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Archive for October, 2006

How Do I Miss These Things???

November 1st, 2006 at 01:24 am

How Do I Miss These Things???



Okay, I'm rocking along thinking I'm doing great on the budgeting front when WHAM a realization that I've only been budgeting for six months worth of auto insurance premiums but stretching them over 12 months! Duh!

So, in other words I only have half (312.00) of what I need (624.00) and it's due on 11/30. If I squeak the payment to my agent late in the day on the 30th I might get by with taking some of December's auto-insurance allocation to pay it. Then I've got to save like the dickens to get it together before the end of May when it'll be due again.

I hate screwing up. I especially hate messing up financially.

RAAAAAAAARRRRRR!!

Today I paid off my October CC charges - of 223.48 which was the October groceries and some Christmas, due on the 9th of November. These were all budgeted and saved for items.

So far scheduled for November payments as they were put on the CC in October after the cutoff date are:

534.00 car warranty mainten. unexpected
380.00 paint planned
25.00 paint planned
626.00 tooth crown - emergency
______
1565.00 CC - must be paid off as I refuse to carry a balance!

and now try to come up with
312.00 auto insurance - dumb mistake
_______
1877.00 As I said, the E.F. is definitely going to take a hit!! And I think I see mounds of beans and rice in the near future.

OUCH, OUCH and Double OUCH!!!

It's Soooo Rewarding!

November 1st, 2006 at 12:02 am

It's Soooo Rewarding!



Just noting that today I requested online a $20.00 rewards check payout on my Discovercard. They said it will take 5 to 7 days to appear in my checking. Just wanting to note here when it was requested so I can count down the days to see how quick they are.

I bet they don't slow down on drawing my payment out of the checking though! This is the first time I've done an online request for this.

Anticipating money = good feeling as long as it doesn't take too long! I'll log it as inflow when the money clears my account.

Also of note today I made a payment on the mortage of 404.03. Will update on the right when it posts.

Deposited 20.45 today from the October Challenge - a mysterious .07 cents made it into Piggy this month as I only logged 20.38 as income. You gotta love a good mystery!

I spent about 4.00 today out of my allowance as I had already wiped out the October grocery budget and after yesterday's freezer fiasco I needed some hamburger for tonight's dinner and an onion, plus I got myself some Vitamin A&D (1.67) which really helps me along with Vitamin B6 & E to fight off the cold/runny nose/mucus/sore throat thing when it starts to creep up during the winter months. I had run out of A&D and I don't like to head into cold weather without it!

So, at first twinge I dose myself up w/2 B6's, 2A&D, and 2E's. By morning my head is 99% of the time cleared up. If not totally clear then a dose of one of each for the next few days usually zaps any crud that is trying to jump on me!

There you have it - L.L.Frugalis' cold remedy. Anything that gets past those vite-viti-vege-mums requires a dose of the Hot Toddy (hot whiskey, honey and lemon) and some Vicks Vapor Rub to the chest just for the Mom effect.

Go, and cough no more!

Catching Up Update - Up Up I say!

October 31st, 2006 at 12:49 pm

Catching Up Update - Up Up I say!

Sunday was a no spend day. FREE breakfast in Sunday School class. Somebody brought Braum's sausage biscuits which were really good. I had never eaten one before. There were other things such as FREE muffins, FREE coffeecake, and FREE coffee. Hallelujah!

Monday was also a no-cash spend day for me. The Hubster did however make the downpayment on the windows which we'll be paying cash for! No payments, yeah!!

Over the weekend FrugalSon had to make a big car repair expense to his lil' truck, a whopping $2.17 for new fuses so his horn could beep once again.

Yesterday morning The Hubster was looking for his snackcakes (his one big requirement for a happy worklife) and so we trotted down to the basement to the freezer only to find that everything in there was thawing out! Glad we made the visit.

When I returned from my morning errand CashHappySon and I worked on throwing out what needed tossing ($$'s down the drain) and getting the rest into the cooler. Then upstairs to shuffle the refrigerator's freezer to fit in as much as we could.

Ended up cooking some of the meat in the crockpot for the dogs. Nice treats! ...and cooked about three packages of sausage links for the boys.

