what are you doing right now?

[Anne_in_VA]

DH is still unpacking boxes from our move.  We have a few left in the garage that need unpacking.  We can’t find our winter coats so I bet they are out there somewhere.  I have leftovers from yesterday for lunch.  We ate at DD’s with the grandkids.  It was just ok.  They don’t eat anything with corn products, wheat, sugar or gmo’s which really limits ingredients.  The turkey was very moist and delicious though.

[lurkyloo]

Thinking of you, ners.

[lurkyloo]

Feeling virtuous.  I downloaded turbotax and am plugging in some estimates to try to figure out how much we owe, so I can get us within safe harbor with strategic bIRA withdrawals and withholdings.

[NancysSummerSip]

My first generation Fitbit died yesterday, so I am smart watch shopping. Will wait for the weekend/cyber Monday to buy.

[andi9899]

Sitting at Sam's waiting for my curbside order. I'm watching someone picking up 2 big carts worth of stuff. They're trying to fit it all in a corvette and I'm highly amused.

[lurkyloo]

Nov 29, 2024 11:25:19 GMT -5 lurkyloo said:

Feeling virtuous.  I downloaded turbotax and am plugging in some estimates to try to figure out how much we owe, so I can get us within safe harbor with strategic bIRA withdrawals and withholdings.

Update:  most of the non-w2 income sections are not active yet which makes it pretty useless for projecting.    Still, with back of the envelope calcs it looks like we should be within 10% of our total fed liability.  Haven’t delved into the states yet, not looking forward to that!

[cooper88]

I left after nine and got back home by 10:30, so that's pretty good. I love Ace Hardware. They had keys! They still had mulch! Command strips were on sale! Then to the grocery store next door to them. They had green apple cider! Anyway, I'm back home for the weekend and have everything I need and some things I wanted.

[jerseygirl]

Never heard of green apple cider
Really green color? Or uses green apples?

[NancysSummerSip]

Nov 29, 2024 12:36:30 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

Never heard of green apple cider
Really green color? Or uses green apples?

I've never heard of it either way! I am interested though, as I like Granny Smith apples!

[cooper88]

Hard cider made with green apples. It's tart, but I love to have one from time to time. I haven't been able to find it for about six months.

[chiver78]

I'm currently sitting at the bar where my friend E works. waiting on a spinach & mushroom pizza and I'm nursing a Cosmopolitan. I need to cook for the pups before dinner tonight, so I'm not gonna hang out long. although the conversation has been entertaining. lol... I didn't realize how much I'd miss speaking with other adults IRL, even if it's just coworkers on the phone. next weekend's charity music thing is a good thing

[Cookies Galore]

Ended up going to a closer bird sanctuary since 476 traffic to the wildlife sanctuary would have taken 45 minutes. It was a nice hike through some woods and fields. Heard some birds and saw seven deer.

[zibazinski]

Getting ready to head to Asheville for the weekend before I drive back to Florida on Monday. I’ve wanted to see the Chihuly exhibit and DD and I both want to support Asheville and the Biltmore.

[countrygirl3]

Try unplugging and replugging the power chair, that will sometimes reset mine.

I have 5 singing appliances with timers. They are LG's and all of them have tones and songs, something is always chirping or toning in the kitchen and utility room, LOL!


DIL was supposed to come today and help us decorate outside for Christmas. We need to see what we have left as we got rid of a lot. Some items I will buy. Have 2 beautiful wreaths for the garage lights if I can get them up, they are made from real branches, $19 each at Costco. 

[Pink Cashmere]

I just use the timer on my oven when it’s in use. I have used the timer on the microwave for other things, but I mostly just use the timer on my watch now, so I don’t have to be near the kitchen to hear it. Mister sometimes uses the HomePod in the kitchen and just tells Siri to let him know when x minutes have passed.

