Friday, December 25, 2009

Till Debt Do Us Part Marathon

I love TV show marathons--seems sometimes you get more out of shows when you see a bunch in a row. I was channel surfing today and ran across the Till Debt Do Us Part marathon on CNBC. I had never seen that show and decided to tune in. I didn't get to watch full episodes, as I was baking for Christmas dinner tonight, cleaning house, and adding finishing touches to the Christmas tree. But I got enough out of it. Each 30-minute episode featured one or two people who were heavily in debt, and continuing to add to their balances. The financial adviser had a Scottish accent--nice touch--and she laid out a plan for each couple. She would slash their budgets by tremendous amounts and introduced them to the jar system--similar to Dave Ramsey's envelope system--where money for each budget category would be put in a jar, and that is all the money they could use for that purpose that week. One interesting thing she did was to tell each couple if they didn't change their ways, how much more debt they would be in in five years. For many of them, it amounted to $300,000--$500,000. I thought that was a great technique that really brought their problem home to them.

Close Call With Overdraft

Yesterday, I was holding my breath. I did not realize that both my bank and my credit union closed at noon because it was Christmas Eve. I wanted to go by my credit union and withdraw some money to deposit in my checking account at another financial institution. I could have gone by early in the morning, but I was sleeping late, drinking coffee, probably blogging--thinking I didn't have to worry. Well turns out I did--I didn't get out in my car until about 2 p.m. Too late to do any banking. I had a number of outstanding checks and automated withdrawals that could have could through last night. I checked my balance online early this morning, and I had a balance of $1.43! And I could have had $230 worth of checks to go through. I was awfully lucky. I can't risk NSF fees right now.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Don't Know Yet How Much I Spent On Christmas

Up until about two weeks ago, I was impressed on how much I had contained my Christmas spending. I had bought nice, unique gifts for everyone that did not cost a bundle. But I have gotten several small things in the last week or so, and I haven't added those up. Again, they didn't cost a bundle, but if I have learned anything, it is how the cost of small things can add up. am a little afraid to find out. I'll definitely try to figure out tonight. Maybe it won't be so bad.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Found An Affordable Christmas Tree

I am late at getting ready for Christmas. Just finished shopping the other day and went out looking for a Christmas tree today. I was half hoping that this close to Christmas I could find a bargain. I have a small car, a small condo, and a small budget, so I was definitely looking for a small tree! I checked out a couple of places, and the cheapest I could find is $45. Sorry, but that is not good enough! Wierdly enough, I went to a very expensive place just for the heck of it. They had a 4 foot frazier fir for $25! I snapped it up and brought it home. Very good for the budget.

Making Money By Eating Pizza

I have found a new good niche in mystery shopping--getting paid for eating pizza! Pizza chains out there want to know how there stores are doing--how the ordering process is, how long it takes for delivery, the quality of pizza, and so on. So, they hire mystery shoppers to try out their product. I have been doing it for a couple of months now and am pleased. Not only do I get dinner free, but sometimes I get a bonus. Can't beat that! And then sometimes they want their competitors shopped, and so on and on it goes. The only requirement--you have to love pizza. But most people do. Good money and good eating.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Using Coupons Again

I have decided to use coupons again, and am anxious to see how much money I save. Probably not a ton, as most of the coupons I see are for products I don't use much. But there are some in the papers that I can use. I have also started using shortcuts.com too, an electronic coupon site, where you can download coupons to your grocery store savings card. The only problem with these electronic coupons, is that they can't be doubled or tripled. But I figure even if I only use one once in a while, it is still a little money saved.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Random sentence

a billingsgate knows exactly how it wants it

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Need Inexpensive Web Host

A friend and I have been creating a website, and it is almost time to launch. Well maybe. A relative of hers was going to finish the website, and it still isn't done. So, it's time to launch, but we might not be able to launch. Hope it won't be too much longer.

