Mooshocker's Personal Finance Blog

5/17/14

Balance: $4.80
Deposit: $6.81
Balance: $11.61

5/16/14

Balance: $0.00
Deposit: $4.80
Balance: $4.80

5/15/14

Balance: $3.27
Deposit: $50.00
Balance: $53.27

So the Good Doctor paid me today.

I am going to make a deposit tomorrow so I will be back to a zero balance.

He also confirmed there is lots and lots of work to do moving forward. I also picked up another "customer" who is need of a handyman. This time it's $12.00 per hour. I am going to keep it Tuesday's and Thursday's and split my time between the two. The good news is is that both customers fall under my own rules. This is extra income and so I will NOT allow it to stress me out. Jamie

So, I spoke to the good Doctor's secretary today regarding my disappointment in not getting paid yesterday.

I expressed my feelings regarding holding up my end of the bargain by providing an honest evenings work for an honest evenings pay. I expressed my feelings toward earning every penny and not having to "chase" what is rightly owed to me.

She agreed completely and stated she had sent the money to the job site and told me the "secret place" it was hiding in.

She also stated how please he was with my work, my word and my trustworthiness. I thanked her for the kind words and reiterated my desire to work long term in this part time capacity but that I will never again be left with my hand out for what I earned.

I will be visiting the jobsite tomorrow to find the "secret place" and grab my pay. I will not be able to work as he has not been able to provide the supplies I need at this stage. I am hoping that at some point he will allow me the opportunity to utilize his account to simply get what I need. I will be missing out on an evenings pay because of his inability to follow through with getting the items I need to continue this portion of the job.

Anyway, I am blessed to have the chance to earn a couple hundred bucks per month and certainly don't want to paint a picture of "poor Jamie". But I will not expend the time or effort to hold up my end of the agreement with him holding up his. Jamie

5/13/14

Balance: $0.00
Deposit: $3.27
Balance: $3.27

Made a deposit of $67.90. But.....when I went to pick up my $45.00 paycheck from my second job, it was not available and the office was closed. I called and they assured me it would be ready on Thursday. So humbling. How a few short years ago, I wouldn't waste the gas on $45.00. Tonight, I am depressed and feel taken advantage of.

Anyway, time to reset the Loose Change Fund.

5/11/14

Balance: $3.90
Deposit: $64.00
Balance: $67.90

Well, since I put the Mother's Day brunch on my card, I was given $90.00 cash towards the celebration. I put $20.00 in my pocket for this week's tolls and spent $6.00 on a lemonade during the Rochester Lilac Festival with my family.

I am going to put the balance into my Loose Change Fund.

5/8/14

Balance: $44.16
Deposit: $3.90
Balance: $48.06

I got the Chase rewards check for $70.34 today! That, along with my above Loose Change will be deposit into the account totaling $118.40. Not too shabby....Jamie

5/7/14

Balance: $40.26
Deposit: $3.90
Balance: $44.16

Man, I would have thought that Chase rewards check for ~$70.00 would be here by now. I suppose I'll just wait until it arrives before I make another deposit.

5/6/14

Balance: $12.76
Deposit: $27.50
Balance: $40.26

So I got paid from my second job today. $53.00! $25.50 on some groceries and the rest right into the old Loose Change Account. Woooo hooooo

5/6/14

Balance: $4.45
Deposit: $8.31
Balance: $12.76

5/6/14

Balance: $4.45
Deposit: $8.31
Balance: $12.76

5/5/14

Balance: $0.00
Deposit: $4.45
Balance: $4.45

Well, I made a quick deposit of $13.35 into the Loose Change account, thus, hit the reset button again. I love this game. Awesome!

Still no Chase rewards check yet, however, it should be soon to follow....~$70.00....wooo hoooo

5/2/14

Balance: $9.75
Deposit: $3.90
Balance: $13.65

I received a PayPal check for $39.00 yesterday so one I receive my $75.00 chase reward check I will deposit all I to the Loose Change account.

I have been submitting some writings to yahoo and thus the PayPal check. I enjoy it. Its relaxing and therapeutic. I average about $6.00 per article and am very pleased with that.

Part time job paid $52.50 last week so that takes care of the next two months refuse bill.