Those wouldn't fit into the upstairs freezer. They had a nice breakfast and lunch on them and still have some leftover. SIGH! Bad freezer!! We checked and no the breaker hadn't switched off or anything. Boo!

Later The Hubster calls and has me plug it into another socket. Ta-da it works! It is an older freezer that I got from my Mom when she replaced hers.

I'm thinking at this moment in time I'm just going to leave it empty and unplugged unless someone wants to gift me with a side of beef or a hog or something! Saving on electricity.

I just don't think I utilize it as much anymore w/just the four of us at home right now along w/the inconvenient trek to the basement to stock it or retrieve something. If it were upstairs maybe! It's TOO TOO TOO Ugly for upstairs though.

Along with that is the car maintenance that The Hubster had done yesterday. I sent him in to get his scheduled oil change only to discover that it is time to do the 30,000 mile maintenance in order to keep his warranty in place.

This little bit of sunshine cost us $534.00 on the CC!! Jeepers! November is looking slimmer and slimmer as we also had his $626 crown thingy earlier this month that went on the CC!

The E.F. is definitely taking a hit, as there is no way I can cover all that out of current income and still be able to eat and have utilities, much less have gasoline for work commute!!



Okay Lord, I need a lot less money going down the drain and much more money coming up out of the drains! Up Up I say! And again I say UP!!

Santa I've Been A Very Good Girl

October 30th, 2006 at 11:09 pm

Santa I've Been A Very Good Girl



The window man is here measuring as we are getting new insulated windows in the top story of my house. It will be about 6 weeks before they can install but I'm excited as I think Santa is going to be extra good to me this year and will be doing my whole top floor (11 windows) instead of just the five windows we thought we were going to do!

YEAH SANTA!! I think we'll have a snuggly Christmas this year! On the outflow side today is a deposit of half for $2490. Not bad.

Free Supper and Good News

October 30th, 2006 at 02:58 pm

Free Supper and Good News



Saturday night we went to our Sunday School Class's fall fellowship cookout where we had a lovely time and FREE food! Gotta love free food. We went at the last minute and because of that didn't have time to bake or even stop to add anything to contribute to the meal.

Not our norm.

However, I don't feel in the slightest guilty over it as for years we were the ones to host the entire dealy-who, footing the bill for the meat, buns, drinks and decorations.

The party made Saturday a no-spend day.

Great burgers and a good time. It was hosted by a couple who are nearing retirement like ourselves. They have been in their current home 29 years.

They recently went out house-hunting to see about downsizing, etc. However, prices in our area have risen so much so that they decided to stay put and do a remodel instead. She had a fabulous new kitchen!

I enjoyed showing The Hubster that new kitchen countertops wouldn't have to be all that more expensive than just replacing like for like our old laminate counters.

She said the expense was only about 500.00 more for what they got which looks much like granite. Very nice. We just aren't THERE yet in our decisions on our house.

Good news was the husband in this situation owns his own business and is giving CashHappySon a job that should start in two weeks.

This is a grown-up job that will give the kiddo a skill that he can always use in life and while maybe not lavishly - with it, he could support a family. We are thrilled!

Bank Run - October 28, 2006

October 28th, 2006 at 06:22 pm

Bank Run - October 28, 2006



Today's bank run was all in change.

BANK RUN - EXTRA RETIREMENT SAVINGS
6.42 balance
2.44 10/28
____
8.86 Oct MTD

When depositing FrugalSon's check the teller again made an error in the bank's favor of $100.00. This is about the gazillioneth time. Okay maybe 7 or 8. Will have to talk to the manager some time. It seems it's at the one branch, but not the other!

I also agree with Tina!!

October 28th, 2006 at 05:02 pm

I Also Agree With Tina



Right Tina, you should blog about Starbucks more often!

hahahaahhhhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaa!!! Let us see where this takes us!

Starting hits 14,262

I am decidely not a coffee snob. I paid $1.00 a brick for the last coffee I bought and I bought all the scratch n' dent store had on hand that day! Hot and brown and I'm okay as long as there's loads of sugar & creamer on hand to dull it.