I recently went to a wordpress conference, and we talked briefly about webhosts there. It was good to hear the discussion, because I still consider myself a newbie at many things connected to websites and blogs. I have been around them for a while and worked on them, but I have never done them full time, so I feel I have gaps in my knowledge.

The discussion, as you can imagine, involved comparisons of different web hosts. I have heard of some of them, but not all of them. I am going to have to supplement my knowledge with some internet research on web hosting.


So much to learn and do and so little time!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Disclosure Policy

Disclosure Policy

This blog accepts compensation for certain posts and affiliate advertising. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics, or posts made, and individual posts may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. A paid review or opinion post, however, will always be labeled as such. We will always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on such posts, and these opinions and views are strictly those of the author. Any product claim or representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider, or party in question.

Disclosure Policy

Disclosure Policy

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. We always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products, however. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers' own. Any product claim or representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.
This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Improving IT Functions At Work

I don't know how many times a hardrive has failed at one of my workplaces. It seems like ti happens all the time, in addition to the several times my laptop hardrive has failed. I have heard there are tools out there now that deals with that including iscsi san. I am going to tell our IT manager at work about it. I think it would make his job easier.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Updating My Insurance Portfolio

I already have health insurance, car insurance, home insurance, etc., but I have been trying to plug the gaps in my coverage. I just signed up for malpractice insurance as a new attorney and will apply for disability insurance soon. I don't have enough life insurance, so I may look into term life insurance. I am wanting to comparison shop and find the right policy for me. When you have the right insurance, you have peace of mind.

Small Step To Prevent Overdrafts

Overdrafts on my checking account have plagued me for years. I don't know how much money I have wasted through NSF charges, but they would probably add up a pretty penny. I am being better about watching my balances online and transferring money when I need to, and I am also trying to use my debit card less. But I have taken another step to help stop overdrafts: opened a savings account and linked it to my checking account. Again, not rocket science. I should have opened a savings account years ago anyway (to be fair to myself, I do have a savings account at a credit union). But this savings account will help me avoid overdrafts. If I am a little short of money, it will draw it from the savings account and hopefully keep me from overdrawing in many cases.

Friday, August 7, 2009

Need A Good Web Host To Make Money Online

If you are wanting to make money online, like I am, you really need to be able to count on your computer, your website, and your web host. Because if your web host is no good, you may have an unreliable website! And then--you know--you can't make money off of it very well.

I am in the process of wanting to switch over some of my blogs to a new platform, and also start a website, so I have been researching some webhosting companies. I am not an uber geek, so I have to rely on either word of mouth recommendations as to things such as web hosts, or get my info from websites that compare different webhosts for me.

I actually have already bought my domain names from a company, but I am not sure if that means I get free webhosting automatically or not. Hmmmm? I guess I will have to find out. I hope it does it include webhosting, but my feeling it does not. Oh well. I guess I did the cart before the horse. But I can go back to the same company and buy a webhosting plan, I am sure.

At any rate, I am ready to become more professional in my blogs and websites and actually make money online!

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Good Article On Becoming A Mystery Shopper

I found this article on mystery shopping today on msn.com:
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/SaveMoney/how-to-become-a-mystery-shopper.aspx

It is pretty good, because it gives you some good basic info. I have been mystery shopping for a year now and have earned more than $1,000. How much more, I am not sure. (Remember, I am a financial dufus!) I need to go back through my check stubs and online records and add it up. I may be surprised at how much I have made!

