started last year, Wal-Mart is offering free shipping on school uniforms and on some dorm-room items. And J.C. Penney is providing free shipping for all orders that total $99 or more.
Resources
Online Offers Beckon Back-to-School Shoppers
New Online Trend: Shoppers videotape their haul
Back to School Sales Increase as Parents Replenish Children’s Needs
If you prefer to shop online (as I do) you won’t want to miss our Back-to-School Coupons page!
Just in case you thought it wasn’t possible to go green and save money, I’ve got news for you. That’s because I was listening to news radio the other day and heard a commercial for an insurance company 
that offers a special discount for drivers of hybrid cars.
I live in New Jersey, where auto insurance premiums are always among the highest in the nation. So the thought of a discount was intriguing.
Yes, there are ways you can save money and help the environment at the same time. One of my personal favorites is using a clothesline to dry some of my family’s laundry. When it’s raining, I have a drying rack in the basement, as well as a few short clotheslines spanning my laundry room.
Here’s another: empty out the trunk of your car! How much extra stuff are you carrying around in there? Mr. College Bound had a trunk full of firewood that he was hauling back and forth to work for about a month this summer before I told him that all that heavy wood was wrecking his gas mileage–gas that he was paying for. I’ve never seen a trunk get unloaded so quickly!
$5 off your first purchase at Paper Culture 
Enter promotional code ECOMOD at checkout.
Valid through: December 31, 2010
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10% off your order at Ecoist 
Enter coupon/discount code 10OFF at checkout.
See other Ecoist coupon codes!
I joined a facebook group that keeps me updated on events at Miss Freshman’s school. Recently they posted pictures of the brand-new lockers they’re installing in the hallways. 
(Pretty spiffy–they’re even painted in the school colors.)
Miss Freshman has never used a locker before. While her older brother had lockers in middle school, she attended a different school and there were no lockers there. I think she’s looking forward to having her own place to keep her stuff, rather than having to leave it in a desk that other kids would use during certain classes.
Look around any discount store or stores specializing in storage, and you’ll find all kinds of locker accessories. My older son never wanted any part of these. He just used the locker as a place to stuff his hoodie and lunch. I have the feeling it’s going to be different with my daughter.
Fortunately we didn’t purchase any of those locker shelves or hanging items yet, because we don’t know the dimensions of the locker she’s going to be using this year. But I’ll venture a guess that she’s going to want, at the very least, a mirror and hanging basket for her locker door.
I have the feeling that the new lockers are going to present a challenge to the school store as well. You see, the store sells precut wrapping paper in just the right size to tape onto someone’s locker on their birthday. They’ll have to replace all those long, skinny locker wraps with shorter, wider ones.
10% off your order at Executive Essentials 
Enter coupon code BTS10 in your shopping cart.
See site for a list of the vendors and/or vendor product lines, which because of their existing significant discounts cannot accept any coupons or further reductions. Coupons/Discounts cannot be combined with any other offer.
Valid through: September 15, 2010
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$10 off $50 in School Supplies at Kmart.com 
Valid online only. Cannot be combined with other coupons.
Save on binders and other classroom needs at Kmart.com!
Enter coupon code BACK2SCHOOL.
Valid through: August 28, 2010
See other Kmart coupon codes!
Our Back-to-School Sales are still going on! Yes, there’s still time to save on the things you need to start the school year off right.
Last week I got an email from my cousin in New York. Like me, she’s a fan of using coupons, and she thought that the supermarket run she made during her lunch hour one day was exceptional.
No measly envelope-style coupon holder works for either of us–we’ve got file boxes of coupons to bring to the supermarket.
I agreed that she had done amazingly well–so well that I asked her if I could reprint her email here. This is what she wrote:
“I bought:
2 packages Keebler Crackers
16 count box nutra grain bars
4 boxes poptarts
4 boxes Kellogg Cereal
Total before savings: $31.10
Bonus card savings: $17.95 (this included 4 $1 coupon doublers)
Coupon Savings: $5.25
Total paid: $13.15I received a Catalina coupon for $10 since I purchased 10 Kellogg/Keebler products. I used this for my second order:
3 12-pks Pepsi
2 boxes Orville Micro popcorn
2 Kelloggs Cereal (this variety was not on sale, 2.99/box but I had $1 off and it expires tomorrow. I bought since I had $1 doubler)
Total before savings: $32.13
Bonus card savings: $28.16 (this included 4 $1 coupon doublers)
Manufacturer Coupon Savings: $14
Total paid: $4.50We have deposit on the soda so that’s $1.80 I’ll get back.
