I registered for my other class

I finally registered for my math class. I'm not looking forward to this class at all. Even though it's a beginner class I know it will be a lot of hard work. I mean the class is called analytical methods after all. I know I will have a lot of homework for this class. I don't mind reading homework, but this will be exercises and math problems.

It also made my school outlay for this semester a little higher than I expected it to be. I was only expecting to take 1 class, by adding one my costs went up. Tuition and fees increased but I'll also have to pay more for books. I'm thinking of taking a personal loan from my bank to help with expenses.

My economics book cost $65 last semester. I expect the book for a similar class to be about the same amount. I'll also spend $80 for the math book and I'll need a scientific calculator which runs about $60 bucks. Heck a personal loan might not cut it. I might need to take a secured loan for all of the money I need.

I know one thing, I'll be glad when I'm done with school. I know it's worth it in the end and I'll be glad I finished, but the money is killing me.

PPP and their weird request-clarification

I just reread the post that I wrote and realized that people are probably thinking what's the big deal? Or even just take the picture already.

Like I said, I don't like pictures. I never have. So I don't take them. Because of that I don't own a camera. I couldn't take a picture even if I wanted to. If I go on vacation or somewhere I think I'll want to take pictures of, I just buy disposable cameras.

That's not even my biggest issue. My issue is this: I was selected for the opportunity. So they should know that I'm qualified to write the opp. Why do I need to provide a picture to prove that I am who I'm supposed to be. The picture doesn't identify me because I could use a pet or a prop or whatever I want to be the model. As long as the model is holding the product it's all good.

What if I go next door and give my next door neighbor the product and tell him to post. He doesn't write for PPP but what if he did. Just because someone has the product doesn't mean that's who should be writing the review.

Which brings me back to my long-winded point. If they know who they sent the product to, they should be the only people approved to write the opportunity. If someone slips through who isn't supposed to, don't approve the opp or pay them. It's that simple.

I don't get this whole picture deal. It's stupid to me. Whew....rant ovah!

PPP and their weird request

Hmmm, I don't know what to make of this. I write posts for ppp. Usually they work out fine. This time I was "hand selected" for a certain marketing opportunity. So what do they put in the requirements? Send a picture with your review. I think that is rather presumptuous of them. I don't take pictures. Ever. At all. Period. For anyone. Ever. Get it, got it, good.

If they're going to add weird requirements to their jobs, I would rather not be hand-selected for anything.

Barry Bonds hit 2 hr's today

Why is this related to personal finance? Because he's only 2 from tying Hank Aaron and 3 from passing him. Whoever is lucky enough to catch that ball is gonna get paid. There was a reward of $1 million on the ball, but the company was worried about fans getting hurt and retracted their offer.

The fan that gets that ball will still get a lot of money. They will also have to fight for that ball. It could get bad, I just hope nobody gets hurt because people are gonna lose their minds trying to get 756.

Insurance is confusing

Do I want tort or non-tort? How much of a deductible do I want? Sigh. Can you tell I'm looking for auto insurance? There are so many car insurance companies out there and so many options that I'm getting a jump on everything now.

My last car was brand new so I had to have full coverage on it. I also had a $1000 deductible. I still don't know what kind of tort coverage I had because I don't understand that at all. I'm looking at getting auto insurance quotes now. I want the amount I pay to be cheap but I don't want horrible coverage. That's why I'm doing my homework now to see who will offer what I'm looking for. There are so many companies out there that you need to compare what each company is offering. I would never take the first quote I got without shopping around.

In my state you have to have insurance to drive off of the lot with your car. I don't want to have to resort to getting dealer insurance because that is such a rip-off. I want a company in place where all I have to do is fax them the vehicle information and they fax me a policy and insurance card. I'm doing all of this to get insurance and I don't even have a car picked out yet. Oh well, I'm taking it one thing at a time.

The downside of paying bills online

I can really only think of one downside and of course I'm living it right now. I can't log into my account to pay my bill. The first time I tried to log in, I couldn't remember my username or password. Then I got the password wrong two more times.

I got a try again later message. I don't know if they're having trouble with their system or if I'm locked out because I tried to log in so many times. Either way I can't pay my bill right now. I'll have to either call and pay over the phone or send in a check (Horror of horrors!). Of course the bill is past due but it's the cable bill and as long as it's not over a month late there are no late fees.

Thanks for the gift card mom

My mom gave me a $25 gift card. She received it as a incentive from one of the companies she does business with. Ok ok she got it as a comp from a casino. She always gives me her good gifts and this one was no exception.

I used it to go shopping this past weekend. I was able to get a shirt and a pair of shoes. The shoes weren't the ones I wanted but they are cute. They're black patent leather wedge sandals. I was surprised to find both the shoes and shirt on sale. I needed the shoes and who couldn't use a new shirt.

Thanks mom!

Examining money making ventures

I am always trying to increase my net worth. By paying down debt and adding to my assets. I have a variety of ways that I increase my assets. One of those ways is by being a part-time reseller on several sites and I make a small profit at it each month. Although I don't make a huge profit, I do get to keep some of the items that I sell in my inventory. That makes it worthwhile for me.

One of the ways I increased my profitability was to engage in a direct mail campaign like one offered by Martin Worldwide. My campaign was very successful. I targeted past customers and was able to retain most of them. Now when they are looking for items, a lot of them will email me to see if I have it before they purchase it from another person.

At first I was nervous about putting people on a mailing list. But I feel if the campaign is used sparingly and not as a spam tool, it can be very successful.

I won $25

I know it's not a lot of money but I'm still excited about it. You know those codes that come on the top of sodas? Well I entered one from Diet Mountain Dew and won. I was surprised when I came home from work the other day and found the check in my mailbox. They give away 400 $25 prizes per day but they have over 11000 entries. Those are horrible odds so I never expected to actually win.

I drink a bottle of Diet Dew everyday, so I enter one code per day. I generally enter for the $25 but I'll also enter for a trip if it's for Aruba or the MLB All-Star Game. Maybe lightning can strike twice.

I need to keep better track of spending

In my previous post I talked about overspending. I need to start keeping better track of the money I'm spending. I need to start charging everything on my credit card. That way all of my expenses will be in one place and I'll have an itemized statement.

I found the idea of charging everything on my credit card on the GoldStarCredit website. I visit a lot of finance websites. It helps to see different perspectives on money matters. There's different sections of the website to visit. I can find out all about personal loans, mortgages, automobile loans, or debt help.

The automobile loans section will come in handy. I'm looking to buy a car in the next 6 months and I need to figure out what type of financing options I have. I want to keep the interest rate down and I also want a short financing term. I can look around the site to see what company will offer me the best deal. Every bit of money I can save will really help.

I've overspent and I don't know how

I was looking at my account and I have a couple of hundred dollars less than I thought I did in my account. I don't know what I did what the money either. I have to sit down and really take a hard look at my account to figure it out. I don't know if I spent it on clothes, food or what.

This is driving me crazy. I hate when my money doesn't add up.

Getting ready for school

Although there's still over a month before school starts, I still need to get ready. Tuition has to be paid, books have to be bought, and I still need to buy school supplies. It's funny, I feel like I'm back in high school worrying about school supplies and all. This semester I need a graphing calculator and some more notebooks and folders.

I'll be attending classes at two schools this semester. I'm trying to keep costs down so I'm taking a class a the local community college as well as one at Pitt. The class that I'm taking at the community college doesn't count towards my requirements, it's just a refresher course before I take my math class. With all the running around from school to school I'm doing, sometimes I wish I had gotten my college degree online. I would be able to take classes in the comfort of my own home with no running around from place to place.

