Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Don't Take For Granted

I have been talking about this windstorm like it affected me so much. I was one of the lucky ones who didn't lose power but so many people around me did. People had to throw away good food because there was no way they could store them. It was a shame to see all that go to waste. At our morning meeting we talked about thankfulness. I am thankful that I was not affected but I pray for those who were. I do not have a budget to replace food. Most of the community lived in the dark. We depend on electricity so much we take for granted some of the good things in life. My co-worker commented on how the storm brought her family close. They played board games in candle light, they walked through the parks during the light hours. They talked to their neighbors. It was strange to talk to my neighbors who I thought didn't like me to find out they thought that I was a hermit *grin*. We talked about how much money they would be saving for not having a weeks worth of electricity. It was one of the most funniest conversations I ever had. We as a community got together and had cookouts for those who could not cook food. We stopped those who were going to McDonald's three times a day for a decent meal. Now with the power back on everyone went back to their NORMAL routines. But we do not forget how good we have it made.

Got Something New and Flashy, and it Rings Too

Cell phones have been a craze. They blink and flash, you type on them, you can take pictures with them. Some of the phones now let you watch movies on them. Sometimes I wonder if they are ever used for speaking to another individual on the other end of the line. I submitted myself to get a cell phone. I was very reluctant to do it but I got a plan that made it affordable. The only reason I got this phone was so that I can keep in contact with work when I traveled outside the office. Since the windstorm here, many of the surrounding cities were out of power. I was stuck in traffic and sat in a parking lot (the freeway) as I watched two accidents happen beside me and across from me. I had no way of contacting anyone and it scared me a bit. So I bit the bullet and got myself a flashy slide phone that takes pictures. I paid nothing for the phone (yeah) and I am keeping my bill under $40.00 a month. Which is pretty good. I still condone cell phones when people are driving. I wish they would get a blue tooth or other hands free device so they could could concentrate on driving. That is my opinion on cell phones. FYI the accidents on the freeway were caused by people who were on their cell phones and not paying attention to the craziness around them.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Still On Board

Do you ever have the feeling that you want to give up on a good idea? I did have that feeling but since left it in the back of my head. I was thinking of stopping this whole nonsense of living paycheck to paycheck and that I was doomed to never get out of the hole. Well that's not good thinking and I now have the giddy mindset of getting out of debt again. Today I received a letter from one of the credit bureaus that I had written to. I had written letters for them to delete some of the erroneous things from my past and guess what? They did and I'm happy, and even more motivated to keep on going. Ever since my purse was stolen I thought that the world ended. My tip to all who think of giving up, don't. It's too exhausting and not worth it.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Say A Prayer

We experienced a devastating event here. They are calling it Windstorm 2008. It was horrible, we watched trees snap while winds of 50-60 mph blew. It was crazy. I almost flew away literally. Signs on the McDonalds shattered, bricks were flying, it was mother nature on PMS. Hurricane Ike moved over us barely. Right now businesses are losing money with all the power outages here. People are without power about 150,000 are still without. I was fortunate. My big old tree in the front yard only shook a couple branches. Other people had their trees uprooted and into their homes. I want to say a prayer for all of the people whose homes are demolished. I pray for the business owner who cannot open their shop, and I pray for the people who cannot get into a hotel because the hotels power is out. We only got the blunt side of Hurricane Ike while people in Texas have lost a loved one or more. So far I have only heard of one death, a ten year old who was hit in the head by a large branch off a tree. I am so thankful that my family is safe and that we have electricity. Right now my place of work has no electricity. They are saying that it may be till Saturday. It is horrible. We depend on electricity so much. I walked into a Kroger who was being powered by generators. People rushing in to get a bag of ice to salvage their frozen goods, only to be turned away by store after store from the shortage of ice. Can you imagine. A prayer goes out to all the families who are suffering.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Where is the Money?