The January Effect: Volatility & VooDoo

October 27th, 2006 at 11:13 pm

The January Effect: Volatility & VooDoo



Okay, I was clicking around...click, click, click when I ran in to this website which has a great article on The January Effect. Thought you guys might be interested since this in / out timing of the market was just recently being discussed on the forum. Neat historical chart.

Text is
http://www.moneychimp.com/
and Link is

http://www.moneychimp.com/

Once there click under Volatility and Voodoo to find the article.

For the House - October Challenge Met

October 27th, 2006 at 06:20 pm

For The House-October Challenge Met

FrugalSon came up with .61 to add to the $20 Challenge. "For the house, Mom!" Thanks kiddo!



Yesterday I found a penny while I was out taking the last lap of my bean breaks (all five done yesterday as well, and two down today!) How did I step over that penny the other 9 times yesterday? I live on a road that gets about zero foot traffic and very very little road traffic!!

$20 CHALLENGE
19.76 balance
+0.01 walk penny
_____
19.77
+0.61 For the House
_____
20.38 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $70.47

The Bean Strategy

October 26th, 2006 at 03:35 pm

The Bean Strategy

Yes, I met my goal yesterday and have been out already once this morning!

The Bean Strategy is working. Five beans migrated from one pocket to the other yesterday as the laps were taken.

Last night my leg did ache while watching TV, but when I went to bed I never noticed it. Of course, I fell fast asleep soon after head hitting pillow, which we might attribute to the extra exercise yesterday. Anyway, I did not toss and turn trying to get the leg comfortable so at least for the one day we shall deem the experiment a success.

I slept all thru the night which is quite unusual. Sleeping beauty!

Of course, I was dreaming about you!!





3 Beans Down, 2 to Go!

October 25th, 2006 at 09:01 pm

3 Beans Down, 2 to Go!

Toot! Toot!!

I've been having a bit of trouble in the last few months with circulation in my right leg. Not sure what the problem is - seems minor at the moment. But it is enough to be noticeable. Enough to make me think I need to get more mobile.

Last night I was reading two separate books written years apart about 2 different subjects and they both have this method listed as a way to get things done.

Putting beans in your pocket.



The strategy was listed in one book as a method for salesmen to make a bunch of sales calls every day.

With the two mentions I kind of felt like it was a sign. Now you have to know first that I read A LOT. Always have. I have never read this strategy before anywhere! So to have two mentions come up at the time I'm stressing over my leg aching seemed important.

At any rate this morning I put five beans in my right hand pants pocket. I've walked 3 separate times for about 7 minutes apiece. The 7 minutes is just an easy trek around the neighborhood to a point and back to the house. Nothing magical in the number. I just have had a goal to walk everyday for a long time. I never seem to get it done, maybe because it seems an all or nothing kind of deal like a 30 minute walk.

So anyway, I've been out and down three laps and even though it is rainy & drizzly here I've found it easy to do.

Take a mini walk - move a bean!

We'll see if it lasts. Unless we have a major downpour I'll get the other two laps done before bedtime tonight. I need to keep moving on that leg before things go from not so bad to worse!

Anyway, you guys might want to think of someway to use the magical fruit bean strategy to help you accomplish some goals.

What is the color of the music in your life?? What beat will you march to? Toot free!

Sticking Back Right Now

October 25th, 2006 at 05:29 pm

Sticking Back Right Now



I'm taking $7.00 out of my wallet right NOW and feeding it to Piggy for the $20 Challenge. No way do I want to miss the mark on meeting the challenge. Surely the rest will come in by the 31st.

$20 CHALLENGE
12.76 balance
+7.00 NOW
_____
19.76 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $69.85

Hey Big Spender - How Consoling!!

October 24th, 2006 at 08:14 pm

Hey Big Spender - How Consoling!!



The Hubster gave me a quarter out of his console this morning when I told him the month was near to closing out and it looked like I might not meet my challenge this month.

What a trooper!

$20 CHALLENGE
12.51 balance
+0.25 console
_____
12.76 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $62.85

Offer Accepted

October 24th, 2006 at 12:52 pm

Offer Accepted



CashHappy son brought me an offering of .08 cents.

