Staying Debt Free

As usual, I quickly got hot under the collar and prepared for a catastrophe when there was a logical explanation and an easy fix.

The CSR at the natural gas company said the computer's automatic adjustment of our equal payment plan was faulty due to an estimated bill last winter. The estimate was way higher than our actual use, and although it was later manually fixed, the high figure was used to figure the new monthly payments.

So our new equal payment plan is $160, $2 a month higher than it was. Crisis averted!

I ended up with a $20 credit at the end of my budget-billing year for natural gas. And there are articles out there like this, which say natural gas prices are trending downward.

www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2006-09-12-gas-pric...

Yet, our natural gas company wants to increase our budget billing by $53 a month!

I'm definitely going to call and try to bring that figure down. But there's a second issue.

They have a 3rd party supplier who will give you a locked in price through October 2007. The price is about 7% higher than what's on our latest bill. If the prices actually go down, I will have been a fool for locking in.

OTOH, I can look back and see that on our worst (highest use) month ever, their higher lock-in price would only cost us $24 more than it would be at the current rate. Which makes it really obvious how ridiculous it is having to pay $53 more a month all year round.

So, I could just dispute the budget billing increase. I could lock in the higher rate, and feel more confident about disputing the budget billing increase. I could take my chances that prices will actually be lower this winter, and pay as I go instead of using the even-payment thing. That way I wouldn't be lending them money interest-free. OTOH, if prices go up and it's a cold winter, we could be hit with some really high bills.

Any thoughts?

The plumber was here today, and I asked him to show me where to turn off the water to the house in case of emergency.

I knew it had to be done out at the street, where the meter is. Long story short--if I were here alone, I could never do it myself. We'd have to buy this long-handled "key" tool and even if DH were here, the job would involve one of us crawling on the ground looking into a scary, gaping hole and the other one holding a flashlight.

So I asked him to look in the basement to see where a shut-off could be added. This is where the Yikes! comes in.

Our pipes are ancient iron ones, and very corroded. In fact there are old shut-off valves there, but they are so corroded they would break if you tried to move them. Basically, all the piping from the street to the house should be replaced. Much of the work would have to be done by hand instead of machine because of the convoluted way the pipes go into the house. The way it was done was "weird." (Why am I not surprised?) They are also all behind the hot-air furnace ductwork, which was added later.

I asked him for a ballpark figure. $1000? $5000? $10,000? He figured $5000 would be closest.

Boy, I can think of far more interesting ways to spend $5000. But I guess it will have to be done someday. In the meantime, the plumber suggested keeping a trash can over the man-hole thingy out front in the wintertime. That way, we wouldn't be searching around for it under the snow.

I'm starting a new blog category for House.

I warned ya...

Over the past few months I've had a problem Down There that I never had happen before in my life. The irritation comes and goes without any treatment beyond switching to Dove soap and being patient. It's not really serious enough to run to the doctor with, but darned uncomfortable--so I started researching online. To my surprise, the probable culprit is Always brand feminine hygiene pads!

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=14...
and
http://www.drexelmed.edu/FindaPhysician/MedicalPractices/Vag...

Note that the journal article came out in the 90's, but the advice to avoid the Always brand is still being given today.

I don't know about you, but I only started using this brand recently, after a series of offers at different stores, a Catalina and a sample that came with a coupon. Let me tell you, if you're sensitive to whatever's in them.... well, they couldn't PAY me to use them again.

I'm emptying my stockpile into the trash even if I have to pay full price for another brand. No use donating them and causing someone else discomfort.

First, thanks for the comments the past couple of entries. It really does help to know other people are in the same boat--whether it's in a positive way (learning to live with high tech) or negative (being behind on house maintenance).

I spent some time this morning trying to find the best paving company prospect for getting our driveway coated. I already knew there weren't any local companies listed on Angie's List so I thought I'd check on the Better Business Bureau website.

There were several that looked promising, but one jumped out at me. In business over 35 years, a BBB member with no complaints filed, and... the president is a woman.
I called to arrange an estimate.

If the price is remotely reasonable, and if they can do it before the fall festival, I'll go ahead and not even call another company. I have to say I like the idea of giving my business to another woman.

