• working 40 hours at my real job
• interning 15 hours at local runaway program
• in class for 8 hours
• homework for a good 5 hours

So…busy, busy.

Anything you are particularly interested in hearing about?  I feel so out of the loop and not sure what you wanna know!

I got some extra cash for selling a few textbooks online last week.  Right now I’ve got my wedding veil, tiara and cake topper listed on Ebay, so hopefully I’ll get some decent money from that, too.  Still need to get my wedding dress dry cleaned before I can try to sell that.  Unfortunately, I need to take it in first to get a price quote on how much it will cost to dry clean, and then make a decision as to whether or not I can afford it right now.

Looked into my employer’s health benefits and they seem alright.  The benefits are actually very good, it’s just that it would cost me about $30 each week.  And I’m not sure if or what the deductible is.  But vision coverage is awesome…one of the girls I work with got her eyeglasses 100% covered.  Not sure what the exam cost.  The $30/week includes medical, prescription, dental and vision…so it might be worth it.  I just worry that on the weeks where I’m scheduled VERY little (thank you, part-time) that I won’t really be getting much of a paycheck.  My other option is the county health plan, which I need to look into still.

• Did you talk with your lender to see if the car could be refinanced? If so, what are the terms? Extended payment period and increased interest rate? If so, how long and how much? I haven’t talked to my lender yet, but I need to call. I know I’ve already got a pretty low rate because I had excellent credit when I took out my loan. I’ve been told that I probably won’t be able to refinance by friends/family/online readers. I don’t even know the basics of refinancing, to tell you the truth.

• Looked on Craigslist and your local newspaper to see the asking price of autos for sale that are the the same make, year, extras and milage as yours? My car isn’t even manufactured anymore. It’s a 2006 Pontiac G6 GTP. I have never even seen anyone else in my area that drives one, so I’m not sure what to compare it to, unfortunately.

• Done a Kelly Blue Book valuation of your car to see what its value is? The KBB price, if the car is in excellent condition, is around $8000. I still owe $11000 on it. The NADA (which is what insurance companies use to value vehicles) shows it as being somewhere around $10000, which is closer. Dealerships most often use KBB, but since I know that NADA is HIGHER, I may be able to talk them up. Granted, I’m not a good talker in situations like that.

• Your insurance does seem high. You said you were shopping for better insurance - how has that gone? Were you able to find out if you would get a discount if you had your auto and renter’s insurance with the same company? Also, have you discussed with your agent why it is so high? Have you reviewed your deductible and various limits - perhaps there is an adjustment that could be done. My insurance was just over $1100 for 6 months last time I renewed. I have to have full coverage and the various limits are set by my financing company (GMAC). I have to meet their criteria otherwise they wouldn’t finance me. My car is a bit sportier and leisurely than the other Pontiac G6 vehicles, so that may be why the prices are higher. Also, my husband and I each had a speeding ticket over the past year. The amount will be dropping to $800 for 6 months if I renew with the same company. I’m still calling around to find better deals.

• Another thing you may want to be aware of: sometimes insurance premiums are tied to credit scores. When was the last time you checked your credit? Now that you are in the process of getting divorced, it would be a good time to run your credit history and get a score so you can better understand where you are at and the things you need to do to increase your score in the coming months. I checked my credit score last month and it was in the mid 700’s.

• Since your auto payment and insurance are eating 44% of your monthly income, have you reviewed where you could reasonably cut expenses elsewhere? You’ve not said if you were living alone or sharing an apartment. Also, have you considered moving back home with your parents? I am living alone and my parents live almost 4 hours away from me, which would mean I would have to drop out of college to move back home. Otherwise, yes, I would be moving back! Lol.  I’ve gotten really good at grocery budgeting, meal planning, saving gas for the car, and using less electricity.

• In the meantime, how much longer do you have until you finish your degree? What is your degree program and what kind of work are you hoping to do once you’ve earned your degree? I will have my Associate’s Degree in Human Services (social work/counseling/etc) this June. I’m hoping to get into some sort of counseling center or medical setting doing case management once I am finished. Also, I am continuing on to get my Bachelor’s Degree, so that’s another two years added on. And then my Master’s Degree at some point.

• I’ve been following your blog since the beginning and if I recall correctly, you’ve worked in retail and your current position is in retail. What is your long-term plan and idea about your career and work? I’ve always worked in retail (including retail pharmacy technician). I currently work retail, yes. I do NOT want to be in retail forever, it’s just the only place hiring in my area. I was lucky to land this job, even though it only pays minimum wage. I would like to get a job applied to my degree and go from there. I have always dedicated myself to my work and education.  I had a great retail management job not too long ago, but lost it due to health reasons (…long story).

