December 1, 2006
In response to my letter regarding several problems I had at a recent Sheraton, I was offered a refund of the incidentals (about $200) or 10,000 Starpoints which is said to be the equivalent of a single night’s stay. I’ve never actually redeemed Starpoints before, so I don’t know how easy it is. Does anyone know if it’s better to take the cash or the points?
November 30, 2006
Boo:
1. They’re $60.
2. They’re only available at Nordstrom. ie: no bargain shopping!
November 26, 2006
I have a bloggery, budgetary dilemma.
It all started when I resolved not to buy Christmas presents this year because I hadn’t any good ideas and I refuse to buy obligatory, unimaginative/thoughtless gifts. Funds aren’t any too abundant, either, so it made sense.
But then I overheard my parents raving about Andrea Bocelli and that mixed it up with my guilt over not being the best daughter around, so I decided just to check if he’s touring. Yes, I’m trying to buy their love. Wait, no, I already have their love. I’m trying to buy their approval. Ah heck with it, I’m just trying to buy myself an indulgence or seven. Let’s be honest, a couple of concert tickets should get me off easy for anything I screw up for a few months, right? Er, I mean, wouldn’t that be an awesome *early* Christmas gift? =) Uh, anyway, he just happens to be booked at the Honda Center in a couple weeks, and the tickets have been on sale for about two months now.
I’ve never bought concert tickets before. And, since I rarely go out, other than visiting BoyDucky, my monthly recreation budget hovers around … <$100. It's really kind of a sick cycle: I don't go out so I don't budget for it, so I don't go out. But mostly, all that means is that I have NO IDEA what normal concert tickets might cost. When I saw that the lowest prices started at $75, and even a first time ticket-buyer like me knows that the cheapest tickets are probably gone now, I realized that I'd have to resort to finding discount or alternative ticket sellers. Little did I know what a strange anti-budget world I'd be stepping into.
I unsuccessfully googled for a little bit, then realized – duh! eBay! So I checked eBay and oh. my. LORD. They have tickets selling for over a thousand dollars!! And for the low-end buyers like me, they have listings starting at $450 and up. $300 per pair actually started looking reasonable.
That got me thinking: I know that eBay basically reflects what I suppose “average” consumers are willing to pay. But, eBay’s listings have a way of really making prices, that I’d normally never consider rational, look like a pretty good deal. And I wonder what that does to a budget? I mean, the temptation to just BUY something without seeing the price in the bigger picture, for me, was overwhelming. Suddenly I forgot that $200 or $300 is actually a LOT of money. I mean, it’s no $750, right?
My problem is that I have no qualms setting a limit for myself. Miniducky, I say, you may spend X amount on yourself this month. No more than that. But when looking at an unbudgeted gift, especially a gift I’ve never shopped for before, how exactly should I set a limit for what’s reasonable and what’s not?
Case in point: is Signor Bocelli worth $150/pair? $200? $300? It’s a Christmas gift, and not one I’m likely to have the opportunity to give again. There’s no doubt that I will get them tickets, but which ones? Do I target the REALLY nice seats? After all, this is a one time shot. And, as TBH has said before, why work so hard to save if I can’t splurge for my loved ones?
Conversely, isn’t that kind of the same argument I could pose for every instance of gift buying? And doesn’t that add up REALLY fast?
I’ll post my solution when I hear your thoughts. Um, and after I HAVE a solution.
November 25, 2006
I read an article about how ten year olds are starting to dress, talk, and act like the typical teenagers, but far too early, and how physical development almost forces the rapid progression despite the slower mental and emotional development. I’d link to the article but it was hours ago and I’ve sort of forgotten where it was from.
It DID remind me of an oddly disquieting conversation I had with our secretary touting the cleverness of her 5th grade daughter (that puts her right about where? Ten years old?):
Mom: So-and-so asked me for your Christmas list.
Daughter: Oh! That’s EASY! Gift cards, gift cards, gift cards.
And the list is easy too! Bloomies, Target, Macys, etc. etc. etc.
Whoo! I mean, I know that she’s a single mom who’s proud of raising her kids on her own and she can be the ultimate bargain shopper and is somehow able to treat her daughter and herself to many things that they want that I couldn’t possibly splurge on [this is the person who insists that my financial picture can always afford to spend $50/month on myself even though all she knows is that I take care of my parents] … but that just gave me a chill. I suppose there’s no harm in that sort of mentality when you’re the favorite niece of a rich bachelor uncle and you have high career aspirations … but I still feel like that sets a poor precedent. Maybe I’ve just forgotten what it’s like to be a kid.
November 24, 2006
but apparently the Hyatt misses me anyway! I stayed at a Hyatt in February because BoyDucky’s family had a conference and wanted to make a mini-vacation out of it, but haven’t stayed at one since. They sent me an email last week offering a free night good until the end of April 2007 if I book a stay [of any length, apparently] between now and the end of January. That’s better than the deal they’re promoting for the general public of Book 2 stays, get a night free. Too bad they don’t have great rates, the better to claim that free night with!
