That said, MSN Money published a very funny piece about some very creative tax deductions some certified public accountants nixed much to their client’s chagrin. Their “do not try this at home” stories included:

• a client who wanted to deduct the toilet paper he bought for his household;
• another business owner whose $2,000 check to her gynecologist was listed as “repairs and maintenance”;
• a woman who not only tried to expense her Jacuzzi hot tub as an expense, but the mood lighting, underwater speakers and stereo system that came with it;
• and the pet owners who claimed their pet dog as a dependent, and tried to write off dog food as a part of their “home security system”.

Self-employed and independent workers might want to have a peek at a neat blog post over at Freelance Switch.

It details some of the little-known expenses freelancers and small businesses can deduct come tax time, including: unpaid invoices, niche research, morning meetings at Starbucks, PayPal fees, long-distance calls via Skype, and payments to non-profits. While tax time is still weeks away, it never hurts to get organized, especially when things are a little slow.

Incidentally, this website is full of nifty things, including: innovative ways to generate new business, 101 freelance resources, a job board and forum, and podcasts about the freelance life.  

I used a local print shop to make my business cards, but as they are running low and my printer has sold his business, I might consider using MOO this time around.

Based in the U.K. (but delivering internationally), MOO is an online print shop that prints business cards, postcards, and greeting cards for a reasonable price. But what sets them apart from similar websites (VistaPrint) is the ability to upload your own pictures and designs, or browse their library of unique artists for some truly gorgeous designs that range from cartoon-like images to spectacular photographs.

They also have a vast collection of “ready made” cards. Here are a few samples:

If you drive around your neighborhood in search of the best gas prices, visit GasBuddy before you leave your home. This website collects real-time pump prices from its 750,000 volunteers who help alert visitors to this site where they can find the best savings.

For example, gas prices in Chicago this morning range between $2.15 and $2.39 USD per gallon, while prices in Los Angeles range between $2.13 and $2.69 USD a gallon.

The site lets you zero in on your area (both in Canada and the USA), and lets you sort through its data by gas type (regular, premium or diesel), and by station if you happen to be brand loyal. It also offers a number of graphs and trending data, and lets you know where prices are the highest.

While I’ve never had a problem after I booked a hotel room through a third-party vendor (Hotwire, PriceLine) for a really great rate, a night auditor who works for a hotel in a major American city warns against doing so.

This anonymous blogger suggests most hotels will match the lowest price on a third-party site because they would rather have some of your money than pay a commission. However, I know a few people who have tried this with very little success. What’s more, sites such as Hotwire and PriceLine will only let you know what hotel you’re staying in once your booking is complete, so there is no way to haggle a hotel down to their very low room rates beforehand.

This blogger also says that should you run into a problem and require some kind of refund, you will have to deal with the site you booked your stay with, but booking with a hotel directly might result in comped nights or room upgrades. Booking with a hotel also offers more flexibility should your plans suddenly change.

I still think that budget-minded travelers might want to opt for the better prices available on third-party sites, and if you keep all your booking information and check your reservation before you leave, there should not be any problems. I was able to snag a Burbank, California hotel room for just under half price through Hotwire this week, and found an amazing packaged trip (airfare/hotel) to Las Vegas the week before. I was also able to get a free upgrade for my Vegas accommodations (a deluxe room in a newer building) following a tip I saw online that suggested most front desk hotel clerks will happily move you into a better room or suite for a $20 gratuity.

Some of my regular readers wanted to know where I got the tip I mentioned yesterday about getting an upgraded room in Las Vegas for a $20 gratuity. I found it in FatWallet’s forum section.

This website’s forum is filled with shopping tips such as where to get the best online deals and what outrageous sales are currently running on the web. It also offers coupon codes for a number of online merchants, grocery store coupons, and a very active travel discussion area.

While you don’t have to register to read their forum posts, FatWallet members are eligible for a cash back program that offers money back on everyday online purchases provided you click through their links. For example, you can get a two percent cash back for any DELL computer purchase, and a one percent cash back for any Apple product bought through their site. Cash backs are also available for business supply stores like Staples and Office Depot, car rentals, and airline tickets. And While these cash backs tend to be small, they can add up over the course of a year.

TaxiWiz is a very cool and powerful resource if you find yourself in cabs often, or if you’re wondering what the fare might be in a city you’re planning to visit.

The site has a database of just over 20 cities (including New York, Chicago, L.A., Boston, Montreal, Toronto, and Paris) that you can choose from. Simply select your starting point and your destination, and TaxiWiz will let you know the approximate cost of your fare and even calculate an appropriate tip.

For example, the cost to go from JFK Airport in New York City to Grand Central Station is $45 USD (or $52 USD with a 15 percent tip). The site also lets you know the journey is 17.4 miles long, and that cabs in New York charge a flat fare from the airport.

The cost of a Montreal cab going from the Bonaventure Hilton to Au Pied de Cochon (one of my favorite restaurants) costs about $9.70 CAD (or $11 CAD with a 15 percent tip).

This very interactive website also has a mobile version, and lets you pick your destinations using a Google map.

If you pay for your purchases ahead of time by buying a gift card, and take the time to register it online, you’re automatically eligible for free select syrup and milk options, and refills on brewed coffee during the same visit, every time you make a purchase with your card.

They will also throw in a free beverage whenever you make a purchase of whole beans with that card.

While these are nice perks, the reason I’m picking up a gift card for myself is that you also get two free hours of AT&T Wi-Fi internet access each day at any of their hot-spot locations. This is extremely practical when you find yourself on the go and only need a few minutes of online time to check your email, and don’t want to spring for your hotel’s $12-a-day access fee. Meanwhile, AT&T DSL customers in the U.S. have free unlimited access to the Wi-Fi Starbucks offers by simply entering their account information and password.

TripKick is a new site that launched last May that does for hotels what SeatGuru did for airlines. 

Their site is designed to make your next hotel stay a pleasant one, as they provide little-known facts about specific hotel rooms, including: which floors have limited views and what views are available on a hotel’s north or south side; which rooms have oversized bathrooms; and which ones tend to be quieter, away from elevators and ice machines.

The information is cleverly organized so you can find hotels by city, personality or amenities. They also suggest which rooms you should request, offer visitors to their site to share their experiences, and even provide local transportation information for getting there.

At the moment, they only list hotels in 20 or so U.S. cities (Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles are among them).

If you often send your friends links to websites or news stories, but find long URLS somewhat cumbersome and prone to breaking up, you might want to give TinyURL a visit.

This website lets you enter a long URL into their interface, and shoots back a shortened version for easier reading, discussion and transport.

For example, this is a link to an article by David Pogue in today’s New York Times about the many iPhone applications that are currently available:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/technology/personaltech/05pogue-email.html?bl&ex=1233982800&en=60e0a8a5ed47f70d&ei=5087%0A

It’s a bit on the long side and quite confusing (the URL, not the story), so I can’t really call someone on the phone and give them this link very easily. But once it goes through TinyUrl, this link becomes:

http://tinyurl.com/bjfngx

Neat, huh? What’s more, these links never expire, so this tiny URL will forever mark this story.