Back-to-School Budget, pt. 1: Supplies
I'm having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that it is time for many to start thinking about back-to-school shopping. Didn't summer just begin a week or so ago? Nonetheless, here we are.

As consumers struggling with high prices at the pump and at the grocery store look for ways to penny-pinch in the traditional end-of-summer spending spree, retailers are bracing for the worst back-to-school season in years.

If you're gearing up for another school year, you'll no doubt quickly realize that the weak economy is cutting into back-to-school spending. To that end, here are a few ideas for back-to-school shopping on a budget:

Stock Up During Sales — Start early or start late. Usually after July 4th, major stores (such as Target) start putting out school supplies at really good prices. Even if the students don't have the list from the school, it is good to stock up. After the major school-start buying frenzy, at the end of September, school supplies will start to go on clearance. Be patient, watch for sales, stock up and save. This may not help at the ideal time, but if your kids have the essentials to start the year, you can add much more at greater bargains later on.

Think "Plain" — Plain school supplies tend to be much cheaper than their colorful and trendy counterparts. They also work just as well. Plainness isn't an impossible problem to solve if you have a craft box. Take binders, for instance. Designer binders are very expensive, but plain versions are very affordable. "We turned in some printer cartridges for recycling at a local office store and used the rebate to purchase a white binder with the clear plastic sleeve," Associated Content reported in the past. "For an additional $1, my daughter bought a couple of sheets of colorful scrapbook page to create a totally custom binder."

Raid the Workplace — Workplace theft is a major problem, but if you let coworkers know that you are school shopping, you can sometimes get great deals (i.e., free) on supplies. Offices often have an oversupply of stock, as many purchase certain types of supplies for presentations and then get rid of the unused portion. For example, many use three-ring binders and folders for special presentations or campaigns and then throw them away. "You may be able to get excess supplies donated to you by an office that wouldn't otherwise be using them (think poster board, binders, manila folders and other presentation oriented supplies)," suggests an entry at eHow.com.

"Don't [be] too shy or self-conscious" about asking colleagues, About.com notes. "Most people don't like to create waste and they will be happy to put used items to a great use.

Build Your Own: Batman Tumbler
I saw the new Batman movie last weekend, and, in preparation of the event, I re-watched Batman Begins. Both are pretty excellent. Now, if I had $50k-$70k just lying around, I'd be tempted to invest in building my own Tumbler, the superhero's current-generation Batmobile.

That's what Bob Dullam has been up to.

Dullam — who single-handedly built a working replica in his garage with nothing more than commonly available photos and the movies themselves — estimates his labor of love will cost him anywhere from $50,000 to $70,000 in the end.

Source(s): SuperHeroHype via Jalopnik via Gizmodo

Back-to-School Budget, pt. 2: Housing
Here's a very specific example relating to a back-to-school budget. After estimating her living expenses for two years to be about $14,000, an incoming graduate student at Yale University's School of Forestry and Environmental Studies has for months been building her own campus housing.

Her new home-to-be is 8 ft. x 18 ft. and costs about $3,000 less than the estimated $14,000 she'd be spending on traditional housing, even if she'd shared an apartment. "It has a tiny sleeping loft, a storage loft, a study nook, a kitchen area, a living area and a bathroom," the Hartford Courant reports this week (via Obscure Store. . . thanks, Jorina!). "Sometime in the coming weeks, she will tow it to New Haven for the start of the academic year."

The 26-year-old, who works as a sustainability coordinator with a building company, also expects to light it and power her cell phone and laptop computer with the energy generated from three solar panels that total about 18 sq. ft. of surface.

Giant Mechanical Spider
"Built by Martin Montesano, this mechanical spider measures 23 ft. long and weighs in at a whopping 6 tons," according to TechEBlog this week. "It's powered by a Chevy-based V8 engine, mated to a modified TH400 transmission. Thanks to a leaf-spring suspension system, a 2.5-ton military axle, 56 pivot points and 114 bearings, it's capable of 5-feet strides — step height of 41 ft."

Not sure which is creepier: this or that tractor a Finnish subsidiary of John Deere once planned to market for the logging industry.

Anyhow, enjoy your weekend, folks.