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so, do i do MORE ‘bank roulette’?

i’ve done more money-moving in the past few months. i’m currently set up with the following:

1. checking account at lake michigan credit union; 5%
2. checking account at 5/3
3. online savings account at HSBC direct; 4.25%
4. 3 month CD at 5/3 (which is why i still have the checking account there too); coming due in march
5. 12 month CD at mutual bank in IL, coming due in october
6. ROTH IRA and brokerage accounts at TD ameritrade
7. 401(k) at merrill lynch, for work

and now i’m debating a third CD at a local bank, to lock in a 5.25% rate for 11 months. my mom thinks i’m crazy, but the extra 1% interest is hard to turn down! (i’d move money from the HSBC account, which has had the rate drop like clockwork after every fed rate announcement…)

anyway. on a related note, it’s extremely hard when you know people that financially sabotage themselves constantly – whether it’s shopping for things when they don’t have the money to spend in the first place, people who buy houses that they CLEARLY can’t afford w/o putting themselves in a very risky position, having maxed out credit cards, insanely high rates for loans, etc. i don’t know how people can be like that – i suppose it has to deal with the fact that my parents were always financially “with it”, and i watch the suze orman show religiously, but still. it’s pathetic, because in one way i want to help them get out of the bad situation, but there’s really no point because they’ll never “get it” unless something bad enough to get their attention happens…