So on my lunch, I spent under $20 and have about half the trunk full of stuff we needed and will use.”
She didn’t mention that before coupons and other savings, her grocery bill for that day would have been $63.23–she only spent $17.55 plus the soda deposit!
My cousin saved a lot of green that day–and stocked her pantry well. She doesn’t have any special secrets for that kind of savings–she just used coupons combined with sales and took advantage of some great deals. Anyone can do it! If you don’t buy the Sunday newspaper or want to supplement the coupons you find there, check out the printable coupons here! And don’t forget all our grocery deals.
Printable Coupon Sheet at Chuck E. Cheese’s 
Print this sheet and bring it to your Chuck E. Cheese’s for the following deals:
* 1 large pizza (Super Combo or up to 2 toppings of your choice), 4 soft drinks and 40 game tokens for $24.99
* 1 large pizza (Super Combo or up to 2 toppings of your choice), 4 soft drinks and 80 game tokens for $29.99
* 70 game tokens for the price of 40
* 45 game tokens for the price of 30
Valid only at participating locations. Not valid in Canada or Hawaii.
See other Chuck E. Cheese’s coupons!
Free delivery on your first online order of $50+ at Vons 
Use promotion code EASY7 at checkout.
Valid for new online customers of Vons/Safeway only. $50 minimum excludes tax and delivery fee. Valid online only.
See other Vons coupon codes!
That’s all I’ll have to wait–just eleven more days until college football season opens for my very favorite team, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
It’s time to dress in blue and gold every single Saturday. This drives my family crazy, but they put up with me anyway. My kids tease me for yelling at the TV while I watch the games; I tell them they should watch the games with some of my relatives! I come by my loud game-viewing habits honestly.
I’ve already marked down the game days in my calendar so I’ll be sure to catch as many games as possible, though I will have to miss one October game for my cousin’s wedding. The week before the wedding will make up for that, however–I’ll be at the game in person. There’s nothing like being part of the crowd, and with luck, both Notre Dame AND Navy will bring their marching bands for the halftime show. I’m counting down to that one too–it’s only 60 days away.
$15 off orders over $100 at the NBA Store 
Click through the link above to activate a promotion saving you $15 on orders over $100.
Valid through: August 31, 2010
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Take 25% off your order of $30 at Lids.com 
Enter coupon code 2010AUGBDAY.
Valid through: August 31, 2010
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The school I attended in my middle-school years had a policy that girls could only wear post-style earrings: nothing that dangled, no hoops. (This was before it became fashionable for guys to wear earrings, so I don’t believe a policy on that existed at the time).
I was so excited, the summer before 7th grade, to get my ears pierced. Finally, I could add my own personal touch and accessorize the school uniform. I received a few pairs of earrings for my birthday that summer; they all were the post-type that I was allowed to wear st school. But I couldn’t wait to get something dangly.
Mom kept discouraging me from doing that, telling me that I could only wear those on weekends and vacation days. So I was really thrilled when the class Christmas party rolled around. We had picked “secret Santas” so each student would receive a small gift from another student. My present, in a tiny box, was a pair of dangly earrings! They were big–and brightly-colored. I couldn’t have been happier. As soon as I opened them, I took off my boring old post earrings and put in the beautiful new ones. My homeroom teacher didn’t say anything–after all, it was a class party and school would be out in an hour anyway.
But then I was asked to run a message downstairs to the third-grade classroom (this was before the years when there were phones in each room). The third-grade teacher took one look at my fancy new jewelry and began yelling about the school dress code. Instead of a “thank you” for delivery of the message, I got a lecture. Way to spoil the moment.
20% off Sitewide at Diamond.com 
Enter coupon code CCFAB.
Valid through: August 31, 2010
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10% off Peridot Jewelry at Sears.com 
Enter coupon code PERIDOT10 in your shopping cart.
Some exclusions apply. Applies to items sold by Sears.
Valid through: August 28, 2010
See other Sears coupon codes!