I feel funny about it, though. It feels like preferential treatment, or discrimination or something. But I guess it's kind of natural to want to help out one of your own--especially when you know they're a rare bird in their industry.

Like Dollars for Doughnuts just wrote, too many wants chasing too few dollars...

A few weeks back I decided the top priority was getting the lights installed on the back of the house. It's getting dark earlier all the time, and it had to be done before we switch to Standard Time. No brainer.

I kind of decided I should get the plumber next. There are three jobs that need to be done, one of which I'm kind of worried about putting off. There's a problem with our upstairs toilet, and even though we've turned off the water at the shut-off valve I can still hear the sound of water running. It just doesn't seem right, and I don't want to wake up to a geyser one morning!

Yesterday we got a flyer about the fall festival going on in two weeks. They are starting up the lawn decoration contest again, and probably coming down our street with a hayride. Our property looks horrible because of the driveway, and I'd love to get it coated before then.

We still need a new back step, a cabinet put up, and wallpaper removal finished. Also, I need about $300 worth of work done on my car, even at our neighbor's prices.

However, our official EF is pretty low right now. I have an extra $400 in checking now as padding because of the automatic payments I set up. $500 is sitting in the Netbank money market, the minimum balance for not getting hit with a monthly fee. I can't close the account yet or I'll forfeit the $75 bonus.

I could pay off the HSBC cc more slowly to free up funds. It's 0% into the spring. Or I could raid the "new car" account again.

On the one hand, I'm nervous about spending too much money, too soon. On the other hand, the house stuff is weighing on my mind. Anyway, our water bill was way up last time, probably because of the plumbing issues. Getting them fixed should save money in the long run. And our plumber bills us, so the cash doesn't have to be in hand this week anyway.

I think I'll go ahead and make calls tomorrow.

p.s. - Still glad I spent the money on the scanner. Have already got rid of lots of paper. There's actually some wiggle room in the file cabinet now.

I kind of feel like I need to write a confessional. OTOH, I've decided that's silly.

OK, I've just spent $48 on a scanner, I've signed up for Verizon's voicemail again for an extra $6 a month, and I've decided to pay the $30 for Budget by Snowmint (virtual envelope budget software) after the trial period.

I could have spent money on making copies, buying more file folders, and so forth. I could have decided to keep wasting time leafing through papers, trying to stay offline when important calls are due, and playing around with free but cumbersome budget systems. Instead, I'm spending money on tools that actually do the jobs I need done.

Every time I spend money on techy stuff, part of me feels like it's a luxury, like I'm just trying out some new toy. I guess it's because I'm almost 50, and the highest tech thing I had as a kid was a transistor radio!

I'm seeing libraries get rid of stuff I never thought I'd see, because the information is now available online. I just bought a car part on Ebay for my mother. Even some homeless people have email addresses, laptops and blogs.

thehomelessguy.blogspot.com/

It's a new, digital world. So why should buying a digital tool feel less legitimate than buying, say, a hammer? I have the discretionary money on hand to pay for these things, and they serve my streamlining goal, so why not? But it still feels weird in a Future Shock sort of way.

We've started taking our cars to our next door neighbor, since he seems to do good work and his prices are very reasonable.

However...

I called him earlier in the week and asked if he could work on DH's car on Wednesday, which would have been convenient for me. He said no, Thursday would be better. Not so good for me, but I said ok.

Thursday morning has come. DH and I got up early to move work stuff from his car into mine, so he could use my car. I went to take the keys to DH's car to the neighbor, and he told me he had to do something about a horse trailer and would be back for the car in about an hour.

It's been 3 hours, and no sign of him. I'd hoped the work would be almost done by now!

Geez. He could have called to cancel, or stopped by to tell me there would be a delay. Or that he couldn't do it today after all. I have errands of my own to do, and things to meet my mother about. I also have to be at work by 5 p.m. If I'd known he wasn't going to work on it this morning, I could have planned to do errands early. Instead I'm sitting here feeling trapped waiting for him, and stewing!

I like paying less for car repairs, but is it worthwhile if it wastes so much of my time?

