Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Works for Me Wednesday

Ok I'll admit it, I've been lacking inspiration lately. I haven't been shopping much because we've got 3 weeks in between paychecks so I need to skimp a bit. Today is my shopping day so I'll have some deals to post about this afternoon. As it is Wednesday, I need to share what works for me this week.
1. Recycling-I am all about being green so it was only fitting that I got into our city's recycling program wholeheartedly. I am lucky enough to live in a place that picks up my recycling at my curb every other week. There are many things that can be recycled (particularly in the bathroom) that many people don't think about! Here is just a quick list of things to consider.
-toilet paper rolls
-makeup containers
-lotion or product containers
-boxes from products (toothpaste, lotions, ect)
-any sort of plastics

I have extra space in my master bath to have 2 trash bins. I use one for recycling and one for trash. My trash container normally has hardly anything in it when trash day comes! Find ways to reduce your environmental impact and recycle things you previously threw away!

2. Recycling bins-Ok so this is my second ditty on recycling. As I'm sure you know, I use coupons to help with my weekly grocery budget. One of my tips is to look in newspaper recycling bins for newspapers with coupons! I have one that I regularly check that is very clean and normally very full. I tend to go after the brown paper bags of newspaper that I can pull out and go through fairly quickly in my search for unused coupons. Yesterday, when stopping by I hit GOLD!!! Sunday newspapers still in the PLASTIC!!!! Plus some Coke rewards points that put me over the top for a new magazine subscription :) I brought the newspapers home, went through and found TONS of coupons and put the papers in my own recycling bin.

What works for you this Wednesday?

Friday, July 9, 2010

Works for Me Wednesday...a little late

Sorry I'm a bit late on this one...
My works for me Wednesday this week is more of a confession and a plea for other people to confess in a sense as well.
There are some people who would like to live their lives like that of the movies...I am not one of them. I much prefer to live my life through songs. I have songs associated with almost every important event in my life, every day to day thing, and most cities I've visited. For example, Walking in Memphis reminds me of my club soccer team from high school. I listen to Take Me or Leave Me from Rent after a bad breakup. Lessons Learned puts things into perspective for me when I have major decisions to make. I'm sure I could essentially make a sound track of my life. So that is my challenge to you all, my lovely blog readers....I know you're out there somewhere!!!! Comment what the soundtrack of your life would be with these 10 stages. Feel free to share what song goes with which or leave us guessing. See mine below!
1. Childhood
2. Teens
3. College/Young Adulthood
4. Adulthood
5. Most important life decision
6. Biggest regret
7. Greatest love story
8. Best day of your life
9. Worst day of your life
10. Future

1. Born to Fly-Sara Evans
2. Wide Open Spaces-Dixie Chicks
3. I Gotta Feeling-Black Eyed Peas
4. No Such Thing-John Mayer
5. You're Gonna Miss This-Trace Adkins
6. Settlin-Sugarland
7. Haven't Met You Yet-Michael Buble
8. Don't Worry Bout a Thing-SheDaisy
9. Stand-Rascal Flatts
10. Have a Little Faith in Me-Joe Cocker

Monday, July 5, 2010

It's new to me

Tomorrow I will pick up my new car! Ok so it isn't new, but it is new to me. I have driven a 01 Dodge Neon since I turned 16 and despite the fact that it is still under 100,000 miles, it is definitely time for a new one. Suzie Q, as she has been affectionately named, has had her share of bumps and bruises over the years. Some have scared the heck out of me, but I've learned something from each and every issue we've gone through over our 8 years together.
First in 2002, I was involved in a pretty bad car accident with her on my way to school. I learned to slow down because being late is certainly better than being dead. She took me to Bellarmine University in the fall of 2004 and I learned that home was never more than a car ride away. She was driven over a median by a young man who offered to be our DD in college and I learned that I will likely take better care of the things I work hard for than other people will. My car radio broke my freshman year of college, so I replaced it with a CD player, which then proceeded to stop working as well my senior year of college. It tends to work once the car is warmed up (sometimes after about an hour of driving) which confirmed to me that the Neon is indeed a woman with a bit of an attitude. It also taught me that sometimes silence and a little bit of fresh air is the best way to get your brain working. My driver side door lock was broken while trying to be opened during the 2008 Louisville ice storm causing me to unlock my passenger side door and reach across to the driver side for the past 2 years. It taught me that sometimes problem solving isn't as good as just fixing something that bothers you. This past winter I slid on the ice going about 15 MPH in my neighborhood and hit a truck destroying the back passenger side door. I was ridiculously sick and had taken a half day. I only went to work because I had a case conference that afternoon that had already been rescheduled about 3 times. I learned that in the end, I need to take care of myself first and foremost. I've cried or talked my way out of numerous speeding tickets in this car. She took me to high school, soccer practices, graduation, college, my first derby, college graduation, job interviews, house hunting, my first day of teaching, and to my first home. It will be difficult to give her up tomorrow, but I know its time for me to get a big girl car that is more reliable and safer.

In searching for a new car, I knew there were 3 things I could not live without and 3 things I could not live with.
Needs
1. Power locks/windows
2. Cruise control
3. Working radio

Hates
1. Leather seats
2. Dodge
3. Any model other than a 4 door sedan

I ended up with a 2006 VW Jetta 2.5 that has less than 40,000. The car is in great shape and I could not be more excited! Buying used is definitely the way to go for me. Paying cash and driving a car til it's dead is certainly better than making car payments in my book. I figure I can put that extra $200 a month into savings to buy another car free and clear down the road. If you figure that SuzieQ has been around for 8 years, I have saved $2,400 a year to not have a car payment. Over the lifetime of the car that adds up to a whopping $19,200!

So my plan is to save $100 a month for a car down the road. If I save $1,200 a year for 9 years I will have another $10,600 to spend for another car. I can always save more than that if needed, but I figure my plan works for the time being.

What is your opinion....new or used cars? What are some features you can't live without? Do you have a financial plan to make big purchases like a car? Comment away.