In 2009 I did a TV show in Washington DC, with Kris Van Cleave, which was later picked up by CNN. Apparently, Matt Sharp an executive producer at Sharp Entertainment saw the show and came up with the idea for the Extreme Couponing show on TLC.

From the NY Times 12/27/2011 written by Brian Stelter:

“The show’s formation follows the recent timeline of the economy. After the financial collapse in 2008, as American households cut back on spending in the recession, a few television stations and newspapers ran features about fanatical coupon cutters. Some were professionals, like Susan Samtur, who had been writing books and articles about couponing for decades and whose pointers were suddenly back in vogue.

“Her weekly grocery bill you’ll have to see to believe,” said Kris Van Cleave of WJLA, a Washington-area TV station, when he interviewed Ms. Samtur in April 2009. With her coupons and rebates filed by category, she saved $144.11 on a trip with Mr. Van Cleave, paying just $9.43 for a week’s worth of groceries.

CNN picked up the WJLA report, and Mr. Sharp sent the video to a colleague at his production company, Sharp Entertainment. “There’s a show here,” Mr. Sharp wrote in an e-mail. “Something in EXTREME CHEAPLIVING.”

Check out the NY Times Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/27/arts/television/extreme-couponing-all-stars-and-extreme-cheapskates-on-tlc.html?ref=brianstelter

Langer’s Juice has been offering refunds for years. I particularly like to the variety; it offers something for everyone. Take the Dream Works Megamind Video Game for Wii, FREE with 10 Langer labels.

Perhaps you’d like a FREE Raggs Book and DVD, for 5 Langer’s POP and for 10 POP get a FREE Pocoyo Dance and DVD. If you’re a Charlie Brown fan, you can get a FREE DVD for 8 labels, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown.

I go back to the site often since the FREEBIES and GIFTS change often. Here’s the link, it’s a good idea to bookmark it. Currently there are about 12 goodies to be had.

Here’s an e-message from Upromise. You don’t have to use that money strictly for college. It’s never too early to start looking for ways to help pay for your child’s college expenses. With Upromise you can start saving faster by doing the things you already do every day. And, you can join for FREE.
https://lty.s.upromise.com/secure/join-upromise-free-save-for-college.do?&ax=acqemail-080911-partner-af-pontiflex

As a reminder, Upromise is a service that helps families earn extra money for education. The company was launched in April 2001 to help make a college education more attainable. It’s a service that helps members jumpstart their college savings or pay down student loans by earning 1-25% back on qualified everyday spending shopping online or in-store, eating out, buying groceries, purchasing travel and more. Invite friends and family to help you save too.

You can Invest in a 529 plan: enjoy a tax-advantaged way to save for college.

Pay down a student loan: you can link to some student loans and set up automatic transfers.

Get a check: Use it5 to pay for expenses such as college tuition, books and more!

The Labels for Education® program is proud to welcome new participating brands–GLAD® Food Storage, Emerald® Nuts, Dannon® kids yogurts and select magazines purchased at retail, including People, Real Simple and more. There are now over 2,500 participating Labels for Education products that can help your kid’s school earn even more FREE educational merchandise. For the complete list of Participating Products, click here. http://labelsforeducation.com/assets/pdf/EnglishParticipatingProductsPage.pdf?EID=4787&MID=3461418&LID=4333
There is a variety of offers in the LFE newsletter. Here’s one below. At retailers like Giant Eagle and Albertson’s, you now will be able to earn 1 point electronically each time you use your Shopper Card to purchase participating products. It’s just another way they are making it even easier to earn FREE educational merchandise for our kids’ school! For details and a full list of participating retailers, visit www.eLabelsForEducation.com. You can also get $20 in Campbell product coupons at http://www.campbellskitchen.com/coupon.aspx?EID=4787&MID=3461418&LID=3428&fbid=NSZ3kkoD_VG

Enroll in www.recyclebank.com and when you send in your old electronics, buy certain products on eBay or in some communities simply recycle your household waste. You rack up points redeemable at more than 1,500 retailers.

