About sixteen years ago, I met him for the first time. My trainwreck sibling brought home this adorable puppy he had no business adopting because he had not one thing in his life that wasn’t a mess. I was furious at my sibling – he didn’t even take care of himself, how could he drag
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November 3, 2009
I got a free Nintendo DS Lite (2nd gen)!! A friend bought himself a brand new DS, we were chatting about the pricematch he got on it thanks to his new Google phone the other day, and out of the blue, he offered to mail his old one to me. It’s darling. White, shiny, little, probably fits in a jacket pocket.
This pretty much requires that I spend money. Oops. I won’t be rushing out to buy everything immediately because I didn’t budget anything for fun accessories and don’t have time to play it anyway but this is the wish list:
First, a screen protector: The Hori Protector runs about $10.
Second, a protective skin: Perhaps Depths by Lawrence Yang?
Loose Leaf by Derek Prospero?
Sugar Head In The Sky by Brandi Milne?
The Enamored Whale by Alberto Cerriteno?
Third, A Game! I have no idea what game I want yet. I’m just pretty much elated to have a little gaming device of my very own for the first time. We shared a Gameboy when I was a kid, but all the games were pretty much my brother’s, so I played on sufferance.
I liked Professor Layton when I tried it on one friend’s DS, was completely bored by Cooking Mama when I tried it on another. Should I go with a puzzle game? I hear there’s a form of Bejeweled coming out sometime, or perhaps an RPG? The World Ends with You could keep me occupied for-ev-er. Ooh or! I could maybe get My Japanese Coach!
Whatever I choose, it’ll have to wait until I’ve saved up enough Swagbucks to redeem for Amazon gift certificates. And I only have 89 SB right now so… this could be a while. S’ok, I’m happy enough for now. 🙂
October 31, 2009
| Retirement Savings |
Total: $34,001 (34,951)
|
| Emergency Savings |
Total: $36,741 (36,887) |
| Short Term Goals |
Car Maintenance: $2,223
Insurance: $2,439
Travel/Con: $550
Taxes: $3,590
Moving: $2,894
Total: $11,696 (12,863) |
| Long Term Goals |
House Down Payment: $102 |
| Investments |
TradeKing: $1,095
Prosper-ish Loan: $12,630
Personal Loan: $1,500
Savings Bond: $362 (current accrued value)
Total: $ 15,587 (15,586) |
| Total Assets |
Illiquid: $34,001
Semi-Liquid: $15,587
Liquid: $36,741
Expense Acct: $7,156
Goals Savings: $11,696
Total: $ 105,181 (107,893) |
| Debt and Liabilities |
AmEx: $653
Chase: $1,580
Rent: $1,360
Total: $3,593 (4,014) |
| Net Worth |
$101,588 (103,879) |
A few thoughts …..
Once again we have problems with Yodlee “updating” their site which means problems. This time, the drop down menu that should allow me to update account passwords won’t actually drop down. Those accounts’ll just have to remain inaccessible for now.
Wonky math. Somewhere in the emergency funds, we’ve got math gone wrong and I can’t figure it out. Last month, I was down $76. This month, $146. A difference of $222 total when the only outbound transaction from those accounts is a single $500 borrow when I needed to open a Chase account for a bonus offer. I’m starting to wonder if I just made a clerical error at some point?
Losing steam. I’m sliding dangerously close to the other side of the 6 figure mark. I apparently both miscalculated the bare bones scenario upon layoff, and have been traveling a LOT more than planned. The solution? Find a full time J-O-B! But also finish my classes with high marks because I’ve paid a good chunk of change for them. Which, of course, leads me to Item the Next:
Big things next month! Midterms, a trip to the Big Apple, a trip to the Big Island, hosting a Carnival, and final exams!
October 30, 2009
I have no problems with making sure that my purely personal friendships jive well when money’s involved; I pay my way and assist friends in need within reason, we’re honest with each other about our limits, and it generally works out pretty well. I have no problem with keeping my business money separate from personal money in a corporate environment, and generally dining out with the office has always been fairly straightforward: the office paid. But what of the gray area in between? Specifically, when you’re networking and not interviewing with or working for the person you’re dining with?
From a purely business perspective, my friend/mentor advised me not to quibble over who paid the bill when I dined out with an older, successful, networking acquaintance. “He can most certainly afford it, he invited you, and he can always write it off,” she asserts. These points were all true, at the time. The person in question is both gracious and helpful whenever possible leads come up, and has since taken the initiative to point me and my resume at highly placed persons who were interviewing for desirable positions. [At which point it’s up to me so that there isn’t impropriety or influence on my behalf which I would never ask for or expect.]
But what happens when the acquaintance morphs into a semi-friendship? When you’re meeting to catch up and tell stories, it’s no longer 100% business. I feel like that development then brings with it the obligation to offer to, and even insist on, paying sometimes. It’s only fair. I don’t want my acquaintance/now friend to think that I simply expect a great meal at his expense; that’s certainly not the case.
