Set some money aside now for holiday gifts

This time of year, most of us are dreaming of air conditioning, not a white Christmas. It's hard to start thinking snowmen and eggnog when you're still mopping sweat from your brow. But just a bit of planning now can mean a happier holiday. With the sluggish economy, high gas prices and rising food costs, a lack of early financial planning for the holidays is especially dangerous this year, says Ben Linton, a bankruptcy program manager with the nonprofit Consumer Credit Counseling Service. "For the people who wait till December to start saving, in January, they will likely feel the hangover from that spending," he says. "It feels weird to be talking about Christmas in the summer, but people really need to start planning and saving early." O