I stumbled across an interesting online book on simplifying, here:

www.december.com/simple/live/ which listed those opt-out services for cutting down on junk mail and credit card offers. Since it fits right in with my simplification kick, I decided to take care of all this stuff this morning. Strike while the iron is hot, and all that.

FYI, the fees seem to have changed from what some folks here posted earlier in the year. The Direct Marketing Assn. people are now charging $1 per name for getting off mailing lists whether you do it online or by mail. Also, there is a $1 charge to register a Deceased-Do Not Contact name. I'm doing DH and myself, my mother (at two addresses), my dad (who died in 1986) and my uncle (who died in 1989).

The page for the deceased name registration is secure, so I had no qualms about entering my cc number to pay. But FYI, the page for the regular one wants you to enter the cc on an unencrypted page. I just won't do it; I'd rather pay for the stamps and live with the delay in processing.

I also did that phone number for opting out of pre-approved cc offers, for DH and myself. (Free, and it's supposed to stay in effect for five years.)

I'm reporting a week late. This is actually for the 4 weeks ending August 26.

Everyday expenses came to $547, after coupons and including sales tax. Just about the same as last month.

As noted before, part of that total was $100.92 in gas, a record high.

Food expenses, including groceries and take-out, totalled $364. That's $91 a week. The latest chart from USDA showing the Low Cost plan for two people our age allows $89.80. That's one step up from the food-stamp-level Thrifty Plan. So I feel like I did pretty well; I just wish I could stay at around $85 a week and also not use so much gas.

Emergency Fund at $680, up $115 from the previous month.

CC Debt at $1256, down $738 from the previous month. $1149 is the HSBC 0% balance, the rest current purchases not yet billed.

The last eight days have been wild, and upsetting at times. DH is having trouble with his knee and back, and having emotional ups and downs because of the pain. He ended up bursting into tears while we were having ice cream and cake for his birthday. We found out my aunt has a form of leukemia. An episode happened at work where I had to call the police, and I'm still kind of shaken up about it. Many computer problems at work. My mother had to ask me what the rest of her social security number was; not a good sign.

By yesterday morning I started feeling desperate and wondering how I was going to continue dealing with this kind of stuff with the darkness of winter coming on. I've always thought about trying those light boxes people use for Seasonal Affective Disorder, and found a good deal on Amazon.

I guess it wasn't meant to be, because although I tried several times, the order wouldn't go through. It kept getting stuck when I tried to choose free shipping.

I felt better by later in the day, keeping busy at work, and boy was I glad the order hadn't gone through! As I told DH last night--I can buy a lot of chocolate, take-out meals and movie tickets with the $179 I almost spent, and I KNOW they make me feel better.

I just cancelled the Schwab Visa I'd applied for because of a $100 gift card offer. They aren't honoring the offer because they said it had an expired code. I held onto it long enough to use the account number for three trial offers and at least get those free gift cards. (Net gain $57.) Now they are all cancelled and there's no reason to keep the cc.

I still have other trial offers to cancel, and am working on that today.

I'm starting to unsubscribe from a bunch of email newsletters I'd signed up for at some point. Also, as catalogs come in the mail, I'm starting to call in and ask to be taken off the mailing lists.

I finally figured out that Citibank calls their automatic payment thing AutoPay. They sure don't make it obvious on their bill or their website. You have to request a packet to be mailed out, and then mail the application back again. I'm going to set it up to take the minimum payment automatically, just to keep me current if life gets crazy and I forget. I can pay the rest of the balance separately each month, as usual.

I'm trying a new electrician I found through Angie's List. (Got in on a free year's membership awhile back.) He called me back the same day I left a message, he called last night to confirm someone was coming this morning, and when the guys came I found out they planned on going ahead and doing the work instead of just giving an estimate. So far so good--the guy I used to use is almost impossible to get hold of.

They are putting new security lights on the back of our house--the one that was there had literally fallen off! It's not an emergency, but we did want it done before Daylight Savings ends. The money's coming out of our Emergency Fund since it's a must-do.

I had three days in a row with no errands. Saturday we only left the house to go out for dinner (DH's birthday is this week, but he'll be too tired after work to go out.) Sunday stayed home all day, and Monday only went to work.

Glad to hear all the positive comments about automating bill payments. It's a relief not to hear horror stories!

