September 5, 2006
I keep telling myself that even though each deposit into the e-savings account doesn’t even register on the percentage bar, it’ll eventually make a difference. I’m depending on monetary erosion. a Hm, I’m pretty sure mean something else. Eh, I’m exhausted and the typing is difficult with my right index finger out of commission for the forseeable future.
On the bright side, there’s a mysterious refund of one of the overdraft charges of last week’s fiasco(s), Toyota swore that I would have to wait for a check [though the CSR was nice enough to promise to request an overnighted check] and it turns out that they actually electronically processed the refund after all. (My) Money in the bank!! Yeah! [Seriously, if a company can take your money electronically, but can’t refund it electronically, there’s something wrong here …]
And a company that I was disputing a charge with gave up and refunded my $50. Things are lookin’ up!
**Show of hands, who’s tired of Blogger claiming loss of internet connection, loss of server, loss of network, loss of matching shoes so it just cannot go to work in mismatched footwear oh-so-sorry that your post has been lost!? Blogger, Ferris Bueller’s already done it and with more style. Git to work!! **
September 4, 2006
It’s my birthday soon. More importantly, it’s Sony Vaio PCG-V505BL Notebook’s third birthday soon. Yes, I got a lappy for my 21st birthday and no, it sure wasn’t a car.
But it was my first very own computer, and first birthday present I’d gotten in years. So understandably, I’m a little concerned about its health. Anyway, I’ve noticed the virus definitions are all afray and the peely stickers that should have been peeled off 3 years ago are ever peelier. Is it just my imagination or is Vaio getting lighter in its old age? Actually, it’s probably just lighter in comparison to that brick of a work lappy. [Powerbooks are small, but DENSE.]
But I start wondering, how long can this lappy hold up? Home usage is fairly light. Downloading is nearly non-existent, and I rarely do anything more than word processing, internet accessing, and Excelling. Mm, I love graphing financials. [Oddly enough, I still don’t know how to use any of the most basic formulas in Excel, I feel terribly ignorant!] Heck, I don’t even print at home anymore, and my little printer is packed away in the laptop case I never use because the battery life on this computer is only enough to sit up, cough dustily in your face, wheeze a few times and warn you to save your work because it’s shutti………. *black screen* We only run on AC power these days, lappy and me. After a conversation with a lady at work today regarding what sort of laptop computer she should consider for her son going off to college next year, I started speculating how much more mileage I can get out of this lappy before I have to spring for a new one. [Note, I did not say “invest” I said spring. Spend. *sigh*]
Let’s say it’ll cost about a thousand, I don’t know, I haven’t look at PC lappies in forever. They’re probably closer to $500, really. But if I were to consider going with a Mac lappy, not that I have any truly good reason other than I like them now, then we’re going to start between $1000- $1400. [Hm, look at that, I do believe I’ve just talked myself out of a Mac.] Let’s just say I’ll establish another savings fund pretty soon … goal of $1000 for the next .. 2-3 years? I would need to save $42 a month for 24 months, or $28 a month for 36 months.
That’s not a bad place to start, anyway.
September 1, 2006
If I had the kind of spending money my supervisor seems to THINK I have, some things I’d be getting for this upcoming business trip, or just for myself, might be: 
The Embossed Leather Frame Bag: $128.00
Maybe a nice pair of pumps – does the croco leather and peeptoe make up for it not being as business-formal as a closed toe pump? Maybe not…. $118
A nice, elegant little not-black dress for the low low price of $148!
And maybe the work-sized version of the Croco Large Open Tote: $188.00
Yes, this is probably how I don’t overspend when shopping. These prices are so ridiculous that I can hardly imagine being able to afford just one thing, much less an outfit!!
With the added benefit of cleaning up the overflow of aluminum cans *temporarily* stored in the backyard since 2001, I made a trip to the recycling center up the street and came out a whole $30.26 richer!
Good for the environment, good for the pocketbook! [I like the word pocketbook, it gives the impression of a book that can hold all your crap and still fit in your pocket. And seems to inherently mean there’s money in it, unlike my empty wallet.]
I’ve never actually used this sort of recycling center before but I learned that they are open 8:30-4:00 everyday. It’s a manned station, but you can either have the guy working there do your cans by volume or insert them, one by one, into the little feeder doohickey. They pay 4 cents per can or $1.75lb of sorted aluminum. They’ll take your assorted recyclables in bulk, too, but they’ll just pay you less by the pound: $1.17? I was vaguely wondering if I came out ahead doing about 17 pounds by weight or if I would have made much more going by the feeder system.
But since I had three enormous garbage bags-full, I would still be there feeding those blasted cans in one after the other. In 98 degree weather. Ugh. Oh, and the disadvantage of the singles system is that they do not accept squashed cans. Back in 2001, recycling centers still accepted squashed cans, so I had can-pucks aplenty.
That was kind of fun, now I’m eyeballing the cans in the kitchen anticipating another profitable recycling run.
August 31, 2006
Tune in, folks!
