Over the winter, Sibylle and I fell into the habit of having take-out Chinese food for dinner on Sunday evenings. There were a couple of very good restaurants near the apartment (one in particular was excellent) that we could call and, in ten minutes or so, have piping hot Honey glazed chicken and wok roasted chicken to eat. We almost always combined this with a movie on DVD to create what we call “dinner and a movie.”
The expenses of moving, combined with our desire to pay off all our debt as rapidly as possible has made this tradition scare of late. We’ve been trying to eat most, if not all of our meals, from groceries rather than from take out or eating out. Occasionally we splurge and have something from out, but not without being aware of its impact on our budget.
Balancing the desire to have a budget and stay within our means with the need for some reward in the form of a nice meal prepared by others isn’t always easy. This afternoon we remarked that we miss the Chinese take-out on Sunday evening. I know I miss the occasional lunch out at work. But we’ve stayed within our budget consistently for a couple of months now. Which is better, long-term monetary stability, or the occasional dinner from out? Perhaps some of both.
The transition from multiple residences into one required some decisions to be made. What gets kept, what gets sold or given away, can this be stored? Three pieces of furniture were put on the block for sale. I listed them in the mail room of the apartment complex, on my companies Intranet classifieds page, and many, many times on craigslist.
While there were several calls and emails about the furniture, I only managed to entice three people to come and see them in person. None of these people bought anything. In the end the couch and chair were donated to the National Federation of the Blind, and the massager chair will be stored in our basement. What started out as a potential $1500 cash ended up being a lot of work for nothing.
As each day passed and the asking price was lowered in hopes of getting a sale, as more “buyers” wanted to offer me less than half of what I was asking, the furniture began to take on a new significance. Sibylle summed it up perfectly when she said that this furniture has some karma.
Yesterday I let go of the karma, and the furniture. With the help of a friend they were set on the curb and covered with a tarp. The tarp had taped to it a sign designating them for donation to the NFB. By claiming the original asking price on my taxes next spring I’ll realize about as much in tax savings as my final asking price. That it might also help out a worth organization in the process pleases me.
Last week we had a U-Haul truck scheduled for Friday afternoon. After some consideration we decided that we didn’t need the truck so I called on Thursday, before the 24-hour limit, and canceled the reservation. At the time I made the call I was put on hold for several minutes and had a very hurried conversation with the clerk when he came back on the line.
“I need to cancel my reservation.” “What’s the name?” “Nichols” “Okay, I’ll take care of it.”
After I hung up I had the feeling that it was all too easy, that he wasn’t going to follow through. In my email to Sibylle that afternoon I remarked that I ought to call U-Haul back to make sure the cancellation was properly completed. Life being what it is, I never called back.
Last night, while updating our books, Sibylle asked, “What’s this $50 charge from U-Haul on Friday for?” The cancellation had not been properly processed and we had been charge the standard cancellation fee. I immediately called their 800 number and spoke with a service representative. She took down all the pertinent information but wasn’t really able to do anything for me. She said that U-Haul Customer Service would call me back within 48 hours. Since we are on a budget, and a rather tight one at that, the extra $50 makes things even tighter. Not being able to do anything about it was frustrating.
This morning I called the local U-Haul office and spoke to the clerk and he pulled up the transaction on their computer. He said he could see where I called and canceled the reservation - they hadn’t completed the transaction and therefore I was billed the $50 fee. He further explained that only the manager can credit an account, that he would pass this information on to him when he arrived around 9:00 am today, and that it would be taken care of then.
I will be calling back to follow through with the manager this morning.
For the past several weeks I have been trying to sell some extra furniture on craigslist. The experience has been interesting to say the least.
Throughout the posting process, and embedded in every single email you get from craigslist are warnings about scams, imploring you to be wary of long-distance buyers and checks of any kind. When you make your first posting you don’t really pay much attention to these warnings, until the scam emails start to appear in your inbox. The broken English, lack of punctuation or capitalization are dead give aways that this email may not be kosher. The “buyers” willingness to send you a check immediately is another give away.
Most of the local buyers call the number you provided and they all have the same questions. “Is the <item> still for sale?” And, “Will you take <a number less than 50% of your asking price> for it?” Few buyers ever call back, and fewer still show up to look a the pieces.
To be fair we did sell a small, leather recliner within a day of first posting in online, and Sibylle was able to sell a refrigerator. Selling a couch and chair, however, is a lost cause. Furniture that was expensive brand new has almost no value in the used market. Pennies on the dollar. Even though I am not emotionally attached to the pieces anymore, I would like to get some value out of them.
After a showing Sunday where the buyer wanted to give me $200 for the $500 pair, I have decided to donate the furniture. I can valuate them at say, 1200 for the pair (a reasonable value by all accounts) and receive a tax deduction of about $300 next April. That the furniture would then be used to benefit those less fortunate than I, makes it all the better.
The damaged and blackened finger nail finally came off this afternoon. I will admit that it had a little help from me. Washing the dishes certainly helped to loosen it up, and when it was finally hanging by just one corner I gave a gentle tug and off it came.