$20 CHALLENGE
12.43 balance
+0.08 accepted
_____
12.51 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $62.60

Tidying Up

October 23rd, 2006 at 05:21 pm


Tidying Up


Photo Credit: DegnoDiAnima

Just clearing out the change section in my wallet.

$20 CHALLENGE
12.31 balance
+0.12 tidy up
_____
12.43 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $62.52

No Drips

October 23rd, 2006 at 12:54 am

No Drips

The money in the bank stayed in the bank. The money in my wallet stayed there. The blips on the banking account screen stayed there. The debit card remained incased in my wallet. In other words, there were no leaks, no drips today. As in NO SPENDING!

Show Me Cash

October 22nd, 2006 at 08:51 pm

Show Me Cash

I told you guys in an entry last night that we had an overnight visitor. He is a registered doxie and his birth name was Ashes Coal as he is a dapple. Just barely a dapple. They called him Ashes. I'm not overly fond of his little name as it didn't seem to quite fit the male'ness of himself.

Therefore for the interim we've renamed him to a close proximity of his birthname. Took the C from Coal and put it on the front and we've made him 'CASH'. At least for the next night as we will deliver him to my Mom tomorrow. The name is not so different and he responds to it.

The folks that had him had another older, bigger, more aggressive dog that wouldn't let him get close to a food or water bowl and that's why they got rid of him. So sad. I can't imagine getting rid of one of my pupsters.

Here's a couple of scenic pics - you can see he's made himself right at home. Little turkey slept in my bed last night.

That's Carmel's hiney he's made himself a pillow out of. Toffee has chosen mostly to ignore him, but has taken over the bed that he brought with him!





Blood Red Sunsets

October 22nd, 2006 at 04:02 am

Blood Red Sunsets



"And autumn! ah, how sadly fair, with its golden glow and the dying grandeur of its tinted woods--its blood-red sunsets and its ghostly evening mists, with its busy murmur of reapers, and its laden orchards, and the calling of the gleaners, and the festivals of praise!

The very rain, and sleet, and hail seem only Nature's useful servants when found doing their simple duties in the country; and the East Wind himself is nothing worse than a boisterous friend when we meet him between the hedge-rows."
~~Jerome K. Jerome, Idle Thoughts Of An Idle Fellow

The weather here has turned cold today. My house sits below street level on some points and as I walked outside today I was looking face on at eye-level as the leaves all blew down the street.

Red, orange, yellow and green!

Imagine yourself laying down on the asphalt and looking at the leaves tumbling past your eyes. It was very exciting in the high winds as I walked on down to the mailbox the leaves were racing me down the street. With the penetrating wind it was so invigorating. A beautiful but icy cold fall day!

Today's mail was nothing but a Certificate of Deposit purchase confirmation and one of the bank statements on f-i-l's estate. Aside from my water bill I rarely get a bill in the mail any more. Which makes me almost as happy as racing the fall leaves.

Understanding Your Financial Life

October 22nd, 2006 at 02:44 am

Understanding Your Financial Life



I've just updated my links to show you guys a neat place with some great calculators and good explanations on controlling your finances.

Text is http://www.bygpub.com/finance/finance0.htm and Link is
http://www.bygpub.com/finance/finance0.htm

This guy is a neat writer and I long ago ordered his Teenagers Guide To The World for my kids. Worth it to make it a Christmas gift to every teen you count among those important to your life and a few who are making nuisances of themselves as well!

I just ran across this website this evening - I knew about the teenagers book but not this stuff on finances. It is worth it to check out the teens chapter on money as well - even if you're an adult - you might get some insight on points you've been missing.

Enjoy!

Overnight Visitor

October 21st, 2006 at 11:13 pm

Overnight Visitor



We got a registered two year old male doxie this afternoon from a guy at The Hubster's work. Supposedly he is going on to my Mom's house next week. He's a cutie! Hope no one here gets overly attached or we may have a problem. The queens have welcomed him somewhat but there is a whole lot of behind sniffing going on!! Will try to get a picture up.

