Debt Dumpers - 2019

[Jen and Ashwin]

My mom came this past weekend to watch DD while DH and I installed the closet organizers in the basement closets. I ordered the organizers this past January because that is when the Container Store has its big Elfa sale and I didn't want to miss it. When it all arrived, we had put the boxes in the dining room until it was time to install it all.

Well, DH opened everything up on Friday night and realized that the hang standards (the vertical rods that everything else hangs from) were missing. All 8 of them. I decided to call Container Store, knowing that I had placed the order 9 months ago and they weren't likely to do anything, but it was worth a shot, right? They were amazingly nice on the phone and said they would ship us out 8 replacements for no cost at all. I was actually kind of floored.

But that still didn't help us with installing them this weekend because they wouldn't arrive until Tuesday. So my mom and I drove to the Container Store (35 minutes away) to purchase 8 hang standards so that we could get started over the weekend. Then when the others arrive tomorrow, I plan to just take those and return them to the store.

We managed to get the bedroom closet installed on Saturday. But then we noticed a problem with the pantry closet. When the builder framed out the closet, they made a box in the upper right corner of the closet. I have no idea why they did that because there wasn't actually anything there. The hang standards were now too long because we had to install the upper track much lower than originally planned to avoid the box. The plan was to return the 84" hang standards and replace them with 60" hang standards, eliminate one of the shelves and buy a deeper basket for the bottom. So back we went to the Container Store. When we got there, I talked with one of the Elfa experts and they said that they could simply cut the 84" hang standards down to 72" for us while we waited and then we wouldn't have to change any of the rest of the closet design. I was so happy. We got them cut, went home and were able to install the pantry organizers!

And we even managed to assemble the cabinet bed for the basement bedroom as well. Though there was a lot of driving back and forth, we managed to accomplish a ton. And DD just loved having grandma visit. Her level of joy was palpable.

 

[StacyStrong]

I'm going crazy! I want a new iPhone so badly. I have a broken 7plus right now. It's cracked. The screen flashes, and the home button doesn't work. I know I'll get a new phone in the coming months but I'm trying so hard to not impulse buy and wait until my CC debt is fully paid off ($850). TBD if my current phone even lasts that long.

 

[imbatman]

Finally I woke up one day and said enough is enough.

It's a sad, exhausting process, but I'm not going to lie to them to make them feel better about poor decision making. They are worth more than that.

I am exhausted. DH and I both are. We decided to love her back, to show her that we are in it for her. He told her that we are only looking out for her.

I have a broken 7plus right now.

I have an SE! People see it and say, "It's so small!" Hey, I like my small, paid-off phone.

In the budget realm, I realized that this month is a 5 paycheck month for me! That means my DL tickets are PAID FOR!!! And the $38 I could save buying them through LMT? That is offset by the $175 in Swagbucks gift cards I earned.

 

[jen7233]

Hello everyone, I went back and read just a bit, seems like a lot of things going on for everyone. I stepped away a few days from the boards, not this one, but another got me a little irritated so I stepped away as I have a lot of other things going on, and don't have the time or need to exert any thought on useless commentary. But, it redirects me where I rather spend some reading time online, and what not to read. I was checking on some planning boards though, as I had some WDW planning to do! I think next year will be a bigger travel year, a lot going on and trying to travel before some major life changes in 2021/2022 and travel probably won't be very likely.

I'm going crazy! I want a new iPhone so badly. I have a broken 7plus right now. It's cracked. The screen flashes, and the home button doesn't work. I know I'll get a new phone in the coming months but I'm trying so hard to not impulse buy and wait until my CC debt is fully paid off ($850). TBD if my current phone even lasts that long.

Go for it! Lol, shouldn't encourage you on that on the debt dumping board! But really, I'm sure you'll get it at the right time for you and where you see it fit into your budget. We impulse purchased a laptop at Costco recently, it's made things a lot easier. That was not supposed to be until Christmas, but it happened. Costco sale, $200 off, there you go, timeframe moved up. Didn't wait for Black Friday ads. With iPhones, I don't really see price moves, but then again I never look unless I have to replace mine! I have the iPhone 7 from 2016, still going along fine and it's been through quite a bit. I'll say it's my Otter Box case that has saved it.

 

[dina444444]

I'm going crazy! I want a new iPhone so badly. I have a broken 7plus right now. It's cracked. The screen flashes, and the home button doesn't work. I know I'll get a new phone in the coming months but I'm trying so hard to not impulse buy and wait until my CC debt is fully paid off ($850). TBD if my current phone even lasts that long.

I’m in the iPhone upgrade program so I can get a new phone each year at not a crazy cost.