The proto-nail underneath is about half or two-thirds the length of the nail bed, with a fairly deep crease running across it about mid-way. The crease is likely where the door made the most contact and broke the bone inside.
Having the black nail there was a constant reminder of what had happened, and while I didn’t think it was too unsightly, I was aware that it stood out a bit. Seeing my finger without the black nail is good, only time and patience now will determine how the nail re-grows.
Nearly seven weeks after I managed to shut the car door on my right forefinger, breaking the tip of my finger in the process, the fingernail is about to fall off. In the past couple of days it has gotten dramatically looser on my finger; at present only the left edge of the nail is still fastened down at all. When I lift the nail and peer underneath I can see clear, unblemished skin in the nail bed and what appears to be a new nail starting to grow from the cuticle.
After a couple of weeks of relatively normal usage of my finger, having the nail come lose like this has made me more aware of my finger once again. Even with the nail trimmed a closely as possible, it still wants to snag on clothes and threatens to get torn off; so we’ve been keeping it bandaged once again to try and keep the nail in place as long as possible.
Even after seven weeks of seeing the purplish-black color under my nail I am still startled by the flash of color sometimes when I move my hand. The discoloration seems to be fixed to the underside of the nail, so when it comes off my finger tip will once again be flesh colored.
Once the old nail does fall off it will be interesting to see how or even if, the new nail grows. Will it look like the other fingers, or will the nail extend only part way or be misshapen? Only time will tell.
Recently I learned that the word “alright” isn’t really a word. “All right” is correct, not the popular contraction. I’ve also recently been working on breaking my habit of saying and using in type the incorrect “towards,” replacing it with the proper “toward.”
All right? Toward the weekend then.
The Apple Phone Show is giving away an 8GB iPhone today. I figure my chances of winning are slim and none, but I’ll take slim.
Sibylle and I have been moving more or less continuously since Memorial Day weekend. There have been lulls, days where we didn’t lift a box or try to figure out where to put things, but they have been precious few this summer. We’ve both experienced the dislocation that comes from being multi-residential, Sibylle more than I as she was for a brief period tri-residential. For the past couple of weeks we’ve been about 90% mono-residential, but that last 10% has been enough to exhaust us.
Our reserves, financial, emotional, and physical are nearly spent. Decisions about minor things are nearly insurmountable, and major decisions are enough to make us want to hide away under the bed with the cat.
Don’t get me wrong; parts of this summer have been wonderful and marvelous. Seeing the full moon eclipse a few mornings ago was special, especially since we saw the other one this year on a freezing cold evening in March. Hearing Sibylle play her pianos in our new home was satisfying and heart-warming for me. We both have expressed growing satisfaction and pleasure in our new home. We are still sorting through the boxes, trying to decide where to put the books, or the kitchen gadgets, or the artwork; but we are feeling more and more at home everyday.
Two weeks ago my car was backed into while it was parked. I happened to be coming out the front door of the townhouse and witnessed the accident. The driver of the minivan was suitably upset and we exchanged contact information, and I collected from him his driver’s license number and insurance information. He said that he wanted to handle this himself and not involve the police or insurance. I was willing to go along with that, mostly because the damage looked so slight.
In hindsight I should have called the police and let let them handle the matter. The insurance information I copied from the guy was out of date. I noticed this and asked him, “This is out of date, you do have current coverage?” To which he replied, “Yes.” Not seeing a current proof of insurance card should have been my warning to call the police.
In the two weeks since I have been unable to get him to commit to paying, or even to call me back. I took the time to get an estimate for the repair (turns out it was far more expensive that I would have guessed, $1968 plus a rental car for the four to five day repair time), and faxed it to him. No response, no call, nothing. When I called early last week he said that he had only just taken the time to pick up the fax and would have more information for me in a couple of days. I said I would expect his call by Thursday. When he didn’t call back I emailed all the information to my insurance agent.
This morning my agent contacted the insurance agent on the expired card I was shown only to learn that the policy has lapsed. My agent called the other driver and learned that he has no insurance whatsoever. The other driver also indicated to my agent, that he hasn’t got the money to pay for the damages either.
By being a nice guy two weeks ago I lost some leverage in the situation. I don’t have a police report, and at present there is no penalty to the other driver, and I have to pay $500 to cover my deductible. It is my understanding that there is no time limit on getting an accident report, so I could call the local PD and get one filed. This has a feeling of retaliation to it however. It won’t get me any money for my deductible, and it very well could cost him his driver’s license.
The lesson here, for me at any rate, is to learn to use the law to establish a set of parameters around a situation. Calling the cops two weeks ago would have taken care of me. Yes, the other driver would have been in more hot water, but he, after all, caused the situation. Wanting to be a nice guy hasn’t accomplished anything except delay the understanding that his carelessness is going to cost me time and money. Using the police two weeks ago would not have been me being a “bad” guy, just me being a nice guy caught in an abnormal situation needing some help.