DISCLAIMER: Some of the links included herein are affiliate links, meaning if you make a purchase via one of them, I may get a small commission. I promise you, now and forever, that I won’t choose deals based on whether there’s an affiliate option available.
What’s the Substack equivalent of sitting by the phone, waiting for it to ring? Sitting by the computer, waiting for a flood of subscriber referrals.
As you may recall, I offered straight-up bribery for that in the last issue — and the results were, um… do you people not have friends? 😂
Needless to say, this is not going to help me clear my office of unwanted tech gear, which means it’s on to plan B: more traditional giveaways. Last year I slipped a secret one into the newsletter and it was hugely popular. So stay tuned while I figure out what to do and how to do it. Ultimately I want to have lots of winners — while also avoiding bankruptcy from shipping costs.
📚 CHEAP READS: The breakout book series of 2026 is Dungeon Crawler Carl. Want to see what all the fuss is about? Sign up for a free 30-day Kindle Unlimited trial (or get two months for just $1.98) and you can read as many of the eight (!) titles as you can race through in that time. Alternately (and weirdly), books #2, #3, #4, and #7 are currently on sale for Kindle for just 99 cents each. I know a few folks who are absolutely bonkers over this fun, inventive series, which has been described as a “role-playing game in book form.”
🔌 CHEAP PORTABLE POWER STRIP: Hotel, Airbnb, cruise ship, friend’s house — doesn’t matter where you travel, I guarantee it won’t have the outlets you need to charge your stuff. That’s why I’m enamored with this Orico GaN 65W 7-in-1 Travel Power Strip, which drops to just $19.79 when you apply promo code WAR9DZOP at checkout. Reg. price: $36.
Its 4.4-foot wraparound extension cord lets you plug into the outlet behind the nightstand (and has an angled, flat plug so it won’t mess with the furniture), then serves up three AC outlets and four USB ports.
Big, big fan of this handy item. The code should work with all four of the available colors.
📺 A PREMIUM TV AT A BUDGET PRICE: Back in May I told you about Vizio’s new mini-LED TV and its remarkably good picture for the price. Amazingly, it’s on sale right now, making this arguably my favorite TV deal of 2026: The 55-inch Vizio VQM55C-10 for $248 (save $30) and 65-inch Vizio VQM65C-10 for $358 (save $40).
What’s the big deal? Lots of budget TVs are priced in this neighborhood, right? Not mini-LEDs. The technology marks a big step up from standard QLED in terms of brightness and color. Click that first link, above, for my full review.
Sorry if this is TMI, but I’ve never been a regular flosser — until recently, having learned that this bit of dental hygiene can reduce the risk of dementia. (After witnessing my dad go through that, I want no part of it.)
Naturally, this was right around the time that Oral-B stopped using Teflon in its Glide floss, which was by far the best floss and therefore doomed to die right when I decided to start using it daily. I mean, no, I didn’t want those PFAS in my body, but the new Glide was terrible.
Mrs. Cheapskate and I tried maybe half a dozen others and didn’t like any of them. Nothing came close to the silky-smooth glide of, well, Glide.
Then, success: Guru Nanda expandable floss is BPA- and PFAS-free. It slides smoothly between your teeth (not quite to Teflon levels, but definitely better than most) and actually expands while you floss, which makes it look a little weird when you’re done but ostensibly does a better job overall.
Even better, a 55-yard pack is just 98 cents at Walmart and $1 at Amazon. (For sake of comparison, Burst — another expanding floss — costs $5.79 for a 40-yard roll.)
We’ve been using this for months now and really like it. No doubt people have different preferences when it comes to floss, but if this one doesn’t work out for you, hey, you’re only out a buck.
📕 The Calamity Club, by Kathryn Stockett (Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hoopla)
So far in 2026 I’ve torn through Yesteryear, The Ministry of Time, Heart the Lover, The Correspondent, and now this — all novels with female protagonists, all fantastic reads. I mention this so my fellow gentlemen might consider doing likewise; I think it’s important that we get perspectives on the world that are not our own.
Anyway, I started this as a road-trip audiobook, but it’s 29 hours long, so I finished it in print. And it’s without question one of my favorite books of the year.
Stockett (author of another favorite, The Help) crafted this amazing Depression-era tale of Meg, a 12-year-old orphan in rural Mississippi, and Birdie, an unmarried woman on a mission to save her family’s home.
You know I’m not going to say more; just open this thing and start reading, trust me. I’ll simply note that the story takes turns you’d never expect and will likely have you gasping out loud at frequent intervals. I freaking loved it.
Rick’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thanks for reading Deal Secrets! Questions? Comments? Shoot me an e-mail. I’ll do my best to respond to all inquiries!
Want to show your support? Some options:
My “tip jar”: Buy me a coffee
My book: Everything I Need to Know, I Learned Playing Pickleball
My curated reading list at Bookshop.org, which donates to local bookstores with every purchase
My work-in-progress Amazon storefront, home to only those products I’ve tested and wholeheartedly recommend
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