My dad is same as yesterday, but that's not as good as Sunday. He's back on a ventilator and sedated so visiting him isn't much of an option given he has diarrhea... the smell hits you as you enter his ICU room. Anyways, he's fine breathing and hip-wise... just not getting the secretions cleared from his lungs.
Showing posts with label credit cards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label credit cards. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Monday, February 2, 2015
taxes or how to make $ for nothing
I think about taxes year-round. I have $ deferred towards HSA and 401(k) based on getting the most money back when it comes to refund time.
Not sure why it's called "refund" when I don't have any federal taxes taken from my paycheck. I had J resubmit her W-4 when she got back from maternity leave, so SHE had some to be refunded.
Otherwise, our refund is pure earnings... money for nothing because we are technically poor. I'm sure there are ways to manipulate one's cash flow to be poorer on paper, but certain things do need to be available as earned income since money needs to be made for house, car, student loan, and most utility payments. If we had less debt, I'd max out my 401(k) and we'd be able to get an additional payout roughly to 30% of the deferred money. I would be audited, no doubt.
Now, I happen to have decent credit with ample credit cards and offers available that I could borrow said amount of money to offset the deferred money to bank the 30% profit which is significantly more than the 2%-4% in transaction fees I'd incur. Of course that assumes that I'm able to pay back the borrowed principle in full without further interest charges.
Most 0% credit card transfers have a 12 month grace period with 1%-2% due as minimum monthly payment.
Let's assume $10k is the amount allotted. Upfront transaction cost would be between $200-$400 and a monthly payment of $102-$208, leaving roughly $9,132-$8,328 in principle if said minimum payments are for a 12 month period. $3k in extra refund means $6,132-$5,328 needs paid or financed. Of course the latter suggests doing the process again, which seems a bit like robbing Peter to pay Paul, but the money being deferred into the 401(k) is real money that will be available upon retirement in greater quantity if everything Clark Howard says is accurate.
Not sure why it's called "refund" when I don't have any federal taxes taken from my paycheck. I had J resubmit her W-4 when she got back from maternity leave, so SHE had some to be refunded.
Otherwise, our refund is pure earnings... money for nothing because we are technically poor. I'm sure there are ways to manipulate one's cash flow to be poorer on paper, but certain things do need to be available as earned income since money needs to be made for house, car, student loan, and most utility payments. If we had less debt, I'd max out my 401(k) and we'd be able to get an additional payout roughly to 30% of the deferred money. I would be audited, no doubt.
Now, I happen to have decent credit with ample credit cards and offers available that I could borrow said amount of money to offset the deferred money to bank the 30% profit which is significantly more than the 2%-4% in transaction fees I'd incur. Of course that assumes that I'm able to pay back the borrowed principle in full without further interest charges.
Most 0% credit card transfers have a 12 month grace period with 1%-2% due as minimum monthly payment.
Let's assume $10k is the amount allotted. Upfront transaction cost would be between $200-$400 and a monthly payment of $102-$208, leaving roughly $9,132-$8,328 in principle if said minimum payments are for a 12 month period. $3k in extra refund means $6,132-$5,328 needs paid or financed. Of course the latter suggests doing the process again, which seems a bit like robbing Peter to pay Paul, but the money being deferred into the 401(k) is real money that will be available upon retirement in greater quantity if everything Clark Howard says is accurate.
Thursday, January 1, 2015
new year
Worked during the Sugar Bowl, and I feel as though I didn't miss much. Using the ESPN app on my phone along with Time Warner cable access...
Friday, December 27, 2013
annoyed with TRU/GE Capital Card
Last year, I used my Toys R Us credit card for a $.15 purchase and was unable to pay the balance unless I owed more that a dollar. I made a killer purchase with that $.15 that would have been about thirty bucks if I had paid cash without coupons and credit card promotions, so I wasn't bothered by paying more than my statement balance.
This year, my payment was due on December 25th! I somehow neglected to set up payment and realized I hadn't on the 24th around 8:30pm. I went to the webpage and did the prompts to pay for the balance in full only to get an ERROR message rather than a confirmation page. Went to look at my scheduled payments and payment history and neither listed the current month's payment, so I clicked on the pay tab again. The page said that I had already requested a payment today and I couldn't make another, though I could not verify that the payment was set up elsewhere. I tried to send a message through the contact feature and got yet a gain an error message saying the feature wasn't available.
