I've been stingy about adding personal finance blogs to this site's blogroll, usually because I look for blogs that are consistently well-written or interesting, and I only find so many. No offense to anyone's blog that's not on the roll, but I really like to keep the list down and add sites after I find myself gravitating toward them a few different times-a sure sign that they are offering quality.

Today I'm adding two more.

First is Consumer Smarts by Phuong Cat Le of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (what exactly is an intelligencer?). I'm familiar with Phuong Cat Le because she's contacted me for stories she's done in the past, so she gets the immediate benefit of the doubt. Anyone that thinks I'm worthy of a quote is at least worthy of an initial blogroll addition. I'll be keeping an eye on her, though, to see if it's consistent. The blog is a bit Seattleish, but still worthwhile in most cases for consumers everywhere.

Second is a blog I can't remember how I came across - The Wastrel Show. The first post that grabbed me was Growing Up Millionaire Status, a very interesting post about the good and bad that money can do:

When my family got together we didn't discuss sports or hobbies or vacations or anything like that. The only conversations I ever overheard or was involved in were discussions on how to make money, invest money and increase your wealth. These ideas were family secrets and formulas which are still practiced to this day and are shared with no one outside of the family circle. If you ventured outside the family domain, you were quickly ostracized and banished. I was the black sheep of the family. The rebel.

From there I found How to Retire At Fifty, which, despite its title, tells you that retiring at 50 isn't such a hot idea:

I retired at fifty and did all the things that people dream of doing at an early retirement. I am happy to report, five years later, that all you really need to do at 50 is take a year off, down shift, regroup and then go back to work. No matter how much money I amassed in savings and investments, the money could not keep up with rising costs and inflation. Plus, I was bored to tears!

Cinzea will now be a regular read for me. Check her out.