• Taking out a student loan now might seem like a great idea; however, I know many people who take out student loans with little thought to their career path, then find themselves with a new degree, $20,000 to $50,000 in debt from student loans and a low paying job (this often happens with students who major in fine arts, art history, etc.). I agree, and this was a last resort option but one that makes sense. Luckily, I only have about $10,000 in student loans so far. Add on my other two years to get my Bachelor’s Degree and that will put me at around $28000 (roughly $2700-$3000 per trimester). I do not qualify for regular financial aid so my education is fully funded by student loans at this point. That may change in the future with the divorce and my income being cut so drastically, but for this coming year I will be taking out loans. I planned on only taking out enough to get me through the end of the year for car payments so that I don’t lose my car or my apartment.

• Your current job - in a previous post you said it paid little more than minimum wage and you were at about 10 hours p/week. If I understand correctly, that, matched with your “under-employment payment” is what currently provides you with $1,000 p/month. How much exactly is coming from your work income and how much is coming from the “under-employment payment?” When will your “under-employment” benefits end? I am currently getting 30-40 hours per week, but I’m unsure how long that will last. That nets me roughly $800-$1000 per month. My under employment (which I will find out tomorrow if it gets extended through May) gives me an additional $800-$1000. That may be cut off as of right now, or may be extended another 13 weeks…I’m unsure at this point.

• What is your current class schedule? Are you taking a full course load? Are the courses mostly during the day or do you have the option of taking courses at nights or on weekends? I am taking 15 credit hours next semester (April-June). Most of the classes are in the evening or online. The earliest class I have is at 4pm. I attend a private business college for working adults, so most classes are in the evenings except for a few here and there.  I also have to do my 120-hour internship, which is not included in the 15 credit hours.  I will be ONE BUSY GIRL.

• Does your college have an internship program? Have you looked at approaching potential employers to find out what summer internship opportunities exist? Some are paid, others are not. If you find a non-paid internship, see if you can get course credit towards your degree and take it anyway. If you do a great job, the rewards are great.  I am required to do 2 unpaid internships to get my Associate’s Degree, and then another 1 to get my Bachelor’s Degree. I’ve already done my first one and my 2nd one starts on April 6th. It sounds like a great networking opportunity as it will put me in touch with many of the people in charge of human service and “helping” agencies in my county. The lady running my internship was very impressed with my interview the other day and said if she had an opening, she would love to hire me, but without a Bachelor Degree her hands were tied because of the work they do (working with teenage runaways – I wouldn’t be licensed to counsel until I had my BA.)

Alright!  That about sums it up.  Talk about getting raw and gritty with the details, huh?  It’s scary talking about all this…because it’s real and it’s hard and I am realizing that I don’t know as much as I thought I did about life.  I keep thinking that I’m getting old, but reality has hit recently and I realize that I’m not as wise as I thought.  And I’m not afraid to ask for help.  I am stubborn, though, lol.

1. Seriously…reliable.  It’s a 2006 and I’ve taken really good care of it.  I know what I have with this car, whereas a cheaper used car could be a total flop.
2. If I do sell my car outright, I highly (highly) doubt that I could get approved for another car loan without a co-signer.   And I don’t have a co-signer.   Not with my current income, which is embarrassingly low (we’re talking roughly $1000/month at the moment, not including my underemployment checks, which will be coming to an end soon).  My car payment is $312 and I set aside insurance each month, which would be another $135.  That’s basically half of my monthly income…hence the needing to get excess student loans taken out.
3. So what happens if I sell my car and I can’t get a loan for an older used vehicle?  Then I’m stuck without transportation which doesn’t work well with where I live (no bus line or public transportation).
4. Please, no lectures on how I should’ve thought about all this before I left my husband.  I was done sacrificing my happiness and well-being by staying in an unhappy marriage.  End of story, thank you.

Also, looking around for better auto insurance.  Any good recommendations?  I’m with Progressive, and they can save me $300 if I renew with them.  Just wondering if anyone else had a better company.

Um…oh yeah.  Went to the courthouse to pick up divorce papers and they don’t give them out there.  Odd.  They told me I could get a lawyer or buy The Michigan Divorce Book and do it all myself.  So the book was $30 and then to file the paperwork once it’s all complete is another $150.  Meh.  Oh well.

