Welcome, folks, to the 21st Finance Fiesta: Blackjack edition. Now normally the Fiesta is meant to go up on Thursdays, but those of you who are familiar with my affliction will understand why this is (another) early Friday morning edition…

So first off, a history of Blackjack (courtesy of Wikipedia, of course!):

“Blackjack’s precursor was “twenty-one”, a game of unknown origin. The first written reference is to be found in a book of Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Don Quixote -and a gambler himself-. The main characters of his tale Rinconete y Cortadillo, from Novelas Ejemplares, are a couple of cheaters working in Seville. They are proficient at cheating at “veintiuna” (spanish for twenty-one), and stated that the object of the game is to reach 21 points without busting and that the Ace values 1 or 11. The game is played with the spanish deck, that is without tens, which makes the game similar to the current spanish 21. This short story was written between 1601 and 1602, so the game was played in Castilia since the beginning of the 17th Century or even earlier. Later references of this game are to be found in France and Spain.

When 21 was first introduced in the United States it was not very popular, so gambling houses tried offering various bonus payouts to get the players to the tables. One such bonus was a 10-to-1 payout if the player’s hand consisted of the ace of spades and a black Jack (either the Jack of clubs or the Jack of spades). This hand was called a “blackjack” and the name stuck to the game even though the bonus payout was soon abolished. As the game is currently played, a “blackjack” may not necessarily contain a jack or any black cards at all.”

And now to the articles. This week’s Blackjack goes to Free Money Finance, for their timely article on Why You Should Take Practice Interviews. With a Recession just around the corner (or already here, depending on who you listen to), keeping your personal skills nice and polished will greatly improve your chances of riding out the storm.

Other articles that made the cut this week: 

Contrarian Profits presents 4 Ways to Play the Coming Stock Market Rally. A quote from the article sums it up nicely: “When chaos rules, invest in chaos”. Bottom line: don’t panic, and hold on to any stocks until the next rally. Keep as much of your money in cash as you can so that you can jump in when things have bottomed out.

Passive Family Income presents My Coke Rewards. If you can’t live without the sugary, corn-syrupy, caffienated wonder that is coca cola, you might as well be getting reward points for your addiction too. This article fills you in on the new ‘coke rewards’ program. Apparently Dr. Pepper and Pepsi have their own competing programs, though for both health and economic reasons, I can’t help but think staying away from these kinds of products in general will be most rewarding in the long run. 

ChristianPF presents Pursuing financial success while obeying God. This is an interesting piece, even if (like me) you’re not particularly religious. Summary? Don’t forget to tithe, stay focused on your relationship with God, and don’t let yourself get greedy!

Jim presents Best High Yield Savings Accounts Rates. This is a particularly timely article, considering the nauseating performance of the markets over the past few months. All the institutions listed are FDIC insured up to $250,000, but keep in mind that even the best rate (4%) doesn’t keep pace with inflation. 

Cash Money Life presents Dollar Cost Averaging vs. Value Averaging. A good breakdown of the respective pro’s and con’s of Dollar Cost and Value Averaging. Ultimately, neither method my be suitable in the current climate, but some people swear by them, so it’s worth checking out.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Related posts:

1. Welcome to the First Finance Fiesta!
2. Check out this weeks Finance Fiesta!
3. Finance Fiesta #13 – Triskaidekaphobia Edition!
4. Finance Fiesta – Procrastination Edition!
5. Finance Fiesta: Nachos Edition