A Gift for My Grandmother’s 86th Birthday

Tomorrow my family and I will celebrate my grandmother’s 86th birthday! Although my grandmother can be a bit impossible at times, I love her with all my heart. Last year I bought her a digital picture frame and loaded it with scanned photographs I generated from hundreds of my grandfather’s old photographic slides. My grandfather, … Read more

Neglectful

A few days ago my husband asked me to write an article for his website. Over the last few days I have been glued to the computer searching for facts about all sorts of things I know relatively little about. I promise to get back to my blog in the near future. I haven’t forgotten … Read more

Target Asset Allocation: Moderately Aggressive

I can’t seem to avert my gaze from the balance on my retirement accounts. I know that I’m young and that I have plenty of time for the market to regain speed, but I am still amazed to see thousands of dollars wiped out of my accounts in a matter of days. My husband and … Read more

Random Thoughts

I keep a notebook of random thoughts and quotes. Here are a few that caught my eye this evening: Think of your life expectancy in hours rather than years. Waste lies not in the number of possessions, but in the failure to enjoy them. “He who knows he has enough is rich” – Tao Te … Read more

Plumping Up Our Emergency Fund

I have a very good chance of getting laid off sometime between now and the end of 2009. The company I work for is undergoing significant restructuring and I’m not certain that the organization I work for is all that important to the company’s bottom line. If cuts need to be made I have a … Read more

Comparing Salaries

On my flight home from Colorado I read an article about a new website that provides a sneak peek of coworkers salaries. I’ve been trying to remember the name of that site for days. Today J.D., over at Get Rich Slowly, saved the day, by posting a link to it. The website is called glassdoor.com. … Read more

Anniversary Ideas?

I caught my husband googling for anniversary ideas. Our anniversary is on Friday and I thought we might roll the celebration into Saturday afternoon and evening, but it turns out that my husband will be busy with a photography shoot on Saturday down in Virginia. So now the rush is on to plan activities for … Read more

Spending Twice As Much On Vacation

My husband and I typically spend $200 – $250 on groceries each month so I was shocked to find $525 worth of grocery expenses on our credit card bill. We enjoyed two vacations during this credit card cycle, spending two weeks in North Carolina and five days in Colorado. While we were on vacation I … Read more

Wasting Time Diddling on the Internet

Somehow I’ve managed to waste the last hour diddling around on the Internet. It all started innocently enough when I came across a photograph that reminded me of my good friend Jenevieve from high school. After a few clicks on the grand ‘ole Internet I came across a series of blogs written by Jenevieve’s husband. … Read more

I Am Constantly Tracking Down Money

I am constantly on the phone with companies and organizations that owe me money. Today I spent ten minutes on the phone with John’s Hopkins Hospital tracking down an overdue refund. A few minutes later I was on the phone with an Internet company that has yet to refund money for a damaged umbrella. Every … Read more