Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Happy Hump Day!
Speaking of humping, what would you do if you caught your boo gettin' busy with someone else? I mean, ass all in the air, red handed?
Has that ever happened to you? If so, how did you handle it?
It's not TMI Tuesday, but I wanna hear all the details anyway - go!
-b
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Hey, hey, hey everyone!
So I'm sure by now everyone has heard of the impending divorce between Kobe Bryant and his wife Vanessa. I'm sure you've also heard by now that there was no prenuptial agreement between them. This brings us to the question of the day.
If you are (or were to become) a man or woman of significant wealth, would you have your significant other sign a pre-nup before marriage?
If you are NOT a man or woman with means, would you still have your significant other sign a pre-nup?
Like Chris Rock said: "If I'm making $30 million, and my wife wants 15, so what...I ain't starvin'. But if I'm making $30 thousand, and my wife wants 15, I might have to kill her!"
Also, would you be offended if your partner asked you to sign a pre-nup? Would you take that as a sign that the other person planning the divorce before they plan the wedding, or does it make smart financial sense?
Let's hear it, go!
-b
Monday, December 19, 2011
Saving During the Holidays...by Austin the Realtor.Many shop by pushing the limits with thoughts of dealing with the ramifications in the New Year. It is the season of giving, but it will not feel so good when you start receiving the bills associated with all your giving. It’s hard to decide who gets what on a limited budget, but it's more painful trying to dig yourself out of the debt created by trying to please everyone.
Many are going different routes this holiday season to try to soften the financial blow.
- Just buying for the kids this year
- A Secret Santa amongst family members
- Create games where the prizes are wrapped gifts
- Set a spending limit per gift per person
- Offer to perform a service as opposed to a tangible gift (wash the car or mow the lawn for a month coupons)
Many have traditions which they are not willing to part from, but in these economic times, you have to consider what is reasonable while trying to stick to your annual rituals. Consumer spending is up 15% so far from last year. This is interesting given all the reports on unemployment and home foreclosures.
I am a huge advocate of gift giving, but I’m a bigger advocate of ensuring we are not financially stressed after the holidays. You have to find your personal fine line where you can spread the holiday cheer and still maintain your financial sanity.
How do you balance the two during the holiday seasons?
-Austin
Thursday, December 15, 2011
How did it get to be Random Thoughts Thursday so fast!?
I've been slippin' on the blogs lately....gotta fix that!
- I've lost another 3 lbs, woo-hoo!
- I have MANY more to go, but it still feels good to say :-)
- I got an iPad for work and just learned how to use it. It does all these fancy things, but I'll probably only play Angry Birds on it ;-)
- Have to hide it from my nephews.
- Been ripping and running in meetings all morning, but so thankful to have a job that I actually love. Thank God for blessings...praying for more for my friends and family.
- Finally got that mani/pedi. Pedicure is great! But my mani is messed up already. Never fails.
- Gotta get my Xmas cards out soon! I'm always late with that stuff.
- What to get my stepson for Xmas? Probably something educational...that boy is a genius!
- What is the new "hotness" when it comes to toys? Unless
- Miss my family - especially the boys.
- Can I PLEEEEEAAASSSEEEE hit the Mega Millions!? PLEEEEEEEEAAAASSSEEEE!!!!????
- Remember, don't act a fool at your company's holiday party.
- What is on your sexual bucket list?
Let's go!
-b
Monday, December 12, 2011
Austin the Realtor is back with Money Mondays!
Savings and Debt: Part II...by Austin the Realtor.
Welcome back everyone!
Hope you had a great time with family and friends over the Thanksgiving Holiday. For many, Thanksgiving Day means spending time with family. For others, Thanksgiving Day is referred to as Black Friday Eve - a time of shopping and being out at all hours of the night trying to get the best deals possible. Some shop with the cash they saved up all year (Ha!). The majority may be using that plastic friend that is always there in the time of need ……Mr. Credit Card! Now that Black Friday has passed, now it's time to assess the damage. What we want to do is make sure we are making the most of our credit card payments.
This brings us to “Savings and Debt: Part II” – Debt Management”. Last time, we took a record of your income along with your voluntary (coffee, breakfast, gum) and not so voluntary (rent, gas, light) payments to see where our money goes. This allowed us to “trim the fat” in areas that we were able to reduce spending. Today, let’s discuss some tips to manage your credit card debt. This type of debt is considered unsecured debt, which will normally carry a higher interest rate than secured debt (car payment, mortgage). The goal is to pay as little in interest as possible so you would want to start with paying off unsecured debt first.
Tip #1: If you have more than one credit card, pay the minimum on all except the card with the highest interest rate. You want to pay down the card that will cost you the most as fast as possible. Budget how much you can afford and pay that every month. Once that card is paid off, take that monthly payment amount plus the minimum of the next highest credit card and continue your payments...and so on.
