Reinstatement Completed

My reinstatement was approved for the spring term. Since I work full time the I need a night advising appt. The first available appt is 11/13. I go in and talk to an advisor and then get scheduled for a registration appt. I will probably use a vacation day at work for this since I will have so much to take care of that day.

I'll have to pay my back bill, register, get a new id and scout for cheap books for the class that I'm taking. I'll probably order the book online since I'll have over a month to get it. I also need to go to the financial aid office and see if there is anything that I qualify for. I doubt it since I'm only taking 1 class and you usually need at least 2 to qualify for aid. But it never hurts to ask, right?

Later......

Hooray Free Money...Boo Fine Print!

So I get a letter from Allegent Community FCU, my local credit union. They just changed their name so to celebrate they had a bunch of promotions going on. One was to open 2 accounts and get $50 bucks free. I already have 2 accounts so I decided to take advantage of their cd special. $2500 minimum deposit for a 1 year cd with a 6.00% rate.

I took a look at it and thought "hey great rate" so I started the paperwork. Then I read the fine print. The promotion was only good for money not already on deposit at the credit union. Well, I have the opening deposit but I don't have that much in another bank as well. Sheesh!

Well, I found a vacation club that I could open with a $5.00 minimum deposit and still qualify for the $50. It should be credited to my account within 3-4 weeks. Sweet!

Lesson learned: When you see a great deal or promotion, read the fine print first. Or you could miss out on the deal.

Back To School Time!

Well, I finally did it. I went to Pitt to apply for reinstatement. It's been so long since I've been in school that they have to totally rebuild my academic record. I had to write my high school and have them send a copy of my high school file as well.

That's crazy, I know. I'm as old as Methuselah going back to school. Well, not quite that old. Maybe as old as the late great Strom Thurmond. lol. That's the answer to every trivia question. You can't go wrong with good ole Strom as the answer.

One of my friends asked me if I was scared to go back to school. Nope. Anxious. Yeah. I can't wait to start and get it over. I just wish I had more money to able to take more classes. The first semester I'm only taking one class. Then two classes every semester including the summer. The last semester I'll have three classes. It should take me two years. My major is Economics. I'm not sure about my minor. I have enough credits for it to be several things. I only need 9 Econ. classes, one English Lit. class and two math classes. Yuck! I did everything in my power the first time around to get out of math and now I need two. Business Calculus and Statistics. They will probably be the worst classes I take.

I'll keep you updated on my advising appointments and the registration process. It should take between two and three weeks for my reinstatement to be completed then I can move on. Oh and I get a new id. Great, a new picture to take. My favorite thing in the whole world. Not!

Till next time...

Pittsburgh Bloggers

So I found another new site Pittsburgh Bloggers. It's a social organization that brings local bloggers together. Both online and in person. It's available for all blogs in the Greater Pittsburgh vicinity.

Not only can you get more readers to your blog, but you can connect with local people while doing so. And you can find some cool blogs to boot. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Blogshares Is Addicting!

I found a new and addicting website Blogshares.com. You can buy and sell shares of your blog or others blogs. It lists blogs by industries and rankings. Imagine my surprise when I went to the profile for Free Money Finance and saw that my blog was listed in his top 100. #81 to be exact ; ) That just blew me away. I mean he has over 300 incoming links and my relatively new baby blog still made it into his top 100.

You can check all of the sites that you link to and see who links back to you. There's also the ability to earn chips and karma points. What's I like most about this site is that you can see where your blog ranks in the grand scheme of things. It's also a great way to get your blog out there. So sign up and have fun!

Disclaimer: The above link is a referral link and will give me 5 chips if you sign up under me. Feel free to go straight to the site and sign up.

Find The One - Credit Card That Is

Did you know that there are more than 30,000 credit card programs among the five major brands (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Diners Club)? There's an excellent article on Fool.com discussing how to pick the best card for you and your spending style.

The article is broken into 4 categories:
1. Have a balance you are trying to pay off.
2. You never carry a balance, always pay on time, and make complete stops at every stop sign.
3. You occasionally carry a balance, spread your spending across a number of cards, or pay cash.
4. You have little or no credit history, or have one that is riddled with blemishes, and can't seem to qualify for any credit card.

Under each category is a list of things to look for in that card, as well as a list of things to watch out for. Each type of card has its pros and cons so be sure to look for the card that works best for you.

Moochers

So my mooching cousin called me this week. Yeah you. You know who I'm talking about. No I'm not putting your name out there. I'm so ticked, I don't even wanna think about your name.

I get home from work and there's a message on my machine. After the usual sucking-up and I haven't talked to you bull, he goes "oh I don't need money or anything I just haven't talked to you in a while." Well no you haven't. That's because the only time you call is when you need money! And is there anyone out there who falls for the old I don't need money line. If they mention not needing money, they want money.

I ain't giving you a nickel. Nope, not one thin dime. Don't call. This bank is closed, no more withdrawals for moochers.

1 and 3

Are you kidding me? I stayed up to watch this. I'm glad I kept my money and decided not to pull a Pete Rose and bet on any sports this weekend. First the Yankees now this. I'm glad I'm off work today. I need a moment. Sad, just sad.

Long Time No See

I know, I know, I know... I promised updates more often and I haven't delivered. I have good reasons, I promise.

First I've had a really tough time lately. Stuff I really can't get into on the internet. It's personal and not really pleasant to talk about. I'm dealing with it the best I can.

Then, as if that's not bad enough....My computer died!!!!!!! It took me 3 weeks to get a new computer. I was going crazy. I can't access the site from work. They block out any kind of blogs or message board type sites. So now I'm the proud owner of a new Compaq laptop. My first new computer in 7 years. I'm not too good at typing on the laptop yet, so bear with me and any typos.

Updates more often, I promise....