My English Castle's Personal Finance Blog

I've sold another book, and am happier about the decluttering than the $4 I got for it. I'll list some of DD's outgrown clothes later too.

But today seems like a day for new beginnings, so I'm devoting most of it to getting stuff in order, readying myself for the upcoming semester of teaching, and thinking about the upcoming tasks for the country and for all of us.

I wish you all a happy Inauguration Day.

Like everywhere, our concern has mostly been the weather, but it's been a bit warmer today.
We're geared about about the inauguration and it makes for great discussion in my class tomorrow night.
I've made a couple of ebay sales and a couple of Amazon sales to the total of $56.46 which I'll add to my ebay challenge money!

I always wonder if museum memberships are good bargains, but we went to a local science museum today and enjoyed it so much we bought a membership. The total for the three of us w/o membership was $47, and the membership was another $28 on top of that. They discount the parking and give you the usual 10% off in the gift and snack shops. I figure if we go one more time, we're ahead. And we probably will--it's only about 20 minutes away, close to my husband's office, and DD loved it.

It's right on Lake Michigan and has great summer options as well.

No other news to report except the whopping $1.87 I made toward my ebay challenge at half.com.

The promise of more snow this weekend followed by subzero temps next week makes the upcoming days perfect for scouting out junk in the house to sell on ebay. I freecycled some kids' books today in the interest of decluttering and listed something on ebay.

I was aiming for a NSD, and thinking I could actually put a plus in the account today when I returned some tights to Marshall's. Unfortunately, I did not turn around and walk out after I did the return, but bought a few really cute plates and cups with NY, London, and Paris skylines on them. They were only $3.99 each, and the sets will make really cute gifts for friends that have shared all three cities with me. That's my rationalization, darn it.

Soup making and ebay on the horizon.
Too bad I can't sell soup on ebay!

After yesterday's rant about the heat, I'm home with the heat off after 8:30. Maybe my chilliness will get me warming up on the treadmill.

And I'm in on the ebay/amazon/etc sales to the tune of $20.08 with a $100 goal for the month.

I also spent some time this morning checking out Manhattan hotel rates. I found a nice spot at the Affina Manhattan for $149/night, but thinking about switching to the Iroquois which is more expensive, but maybe????

Anyone with any Manhattan expertise? I haven't been there in years.

Our dreadful December/November gas/electric combo came today, and it ain't purty. matter of fact, it's $437 ugly.
I am NOT happy and am sitting with a blanket wrapped around me as I type.

Other bad news includes the IRA statement from American century and the fact that it's still the first week in January. Lots of heating, and probably lots of stock market losses on the horizon still.

Happier news includes the start of a new class last night and my unnatural avoidance of the vending machines there, despite the 4 1/2 hour long class.

Pleased to hear anyone else's good news...

I'm beginning to think about NY's resolutions. Christmas is over, and we didn't do too bad with the spending. I also happily used up Target gift cards on half-price stuff today, and turned in grocery store certificates for a $20 gift card.

But because my income is going down with one fewer class to teach, I'd like to find some other ways to save and am looking forward to all the SA resolutions.

I guess that's what I feel about the economy and our financial condition right now. My husband's job is contractual, but he's been there 8 years. I have a teaching contract too, but it's at a baseline level, and I always fill in with additional teaching and editing work. I guess we're fairly secure. We have no consumer debt, two 10-year-old cars, and a small mortgage. Our EF is funded with almost 6 months salary. We're years from retirement and 11 years till DD goes to college.

But still--I've seen so many people laid-off, our British friends are jobless right now, and I just get the feeling this will be a long long slog.

I think I need to ask myself those questions (especially since school is on a break now) about what I can do right now to make things a little better.

I could spend from dawn to dusk tomorrow doing errands. It seems I need a oil change, my hair cut, to go to the Post office, the store, pick up stuff at school, oh man--the list just accumulates,doesn't it.

I probably should've done more today since they're predicting a high of 15 tomorrow.
Cold!

I wonder how much all this is going to cost?

And I wonder if I should put more plastic on the windows!

It's the snow season here and I feel like hibernating. We had about 6" of snow today, and I'm making soup and staying in.

Only two more days of school left, and I suspect I'm happier than my students.

No real financial news except outstanding ebay sales on things I was going to donate to the Salvation Army. Ebay seems to be picking up, I think.

That title either sounds like a children's book or bad omen to me.

Today after picking up DD from school I was greeted at the back door by a possum. Now we live in the suburbs and often have raccoons, deer, and even an occasional coyote, but this possum scared the heck out of me. People are telling me they think they're cute, but not me. Ugly!