Well....gotta run. Talk soon. Jamie

Sooooo, unfortunatley, I have no Loose Change to deposit today. That's bad for the Loose Change account, however, good in the sense that I spent no cash.

After reviewing April's numbers, it looks as if I truly accomplished a lot:

1. Opened a Duplex Escrow Account
2. Opened an Emergency Fund
3. Opened a Loose Change Fund
4. Opened a Savings Account
5. Reconciled my Operations Account
6. I deposited a total of $205.96 in the Loose Change Account.
7. I was $117.00 under my budgeted auto fuel amount.
8. I was $58.94 over my budgeted food amount (however, Easter may have contributed to that extra spend.
9. I reduced my monthly internet bill by $10.00.
10. I established auto pay on my credit card to earn reward points. Monthly debts applied are auto insurance, refuse, cell phone, propane, dish, netflix, internet (mortgage and electric do not qualify).
11. I reduced my monthly dish bill by $37.16.
12. I found a part time job that should net me ~$200.00 per month without any impact on my time with the girls!
13. Earned a $30.00 reduction in auto insurance for paying the bill in full.
14. I obtained two additional credit cards taking my available credit to $85k
15. Met the Quicksilver reward requirements and cashed out $107.00 which went to the Loose Change and Savings Accounts, respectively.

Phew...what a month...I guess I never really stopped to think how busy it was. I may even be missing a couple things. Oh well, I am on the right side of the dirt....for now....Jamie

So, Tuesday evening I started my part time job. You may recall I was hired at $10.00 per hour as a handyman for an elderly MD in a neighboring town. The MD is a kind man who is rather eccentric and scatterbrained. One of those individuals who "is so smart, he's a knucklehead" type of person.....lol.

Well, he has been renovating his deceased mothers house for about....ummmmm....100 years and a portion of the attic is ready for some final dry wall work and painting. I applied a second coat of "mud" to some drywall work that was started but left undone by his last handyman and put up one coat of primer/paint in another section of the attic. The plumber needs to finish the bathroom and then I can hang the rest of the drywall, tape and mud it and paint.

By the looks of the house, I can rest assured part time employment for about.....ummmmm.....100 years. The house is about 2500 s.f. with a new three car garage, four new bathrooms, and renovations started in every room throughout. Nothing is complete and although I feel exhausted for him, I am happy to think I may be allowed to chip away at this job for a long time.

I am humbled by the hourly wage and thankful for the extra income, albeit about ~$40.00-~$50.00 per week. The drive is about 15 minutes from my home and not all that intrusive. In fact, a portion of my travel for my "real job" takes me right by the exit and thus, for example, tomorrow, I will bring my "work clothes" with me, hop off the expressway and put a few hours in prior to going home.

I am going to put 1/2 of the earned income in my savings account the other 1/2 in my Loose Change fund. If I can consistently bring in $200.00 per month minimum, that will be a nice little chunk of change come Christmas time.

Finally, my dad who is back from his summer home in Florida has again promised me some side work this summer with him. That is about $12.00 per hour and although much more physically demanding (my dad is a retired plumber who just can't let go of the grind), he will take great care to get me as many hours as possible.

All in all I am so very blessed! I have a great job. Great employees. Great peers and hopefully growth opportunities. And now, I have some earning opportunities that will not infiltrate my time with my children. Little by little I hope to rebuild my nest egg. Finding new ways to save without sacrificing fun and reaping the benefits of my labor is so exciting to me. Maybe someday soon I can start contributing to my retirement again. In any event, slow and steady wins the race an maybe the nice guy won't finish last anymore. Jamie

4/30/14

Balance: $6.85
Deposit: $2.90
Balance: $9.75

Rock on!!!!!!! Oh, and I redeamed $70.00 in Chase reward points. Check should be here in two weeks. Jamie

So yesterday I reported that my internet company saved me $10.00 per month by removing some dumb 911 package that I no longer needed.

Today, as I prepared to pay 1/2 of my automobile insurance, I was told that if I paid in full, I would save $30.00!

I jumped at the chance and feel great in the fact that I continue to save little by little! Jamie

4/28/14

Balance: $3.40
Deposit: $3.45
Balance: $6.85

Boooya baby!

