1. Razor Saver

No kidding. I bought mine about 3 years ago and I think I’ve purchased a total of 20 blades since… and I mean individual blades, like a couple of 10 packs. It’s totally awesome and it’s $12. And razor blades are freaking EXPENSIVE, those whores.

2. Cheap Thrills

While we’re at it, here’s something my mom used to do when we were livin’ on the cheap: test-drive a fancy car. Seriously. I remember driving a Lexus one day, learning stick on it, LOL! But it does make you feel ritzy. So if the economy’s got you down, stimulate your inner-Rockefeller and go test-drive a Mercedes. Or just ask your friend if you can drive his new Miata.

3. Look the Part

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Taking a tip from my dad here: if you are going for that test-drive, you might as well go whole-hog. Consider donning a film-star-producer-in-a-tracksuit look. Totally Hollyweird.

4. Read the Part

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Up in the wee hours again last night finishing out Danny Goldberg’s bio, Bumping Into Geniuses“>Bumping Into Geniuses. Total insider’s look at the industry — you feel all rock ‘n roll-glitterati just reading it (although even he, a former professional writer, doesn’t seem to get that “but” is a conjunction — what is it with bad writing and music bios?). Nonetheless, a cheap way to escape those economic woes by trading them in for those of rock stars.

5. The Cloud

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New technological toys make everyone feel rich. I for one have officially gone fully space-aged: not only do I actually TALK to my computer (I use voice-activated software instead of typing!) but now all my computing magically lives up there in the Ether. It’s incredibly liberating. And while it didn’t exactly save me money ($99 a year for Mobile Me + 400 bucks for the iPhone) it is saving me plenty of time and sanity. All my stuff is in one place; change a contact on my phone, it changes it on my computer… delete an e-mail from my phone, it deletes it from my computer. Who says money can’t buy happiness? Now if only I could get the Millennium Falcon working.

xo