For a long while, I've had our two most important bills paid automatically each month--the mortgage and our car insurance. Also, heaven knows, I have lots of automatic savings deposits set up. I've been a little leery of automating any more, but it feels like it's time. I feel more confident that enough money will be in checking to cover the bills as they come due, and I also had that recent scare where I almost forgot to pay a cc bill. So this past week I set up the cable, phone and electric bills and the HSBC cc payment.

I set them all up through the billpay on our checking account, NOT at the payee's end. I don't want some unusually high payment taken out automatically, unbeknownst to me. I set up equal payments to HSBC so it gets paid off in January. The cable bill was easy, as it's always the same. A whopping $10.23.

The phone and electric company weren't so easy, as the amounts vary. But I figured out that the phone bill averages just under $23 a month, so I made it an even $23. I'll be paying a little extra some months to build up a credit for the months when it's a little higher. The electric bill is a few dollars lower in the summer because we're on their "cool customer" program. (They can cycle off our a/c if demand is too high.) But I set it up for the normal amount; I can just wait and reap the benefit of those overpaid summer bills when they reset our budget billing in the spring.

I'm waiting to do the gas company, as they'll be readjusting our budget billing next month.

Still trying to figure out how I might want to automate cc payments for the cards I'm actually using.

I do feel like I want to build up more of a cushion in checking because of this, even though it doesn't earn interest. It would buy some time for DH if something happened to me, and he needed to figure things out. Also, I've got to write up what I've done and make sure he knows where the info is.

If anyone else has experience in fully automating payments and such, I'd appreciate any advice.

Usually, the recommended coupon strategy is to get to the point where you're only buying items at their bottom sale price, with coupons. Theoretically, you could do this shopping at just one store because eventually, on some kind of cycle, everything will go on sale. And most of the time in our area, getting that bottom sale price means using a store's loyalty card.

For me, though, there's always something that has thrown me off. A coupon's about to expire and the store is out of that item, so a rain check isn't even going to help. So much is on sale one week that I can't afford to buy everything I'd like to. They have a 3-day sale and I can't get there during the 3-day period. They require you to buy 3 or 4 of some perishable item to get the sale price, when I can only use one. Which means I either have to start trying to catch the sales cycles at store #2, and #3, and #4... or pay inflated "regular" prices at that one store when I need something not on sale.

Now what if you only have one day to do errands, or have to use a taxi, or just can't afford all that driving anymore? If you can't hit all those different stores every week--which ONE store do you pick?

What I've found out is, your best bet for one-store shopping is probably one WITHOUT a loyalty card. I've found quite a few studies comparing shopping trips at stores with loyalty card programs, and without. All the ones I've found have had the same result--the total is virtually always better at a non-loyalty card store. It's almost shocking to read this stuff. Here is a representative sampling:

East Coast, in 2003--

www.nbc10.com/consumeralert/1992223/detail.html

Midwest, in 2002--www.nocards.org/savings/regular_price_study.shtml

California, in 2000--web.archive.org/web/20001120044300/http://www.kfmb.com/bob/g...

I hadn't thought about it in those terms, but several of my current favorites are Aldi, Target, Wal-Mart and IGA--all stores without loyalty cards.

I have liked the feeling of going into a store, knowing I'm going to be getting a decent price even if there isn't a special sale going on, and even if I don't have a coupon. I can go at my convenience and buy exactly what I need.

And I feel like these stores respect me more by not making me play games. It's a much less stressful way to shop.

Now that I've read those studies, it kind of confirms that I've been moving in the right direction. So it's going to be the core of my plan to reduce errands and gas usage.

I can't get everything I need at any one of those non-loyalty card stores, but I should be able to get everything I need over time by rotating the trips. Maybe not at the absolute lowest price, but a fair price, and that's good enough for me considering the time and gas savings.

My 4-week "August" period ends this Saturday, and I've been peeking at how I've done. To be exact, gas came to $100.92, my highest month ever. That's not including $10 worth that I used attending the wedding reception, and the $10 DH and I used on a drive in the country to visit a used bookstore. I've put that in the Family Stuff and Dates categories.