[countrygirl3]

The day is starting out sunny and beautiful but cold 47 out, hoping it gets warmer. But we have all weekend to decorate.
Hubs is resting a bit, he has been going for awhile with grandson, so I told him to lay down. He has had purple urine?? I looked it up and several things can cause it. Sounds like a bacterial infection, he has another week of antibiotics. He did say he feels some better today. I hope so, yesterday he took out the trash, emptied the 2 bathroom cans into the kitchen one and took it out. That wiped him out, poor guy.

He is going to see if he can get the Xmas decorations down in the garage. I need to pack up the Halloween ones.

[countrygirl3]

I don't want old cars around. I can remember growing up and we were always having car troubles because we couldn't afford new cars. The folks did better later and had nice ones, but that has hung with me.

Hubs and I take care of them but only have 2. I need to get my oil changed, I have a $35 off coupon I'm going to use.  For many years we could buy used a couple years old that were good vehicles, then it got to where people were keeping them longer so we started buying new. Also he had a company truck for at least 15 years or more so that saved us a small fortune. I imagine one day we may get down to one vehicle.

My car insurance up here, just raised to $2k a year. I found a less expensive house insurance for our current home so need to look at car, that is awful, it went up $200 in Sept apparently.

Hubs has a Washington license but the truck is insured in Indiana, don't think it's a problem till we no longer have houses down there.

[Pink Cashmere]

Nov 29, 2024 15:12:45 GMT -5 countrygirl3 said:

I don't want old cars around. I can remember growing up and we were always having car troubles because we couldn't afford new cars. The folks did better later and had nice ones, but that has hung with me.

Hubs and I take care of them but only have 2. I need to get my oil changed, I have a $35 off coupon I'm going to use.  For many years we could buy used a couple years old that were good vehicles, then it got to where people were keeping them longer so we started buying new. Also he had a company truck for at least 15 years or more so that saved us a small fortune. I imagine one day we may get down to one vehicle.

My car insurance up here, just raised to $2k a year. I found a less expensive house insurance for our current home so need to look at car, that is awful, it went up $200 in Sept apparently.

Hubs has a Washington license but the truck is insured in Indiana, don't think it's a problem till we no longer have houses down there.

I started buying new cars instead of used cars because I kept having trouble with used cars. The first car I bought new, was to replace the one my ex and I had when we separated. When I got rid of it, I was working 7pm-3:30am, and often had to drive across the city to pick my children up after I got off work. 

The car had started just losing power while I was driving, and shutting off. I knew when it was about to happen because the dashboard lights would get dim first. It was a stick shift and I knew how to make it start again if I could get it rolling, but who wants to keep doing that in the middle of the night, alone, or with 2 children with you? I’d replaced the battery and alternator. Took it to different mechanics, and finally took it to a dealer and left it overnight, to try to get it fixed. The dealer couldn’t even figure out what was wrong with it. 

Since nobody I took it to could fix it, it finally stopped on me one last time, on the expressway when I was otw to get my children after I got off work. The next day I started looking for a new car. I’ve bought 2 new cars since then, the last one in 2003. I still have that car, and idc that she’s an old girl now. She is still reliable, always has been, and that is why I love my old car lol.

I don’t like old cars sitting around unused and falling apart, like Mister’s Lincoln is doing. But other than that, I don’t really mind old cars. In fact, my dream car was made before I was even born lol. But even if I ever get one, it wouldn’t be my daily driver, of course.

I do admit that we have an excessive amount of vehicles for 2 drivers, even though they do all serve different purposes, aside from the 2 Honda Accords that are best for daily drivers. Mine is a 2003, his is a 2016 that he bought in 2018. But only 2 of the vehicles are mine, the other 4 are Mister’s. The Lincoln is a ‘90something and Mister’s Dad gave it to him some years ago, the Jeep and Tahoe are 2010’s and were bought within the last 4 years, just because they were great deals, the Mustang is a 2024 bought new. That is the first vehicle Mister ever bought new.