4/28/14

Balance: $0.00
Deposit: $3.40
Balance: $3.40

And we start all over again! Just amazing how a little diligence and money management can really add up. As I stated last night, almost one month to the day of my Loose Change challenge and I have already seen my balance rise to $250.00. Now, I have added some reward monies, so, to constitute my "change" and "dollar bills" is a bit of a stretch, however, it really does add up.

I have accepted a part time job too! $10.00 per hour painting and providing other "handyman" work for an MD in a neighboring town. I should clear about $40.00 per week which, doesn't sound like much, but, an exra $160.00 per month sure does sound nice, especially when looking at some of the items I would like to purchase (new riding lawn mower, new tool shed, new storm door, new laptop). All of the above items are really needs, but, one thing at a time! Jamie

So, on 4/23/14 my internet went down. The DSL light was on the modem but no connection. After numerous calls, help desk visits, etc., it was determined that the modem should be replaced.

Now, asking my mother to sit at my house all day with baited breath waiting for the repair man was troublesome enough...then, to find out that there were other outages and may delay my repair again, was beyond frustrating.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, she calls me and says the repair is at the house! He replaced the modem, check connectivity and all is well!

I call my service provider to ask for a credit for the time I was out of service. She puts me on hold and returns a moment later saying a 1/2 month credit was applied to my account (I only needed five days) AND.................that I have been paying $10.00/month for a 911 service that no longer exists, and as such, will be getting a credit on my bill next month and a $10.00/month reduction thereafter!

All in all I saved $120.00/year on my internet service, obtained a brand new, high speed, great connectivity modem AND have service again all because of a few phone calls.

Totally Shocked! Jamie

$26.57 deposit set to be made tomorrow. Baby steps. Also I put $35.00 from my quick silver rewards in the loose change account and have $38.00 coming from another reward. That should put me at about $250.00 after the first month or so of the challenge. Amazing. Can you imagine $250 per month......that's almost a million dollars at the end of the year.

I will reset tomorrow and update again. Jamie

4/27/14

Balance: $21.95
Deposit: $4.62
Balance: $26.57

I love this challenge.

4/25/14

Balance: $18.71
Deposit: $3.24
Balance: $21.95

Been a slow couple of days. The Loose Change has been available to deposit, however, my modem at home crapped the bed, thus, I have not been able to get on line efficiently.

Well, more soon. Jamie

4/22/14

Balance: $15.71
Deposit: $3.00
Balance: $18.71

What a crazy busy wonderful weekend!!!! This was my Easter with the girls and as such, invited my parents over Saturday afternoon for games, movies, dinner out then a sleep over in preparation for a great feast today, Easter Sunday. The girls have not seen them since January when they left for their home in Florida. Ty a great time we had. Or an early dinner I took everyone to the Golden Corale. I know. YUCK! But the kids love it and so do my parents. $75.00. Ouch but with my $105.00 capital needs rewards check coming I can pay that charge off toot sweet and still put $35.00 in my Loose Change Account.

Woo toot. Jamie

4/20/14

Balance: $5.40
Deposit: $10.31
Balance: $15.71

Happy Easter everyone! "This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad!"

4/18/14

Balance: $0.00
Deposit: $5.40
Balance: $5.40

Okay...so I never expected to have any dollar bills or change this evening, however, I took the girls to Pizza Hut and then to see Heaven is for Real and thus, my Loose Change Update Part Deux!

Hey everyone. Happy Good Friday and Easter! I made a deposit of $14.46 into my loose change account this afternoon so we start all over again tomorrow.

Enjoy your Easter weekend! Jamie

4/17/14

Balance: $13.34
Deposit: $1.11
Balance: $14.45

4/16/14

Balance: $10.52
Deposit: $2.82
Balance: $13.34

Some other "rumblings":

I visited my bank again today. For the third time in two weeks, I opened another account. If you recall, I started with a savings account (savings) and an operational account (bills - money in/money out).

I then opened a Loose Change account...for the obvious reason and to house my mortgage pre-payment monies.

I then opened a Duplex Escrow account...again, obvious reasons.

Finally, I opened an emergency fund account and transferred money from savings into it. It certainly is no where near where it needs to be, but finally, after much study, deliberation and guidance from this site, I feel really good about the allocations my money fall under.

Again, we are talking dollars, not hundreds or thousands, but baby steps right!?!?!?!?!?!......I said...RIGHT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Jamie