I guess the one bright spot is that I don't pay for my own transportation costs. Since I catch the bus free, I'm saving the money I would have normally spent for my bus pass towards a car. Now if I could only figure out how to get gas for free!

I hope this check is still good

You would think I would know how long personal checks are good for considering I work for a bank. But in all honesty, I have no idea. I just found a check in my purse that I was supposed to deposit weeks ago. That's one of the drawbacks of only balancing my checkbook once a month, sometimes I have no idea how much money I really have.

I totally forgot that I had the darn thing. To make matters worse, the person who wrote the check is probably waiting for it to clear. Oops.

I had to buy a new scanner

I've been working on a short story. Actually it's more than 1. I have so many ideas running around in my head that I need to get out. I finally made the commitment to get my ideas down on paper. I bought a new printer and portable scanner. I need the printer to print out all of the pages.

I need the scanner to put help create one of the art works for my book. I want a picture that's unique and my own. I don't want a picture like everyone else has. I've created it on my laptop and I scanned it to make a cover. It doesn't look exactly like what I want but I have a pretty good idea of what direction to take next.

I also scan hand written documents onto my laptop. That's one of the reasons I love my laptop so much. It's super convenient and holds all of my documents. I use the usb port for the scanner, and when I'm done using it I just unplug it and sit it to the side until I need it again. Plus I can take everything with me when I'm on the go.

I'll make an update on the progress of my short stories in a few weeks. So come back to see how I'm doing.

I love days off but

When they fall in the middle of the week, they mess your whole schedule up. I had a ton of work left over from Tuesday. Then I was super busy today with work. I usually use certain days to play catch-up but with the day off I'm still behind.

Hopefully tomorrow will be slow and I can at least get back on track. Then enjoy the weekend.

Dang blasted Alexa

I know I should concentrate on content and not stats but Alexa is working my last nerve. All of my rankings have gone up instead of down. That ticks me off because I have a site meter so I see my site stats on a weekly basis. My stats haven't dropped off at all. Two out of the past 3 weeks, they've actually gone up.

One of my blogs has an Alexa rating of 17, which happens to be bloggers score not mine. I did have a score on that site but as of Monday it's a 17. Like I said, I need to stop paying attention to my site stats. They're really only good for bragging rights anyway.

Site sponsor update

I didn't get my site sponsor. Well I did but I didn't accept the offer. I was expecting a low ball offer for a couple of links and maybe a post or two. But that's not what they wanted at all. They wanted a permanent dedicated section on my site with multiple posts and multiple links. I would have had over 25 links to just their site. I don't care how much they were offering, it just wasn't worth it. I guess I'll keep looking. Hopefully, something will come through sooner or later.

Advanced investing

I know a lot about investing. For the most part, I manage my own portfolio. I say for the most part because my 401k is something I can't control too much. I'm at the mercy of the choices my employer makes as far as investment options.

But there are a lot of areas that I'm not comfortable with at all. I'm really not comfortable with covered calls at all. I just don't understand them enough to invest intelligently. With PowerOption I can find, compare, and analyze optionable stocks and options online to help meet my investment goals.

I believe a small portion of my investment portfolio should be extremely aggressive. But before I invest in anything remotely confusing, I will be doing the appropriate homework.

Site Stats

I've been talking about moving one of my blogs to it's own domain. It's a hard decision to make because you lose all of your page rank, alexa ratings, etc. I can redirect traffic so I won't lose that but everything else starts at zero. On a related note, one of my blogs just picked up an alexa ranking. Almost 8 million. I didn't expect a low number, but I sure didn't think it would be that high.

Getting rid of my post office box

I have a post office box that I've had for over 10 years. I have all sorts of mail go there but lately it's been nothing but junk mail with the occasional piece of good mail. I originally got the box because my mail wasn't being delivered to the apartment building where I lived. Other people where getting my mail so I got the box. I didn't want my financial statements going to other people.

Since I've changed most of my financial information to my new apartment there is no real reason to keep the po box. Within the next two months I will change the rest of my mail and close the box down. It's less than $100 per year, but I can spend that money on something else.

Tuition is due soon

I wish I could pay for my tuition with a credit card. Right now the school drafts the money out of my checking account every month for 4 months. Let me tell you, that's a long four months. I want to put the money on a credit card and stretch the payments out a couple of more months. So I've been doing research for a online credit card company. I've found several that are right up my alley. One has no fee and offers rewards. I like to get rewarded for my purchases. That's a definite bonus. Getting paid to shop and buy things you would have anyway.

Now why would I want to stretch the payments out longer? I can pay the payment within 30 days and not pay any interest at all. Add to that the fact that I get tuition reimbursement and that means that I'll take less money out of each paycheck to put towards school. More money in my pocket makes me a happy girl.

Blogging can getting tiring

Especially when you have multiple blogs. Which is one of the reasons I plan on condensing some of my blogs. It's beginning to be too much work. I can't keep track of which posts are going on which blog. I also have to try to remember which blog I've last updated and which one needs more attention. I seen some people that have 5 or more blogs. I can't see how they keep them all updated.

I need to get my budget under control

Most of my budgeted amounts are in line. But my biggest budget-buster is food. I think that holds true for a lot of people. I don't remotely cook so I eat most of my meals at work. At home I have easy things like pasta or rice and beans. I still spend about 10% too much each pay period. Paying for school leaves me no extra money so I need to get this under control sooner rather than later.

I need a new refrigerator

One of the perks of living in an apartment is that when something goes wrong, you just call maintenance and they come and fix it within 2 days. It usually gets fixed the same day if it's a normal problem. So it's time for me to schedule another appointment for a new refrigerator.

My fridge "knocks". Sounds weird doesn't it? Every 15 to 20 minutes it sort of hiccups. It's really hard to describe. I had the maintenance man over a few months ago and he told me that once it got too much for me to bear, to let him know and he will order me a new fridge. I even get to pick it out from a list. I'm looking at a Kenmore refrigerator. I used a search engine and typed in several makes and compared features. I can't wait. This noise is making me crazy.

I need to get up to speed with school

I know it's summer and I still have almost 7 weeks before classes start, but I need to get busy. I have to add a class at community college, drop one at Pitt and fill in my tuition reimbursement forms before July 15th. The rule at my job is that all classes must be approved 20 days before the start of the term. I don't want to wait until the last minute. I'm such a procrastinator that I know I will anyway.

Why leave anonymous comments?

On a non-money related topic, I like when people leave comments. I really do. But I don't understand why they leave them anonymously. Whenever someone leaves a comment I always try to respond to it. Unless it's obviously spam, then I ignore it and/or delete it. Then I go visit their site and try to see what they're writing about. Whenever you leave me an anonymous comment, you lose a potential visitor because I don't get to see your site.

I'm not discouraging comments, in fact I welcome them. Leave more, but leave a link to your site as well.

Should we get travel insurance?

I don't know if I've mentioned on this blog that my family is going on a cruise. It's me, my mom and my aunt. We're going to Mexico, Belize and the Bahamas on a 7 day trip. We leave in August.

The time of year that we're leaving is right in the middle of hurricane season. Cruise ships generally steer away from the hurricanes and onto a safe path. However travel insurance can be a good bet. I found one company called TravelSafe that offers trip cancellation or interruption insurance. They also offer a "Cancel for any reason" cash-back benefit. In the event that our trip gets cancelled or cut short we would get some, if not all, of our money back.

Now I just have to convince everyone else to spring for it. They want to take the cheap route. My motto is better safe than sorry.

Getting site sponsors

I might be getting a new site sponsor. Woohoo. More sponsors mean more money. I had someone email me asking if I was interested in putting up a link to their site. Ummm heck yeah dude! Now I'm waiting for him to get back to me with the details of the offer.