 

[barkley]

It is Sep. 30th, DH has left 3 messages with this guy (the message is just to call us to get things ready), but we have not heard a word back from him! He doesn't even know we had no intention of paying the $5700. After all the back and forth prior to 2 weeks ago, cannot imagine why he's not returning our call now. He was supposed to be setting up a time "at the end of Sep." to do the job. Not sure whether I should be disgusted, or worried he has been in a horrible car accident and he's in a coma somewhere. Either way, looks like we're not getting the driveway done this year. Phooey. And, it'll probably be twice as much if it gets more damaged. Double phooey.

if it's anything like our neck of the woods every concrete and asphalt contractor has been snagged for big projects-i've never seen so many parking lots, sidewalks and such repaired and replaced in one summer across our county. they must have sensed that winter was coming early-we got our first snowfall this weekend and at least one of the highways near us did have the plows out (and that nasty de-icer that ruins everyone's driveways).

 

[Scoobie]

if it's anything like our neck of the woods every concrete and asphalt contractor has been snagged for big projects-i've never seen so many parking lots, sidewalks and such repaired and replaced in one summer across our county. they must have sensed that winter was coming early-we got our first snowfall this weekend and at least one of the highways near us did have the plows out (and that nasty de-icer that ruins everyone's driveways).

Thats why we started in April - this guy was already lined up, was at our house once in April then once end of Aug. and again beginning of Sep. Supposed to line up a time for the work to start and .............. crickets. I guess the last couple of winters has been rough in the whole country. We don't even usually get snow here - but the last 2 years it's been snow and ice, I see many driveways that look like mine on my street and none of them seem to fixing them. This year I'm going to try to find ways to tackle the slippery concrete that won't create more damage (just more debt, lol). Been reading about mat heaters you lay on your walkways and they work like a heating pad. Anyone ever heard of these? How does everyone else melt their ice?

 

[pblack]

How does everyone else melt their ice?

By living somewhere where it doesn't snow.

But seriously though, good luck on the contractor front! I hope something works out for you.

 

[barkley]

Thats why we started in April - this guy was already lined up, was at our house once in April then once end of Aug. and again beginning of Sep. Supposed to line up a time for the work to start and .............. crickets. I guess the last couple of winters has been rough in the whole country. We don't even usually get snow here - but the last 2 years it's been snow and ice, I see many driveways that look like mine on my street and none of them seem to fixing them. This year I'm going to try to find ways to tackle the slippery concrete that won't create more damage (just more debt, lol). Been reading about mat heaters you lay on your walkways and they work like a heating pad. Anyone ever heard of these? How does everyone else melt their ice?

we've got a set of these that we use on our front steps/porch (entry to the house). they do a good job even with snowfall to keep a clear pathway. we got them from dr products.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Hello everyone, I went back and read just a bit, seems like a lot of things going on for everyone. I stepped away a few days from the boards, not this one, but another got me a little irritated so I stepped away as I have a lot of other things going on, and don't have the time or need to exert any thought on useless commentary. But, it redirects me where I rather spend some reading time online, and what not to read. I was checking on some planning boards though, as I had some WDW planning to do! I think next year will be a bigger travel year, a lot going on and trying to travel before some major life changes in 2021/2022 and travel probably won't be very likely.


Go for it! Lol, shouldn't encourage you on that on the debt dumping board! But really, I'm sure you'll get it at the right time for you and where you see it fit into your budget. We impulse purchased a laptop at Costco recently, it's made things a lot easier. That was not supposed to be until Christmas, but it happened. Costco sale, $200 off, there you go, timeframe moved up. Didn't wait for Black Friday ads. With iPhones, I don't really see price moves, but then again I never look unless I have to replace mine! I have the iPhone 7 from 2016, still going along fine and it's been through quite a bit. I'll say it's my Otter Box case that has saved it.

Amen on the Otterbox. I still have a 6s phone that is immaculate when I take the case off to clean it. I have dropped it so many times; it would be in pieces by now with a less rugged case.
Dh wants to get me an upgrade for Christmas but I can't see paying that much for a phone. If I do it will be a 7 or 8. I

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

How does everyone else melt their ice?

nasty de-icer.


My dad worked in construction all his life (though his degree is in accounting) but he told me about some very expensive homes that have heaters built into the driveway so that snow never accumulates. Now that would be dreamy. I'll have to save that idea for our "what to do if we hit the lottery" list.

 

[StacyStrong]

I’m in the iPhone upgrade program so I can get a new phone each year at not a crazy cost.

That's a nice option, but I only pay for my phones outright. I don't like having a monthly payment.

 

[jen7233]

Been reading about mat heaters you lay on your walkways and they work like a heating pad. Anyone ever heard of these? How does everyone else melt their ice?

I've heard of something like that but no first hand knowledge of it. We use the ice melt when needed, pretty rare need where we live now. We did the same when we lived in Alaska, but now that was A LOT to keep up with, snow blower, shovel, ice melt, early morning or late shoveling. I hated trying to keep up with snow and keeping the driveway, walkway, and a path for the then two dogs to do their business in the back and not be buried in snow as they didn't like going out there when it was too high, really couldn't.

