And with this, my 49th post in the last 24 hours, the Punny Money Blogathon 2006 draws to a close. In addition to all the money that you’ve helped this site raise for First Book, the 200-some folks who made it through the blogathon accumulated a total of about $100,000 in pledges for their various charities!

I’d like to give a special thanks to fellow personal finance writer and blogathonner J.D. at Get Rich Slowly who also seems to have made it through the night in one piece. Thanks also to everyone in the blogathon AIM chat for keeping me awake with their constant beeps and bloops.

And as always, my biggest thanks go to my wife for supporting me during this lofty endeavor. If you’re reading this, a couple of waffles would really hit the spot right now. Pretty please? (And I wouldn’t mind a hug, either!)

Oh, and of course, thanks also to those who participated in the Really Hard Trivia Contest. Let’s see the final results:

Previous Really Hard Trivia Question:
What country was the first to use paper currency?

Correct Answer:
China. A few days after introducing paper money, China also became the first country to issue store credit for returns… just kidding!

The Final Standings:
Jessica 34 (+1)
Arthur 29
Amberlynn 16
ricemutt 14
Mack C 7
Jono 3
luna 2
Mike 2
Luka 1
Rickie Beth 1
Tasha 1

Congratulations to Jessica who will walk away with a $50 eGift Certificate to the store of her choosing as well as a $25 donation made by Punny Money in her name to First Book. Second place finisher and fellow blogathonner Arthur will receive a $25 eGift Certificate for his performance as well. I’ll be in touch to get those items to you two… just as soon as I recover from the blogathon.

Thanks for reading Punny Money and supporting Blogathon 2006. Go check out the other talented and sleepy writers and see what they’ve been talking about for the last 24 hours.

Be sure to visit Punny Money again soon for all your personal finance news, tips, and commentary with a bit of humor thrown in.