The insurance on the Mustang is more than all of the other vehicles combined. It is also a gas guzzler, like or worse than the Jeep and Tahoe. There was a literal “gas guzzler tax” included in the purchase price of the Mustang. And even though Mister did not finance the entire purchase price for the Mustang, the monthly payment is still more than the mortgage payment for my house. But out of 6, it is the only vehicle that has a payment, and it’s not my payment to make, so whatever. 

My heart still starts beating fast if I spend more than $1k in a single transaction, so idk what I will do when I finally have to replace my car, given how much they cost now. I might have a heart attack or something trying to pay cash for a new car, even if that is the best option for me whenever the time comes. If $1k still upsets my nerves, and I’ve never spent more than $10k at one time, out of my own pockets, I don’t know if I’d survive spending a lot more than $10k in cash money.

[giramomma]

ds had his one year review and his hour wage increased by between 10 and 15%.

he is now earning twice as much at 20 as i was at 26
with two degrees. lol.

and no good deed goes unpunished. just in case you needed your trite platitude for the day

[chiver78]

growing up, we always had the oldest cars my dad's BFF couldn't sell, on their way to the junkyard. I have a childhood memory of a shiny new silver station wagon with leather bench seats from the early 80s, that I've since learned was a brand new Volare wagon, that had a passenger door caved in from some jackass hitting it in a parking lot, a couple weeks after they took delivery.

FF to college, when I had some cash from internships, and I bought a car that was a lot more solid. it was also my first manual transmission, and I've driven stick ever since. as long as they are still available, I'm gonna seek out sticks, and never a used one. there's reasons a stick is available with low mileage, and I want no part of someone else (more than) half burning out the clutch. so, as long as I'm driving manual, I'm driving new. I just passed 219k miles on my Mazda this week, so im okay with paying sticker price for new. it all evens out over the lifetime of the car.

[soupandstew]

Nov 29, 2024 16:38:26 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

Nov 29, 2024 15:12:45 GMT -5 countrygirl3 said:

I don't want old cars around. I can remember growing up and we were always having car troubles because we couldn't afford new cars. The folks did better later and had nice ones, but that has hung with me.

Hubs and I take care of them but only have 2. I need to get my oil changed, I have a $35 off coupon I'm going to use.  For many years we could buy used a couple years old that were good vehicles, then it got to where people were keeping them longer so we started buying new. Also he had a company truck for at least 15 years or more so that saved us a small fortune. I imagine one day we may get down to one vehicle.

My car insurance up here, just raised to $2k a year. I found a less expensive house insurance for our current home so need to look at car, that is awful, it went up $200 in Sept apparently.

Hubs has a Washington license but the truck is insured in Indiana, don't think it's a problem till we no longer have houses down there.

I started buying new cars instead of used cars because I kept having trouble with used cars. The first car I bought new, was to replace the one my ex and I had when we separated. When I got rid of it, I was working 7pm-3:30am, and often had to drive across the city to pick my children up after I got off work. 

The car had started just losing power while I was driving, and shutting off. I knew when it was about to happen because the dashboard lights would get dim first. It was a stick shift and I knew how to make it start again if I could get it rolling, but who wants to keep doing that in the middle of the night, alone, or with 2 children with you? I’d replaced the battery and alternator. Took it to different mechanics, and finally took it to a dealer and left it overnight, to try to get it fixed. The dealer couldn’t even figure out what was wrong with it. 

Since nobody I took it to could fix it, it finally stopped on me one last time, on the expressway when I was otw to get my children after I got off work. The next day I started looking for a new car. I’ve bought 2 new cars since then, the last one in 2003. I still have that car, and idc that she’s an old girl now. She is still reliable, always has been, and that is why I love my old car lol.

I don’t like old cars sitting around unused and falling apart, like Mister’s Lincoln is doing. But other than that, I don’t really mind old cars. In fact, my dream car was made before I was even born lol. But even if I ever get one, it wouldn’t be my daily driver, of course.

