I'd add:
* buy a car you can pay cash for, not one you have to make payments on
* buy a car you can pay cash for, not one you have to make payments on
It turns out that your local thrift store is a great place for both of those cheap. I bought a very nice sound system for about $40 including speakers, one that a couple decades ago would have cost a couple grand. You can get real nice flat panel TVs from the pawn shop for next to nothing, too, as well as computer equipment.