At the other end of the spectrum, it’s been two months and I’ve heard no response from the Sheraton about the many things wrong with the stay I had in Chicago. Apparently customer satisfaction is NOT such a priority with the Starwood hotels?
This is the first day I’ve had to myself for a while and I’ve just begun to realize the number of things I’ve let fall by the wayside. Much as I try to keep myself in check by blogging, the last few months have been really poor in the follow-through department. The more swamped I am at work, at home, in relationships, etc., the less I feel prepared to be an adult!!
Neglected:
~ Health: Haven’t been taking my RA meds like I should be. Passive-aggressive? Maybe. I was annoyed that my doc, for once, didn’t even listen to my question for the question that it was. I asked him “when is it appropriate to consider changing drugs? At what point do we *know* that a particular disease-modifying drug is no longer effective?” I wasn’t asking for a new med, I was asking for the signs I should look out for when monitoring the symptoms of the disease. Instead of answering THAT question, he wrote up a script and insisted that I just start the new one upon completion of my last prescription. Frustrated, I went and had the RX filled, but I really shouldn’t have. I should have just refused to fill it until my question was answered. Normally I like to think I’m more proactive, especially with the dire state of healthcare you hear about these days, but I think I got a little too comfortable with my doctor.
More Health: Between the doggy emergency and the shorter day thanks to picking up BoyDucky from an unfamilar airport on a holiday weekend, I completely neglected to change my health insurance to the PPO. [I was going to try it for a year and see if I’m happier with the new doctors.] But, I completely forgot to get on the computer that night to change it, so I’ve got my HMO for another year. Gah!
I guess I’ll just have to look at it as saving almost $400 for the year and continuing to inconvenience my family.
My Poor Family: The less things change at home, [aka, the more stagnant it becomes], the more grumpy and closed in I get. I should not take out my frustrations with the situation out on my parents!
Pets: I do NOT spend enough time with them. Walking, bathing, hanging out: all things I need to do with them and haven’t. The latest diagnosis just makes it more clear that I’ve been a BAD MOMMY.
BofA promotion follow-up: They completely screwed up my new account, treating it as an old account and saying they’d sent me a new ATM card for the old account which was stupid, but I never received a card!! I need to deal with this one ASAP, I don’t know what they’re doing but I just want to close that account permanently and not have to worry about it. I don’t need more sight-unseen bills like the ….
DSL bill: I still haven’t seen one. Yet I have two charges on my credit card already! What the hey?? Must call Verizon. Speaking of phone calls …..
Time Warner!: Still haven’t resolved the problem, must spend more time on the phone with the company. I spend more time talking to them and listening to their music than my …..
Friends!: Haven’t talked to or spent enough quality time with most anybody. What have I been doing?? Workin’. Nice, sounds like my college years all over again!!
There’s a close friend with whom I’ve had a very rocky relationship for years, since college, and she wants to make amends. But I’ve heard the same “I’m sorry, let’s be friends again” speech so many times over the years that I’m both apathetic and wary of starting that song’n’ dance again, and there’s a rather unresolvable issue of her scoundrelesque significant other. ’tis a Gordian Knot, and I haven’t reciprocated her recent attempts to mend the rift.
I have other friends I should organize gatherings with, but I’m all organized out. After grand marshalling all day at work, every day and some on weekends, after the 6 hour cooking marathon organizing the workflow of 5-8 people in a single kitchen for Thanksgiving, I’ve used up my party-plannerism for the week.
So .. what AM I doing right these days??
Well, I am sticking to my guns about getting some management classes under my belt so I can get a certification in Supervision, and another one in Management. I have to take about 6-8 classes, each are half or full days, for each certificate. I’m scheduled for two more classes next week: Behavioral Intervewing and Employment Practices [Part I of II]. This will make life at work more difficult for a while because I won’t be able to put in as many functional hours, but that’s the sacrifice I have to make.
Have my W-4 all filled out to correctly claim 5 exemptions for 2007, not just 1.
Got my FSA allocation paperwork handed in to the Benefits Office on time.
Been much better about spending more time talking to or hanging out with younger cousins.
Baby steps, right? Is this constant juggling what it’s like to be an adult?? I know, I ask that question all the time, even though in many cases I feel like I’ve BEEN an adult for years now. It concerns me that I don’t have every last thing together by now, haven’t I had enough practice? But, nope, I still haven’t figured out the perfect routine that handles every crisis, pays the bills, advances the career so that paying the bills is less stressful and less time-consuming, and leaves enough time to nurture relationships, while not getting progressively dumber.
Financially, Yodlee feels like it was a step in the right direction: consolidating and streamlining are very key.
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