Okay, here is the skinny:
Over the past summer my apartment has fallen apart on many levels. The first was a gutter problem that forced water to enter my apartment through my bedroom wall. I didn't find out about the leak until it had destroyed a couple of things in my bedroom (and pissed me off to no end).
The second is Cory's shower, which, I guess, has been leaking between the tiles for quite some time. So Cory has been without a shower now for 3 weeks. Oh, if you didn't know, we each have our own bedrooms, albeit mine is in the public area.
Two weeks ago the third catastrophe hit our apartment when our dishwasher stopped working properly. So, now I am a manual dishwasher. Awesome!
well, some good news came our way. The gutter got fixed and the hole patched. This morning I put the bookcase back into place (it is 7 feet tall and weighs a ton). Now I can see out of all of my windows again!
Cory got a call this morning that I can only assume meant that they would be starting on his shower soon. And, on Wednesday, they should be coming in to work on the dishwasher.
This is the last, I repeat, last year I will live in this apartment. I don't care if they were to paint the walls, put in new cupboards or colored carpet. This is year number four and I haven't lived anywhere this long since becoming an adult. Besides, Edina is okay but it is not the urban life I dreamt of. I want my latte from across the street. Same with a pizza or a bar (if I ever decide to drink heavily). I just need things to be within walking distance, that's all. And character. My apartment has no character and a crappy, slow elevator to go to my car.
But the bookcase is back in place and my room looks less like a construction zone.
Peace.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
Consumerism: Spend less
This morning I logged into my Wells Fargo account and did something I like to do with my "my money" week income: I paid down my bills and transferred money to my credit card.
I know this is something one should do all of the time but it took me longer than most to really build up a head of steam. You see, for most of my adult life, I have been in love with the trappings of making money rather than the eventual having of money for a future expenditure.
It all started when I bought my most extravagant purchase in my adult life: My television. Forty-two inches diagonal, 1080p and having all the bells and whistles one could ask for, I struggled for weeks with the intention of purchasing an LCD television. One day, on a whim, now it seems, I went to the store and took out an interest-free, three-year loan to buy an $1,800 television (including warranty and DVD player). But that's when it hit me.
Most of the last couple of years, finally achieving constant employment and a steady income, I finally realized I made a big mistake. I didn't need this television. And, if the television lasts for 10 years, it cost nearly $200/year to own it. What the hell was I thinking?
Compounding it with my recent love of cycling, another $2,000 spent this summer, and gambling, $3,500/year on average, and it's no wonder that I am debt-laden and pondering the life of minimalist.
What it all comes down to is that, after years of bad habits, I realize I got caught up in an expensive lifestyle. Thank goodness I make enough money to have this lifestyle but it has buried me. I owe more money, at present, than I make in a year (including student loans). I realize that, at minimum payments, I could only knock my debt down by $3,000 in the next year. Only $3,000! Meanwhile I would be paying $2,400 in interest over that time!
Most people who find themselves in over their heads try to change when it is too late. Not me. I started a couple of months ago. Any extra money I have in a month is going to be broken up as such: Additional $10/month to television, $50 extra to credit card, $50 to savings and changing the minimum payment to student loan by $25. Hopefully, in a year (or less) I have no television payment, cut my credit card by 1/3 and, finally, got my total debt below my annual pre-tax income.
Let's just hope I don't want some new toy. So far, so good.
Peace.
I know this is something one should do all of the time but it took me longer than most to really build up a head of steam. You see, for most of my adult life, I have been in love with the trappings of making money rather than the eventual having of money for a future expenditure.
It all started when I bought my most extravagant purchase in my adult life: My television. Forty-two inches diagonal, 1080p and having all the bells and whistles one could ask for, I struggled for weeks with the intention of purchasing an LCD television. One day, on a whim, now it seems, I went to the store and took out an interest-free, three-year loan to buy an $1,800 television (including warranty and DVD player). But that's when it hit me.
Most of the last couple of years, finally achieving constant employment and a steady income, I finally realized I made a big mistake. I didn't need this television. And, if the television lasts for 10 years, it cost nearly $200/year to own it. What the hell was I thinking?
Compounding it with my recent love of cycling, another $2,000 spent this summer, and gambling, $3,500/year on average, and it's no wonder that I am debt-laden and pondering the life of minimalist.
What it all comes down to is that, after years of bad habits, I realize I got caught up in an expensive lifestyle. Thank goodness I make enough money to have this lifestyle but it has buried me. I owe more money, at present, than I make in a year (including student loans). I realize that, at minimum payments, I could only knock my debt down by $3,000 in the next year. Only $3,000! Meanwhile I would be paying $2,400 in interest over that time!
Most people who find themselves in over their heads try to change when it is too late. Not me. I started a couple of months ago. Any extra money I have in a month is going to be broken up as such: Additional $10/month to television, $50 extra to credit card, $50 to savings and changing the minimum payment to student loan by $25. Hopefully, in a year (or less) I have no television payment, cut my credit card by 1/3 and, finally, got my total debt below my annual pre-tax income.
Let's just hope I don't want some new toy. So far, so good.
Peace.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
My billion-dollar idea
After a recent trip to the area known as Duluth, I have come up with a plan to make the best place on Earth.
Okay, maybe not the best place on Earth, since I haven't been many places, but it could be the best place to come along in a long time.