I’m aware that insisting on footing the bill when he has selected the restaurant, when he is more than financially comfortable [yes, finances have come up in the conversation in a career-related turn], and/or when I am unemployed seems to smack more of irrational pride than sense. But I’m unemployed, not destitute, and it hardly seems right to assume that I shouldn’t pay simply because I don’t have access to a corporate account. That seems like a recipe for brewing resentment; the line of reasoning that “you have more money than I, so let’s use your resources, thanks!” doesn’t sit well with me. Neither party’s resources should determine who pays. It can certainly influence the selection of the experience, but I think fair means that both parties take it in turn to pay.
How does the financial relationship change when your business relationship acquires shades of the personal? How should it?
[Disclosure: This post is also published at the Carnival of Personal Finance.]
October 29, 2009
I had to switch from an interesting stuffed bell pepper recipe found on Oil and Garlic that called for a tuna base to a boring old ground beef version because I couldn’t find capers today. This isn’t unusual; any recipe that calls for capers always gives me pause because I don’t want to buy a whole jar of capers only to use a single teaspoon. It made sense until I started tallying the recipes I’ve passed on simply because it wouldn’t taste right without capers.
I should buy capers so I can make these stuffed bell peppers/ripieni [Oil and Garlic].
This Halibut with Lemon, Butter, Caper and Dill Sauce [Closet Cooking].
This Tilapia Piccata [Closet Cooking].
What else should I make with capers? And why are they listed as “non-pareil” type capers? I know the definition of non-pareil for laymen, but not why or how it applies to capers/foodstuffs.
October 28, 2009
I don’t really sleep at night anymore. Trying to sleep is like cricket hunting. As soon as you think you’re close, the very awareness of your being so drives it away. You know it’s there, but sleep doesn’t have a substance you can grab onto and hold tight until it surrenders. You give up first…… Hours later, you might accidentally, caught unawares by your prey, drift off.
Some nights, that doesn’t happen until an inexplicable egg craving is satisfied. The poached egg with melted string cheese on a whole wheat English muffin is one way to go. It’s just missing a few slices of tomato to make it a full breakfast rather than just a post-post-midnight snack. Or perhaps the very lateness of the concoction makes it breakfast. I don’t really know. I just want muffins to come in two halves and a quarter so I can sop up all the runny egg yolk goodness.
October 27, 2009
There are some days when it feels like the big bad news is torrential, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it. Usually you can’t. But there’s almost always something you can try to make it better: use your words.
vs. State of California
I called EDD five times a day since reading that letter, caught in the mill of bureaucracy. I kicked myself, over and over, for scheduling my trip for the exact day that they wanted a phone interview. “But,” I thought, “nothing I can do but keep on calling.” Until I really listened to the voice prompts, and realized one day that they change slightly. They mentioned Saturday service during which most services would not be offered but that representatives would be available to help log online requests. You’d better believe I was all over that website again, searching for that elusive online option. I found a series of drop down menus that would suffice, and I wrote a thorough explanation for why a phone interview wasn’t necessary. They provided a list of some 20-odd questions I had to be prepared to answer: I answered all of them in that form. At the end of it, I clicked “send” with a prayer.
Result: Win.
vs. county of San Diego
Immediately after receiving those fines, I fired off letters disputing the Toll Evasion Accusations. In detail, I pointed out all the problems with paying a toll for which the amount was unstated. I stopped short of making any nasty comments and offered to pay the original toll fee.
Result: 80% Win. They want me to pay the original toll, plus $10 (vs. the original $50 fee) to cover their collection and processing. To justify this, they’re calling the judgment “we’re right, but we’ll reduce the fee this one time for you. Just pay our costs.” Uh huh. Jerks.
$39 cost to me, with a $120 discount.
vs. online class instructor
On a short quiz of only 10 questions, with a forced completion time, the percentage point loss when two of the questions are poorly worded is substantial. I ran the possible equations, closed my eyes and picked a set of answers to submit – and lost the 50/50 gamble. I sent the instructor an email letting him know the questions were ambiguous, and that I had run the numbers correctly supposing one of two interpretations. I didn’t ask for my points back since he had to first acknowledge that my interpretations were valid.
Result: Win. The HTML had incorrectly rendered his text, and the question was posted incorrectly. Points were returned to me.
Have you argued or negotiated your way to victory lately? Will you, now? Do share! I’ve got a few more pots on the stove bubbling away, I’ll fill you in on those when the incubation period is over.
October 26, 2009
Hel-lo, GCal! Where have you been all my life?
I’ve finally cracked down and logged all my classwork on the calendar, quizzes, homework, etc., and figured out how to get three weeks’ worth of work done over the next seven days to make sure that schoolwork doesn’t follow me on my trips. GCal sends me annoying helpful reminder emails when events on the calendar approach or should be happening, which is great because I’m still getting the hang of it.
During that time, I’m also ….
1) logging about 12 hours of babysitting time to help out my friends who have doctor’s appointment and bad backs. Between the three of us, you might be able to construct one fully functional human sans aches and pains.
2) visiting a cousin (maybe)
3) packing and making a shopping list for clothing I might need depending on the NY weather
4) paying bills
5) making an insanely decadent mac and cheese for friend’s Halloween hang-out night.
Am I missing anything? Oh yes, actual studying. You know, so I can take those exams without failing. That’d be nice.