Take rechargeable batteries to Best Buy or Staples stores. Donate old cell phones by finding a drop-off location at www.Recellular.com (click “Donate Used Cell Phones” under “Donate Your Phone”). Or recycle them. Find out how at www.RecycleWirelessPhones.com . To donate a computer that is less than five years old, find a list of refurbishers at www.epa.gov/plugin.
You can find a recycler through www.ReconnectPartnership.com or, for older computers, through www.Earth911.com. Recycle old TVs up to 32 inches at Best Buy. You will be charged $10 and will receive a $10 gift card to offset the cost. Or locate recycling locations by brand at www.epa.gov (search for “eCycle Televisions”).

So much is FREE on the web. Here are some sites if you enjoy reading.

Go to www.WhatShouldIReadNext.com. Get suggestions for books you may enjoy by entering your favorite titles and/or authors.

More than one million books are available for free downloading or reading online at: http://www.digital.library.upenn.edu/books/

Many of the world’s great works of literature and philosophy can be downloaded for no cost and printed in a variety of formats at www.Gutenberg.org

If you like to Listen, you can Listen for Free. Get audio books for free from www.LibriVox.org a worldwide digital library with more than 4,000 unabridged classics in the public domain. Read by volunteers (you can be one), they can be played on your computer, MP3 player, cell phone or burned to a CD or car stereo. Free audio books are also available through www.literalsystems.org and www.audiobooksforfree.com.

Recycling not only helps the earth, but sometimes offers incentives. I found a few programs to keep in mind.
You can sign up on the Brita Website for information as to how you can recycle your spent Brita filters. Stores in selected locations have had collection bins where you can drop off those spent filters. If you don’t have a collection site in your area, you can mail them in to a certain address. Visit http://www.brita.com/support/filter-recycling/

Mission Foods promotes Terracycle and Share Our Strength. Mission® partners with upcycling company TerraCycle, Inc.® to create the Tortilla and Tostada Bag Brigade™. For each unit of packaging waste collected and sent to TerraCycle through this program, two cents will be paid to either Mission® Foods’ charity partner Share Our Strength® or a Brigade™ location’s charity of choice. The collected tortilla and tostada bags and salsa/dips lids will then be repurposed into innovative consumer products. Visit http://missionmenus.com/makeadifference/utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=tile-text-getfacts&utm_campaign=feb2011
Staples gives $2 for each returned printer cartridge. Check for their double days and double rewards.
Bring your gently used women’s, men’s and children’s prescription glasses, bifocals and non-prescription sunglasses to your local LensCrafters. Our associates will then clean, repair and hand-deliver them to those in need.

There’s something for everyone on the web from free books, to recalls to the do-it-yourselfer. Here’s some that were recently sent along to me.

Help With The Law, Recall
Navigate the law: How to protest a traffic ticket…prepare a financial power of attorney…determine liability in an accident…avoid foreclosure…resolve disputes with neighbors… and more at www.Nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia

Recall notices: Find out about recalls of appliances, medications, toys, and so on at www.Recalls.justia.com

Deer defenses: Products to keep deer away from your garden…deer-resist ant plants…other deer-proofing strategies. www.Gardening.Cornell.edu/factsheets/deerdef

Feed A Friend
Friend-to-friend: Free online service to coordinate meal deliveries for new parents, sick neighbors and others. http://MealTrain.com

Just For Fun
Online fun: Play Cyber Darts, IQ Trivia, Wheel of Fortune, card games, etc.—even multiplayer games. Free. www.Riddler.com

Bargain Finder
Find out where you can get good deals on laptops, video games, TVs, cameras and more. www.SlickDeals.net

Today I filled up at Shell gas station with a free gas card from the Verizon Business Link rewards. I’ve been using this program for quite some time, at least 4 or 5 years.

I’m not quite sure how I found out about it, probably an email or mass mailing, but I remember calling and setting up my online account.

Here’s how it works. Register any business phone you have provided by Verizon service. You earn points for each dollar spent. Throughout the year, there are email blasts offering bonus points as well.

Over the past year I accumulated over 6,000 points. The $50 Shell card was 5400 points. I requested the card online, received it, and have used part of it today.

In past I’ve gotten freebies for Starbucks coffee, 2 lovely Coach mini-handbags that I was able to use as Holiday gifts.

If you’re a Verizon business customer you can sign up too and start earning rewards. Let me know some of your gifts.