It's not like gas prices are the highest they've ever been. I've just been driving a lot, mostly shopping. Moneywise, grocery spending came out well this month, but I also paid in gas, stress and time. I always thought I'd keep "cherry picking" bargains until it wasn't worthwhile anymore. I think that time has come.

I've been re-reading some old housekeeping and organizing books where they talk about having ONE errand day, ONE paperwork day, or spending no more than 20 minutes a week on your financial affairs.

Simplifying. Staying home and being happy in my little box, as someone wrote about recently. That is sounding heavenly right now. So my theme for September (starting Aug. 27) is K.I.S.S.

Awhile back, I asked DH if we could cut back on his Tastykakes and just get one box a week instead of two. On sale, they are $2.50 a box for 6 servings. Full price, I've seen them as high as $3.69. I figured it would save money to get a package of cheap cookies for desserts at home, and DH could still take his Tastykakes to work in his lunch.

I guess the problem is, I don't eat his Tastykakes, but if cookies are in the house I'll eat them. I've gained way too much weight back, and in an effort to fight the fat, I recently decided not to bring cookies into the house--forgetting their relationship with the Tastykakes budget.

Now while I'm starting to eat less junk, DH is going through his Tastykakes at a 2-box-per week rate again. Not only does it cost more, he is liable to gain more weight while I'm losing it.

If I don't buy his 2nd box OR the cookies, he's liable to spend more on junk at the convenience store, run out of his allowance and bug me for more money. Or he could end up smoking more on his lunch hour, out of frustration at not having the Tastykakes. Bad for his health and his budget, too.

I feel like I'm going around in circles! To get through this week, I'll get the 2nd box of Tastykakes and keep thinking.

I keep my check register months ahead in Quicken, so I can see what our cash flow will look like. It looked ok to pay the property taxes early, and also pay $600 on the 0% credit card before the 20th, when I usually pay it. I was antsy to get them paid, so I did.

HOWEVER, the reason we looked so flush is that I forgot to deduct for DH's allowance, which comes out this weekend! Luckily, I can get the money out of the emergency fund and put it back on payday.

Glad I don't have to borrow money to get over this hump. But, duh! Still can't believe I messed up this badly.

Finally got the sewing machine opened and set up, and got ready to do what I thought was a simple sewing job. But it turned out that the back dress seam I thought had come apart, was actually fabric that gave way next to the seam.

It's kind of stretched and laddered, and doesn't line up evenly with the fabric on the other side. So I need to reinforce the whole area with seam binding, and at the same time ease that extra fabric in so I don't get puckers. It didn't go right the first time, and I've given up for the day. Next time I'll try to get any puckers high enough that they'll be covered by the jacket that goes over the dress.

If I lived near Contrary1, I could have taken the whole project to her to begin with!!! I'm sure it would come out much better. I haven't machine sewn for at least a year, and was never that good to begin with.

Not a very auspicious start, but I'm determined to start sewing regularly now that it's not so hot up here in the computer/sewing room.

Yesterday I got a letter from the election board about working a special school bond election in September. It wouldn't pay as much as the regular ones ($70 vs. $200), but it's a much shorter day. I do have qualms about it--I've heard there can be more nastiness and shenanigans at these elections--but I guess I'll put in to do it.
I don't feel like I ought to turn down $70.

This morning I got an email from Amazon about a book that sold--$48 for a textbook DH retrieved from the trash at work! (It's still in very nice condition.)

I just paid our homeowner's insurance bill, in full, a month early.

In 2004, I paid in full but just in time. I had to visit the insurance office in person to pay it the day before it was due, so it wouldn't be late.

In 2005, I had to break it up into three installments because I couldn't afford to pay it all at once.

In addition, back in September 2005 our total credit card debt had jumped back up to $4527 due to some car repair bills. Today it is $1400.

Some definite progress.

(BTW, the homeowner's didn't actually go up $71. The total I saw online included installment fees that I won't have to pay now.)

So far, I'm liking the three checking accounts for Bills, Everyday Expenses, and Discretionary. But then I realized there is a lot to cover under Discretionary.

It's one thing to see a $200 balance for Discretionary spending. But how much can we spend on a dinner out, and not go into money we'll need next month for the anti-allergen heater filters and a new carton of bubble mailers?

