The economy’s on my mind. Not just the woes of a world economy in free fall. But I’m trying to (re)learn as much as I can about the fundamentals of economics and finance.

I’m enjoying the EconTalk podcast these days. I’ve listened to a couple of their episodes and liked them. Dry, but informative and not too complicated. Good for helping make sense of today’s economic troubles. And also good for indulging your inner economist.

For a more snazzy take on the economy, I love Planet Money and the pieces they’ve been doing on This American Life. They do a stellar job of entertaining and informing.

For the thrifty design enthusiasts out there–there are some great ideas for using, reusing, and remaking products from IKEA on Ikea Hacker. A fun site for ideas and inspiration.

Seems like everyone in LA turns to Craigslist to sell or buy their used stuff locally. In my hunt for a new sofa I came across this posting for a couch shaped like lips. As if the item alone weren’t hilarious enough, you have to read the copy the seller wrote– it’s great!