I started by contacting the mayor of Duluth, who hasn't written me back yet, about an idea to revitalize the area and make Duluth one of the best places to live.
Okay, I am beating around the bush a bit but I am tired. The idea is pretty simple and holds very little risk. What you do is you take the existing land in Duluth and you take all of the open spaces in the harbor and all of the open office spaces you can think of and zone them "Green." This would mean that only companies that follow the idea of making eco-friendly products could build in them.
Secondly, you convince companies, both established and startup, to move their assembly and production to Duluth. Utilizing tax incentives and lower the price of slip space, you attract eco-minded companies to the new "friendliest port in the world."
Once you convince them to come, you have the depressed workforce create the facilities and new infrastructure necessary to house factories and ship-building areas in the harbor. All of this could be done with a little elbow grease, a lot of determination, and little money on the part of the city.
The idea would be to create a win-win situation for Duluth and the world. If it succeeds, and, as I see it, it could not lose, we gain a port of excellence where not only do we revitalize a depressed area but we also create a model for the rest of the world to follow.
I am very enthusiastic about this and I think that it would cost very little on the part of the city and would add jobs, do good for the world, and bring pride to an area that deserves it.
Let's just hope I get a chance to be heard.
Okay, maybe not the best place on Earth, since I haven't been many places, but it could be the best place to come along in a long time.
I started by contacting the mayor of Duluth, who hasn't written me back yet, about an idea to revitalize the area and make Duluth one of the best places to live.
Okay, I am beating around the bush a bit but I am tired. The idea is pretty simple and holds very little risk. What you do is you take the existing land in Duluth and you take all of the open spaces in the harbor and all of the open office spaces you can think of and zone them "Green." This would mean that only companies that follow the idea of making eco-friendly products could build in them.
Secondly, you convince companies, both established and startup, to move their assembly and production to Duluth. Utilizing tax incentives and lower the price of slip space, you attract eco-minded companies to the new "friendliest port in the world."
Once you convince them to come, you have the depressed workforce create the facilities and new infrastructure necessary to house factories and ship-building areas in the harbor. All of this could be done with a little elbow grease, a lot of determination, and little money on the part of the city.
The idea would be to create a win-win situation for Duluth and the world. If it succeeds, and, as I see it, it could not lose, we gain a port of excellence where not only do we revitalize a depressed area but we also create a model for the rest of the world to follow.
I am very enthusiastic about this and I think that it would cost very little on the part of the city and would add jobs, do good for the world, and bring pride to an area that deserves it.
Let's just hope I get a chance to be heard.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
October musings
I haven't written in a while and that is okay because I haven't really been in the mood.
But since I last wrote I have ventured to Duluth where I revisited my past and helped my current perspective, got sick and did something political (other than gripe about it).
First off is the trip to Duluth. Gone were some of my former haunts and changed were my beloved campus of my early 20s. The house I last resided in, with Cory, my roommate, was abandoned and is probably in foreclosure. Looks pretty much how it did 9 years ago when I left. The campus has been updated and upgraded with more consumerism is mind yet, it seems, less of an academic feel. I found it funny when, asking for the use of a pen, a young student did not have more than one writing tool in his bag. So what does this young academic do when he loses his one pen? Huh? Tell me! (As a waiter I carry 6 pens and a marker).
What struck me as great about the journey was that, eventhough I was a tourist, I felt I could have easily acclimated to the city if I so chose to move back.
And then was getting sick. The morning after my trip I awoke to feeling like crap and decided to sleep most of the day and most of the following day. I did go to work and finished my shifts but I was so out of it, last night, that I felt like I wasn't there. I rarely fall ill, maybe once every other year, but this was definitely not a fun one.
As far as political participation, I went canvassing for the Obama campaign. It was fun and I also met a nice guy named Ben who works in the entertainment industry so I made a possible future ally. We'll see, though.
All in all, it has been an interesting week. I am beginning preparation for my first production this January and Ben gave me a good idea to have a party to raise money for the production. We'll see how that goes.
Peace.
But since I last wrote I have ventured to Duluth where I revisited my past and helped my current perspective, got sick and did something political (other than gripe about it).
First off is the trip to Duluth. Gone were some of my former haunts and changed were my beloved campus of my early 20s. The house I last resided in, with Cory, my roommate, was abandoned and is probably in foreclosure. Looks pretty much how it did 9 years ago when I left. The campus has been updated and upgraded with more consumerism is mind yet, it seems, less of an academic feel. I found it funny when, asking for the use of a pen, a young student did not have more than one writing tool in his bag. So what does this young academic do when he loses his one pen? Huh? Tell me! (As a waiter I carry 6 pens and a marker).
What struck me as great about the journey was that, eventhough I was a tourist, I felt I could have easily acclimated to the city if I so chose to move back.
And then was getting sick. The morning after my trip I awoke to feeling like crap and decided to sleep most of the day and most of the following day. I did go to work and finished my shifts but I was so out of it, last night, that I felt like I wasn't there. I rarely fall ill, maybe once every other year, but this was definitely not a fun one.
As far as political participation, I went canvassing for the Obama campaign. It was fun and I also met a nice guy named Ben who works in the entertainment industry so I made a possible future ally. We'll see, though.
All in all, it has been an interesting week. I am beginning preparation for my first production this January and Ben gave me a good idea to have a party to raise money for the production. We'll see how that goes.
Peace.
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