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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May 28, 2008
A colleague of mine has been jonesing for a home since her parents started pushing her to become a homeowner. I guess she got used to the idea, and decided to get serious about it. Her new declaration is that eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches everyday will save her $250 a month on lunch.
Call me skeptical, or an insufferably curious pf blogger, but I do wonder if that’s the extent of her plan. It’s simple enough to save money by bringing lunch, but I feel like a few more contingencies should be considered to make sure that she’s really saving money. If I were to consult with her on the overall plan, some major points I’d make would be …..
Tracking expenses: I’d suggest that she check her spending habits as a whole. Is there going to be an area in which she increases spending because she feels deprived or restricted by eating PB&J all year? Is there really going to be an increase in savings from changing her lunch diet? She used to buy lunch half the week, and brought dinner leftovers the other half. Perhaps that was equally cost effective.
Health: Is she compensating for the rather limited nutrition in her lunches by adding fruits and veggies to her other meals? Is she doing this in a cost effective way so as not to negate her savings from lunch?
Appearances: Is she doing the PB&J lunch because it looks and feels like she’s doing something proactive about saving for a house? Are there alternatives that might save more for less effort or for the same amount of effort but be more worthwhile? I love my food, so I’d have to be sure that changing my diet solely to save money was really the best way to go.
Actionable: How is she ensuring that the money she “saves” really goes toward the house and doesn’t melt away into her general spending? Does she have a plan to pay an allowance to her house fund out of her grocery allowance?
Are there other issues you might bring up? Of course, I’m not going to have this talk with her because I don’t want to pry into her finances, we’re not that close, and I don’t want to reveal my preoccupation with PF, and accidentally out myself. š
Sorry for the creepiness of a headless photo, but Paint won’t work on my computer and I don’t have Photoshop on this computer either.
FB requested a photo, so sans shoes, here’s the slightly revamped blouse & skirt combo:
I’m probably going to add a pair of earrings, hose, and of course, shoes. What do you think, FB, standard black pumps? Or shiny patent Mary Janes? š
May 27, 2008
I’m just not ready for anything serious today, apparently, because I’m blogging to tell you that I’m 25, and still have trouble with drinking. Honestly, what’s so difficult about paying attention when you’ve picked up a glass of liquid and are holding it up to your lips? All kinds of difficult, apparently, and I end up with eyes THIS WIDE because there’s now cold water… trickling … down my shirt! *shudder*
Such an unpleasant wake-up call.
I hope everyone had a happy Memorial Day weekend!
I’m back and honestly, a little sad about it. It seems like Monday saved all its wrath and handed it off to Tuesday. Missed my train this morning because we were pulled over for being a few miles over the speed limit [ARGH!], got a cryptic call from MaDucky about the bank and money, found that my internet service has increased another $4 per month. *sigh* And of course, that’d be the one service I had on automatic billing to my credit card, so I had to research the bills that I’d been paying over the past several months to prepare for another lengthy phone call. $22/month still isn’t bad compared to the other services out there, but I don’t like having the price increased on me without warning, and at their whim.
I did manage to convince the cable company to discount my bill 50% for poor service. If I want to cancel early, it’ll cost approximately $40 in rebate penalties. I’m still thinking about it, though, because I have three months left in our contract. Pay $40 now to save $80? Of course, the $40 is for the privilege of cancelling and not for another month’s service, but it’d probably still be worth it.
May 25, 2008
Am in the Bay Area this weekend, and waiting for BD to finish some weekend work. Apparently there was a last minute meeting scheduled for which his work/input was requested, so instead of having breakfast together and walking around in the mucky weather, I’m blogging and he’s working.
I don’t mind entertaining myself, it’s nice to get a little me time in as well, and it’s really gross and cold outside anyway. We usually take at least one good long walk, but I’m sort of unmotivated. š
I’m hoping that he’ll help me take some pictures of the outfit I fixed up so I can post them later this week.
In financial news, I’m calling up my cable company and find out when my contract expires, so I can cancel it. Since I’ve reverted to some drastic measures to improve cash flow, I’m not averse to cutting expenses too.
May 24, 2008
I’m going to Ikea for the best ergonomic pillow ever. For *fingers crossed* less than $10. Ikea’s a dangerous place, and my willpower’s low, I’m going to need some luck avoiding unnecessary purchases.
May 23, 2008
Coworker to me: You’re the healthiest crack addict I’ve ever met. Clear skin, got all your teeth, you even smell good!
Me: Uh…. what?
Coworker: What’d you say about crack just now?
Me: Oh! ….. Actually, I said my joints were crackling.
Coworker: Huh. Ok.
