Segments From This Episode

• Making gifts people will like

  by Tess Vigeland

  

  Crafting gifts is easier on the wallet, but often low on satisfaction. We talk to Meg Favreau of Wisebread.com about how to make presents that won't end up in the back of a closet.

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• ‘Tis the season to give

  by Chris Farrell

  Holiday giving is your last shot to slide in extra tax deductions for the year, but Marketplace's economics editor Chris Farrell says there are deeper motivations behind end-of-the-year donations.

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• Piggy Bank Award: For making it work

  by Tess Vigeland

  

  This week's winner learned some valuable lessons on money-making and management while her husband was unemployed for eight months — and came out of it credit card debt free.

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• Monkeys love discounts too

  by Craig LeMoult

  Researchers at Yale are wondering if spending behavior has something to do with genetics. We learn how monkeys and humans are similar — and different — when it comes to plunking down cash.

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• Getting Personal: Marital finances, saving for children

  by Marketplace Staff

  Tess Vigeland and Liz Pulliam Weston of MSN answer listeners' personal finance questions.

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• Military veterans and the current job market

  by John Dimsdale

  Servicemembers return stateside to one of the worst job markets in history. Two veterans share their job-hunting stories: One who is still searching for a job and another who found work quickly after he retired from the military.

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• Letters: Dear Paddy…

  by Tess Vigeland and Paddy Hirsch

  

  We've got a new senior producer, so we asked Paddy Hirsch to weigh in on your comments and suggestions — for him and the show.

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• This week: American Airlines restructuring, job numbers

  by Nancy Marshall-Genzer

  We talk with Washington reporter Nancy Marshall-Genzer about the top stories from this week.

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