I'm still pretty new to the blog monetization game so I'm not even sure how much a link should go for. I'll be flying blind for a while until I get the hang of this. Hopefully this is the first of more sponsors to come.

I might not have to switch locations at work

I just found out today that one of the job paths that I'm interested in is offered at the building I work at. The only problem is that they don't hire a lot of people. Maybe 2 per year. So when I see the job I have to jump on it and apply right away. The good news is that the job is several grades higher than I am now, so I would see a nice raise.

There are 2 reasons why it's so hard to get higher jobs at my location. The first reason is because it's a small environment, there are only 700 or so employees. Most departments have less than 30 people total. Each department is broken into teams with about 10 people each. That's why it will be hard to get another job. There just aren't a lot of positions to go around.

The second reason is because there is free employee parking. When you first start you get put on a waiting list for a space. The list is about 18 months long. With the transit system cutting bus routes, people in the suburbs don't have as many choices. I have 2 or 3 coworkers who have already said they will never leave because of parking. I know a lot of other people feel the same way. I mean really, who wants to use public transportation if they don't have to?

Hopefully something will open up soon.

Exploring all of my investment options

There are a lot of options out there for investing money. I have cash, stocks and mutual funds already. I'm looking to add several more components though. I would like to add some bonds and some gold bullion. Why gold you ask? Well one reason is that it comes in many different forms. You can get gold in ingot or bullion form or as gold coins.

I love the look of gold ingots. However, these are investments not the kind that you wear. I'm leaning more towards gold coins though. Coins are available through companies like Monex. You can buy coins in a variety of sizes. Generally as an ounce, half-ounce, a quarter ounce, and a tenth of an ounce.

And if I don't want to take possession of the coins, I can have them stored at a bank or depository. But I like to be in total control of all of my investments. I'm sure I would have them in my storage box. I don't like other people holding onto my money or assets if I can help it.

I think young people should consider Job Corps

I just saw a commercial for Job Corps and I had to blog about it. I had a few friends go through the program and it's definitely worth it. They pay for a associates degree and they let you live on their campus. If you want to commute from home that's fine too. They give you a clothing and transportation allotment and pay for books to boot.

Your associates degree will be free and you won't have any debt when you're done. You can transfer all of the credits into a four year school towards your bachelors degree. If you're between 18-24 you should consider it.

My biggest relationship mistake

It was a biggie too. I loaned my boyfriend money. I know that was not the wisest thing to do. He needed the money to buy a car because he was in an accident and his car was totaled. His tires were bald and he skidded on an ice patch. Luckily no one was hurt in the accident and he hit a median in the road.

He works in the burbs and had no way to get to work. I work in the city and buses are abundant, but the burbs are a different story. They don’t have bus service within a mile and a half of where he works. We were dating and had been for over a year. I didn’t want him to lose his job, so I loaned him $2500.

The best thing I could have done was insist that he get a used car and put my name on the title. He did me one better and registered the car in my name. You know the break up story came next. And we broke up over…..you guessed it, money. At the time I made more money than he did and he couldn’t handle it. When I left I took the car with me. Since it was in my name, I sold it and was able to get all of my money back.

In hindsight, I should have seen the warning signs. He was jealous of the amount of money I earned. Believe me, I’m no Rockefeller and I’m not rolling in dough either. I just happened to make a few dollars more than he did. I wish a site that dealt with Relationship tips was around back then. I could have used some advice about how to understand men. They want a woman to be independent, but not too independent. Strange creatures that they are.

I need to balance my checkbook

So what else is new? I hardly ever balance my checkbook anymore. I'll go 2 or 3 weeks without any updates at all. I need to transfer some money into my savings account. I also need to sent some money to my stock fund. I'm supposed to send money every other month. I should have sent money 3 times already this year. This will only be the 2nd time. I'm a slacker.

How do you take too much student loan money?

I don't know, but believe me I did it. As a undergraduate student there is a certain amount of money that you are allowed to borrow. I went way over that amount by at least 15%. The student loans should have been denied but they weren't. I also had private loans through the school as well. Those are paid off. My regular Stafford loans are still being paid.

I will be glad when I'm done with school. The money that is now paying tuition will be put on my student loans to get those things paid off. Hopefully within the next 5-7 years I can be student loan free.

School is getting more expensive

I was supposed to take 2 classes in the fall. Now it looks like I might be taking 3. I've been paying myself but I think I might have to take out a student loan. I can't afford to pay for the classes. I do get reimbursement from my job, but I don't have the money to kick out first.

I have to apply for a private student loan. I don't qualify for regular student loans because I took too much money the first time I went to school. So instead of going the traditional student loan route, I have to go through a bank. I do still get the low interest rates and the interest rate deductions on my taxes. Those deductions are important. I made sure I got them when I applied for my student loan consolidation loan as well.

Man, I had to take a student loan consolidation because the payments were killing me. I was paying several hundred dollars per month. Now I still pay a couple hundred dollars but not as much as before. Not by a long shot. I was paying a car payment just for student loans. No wonder I couldn't afford anything else. But with student loan consolidation I have a little bit of extra money. Of course now that money is paying tuition and books.

That's why I'm trying to get a new job. I need to make more money. School is really breaking the bank.

Sports posts on the wrong blog

I've done it again. I put my sports post on this blog instead of the other one. At least I did make it applicable to this blog by talking about the money aspect. It still should have gone on the other blog anyway.

That's one of the problems with running multiple blogs. Sometimes you forget which blog you're on.

I'm looking for a new job

I like my job. I really do. But I don't get paid nearly enough. I know that most people don't feel that they get paid what they're worth. I get paid ok for the job that I do. I need to move up in my company. The problem is that I just got a promotion so I'm unable to post for another job for 15 months.

A promotion sounds good and I shouldn't complain right? Wrong, at least in my case. My job gave me a promotion but I got it at the same time that my annual raise was due. So I got the same amount of money for my promotion that I would have gotten as a raise. And I got locked in my job because it's considered a promotion.

My uncle has suggested that I look at a executive recruiting firm for help. Recruiters can really help you because they have contacts that you as a job seeker don't have. Since most recruiters focus on a certain job field, they know that field inside out. Part of that is also know what the employer is looking for and whether each applicant meets those qualifications.

It's something I really need to think about. What I get paid now is almost a joke.

Tickets to sporting events are expensive

I want to go to a baseball game and a football game this year. The tickets are so expensive. Steelers tickets start at $60 per ticket. That's not too bad, but when you consider parking, food, maybe a souvenir or two and it's well over $100 per person. I know I don't have to eat at the game, but it's a part of the whole game time experience for me.

Pirates tickets are cheap. I can get a ticket for less than $15 but the seats where I really want to sit are $27. I want to sit along the first or third baseline. For a baseball game if I can't sit exactly where I want, I probably won't go. Yes, I am a brat like that.

I'm so mad about school

I should have taken a summer class. I didn't know the class I wanted was being offered until the last minute. I thought the class started the day after Mother's Day but it started a week later. I was out of town for Mother's Day weekend and thought that I would miss the first class.

I hadn't actually missed the first class. By the time I found out the start date of the class, it was a week into the class. Summer classes are 6 weeks long. If you miss 2 classes, you can't catch up because of all of the work.

I just wish I had stayed up on the class schedule. Sigh...better luck next semester.

Sometimes it's all about the money

We are a very litigious society. So whenever someone hears that you are suing someone, the first thing they think is that you're trying to hit a lawsuit "jackpot". What most people don't realize is that they're not going to get the big payday they're dreaming of.

My moms best friend is involved in a lawsuit with her job. It's a unlawful termination. Because it's an active case, I can't say too much about specifics. She's not being sued, but she's named in the lawsuit as a defendant because of the company she works for. The company is represented by Simmons Jannace & Stagg. They specialize in corporate law among other things. They also handle real estate transactions, municipal law, and securities law. They're one of the most respected law groups in the tri-state area of NY, NJ and CT.