Given the frustration I had with the webpage, I figured that calling the 1-800 number on the card would get me somewhere. It was all "computer" prompts and the balance was still that of my last statement. The odd thing was that the menu said that I would be charged $10 to get assistance regarding my payment, so I figured that I might as well pay my balance.
Well, looking at the credit card activity after the fact, my checking account was charged twice for the balance so GE Capital is now holding my money captive. I sent a message requesting my money refunded but no response has yet come. I feel like I did when CENLAR ILLEGALLY charged my escrow account for PMI and the run around their reps gave me, essentially telling me that I am a liar. Well, I got an apology from them that is worth framing, so GE Capital is mistaken if they think that can ignore me.
This year, my payment was due on December 25th! I somehow neglected to set up payment and realized I hadn't on the 24th around 8:30pm. I went to the webpage and did the prompts to pay for the balance in full only to get an ERROR message rather than a confirmation page. Went to look at my scheduled payments and payment history and neither listed the current month's payment, so I clicked on the pay tab again. The page said that I had already requested a payment today and I couldn't make another, though I could not verify that the payment was set up elsewhere. I tried to send a message through the contact feature and got yet a gain an error message saying the feature wasn't available.
Given the frustration I had with the webpage, I figured that calling the 1-800 number on the card would get me somewhere. It was all "computer" prompts and the balance was still that of my last statement. The odd thing was that the menu said that I would be charged $10 to get assistance regarding my payment, so I figured that I might as well pay my balance.
Well, looking at the credit card activity after the fact, my checking account was charged twice for the balance so GE Capital is now holding my money captive. I sent a message requesting my money refunded but no response has yet come. I feel like I did when CENLAR ILLEGALLY charged my escrow account for PMI and the run around their reps gave me, essentially telling me that I am a liar. Well, I got an apology from them that is worth framing, so GE Capital is mistaken if they think that can ignore me.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Gasoline
I remember when there used to be gas station attendants at the pumps. They'd have a change making device at their waist, and people usually paid cash. Full service was an option my Grandpa J would utilize for the extra ten cents a gallon. The driveway bell would make the "ding-ding," and there'd be the attendant.
Full service still exists in Ohio, but everywhere seems to have "pay at the pump" mean sliding a credit card at the pump.
Usually, you swipe your card, and the pump knows that you are paying at the pump and prompts you to remove the nozzle, while other make you pick "pay inside" or "pay at the pump" before processing.
Pilot was the first station I ever encountered having to type my ZIP CODE before processing to the nozzle, but our local BP (Giant Oil) asks as well.
Sneaky gas stations prompt you if you want buy a car wash first before asking for you to select where to pay for your gas.
Some stations like Speedway have loyalty cards that have a prompt that you easily by-pass, while Sam's Club requires that you be a member to be able to purchase their gas.
Kroger, the food market chain that no longer doubles coupons, has opened several gas stations around us. One isn't too far from B's school, so I have taken the taxi there a couple times. Gas Buddy says they are the best price around us a lot of time, so I tried them. I didn't care for the initial experience. The prompts aren't "traditional" while neither are the buttons, so I mucked my way through the process. Fortunately, no one was really around to see me, let alone wait on my novice ways.
Today, Gas Buddy had gas prices going up to $3.759, while the local Kroger had it for $3.369. Some pumps were 5 cars deep, but I saw one with only a Prius at it. Tiny cars have tiny tanks, thus fill quickly. Unfortunately, this Prius driver was less adept at the pump than I had been my first time, so I had to wait a few minutes until his payment was accepted. Though I was annoyed, I saved $3.13 for 5 minutes of inconvenience.
Full service still exists in Ohio, but everywhere seems to have "pay at the pump" mean sliding a credit card at the pump.
Usually, you swipe your card, and the pump knows that you are paying at the pump and prompts you to remove the nozzle, while other make you pick "pay inside" or "pay at the pump" before processing.
Pilot was the first station I ever encountered having to type my ZIP CODE before processing to the nozzle, but our local BP (Giant Oil) asks as well.
Sneaky gas stations prompt you if you want buy a car wash first before asking for you to select where to pay for your gas.
Some stations like Speedway have loyalty cards that have a prompt that you easily by-pass, while Sam's Club requires that you be a member to be able to purchase their gas.
Kroger, the food market chain that no longer doubles coupons, has opened several gas stations around us. One isn't too far from B's school, so I have taken the taxi there a couple times. Gas Buddy says they are the best price around us a lot of time, so I tried them. I didn't care for the initial experience. The prompts aren't "traditional" while neither are the buttons, so I mucked my way through the process. Fortunately, no one was really around to see me, let alone wait on my novice ways.
