Of course we all know about the obvious scams like those emails we all get saying that theres a large sum of money waiting for us and they just need our bank details – or when we get emails from people claiming to be our banks or paypal etc asking for our passwords. That’s 101 stuff and if you fall for them, well frankly, you deserve to be scammed hehe

But there are ones that are a lot more subtle and would confuse and con even the most ‘on it’ people. There are also some basic ways you can protect yourself that a lot of people don’t know or do – like checking the whois info on a domain or making sure the page is secure (https) before entering any payment details.

My other half still plays each week with work, it’s not a very big place so if they won it would still be a nice tasty amount of cash. Perhaps not enough to retire at age 32 but certainly enough to be able to pay off some debts and have a nice holiday.

I might start playing again, for as little as a pound a week it adds a little excitement to proceedings and if I really did win big, wow, I would be the happiest person alive.

If you want to play as part of a syndicate check out LottoByText, as the name suggests it is a great way for you to take part in a weekly lottery but you can enter by text message so you don’t even need to leave the comfort of your own home – perhaps if that was possible back when I played weekly I wouldn’t have given it up – gosh I was lazy back then

So check out the LottoByText – Lottery SMS Alert Service and see if it is for you. Normal lottery rules still apply such as you need to be 16 years of age to buy a ticket but it’s really simple and straight forward to be a part of.

Let me know if you have ever been lucky enough to have the winning numbers

In looking around the nicely designed website I see they actually have a nice selection of Amazon promotional codes as well which is somewhat unusual as I find them hard to come by. There’s always something I want to buy on Amazon as they just sell so much cool stuff, I would say that it’s my favourite online store.

Geek Gadgets 2012 is really up to date and informative – offering so much more than just coupons and discounts. They have all the latest news and reviews about all the top products out there are the moment as well.

I just discovered there’s a product called the Aquaclimb which looks awesome – it’s a massive climbing frame that goes over a pool and I want one so bad – of course I’d need a pool first and it’s a little out of my price range and I’d need a bigger garden but hey ho, it’s good to have a dream.

What’s great about them being so cheap is that you can buy more – I have several pairs to suit my various moods, what I am wearing or even the season. With valentines day just around the corner now I am thinking of getting some nice Valentine’s Day glasses to add to my collection. I don’t think I will go for any thing too obvious like a heart or flower pattern, but something in pink maybe, despite it being my favourite colour for some reason I don’t already own any pink glasses and when you can get $6.95 prescription eyeglasses, why not?

I may even ask my other half to purchase them for me as a gift for valentines day, I’d always rather have something that will last rather than the traditional gifts such as chocolate and flowers.

I also discourage pharmaceuticals when and wherever possible, as there are many plant based alternatives that can be very effective in countering certain health problems.

Having said that I find the Nopalea wellness drink I have been hearing a lot about recently quite interesting.

I had not previously heard of the Nopal cactus, nor the name Opuntia Ficus Indica, but when I looked up more information on the plant, my suspicions were confirmed: this is the cactus also known as the Prickly Pear, which is native to my home region, the Sonoran desert.

With the help of Nopal cactus extracts, Nopalea is packed with rare and potent antioxidants that are scientifically proven to help the body reduce inflammation.

TriVita claims that when you take Nopalea daily, it can help your body:
Reduce inflammation
Cleanse itself of daily toxins
Promote optimal health

Seeing as though the anti-oxidants contained in this drink have been proven to help with inflammation (the leading cause of pain), I can see this product being a very helpful plant-based solution that could help many people. In addition, I personally LOVE the taste of the prickly pear cactus fruit, so it’s very likely that I would enjoy the taste of this wellness drink. I’m certainly looking forward to trying out Nopalea for myself in the near future.

Over 3 million bottles of the Nopalea anti-inflammatory wellness drink have been sold. To learn more, check out the Nopalea Facebook page or try it for free (only pay $9.95 for shipping) by calling 1-800-203-7063.

I wish I had known about My Travel Checklist last summer when I was preparing for my first trip abroad in many years – I had lists coming out of my ears and it caused me lots of stress, especially as it was not just me that I had to get ready but my other half and our son as well.

My Travel Checklist is a great application from Mondial Assistance that aims to make preparing for any trip a whole lot easier on you. You can download a simple check list that takes all the leg work out of preparing for you and then as you go along check off the items you have done – what’s great about it as well is that it is cross platform and will always be the most up to date version of your list no matter where you are.

I am sure I will use it in the future as we take quite a lot of shorter trips throughout the year, visiting friends and family up and down the country as well as having the odd night away when we can find cheap hotel rooms or pick up killer deals on sites like Groupon.

Are you ready to Pimp your Cube? Well that’s what you are being asked to do in a great contest from ContestFactory.com for a chance to win some pretty sweet prizes including a top of the range computer system, fancy new desk, chair and decorations and a high end entertainment package.

So what do you need to do for your chance to win? Just send them a video of your sad looking cube as it is now – the more plain and boring and in need of pimping out the better. Give the guided tour of your tired old furniture, dark corners and plain walls by describing what we are looking at. Once the video is uploaded and approved it’s time to get your family, friends and online followers to get voting for you. 12/5/11 at 12:00PM to 1/31/12 at 12:00PM.

Take a peak at the contest video below for full details about the Pimp My Cube Contest

So if you want – no need, to get your cube pimped, get your thinking cap on and let the creative juices flow, point your phone or digital camera at your cube and get posting.

It’s all about widgets now isn’t it?

Everyone has a widget available these days and I remember when hardly any one ever knew what they were and only the geeks and web nerds like me made or used them. The reason there are so many though is of course because they are incredibly useful and beneficial for both the people using them and the company offering them.

The latest widget I have been having fun with is from ING Direct – I just love the fact that you can use it to find out how much households in your area are saving. You can also use the handy ‘my comparison table’ to find out how much you could be saving – why not give it a go and leave a comment to let us know your results?

Myself and my family have a few Savings Accounts with ING Direct for years now and always found them fair and good to deal with – on the odd occasion I have needed to get in touch with their customer service team it’s always been a pain free experience and that can only be a good thing after hearing a lot of the rants my friends have when they need to get in touch with their banks.

Find out more about ING Direct Savings

I do like a good bargain as well so don’t like to rush in and buy the first thing I come across – I price compare and usually wait it out until I can get something at the price I want it at. I know of and use loads of coupon, bargain and offer sites and one of my favourites is BestOnlineCoupons.com, I have got some great Best Buy Coupons from them in the past that weren’t listed on other sites that I use.

They also have a handy list of all the shipping deadlines for this year that is up to date and from what I have found very accurate – I have already directed several friends and family there who have only just started their online shopping for Christmas this year

I just put up our Christmas tree, but not so much because I wanted to, because I need to train Zack to leave it alone so that we can have it up properly. It currently just has the bottom part on and no decorations while he gets used to it.

I should start thinking about Christmas Gift Ideas for my loved ones though I guess, the time has come.