The person in question is in for a very rude awakening. When all is said and done, there will be no big windfall and they still won't have a job.

Slacking with my money

Yesterday I found 2 checks that I had never deposited. One was for my quarterly divident payment. The other was for a survey I had done. They survey money is not sent PayPal. I deposited the money today. Most of it will be used to purchase additional stock. I plan on sending the check on Wednesday or Thursday. This way it will count towards this quarters goals.

Summer vacation season is upon us

I am so jealous of my coworker. She goes on awesome vacations every year. This year is no different. This year her family is going to Hawaii. They've done their research into various Hawaii condos for their stay.

They've been to Hawaii before but they've never stayed in Hawaii condos before. They usually stay in a local hotel. But after her parents discussed it, they decided that Hawaii condos would be their best bet. When you stay in a more private setting, you can better control your surroundings.

They can cook their own food. Why they would want to cook on vacation is beyond me. I'm all about eating at local restaurants and having local food. However, the condo offers them more privacy as it is not in the direct path of tourists. It sits away from the hotels but is still near the beach.

I know that I'm going on my own awesome vacation this year. But come on, this is Hawaii. Who wouldn't be excited about that?

I've written a lot of posts

When you go into your dashboard to sign in, it tells you how many posts you have made. I'm up over 300. Closer to 305. That's a whole heck of a lot of posts. I didn't think I had written that many. I know my blog is over a year old, but still that's a lot. I guess I have a lot more to say than I thought I did.

Wrapped around my finger

That was the first song I heard this morning when I woke up. You know how you hear a song and it takes you back to a certain time or place? Every single time I hear that song I think of my ex-boyfriend Chris. He used to sing that song to me all the time. He would sing other songs off of the police cd to me too, but that is the main one he really liked. He could not sing to save his life so it was always funnny to hear.

That's one of the reasons why I love the Police so much. There are so many songs on the police cd that I love. I can't even name them all. I ordered their new 2 cd set and it's well worth the money. I don't think there is any other band out there like the Police.

When you consider their reunion tour, most people like me are ecstatic. I thought I would have to watch a tv special to see them perform together again. I actually get to go see them live. I'm really super excited about this. When you hear the glowing comments that other musicians have made about the band, you know they've made their mark. They have inspired many other bands. I think that's what it's all about. Not only perfecting your craft, but mentoring other bands.

There is also a contest where you can win a trip to New York to see the Police perform live. This is right up my alley. I love to travel, I haven't been to NY in forever and I'd get to see the Police free. You can bet the farm I'm entering this contest. Man would that be a sweet prize to win.

Would you rent out your house?

I don't think I could. I am way too neurotic for that. The U.S. Open golf tournament is coming to Pittsburgh starting on Monday. Local people are renting out their homes for a ton of money. I mean thousands of dollars for the week. While the money sounds nice, I don't know if I could do it.

I have to keep a tight rein on my money

I know I seem to obsess about my money not being in my accounts, but I like to keep a tight rein on my money. My budget is stretched to the max so I have to know where every dollar goes.

Two years ago, I was drowning in debt. So bad that I had to go out and get debt help. I was totally mis-managing my money. I had so many personal loans, I don't know how I made the payments. It eventually affected my credit rating, making me take out bad credit loans. Those were the worst because they had ridiculously high interest rates.

I ended up talking to my boyfriend and getting him to help me set up a spending plan that helped me to get out from under all of that debt. I am by no means debt-free, but I'm no longer robbing Peter to pay Paul.

I got my money

I logged onto my bank account this morning as soon as I got to work. My money was there. I only transferred slightly over $100 into my account but at least there's some money there now. I don't have any checks on my primary checking account so I always try to keep money in this account just in case.

I think I might transfer some more money, just in case. You just never know what's going to happen.

Where is my money?

I transferred some money from my PayPal account into my checking account the other day and it still hasn't shown up yet. I've had it show up the next day, so for it to be 3 days later is kind of weird to me.

I only balance my checkbook once every 2 weeks so I'm going crazy because I can't remembered how much I transferred. Especially since my work computer is so slow. I can't even log into PayPal from work.

Father's Day is coming up

I was talking to my workleader at work yesterday. She was wondering what to get her husband for Father's Day. She really has no clue what to get him. He doesn't really have any hobbies or interests where he needs special equipment or tools. That makes him extremely difficult to buy for.

Then she told me that they were going on a cruise later this summer. It's a 4 day, 3 night cruise to the Bahamas. I asked her if they were planning on doing the formal night on the cruise ship and she said yes. She already has a dress from a formal wedding that they went to 2 summers ago. I just need to say that I'm jealous that she can still fit into a dress from 2 years ago. There are clothes that I bought last year that I can't fit anymore. Anyway, her husband has a suit that he's had forever that he's planning on wearing.

I told her to buy him a combination of a necktie and Pocket Squares from Belisi.com. With the large selection that they have, I'm sure she should be able to find something that they'll both like. The ties are made of pure silk and make a wonderful gift. The best part is, she can coordinate his tie with a scarf, shawl or hair accessory that she is wearing.

I purchased 3 silk scarves from Belisi for a very low price. They're very pretty and I've gotten a ton of compliments on them. The best part is that they're unique and I haven't seen anyone else with them. I use one for a hair accessory. I tie it to my ponytail and let it hang down my back. I always get people asking me where I got it from. It always surprises people to hear how affordable they were.

I think her husband will love anything from Belisi that she buys him.

I won't be using GPT sites anymore

I won't name the sites that I use. I am a member of 3 sites, but only actively use 2. GPT means get paid to try. You know how you sign up for a website or newsletter or even sample a product? Well, there are sites out there that will match you up with sponsors that will pay you to try there sites or products.

So what's the problem? I've been a member for a while and now my offers aren't crediting. I feel like I'm wasting my time now just filling out surveys and getting tons of junk mail with no payoff.

Oh well, they were good while they lasted.

I might go to Cleveland for a game

Cleveland is not exactly a travel destination for most people. But for baseball fans it's a great place to visit. One of my coworkers wants to drive to Cleveland to catch a game. We're planning on making a day of it. We're trying to go to a day game. That way we can leave in the morning, catch the game and hang out for a while before we come back home.

I am definitely not a driver. I like to call myself the designated passenger. One of my responsibilities is to get the directions. I plan on using a site called publicroutes.com. It's a free site and they will direct us exactly where we need to go. I'll also keep the site handy in case we need a map of Boston MA. Hey, who knows, we might make it to a Red Sox game as well. Of course, we probably won't get tickets to the Yankees series in August, but maybe we'll see the White Sox or Tigers.

My computer at work is so slow

I've been trying to get into my PayPal account for several days. My computer at work won't even load the site. Then if you are patient enough to wait for the site to load, it still won't let you log in.

They are in the process of updating all of the computers. They lease them and most of the leases are up. Of course mine is not up for another few months.

I need to get into my PayPal account and transfer some money into my checking account. There's no money in there right now. I gotta change that and quick.

Working my money

I work my money to the max. Anyway I can find to make extra money, I do. I work at a bank and they have incentives for banking with them. I didn't get in on this because I already banked there before I started working there.

However, now that I'm a employee, I take full advantage of their programs. I plan on opening a certificate of deposit. They don't pay a high interest rate but my job perks will make it worth my while. I'll get an extra percent plus a gift card. That will make my rate of return over 5%.

I'm also going to get a debt consolidation loans I plan on using this to pay down some outstanding personal loans that I have. Again because I'm an employee, I'll get percentage points knocked off by using automatic debit. So, I'll still spend money for my payments, but the amount that I pay will be much lower. And the loan will get paid off quicker to boot.

