It may not be a boiling hot August, but summer isn't quite over yet. For those in cubicles or coffee shops, dreams of a break should still have time for materialization. And, if a certain flight attendant is to be believed, a staycation may be just the ticket for your summer vacation time. It can save your wallet some groaning and introduce you to a whole other side of your city. Let your crackberry rest, put an away message on your work email, and get ready for a good ol' time. Right here at home.

Our freeloading selves know that the free tv bonanza can't last forever, but we wanna take advantage of it while we can. Cable cut? Can't afford the digital box adapter? Don't sweat it. There are plenty of online sites that will have your favorite shows ready and waiting.

Like any good slasher film, so goes my love life: never is there a happy ending. Personally, I'm all about screaming "Die Cupid Die!" on the all too celebrated Valentine’s Day. So much so that I throw dinner parties with the same theme, and once even convinced a popular musician to paint the same phrase all over her shirt for a gig. Apparently, the crowd loved it. So with that in mind, get out your puffy paints and aprons as I present to you Little Brown Bag's version of DIE CUPID DIE! Yes, it's cheap. Just like those bastards you're going to invite.

It's New Year's again and everyone is in a tizzy making big night out plans. You might not like to hear it, but New Year's is amateur night. People drop crazy amounts of cash to party with lightweights who don't know their limits. Drunk drivers abound, everything costs double, and who wants to kiss the weirdo stranger? I'm not bitter, just stating the obvious. Here are some suggestions for a more low-key celebration.

Even a bum needs a cozy place to live. Although the two milk crates and a cardboard box thing is tres chic, you may be ready to try a whole new look. Even on a tight budget, there are tons of pieces available if you're willing to search. Cheap furniture here you come!

Budgeting isn't just about setting arbitrary "I think I will spend this" numbers, making it balance and letting it ride, thinking that you are now in control of your money. You need to track your expenses on a daily basis, and the most important task is analyzing what those numbers are telling you at the end of the month, and taking action on what they're telling you. Here is my 10-step process for how to bust out a budget and analyze it at the end of the month, along with some brief guidelines on what you should be aiming for.

As Will & Grace so wisely pointed out, everyone likes game night. We hope that's true because game night is fun and pretty darn cheap. Ring up a few friends, pop some popcorn, and dust off the games sitting in your closet. If you managed to get rid of all childhood relics, we've got a few suggestions for restocking your fun pantry.

So it’s another Saturday night and you're still tired from the week before. It sure would be nice to go and relax at the movies, but a $14 ticket and $7 popcorn just don't fit in the budget. Surprise, surprise…we have a couple of lower cost alternatives. All can, of course, be easily implemented from the comfort of your couch.

What could be better than finding yourself in the possession of free flowers? Nothing! That’s what I say, at least. Imagine my surprise when I come to find my car inexplicably decorated one morning with what looked like the floral fallout from one crazy quinceañera.  No one knows where they came from, but this broke bum is not going to look a gift arrangement in the mouth. And neither should you.

Do you have something to offer the world? Something stellar that they just don’t seem to appreciate or even realize they need yet? Fear not, dear reader! Have I got an idea for you: SELL YOURSELF! And no, I don’t mean in the creepy crackwhore-y corner of Hollywood and Vine kind of sell yourself way. I mean sell your goods and services! But do so by trade.