The Next Generation of Dumpster Divers

Believe it or not, dumpster diving ain't (yes, I'm Southern :P) what it used to be. I don't know how I happened across a dumpster diving message board one day, but I decided to check out their "Finds" forum. Holy moly, was I surprised.

See, these people weren't DD at trash dumpsters you see on the roadside. They DD at store dumpsters. The stuff they find is unbelievable sometimes. I can't believe how wasteful our society is. The fact that America has so many in need, and to see perfectly good 'stuff' thrown out all for the sake of a buck, really saddens me.

However, I see the DD'ers as redeemers of sorts. LOL Rescuers in plain (and probably a little dirty from diving) clothing if you will. I'm not an expert on the subject...yet. Yes, I am planning to try out store DD very soon with a partner in crime that shall remain unidentified. I will definitely report our experience(s).

I'll leave you with a link to a site with lots of info and tips on getting started. Remember to check your local laws concerning DD. I will not be held responsible for your bail money. You dive at your own risk. ;o)

Mary, The Dumpster Lady

Like Telling People How To Do Things?

Now you can get paid for it. I randomly came across http://ehow.com/. This site is full of "how to" articles written by members. Here are some examples of articles that were listed on their main page:

-How to Inspect a Bathroom Before Buying a Home
-How to Give Verbal Instructions
-How to Apply Press-on Nails

Your are compensated by how many times your article is read. They pay directly to your paypal account. For more information go here.

James Jones: Children's Letter of the Month Club

I have posted about this guy before. I get his newsletter that sends out a business idea every week. A majority of these ideas aren't what I would call mainstream, but they are interesting. Here is the one I just received for this week:

Here is a really simple business anyone with a flair for communicating with children can turn into a great income.

What you do is create a subscription "letter of the month" club for children. Every month you write a personalized letter on a specific theme and mail it to the child.

For example, if your theme is exotic places, you could call yourself Traveling Tina and write a letter that both entertains and teaches about a different local each week.

You do not have to write a personal letter to each child. Simply create a "boiler plate" document and use your computer to insert the child's name in relevent places. You can also have the parent fill out a form that further personalizes the letter with the names of pets, playmates, food likes and dislikes, etc.

To make your service really unique, include a low cost gift with each letter, like a bookmark or picture.

Market your club in national parents magazines and sell one year subscriptions for $20-$30.

To subscribe to his newsletter, click here.

Jones...James Jones

(Originally posted on my old blog "Work Around Your Wallet" on 2/4/07)


This guy sends out a weekly newsletter with creative, sometimes unusual, money making techniques. Here are two examples:


Souvenir Soil
James J Jones -- Publisher

You've probably heard about the men who bought land that once belonged to Elvis Presley and sold "deeds" to the one square inch plots. Another guy did the same thing with a farm that Abraham Lincoln once owned.

Below are some other companies that are making money with dirt. Maybe you can come up with a way to do something similar to these ventures:

The Dirt Mall sells One half-ounce vials of soil from Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon.)
The genuine soil from Saigon is marketed to vietnam vets and is packaged in a clear corked glass vial and labeled for display. A vial sells for $20.00 plus S & H.
Another company, Footwhere, markets "Genuine Soil Specimens encased inside a foot cavity." "FOOTWHERE™" is a product line of authentic location souvenirs that acknowledges where you've actually set foot. Encased inside of a foot cavity within each embodiment, (e.g. key chain, magnet, etc.) is a specimen of genuine soil from a specific location adorned with colorful graphics that reflects a place's popularity, recognition and landmarks. You can visit the Footwhere website at:http://www.footwhere.com

The Museum of Dirt has on display dirt from famous or newsworthy locations. Although they are not selling their dirt specimens yet, I think they have a really great idea. Here are some examples of the dirt they have on display:

Dirt from The Ponderosa Ranch -- the location used to film the TV show Bananza.
Dirt from the parking lot outside the Betty Ford Clinic.
Dirt from the yard of Harry S Truman.
Dirt from Graceland.
Dirt from Sonny Bono's Front Yard.

_________________________________________________

Specialized Dating Parties and Services
James J Jones -- Publisher

Ever noticed the singles ads in newspapers, news weeklies, and on the internet? Maybe you've even placed or answered a singles ad yourself. The problem with these types of ads are they are anonymous and desperate sounding. SWPM ISO SF reply to voicemail box xxx.

Honestly, I don't think I would want to go out with someone who would answer an ad like this. I think it was W.C Fields who said, "I would not want to belong to any club that would have me as a member." And today's busy lifestyle makes it increasingly harder for singles to meet.
In my research I have found a few people who are turning this problem into a lucrative businesses. What they are doing is targeting like minded singles and putting them together in a relaxing environment for a fee.

For example, one woman holds dinner parties for singles in her house. She advertises in the personals section of her local newspaper with an ad that reads...
Meet Single Professionals at Invitation Only Dinner Party. Call 555-5555 to request invitation.
When an interested prospect calls she interviews them to make sure they are sincere and have conversational skills. If they meet her criteria she tells them to send her a check for $75.00 which covers the dinner and cocktails. The fee also serves to eliminate the curiosity seekers.
Her once a week parties usually draw 20 - 24 people from which she nets $1000 - $1200 after expenses. And, of course she keep a record of their names and address for future dinners.

Another person advertises a singles game night called "Thursday Night Out." He rents a small convention room and once a week organizes a gathering of singles who like to play board games. For a $5 admission Thursday Night Out supplies the board games and also makes money selling pizza and soft drinks. No alcoholic beverages are allowed. He advertises with an ad in the Movie Section of the local newspaper and flyers on bulletin boards.


