So a week-ish ago I lost two very important things: my car keys and two checks totaling $280.

Over the past week I have torn my house upside down and couldn't find either. I gave up the search two days ago and resigned myself to having lost those items.

Today I found my car keys. YAY! This gives me hope that I will find the checks. The car keys were in my coat pocket. So tomorrow the search will continue for the checks, but I will be searching all coat pockets and purses too.

Boyfriend celebrated his 21st birthday yesterday. I ended up babysitting (and driving around) four drunk guys. None of them got drunk enough to where they were passing out or throwing up, but they were definitely not able to drive. Boyfriend becomes a happy, and very honest, tipsy man. I don't think I can count the number of times he said "I loooooove you".

So my boyfriend let slip a vital piece of information last night... one that he had been keeping to himself and hadn't told anybody, including his best friend. I am hesitant to mention it as I don't want to jinx it, but let's just say that if he does as he said, we will be starting a wedding fund in the next few months.

My girlfriends and I hung out today. We played a game called rummikub. It was a fun game, but frustrating. We did some window shopping afterwards. One of my friends is moving in with her boyfriend into their first apartment and wanted to look for furniture.

Ok, try not to laugh too hard...

So yesterday I had made a date with my friends. While I was waiting for them to arrive at my place I was using my laptop on the couch. The phone rings, I get up to answer it, and keep my back turned to my computer.

When the phone conversation is finished I head back to my computer and find my other cat sitting on the keyboard. I shoo her off and try to put in my password- but most of the keys won't type! I tried almost every key on my keyboard and discovered most didn't work. All the keys would go down when I pressed them, but my screen wouldn't show the letter being typed.

Just then my friends arrive so I close my laptop and forget about it until I get back.

I called the Apple store and explained what happened. The SA asked me what keys typed and I told him: the number keys, command, option, the keys with commas, back slashes, etc, and the letters M, J, K, L., U, and I (respectively: 0,1,2,3,4, and 5).

The SA asks me if the num lock is on. I tell him yes, it is.

The SA then tells me to press the num lock (turning it off) and try typing other letters.

It worked!

I couldn't help but laughing. I've had this laptop for a few years now (I think I got it in 2005) and I am just now learning what num lock does. At least I had the sense to call the store before I drove the 25 minutes there.

Yep.

Yesterday I did the grocery shopping and it came to $196. But we also bough TP, towels, shampoo, DO, soap, laundry detergent, and the fourth season of House. If it had been just food the total would have been around $100.

Everybody, jump for joy!

Jump! Jump!

The kitchen is done! It took 6 weeks, but it is DONE! Yay! The countertops were put in today and we have a working sink and everything is all good.

Now comes the fun part: putting everything back in place and cleaning. Actually that won't be so bad. I put everything into boxes labelled with where the stuff goes so it should go by quickly (me? organized? who would have thunk it?).

Boyfriend's 21st birthday is a week from tomorrow (we are exactly two weeks apart). I still don't know what to get him. He's not telling me what he wants so I haven't got a clue. I am going to head to Walmart sometime this week (probably Monday because it is spring break. Yay!) to look for ideas. He likes video games and Dungeons & Dragons but he says he has all the D&D stuff and video games he wants. Until, of course, the next game comes out.

The interest on my IRA is accumulating so slowly. It is March 13th, I have more in my IRA now than in January, and yet I have only earned 3 cents in interest so far. It is frustrating. Not much i can do about it though. (I'm pretty sure I said the same thing last month. Hmm.)

We heard from the Social Security Administration. My brother will be getting about $500/month from SS. My brother wants to save most of it but we'll probably give him $100/month to spend as he pleases. Not that he has much to spend his money on. I'm trying to convince him he should give me the money and I'll "take care of it". He's too smart though.

Tomorrow I need to do the following:
1. Make an appointment with my advisor. I need to talk with him about pursuing graduate school for accounting or finance. And make sure I am on the right track for my Math major.

2. Talk to the Accounting advisor. I need to know which classes I might have to take and what (if anything) I need to do to declare a minor in accounting (I might have to apply to the College of Business first). I also need to make sure that if I do minor in accounting, and go on to graduate school for it, that it is enough to become a CPA (my state requires 150 hours to become certified).