I read all types of personal finance websites like creditloan.com. They give you great ideas about how to get out of debt. I plan on putting these ideas into action.

I thought I had problems

I emailed a friend today to whine and cry about my life. After she played Dr Phil, I asked about her weekend. Boy was it a doozy. Long story short, somebody threatened her with a gun. It was a case of road rage to the extreme. Luckily she had her cell phone and was able to call the police. It was still a scary situation.

Bloggers now get paid more with PPP Direct

This is good news for both bloggers and advertisers. It's especially good for bloggers though. PPP Direct is perfect.

Advertisers come to you. Yes, they search you and your blog out. They can be advertisers that you've blogged for that enjoyed your work. Or people that have seen your blog and have wanted you to write for them but didn't know how to set it up.

That's not even the best part. It is extremely flattering for people to search you out and want to work with you, that's true. The best part however is that you get paid more. More money makes me a happy girl!

See with sites like ReviewMe, there is a 50-100% markup. So if you are offered $20 for your post, you actually only get $10 or less. I know some people get much less than half. Only the really big bloggers get in the 50% range. But with PayPerPost Direct, if you get offered $20 for blogging, you get the whole $20. The advertiser pays PPP a 10% fee, half of which goes towards PayPal transaction costs and credit card processing.

If you're worried about security or even getting paid for your work. No worries mon. PayPerPost handles all of that. They are the ultimate middle man. All you have to do is worry about writing quality content and let PPP handle the rest.

So what are you waiting for? Get on board with PayPerPost Direct today!

Are you really sick?

At least 32% of people who call off work are not really sick. Especially since most companies are moving more towards the more flexible paid time off concept. At my job, you can schedule pto (just as you would a vacation day), or do the usual and call off sick.

Here are the top 15 excuses for calling off sick according to CareerBuilder.com:

1. Employee was poisoned by his mother-in-law.

2. A buffalo escaped from the game reserve and kept charging the employee every time she tried to go to her car from her house.

3. Employee was feeling all the symptoms of his expecting wife.

4. Employee called from his cell phone, saying that he was accidentally locked in a restroom stall and that no one was around to let him out.

5. Employee broke his leg snowboarding off his roof while drunk.

6. Employee's wife said he couldn't come into work because he had a lot of chores to do around the house.

7. One of the walls in the employee's home fell off the night before.

8. Employee's mother was in jail.

9. A skunk got into the employee's house and sprayed all of his uniforms.

10. Employee had a bad case of hiccups.

11. Employee blew his nose so hard, his back went out.

12. Employee's horses got loose and were running down the highway.

13. Employee was hit by a bus while walking.

14. Employee's dog swallowed her bus pass.

15. Employee was sad.

I am literally lol at some of these excuses. Especially #'s 1, 5, 9. Have you ever used any of these excuses?

Read Marketing Conversation and learn something new

I love when I read a new blog and learn something new at the same time. Most blogs aren't out to teach you anything. They're just online journals of the writers' life. Kind of like my blog.

As I was reading through Marketing Conversation, I noticed that it was different. It not only throws around a bunch of jargon, but Chris takes the time to explain what the terms mean. Do you know what a vertical blog is? I know I sure didn't. Well, a vertical blog is...hey wait a minute. Head on over to Marketing Conversation to find out.

What is wrong with people?

This past week we were short staffed at work. One of my coworkers had to be sent home. The reason.....she had ring worms. Ewww and yuck. She adopted 2 cats from the animal shelter. At first, she just knew they had patches. She took them to the vet and he told her they had ring worms. She kept rubbing up against the cats and she got it.

She was at work for almost 2 hours before she said anything. Meanwhile, she had been scratching and touching everything in the office. This is the same person who is always calling off or coming to work late. We think she did it so she could get the extra days off. She's out of sick days already so they made her use vacation days. She left on Tuesday and came back on Friday.

People please have some consideration for everyone else.

Convincing loved ones to get help

This is probably one of the hardest things in the world to do. Family always thinks you're coming down hard on them or passing judgement on them, even when you aren't. At the same time, it's hard to stand by and watch someone make mistake after mistake and not say anything.

My aunt passed away and left a large sum of money to her daughter. The daughter never wanted for anything in her life, but the temptation of the money was too much for her. She got hooked on drugs and squandered all of the money. Eventually we convinced her to go to drug rehab, but it was not easy. It took several years for her to see the light. She also had to hit rock-bottom before she realized that she indeed have a problem.

How do you know if someone needs help? I took this quote from the 1800nodrugs.com website: "If an addict cannot break free from the destructive and life threatening patterns of drug and alcohol addiction, they and/or others may suffer and die needlessly and harshly". If this sounds like someone you know, I urge you to get them help. It won't be easy, but you'll be glad you did it.

Work musings

Today is my one year anniversary at work. I'm not surprised that I made it to one year. I am surprised that I'm in my same department. I had planned to leave at the post out mark (6 months). Then I decided to stay and have 1 solid years worth of experience. Well, 3 weeks before my 1 year was up I got a promotion. But it wasn't a real promotion. They just gave me the next job grade along with my regular raise.

Hopefully, my plans will work out and when my next six months are up I can jump at least 2 job grades. That should be a nice little raise.

Edit: How the heck did I post this with no title? Doh!

The most boring weekend in the world

I didn't do anything this weekend. Nothing at all. None of my friends were around to hang out with. My friend that was supposed to have a cookout went to Baltimore instead. So I didn't have a cookout to go to. None of my other friends had one. I tried to talk my friend that always cooks into having one, but she wouldn't go for it.

In the end, everyone just decided to stay home. Maybe I'll do something next weekend. If none of my friends has anything planned for the 4th of July, I'll plan something on my own. Staying home for 3 days is a total drag. Especially since all of my neighbors are early birds and I didn't even get to sleep in.

High school graduations

Sigh, the season is upon us. I'm happy that my cousin is graduating, I'm not happy that I'm getting ready to pay out of the wazoo for his present. He wants an ipod shuffle. When he said ipod, I thought I was going to pass out. Then he threw the shuffle in their and I breathed a big sigh of relief.

I still have some other small stuff to get him too. He's a twin and they don't have a lot of pictures from when they were smaller. I have a boatload of them, so I'm getting one of the nicer ones framed. His twin isn't graduating this year because of health problems. So next year a present and the following year the baby graduates. Now if I can only talk them into college.

Women get your money right

First let me say that I understand that men want to get their money right. But it's often assumed that men are better investors than women. While I know that's not always true, most financial planners seem to believe that as well. When couples or women alone go, they often get spoken to in a condescending manner. They usually asked questions like "Did you ask your husband?" or "Maybe we should wait for your husband and see what he thinks". Truth be told, women are just as good as investing as men are.

That's why I'm happy that I've found a woman who is not only a financial planner but she also specializes in helping women reach their financial goals. Elizabeth Potts Weinstein is a independent fee-only Certified Financial planner and the owner of TheWealthSpa.com. On her site you can find tips such as the types of people that should work with her (people that want to learn more about money) and people that should not work with her (people that want get-rich quick schemes.

You can visit her site to get her free weekly e-zine. There's also a free teleclass each month focus on various topics. If you want to learn how to "Stop Procrastinating About Your Finances", stop on by and sign up.

I've been sick for 2 days

This sucks. I still don't feel well. Of course it happened during the holiday weekend when I'm supposed to be relaxing. My stomach has been topsy-turvy like crazy. I couldn't even sleep last night, I tossed and turned trying to find a comfortable position all night long. I just hope this ends soon. I have a lot to do around the house this weekend. So laying around waiting for my stomach to calm down just won't do.

