Cabin fever has set in with a vengeance in the brip blap household. This time of year I start mumbling and grumbling about moving to Florida, a long-standing whinge I drag out annually.  I feel the winters more now than ever with two kids.  The two cheerful little munchkins who spent long summer hours playing with other kids in our community park or at our community playground, then collapsed quietly into sleep, are now jittery, cooped-up little jumping beans.  We try to do what we can with playdates and reduced exposure to TV and computers, but they still feel the boredom that comes from needing a half hour to prep for a brief venture into the cold, dark and wet Northeastern “days.”

The same can be said for the adults, though; walks and bike rides and chats with other parents while our kids play outside are replaced with bumping around the house trying to find something to do that could replace sunny outdoor activities.  You can’t.

But the seasons move on and I have one thing to be thankful for – no slogging through the public transportation commute for me this winter.  My commute is 15 seconds, and I don’t have to put on a coat.

A few links going into the weekend:

Why the Recession Will Be Good for Us as a Country: Hard to believe, but there may be some positives to come out of a recession – although most people don’t care as much about how the country as a whole is doing as they do about their own personal finances.

How To Be Successful in the New Year (20 Tips Inside): My favorite tip:  “Surround Yourself with Like-Minded Individuals – There are studies that show an individual’s income will be somewhere around the average of your closest five friends.”

Lending Money to Family and Friends:  I’m sure this will be an area many people will need to start thinking about as times get worse.

2008 Financial Goals Report Card:  It’s always interesting to take a peek at other people’s goals and how well they met them (or fell short).

The Life Cycle Of A Purchase – From Desired Object To Tossed Clutter: I am good about this.  I seldom lust after items, and even when I do I am disciplined about waiting for a while to make sure I really need the item.  The one exception might be books, but even there I’ve become much better about avoiding snap purchases using my Amazon Prime account.

Attention Financial Bloggers: Free Promotion for Your Top Posts and $500 Given to the Charity of Your Choice: I did this last year and it was a lot of fun – I was a Final Four contestant and was very pleased to see my charity, the Russian Children’s Welfare Society, earn a donation from FMF.

Free Ways To Watch Television Online, Catch Movies on the Internet:  I’ve started VERY slowly getting into the online TV thing for one reason only – to catch up on the one TV series I enjoy, The Sarah Connor Chronicles.  I also like YouTube for children’s songs and videos from my childhood.

New Year’s Resolution: Organization and Execution:  Were I the type of person to make resolutions, these are two I would resolve to improve in 2009 as well.  I’m not disorganized, but I do fail to execute more than I’d like to admit.

End of Wall Street: Wall Street Journal Video Series:  The Journal’s take on recent events; worth watching.

photo credit: James Jordan