I do hope neither one of them tells me to change my major. I love math and do not want to change my major to something else. Of course, if it is the only way to get things done, I might have to. But I am still unsure if I want to go into finance/accounting.

What I need to do today:
1. Fill out the form for adjusting my tax return.
2. Help my boyfriend with his taxes.

I wish I could do the taxes now, but will have to wait until later tonight (currently being at school and all).

The DOW went up more today. I kind of wish it had stayed low. I want to get into the stock market this year, but am uncomfortable doing so until I have more saved. But who knows how the market will be a few months from now?

I am no good at waiting.

No good.

Next Friday is payday and I want my paycheck now.

BUT, if I were to get my paycheck today, it would not be as high as when I receive it on the 20th. Win some, lose some.

But what I am REALLY wanting to get done is the countertops. They called and they are coming on Friday to put in the new countertops. It's about freakin' time! I first noticed the leak on January 24th. A plumber came by later that week and on Feb. 1 they began the process of removing the mold. And our kitchen hasn't been the same since. We are going on SIX weeks without a proper kitchen.

But even though the countertops will be done Friday, we are probably not going to have a sink until Monday. Why? Because the plumber is coming by tomorrow to remove the sink so they can put in the countertops Friday, and knowing this company, they won't be by until Monday to put the sink back in.

The bright side is that we did not have to pay one penny for any of the work done. Because the leak was caused by the pipes not being put together properly (maybe it was all that soda they were drinking...), the HOA covered all of it.

I'm going to go read. This week the homework load has been really light because spring break starts Friday! Yay!

After I finish these two books I am debating on whether or not I should get another book. The book in question is Bringing Home the Birkin by Michael Tonello. I can buy it on half.com for $8 (hardcover, only version available right now), but if I wait until August I can buy the paper back version from Borders using my gift card. Decisions, decisions.

Oh, and I decided to get a PO box. I'll probably get one at the end of March, so after I receive my paycheck. Do I have to change my mailing address with the Post Office? How about the DMV? Or does it not really matter because I am not moving?

I've been looking for a photo editing software. I would like to get Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 (for Mac) but it costs about $100 new. I searched Amazon.com and found it for $75, but I would like to spend less. Ebay did not have it. Is there anywhere else I can find computer software?

I finally bought my glasses today! I know I said I was going to buy them yesterday, but it was snowing and really cold yesterday. The roads were also a little icy. So I stayed inside and drank hot coco instead.

The total came to $275 with tax. A little high, but I went to three separate eye glass stores and I would have spent about as much no matter where I got my glasses. I can't wait to get rid of my current frames. I have been wearing them for almost 2 years and am tired of them.

I also went to Borders to spend my gift cards. I bought two books- Remember Me? by Sophia Kinsella and Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult. I have about $20 left so when I am done with these books I will go back and buy another.

I still haven't decided on whether or not to get a PO box, but I am leaning towards getting one. I don't have to pick up mail every day and there are a couple within 2-3 miles of my place.

According to the news here, there has been a recent string of people breaking into mail boxes in apartment/condo complexes and stealing people's identities. The mail boxes they break into are the ones that are outdoors and not really protected.

The mail box in our complex is outdoors and not really protected.

I'm wondering if I should get a P.O. box to protect our mail. I don't get any credit card statements in the mail so all I get are banking statements and the occasional letter. We do get the house bills in the mail though.

Is it worth it? I think at one point in time we did have a PO box (I'm pretty sure we did)- not sure why we got rid of it. The smallest one here starts at about $20/month (depending on location). I just don't like having to drive somewhere to pick up my mail.

Your thoughts on a PO box? Is it worth it?

Tomorrow I really need to buy new glasses.

I am starting to get headaches because my current prescription isn't up to date. My eyesight hasn't changed much (the littlest it has changed in a few years actually), but I'm starting to get headaches from it. I can't put it off any longer.

So tomorrow I will go to the eye store. I will stop by Walmart to look at their glasses (and see if they have any work shirts). If nothing (and I'm expecting nothing) I will head to the mall. There is a Borders in the mall so I can buy some books at the same time. Yay for multitasking!

This is going to sound silly, but... I love tracking packages I have ordered. I think it's fun to see where they are stopping on their way home to me. I can watch it get closer and closer.