Today, Gas Buddy had gas prices going up to $3.759, while the local Kroger had it for $3.369. Some pumps were 5 cars deep, but I saw one with only a Prius at it. Tiny cars have tiny tanks, thus fill quickly. Unfortunately, this Prius driver was less adept at the pump than I had been my first time, so I had to wait a few minutes until his payment was accepted. Though I was annoyed, I saved $3.13 for 5 minutes of inconvenience.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Grill purchase
So I bought a grill today that was on sale. Do I have buyer's remorse? Probably. I tend to feel ill when I buy things regardless of the rationale for the purchase (I read a lot of reviews on Lowe's website in addition to the rating of Consumer Reports. Heck, I even asked a guy I know that bought the deluxe version of the grill for his opinion. No one deterred me from making my less than impulsive purchase).
In the grand scheme of things, grilling is a luxury. Old grill was a gift that merely set us back the price of the propane tank. That was at least 5 years ago. Got a lot of use out the grill, but I feel the need to log all of the new grill's usage. Maybe I'll make a spreadsheet of the cost for steaks and such made and cross reference with a comparable restaurant until I feel I get my $ worth for the grill.
Even could keep track of burgers made on the grill. Steak N' Shake will be hard to beat price-wise with Kids eating Free on Weekends, their $3.99 meal menu, and their bombardment of coupons. We ate there yesterday for lunch and the meal cost a whopping $13.02! That's including drinks, soul, and milkshake.
A pound of ground beef costs X. A quart of ice cream costs Y. A bag of buns costs Z.
In the grand scheme of things, grilling is a luxury. Old grill was a gift that merely set us back the price of the propane tank. That was at least 5 years ago. Got a lot of use out the grill, but I feel the need to log all of the new grill's usage. Maybe I'll make a spreadsheet of the cost for steaks and such made and cross reference with a comparable restaurant until I feel I get my $ worth for the grill.
Even could keep track of burgers made on the grill. Steak N' Shake will be hard to beat price-wise with Kids eating Free on Weekends, their $3.99 meal menu, and their bombardment of coupons. We ate there yesterday for lunch and the meal cost a whopping $13.02! That's including drinks, soul, and milkshake.
A pound of ground beef costs X. A quart of ice cream costs Y. A bag of buns costs Z.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Saturday Night at the local Kroger
Ever go shopping because you had a coupon that you had to use by a certain date and that particular date was today?
I had a "save $6 off your next purchase of $25 or more" coupon that expired 6/30/12, so I made a dash for the store on a Saturday night.
We're Meijer's people in the sense that we shop there for food more than we do Sam's Club, Target, Walmart, Cub Food, Dot's Market, Health Foods Unlimited, Gordon Food Service or Kroger, but we buy things when they are on sale if we need something and it's convenient trip-wise.
We live in a very food-friendly shopping area, seeing that we have the above places to choose to do our shopping. We get the Sunday paper for the ads, and we comparison shop.
Kroger and Meijer double coupons and give coupons to save on your next visit a lot of the time.
Kroger generally has the best price for Very Vanilla Silk Milk with a price usually under $3 for a half-gallon. Silk soy milk runs for $3.29 at Meijer, and K drinks at least a gallon a week(K grew out of his milk allergy four years ago, but he still doesn't eat anything with cow milk in it).
Our stainless steel Frigidaire side by side refrigerator gets filled easily with the other things we get, so I don't buy more than 2 gallons of K's milk at a time. With my needing to buy an additional $13+ in food, J made a list from the ad we had and gave me appropriate coupons for my "quick" trip to Kroger.
I get to Kroger and notice that there are a lot of people shopping for a Saturday night, but also, the sale prices quoted by J didn't jive. So I called J for a legit reason for once to see if the ad she used was current, and it wasn't.
Kroger's ad runs from Monday through Sunday, while Meijer's ad runs from Sunday to Saturday, thus ads get confusing at times.
Kroger runs crazy ads from time to time, so I bought 10 random items that I, at least, like, thus saved an additional few bucks upon check out in addition to the original $6 coupon.
Upon checking out, I prefer self-service. I really don't like waiting in line, but I had coupons and several bags worth of things, so I picked a human occupied check lane with a conveyor belt and dividers.
There were two of such lanes open. Both were at least three customers deep, but there was a person lingering kinda between them. I had to ask her in which lane she was, and she picked one that looked slower. I shop enough that I have a fairly good instinct for slow lanes. I always avoid lanes with old people because they almost never use debit/credit cards because doing such is frowned upon by certain age groups.