So I made up a budget within a budget, kind of a virtual envelope method for just that account. I have 17 categories and a slush fund, for everything from postage to cosmetics, to clothes, to batteries. When I make a deposit, each category gets a certain percentage. That way if our extra income isn't as high as I'd figured, all areas are hit equally. If more comes in than expected, all areas get a little boost.

It might sound cumbersome, but it's already giving me a better picture of what we can and can't afford.

A $5.99 CD sounds hardly worth worrying about, in relation to an overall monthly budget of $2500. It sounds somewhat less affordable in relation to a Discretionary fund of $200. It's obviously out of the question when the uncategorized Slush Fund has a balance of $3.21. Mailing a package Priority for $5.05 doesn't sound so bad, but Media Mail is obviously the way to go if there's only $2.50 in the Postage category.

Sounds overly detailed, I'm sure! But a penny saved is a penny earned; and tall oaks from tiny acorns grow. Hopefully this will help keep me from overspending and getting back into debt in the future.

I tried to do this in a spread sheet, but it was awkward because it doesn't all fit on one screen. I found these nice budget forms online, and now I'm using a Form 3 for each category.

www.coeinc.org/Materials/BudgetBookForms.htm

Survived the wedding reception Sunday, but needed two beers and some raucous music to shake the tension after I got home. I am not good with large crowds for long periods of time, and we were there for 5 hours. Then there's the fact that I feel I have nothing in common with these people except a tiny percentage of shared DNA.

I am so tired of being the poor relation/good listener. My one cousin asked me what was new, and I had to reply same old, same old. I made the mistake, perhaps, of asking what was new with him. First item was, he'd spent the previous day on a friend's yacht, watching a regatta. A yacht!
Also, he and his wife just came back from the west coast, and will soon be going to Florida and Europe where they will be buying this and that... etc., etc., etc.

We don't have kids to keep us busy at these events, or to brag about. We haven't traveled in years. We haven't been elected to public office or appointed to boards, like several people there. Our life is going to work, coming home, trying to pay the bills, and increasingly, keeping tabs on my mother.

There just isn't anything we can say (or think to ourselves) that can counteract being made to feel so very small and unsuccessful. Seeing these relatives is as bad as going to a class reunion!

The bride and groom are a gorgeous couple, are very charming, and seem very happy right now despite their debt. I sure hope they can stay afloat. They are involved with buying this house when he works in retail and she isn't currently working at all.

Now that I'm thinking about it, maybe their overspending is partly the result of feeling just like I do amongst the rest of those braggy relatives!

And last month I found out our property taxes were going up about $75 a quarter, or $300 a year. That makes $371 a year more that needs to be going into our ING account for house expenses, or about another $7 a week.

I'm not prepared to shop around for homeowner's insurance again this year. We are getting a discount on car insurance because we now have both with the same company. And I already raised our homeowner's deductible last year to as high as I'm comfortable with. Also, there's the hassle of having an inspector come out and take pictures of the house for a new policy. So I'll just bite the bullet and pay.

$7 a week x 4.3 weeks in a month is $30, which means that the $60 a month I thought could go into our discretionary spending account has just been cut to $30. So our spending on extras will now be even more dependent on any extra income I can scrounge up. Or, finding other categories to trim. Gotta get psyched!

I caught part of a tv interview with her this morning, and her message really rubbed me the wrong way. I checked out her website as well, and am still shaking my head. The fact that she has a whole little empire going with books, CDs and seminars doesn't make me feel more positive.

She lists warning signs that indicate you are earning less than you should be, including: being fearful, having debt and not knowing how much, not balancing your checkbook, generally living in financial chaos, not being able to pay the rent again this month. She says even people with six-figure incomes could be underearners if they have these warning signs. Uh, couldn't they also indicate overspending and disorganization?

I'm not against making more money, but making more is no solution if you don't learn the principles of handling what you have already.

Has anyone else read her stuff? Maybe I'm giving her a bum rap.

This is what's so great about blogging. I started to write an entry about something simple and suddenly realized something deeper was going on. If I hadn't been writing about it, the insight wouldn't have happened.