So a quick run down of everything:

Work: This upcoming week I work 2 days: Friday and Saturday. Saturday will be easy, but Friday I am worried about. It is a good sized party (90), and they will be given a menu to choose from (if they want to order). They will mostly be drinking. I do not like parties where they can order food. I do not like actually serving. I almost always mess up. But, because they will be drinking, they will tip more. The only tips we get from this banquet will be any cash tips we receive.

Condo: Carpet repair men will be coming tomorrow. My boyfriend, brother, and myself just finished moving the dining room table, chairs, and hutch (for the third time!) out of the dining room. After they are done (hopefully it is a one day job!), all that is left is finishing the counters.

And just as one problem is wrapping up, another one begins. I think I need to call the washer repairman down to look at the washer machine. It is making funny noises during the spin cycle, so I think something might have become loose. I looked in the washer and felt around (it is a top loader), but didn't feel anything loose.

Everything else: (I'm too lazy to think of different categories.) I completely forgot to make an appointment with my advisor so I really need to do that tomorrow. I believe within the next month registration will begin, but I am not certain.

I went grocery shopping and forgot to buy sunscreen for the second time. I wear it every day but ran out about 1.5 weeks ago. Must remember to buy it on way to school tomorrow!

I hate wallets. I have been using a Coach mini skinny that I bought a few months ago as my wallet. It fits my cards and my car keys and is small enough to fit in just about every purse. But, when my boyfriend gave me a wallet for my birthday I decided to use it. It is a very pretty, albeit bulky, wallet. Today I wanted to use a small purse so I move my wallet into the purse and the wallet takes up the entire inside of the purse! Argh. Not wanting to completely change my wallet, I took out my ID, cash, and debit card and put that in the purse.

I can't decide on anything.

I have been saving up for a large purchase (this is besides my regular savings) and after having to save for it for so long, I decided I don't want it anymore and I want something else.

I wish I would make up my mind. Sometimes I annoy myself.

I am not touching the money in my savings and I always put money into my savings/IRA before I give myself money to spend. I just wish I would make up my mind on what I should spend the money on! It's like I have so many choices and I can't decide- everything looks so good but I want to make sure I get the best thing that I end up not spending the money at all.

Blah.

Today was really boring. My afternoon class was cancelled (unrelated to the weather) but because the weather was just dreadful I couldn't really go anywhere besides home. So I played with the cats, did some homework, read, and now I am writing this. I don't know what I shall do next...

I can't remember if I wrote about this or not (and I am too lazy to look) but I will go ahead:

I finally convinced my boyfriend to open a Roth IRA. He opened it awhile ago (not that long, less than one month) and today made another contribution to it. I am very proud of him.

I have been thinking a lot lately about what I wanted to do after I finished my undergrad. I know I want to go onto graduate school and I always thought I would get my masters in Math. Then I would go to work for the FBI or NSA or even CIA. But I have been rethinking that plan, partly thanks to this wonderful forum (I have learned so much from this forum!) and the economic situation I have learned a lot about finances and have become very interested in the financial world. So I have been thinking that instead of getting my masters in Math, I get it in finances or accounting (if it is even offered... I haven't checked yet) and go into that field.

I'll look into it but I haven't made any decisions yet. Still thinking.

[I saw this on another forum and had to share]

Public Service Announcement



Due to the recent economic crisis, stock market crash, budget cuts and
the rising cost of insurance, electricity, petroleum, housing, and taxes
of all kinds, The Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off.

We apologize for the inconvenience.


Lol!

After I finished paying the bills I did some cleaning.

I have been washing some dishes in the bathroom sink and really needed to clean the bathroom. I cleaned as much as possible and tried to organize everything. Didn't work well, but at least the house looks cleaner than it did this morning.

I just realized that I probably scheduled the maid service at the same time that some workers will be coming over tomorrow. The maids may not be able to clean the kitchen, but they will be able to clean the bathroom- a lot better than I can too.

I forgot to go to the mall to get my necklace so I will do that tomorrow. Probably right after I open up a new savings account at Wellsfargo.

I think I am going to watch TV and read for the rest of the night. There is a new episode of Chuck on and hopefully one of House.

For awhile, I thought I had lost a bill.

When I receive a bill, I put in it in a letter organizer on my desk (I don't organizer the bills, I just put them there).

Mondays are my pay the bill days so I went through the bills and noticed that there was one missing. It is due in just over a week.