Sad Lil' Bitty Bank Run

October 21st, 2006 at 09:56 pm

Sad Lil' Bitty Bank Run



Made today's bank run this morning for a grand total of $1.40.

Pitiful!!!

But, it's in there and not spent. I got spendy with my allowance yesterday at the garage sale or I'd of had that other $2.00 to add. Oh well, the stuff I bought except for froggie was for Christmas gifts. Moved the $1.40 on over to Emigrant as well today.

FrugalSon went along and deposited his last weeks paychecks from his two jobs.

As well as dollars building up however fast or slow I am continuing to build the bank savings habit in myself and my kids. I've done this for several years now.

So even if the amount is low the exercise of doing it is very rewarding longterm methinks!

OCTOBER BANK RUN CHALLENGE
$5.02 balance
+1.40 pittance
_____
$6.42 Oct MTD

Holy Taco Mole!!!

October 21st, 2006 at 09:08 pm

Holy Taco Mole!!!

Found a steal yesterday afternoon. Before the movie CashHappySon and I were out and about letting him put his application in some places. He's ready to move on from burgercentral - he's stayed the year his Dad & I required from him. He's a bit of a flutter-bye and we're trying to discourage that in the job market.

We went out to the big salvage barn near here - they sell gas, groceries and hardware...it's about 20 minutes from nowhere. It's a kind of scratch and dent store. I shop there frequently and CashHappy knows the owner/manager from the drive-thru lane and our visits to shop. The guy wasn't there but we brought home the application to fill out. Anyway, while there I spent big money yesterday. A whole .26 cents!! Wee-ha!

They have those neat little taco bowls in a large sleeve with 15 of the corn taco shell bowls in it for 25 cents each sleeve. With tax that is .0173333 cents each folks! Bet you can't guess what we're having for dinner tonight????



If they aren't stale I will go back and get some more and put them in the freezer!! This is how I feed my family cheaply. I look for deeeeeeeeep discounts and then when the item tastes good I heaviliy stock up.

Holy Taco Mole - Think I may have a SCORE!!!!

Also yesterday I spent even more money - GASP! Got two new stained glass candle stands for 50 cents each and a box of 4 blown glass ornaments for 12.5 cents each. These are all for Christmas giving. I'll add some candles from the dollar store to the holders.

For myself I bought a green blown glass money frog. I'm fung shuei-ing my money sector! (Wooo-ooooooo did you feel a newage breeze just then???) Really just a cute little frog that is going to sit on my entryway table. I paid 25 cents for him.

Gratuitous Mentions In Movieland

October 21st, 2006 at 02:31 pm

Gratuitous Mentions In Movieland



CashHappySon was feeling rather generous yesterday and took me out to the movies where we saw 'Employee of the Month'. Slacker finds redeeming benefits of work in the quest to get the girl (Jessica Simpson).

It was 'cute' but there were WAY TOO MANY references to ahemmm....'men's testicular area'.

Well!

The movie would have been much better in my opinion without all of that. I'm no prude and I would have probably not thought too much of it if the words had been used once or even twice in the script. But come on people, after about the 10th or 12th time already - ENOUGH!!!

Oh and don't forget the 'MUST HAVE' for teen movies - the ubiquitous fart joke!

Please.

Afterwards CashHappy wanted a maltie thing w/M&M's in it. We went to Carls Jr.'s and got in their drive thru line but he only had $6.00 left and was going to buy for the group. Their malts w/additions were $2.89 each so after careful calculations on his part we bolted out of line and moved on down the street. In the end he bought The Hubster, myself and himself .99 cent Frostys from Wendy's ("After all Mom, you guys deserve some stuff sometimes." - the boy's quite the orator, eh??)and we added our own M&M's from home!

Then he gave me .11 cents of the change to add to Piggy.

FrugalSon was working during all this and missed the day's entertainment. He's the 'word police' around here and wouldn't of enjoyed it anyway. We did save him some 'Smoked Piggies In A Blanket' for a late night snack.

Shhhhh! Don't tell Piggy we're eating his relatives.