I have been subscribed to this newsletter for a few months and I must say Mr. Jones has some interesting ideas. Go here to subscribe: http://www.business-ideas.biz/subscribe/blog/.

Blogging for Bucks

(Orginally posted on my old blog "Work Around Your Wallet" on 2/4/07)


I was looking through Families.com the other night and found that they will pay you to blog for them. Here is what the site says (copied and pasted directly from families.com):

Become a Blogger

A Families.com Blogger is someone who writes in a "Blog". A Blog is like a journal on a specific topic. This is sometimes personal and sometimes topical, but always informative.

A Families.com Blogger writes daily articles with a minimum of 300 words. Families.com Bloggers work one, two and sometimes three to a topic. A Families.com Blogger must be versatile, creative, experienced and well informed on their chosen topic. They must have a solid grasp of the English language and be able to edit their own work.

Families.com is growing every day and that will be reflected in the number of bloggers we employ. We will continue to take blogger applications on an ongoing basis. If you are interested in a topic already being covered by a blogger, we may just need an additional blogger on that topic or will keep your application on file in the event that blogger should resign their position or need additional assistance covering that topic. If there is a topic that you are qualified to write about, but feel isn't being covered and would add value to Families.com, then we welcome you to suggest that topic and provide us with your application to be the blogger for that topic.
Families.com is the blog network for family topics. We currently have more than 40 blogs on topics such as parenting, marriage, family fun, fugal living, and home & garden. For a full list of topics, visit http://blogs.families.com/. Incomplete applications will not be considered, so please see below for exactly what should be included in your application package.

What Do You Get by Writing for Families.com?

The opportunity to share your passion, to be published and to have your voice heard by large numbers of readers.

We take care of the technology, hosting, graphic design and marketing. There are no fees to you.
We will cross-promote your blog on Families.com.

We pay you $4 per blog entry ($3 during 90 day training period). 2-3 posts per day would be about 75 posts and $300 per month.

We will also pay our bloggers approximately 5% of profits from the blogs so that the revenue of our bloggers can grow with the site. This revenue will be divided up between the bloggers based on a formula that includes factors such as the number of page views your articles/entries receive.

What is Required of Families.com Bloggers?

The Families.com blogs will only be as good as our bloggers. We're looking for amazing bloggers who can write passionate, high-quality, interesting, thought-provoking articles.

A minimum of five blog posts per week and a maximum of three blog posts per day. Blog entries don't have to be full articles. Entries should be at least 300 words, but will often be much longer. A blog can be as simple as a website link with your comments or a photo with a description. The entries could also be full articles. They could include a tip or idea, a top 10 list, a story or quote, "how-to's", demos, photo, essays, or a product or entertainment review. The important thing is that whatever material you write is informative and/or entertaining for our readers.

Review comments to your blog entries, delete inappropriate comments and respond to comments where appropriate.

Avoid topics that are not appropriate for the Families.com family-values centric audience, such as drug and alcohol abuse, profanity, gambling, pornography, extramarital sex, and nudity, except in the context of helping families to overcome these issues. There is definitely a place in the blogs for PG-rated discussions of intimacy and sexuality in marriage, however, these blogs are not the appropriate place for sensualized sexuality. Do not use the blog to advocate for a specific political party, religion, alternative lifestyle, abortion, etc. Please see us if you feel an exception needs to be made to this rule. It is appropriate to talk about faith and spirituality without advocating for a specific religion, or to talk about advocating for families without endorsing specific political candidates and parties.

Successfully complete Families.com Blogger Training and a 90 day probationary period. Then, continue to maintain a high quality of blog posts and work well with the Families.com team.

Post regularly on the families.com forum that corresponds to your topic to build a connection between the online community and your blog. Post links in your blog to other Families.com blogs and content sections.

We're looking for bloggers who are self-motivated, who can keep a good balance between hard work and lots of fun, who have expertise in their topic, and who can add personality to their blog.

How Do I Apply to Be a Families.com Blogger?

Select a Topic - Select 1-3 topics either from our list of current topics or topics you feel would add value to our community for which you would like to write.

Outline - Please provide an outline of the sub-topics that you would like to cover in your blog. (i.e. Food would include subtopics such as Menus, Recipes, Restaurants, Preparation Tips, etc.)
Samples - Please send three sample blog entries or articles with varying styles related to each of the proposed topics you are applying for.

About You - Please provide us with a short bio about you and your family, including your name and city or location. Please also send your resume, your qualifications and your experience in the topic area(s) you are applying for.

Email Us - To apply, send your completed application with all of the information described above to blogs@families.com with the topic(s) you intend to apply for as the subject line.

Other Issues

Because of the cultural writing issues surrounding our target audience, the writer must have been raised and educated in the US (including military bases abroad), Canada, Australia or UK.

Once you are accepted, our lawyer will provide you with the full legal agreement with all of the terms and conditions.

We reserve the right to have more than one blogger on a topic, to sub-divide topics into more than one blog, or to change the terms of the agreement.

All content is owned by Families.com.

We will receive many more applications than we could possibly accept. If you are not accepted immediately, we will keep your information for consideration at a later date.For additional comments and questions, please email blogs@families.com. We look forward to having the opportunity to work with you.


To view the list of topics, go to http://blogs.families.com/# and look on the top right. This is a great way to earn extra money! Let me know if you apply and get accepted so I, and other's that read this, can check out your work.