I looked all over my desk, the night stand, the kitchen, etc.

After I exhausted the most likely areas, I started searching the bathroom drawers, the pantry, even the fridge.

I couldn't find it anywhere so I went back to my starting location and looked in the letter organizer one more time.

And guess where it was?

Smooshed between two bills that aren't due until the end of March.

Boyfriend thought it was hilarious that it was right where I had put.

The carpet cleaners that you spray on the stain and dab just isn't cutting it.

Last night my brother accidently dropped an entire bowl of tomato soup on our cream carpet. And the repairmen today tracked in some dirt today after it snowed.

Our normal cleaning chemicals work wonders on our smaller stains but for a job this large I am thinking of buying a small carpet cleaner or renting one for a couple hours.

I'll deal with it after the repairs are done. Which should be soon. We have our walls done (they have to be painted, but at least they are filled in) along with our sink. We still need the dishwasher, some linoleum, the cabinets, and the counter top. I'm thinking a couple more days, but that could be wishful thinking.

My cats were thrilled that the repairmen were coming and going today. Every time they heard the door they would run up to it and peer out, but they would never go outside (they were too scared!).

I'm still waiting for my tax return to be deposited into my checking. I don't remember exactly when I sent off my taxes, but I think it was two weeks ago. So I should get my refund in the next two weeks. I know it is silly, but every day that goes by I worry that I am going to get audited. I even had a dream about it. I know it is really silly, but I guess I am slightly paranoid.

I am going to change banks after I get my refund. My current bank is changing its fees and I don't want to pay them. One of the fees they are changing is for basic checking accounts. Starting in March, all checking accounts will be charged $8.50/month if you do not have at least one direct deposit each month. So I am switching to Wellsfargo.

The downside is that Wellsfargo does not offer as good interest rates as my current bank. But I want to keep my checking and savings at the same bank. I do not have my paycheck set up for DD and I don't want to drive to two banks every payday. My current bank does not do online transfers to other banks and I like to be able to easily transfer money between my checking and savings.

If I do not get my refund by the end of Feb, I'll wait until the end of March to change banks.

My boyfriend and I got into an argument just before he left for work. He has OCD and tends to obsessively worry and take things too literally. I have learned to be patient with him (which is quite a feat for me because normally I am the least patient person), but today I was already a little stressed and got snappy at him. It'll blow over by the time he gets home.

Today was all about jewelry with some eyes thrown in the mix.

I am the type of person who once they get woken up, they are up for the day. So guess how lucky I was when I was woken up at 6 in the morning because a bird flew into my window (don't worry- the bird is ok. Probably had a headache for awhile, but he lived).

So I took a shower and had some breakfast. Then I started washing the dishes in the bathroom sink but got annoyed with that so I decided to organize my jewelry. I used to have a couple hundred pieces of jewelry. 98% of that was fashion jewelry bought from places like Target or Walmart. Most of it I don't like anymore but I have been keeping "just 'cause".

So I decided to get rid of the jewelry I don't like anymore. I have cut my jewelry collection by more than half, which is perfectly fine by me. The jewelry that is left is good quality jewelry (diamonds, pearls, emeralds, etc.) with a little bit of fashion jewelry that I love.

I walked to Goodwill to donate the jewelry. The guy there pretty much knows me by name now. I have been going through a "simplifying" phrase the past couple weeks and have dropped off many, many things there since Christmas. I realized that I don't need as much stuff as I had and that others could really benefit from my "junk".

Then, while the boyfriend was here waiting for the repairmen, I went to the mall to talk to a few jewelers. I had broken the chain on one of my favorite pearl necklaces and wanted to see how much it would cost to replace the chain vs. repairing it. I also wanted to price how much it would be to resize my mom's wedding set. She has an absolutely gorgeous diamond engagement ring that I am thinking of using.

The chain cost $16 to repair and the ring would cost $78 to resize. I have decided to wait on resizing the ring until later. Maybe in a couple months I will have it resized, but not now. Beside, I would not feel comfortable wearing the ring everyday. It cost more than what I spent on my car and I would be nervous wearing it to school and work.

After my brother got out of school I took him to get a trim and then we went to the eye doctor to have his eyes checked. He needs more contacts. While there I was looking at the glasses. I found a pair that I really liked and am considering get a new pair of glasses now. My eyesight has changed slightly, but I could live with it for a few more months. I'll shop around for any deals.