I do admit that we have an excessive amount of vehicles for 2 drivers, even though they do all serve different purposes, aside from the 2 Honda Accords that are best for daily drivers. Mine is a 2003, his is a 2016 that he bought in 2018. But only 2 of the vehicles are mine, the other 4 are Mister’s. The Lincoln is a ‘90something and Mister’s Dad gave it to him some years ago, the Jeep and Tahoe are 2010’s and were bought within the last 4 years, just because they were great deals, the Mustang is a 2024 bought new. That is the first vehicle Mister ever bought new.

The insurance on the Mustang is more than all of the other vehicles combined. It is also a gas guzzler, like or worse than the Jeep and Tahoe. There was a literal “gas guzzler tax” included in the purchase price of the Mustang. And even though Mister did not finance the entire purchase price for the Mustang, the monthly payment is still more than the mortgage payment for my house. But out of 6, it is the only vehicle that has a payment, and it’s not my payment to make, so whatever. 

My heart still starts beating fast if I spend more than $1k in a single transaction, so idk what I will do when I finally have to replace my car, given how much they cost now. I might have a heart attack or something trying to pay cash for a new car, even if that is the best option for me whenever the time comes. If $1k still upsets my nerves, and I’ve never spent more than $10k at one time, out of my own pockets, I don’t know if I’d survive spending a lot more than $10k in cash money.

Glad you weren't there the day we signed off on two VW's - you would have keeled over for sure.  I got 0% interest but DH's little go-fast carries 6.9%.  It's only for 36 months though.  

Before retiring, I drove my trucks for 100,000 miles plus.  Now I average about 5,000 miles a year.  Lizzie will probably be my last car as I am over-the-moon happy with her and will spend whatever is necessary to keep her happy through the years.  She's my first "pricey" vehicle and I love her dearly.  

[chiver78]

I'm currently working on cooking about 9lbs of ground beef and wilted kale, mostly for the freezer, but some is needed for pup dinner tonight. I'll keep a full container out of the freezer as well, so I don't have to cook again for a few days. LD is still restricted from chicken. that's irritating, as there have been some major sales I couldn't take advantage of.

[soupandstew]

Nov 29, 2024 15:12:45 GMT -5 countrygirl3 said:

I don't want old cars around. I can remember growing up and we were always having car troubles because we couldn't afford new cars. The folks did better later and had nice ones, but that has hung with me.

Hubs and I take care of them but only have 2. I need to get my oil changed, I have a $35 off coupon I'm going to use.  For many years we could buy used a couple years old that were good vehicles, then it got to where people were keeping them longer so we started buying new. Also he had a company truck for at least 15 years or more so that saved us a small fortune. I imagine one day we may get down to one vehicle.

My car insurance up here, just raised to $2k a year. I found a less expensive house insurance for our current home so need to look at car, that is awful, it went up $200 in Sept apparently.

Hubs has a Washington license but the truck is insured in Indiana, don't think it's a problem till we no longer have houses down there.

You are living in an urban area versus rural and the PNW is hcola.  When we moved from little Victoria to Houston, our car insurance tripled.  You may have a problem with a claim on your husband's truck because premiums are usually based on where the car is garaged, which is WA in your case.  

[soupandstew]

We like poultry and eat a lot of it so I'm calling it "revenge of the birds" when I yank a Cornish hen out of the fridge and drip blood the length of the kitchen  .  Ten minutes of Lysol mopping later, preparations continued.  I spatchcocked the little twerp in response and took great joy in scissoring through his spine!

[NastyWoman]

I just dropped of the advent calendars for my friend's twins. The kids, like most kids, get spoiled for Xmas and the thought of just getting something that gets lost in a pile of stuff did not appeal to me. So I  decided that my hunt for the perfect advent calendars for my grandkids needed to expand and they would get calendars as well. It is something they actually look forward to and "use" for at least 24 days - I count that as a win.