Having bad credit sucks

I already talked about my mom and her credit card. I just found out that she was considering getting a credit card balance transfer to pay off her debt. I thought that was good until she told me what kind of interest rate she was getting. It was something outrageous line 22.9%. For a credit card that's not unusual, but a balance transfer? You can usually get 0%-3.9%. She has bad credit so that makes a big difference. You can't really be too picky with the rates you since the banks don't really have to compete for your business. They know they have you between a rock and a hard place. Most people with bad credit are really in a bind and will do anything to get the money.

You really can't blame the banks though. That's how they make their money. If everyone had good credit, the interest rates would always be low. I just feel bad for my mom because she lost her job and went delinquent on 2 credit cards. Instead of working with the companies, she tried to charge the cards off. She owed too much money and the credit card companies were not going to let that go. In the past year, she paid the accounts off, but she still has to deal with the low credit rating for the next few years. We've talked about it and she's decided not to get the card. I told her when I come home the next time, we'll look online and compare rates and fees before she applies for any more credit.

I'm not going home

I went to two different websites, the cheapest ticket I can get right now is almost $200 or double what I want to spend. I'm kinda upset but not really. It would be nice to go home again but at the same time, I hadn't had anything planned so it shouldn't matter. I just really didn't want to sit in the house all weekend. None of my friends are doing anything or their going over other peoples houses so I really don't have anywhere to go. I guess I'll figure something out.

I did miss the start of the game

And that post is on the wrong blog. When I was saving it, I wondered why the categories looked weird. I write a ton of sports posts on my other blog so they take up a lot of the categories. I try not to write too many on this blog so I have no sports related categories. So to get this back on track of finance I will say I'm trying to find a baseball game to go to this year. My neighbor offered to take me to a game but it didn't work out so maybe we'll try again. Except this time, I'll buy my own ticket.

Orlando is more than just the house of the mouse

I've seen some great advertising for Orlando Fl. I've wanted to go visit for quite some time. It's also on my list of places to move when I get done with school. That's a very short list. There are several reasons why I am considering Orlando. First, they're close to all of the theme parks and attractions in Fl. For visiting family and friends this will be a great plus. The second reason is most definitely the weather. Orlando is nice and sunny all year round. Because of where it's located in the state, it doesn't fall into the hurricane belt. You do get some of the storms and hurricanes, but you don't get the full brunt of the storms. Most times, you only get the excessive winds and rain. The last reason, is because there is so much culture and diversity in the region. That is very important to me.

When I visit, I will plan way in advance so I can get a great deal on Orlando hotels. Since Orlando is such a popular place to visit, it's never on sale. You have to look around to find affordable rates. I will also need tips on entertainment and dining. Since there are so many luxury hotels in the area, I can turn this into a spa visit and shopping trip too. A girl must have her priorities in order.

I won't miss tonight's game

I will not miss the beginning of the Yankees vs. RedSox game tonight. I missed the start of the game on Monday and I missed A-Rod hitting a homer. Of course, yesterday's game was nothing to write home about.

I was just thinking, I have 3 teams that I root for. For whatever reason, the majority of times their wins and losses seem to sync up. I know it's just me paying more attention to the scores on certain days. But whatever.

This holiday snuck up on me

I totally forget that next week was a holiday. I don't have any plans either. I might go visit my family again, if I can get a ticket for less than $100. I highly doubt it since it's so close to the travel date but you never know. Sometimes you can get a last minute deal. If I don't go home I have no idea what I'll do this weekend. Probably just hang around the house.

Gimme an A

My niece is a cheerleader. It's almost a year round responsibility anymore. During the school year they cheer during games and school functions. Now that summer is coming, they have competitions and summer camps to get ready for next year. It's mind boggling how much time they put into practice.

It's also more expensive than a lot of people realize. There's a lot of travel involved. Plus the cost of pom-poms, uniforms, and shoes. The school does provide some financial support but for the most part the kids have to do a lot of cheerleading fundraising. The most popular item this year was the customized flip-flops. The flip-flops are purple and gold, our school colors. They're not gaudy. They're purple with gold weaved throughout. The students love them, especially since they spend a lot of time at the beach. The flip-flops have the school logo on the bottom, so when you walk on the sand, the school logo shows up behind you. It's a neat concept.

I gladly support their efforts. I know it gets expensive and most parents can't afford to pay for all of their kids' activities. I consider this a small price to pay to have the kids in positive after school activities.

People want me to loan them money

No way Jose. Been there done that got the t-shirt. I've been burned before. I feel bad when someone needs money. I've been there myself. But I've had to dig myself out of the hole I was in because I didn't want to ask anyone for money. I know it's hard especially when you have kids. But if I've loaned you money once and you don't pay it back or it takes you 2 years to pay back $100, don't ask again. The answer will always be no.

I am confident

Ok, well not as confident as I would like to be. I mean I'm no turtle hiding in my shell, but I do think I could project a more powerful presence. Not overpowering, but not a shrinking violet either.

I've read that you can order subliminal CDs that will help you with a variety of issues. You can improve your confidence, develop patience, lose weight, or even alleviate impulse eating. That would go perfectly with the lose weight cd. Subliminal-cds.com offers these cds and more.

If you're asking just what is a subliminal message, it's a method of sending message directly to the impressionable subconscious mind. Sound confusing? It's not really. You just listen to the cds. Once a night for the first week, then once a week for three weeks. That's it. Easy. If you order the product in mp3 form, you can even have it in minutes.

Order it today and be more confident tomorrow.

My previous post

I hope my previous post doesn't make me sound greedy. I'm not looking for a ring that costs a lot of money or the rock of Gibraltar. I do want the ring but it's more what the ring symbolizes than the actual ring.

I hope this is making sense. I re-read my post and it seems like I came across as a money-grubbing gold digger and that is so far from the truth it's not even funny. I've always had my own job and my own money. Like I said, it's more what the ring symbolizes than anything else.

Buy me my diamond already

My boyfriend and I have been talking about getting engaged. I know it's a serious step and neither of us takes it lightly. I'm just ready to get my diamond engagement ring. I know that sounds terribly selfish but I'm not putting any pressure on him. I don't want us to rush into something.

I have found a perfect ring though. I've been doing my research and I found a jeweler that offers great products. While doing my research I printed out the 4 C's guide and I've narrowed down a price range. I would love a huge rock but I know that it makes more sense to get a smaller more perfect diamond than a huge diamond with visible flaws.

Just hurry up with the proposal man.

Some people have all the luck

I didn't hear the entire story, just the general jist of it. A woman found $10. Hey that's cool. I've found money before. Anyway, she decided to take the money to the store and buy a PA Lottery scratch ticket. I don't know if most people would have done that but hey, I guess she figured it was free money so what they hay. Anyway, the ticket was a $1 million dollar winner. Can you imagine?!?!?! Nothing like that ever happens to me.

I love when my money makes money

I have all of my emergency fund in my savings account. I want to keep the money safe and easily accessible. There's nothing better than having your money earn additional money. When you have a high yield savings accounts, you can really rack up the extra money.

I don't think you should take chances with your emergency fund because you never know when something may happen and you might need that money. You don't even need to have your money in a traditional bank. My money is in my credit union account. Credit unions in general pay better interest rates than banks. However, you can't just assume that the banks will pay lower rates. That's why it's so important to visit a website like emoneycentral.com and compare rates. You may find that there is a difference of several percentage points. And that could end up earning you a lot of extra money.

I'm thinking about getting a summer job

I need to make some extra cash for school. It's a lot more expensive than I thought it would be. I knew it was costly, but I underestimated how much I would need each semester.

For the upcoming fall semester, I estimate that I'm close to $700 short. I know I could make that much and a lot more by working a part time job this summer. Sigh, I don't know what I'll do. I'll have to look around and see what I can find.

