Million Dollar Journey is hosting the Carnival of Personal Finance #145. Here are some of the posts you will find in the roundup:

• Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck presents Your problem isn’t Starbucks: “…what the financial talking heads miss is that nobody—not even the most coffee-addicted person you know—is going to find ten grand a year by pinching pennies at Starbucks.” (Yes, I’m one of those people who blogs about nickel-and-dime expenses. But do remember that my family lives in one of the smallest homes in our neighborhood and I drive a Chevy Cobalt!)
• Squawkfox presents Just say NO to crap!: “My grandparent’s stuff lasted and was expected to be useful year after year. Today, stuff doesn’t endure the test of time. It becomes obsolete, discontinued, deprecated, and abandoned.” (My grandparents lived through the Great Depression and World War II. When they did have money in later years, they were very choosy about how and where they spent it.)
• Pants in a Can presents Moment of Clarity: “I had been reading various PF blogs pretty regularly at that point, but never really “connected” with any of them. I dunno, none of their numbers seemed real or obtainable to me. Just interesting reads with some good financial advice here and there.” (I think a lot of us can relate to the life cycles related here. But I suspect those early lessons sunk in with the blogger more than he thought.)
• Pinching Copper presents Minimum wage doesn’t work: “So do you think it’s possible to put a roof over your head, feed yourself, buy clothing and find transport for a little over a grand a month? Let’s find out.” (I haven’t played around with minium wage numbers. But in a previous post, I put some numbers on the median income for Monroe County, Mich.)

P.S. I submitted an entry for next week’s showcase. Click back one post in Monroe on a Budget, and you’ll find it.