[soupandstew]

Two loads of laundry done, toilets cleaned, got cash at bank etc.  Tomorrow is pack up all the fall decor so we can swap it out for Christmas on Sunday.  

Next week is a phone chat with our financial advisor, and the celebration/posada at our taqueria.  I think I can wrap up the autobiography AGAIN maybe.  

[Pink Cashmere]

Nov 29, 2024 16:51:37 GMT -5 soupandstew said:

Nov 29, 2024 16:38:26 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

I started buying new cars instead of used cars because I kept having trouble with used cars. The first car I bought new, was to replace the one my ex and I had when we separated. When I got rid of it, I was working 7pm-3:30am, and often had to drive across the city to pick my children up after I got off work. 

The car had started just losing power while I was driving, and shutting off. I knew when it was about to happen because the dashboard lights would get dim first. It was a stick shift and I knew how to make it start again if I could get it rolling, but who wants to keep doing that in the middle of the night, alone, or with 2 children with you? I’d replaced the battery and alternator. Took it to different mechanics, and finally took it to a dealer and left it overnight, to try to get it fixed. The dealer couldn’t even figure out what was wrong with it. 

Since nobody I took it to could fix it, it finally stopped on me one last time, on the expressway when I was otw to get my children after I got off work. The next day I started looking for a new car. I’ve bought 2 new cars since then, the last one in 2003. I still have that car, and idc that she’s an old girl now. She is still reliable, always has been, and that is why I love my old car lol.

I don’t like old cars sitting around unused and falling apart, like Mister’s Lincoln is doing. But other than that, I don’t really mind old cars. In fact, my dream car was made before I was even born lol. But even if I ever get one, it wouldn’t be my daily driver, of course.

I do admit that we have an excessive amount of vehicles for 2 drivers, even though they do all serve different purposes, aside from the 2 Honda Accords that are best for daily drivers. Mine is a 2003, his is a 2016 that he bought in 2018. But only 2 of the vehicles are mine, the other 4 are Mister’s. The Lincoln is a ‘90something and Mister’s Dad gave it to him some years ago, the Jeep and Tahoe are 2010’s and were bought within the last 4 years, just because they were great deals, the Mustang is a 2024 bought new. That is the first vehicle Mister ever bought new.

The insurance on the Mustang is more than all of the other vehicles combined. It is also a gas guzzler, like or worse than the Jeep and Tahoe. There was a literal “gas guzzler tax” included in the purchase price of the Mustang. And even though Mister did not finance the entire purchase price for the Mustang, the monthly payment is still more than the mortgage payment for my house. But out of 6, it is the only vehicle that has a payment, and it’s not my payment to make, so whatever. 

My heart still starts beating fast if I spend more than $1k in a single transaction, so idk what I will do when I finally have to replace my car, given how much they cost now. I might have a heart attack or something trying to pay cash for a new car, even if that is the best option for me whenever the time comes. If $1k still upsets my nerves, and I’ve never spent more than $10k at one time, out of my own pockets, I don’t know if I’d survive spending a lot more than $10k in cash money.

Glad you weren't there the day we signed off on two VW's - you would have keeled over for sure.  I got 0% interest but DH's little go-fast carries 6.9%.  It's only for 36 months though.  

Before retiring, I drove my trucks for 100,000 miles plus.  Now I average about 5,000 miles a year.  Lizzie will probably be my last car as I am over-the-moon happy with her and will spend whatever is necessary to keep her happy through the years.  She's my first "pricey" vehicle and I love her dearly.  

If you paid cash for those VW’s, I probably would keel over lol. Financing cars didn’t make my heart race. Signing all of those papers for my mortgage did though. But that involved a lot more money than I’ve ever spent on a car. 

My heart wants to jump out of my chest when I slide my debit card or hand over a cashier’s check for over $1k. 