This weekend I need to attend a wedding reception for a distant relative I hardly know. I probably wouldn't have gone, but I need to drive my mother. Since I'll be there, eating their food, I really need to give a gift. I figure on writing a check for $25.

The thing is, besides hardly knowing the guy, I have heard a lot about his financial blunders. He owes his father in the 5-figures, which his father has given up on getting back at this point. He still has student loans. And now he and his new bride are buying a built-to-order house in a new development. I have to say I'm a little miffed at giving him money when they'll probably end up blowing it. And when we could use the $25 ourselves. (Not to mention the $20 in gas for getting there and back.)

Also, recently at DH's job, a tenant came into the office and mentioned he was having trouble affording food. The ladies in the office knew DH visited with the guy pretty often, and wondered if he'd said anything to DH. DH's answer was no, in fact the guy often mentioned good deals he got at Aldi's. (The office ladies said "Aldi's is where the poor people go," and DH told them his wife shops there. ) Also DH pointed out that the guy drives a 2005 car. (DH's is 1992.)

They started to talk about having some kind of a fund-raising drive for this tenant, and DH said no, he would not contribute. And I can't say I blame him!

I suddenly realized this morning that my point of view has turned around radically from last fall. See this entry:

stressless.savingadvice.com/2005/10/11/heartwarming-experien...

Last year I thought I knew that poorer people were more generous percentage-wise because they better understood need. This year I understand why people with more money might be reluctant to give.

This past year I've come to terms with what we can and can't afford. I'm very aware of what I'm giving up to reach our financial goals. When you can see that someone else isn't willing to do those things, you wonder why you should give them your hard-earned and hard-saved money when they are just going to keep living the same way.

Haven't become a Republican yet, though.

I was going to write about how it's back to normal, but that would mean recalling the misery of the heat itself. And I'd rather not think about it. There are two loose ends, though--the a/c at one of my mother's houses died, and the new one still has to be installed. Also I want to get another fan for us, and we need a new hose, if I can find them on clearance.

Other than that, I'm ready to think about autumn!

I've finally convinced DH to take our mattress down to the living room for the week. We're going into another heatwave, with no chance for thunderstorms to break it until at least Thursday. They are saying this is 10 degrees higher than our normal temps for this time of year.

We have central a/c which hardly gets upstairs at all, so we have a window a/c in the bedroom. Most of the time it works out fine, but in this kind of heat it just can't keep up.

I'm not on top of our kilowatt hours like Ima is, but I'm sure it costs plenty to run on days like this. Why waste the money and energy if it's a lost cause anyway?

I just hope nobody decides to drop in on us while we're camped out downstairs! (Next sofa we get has got to be a sofa-bed.)

Well, I thought I'd spent all I was going to spend, and then the power went out yesterday. I couldn't cook dinner, and DH wasn't thrilled about the idea of a salad, so we ended up ordering a pizza.

The scary part came in when, after dinner, the power came back on for just a few seconds and then we heard yelling outside. A power line came down two houses up from us and was burning on the ground. Not only was it quite a fire, but the sound was unbelievable. Even inside our house, we could hear it--kind of like the humming of a huge machine of some kind. But no harm done, and the power was back on for good just before dark.

We had an outage back on July 4th, too, and ended up getting our cheeseburgers at Wendy's. There are lots of times we end up getting take-out in the midst of some emergency; medical things, cars breaking down, snowstorms. And I never know whether to count it as regular food spending or to take it out of the Emergency Fund. This time I'll call it an Everyday Expense and count it as part of August.

My July ends tomorrow, but I know I don't need to shop before Sunday, so here it is:

Everyday Expenses were under control this month. They totalled $547, but actually a bit less because of the way I started tracking sales tax. The $547 includes tax paid on purchases like a birthday gift and cell phone service, that really aren't part of the EE category. I'll have to tweak my system.

I didn't work terribly hard at it, yet it's lower than a few months back when I was really trying and ran way over. All I can think is, it's been so hot that we haven't wanted to eat heavy dinners.

Liquid net worth increased to $3033, a gain of $41.

Emergency Fund went back up to $515, an increase of $258, but still not as high as it was before June's car repairs.

Credit card debt totals $1994, a decrease of $255. $1749 left on the 0% HSBC card, and the rest current expenses not yet billed.