Since my husband started working two jobs, it has been an ordeal. He didn't get paid yet for his two weeks from his other job and now we are starting to fight over money. I don't want to but he needs to get on board here. We have acquired a new expense which is daycare. I'm not happy about that and I don't think that my son is either but my husband sleeps during the day and having a 2 year old run around the house aimlessly is not good. So we have added $100 weekly to our expenses. My hubby has promised one of his checks to pay down some of the bills and debt that we are in. So far I have not seen a penny. Although he did give me money for the groceries. With all the price gouges, I have to be extremely careful with what I buy. I won't gripe about gas although it is a pain in the neck not to think about it. I am wondering where the money is going. I have been away for 2 weeks buried in the little theater. It was a break for me. I hardly spent any money nor did I do any grocery shopping. We lived off of what was in the cupboards which was a great switch. Since my purse was stolen I have to start over in clipping my coupons AGAIN!!! I just wonder why this is happening. I am going to do a lot of praying. I know that this bad situation will somehow get better, but I have to let it go and put it in someone else's hands.

Not A Dull Moment, but A Serious Consequence

I'm back and ready to focus on what I set my eyes on. I was bummed a couple of days ago because my purse was stolen. It has been a nightmare. I have to get a new driver's license and my rent money was stolen. I was able to get my rent in on time with the help of a friend who loaned me the money. I have no family and having a good friend help you out in a pinch (more like a slap in your face) is a blessing. I was taught a very good lesson. Do not carry so much stuff you don't want anyone to take. I even lost my coupon stash. You would think I would be disheartened about losing my rent money but the time I spent clipping those coupons was more devastating in the long run. Now I have to start over and find my identity as well. Never a dull moment here.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Missing In Action

I wanted to let you all know that I have been away for a couple of weeks due to the play that I am in. I just wanted to say that it is a fabulous experience. I have met many new people and have made more friendships through this. I have practically lived in the theater for the past 2 weeks. My time was crunched and there was no worrying about money. Although it was in the back of my head. I am glad to be back and I will be on here more after this week is through. We have 3 more shows to run and then I have to get back to serious business. I miss blogging.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

September Goals

I did very well on my August goals and completed most of them. I need a lot of work to do. The whole experience of trying to buy a house right now has left my mind. I received some great advice, and I plan to implement them slowly but surely. Here it goes, another month and more money to spend.
  1. Use extra money to pay off 3-4 things off of my credit report. My husband is giving me one of his whole paychecks from his other job so I can pay down some debt. I have a few that need to go away, and fast. I'm tired of looking at it.
  2. Give my daughter a weekly allowance for doing her chores. Only if she does it. She is so stubborn but I am trying to teach her that if she wants something she will have to start working for it, just a little bit.
  3. Pull my credit report at the end of the month. Since I had to say good-bye to my dream home for now, I am curious to see what my credit report is saying. I am really ashamed that it is in the 500's.
  4. Dispute with a few creditors. I love to tell these collection agencies that they're in the wrong. I remember that I did this one time and had 3 things removed from my credit report.
  5. Go over a new budget with my husband. This is going to be a new thing for us. For years we had separate accounts because we don't trust each other with each others money. I think that's why we got into so much money trouble. We are making an effort. We combined our accounts and now are working towards a common goal.
  6. Save for emergency fund. I added some more stuff on my side bar to show how much I am putting away and to what. I think it's a bunch of junk on the side but it's keeping me accountable.

Those are a few things that need to be done. It seems like it all revolves around credit, but I can't help it. I NEED a better credit rating.

Finally I Got It!

Since July I have been in total turmoil due to not getting my annual raise. It took some time and finally it came today. It wasn't what I expected but it was more than $.50 an hour. Am I complaining? Just a little bit. I also received my annual review and one of them was to get along with the dreaded coworker who drives me up the friggin wall. First of all I TOLERATE this girl even though she has more baggage than anyone checking into the Hilton. I don't condemn her nor do I tell her she's a *&%$#. I know how to seperate my personal feelings and my professional atmosphere, so having said that I thought it was very unfair that my boss knows me in a personal light and had the nerve to put that in my review. That is my personal opinion of the person and it shouldn't have been used against me.
Well I'm over it, I am okay with the raise and I plan to do with it as I said, put the extra money towards savings and paying off debt. I am still in the mindset and will keep pushing. I'm just glad that this doesn't have to loom over my head anymore.