I get cash back rewards and always pay my monthly bill in-full, so I make money when I spend money using my BankAmericard or Chase Freedom card.
The guy in front of me paid for his $62.57 grocery bill with all fives. Who carries around 13 five dollar bills? Are five dollar bills the current standard for tipping bartenders, strippers, waiters, and waitresses now?
Not sure what the woman behind me used to pay, but she was the same person I asked which lane she was using. She either chose poorly or she was a quantum physicist that can be in two places indiscriminately like Brian Green.
I supposedly saved over $16 using my Kroger Plus Card. My total came to $35.10 before giving coupons. I only had to "charge" $27.15.
I say "supposedly" because I bought a few 12 count boxes of Kellog's Pop-tarts for $1.99 that are originally $2.29 when the price for an 8 count box is $2.27.
Grocery shopping is a science not meant for those shopping on an empty stomach.
I had a "save $6 off your next purchase of $25 or more" coupon that expired 6/30/12, so I made a dash for the store on a Saturday night.
We're Meijer's people in the sense that we shop there for food more than we do Sam's Club, Target, Walmart, Cub Food, Dot's Market, Health Foods Unlimited, Gordon Food Service or Kroger, but we buy things when they are on sale if we need something and it's convenient trip-wise.
We live in a very food-friendly shopping area, seeing that we have the above places to choose to do our shopping. We get the Sunday paper for the ads, and we comparison shop.
Kroger and Meijer double coupons and give coupons to save on your next visit a lot of the time.
Kroger generally has the best price for Very Vanilla Silk Milk with a price usually under $3 for a half-gallon. Silk soy milk runs for $3.29 at Meijer, and K drinks at least a gallon a week(K grew out of his milk allergy four years ago, but he still doesn't eat anything with cow milk in it).
Our stainless steel Frigidaire side by side refrigerator gets filled easily with the other things we get, so I don't buy more than 2 gallons of K's milk at a time. With my needing to buy an additional $13+ in food, J made a list from the ad we had and gave me appropriate coupons for my "quick" trip to Kroger.
I get to Kroger and notice that there are a lot of people shopping for a Saturday night, but also, the sale prices quoted by J didn't jive. So I called J for a legit reason for once to see if the ad she used was current, and it wasn't.
Kroger's ad runs from Monday through Sunday, while Meijer's ad runs from Sunday to Saturday, thus ads get confusing at times.
Kroger runs crazy ads from time to time, so I bought 10 random items that I, at least, like, thus saved an additional few bucks upon check out in addition to the original $6 coupon.
Upon checking out, I prefer self-service. I really don't like waiting in line, but I had coupons and several bags worth of things, so I picked a human occupied check lane with a conveyor belt and dividers.
There were two of such lanes open. Both were at least three customers deep, but there was a person lingering kinda between them. I had to ask her in which lane she was, and she picked one that looked slower. I shop enough that I have a fairly good instinct for slow lanes. I always avoid lanes with old people because they almost never use debit/credit cards because doing such is frowned upon by certain age groups.
I get cash back rewards and always pay my monthly bill in-full, so I make money when I spend money using my BankAmericard or Chase Freedom card.
The guy in front of me paid for his $62.57 grocery bill with all fives. Who carries around 13 five dollar bills? Are five dollar bills the current standard for tipping bartenders, strippers, waiters, and waitresses now?
Not sure what the woman behind me used to pay, but she was the same person I asked which lane she was using. She either chose poorly or she was a quantum physicist that can be in two places indiscriminately like Brian Green.
I supposedly saved over $16 using my Kroger Plus Card. My total came to $35.10 before giving coupons. I only had to "charge" $27.15.
I say "supposedly" because I bought a few 12 count boxes of Kellog's Pop-tarts for $1.99 that are originally $2.29 when the price for an 8 count box is $2.27.
Grocery shopping is a science not meant for those shopping on an empty stomach.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Life is a guessing game
One thing about having freewill is that nothing is completely predictable.
Supposedly we are born as the result of someone's choosing to have a child. We don't get to pick our birth arrangements, so the upbringing is up to chance. No two childhoods are the same it seems since there are so many variables from family size, education, income, social class, and geographic location to name a few.
We grow up learning what we like and don't like. We try to obtain the things we desire, and we pursue the things that interest us. Variables dictate a lot of things but for the most part the true factors are individualized.