 

[MN_Andi]

September has been quite good to me. I've been working a lot of extra hours, and with my next paycheck I'll have saved the money I wanted for my vacation to California. It is the first vacation where I have actually set aside spending money instead of just putting everything on a credit card and hoping when I look at the balance I don't keel over! Now to just follow my budget for the vacation . Plus, all of those extra hours means my student loans are officially under $30,000! My goal is to have them under $28,000 by the end of the year, so I just need to keep plugging away at them.

I hope everyone has a lovely week!

 

[barkley]

nasty de-icer.


My dad worked in construction all his life (though his degree is in accounting) but he told me about some very expensive homes that have heaters built into the driveway so that snow never accumulates. Now that would be dreamy. I'll have to save that idea for our "what to do if we hit the lottery" list.

when apple opened a store in our area they made a big deal about how they were upgrading the sidewalk outside the existing storefront so it would be heated such that their customers would'nt have to deal with the snow or ice.................flash forward to the first winter when the panhandlers realized those heated sidewalks were pretty darn snuggly to sit on. now apple complains to the city about the abundance of panhandlers in front of their store

 

[Eureka]

So remember when I told you a few weeks ago when my dryer was repaired that I didn't think that was the end of it? Yeah, it stopped working again on Friday. I KNOW something is making the fuse blow and googled a few things to ask the repair person about tomorrow. That service call should be free, I believe, because it's been less than 90 days. Thing is, if they can't figure it out and say it's just an air flow issue causing the overheating (which then blows the fuse), and the people who cleaned the vent the day before the last repair say the vent is clear, who do I ask next? I don't want to buy a new dryer only to find the same thing happening. Maybe it really is the machine is dying? It's not that old (maybe 8 years?) but we've had a dryer in the same spot for 18 years and have only had issues for the last year so I don't think it's just the air flow from machine out of the house. So frustrated.

In other news, DH bought a new ipad but I also see that he deposited a bunch of cash into our account that covers it. He likes to save up his weekly cash for big things like that. I, on the other hand, went to the outlets over the weekend with my friend, who is a shopper. I needed sneakers and found those and all kinds of other things I didn't know I needed! LOL. Spent about $100 in all, not too bad really. I've lost 11 pounds since June so am kind of justifying it, although if I'm honest, I have plenty of stuff to wear from before I gained the 15 last year. Oh well, we could swing it and it was fun.

In other other news, when I talked to DS18 over the weekend, he said he wanted to come home this coming weekend. He's at college 45 minutes away and hasn't been home in the six weeks he's been away. I'm excited to have him home for a couple days. He sounds good, so I don't think it's that anything is wrong. I went to college 5 hours away from home so I didn't go home much, and most of my friends didn't either. I'm sure that is coloring my overthinking of it. It will be nice to (hopefully) get a little more detail about his classes and dorm and stuff.

 

[Eureka]

Amen on the Otterbox. I still have a 6s phone that is immaculate when I take the case off to clean it. I have dropped it so many times; it would be in pieces by now with a less rugged case.
Dh wants to get me an upgrade for Christmas but I can't see paying that much for a phone. If I do it will be a 7 or 8. I

I have a 6 and an otterbox too. My phone is coming apart at the seams, literally. I dropped it once, and even with the case, where the phone opens is cracked open and won't shut. But it's been like that for months and still works fine. All of our phones are paid off at the moment and I would like to hold off as long as I can before upgrading. Partly because I don't want to get rid of my headphone jack! I don't use earbuds, they hurt my ears, and like my cheap $10 headphones. I have one pair at work, one pair in the house downstairs and one pair upstairs. I guess I could get an adapter though. The kids both have the 6 too and aren't in a hurry to upgrade either. DH has a 7+ and says I shouldn't wait until my phone dies, so I might start looking to see what I want, since there are a ton of choices now. I'll probably get an 8.

 

[jen7233]

Happy October everyone.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

Happy October everyone.

Happy indeed. I got to start using my brand new Mickey Halloween countdown calendar!

 

[Scoobie]

Our 16 1/2 year old scottie (she's really spry for her age) fell down a few stairs over the weekend. She seemed ok, but then she started limping Sunday. Limping more Monday, so we examine her and the problem seemed to be a toe. By Tues. am she was not stepping on it at all, DH runs her over to urgent care for fur babies. Apparently she cracked a toenail all the way up! They had to do a surgery to remove the whole nail! Did not see that coming. Just shy of $300 later, she is home with a pink, sparkly cast/bandage (?) and her eyes won't stop watering. Giving her pain meds in a spoonful of peanut butter, and the doc said to give her potatoes in chicken broth if she wasn't eating much. Guess who got the taters in broth? She had no problem wolfing that down! Pain meds every 12 hours, but she is already whining a lot and she has just under 4 hrs. to go (she's more DS24's baby, when my dad got sick we promised to take care of her, and he ended up passing, and DS24 got really attached to her). He went to bed, my shift started since I'm usually up most the night anyway (insomnia). But still happy October!! Going to try to get dome decorations up around her.