Oh!  I just got an email saying I sold a textbook on Amazon for $60.  Good timing.  I need it, lol.

Recipes?  Tips?  Advice?

1. My wedding dress - Alright girls, this is where I need YOUR help!  My dress has a small stain of orange juice on the front which should come out with dry cleaning.  I plan on selling this “as is” and letting buyer know that it will need to be dry cleaned, but this is still a smaller expense than buying a brand new dress and sending it out to get pressed and ready, right?  I really don’t have the money to go get it dry cleaned myself.  The dress is a strapless princess ball gown with Swarovski crystal beading across the bodice…it cost me $850 when I bought it.  What is a reasonable asking price for this?  I also have a matching veil and tiara (both with Swarovski crystals) valued at $150 each.  Should I include this with the dress or try to sell them separately?  Should I do Ebay or Craigslist?
2. Jewelry - This includes my wedding set and three other rings that I have that are quality material.  I have the appraisal paperwork for my wedding set and it is appraised at $3,000.  The other rings vary in cost from $250-$400.  I’m not sure how to go about getting the most for my money on this.

Another issue is my car.  I looked up some trade in information, and it looks like I will probably lose $4000 or so if I trade it in.  I still owe $11,000 on it.  Being upside down by that much will really hurt me in the long run because I will have to roll that balance into a new loan with a different  vehicle (much older, much cheaper car…read: a car I may not be able to count on).  The car is a 2006 and I know we’ve treated it well and kept up on maintenance.  I would like to keep the car if possible because I don’t want to end up with a lemon of a car that is going to put me further into debt (all while still owing the upside down balance of the trade in).  I had originally wanted to trade the car in, take out a loan of $3000-$5000 for a used car and call it good.  Now I’d have to add the upside down cost and that’s putting me up to $7000-$9000…which isn’t much less than what I owe on my current car.

For right now, I will be trying to take out a bit more on my student loans so that I can at least make payments to the end of the year and then re-evaluate my situation at that point (when I hope to have a better paying job…damn economy in Michigan).  I really don’t want to accumulate more student loan debt, but it’s the only option I can see with the smallest amount of damage to my debt load.  Any other ideas that are feasible and will somewhat guarantee me a reliable vehicle?

I’ve already started calling around to get better auto insurance quotes and I was able to find one that will save me at least $300.  Still have a few calls to make, but that’s a good start.

I sit in the dark most of the time, and I turn the heat down to about 60* when I leave for work in the morning.  I’m really learning how to be more conservative with electricity and whatnot.  I’m anxious to see what my first electric bill will be.

Hmm…I think that’s all I’ve got right now.  Advice is welcome…please.

It’s been an emotional week, but I know I’m strong enough to learn who I am and learn to love myself as a separate person, and not as part of a duo.  It’s been a long, long time since I’ve been “single”, per se.  I was with Dave since 1999…that’s a decade, people.  And I’m only 24.

I need to find myself.  I need to spread my wings and embrace life head on.

Forgive me if I’m not around much.  Life gets in the way like that, you know. *hug*

We were going to go to Coldstone Creamery, but at the last minute decided Dairy Queen sounded better since they have a selection of hot foods AND ice cream.  We bundled up (it snowed ALL day) and trudged out into the cold.  We ended up sharing a quesadilla and onion rings and then went back up for blizzards (banana split for me and butterfinger for him).  Dinner was $5.50 and dessert was $6.97 for a total of $12.47!

Once we made it back home after realizing that we didn’t know what else we wanted to do, I decided to find some movies on Netflix Instant Play to watch through the XBox 360.  We ended up watching “An American Carol” (it was ok…mostly meh), “Humboldt County” (kinda slow…almost made me want to live a simple life until I realized I couldn’t do without plumbing lol) and then started watching “Storytelling” (which was…odd…and it ended very…abruptly).  We pay $9.53 for Netflix each month, so even if these are the only 3 movies we watch this month (which they aren’t because we’ve already had 1 or 2 mailed to the house and I’m sure we will watch a lot more), this would’ve cost us $3.18 PER MOVIE.  Way cheaper than the movie theater! :)  And even though the movies weren’t the greatest, we still had a good time watching them together.

And now we’re getting ready to go out to dinner at Olive Garden, to use a $30 gift card we got at Christmas.  Then maybe do some window shopping and go grocery shopping on the way home.

How was your Valentine’s Day?  Did you go all out or did you keep it frugal?