Got back from the DMV and grocery shopping. I spent sooo much today.

$19.95 Smog Check
$28.25 for my car title
$83 for registration
$64.89 on groceries.
Grand total: $196.09

Ouch. Groceries cost so much because I also bought my Halloween costume. Good thing that Halloween and registration comes only once a year.

On the bright side I don't need to go shopping for the rest of the month. I don't need gas for another week and a half and I'm good on groceries for 1.5-2 weeks.

I'm going to do some job searching today. I applied again to the store I used to work at and while I don't REALLY want to work there, I know they're willing to hire me again and it's a decent job. Only problem, I'll be surrounded by clothes. I may have to leave my credit card and money at home whenever I go to work.

I'm blaming this one on being blonde (well, former blonde).

Just over a month ago I bought my car from my parents. And guess what I forgot to do?

Register it! It had been registered in August under my parents name but since the car is now mine it needs to be registered under my name.

So Thrusday I'm heading down to the DMV to do so. I'll have to pay about 2 weeks of late fees and I'll have to get new plates...

Darnit, darnit, darnit!

How could I have forgotten about this? The people at the DMV scare me enough as it is (seriously, they are scary!) now they're going to be mad at me and give me a hard time about registering late...

I want someone to go with me (even better, to go in my place!).

I picked up my car yesterday from the dealer. They said I also need my transmission and brake fluid changed, but I'm going to take my car to Pep Boys to get that done. It will be cheaper at Pep Boys.

I'm glad to have my car back. I like my mom's car but it drives differently than mine and it's kind of hard to to get used to. My car drives much, much smoother now that it's fixed.

I'm glad to have my baby back, I missed it!

Life has a sick, sick mind. It has a knack for allowing things to explode all at once.

This Saturday past we had a banquet. It was for a small amount of people, but because my work had laid off several people those of us who were still there were very strained. And to top off the fact that I was running around, picking up the all the extra jobs I too got laid off.

My last day is this Sunday.

I don't NEED to work. My aunt gives me money each month and starting in December my parents will give me money each month. I work to save money. So, I can either find another job right away and continue saving or I can take the rest of the semester off and take $25 or so dollars a month from my savings for spending money.

And the icing on the cake: the dealer called me today to tell me what had to be done to fix my car and how much it was going to cost.

$1,250.

The tire rod, alignment, and something else I can't remember now all need to be completely fixed. They also have to order new parts for my car.

If life were a person, I would probably hit him right now.

We went down to Pep Boys and they said the tires would cost $49 each.

I made an appointment at the Dodge dealer for Monday to have them fix my tire rod. Pep Boys said that it was missaligned and they weren't able to fix it. I have no idea how much it will cost to have it realigned but I'm hoping no more than a couple hundred.

I'm extremely thankful for whomever left the note. I wish I knew who did. If I ever get the chance to do something like this for someone else, I will.

This made me realize that I really, really need to educate myself about cars. I know my oil has to be changed every 3 months or 3,000 miles. Aside from that I am extremely ignorant about how cars work. (And that reminds me .... I need my oil changed next month.)

I could tell within seconds of driving my car home from Pep Boys the difference that new tires make. It drives much smoother and I feel more in control and there is still some work that needs to be done. I'm not driving my car until it's fixed so I'm using my mom's for the time being.

Though I wasn't planning on buying anything this week, I'm going to go to Barnes & Noble tonight and buy a couple "beginners" books on cars. Maybe I'll find ways that I can improve my car.

Moments like this make me more than happy that I have a savings.

Today I arrived at my car and discovered a note on the front windshield. At first I thought it was a ticket but it was a napkin. On it was written "Your front right tire shows a lot of wear and is low". When I got home I took a look at my tire and sure enough, LOTS of wear. The top portion of the tire is worn so thin that you can see what looks to be the metal stitching below. [I know nothing of tires, so I'm just guessing that it's metal stitching.]

On the way home I stopped by my parent's and showed my dad the tire. He agreed that with the note and said Thrusday (the day that I don't have classes) I need to go down to Pep Boys and have my front tires replaced.

My dad said my tires will cost between $100-125 each to replace. I don't have to dip into my savings to cover the bill, my dad said he'll pay for the tires, but it made me realize that having an emergency fund is very much a necessity.

I don't know who wrote the note, but I'm glad they did. Because they noticed my tires (and I know I probably never would have), they probably saved me from a lot of headhache later on.