My mom and her credit card

I just found out that my mom got one of those awful high interest credit cards. To add insult to injury they have both an annual fee and a monthly maintenance fee. Ugh. I wish she would have talked to me first. There are some great Credit Cards out there, but this bank definitely does not offer one. Her bank specializes strictly in cards for people with bad credit.

I told her that that's no reason to get robbed blind by the credit card company. She can apply for a secured credit card. That's where your balance is determined by how much you have in their banks' savings account. Most legitimate companies will release your deposit after one year and give you a unsecured card.

Either way I think it's a great way to rebuild credit. After all, most people don't qualify for 0% or low interest rate cards. But that doesn't matter that people should be raked over the coals either.

Another Alexa rant

How in the world does this stuff update. I've had multiple people visit my blog today. I know this because they've sent me emails commenting on posts I wrote. But my silly Alexa rating keeps going up instead of down. What in the world is going on?!?!

Alexa is important because sponsors and web-masters use it to determine your sites popularity. Some sites won't even link to you if you have a low pr (less than 3) or a high Alexa rating (where mine is now). I need higher pr websites to link to me. They actually leak some of their pr to you. It doesn't hurt their site but it sure helps your site.

I guess I just wish I knew what made these meters jump the way they do. That way I could do more of the good things and less of the bad.

I want to go to the Caribbean next year

I haven't even gone on this years vacation and I'm already looking towards next year. I always plan at least 6 months in advance to make sure I have the money I need and the vacation days from work.

I want to go to the Caribbean next year. I have my sights set on the Dominican Republic. Most of the people that have visited the island have great things to say. The Dominican is becoming one the fastest growing destinations in the Caribbean. I'm planning on booking a all inclusive family vacation. All inclusive is definitely the way to go when you visit the Caribbean. Most of the food on the islands is imported so it's very expensive. Also, booking airfare and hotels separate is just asking to pay more.

Packages also make sense because you often get extra amenities in the package. The reason for that is the resort figures you spent so much money that you won't want to leave their property. Non-motorized water sports and activities are usually included. That includes snorkeling and banana boat rides.

Vacations.net offers all inclusive vacations, in-depth reviews on your destination, and hotel reviews from travelers who have actually visited the resort. Add to that their hot deals, free nights program and percentage off promotions and there's no reason not to visit and book with them.

I work hard so I should be able to relax and/or play hard. That's why I love vacation so much. A week to totally get away and just forget about everything. I can just imagine that umbrella drink now.

I might have to take Kontera off anyway

Yesterday I wrote about my Kontera showing up incorrectly. I might have to take the program off anyway. I have a "hack" in where the links aren't supposed to show on certain posts. The links don't show in IE but they do show in FireFox and I don't want them to show in any programs at all.

I'll leave them on for another couple of days to see whether the kinks work themselves out.

Kontera is driving me crazy

My Kontera links are not showing up. They're not supposed to be in some posts because I have a filter in them. But the links aren't showing anywhere. They kinda goofy looking on my other blog too. This is driving me crazy. I'm not going to even talk about the fact that people aren't clicking on the ads.

You can't click on ads that aren't there. Grrrrr.

My cousin is in the market for a new van

My cousin has severe leg pain. She looks bow-legged but her legs almost turn the in the opposite direction. It's really hard to describe how it looks but you can tell it hurts. She's had problems with her legs since she was a child. She would never take the medicine that they gave her because she didn't want to. The doctors also suggested surgery but because our family is poor she couldn't afford it. Now a days she could qualify for one of the charity programs for medical care but back then those programs weren't available.

As you can imagine getting around is very hard. Even though they have pretty decent bus service where she lives, all buses are not handicap accessible. Some of the buses that are supposed to be are malfunctioning. The lifts don't work or the seats don't actually lift to fit the wheelchair. So they need to look into getting their own handicap van. They can't afford to buy a new van, so they have to really do their homework when buying a used van.

Is the van interior large enough to fit the wheelchair? Has the van been in any accidents, floods, or had any claims against it? Is this a reputable dealer that they're buying from? These are all of the questions that they have to answer before putting down their cash for the van. I told them to just make sure they do their homework first to make sure they're getting the right van for their needs.

This was not a good week at work

I got this awful promotion. It came at the same time as my regular merit increase was due. They gave me 3.5% and a job grade increase. That sucks! 3.5% for a raise I understand, but for a promotion?!?! What a joke. Of course, with the higher job grade comes additional responsibilities. So a lot more work, but not a lot more money.

I would have turned it down if they would have given me the chance to. I'm trying to leave my area anyway and this slows down the process. Now I have to stay an additional 6 months unless my manager lets me leave early. I hate the idea that she can stop me from taking a better paying job.

I really don't like my job very much.

I'm debating getting an mba

I know I don't have my bachelor's degree yet, but I'll have it next year. I have to start thinking about graduate school now. I need to get my gpa up and take foundation classes to make me a more attractive candidate. I don't need financial or managerial accounting but when you want your mba, those classes are important.

One school that I'm researching is Capella University. It's an online school that was founded in 1993. They offer a graduate program in business as well as technology, education and information technology. Sara Orem PhD is a adjunct faculty member in the school of Business and Technology. She also serves as a coach, owning her own coaching firm. That makes a program seem more legitimate to me when they at least name some of their faculty members so you can research them yourself while making a decision.

As part of my research I'm considering online schools because I work fulltime. It's often hard to find classes to fit into my schedule after work. With online classes, I can go during my lunch hour at work as well as at night. The more convenient it is, the more likely I'll go with it.

A vote for community college

My neighbor is thinking about going back to college. He went right out of high school but only stayed one semester. Our job offers tuition reimbursement so he feels that he might as well take advantage of that benefit. I totally agree that he should go and get his degree. A degree can open so many doors for job opportunities especially when it's virtually free.

He wants to go to a 4 year school. I'm trying to convince him to go to the local community college. Tuition at the community college is $400 per class, the 4 year schools charge more than $400 per credit. He can take all of his elective classes in 2 years and have it totally covered, then transfer to the 4 year school for his last 2 years.

I just hope he listens.

Do you use Pingo?

I do. It's simple and it's easy. Pingo offers global virtual calling cards. A friend of mine could have recently used prepaid calling cards to call the philippines. I know I used the card when I used to date my ex. He lived in the Bahamas. Most phone companies block calls to the Bahamas because of fraud. Luckily I heard about Pingo and was able to get a calling card. It was really weird, I had a hard time calling him, but he had no trouble at all calling me.

Right now when you sign up with Pingo you get $5.00 in free International calls. And as an added bonus, they're offering a $25 gift card giveaway that's good at 9 online merchants. More than 90% of their customers love the service so much that they re-order additional time on their cards. That makes Pingo the leading prepaid calling card provider.

In this day and age of cell phones, it's amazing when you find someone that doesn't own one. I know several people that don't have cell phones. They just don't feel the need to have one. But they do have calling cards in case they are out and need to make a call. Whether you need a card for travelling or as a emergency back-up, Pingo is the way to go.

I never figured out a new feature for my blog

I thought about it all weekend. I ran the idea by my family but nobody had any ideas. I don't really know where to start. I want something finance related but I don't know exactly what I want it to be. Maybe a stock quote or an update on the Dow Jones.

I'm usually good at stuff like this. But I am drawing a complete blank for this blog. I had originally thought of something with commercials. Ones I love and/or hate. There are a lot of them to choose from so that might work. However, it doesn't fit into the overall theme of my blog. I'm trying to get it back on track so that won't work. I'm still thinking though.

