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Experts rely on dry statistics such as unemployment figures and the consumer price index to gauge where the economy is going, but there are other less serious ways to monitor our financial state. Even you can get your finger on the pulse of the economy by observing the trends you can relate to. Here are a couple of the weirdest economic indicators:

• Divorce rates: A rise in divorce rates is a good sign for the economy — it means the credit markets are opening and the economy is on the mend. The recession drives people to postpone divorce because of the expensive legal fees and inability to sell their houses.
• Nail polish: It used to be that sales of lipsticks correlated with the economy, but not so much anymore, says Leonard Lauder, Estée Lauder chairman emeritus. Women used to turn to lipsticks during the recession as an affordable pick-me-up, but have now replaced them with nail polish. In fact, sales of nail enhancers have jumped 65 percent since the first half 2008.
• Men's underwear: During a recession, men will skip out on buying underwear. This is one of the most reliable economic indicators, according to Alan Greenspan, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve.
• Hot waitresses: When there is a recession, there are more hot waitresses around due to the lack of jobs that will leverage their hotness. The New York magazine says, "In flush times, there is a robust market for hotness. Selling everything from condos to premium vodka is enhanced by proximity to pretty young people (of both sexes) who get paid for providing this service. That leaves more-punishing work, like waiting tables, to those with less striking genetic gifts."
• Miniskirts and dresses: According to the Hemline Index, when miniskirts and dresses are trending, the economy is apparently doing well. The index was developed by economist George Taylor, and the theory apparently has some credence. I can just imagine the men being slapped for trying to conduct this type of "economic research."
• Online dating: Lonely hearts abound during a recession, and more people take to sites like Match.com when the going gets tough. The site had one of its strongest quarters in 2008 when the recession was at its peak. Experts speculate that misery loves company and people love to seek other people for comfort during tough economic times.

It's one thing to do little acts to save such as bringing lunch to work every day or skipping the Starbucks latte, but enacting a lifestyle change to save dollars takes a lot of dedication and may seem more trouble than it's worth. CNN listed a number of real-life penny-pinching examples from super savers. Here are some of the more unique ones:

• Raising pigs for food. Geoff Overland currently has 13 pigs. His family started raising pigs to save money on pork. He believes he's producing meat for about $1.50 a pound compared to the store prices of $3.50 to $6.
• Live at the office. An anonymous reader is saving money on rent and commuting by sleeping in his car and office. He takes a shower in his office gym and has an office room to himself, which he furnishes with a cot and a mini fridge.
• Becoming "quasi-Amish." Beaten down by a bankruptcy and foreclosure, Mike Hammack and his wife moved to the "middle of nowhere" and live in a mobile home. He farms for his own food and rides a horse to town to save money on gas. Mike makes money by selling chickens, eggs, goats, and cows. He is saving $40,000 a year.
• Make kids pay for meals. In order to save money on vacations, John Synder and his wife have their kids pay for half of the cost of dinner. The child who is paying for the night gets to pick the restaurant. He says this saves him about $50 a night. On the plus side, this cost-cutting method is teaching their kids good financial behavior, John says.
• Use vegetable oil for fuel. To battle high gas prices, James Bauernschmidt started making his own biodiesel from vegetable oil and he gets the oil free from restaurants that want to get rid of it. This is saving him about $600 to $900 a year.
• Skip dinners. Maya Speights uses this tactic to save money and lose weight. She says she is simply "reversing how people eat" by having a normal breakfast and a really large lunch instead of an average-sized lunch and a big dinner. Her office pays for her lunches so she's saving money on her afternoon meals and basically only paying for one meal a day. She used to spend $100 every week and a half, but is now only spending $30 every two weeks.

These are all pretty extreme ways to save extra cash — can you relate to any of them?

Corruption is rampant in the upper echelons of India, ranging from the government to corporations. It's not too surprising because India is a country where it's common to bribe people to get things done. Although petty bribery is said to have lessened since 1991, says The Washington Post, it still frequently occurs.

Bribing seems to be quite complex since it isn't really legal. How do you go about paying someone off if there are no set standards to follow? The website IPaidaBribe.com attempts to answer all lingering bribery questions for those living in India. For example, to get a rough estimate of how much to bribe, visitors will see how much other people paid in instances like bribing off a police officer for not having a license or getting your kid into college. However, readers need to keep in mind that the content is all user generated, which means it isn't very reliable.

It's not as dubious as it sounds — the site also encourages you to write about experiences when you didn't have to bribe. I think IPaidaBribe.com revolves around the idea of making bribery transparent, and it's not really a how-to website for slipping people cash under the table.

After going through some comments and reading about how one user had to bribe a police officer to clear his father's name after a false charge of theft, I feel pretty lucky that bribery isn't part of our culture here in the US.

Talk about a marketing strategy gone wrong. Business Insider posted a commercial that the now defunct Icelandic bank Kraupthing released before the worldwide economic meltdown. You'll see video snippets of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, Nelson Mandela being sworn in as president, the moon landing, some war footage, and yes, The Matrix. The ad might make for some kind of feel good inspirational message, but it definitely doesn't work well as a bank promo.

If you're mulling over what cause to donate to, you can consider chipping in towards the $14 trillion national debt. Be warned that the stark contrast between the massive debt and the amount you decide to give may make your donation feel measly, and frustrations may ensue if you disagree with what the government is spending money on.

The Treasury Department has been collecting donations since 1996, and their most fruitful year was in 2009, when they received a total of about $3 million. According to The Consumerist, your monetary goodwill towards the mounting US debt isn't tax deductible, so be sure to keep that in mind as well. To make things convenient, the Treasury Department accepts payments from credit cards, checking and savings accounts. If you want to send in a check, make it out to the "Bureau of the Public Debt," and list "Gift to reduce the Debt Held by the Public" in the memo section.

Would you consider donating to the US Treasury?