To see something incredibly cool yet unsettling, click this link:

Why is everyone calling me?!?!

The phone rang like 7 times last night (between 6 and 10) and has already rang 4 times this morning (and it is just past 9:30!).

The phone is driving me nuts! I hate the constant ringing.

The worst part is most of the phone calls are junk... I got a phone call last night and this morning saying that I can lower my interest rate on my CC. They say they have made several attempts to reach me so why don't they take the hint and give up?

I was also informed last night that there is a college fair or something going on. That's nice, I don't care.

But the most annoying is the company that keeps calling to confirm an order. My dad ordered something a couple days ago online and since then they have been calling us to confirm the order. The first time they called I got their customer service number and gave it to my dad. He then called them and confirmed the order. But they won't stop calling! So I have been letting the machine pick up and screening the calls. When they call and the machine picks up, they just hang up! Arrrgh.

And I can't turn the ringers off. It is an old fashioned phone where you have to turn the numbers instead of press them. And it has no option for loudness of the ring.

I think I am going to leave for school early today. I have to sign some papers at the Admissions and Records building anyway.

I learned something interesting about my boyfriend today (I am surprised it took me this long, but oh well).

He prioritizes wants. He keeps a list of things he wants (games, movies, etc.) and puts a "1" next to the things he REALLY REALLY wants and a "10" next to the things that he would like to have, but is fine doing without.

I think his system works a lot better than mine. I tend to bounce around from want to want. One minute I am saving for this, a day later I am saving for that. It is never organized.

I am going to create a list of things I want. No more than 10 items at once. Of course, if there isn't 10 items that I want I am not going to "stuff" the list with things I don't want.

I think I will make a separate page for this. I just discovered the pages feature and I have been having fun with that. Simple minds you know.

I have most of my IRA money in a MMA right now. I do plan on getting some CDs and putting money in the stock market in a few years when I have a higher balance.

Anyway, last month I earned 23 cents in interest. So far for this month, I have earned 3 cents in interest.

I knew with Feb. being so short I would make less interest, but why so little when Feb. is almost half over?

One the 10th of January I had already made about 7 cents in interest. Big difference between that and 3 cents as of today.

I suppose it doesn't really matter. But it is weird and it is bugging me.

The leak was fixed yesterday. So I will be hanging out today at home waiting for the other repair men to come and fix the drywall and put my appliances back. I like how they assume I will be available all week without actually confirming what day they are coming. Tricky buggers.

I will be going to the bank today. I have a check to deposit and I want to ask them about the fee changes they sent a letter regarding. I want to make sure that none of the accounts I have will be charged any fees.

Half.com paid me today so I will also be transferring $30 from my checking to savings (the payment was for $40.39).

I convinced my boyfriend to open an IRA. He will be opening one next paycheck (in two weeks). I don't know how much he plans on contributing to it each month. I think he will be putting between $20-40/month into it (he makes around $300/month).

I finally got fed up of dealing with the obstacle course that has become my house and decided to move as much as I could back into its original place. I moved the hutch to another part of the condo so that we could access the couch.

While doing the moving, I found a five dollar bill. And several coins.

I should probably comb my house for change more often. It really surprised me how much change accumulated in the most random places! As to where these coins are coming from, I can't say. My brother rarely spends money and my boyfriend almost always uses his debit card. I keep coins in my coin purse.

I always pick up coins I see on the ground and put them in the coin jar. I never think to put coins found in the house in the coin jar because they are in my home. Whenever I do see a coin in my house, I tend to move it to another location (and rarely the coin jar) as a reminder to get it later.

Do I remember?

Apparently not.

Good news: We can move back in!

Bad news: We don't have a kitchen sink, half of our counters, a dishwasher, and some carpet, tile, and pantry. And it might take up to a week to get everything else finished.

Good news: Everything is good with my work and my boss is excited for me to come back.

Bad news: There is no work until the last week of Feb.

Good news: I have been doing surveys on e-rewards and have like $17! I do not plan on cashing out just yet- I want to wait til I have closer to $50 or $100 so I can get several Macy's gift cards and use it towards a Coach purse.

Bad news: I had to go to the ER last night because I had a horrible migraine.