No real financial news except the approaching end of the semester and the realization I have one paycheck left at my normal four class full time load.

The weekend was fun--full of friends and Christmas tree shopping and a few hours spent grading projects and reading papers.

I'm actively looking for ideas for Christmas for my 20-year-old nephew who lives in a frat house and is, according to my sister-in-law, hungry all the time. I'm thinking a homemade food basket with emergency supplies. Any one
have good ideas for things to include?

I bought a rosemary "tree" before Thanksgiving at the local grocer. It was so pretty, and although I have a small rosemary plant already, I thought it would be a nice fragrant Christmas decoration.

In two days, half the plant was dead and shedding needles like crazy. I nursed it along, but as I headed back to the grocer today, I thought, "I'm taking this ugly thing back." DH said I was crazy and they would never refund my money, but they did!

In fact, it caused great hilarity as everyone came by to take a look, calling it everything from a Recession Christmas tree to a Charlie Brown special. So $16.99 back in pocket and the ugly dead thing out of my house.

especially today with wind chills in the single digits and the energy bill arriving with an over $200 total. I've been wearing a fleece vest when I come home from school to try to avoid turning the heat up--but I like it warm. Although I guess 68 isn't all that warm.

The semester is starting to wind down, and I'm going to have to think of some ways to
make up for the lost class. I'd like to ebay some things before Christmas and rejuggle the budget. We've opted for a larger flex spending account deduction which will also seem like less in pocket, though it will save us about 30% probably.

I had a flu shot today so have given myself the evening off from grading papers and presentations. Maybe an early bedtime with a book? Now that's a dream come true!

I had lunch with a friend yesterday who is planning a trip abroad. He's retired and so is his wife, they have no debt at all, and pretty good university-sponsored health insurance. But he says he feels nervous and guilty spending money on international travel right now. His income is pretty secure--but still he worries. I wonder how widespread this is?

I know that I'm super careful lately. I wonder if most people are too.

I stopped at Kohl's on the way home from teaching and seemed to come home with mostly socks. There are socks for my mom, socks for DH,DD, and even a pair for me.

I got a little Christmas shopping done, but mostly feel like taking it easy and sitting back with a cup of coffee.

My funny story for today is the nickel I found on the steps up to my class. I reached down to pick it up, didn't realize one of my students was behind me--who regaled the entire class with stories of my cheapness. Who would leave a nickel laying there anyway?

I told them that I work for a state university and they don't pay me much--and with the state of my 403b, this would be a great addition. I suffer no embarrassment at all about this!

I got two $10 checks from NFO and have started to think a bit about Christmas. We are not big Christmas spenders, but I'd like to start looking for some bargains now--especially for the girlfriends and DD.

I have some ideas for DH, so when I get a few minutes over the weekend, I'm going to begin looking on the internet.
And I've got kids' clothes to list on ebay tomorrow as well as Target returns and stuff to take to the Salvation Army.

Last weekend when we moved my Mom into assisted living, I found boxes of sweaters that she'd received for Christmas for the past several years. I'm bringing them all back to her and feel the need to declutter a bit.

I needed a couple of extra 9x13 pans for an afterschool program where the kids get dinner. I don't want to leave my good ones, and thought about buying disposables, but stopped at an estate sale on the way home and got two for $1.

Such a nice bargain--and exactly what I was searching for.

While I was off moving my mom into assisted living, DH bought a new microwave. He's picking it up at Sears tonight, hoping they'll give him the additional 5% they're advertising. He also opened a Sears charge to get 15% off, so I think he did a pretty good job getting the price down. He HATES to haggle, but he asked for ways to save $, and they offered to take the sales tax off too, so he did well.

Now I need to list some ebay things to help pay for it. I cleaned out my mom's cupboards when we left the house and brought cake mix, muffin mix, and assorted other things home. Looks like the church dinner folks are having mom's cake mix tomorrow!

The same rotten GE Spacemaker microwave that I complained about finally saw a professional repairman today. It's less than 5 years old, but the fan has melted off the rotor, a new assembly costs $89, and he thinks we should junk the whole things since the Magnetron frequently blows on these models.

My parents had the same range for 40 years--but we need a new microwave every 4 years?

Anyone out there have a fabulous above-the-stove venting microwave they love?

Trawling the internet for advice....

It makes me tired--even with a list, even if I do the shopping with DH. And I see so many folks lately inspecting the unit pricing, reaching for the back of the shelf bargains, I think there's at least a little anxiety that goes with grocery shopping in this sort of economy.

I did ok with double coupons today--a couple of free things and $2 off our regular coffee--but still it wears me out.

Maybe I should've bought vitamins!

