Swamped by errands? Consider foisting your chores onto a valet in India or Ireland. Concierge services based overseas do nearly all the tasks that can be done online or by phone, and it takes only a grand to buy an assistant's help for two or three months.
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Invest in a Stellar Fund |
| Row 1 - Cell 0 | Buy Low-Price Stocks |
| Row 2 - Cell 0 | Save for College |
| Row 3 - Cell 0 | Defend Against Mother Nature |
| Row 4 - Cell 0 | Find a New Career |
| Row 5 - Cell 0 | Get a Tax Credit |
| Row 6 - Cell 0 | Make Money Doing Good |
| Row 7 - Cell 0 | Travel to Hawaii |
| Row 8 - Cell 0 | Employ a Virtual Butler |
| Row 9 - Cell 0 | Savor Wines of the World |
| Row 10 - Cell 0 | Send Your Kids to Camp Cash |
| Row 11 - Cell 0 | What Else $1,000 Can Do |
David Sowsy of Dracut, Mass., hired GetFriday, in Bangalore, India, to help him catch up on his to-do list last fall. GetFriday assigned Sowsy an assistant, who revised his reacute;sumeacute;, researched stock investments and comparison-shopped for wireless routers at online stores. Had Sowsy asked, the assistant would have bought the router using Sowsy's credit-card number. Overall, the cost for a month of requests was about $300.
Concierge firms charge from $560 to $1,000 for 80 hours of work, depending on the firm and the complexity of your tasks. GetFriday charges $15 an hour, plus $10 a month. Irish outfit Corporate Services Group provides similar services at $12 an hour, using Irish and Indian workers to handle requests.
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Both firms offer volume discounts. If you subscribe to OnStar service for your car (www.onstar.com; $200 per year), an extra $600 a year can get you valet service to handle travel arrangements and doctor appointments.
-- Sean O'Neill
Beat the backup
GPS navigation systems are invaluable to male and map-phobic drivers, both of whom tend to wander off the beaten path. But how about a little help for the harried commuter caught in the daily Cone Zone? Enter the Garmin Nuuml;vi 350 ($857) and the Magellan RoadMate 3000T ($600). These GPS navigators can receive real-time traffic reports via FM radio.
By retrieving frequent traffic updates from subscription services, such as Clear Channel TMC and Navteq Traffic RDS (which cost $60 to $80 per year after a 15-month free trial), you'll be alerted to upcoming road snarls. And if you enter your destination, they'll check traffic reports and suggest alternate routes.
Each GPS device has a color touch screen that's easy to read in sunlight, comes preloaded with maps and includes a so-so MP3 player. The Nuuml;vi even announces street names.
-- Jeff Bertolucci