Good news: My gums no longer hurt from the extraction.

Bad news: I hate snow and it is snowing.

Good news: It is Friday and that means a new episode of Monk and Psych!

Bad news: For some strange reason, I cannot log into my bank account online. I think they might be doing some work.

Good news: I still have my sanity.

The company that was hired to kill all the mold has finished and now the leak can be repaired. I'll be so happy when this is all behind us. The HOA will be reimbursing us so that is one less thing to worry about.

I am a little worried about work. I called over a week ago about being able to return and have not heard anything. I called two days ago but again, nothing. I will try again today.

ETA: Grrr. I just called my bank to check my savings account balance and I discovered that the bank did not transfer money from my savings to my checking like I asked them to do on Monday. It was a telephone transfer. I really needed that transfer to be done on Monday to cover a check I had sent in the mail. Chances are that check bounced.

Sigh.

The bank shows no record of me asking them to make that transfer so I doubt they will cover a bounced check charge if it does bounce.

I have to keep telling myself this.

On Monday a company will be coming over to get rid of all the mold. They won't be fixing the link, just getting rid of the mold. In order to do this they have to isolate the entire kitchen and dining room. So we have to move EVERYTHING in the kitchen and dining room out.

Everything.

The table, chairs, hutch, pictures, the fish tank, ALL the dishes and cooking supplies, the food in the pantry and the fridge. All of it has to be moved by Monday.

The food in the fridge is obviously going to go bad so I will remove that Monday just before they come. I don't want to throw it out so I will look into homeless shelters I can give it to.

My brother and I will most likely not be staying here during the process of decontamination (4 or 5 days). He will most likely stay at my boyfriend's parent's house while I stay at my Grandma's. We can't stay together due to lack of space at my Grandma's and my boyfriend's parent's will not let me stay with them.

Once they get rid of the mold, the plumbers will come back and fix the leak. Then the wall has to be patched up.

This is such a nightmare. I have homework to do this weekend and I have to move everything from one part of the house to another.

There is one upside: decluttering. In addition to the dozen or so bags and boxes I have given to Goodwill the past month from just moving, I will be giving them another half dozen boxes and bags of junk I just don't need but never knew I had. Goodwill has also received a twin mattress, box spring, and frame from us.

The cats are having a field day with everything being moved around.

We finally have a verdict on the leak.

It is the wasteline pipe, right behind the sink. We are on the bottom floor so whenever we use the sink and whenever the people on the 2nd and 3rd floor use the sink the wasteline pipe leaks.

I am not sure how much of this the HOA is going to cover. From what the plumber said this has been going on for awhile and the damage has only recently showed. I don't think the entire cost should be on us- even though the pipe is on our floor the two upper floors have also been contributing to the leak. I also hope that since this problem has been going on for a long time (probably since the condo was still under warranty) , the HOA will cover most of it.

While the plumber was cutting holes in our walls he pulled out something very interesting: a soda can!

Needless to say the soda can isn't from anyone living in the condo but from the workers while they were building the joint. Makes me wonder what else is in the walls.

I hope this finishes up quickly.

I just finished doing my taxes and I will be receiving $312.55 back from the government.

I will put all of this money into my savings, as I will have to take $200 out of my savings to help pay for my car repairs (daddy is so nice to be paying for the rest of it!).

My taxes took maybe 10 minutes to do. I like my taxes being this easy.

The lease on the apartment my grandma and I rented is up on Saturday and I will be getting $200 from the pet deposit I paid back. It should be arriving in about a month. I don't know for sure what I will be doing with this money. I might put half into savings, half into IRA or keep a little to spend and save the rest.

I had my wisdom teeth taken out today. It went much better than I thought- I was completely knocked out and I have been on vicodin all day. I haven't felt a thing.

Last February, as a V-Day and birthday gift, my boyfriend gave me a beautiful promise ring. It is a blue topaz stone with three small diamond chips on each side.

Admittedly, I have been a little neglectful of this ring. I wear it everyday and do not clean it as often as I should. Last time I cleaned it was about 4-5 months ago.

A cleaning was obviously in order. So I let it soak in warm water and liquid dish detergent for about 20 minutes. I then brushed it with a tooth brush (not one I use...).

The ring looks brand new! It is so sparkly and such a pretty blue. Why did I let the ring go so long without a cleaning?