No one made me go to college. I had nothing better to do that was reasonable. My parents both had degrees, and my brother went to school.
I wanted to be something in the mold of a wanderer, like a daydream out of Salinger's most famous work. I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do for a living. I just wanted to write nonsense and watch people. A buddy of mine was in South America when I was finishing high school, so I had an opportunity to do the Butch Cassidy thing and run away from almost everyone that knew me.
Starting fresh with a new life was so appealing, but I chickened out. Being newly out of high school is when you go to college. Sure you can flunk out but if you don't go when you are young and dumb, then the odds are that you won't make the effort down the road when you have adult obligations.
Going to college is expressway to adulthood for sheltered people. No one made me wake up in the morning or to go to bed at night. No one forced me to eat. No one forced me to go to church.
I had to open a checking account since carrying cash was stupid and debit cards didn't exist. I remember having temp checks that no one wanted to accept like no one wanted to accept my American Express Travelers Cheques when I was photo ID-less in Merida, Mexico.
I remember being offered credit cards every time I walked to class. My first credit card was to Sears and I had never shopped at Sears. My phone rang while I was trying to sleep(it was finals week), and I said, "Sure, I live at 1978 Cannon Drive..." to get them to stop interrupting my sleep. Never used the card, so I closed it five years later when I realized I had 20 credit cards that I never used.
No one made me choose a major. I chose what seemed to be best suited for my skills but changed my mind when I decided that I didn't want to kill people as a result of my indifferent about my work. I changed my path until I saw a major that made sense, so I punted for grad school. Any degree was needed for grad school, so I pursued the easiest thing I could, English literature. Being able to write and read is something anyone with a pulse can due well enough to pass. Seriously, if you can't BS, the you have no business living.
Long story short, I made a lot of decisions that seem trivial, but in the grand scheme of things, they paved the way for my current state of happiness. Nothing is perfect for there's so much to do still, but having a wonderful family and home is something I don't take for granted. Jobs come and go. I have faith that what will be, will be. In the meantime, I work on the things I can control like tiling my kitchen floor.
Supposedly we are born as the result of someone's choosing to have a child. We don't get to pick our birth arrangements, so the upbringing is up to chance. No two childhoods are the same it seems since there are so many variables from family size, education, income, social class, and geographic location to name a few.
We grow up learning what we like and don't like. We try to obtain the things we desire, and we pursue the things that interest us. Variables dictate a lot of things but for the most part the true factors are individualized.
No one made me go to college. I had nothing better to do that was reasonable. My parents both had degrees, and my brother went to school.
I wanted to be something in the mold of a wanderer, like a daydream out of Salinger's most famous work. I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do for a living. I just wanted to write nonsense and watch people. A buddy of mine was in South America when I was finishing high school, so I had an opportunity to do the Butch Cassidy thing and run away from almost everyone that knew me.
Starting fresh with a new life was so appealing, but I chickened out. Being newly out of high school is when you go to college. Sure you can flunk out but if you don't go when you are young and dumb, then the odds are that you won't make the effort down the road when you have adult obligations.
Going to college is expressway to adulthood for sheltered people. No one made me wake up in the morning or to go to bed at night. No one forced me to eat. No one forced me to go to church.
I had to open a checking account since carrying cash was stupid and debit cards didn't exist. I remember having temp checks that no one wanted to accept like no one wanted to accept my American Express Travelers Cheques when I was photo ID-less in Merida, Mexico.
I remember being offered credit cards every time I walked to class. My first credit card was to Sears and I had never shopped at Sears. My phone rang while I was trying to sleep(it was finals week), and I said, "Sure, I live at 1978 Cannon Drive..." to get them to stop interrupting my sleep. Never used the card, so I closed it five years later when I realized I had 20 credit cards that I never used.
No one made me choose a major. I chose what seemed to be best suited for my skills but changed my mind when I decided that I didn't want to kill people as a result of my indifferent about my work. I changed my path until I saw a major that made sense, so I punted for grad school. Any degree was needed for grad school, so I pursued the easiest thing I could, English literature. Being able to write and read is something anyone with a pulse can due well enough to pass. Seriously, if you can't BS, the you have no business living.
Long story short, I made a lot of decisions that seem trivial, but in the grand scheme of things, they paved the way for my current state of happiness. Nothing is perfect for there's so much to do still, but having a wonderful family and home is something I don't take for granted. Jobs come and go. I have faith that what will be, will be. In the meantime, I work on the things I can control like tiling my kitchen floor.
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