$20 CHALLENGE
12.20 balance
+0.11 entertainment droppings
_____
12.31 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $62.40

Tossing Some Extra

October 19th, 2006 at 11:14 pm

Tossing Some Extra

I tossed an extra $50.00 today into my IRA. I got my Jethro pencil stub out and did some 'rithmetic...and came to the conclusion that the Real Estate Mutual Fund that I've got was what had made me the most money. It actually has triple the paper profit than any of the other funds I'm in.



I know, I know...past performance is no guarantee of future performance and I am a bit worried about the real estate sector overall for the short-term (next 5-10 years).

However, that being said, the price for it was down today AND by putting my $50 on the real estate play that brings my asset allocation closer back to alignment. So, all in all, for now it appears to be a good minor decision.

I Have Been Influenced and Gone To Pot!

October 19th, 2006 at 09:58 pm

I Have Been Influenced and Gone To Pot!

I've gone to pot! I've been listening to all this soup talk and when the temperature dropped this morning about 15 degrees in 5 minutes I knew it was time.

Time to drag out the soup pot.

Because some of the girls were looking for soup recipes, I decided I'd post this one that I made up as I went as it turned out really tasty. A well-stocked freezer and pantry is a wonderful thing!



Gone To Pot Soup
by LuxLiving Frugalis

1 lb. Owens Regular Sausage .99
1 small onion chopped .25
2 T. chopped garlic .10
1 can whole peeled tomatoes chopped .28
1 can chicken broth .50
1 can spinach .28
2 cans yellow squash .28 x 2 = .56
1 tsp. garlic salt .05
1 tsp. Season All .05
----
$3.06 plus tax

Brown the onions, garlic and the sausage. Once the onions are translucent add the remaining ingredients. Simmer on low heat for at least 10 minutes.

Yummy!

Finished!

October 19th, 2006 at 08:44 pm

Finished!



The painters just finished up and left. My house is officially fully painted! Ta-da!

That's the good news. The bad news is that there are a couple of window trim boards that need to be replaced. Once that happens the painter guys promised to come back and do the finish work.

The better news is that the estimate I got was the price I had to pay. In other words, he didn't try to jack me up in the end! Woo-hoo!

I hope to add some before and after pics later.

Treasure Chest

October 19th, 2006 at 05:06 pm

Treasure Chest

In cleaning out the sunroom in order to make the new recliner fit in (tiny room - BIG OL' HONKING CHAIR) I found a little treasure cask w/ $1.84 of mostly dimes.



$20 CHALLENGE
10.36 balance
+1.84 treasure cask
_____
12.20 Oct MTD

Cummulative Total $62.29

Frugal Woman Dies At 100, Leaves Millions

October 18th, 2006 at 03:08 pm

Frugal Woman Dies At 100, Leaves Millions

Text is http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15315697/ and Link is
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15315697/

WHOOP - Temple of the Slithering One

October 18th, 2006 at 03:00 pm

WHOOP - Temple of the Slithering One



Da-da-da-da-da. da-da-da-daa-da.

Charmer anyone? You know -- of the snake kind??



The painters started work yesterday morning bright and early when all of a sudden I heard a whoop sound. I thought they were laughing or something and paid it never mind, but then comes a knock on my door and one of them tells me I have a "Big A** snake in my attic vent" at the ridge line. You've seen them, those big triangle shapes that are screened on the inside but let air in and out of the attic.

Well, I said, "thanks for letting me know." What was I supposed to say or do?? There were two big brawny guys out there...did they want me to come out and do something???

Anyway, that was a funny moment, I'm sure I did not make the appropriate response. I closed the door and went back to work and thought I'll tell The Hubster about it when he gets home.

I think there must be birds nesting in that area and that's why a snake was up there. Must of been pretty scary when that snake popped out at the guy up on the extension ladder at full extension. No wonder he 'whooped'.

How 'un-charming'.

MonkeyShines

October 18th, 2006 at 11:56 am

MonkeyShines

Catching up to date - I did spend on Sunday as we bought lunch on the way to my Mom's house and I bought my new reading chair that day.

But Monday was a No Spend day.

...and Tuesday was a No Spend day!

Just peel me a nanner because it sure makes me' lil ol eyes sparkle!



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