I received this email about a donation I’d made some months ago when I’d decided that I was going to donate to a charitable organization that called to me and make that a part of my budget. And this called to me. It was really a grassroots movement, something I wish I had the knowledge or technical skills to participate in, and grew from a genuine desire to actively do something rather than just wringing their hands and wailing “woe is me, the world today!”
Not only are they sweet and sincere, the email is truly a thank you and doesn’t even fall into that slightly annoying, ingratiating, guilt trip version of dunning for a donation. I know, that’s marketing, that’s how many charities have to solicit funds, but I felt that there was really something very geniune about this group. [Clearly, they know that it works for them.] I hope you do too. And I hope you watch, I never saw the original broadcast so I definitely want to watch.
August 30, 2006
Dear MsMiniducky:
Thank you again for supporting NYC Medics in the earliest hours of our organization.It’s paradoxical that such a tragic event made such a positive impact on us, yet that seems to have been the case. The earthquake brought together medical workers who had never met one another, but had all made independent commitments to helping others.
October 8th, 2005 was a wake-up call for us. Until then, NYC Medics was barely an idea. We didn’t know whether we’d be able to amass the supplies and volunteers, whether we’d be able to reach the country’s most ravaged areas, whether we’d be accepted by the community, or whether our small group could make an impact in the face of such an enormous need.
Now we know.
This Sunday, September 3rd at 7pm, we’ve just learned that CBS will re-broadcast the 60 Minutes story of NYC Medics with an update on our return trip to Pakistan. The piece has since been nominated for an Emmy Award. Please invite your friends, family and co-workers to watch the segment. Don’t hesitate to mention that these people are your friends and that you are a part of this work. We certainly feel that way.
I’ve included an update on our activities since our first trip to Pakistan last fall. It’s important for you to know how your support directly helped people when they needed it most. I’ve also written about where we’re going – and how you can help.
It’s unfortunate yet certain that sometime in the next six months, a disaster will strike somewhere in the world. Other people will need NYC Medics’ help and when they do, we want to be there.
It was the staggering word-of-mouth response that enabled us to return to a remote underserved region of Pakistan, treating an additional 10,000 people. If the opportunity presents itself to tell others about us, I hope you will. The direct and personal nature of NYC Medics is what makes us so effective.
Thank you again for everything, and keep in touch.
We’d love to hear from you.
Sincerely,
NYC Medics
August 30, 2006
Citygirl brought up the topic about whether time or the money was more important to save when traveling. In her case, she was weighing the value of 4 hours in a 4 day trip against about $150.
BoyDucky and I have been weighing these options as well, but have worked out a fairly reasonable compromise. In his case, he has to spend an additional two and a half hours in transit each way if he takes the cheaper airline [Southwest] versus about 10-30 minutes depending on his departure location with the pricier airline [United].
The math was approximately 2 to 2.5 hours each way on top of the flight time, for a savings of $60. Even though he was coming back twice a month sometimes, and that would add up to a substantial amount rather quickly, I just didn’t think it was worth the amount of time he was losing. And luckily, United has dropped their prices about $30 for some of the less desirable flights.
However, it does make sense for me to take the cheaper flights because he can pick me up with only an additional 30 mins each way. So I can travel at $120/trip while he takes the $150 flights when available.
One option I would like to explore is the Entertainment Book United coupons, I know they have a tiered coupon of “up to $75 off” flights but I haven’t actually seen one and read the fine print. I know they don’t apply to the lowest sale prices but if it applied to a moderately priced range, it may actually drop the price down lower than the lowest prices.
Last Saturday I received a letter about an overdraft charge on my checking account because my car loan company’s website didn’t show a pending payment six days after I’d scheduled the payment. Six days! So of course I panicked thinking that I was going to have a late payment and immediately scheduled *another* payment. Of course, on Wednesday and again on Thursday, a $400 payment was withdrawn from my account. Yes, from my account that I normally only keep a nominal amount, or rent money in.
I contacted Toyota to deal with it and then made sure that I hadn’t written any other checks that would be cashed before payday because I figured that Toyota would return that $400 or I would be paid within the next day or so, so no worries.
This morning I logged in to check on my paycheck and found that a $50 check was cashed yesterday!!!!
What made it worse was that it was PaDucky. He’d FINALLY deposited a check I’d written to him in APRIL. And I can’t even complain! I can’t even tell him what he did to me because it’s not like he did it on purpose, he just wouldn’t think that I, of all people, would ever be financially unstable for even a second because he thinks I hung the moon and found someone else to pay for it. *sigh* I can, nicely, ask him never to wait to deposit checks though. I’ve done that.
I couldn’t figure out why that money was still there and ended up using it to cover another urgent bill last month.
Now I’m waiting for my second overdraft charge to hit, because they’ll probably tack that on at the end of the day.
Can this be my third and final trouble for oh, say, the year?? Between the crazed folk at work whose grasp of reality is just the far side of insane and from another universe and these financial hits, I’m exhausted. I’m frustrated and deflated.