I haven't taken too many shops lately, but I almost feel like that is OK. I did a whole bunch in June and almost feel like I got slightly burnt out. I enjoy it, but when you add the time you do the shop, and then the time you take to make the report (and usually, you have to do the report pretty quickly) you can feel rushed. I will try to ramp back up soon.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Avoid These Money-Making Schemes

If you are reading my blog, chances are you are wanting to get out of debt or make some extra money to avoid getting in debt. There are some good ways to earn some extra money but avoid these at all costs:

http://www.fastweb.com/financial-aid/articles/1001-money-making-schemes-to-avoid?from_session=true

Monday, July 6, 2009

Considering ADT Home Security For My Condo

I am a single female, living by myself in the midtown part of the city. It is certainly not crime ridden--as a matter of fact, I can't remember the last time a horrible crime was committed anywhere around me. I think that has to do with the stepped-up police force in town, as well as the university police force that covers my neighborhood as well. In terms of police response time, my area is in good stead.

However, I still feel the need for a home security system. I used to have one, but I have let it lapse. To be honest, I was always too afraid I would set it off myself, and get penalized, or worse, it would go off willy nilly by itself during the wee hours of the night giving me cardiac arrest.

It is time for me to revisit the home security question again, and I am researching other companies. Part of my decision as to what company I would go with has to do with security system monitoring fees. I am on a budget, and I know some charge more fees than others.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Debt Prevents Lawyer From Being Admitted To Bar

This is the kind of article that would have sent chills down my spine even a few months ago: The fact that a lawyer has too much debt may be grounds for being denied admission to the bar. I have struggled with debt for years. I have carried "toxic debt" around longer than I care to admit. I used to have late payments out the wazoo. It never occurred to me when I entered law school that debt could ruin my plans of becoming a lawyer. It was only into my third or fourth year that this possibility stared me in the face. And I dreaded the character and fitness application process for this reason. And in my character and fitness interview, the subject of my debt came up. And the lawyer interviewing me did wince, when he saw the total. But he noticed that I had made payment arrangements and was caught up on everything. What I didn't tell him, and should have, is that I also cut up all my credit cards and haven't used credit in several years. That would have helped my case. But in the long run, I didn't need help. He recommended that I be admitted and I was. The scary part of this article is that the New York bar examiners did approve this man to be admitted to the bar, and a panel of judges reversed the decision.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/business/02lawyer.html

One Year Plan To Buying A House

Since I am wanting to buy a house, and wanting to do so within a year or two, the article below caught my attention. It gives a lot of good tips about making a gameplan to buy a house within one year. It offers a timeline of what to do when, which is what Ineed. I am not sure I can pay off my debt as fast as they suggest. I am hoping to pick up some freelance work so I can pay my debt off faster.

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13107796

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Debt And Nothing To Show For It

I found this sad story today on MSNBC, about a woman who has more that $60,000 in debt and nothing to show for it. I can commiserate--I didn't have that much debt, but it was still too much. And I didn't feel like I had a lot to show for it. Friends and family never would have thought I was extravagant, but I spent a little too much money here, a little too much there, and didn't have much to show for it. Glad that period of my life is over. But it is so easy to do.

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Increase Your Chances At Passing The Bar Exam: Use Law Decks!

My recommendation for a great bar exam study aid that won't break the bank is Law Decks. It is a set of flash cards color coded to the six MBE subjects: con law, contracts, criminal, property, evidence, and torts. They are very easy to carry around, unlike the hefty bar review books. so you can study anywhere anytime. I put a handful in my purse everyday and found a quiet place to go through a few at a time. I was amazed at how much I learned. I felt it was easier to retain the law from the cards than the BarBri or PMBR questions. If you want a quick and dirty review, or to cement the legal principles in your head, I would suggest Law Decks. It worked for me!

---------------------------------------Paid Review-------------------------------------

Monday, June 15, 2009

I Have Been Better At Maintaining Checking Account

Me, the non sufficient funds princess, has been on a roll of having a positive balance and not overdrawing my checking account. That is pretty special, considering how often I have done that in the past. I guess since I have passed the bar exam, I now actually have time to keep up with how much money I have in checking account, how many checks I have written, and making those two amounts reconcile. This makes me very happy and has saved me much money. (holds breath hoping I don't overdraw tonight. I don't see how I can, but my balance is cutting it close. Sometimes those forgotten charges pop up and cause disaster. A forgotten about renewable match.com charge almost did that to me a couple of weeks ago.)