I really need to get into the habit of cleaning it on a regular basis. I clean my other jewelry regularly so it will be easy to clean this ring at the same time.

Detouring for a minute, I finally got my car back! It turned out to be a valve gasket leak and something with the timing belt. I think there was one other thing too, but I am drawing a blank. Total cost was $849.76. Ouchie, but was needed. I am just glad to have my car back. And I am glad to have finally found a good, trustworthy mechanic.

Ah, everything is slowly falling in place.

I finally got my Linear Algebra book this morning. I've tried contacting the seller 3 times already with no reply so I'm going to give him neutral feedback. The postage confirms that he shipped my item about a week after he was supposed to. The item is as described though.

I dropped my car off today at a good mechanic so I'm hoping that he'll call back and say it is something minor. Still waiting to hear from them.

The workers are here checking out the mildew (I'm relieved that it is mildew and not yet mold) and there are no leaks in our dishwasher or sink. There is a leak somewhere, but the guy said that he thinks it might be from one of the shared pipes in the wall which means that we most likely won't have to pay for the repair! Or if we do it will be a very small fee. This relieves me more than anything. I was so worried about how we were going to afford to repair a leak.

The only downside right now is that it is so cold outside. For the first time in a few weeks I had to wear gloves.

Things like to pileup at once.

1. School started last week and I still do not have one of my textbooks even though I ordered it awhile ago. I have tried contacting the seller a few times and he has ignored all of my messages. I checked the library and the book is not available. And I am not willing (just yet anyway) to buy the book from the school for $150 and risk not being able to return it should I receive my book in the mail. Luckily a friend is coming to my rescue and is willing to copy whatever pages I need.

2. I have a possible head gasket leak in my car. Or it is a leak in the power steering. I'm not sure and the mechanics at Pep Boys can't decide. I am taking my car to another mechanic recommended by my boyfriend's dad (who is a mechanic) on Tuesday to find out exactly what is wrong. I talked to this mechanic earlier today and he said that he doubted it was a head gasket leak (rare for my type of car apparently). But if it is, it will cost about $900.

3. We have mold or mildew. It has been raining the past 3 days and I just discovered the mildew/mold today. I don't know if it is caused by the rain or maybe a leak, but someone is coming on Monday to look at it. I decided to do some research on mold on the internet and freaked myself out when I read about toxic black mold. No more google for a few days.

4. And I am having my wisdom teeth removed next week. I hate needles. And I'm not fond of looking like a chipmunk either.

Writing it all down helps. I'm going to start dinner and then do some cleaning. I am the only one I know who is relaxed by cleaning.

"Knowing when to splurge is an art. There are just two rules: Splurge on the most classic item in the world. You will have it forever. Splurge on the most insane thing in the world. You will have it and cherish it forever." - Isaac Mizrahi

I really like this quote. Maybe because I can use it to justify purchases? :P

I have been thinking about this and what I consider splurges. I thought back to the things I have bought over the years. While I have spent quite a bit of money on various items (especially my purse collection), I don't think any of them are splurges. Why? Because I put money aside for the items. Whether it be saving coins, dollar bills, or taking $10 out of each paycheck, I was preparing for the purchases.

So, onto what I would consider a splurge (given my current situation):

1. Classic and Timeless: a Chanel Flap. A gorgeous purse. Well made and will finish any outfit perfectly. Between $1,700-2,000.

2. Insane: A Nintendo Wii. Might not sound insane to some, but for me I would only use the Wii for Wii Fit. And I am not even sure I would use that on a regular basis. I'm contemplating asking for it for my birthday but I might wait a for another year for the price to drop a little more (so I wouldn't feel as guilty if I didn't use it all the time!). Between $200-250 depending if you buy new or used.

What are your classic and insane splurges?

Sigh.

I have never had a cavity before. I am so good about brushing and flossing (ok, not so much on the flossing. Usually every other day).

My dad went 20 years without going to dentist and all he had when he went back was plaque! I miss ONE appointment (I was supposed to go in July '08 but I missed it and forgot to reschedule) and I get a cavity!

The "good news" is that I am having my wisdom teeth removed next Thursday and they can fix my cavity at the same time. I am so lucky, huh?

It is going to cost $385 to get the filling and wisdom teeth done. Not bad. My dad will be paying for it, not me.