We're back from my conference in Tahoe, and we had a fabulous time. We didn't spend a lot and enjoyed the conference while still making time for the beautiful sights.

But of course, as usual, something goes wrong while we're gone. Our five-year-old GE Spacemaker microwave (which got panned on lots of websites) started making a racket, indicating, we think, that the fan is shot. Finally this morning it shut down from overheating. DH has managed to take it off the wall, but I suspect we'll need a professional repairman.

Oh well--I can still close my eyes and see those beautiful yellow leaves, smell the pine air, and see the lake and the mountains.

Here's the link to that amazingly awful video on SoCal trash outs. If this isn't an indictment of consumerist culture, but still so sad on so many levels.


http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/business/july-dec08/foreclosures_10-23.html

In some sort of miracle, I got out of Target under $50 today. Target almost always gets $100 out of me, so I feel very lucky. Plus, I went into Old Navy to return the shirt they'd overcharged me on last week (which I found cheaper at Target), and they handed me a $5 off coupon for "Freaky Fun Day." End result--a pair of free socks for me. Not a major thrill, but good enough for today.

Did anyone else see that Lisa Ling report shown on NewsHour where she followed companies that "trashed out" foreclosed homes? I think you can see the clip at PBS.org. It was an unbelievable look at the consumerist economy and the things people leave behind. It's worth taking a look at.

I really shouldn't attempt creative crafts. I have the utmost respect for all of you out there in SA land who are good at it, but it's just not me.

So, as usual, I've started two projects at the same time. First--grade 100 midterms. Second--make a pink poodle costume from a pattern in a magazine out of bath puffs.

Now I've got pink bath puffs all over the family room and can't figure out the simplest directions. I will report on the results, but at this rate, it won't be done till Christmas.

It must be the weather, but I'm having a lovely weekend. After church today DD and DH and I went to a fall farm fest. DD had the best time feeding goats, petting those supercilious llamas, and jumping around on bales of hay.

I read a couple of free lance projects for $75 a piece and made an apple cake when I got home.

DD also got a free pumpkin and her face painted yesterday at Trader Joe's, I got great deals at Bath and Body Works, and we watched some of the History of Britain with Simon Schama courtesy of the public library.

My personal triumph for the weekend involves, of all things, destinkafication. I bought a couple of Brooks Brothers sweaters at a yard sale last week which reeked of moth balls. It took me almost a solid week of airing them outside, but the smell is finally gone.

Today's chilly day has had me stationed at home to make soup from the leftover chicken, apple cranberry crisp, and stir up a batch of bread.
I'm doing laundry and aiming to put up some of that 3M plastic over some windows over the weekend.
Because it's only one day a week that I'm not at school, I love these domestic days.

It's nice and cheap too with the oven warming the house up. The house is full of good smells, and maybe it'll be cleaner too by the end of the day. I'm a happy home mouse today.

I was late renewing my driver's license, but finally got over there today. I spent (aaaargh) almost 2 hours there waiting for them to stamp a form, take my eye test, and snap a picture. If I hadn't brought papers to grade, I'd have gone crazy.

No real money news for today--only out-of pocket expenses were $50 for groceries, $39 for DL , and my regular $1.50 for coffee.

I hope to have a more scintillating blog entry soon, but today was wait wait wait.

Here's today's good deed:
I had an opportunity to reclaim one of my canceled classes for spring term, but it would mean that a colleague would be below half time and would lose her health insurance.

I can probably take the hit, but saddle her with out-of-pocket health insurance? Nope.

So I deferred, hoping to pick up a summer class or something else to make up the deficit. Plus--canceling an 8am class may mean an extra 30 minutes of sleep for me and the hassle for my husband of taking child to school every day.

I feel so virtuous and would like to take a nap to celebrate, but I have a class until 10 tonight.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I enjoyed these jokes from the BBC website on the credit crisis:

For Geography students Only: What's the capital of Iceland? Answer:
About Three Pounds Fifty...
John Green, Chessington, Surrey, UK

Latest news, the Isle of Dogs Building Society has collapsed. They've
called in the retrievers.
Jez, Frodsham,UK

Quote of the day (from a trader): "This is worse than a divorce. I've
lost half my net worth and I still have a wife."
Sottovoce , Cambridge, UK

But it does help to see the market up a bit!

I've decided that all this economic news is too depressing for me. Yesterday's arrival of the quarterly retirement account statements was just too ugly. So I'm ignoring it for a bit and getting on with the rest of the goodness that life can offer. I'm not going to change my investments and will keep to the 403b and IRAs, but I need to take some of the stress of the market devastation out of the forefront of my brain.

So la la la la....