Show me the Money!

Some financial advice needed, here, particularly if you're local.  I bank with Regions, and recently, I am now being charged $4.00 a month to use my debit card.  I'm sorry, but I don't want to pay the bank money, so I can spend money.  I called Regions about this a few weeks ago and they tried to placate me by telling me it's only 24
cents a day, and I responded, "yes, but it's $4 a month, and that adds up!"  From what limited reading I've done on the subject, it sounds like most of the major banks are already charging this fee, or will be soon.

My temporary solution has been to use my credit card soley, and then pay it off as quickly as I make charges, but this is really a hassle, plus it takes several days for the payments to clear, which is annoying.

So I'm wondering if there are any financially savvy readers out there who know a way around paying this type of fee, or if you bank with another financial institution that isn't charging the monthly debit card fee.

Warren G Belongs to Me

Continuing my trend of not blogging about important events, I am belated in shouting from the proverbial world wide web rooftops that as of last week I am now the official proud owner of Warren the G6.  Yep- I made my last car payment, and like Brandy and Monica might sing, That. Car. Is. Mine.

It's a big step for me in moving towards financial freedom.  Now all I have to do is pay off my credit card, and then save up for a down payment so I can buy a place of my own.  Yep, that's all, she says casually.

What took me so long to actually get this posted was that I could not find a single stinking picture of Warren to put in this post!  There were 3 hilarious car blogs that were posted way back in 2007 that you can read here, here, and here, about when I purchased Warren, but alas, I could find no pictures.

No worries.  It's time for me and Warren to regulate.  Mount Up!

Disaster Divas

Today's friendly public service announcement: Calling all ladies with dresses to donate:

These gals live right here in TN have set up this site and are calling themselves the "disaster divas." They are collecting gently used prom and bridesmaid dresses to donate to victims of the recent wave of tornadoes that have swept through Tennessee.

It's a great cause, and a great excuse to get rid of dresses you'll never wear again (despite the brides who will try and convince you otherwise when you buy those gaudy taffeta monstrosities). Plus these gals claim to be divas like myself and their website is pink... that's a great reason to promote them if I don't know what is!

Friday morning Funnies/ Calling All Shopaholics

Got a minute? Take a quick scan through this article- Hound dog mauls Elvis's teddy bear. It's worth a little ha ha through a little something I like to call situational irony.

Also, calling all Tennesseans- today marks the beginning of the tax-free weekend so get those pocketbooks ready to shop, shop, shop and buy stuff for no reason, simply just so you can "stick it to the man" and not have to pay tax on your purchases. A word of caution though: not everything is tax exempt. To help you out I've put together a succinct sample of a few items you may want to take advantage of, and others you might want to avoid since they will be taxable.

Tax exempt items you might want to grab while you're out this weekend:
*Aerobic clothing, Blackboard Chalk, Clerical Vestments, Corsets, Cowboy Boots, Earmuffs, Highlighters, Pajamas, Socks, Thongs, & Walking shoes (as opposed to shoes that you Wouldn't walk in??!)

Steer clear of the following- you WILL be taxed on these items:
*Belt Buckles, Briefcases, Clay, Cosmetics (BOOOOO!!), Swim Fins, Safety Goggles, Handbags (again, BOOOO!), Maps, Paint, Printer Supplies, Respirators, Shoulder Pads, Ski Boots, Tool belts, Welders' Gloves

For a complete list of taxable/exempt items click here. Who wants to go shopping this weekend??!! Have a Fantabulous Friday. Much love to you all.

direct spending proportions: money & friends

Why does being social always have to include eating? I’ve developed this very bad habit of multi-tasking with my visits. I also don’t think I’m alone in this. Somehow along the way, we’ve come to rely on lunches and dinners as combined efforts to get our daily intake of calories while catching up with friends. It’s gotten to the point now that rarely do I hang out with a friend and we Don’t eat! I guess I’m paying attention to it now b/c I’ve started to write down everything I spend, and I’m finding that a good chunk of my income goes to eating out. I then try to rationalize it & say that this meal was an exception, because I hadn’t seen Ari since she switched jobs. And then This meal was a rare occasion b/c it was with my sister, who I rarely get to see one-on-one. And then this other lunch doesn’t really count b/c it’s with my friend Ann who leaves for Ohio next week, so when else would I get to see her?! Every week is starting to look like this though- and while I still maintain that a girl’s gotta eat, there must be some way to do it less expensively, and still spend quality time with the people we love! Does every single one of our social outings now involve food though? Can people not just get together and take a walk, or sit somewhere and talk without spending any money? Before I never paid any attention, and this was all well and good before I started working on my budget, but now that I’m conscious of where my money is going I feel trapped in a societal norm that says you have to spend money to spend time with friends!