Visiting family in Florida

My aunt wants me to come and visit her and my uncle during the Memorial Day weekend. I'm debating it right now. I'm not doing anything during the holiday weekend so it's a tempting offer. However, I still need to save money for my regular vacation.

She's trying to tempt me by buying Universal Studios Tickets. She can also get discounted tickets to Disney World. I have never been to Disney and I've always wanted to go. We can pretty much get discounted tickets to any theme park in Orlando. OrlandoFunTickets.com also sells discounted tickets to dinner shows. I've only been to one of these but they are a nice night out. You get to eat while watching a show and being entertained in general. Tickets are so expensive which is always a factor in deciding where to go. But OrlandoFunTickets guarantees the lowest prices so we can have fun and save money. My kind of vacation.

My tuition reimbursement is already in

I can't believe it. At my old job you had to wait at least 2 pay periods in order for your tuition money to come in. I got my check today and it was way to much. When I looked to see why, it was because my reimbursement was already in there.

I turned the papers in 2 weeks ago so I'm surprised that it's in there already. Unfortunately it's just going right back to Pitt for fall semester. I don't get to spend that money at all. Oh well, at least I have half of the money for fall.

I am not the grammar queen

I am definitely not the grammar queen. I've been looking at some of the post titles that I have used and they are atrocious. They consist of run-on sentences, sentence fragments and incorrectly punctuated sentences. I believe that as long as my posts are coherent, they don't need to be perfect.

I want my blog to be personable. I don't want it to look like a drone wrote any of the posts and I want my personality to shine through. It's easy to come off as stiff and unfeeling and I'm trying to avoid that on my blog. I do put a lot of effort into what I write and I hope enjoy reading it.

Having silver as part of your portfolio

I'm really trying to diversify my portfolio. I have cash, mutual funds and stocks. As the amount of money I make increases, I add more slices to the portfolio pie. One thing I need to add is precious metals. I'm thinking of adding silver in particular. For investment purposes, I can get silver in both coins and ingots. The Monex Deposit Company has been America's silver and precious metals investment leader. World demand for silver is exceeding annual production. If demand exceeds supply, your investment in silver could potentially soar. That makes now the time to get in on the action.

The best part is, I can either take possession of the silver, or let a bank or depository hold it for me. I'm a control freak so I can't imagine letting anyone else hold my silver. I may put it in my banks' safe deposit box but knowing me, I would put it in my lockbox at home.

My clothes reek of cigarette smoke

My mom smokes like a chimney. Add to that the fact that we went to the casino over the weekend and all of my clothes smell like cigarette smoke. It's awful. Even the clothes that were packed in a separate bag smell bad. I had one pair of jeans that I didn't wear so I figured I would wear them to work today. Bad idea!

I didn't notice the smoke smell at first. But about an hour after I got to work, the smell started bothering me. I don't smoke at all so I really notice the smell of smoke. My stomach was upset and I just all around felt bad. I ended up leaving work early because I was getting nauseous. Those clothes went right into the washer as soon as I got home. Now if I could only get my stomach to settle down.

Would you like to win a date with a celebrity?

I know I would, and Gofish.com is making it happen. Right now the featured date is with Mirelly Taylor. She's one of the new up and coming beauties in Hollywood. She played on Las Vegas and Serving Sara. Right now you can see her on the show Numb3rs.

How do you win? You go look at Free videos at GoFish.com. Mirelly will tell you what kinds of things turn her on during a date. Then all you have to do is make a video taped seduction that will knock Mirelly's socks off. Viewers get to vote for their favorite video with the top three making it to the finals. Mirelly will then look at the final 3 and make her choice. The winner gets to fly to L.A. for their date. Who knows, you could win a date and get discovered at the same time.

I love this idea. Where else can you win a date with a celebrity? The video idea puts everyone on equal footing. Anyone can participate. It's not like a lot of other programs where you have to travel somewhere to audition or know somebody in the business to get the inside track on auditions. This one's open to everyone. And all it takes is a killer video to increase your chances of winning.

I really want this contest to be a hit. That way, they will sponsor another contest with a male celebrity. You can best believe I'll be waiting for that one. And maybe we'll get lucky and get one of the hotties from Prison Break like Wentworth Miller. Now there's a celebrity I'd like to seduce!

I really enjoyed my weekend

I haven't updated my blog in almost 5 days. I went home to visit my mom. I had a great visit. It was really weird, I didn't get exasperated with my mom like I usually do. We were pretty cool the entire time.

I didn't see any of my family. Everyone kept saying they were going to come visit, but they didn't end up showing up. My mom cooked a ton of food, as usual. I always tell her not to cook a lot but she doesn't listen. There was way too much food there. We had two neighbors come over and eat and there's still a lot of food left. My mom is going to freeze some of the food that's left over.

I can't wait until August for my next visit.

I can't wait for HDTV Tuesday

I'm excited about this promotion. And it's super easy. First, all you have to do is blog as usual for PayPerPost. Now you already know that you get paid for that. Some of the opportunities pay quite nicely too. But on Tuesday, you get an added bonus. On Tuesday you can win awesome prizes from HDTV all for putting ads on blogs. Are you wondering what kinds of prizes? Well let me tell you. Two people have already won an Apple TV and a PS3. Now those posties are super popular at home.

Some of the next prizes coming up are a Slingbox, a Nintendo Wii, a Yamaha Surround Sound Stereo or a Logitech universal remote. Are you waiting to hear about the HDTV? Well, that's the prize for the end of the month.

You're probably wondering how you can qualify for these great prizes. Well, the first thing you have to do is sign up to be a postie at PPP. Then take opportunities as usual. The special promotion is buried in with the regular opps. So just take an opp as usual, and you might win a awesome prize. Bid4prizes is the sponsor of this promotion. Make sure you stay on the lookout for this great promotion. And if you're not already a postie, get on over to PPP and sign up right now!

I'm looking to add a new feature to my blog

I really don't know what to add though. On my other blog, I do a joke of the week. I made that an every Thursday feature. I can't think of an idea for this blog though.

I don't want to do a joke on this blog. I don't know if I can find that many jokes. I wouldn't want to put up the same joke on both blogs. Also, I know I would definitely repeat jokes across blogs.

I'll have to really think about this. Whatever it is, I need it to be something that I can sustain. I thought of some kind of money tip, but I would need a lot of them. I'll ponder it this weekend and run it by my family and see if they can help me come up with something.

Feeling the love for PayPerPost

I really do love PayPerPost. I actually found them by accident. I was surfing around through other blogs when I saw the name come up. The first 2 or 3 blogs just had affiliate links. I was curious but I didn't pursue it right away. I started reading one of my "must read" blogs and they mentioned payperpost. They went on to describe the company and what it was about. I went to the website and surfed around a bit to get more information.

I eventually signed up with them in January of this year. I was very surprised to see how easy it was to get paid for blogging. I had been blogging just for fun, and now I could get paid for it. Cool with me.

It took me until mid March to find and sign up for the forums. The Posties signed up there are great. Everyone is willing to lend a hand to help you find whatever information you may need. One even went so far as to make a video explaining how ppp works. A postie! He didn't get paid for that. That was his time and effort, just because he wanted to. That's how the posties roll.

Since mid January I've earned over $500 at PayPerPost. And believe me, that's on the low end. Plenty of posties have earned over $1k. We have one Super Postie who's already earned over $10,800. For blogging. Something that she was doing anyway before PPP came alone. Seriously, you need to get over there and check it out yourself. You could start raking in the cash too.

I guess I need to update my profile

Especially since it says Sabrina's Money Madness not Sabrina's Place. I also need to describe how I came up with that name. Even though I don't really know myself. I considered several other names but I didn't like the way they sounded ultimately. One of them sounded quite vulgar and that definitly won't work on a public blog.