If you need extra cash to cover expenses, you’re probably trying to figure out the best way to borrow money. There are several options to consider, including borrowing money from friends or family, getting a cash advance with your credit card, taking out a traditional bank loan, and applying for payday loan. This article will cover the last two options, bank loans and payday loans, and compare the requirements and advantages of each. After reading more, perhaps you’ll have a better idea of which is the right choice for you.There are several important factors to consider when deciding which type of loan you need. Do you need a large amount? What is your credit history? When will you be able to pay back the loan? Let’s look at a few key points that can help you decide if you if you should apply for a bank loan or a payday loan:When do you need the money?A bank’s loan approval process takes time – typically weeks (or even months in the current economy). So if you need cash fast, a bank loan is not for you. Bank loans work better for planned expenses than for unforeseen financial emergencies. A payday loan, on the other hand, means the loan will be approved quickly and you can have cash in your checking account in as little as 24 hours.What is your credit score?First of all, you should know your credit score. The bank certainly does. Your credit score will play a large role in any bank’s decision about your loan application. If you have bad credit, it may be impossible to obtain a loan through your bank. On the other hand, payday lenders don’t look at your credit score. They only verify that you have a steady, reliable source of income to determine whether or not to lend you money. If your credit isn’t great but you have a steady job, a payday loan might be right for you.How much do you need to borrow?Payday loans tend to be for smaller amounts, usually a few hundred dollars up to around a thousand dollars. The amount you can borrow certainly won’t exceed the amount of your next paycheck, because this is the money that the payday lender is counting on for repayment. If you have an unexpected car repair and don’t have cash on hand to cover the mechanic’s bill, a payday loan could cover the costs until your next paycheck comes in. If you need a new car, however, you’ll have to apply for a bank loan. When are you able to repay the loan?If you can get approved for a bank loan, you’ll typically have years to repay the loan and have the option of making very low monthly payments. This is convenient because you know you have time to repay your debt. With a payday loan, you usually have a couple of weeks or at most a month to repay the full amount of the loan, plus the interest charged. You have to keep in mind that a large part of your next paycheck will go to pay back your loan, so be prepared to cover your normal monthly expenses and settle your debt in a tight timeframe.Finally, a note about interest rates…Remember that a payday loan is a SHORT-TERM credit option. Payday lenders charge high interest rates for the convenience of obtaining a quick and simple loan, so these types of loans should be used for emergency expenses only. Rolling over a payday loan can be costly, so plan on repaying it in full with your next paycheck. After answering these questions, you should have a better idea of which type of loan best fits your needs. Consider all your options carefully before deciding if a bank loan or a payday loan is right for your financial situation.

With school season almost over and the summer approaching, families from all over the country are planning what they are going to do this summer. Parents are now pondering their options to find out what activities are best for their children to get involved in while out of school. The Coastal Vacations packages offer families valuable vacations all over the world and discount membership cards for entertainment and sports activities such as golf, RVing, camps, dining, hotels, condos, and more.One of the best ways to find summer activities and vacations at a discount rate is online. The internet is loaded with great information for the traveler. Web users have found that there’s no need to pay retail for anything, especially in the competitive travel industry, when they can find amazing deals everyday online. One of the best deals out there can be found by researching Coastal Vacations and its amazing travel packages.Coastal Vacations offers three different packages. The first package is called the Resort Package, and members get $15,000 worth of cruises and bonus vacations and over 20 membership cards that can be easily used away from home as well as in the members’ living areas. All members have to do is to activate the cards, type in the zip code where they want to find dining, entertainment and/or lodging, and print out the exclusive coupon that shows up on the website. This package is sold for a lot less than what it’s worth.It is well known that a vacation away from home is ideal for relaxation and putting thoughts together. A family vacation is a great way to enjoy quality time with the family while getting away from the routine and recharge. In the Coastal Vacations packages you will find activities for the whole family and all age groups to enjoy. One of the best additions to the Coastal Vacations packages is the free cruises that come with it.On the Level 1 Coastal Vacations package, club members get five free Carnival cruises. One of these is already activated and must be taken within a year of the package purchase. The rest of them can be taken anytime. It is a lifetime membership, so there’s no expiration dates on any of the vacations or cruises. These are also great to give away to friends and family or as business incentives.The Level 2 Coastal Vacations package includes unlimited free cruises and bonus vacations for life. For the ones that just love travel and adventure, Coastal Vacations also has a Level 3 package with unlimited free all-inclusive resorts stays for life. Members just pay their room taxes plus a $6.95 shipping fee.It is important to note that these are not timeshares and members are not required to attend any presentations; just great vacations that are available from individuals and families this summer season for their enjoyment and pleasure. With the Coastal Vacations packages, anybody is sure to find activities and vacations that suit their wildest desires and needs. There’s a lot to choose from and a lifetime of vacations to enjoy!