Even when I spent $4k on my car a couple years ago, when it was time to pay, my heart wanted to jump out of my chest. All sorts of thoughts were running through my head, some ridiculous like “Will it go through”, even though I knew I had more than enough money for the transaction to go through. 

I think part of that is during my adult life, it has always seemed like whenever I spend a big chunk of money, something tends to go wrong somewhere else, that costs me a lot of money. And somewhere along the way, $999 must have become okay, but $1k was not lol.

Now that I think about it, Mister use to have an issue similar to that, although I don’t know his reasons. When we were setting up the place he moved to early in our relationship, when we were buying the furniture I’d helped him pick out, he gave me the cash he’d saved up and his debit card, for me to pay for it and walked away while I finalized the transaction for him. I’d forgotten about that until now lol. So he used to be as weird as I am about spending thousands of dollars at one time. 

A couple years later, he said he didn’t understand why I said he needed 2 nightstands in his bedroom when he could’ve just used milk crates or something instead. Even with less expensive items, he didn’t get it why not only did I want him to have a pretty shower curtain in his en-suite bathroom, but also a liner. He said that he thought I was crazy and being extra when I was acting like things like that were normal, and he was just going along with it even though he was thinking WTH. Those things and other things like them WERE normal to me, and him admitting that he thought I was being extra at the time, told me a lot about the differences in what we were use to, even though he’d been married before, for 10 years or so. 

Anyway, he has obviously gotten over whatever made him give me all of the cash and his debit card to pay for the furniture he was buying back then. When he bought his Honda, he withdrew $5k from the bank for a down payment on it. And he played with the cash on the ride from the bank back to the dealer, because it was so much cash in his hand. But now, that kind of cash doesn’t seem to be an issue for him, since he’s gotten cashier’s checks for a lot more money since then, without blinking an eye. I’m not there yet, $1k is still my max lol. 

[soupandstew]

Pink Cashmere  We all have our financial quirks and triggers.  I have zero problem dropping $300 for dinner but hunt down clearance rack purses for $34.95. Our past experiences color our present life in so many ways.  

[cooper88]

Single large purchases make me nervous also, even though financially I know the money is there. If something is twelve months no interest, I'll do that and pay it off in thirds. It makes no logical sense to me, but it is what it is.

[Pink Cashmere]

Nov 29, 2024 18:17:18 GMT -5 soupandstew said:

Pink Cashmere   We all have our financial quirks and triggers.  I have zero problem dropping $300 for dinner but hunt down clearance rack purses for $34.95. Our past experiences color our present life in so many ways.  

That is SO true, because I will spend $300 on a purse, and look crazy if I spend $300 on dinner. I’m not really into purses, I paid $300 for one over 10 years ago, and that’s the last one I bought, it’s still my “daily” purse when I use one, and let me tell it, it’s still like new lol. 

But my last sentence doesn’t even really matter. The point is that neither one of us is wrong, with how we prioritize as far as how much we are willing to spend on this or that. Purses, dinners, whatever we prefer to spend our money on (that’s not illegal or immoral lol) if we pay for it with money we earn(ed) through the fruits of our labor, even if retired, or from honest money period, it’s all good imo. Especially when buying a $300 purse or a $300 dinner does not mean that on the other hand, we are asking other people for money or expecting someone else to pay for our basic necessities while we blow money on unnecessary stuff.

I use to have conversations with a coworker who irritated me judging other people for what they spent their money on. My argument was always that everybody that liked nice things or to wear nice clothes or whatever, was not financially irresponsible or trying to impress other people. I liked for my bra and panties to match every day, and color coordinate with my clothes. Even when I was single and nobody saw my bra and panties but me. I don’t have the sensory issues that some people have, but even I recognize that some materials and types of clothing feel better against my skin than others, and the ones that feel better against my skin, often cost a little more than just any old thing. So it really irritated me when he would judge people because they like to dress nice. Different strokes for different folks, and no need for judgement imo, when nobody is asking you for any money.