Getting Better Mystery Shops Now

I have been mystery shopping for almost a year, and I am pleased with my progress. For the last couple of weeks, I have been getting some really good paying shops. By good pay, I mean $35-$60 apiece. That is really good. This includes a bank shop, four apartment shops, and a new housing shop. I have another new housing shop coming up this Friday. Most of the shops I have been taking in the past have paid between $10-$20. They have been interesting, but by the time you enter the form, the pay rate is very low. Even at $35-$60, the pay rate still may be low, but it is much better. I need to supplement my income by at least several hundred dollars a month, and this has been a real solution for me. Plus the assignment are often fun.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Eavesdropping On Compliance Test Prep

I am sitting in a coffeehouse, reading the paper and playing on the internet, and I am overhearing someone prep someone for a server compliance test. A server who serves alcohol to someone underage gets into huge trouble.

This is interesting to me, because as a mystery shopper, I see compliance shop opportunities all the time. I have actually done one myself. Sitting at the bar, and ordering a drink and dinner, I had to observe whether the bartenders asked everyone for their IDs. Some shops, which I can't do, require you to be young enough that they ask you for your ID, and if they don't, you put that in your report. Some restaurants fire servers right away for not complying. Apparently, servers have to take some kind of test about this. Not sure why you have to take a test--seems like it would suffice just to tell them they have to ask for ID, but I guess the training and passing the test in helpful in some way.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Taking The Mystery Out Of Mystery Shopping

I have got to stop doing the fitness center shops. The mystery shopping company allows you to do the same fitness shop every 90 days, and they must have a shortage of people to do them in my area, because they are always asking me if I can help them out. These shops are easy to do, but they also don't pay much.

The bugaboo is that two times in the recent past, I got the same employee I had the previous time. I am not sure if the woman at one center recognized me, but I recognized her. And the man at another center definitely recognized me. He didn't know that I was a mystery shopper, but he knew and acknowledged that he thought he knew me and that I had come in there before. I said I hadn't been there before, but it was uncomfortable. I think I need to let this one company go. But other than that, I am still enjoying doing mystery shopping. It is nice supplemental income, and together with some online income I am making, it will help me meet my financial goals.

Bar Exam Anxiety And Other (Financial) Important Matters

I took the bar exam in February and am now playing the waiting game. I find out if I passed in two weeks. I feel like I passed, which is nice, but also scary, because I may be setting myself up for a fall. But I feel totally different than I did last time, when I failed, and I knew I was on shaky ground. I am optimtistic, because I feel better, but is that because I really passed this time, or I am just an idiot? Guess I'll find out in two weeks.

But during this interim period, I have taken stock of myself and tried to really take care of myself. This includes

--trying to catch up on my sleep, but I still stay up too late. Case in point, I am writing this post at midnight.

--trying to eat better. I have replaced my law school/bar exam fast food diet with better eating, at least most of the time.

--trying to get exercise. Getting more exercise shouldn't be a problem, as I literally got no exercise all of last year.

--trying to keep my condo in better order and become a better housekeeper. It seems like I used to be a good housekeeper, but that was so long ago it is hard to remember.

--trying to have more fun. That one I have done pretty well.

--trying to be better with my money. I had my dreaded character and fitness interview with the bar examiners recently. I say dreaded because I was worried about my debt load and the fact that my credit is not the best. I had heard this was a red flag for the bar examiners. But my interviewer seemed satisfied that I had made payment arrangements and/or was up to date on my credit cards and didn't press the fact. And of course, my situation doesn't seem so bad in this climate.

--trying to live on less. Now that I am not paying tuition anymore, that gives me a nice chunk of money every month to save and to use to pay off bills. I just need to make sure to not to overdo with spending. But I think I won't this time. I am sick of being in debt and short of money. I feel my determination will stick.