What are the greatest changes in shopping in your lifetime? So asked my 9 year old grandson.

As I thought of the question the local Green Grocer came to mind. Because that is what the greatest change in shopping in my lifetime is.

That was the first place to start with the question of what are the greatest changes in shopping in your lifetime.

Our local green grocer was the most important change in shopping in my lifetime. Beside him was our butcher, a hairdresser and a chemist.

Looking back, we were well catered for as we had quite a few in our suburb. And yes, the greatest changes in shopping in my lifetime were with the small family owned businesses.

Entertainment While Shopping Has Changed
Buying butter was an entertainment in itself.
My sister and I often had to go to a favourite family grocer close by. We were always polite as we asked for a pound or two of butter and other small items.

Out came a big block of wet butter wrapped in grease-proof paper. Brought from the back of the shop, placed on a huge counter top and included two grooved pates.

That was a big change in our shopping in my lifetime… you don’t come across butter bashing nowadays.

Our old friendly Mr. Mahon with the moustache, would cut a square of butter. Lift it to another piece of greaseproof paper with his pates. On it went to the weighing scales, a bit sliced off or added here and there.

Our old grocer would then bash it with gusto, turning it over and over. Upside down and sideways it went, so that it had grooves from the pates, splashes going everywhere, including our faces.

My sister and I thought this was great fun and it always cracked us up. We loved it, as we loved Mahon’s, on the corner, our very favourite grocery shop.

Grocery Shopping
Further afield, we often had to go to another of my mother’s favourite, not so local, green grocer’s. Mr. McKessie, ( spelt phonetically) would take our list, gather the groceries and put them all in a big cardboard box.

And because we were good customers he always delivered them to our house free of charge. But he wasn’t nearly as much fun as old Mr. Mahon. Even so, he was a nice man.

All Things Fresh
So there were very many common services such as home deliveries like:

• Farm eggs

• Fresh vegetables

• Cow’s milk

• Freshly baked bread

• Coal for our open fires

Delivery Services
A man used to come to our house a couple of times a week with farm fresh eggs.

Another used to come every day with fresh vegetables, although my father loved growing his own.

Our milk, topped with beautiful cream, was delivered to our doorstep every single morning.

Unbelievably, come think of it now, our bread came to us in a huge van driven by our “bread-man” named Jerry who became a family friend.

My parents always invited Jerry and his wife to their parties, and there were many during the summer months. Kids and adults all thoroughly enjoyed these times. Alcohol was never included, my parents were teetotallers. Lemonade was a treat, with home made sandwiches and cakes.

The coal-man was another who delivered bags of coal for our open fires. I can still see his sooty face under his tweed cap but I can’t remember his name. We knew them all by name but most of them escape me now.

Mr. Higgins, a service man from the Hoover Company always came to our house to replace our old vacuum cleaner with an updated model.

Our insurance company even sent a man to collect the weekly premium.

People then only paid for their shopping with cash. This in itself has been a huge change in shopping in my lifetime.

In some department stores there was a system whereby the money from the cash registers was transported in a small cylinder on a moving wire track to the central office.

Some Of The Bigger Changes
Some of the bigger changes in shopping were the opening of supermarkets.

• Supermarkets replaced many individual smaller grocery shops. Cash and bank cheques have given way to credit and key cards.

• Internet shopping… the latest trend, but in many minds, doing more harm, to book shops.

• Not many written shopping lists, because mobile phones have taken over.

On a more optimistic note, I hear that book shops are popular again after a decline.

Personal Service Has Most Definitely Changed
So, no one really has to leave home, to purchase almost anything, technology makes it so easy to do online.
And we have a much bigger range of products now, to choose from, and credit cards have given us the greatest ease of payment.

We have longer shopping hours, and weekend shopping. But we have lost the personal service that we oldies had taken for granted and also appreciated.

Because of their frenetic lifestyles, I have heard people say they find shopping very stressful, that is grocery shopping. I’m sure it is when you have to dash home and cook dinner after a days work. I often think there has to be a better, less stressful way.

My mother had the best of both worlds, in the services she had at her disposal. With a full time job looking after 9 people, 7 children plus her and my dad, she was very lucky. Lucky too that she did not have 2 jobs.