My son convinced me that I watch way too much tv so I called today to cancel my satellite package. But they said they had a package that was nothing but local channels so I would still get some of the shows I like to watch. It will save me $50 a month on the bill.

I started back on my diet today. So far it is going okay. I left my drops at home but that is okay. I will make them up this evening.

we went to the grocery store and got our 15 items. one of them was a large bag of cat food. spent $69. more than I wanted to spend. next week will be better. no large purchases necssary.

Then I came home and changed litter boxes and set up the girl kitty in the basement. hopefully none of the other cats have caught it.

Now I am angry about the cat situation. ds came home to visit and might not be able to stay here tonight because of all the cat dander...which he is allergic to. so some thoughtless person has cost me time with ds. and no one seems to want to help me. I am at my wits end. I don't know how much longer I can keep this up. something has got to give.

Typed on my phone so excuse typos.

So I got the new water bill yesterday. I am expecting it to go down since DS moved out. But it hasn't so far. Then I really looked at it. Last year this month we used 2200 gallons of water. This year we used 8800 gallons of water. Wonder where all that water went! They say we are using 296 gallons of water a day. That is just crazy! I am going to test the meter tonight by turning off all the water in the house and see if it is still running. My mom thinks it is because of the leak under the downstairs bathroom sink that I had to have fixed last month. I am not so sure. The lady at the water department said that it was most likely a toilet. Although I am having trouble with my toilet, it is that the water ISN'T running..not that it won't stop running. So I don't think that could be it. There are no signs of leak in the yard. I am hoping that the meter isn't turning when I check it tonight meaning that whatever it was has been fixed.

We are going to the grocery store tonight and I think I am going to steal an idea from CB in the City...she only gets 10 items everytime she goes to the store. I am going to modify it a bit and get 15 items. I think that should do it. If we go once a week we should be in good shape. I will let you know.

KITTEN UPDATE: I just got a call from the place in Ellijay who said that until they actually take the kittens they can't provide medical care for them. She said that since she is sneezing and coughing it sounded like an upper respitory infection which is extremely contagious. So I will isolate that kitty when I get home. I am still waiting to hear back from the Humane Society.

When I got home tonight the little girls eyes are almost swollen completely shut. I really don't have the money to take her to the vet. I really hate that someone was irresponsible and left the kittens on our doorstep and I hate that there is absolutely no help for people it happens to.

There has been a position open up at my work. It is a part time position, 10-30 hours per week. It pays $8 per hour. Only catch is it is a 1099. I am hesitant for this reason. But I figure if I put 15% of each check away, that should cover what I owe at the end of the year, right?

I haven't heard from any of the applications I put in and I am pretty desperate for money.

Just want some opinions on this.

Thanks!

There is not too much going on with my finances. They are pretty much on autopilot. I have my budget done through September. I am $159 short. Not sure where that will come from. I have pretty much juggled everything I can juggle. I am sure something will turn up.

About 4 weeks ago someone left 3 kittens on our doorstep. Ever since I have been actively trying to find them a home with no luck. The humane society is full and will not take them. Homeward Bound at least put us on the waiting list. They should be able to take them either this week or the next. I am very frustrated. There is very little help for people like me, that through no fault of their own end up with animals they can't take care of. Now one of them needs to go to the vet because there is something wrong with one of it's eyes. I can't afford it. It will have to wait until HOmeward Bound or someplace takes them.

I haven't heard anything from any of the applications that I put in last week. CVS said that might be hiring but it takes 3 weeks for the applications to download to them. By then I am sure they will have already hired people. I am just keeping my fingers crossed. Something has got to give. I am at my wits end and don't know what else I can do.

If any of you do alot of online shopping, you should go through ebates.com. You earn cash back from tons of different stores.

Also, check retailmenot.com for coupon codes. You can really save alot of money.

If you decide to join ebates, let me know so I can refer you and earn some cash!

Right now Regions Bank and PNC bank are both offering bonuses for opening up checking accounts with direct deposit. This is doable for me and I have figured out how I could do both. My question is does this affect anything? Not that my credit is great, but does it affect my ability to open checking accounts if I open multiple ones at a time? Or will it put my name on some sort of a watch list?

Those interested...PNC is $200 and Regions is $125.

I spent the afternoon on the phone with Dish Network and my telephone provider, tds. My phone, internet and dish network is all billed through tds. So I told them I was thinking of switching to direct tv because they have a better rate. TDS offered me $20 a month off my bill! Then they called Dish Network on my behalf and got me an additional $10 off of my bill. So each month I will be saving $30. All because I asked for it!

Still no word on the job yet. Just holding my breath waiting to hear something.

When I went to the Gas Station just a few minutes ago they had a sign up that they were hiring. I promptly came back and applied online. I called to let them know that I had applied and the manager was out. But I am hoping to hear from them.

Hi Friends! Sorry I haven't been around lately. I have been sliding down hill depression wise and just barely to keep my head above water going to work each day.

Today I wrote out an entire month's worth of expenses and compared it to what I bring in. Turns out I am about $500 short each month. That explains alot. I spent the afternoon filling out applications for CVS, Walmart, and Food Lion. Hopefully one of them will call me back. I applied at two different Walmarts and 2 different CVS's.

When I was telling me mom about filling out the applications she said that she doesn't want me to get a second job. And to stop paying her the power bill...she can cover it for a while. This made me feel like crap. Hello depression.

I still am going to take a job if anyone calls me. Because not paying the power bill still makes me $300 short each month. And I would like to get a little ahead. Plus with DD working and DS moved to Kennesaw(about an hour away), I am just sitting here doing nothing in the evenings and weekends.

DD turned 16 and got her drivers license. She had some money that my mom had been saving for her for a car. We found one and were going to finance the difference, about $3000. My mom wasn't happy with DD having a car payment so she paid off her car. The only thing she has to pay each month is her gas and her insurance. Car insurance is ridiculous. It went up $200 when I added her and the car. DD pays a portion of that.

I got a raise at work recently. I went from $16/hour to $36000/ year. It worked out to about a $2/hour raise. But I lost all of my OT. So really it is about $1000 more per year than I was making. I also got a bonus of $1700. It went toward DD's car since I had borrowed some of what my mom had saved. My boss is awesome!

As I mentioned...DS moved to Kennesaw. He is renting an apartment with a friend. Everything they put in the apartment fit in the back of a pick up truck. I had to laugh. I remember my first apartment. There was no furniture other than a bed. I sent him a care package of toilet paper, soap, and shampoo. All of the things he wouldn't think to buy for himself. I am having a real hard time though with his moving out. I have had to increase my visits to the therapist to help me deal with it. I don't think I will survive when DD decides to move out.

Well...that about sums it up for a while. I will try to post more often. I have missed you guys and your support.

Please no negative comments...I can't deal with them right now.