I used the word "trying" on purpose for every bullet point in realization that I may fall short of my goals. But in trying, I will succeed.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

I Must Be Prescient

When I wrote the previous post about property management, little did I know that today I would be in need of that knowledge. I live in a condo building and am unfortunate enough to be the president of the association. (Many of you know what I mean.) Well, our property management company is going out of business and has only given us one week notice! Worse than that, they only gave their employees one week notice. Nice group. Anyway, I have had a nervous day, researching and calling various property management companies. There is a long list of them, but many of the companies only manage apartment buildings, not condos. hmmm. I was worried that maybe I didn't forsee problems with the company somehow, but we are one of many properties affected, so I don't think I could have forseen that. I may be prescient but not that prescient.

Friday, March 6, 2009

Rental Property Management

Some day I am going to rent out my condo. I sure wish I could do that now. I would love to buy a house in this economy, since the prices are so good. But like everyone else, I am financially challenged. But my goal is to buy a house and rent out my condo. I shouldn't have a problem renting, since my property is in a real hot part of town. Most units in my building are sold or rented within a couple of days of listing. But of course that was then; this is now! But part of success, I think is finding a management company that can help you with the details: advertising, leasing, rentals, showings, and even evictions if necessary. You want a management company that is knowledgeable about the industry and knows how to take care of problems in a hurry.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

File Extension Help

There are more and more opportunities to work at home or from your computer, wherever that may be. And because of these increased remote employment opportunities, it is important to be able to share and exchange documents and other information. I have had trouble in the past opening up documents others have sent me. This can be a problem when you are on deadline for a writing or mystery shopping assignment, and you can't open the instructions or the forms you need to fill out! A lot of times, I have to email them back and ask them to resend in a differnet format. That gets old and is a time waster. I have found a file extension site that can help with this problem. It has all kinds of good info on how to open files. When I was in school, I also received a lot of information on power point slides. Sometimes, it took me a long time to figure out how to open them. Some sites offer pps information.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

The 60 Percent Solution

I read an article online today about the 60 percent solution, or how to live on 60 percent of what you make. Dare I try it? I always go over my take home pay, so how in the world could I live on 60 percent of it?

This might be a good time to try though, and I will experiment for the next few months. I am on reduced hours and pay anyway, not only because of the across-the-board pay cuts at our company, but because I am going to be working even fewer hours during the next month because I am taking off some time to study for the bar exam. I think I can make it on 60 percent of my income, or pretty close, for the next month. This is also a good time of the year for me to try it, as my really big expenses are out of the way for a while. It might turn out it has to be 80 percent or 90 percent or whatever. But if I can cut back at all, it will be worth it. I need to save money!

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/LearnToBudget/ASimplerWayToSaveThe60Solution.aspx

One Small Step: I Paid Off A Credit Card Bill!

Yes, I paid off a credit card bill. I am thrilled! It was a small one, so no biggeeee. But it is one that has dogged me for a while. A lot of stupid tax connected with this one. Missed payments every so often, so there were late fees. The balance would come down and then because of late fees or non payment, the balance would get higher. Ick. I finally did it! Now I just have five more credit card balances to tackle. Too bad they are much higher.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Bad Economy Hits Our Company

We have been spared the worst of the bad economy--we are not declaring bankruptcy or laying off a lot of employees. For that we can be grateful. But the boss yesterday said we are going to have to start doing 36 hour weeks instead of 40 hour weeks. That does hurt. Like many people, I don't have that much left over after I pay my bills, which are far too many. But I think other people are being hurt much more. There are those here that make less than I do, and they have families, and they can barely get by as it is. And now they will be losing the equivalent of 2 days pay a month. We don't know how long it will last. Hopefully not too long. The timing is actually good for me, as I need extra time to study for the bar exam. Of course, it is not good because of the smaller paycheck. But in today's economy, I think we are getting off lucky.