Tip#2: Contact your Credit Card company and ask them to reduce your interest rate. You may be surprised how many companies will reduce your rate if you simply ask. When I had credit card debt, I did this every quarter (Operative word here: HAD, it really works). If they say no, you will be paying the current rate anyway so what do you have to lose? Try again next quarter.
Tip#3: If you are carrying a zero balance, ask your credit card company to increase your limit. This may sound scary, but there is a benefit to this. Let’s say you incur an unexpected expense of $5,000. Let’s say you are looking to buy a house (hint: www.austintherealtor.com) and your bank is looking at your debt ratio. $5,000 on a card with a $20,000 limit has a better ratio (25%) than $5,000 on a card with a $10,000 limit (50% ratio)
What other tips have you discovered that has helped you eradicate your credit debt?????
Go!
- Austin
Friday, December 9, 2011
Wanting To Be Loved...by Su.
I recently listened to “Empty Prayers” from MJB’s album My Life II: The Journey Continues, for the first time. To say that the song touched me would be a huge understatement. That song moved the earth beneath my soul. For the first time in a long time, I heard music set to the simple, honest words that I myself have been too scared to feel or admit out loud.The feeling of wanting someone to love you, to be chosen, to be cherished, is monumental when you really examine it - yet it is such an innate, raw, human emotion that most of us desire and need. The feeling of being loved can overwhelm and sustain you, suffocate you and cloud your judgment, lift you to the highest highs – and level you when that love never shows up – or worse, shows up and then leaves. The world sees my tough-as-nails defensive exterior, but if you really knew me - the me that is fearful of letting down my guard - you would know that internally my soul just wants to be held and loved for all the days of my life. Not the self-love type of love or the type of love that you get from a friend or family...for that I am thankfully blessed in abundance. I’m referring to the type of love that would have you on your knees “begging God”. The type of love between a soul and a mate – that rare kind of love that lasts a lifetime – even if the lover is lost or left, the feelings never die – kind of love. The type of love that you would give everything not to lose: true love.
I don’t know if I know what it feels like to be truly, unconditionally loved by a man. Perhaps my father loved me in that way...I honestly don’t know. He never saw me at my worst. He never witnessed the wrath of my tongue, the spite in my spirit, the revenge of my nature, or the stubbornness of my ilk. He only saw the “weekend” me who was just so happy to see him - my best behavior overflowed. I loved my Daddy, but I did not learn how to love or be loved by a man by being in his presence. I know he loved me dearly in the way a father loves his pride. I loved him and forgave him – and overlooked everything else. He loved me as he could and I treasure and miss each moment I spent in his presence. Perhaps not having that leading example has left me at a disadvantage in the "getting and keeping love" department.
As I age, I have come to accept that I am not an expert at love by any means or stretch of the imagination. If you believe, and I do, that we learn our love lessons from the very beginning, I have to accept that my soul-mate love examples never showed up for me - and I have been looking, yearning for it ever since.
I’ve loved and lost, made bad love decisions, loved more than I should have and at times, have not loved enough. In my yester-year, I have been fortunate enough to have been deeply loved by a mate, but that love-light - that all-spark - has managed not to land on me or stick to me in a long, long time.
There. I said it. I want you to love me, love me, love me!
S.A.A.D - 12/9/11
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Happy Random Thoughts Thursday!
- Brrr...it's chilly!
- I'm slowly but surely getting into the Christmas spirit. Time to decorate the tree!
- My partner and I have started a business! It's called Expert Land Management, and if you're in the NYC area, call us for your snow removal, lawn care, hauling and light maintenance needs. We do all your "honey do" handyman stuff around the house, haul away your junk, paint your house, dry wall, small electrical work, you name it! Call us for a free quote/estimate - 267-586-0889, day or night. The snow is coming, so tell a friend!
- I had the best fish for lunch!
- I haven't gone spinning in a while, and I'd probably die if tried it today. Not sure I should try.
- I've been eating healthier though :-)
- I love seeing pics of baby Jordan on Serena's FB page. Always makes me smile :-)
- Looking forward to Yolanda and DMoe's random thoughts today :-)
- Annamaria says Mountaintop is an awesome play, so I'm gonna make it my business to go see it soon!
- Did I mention we started a business? Pass it along! :-)
- I'm so glad the week is almost over!
- DMoe's throwback!
Go!
-b
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Happy Hump Day!
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
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Thursday, December 1, 2011
Happy Random Thoughts Thursday!
- How was everyone's Thanksgiving? Mine was great! So much to be thankful for.
- It's December already. Geesh!
- Any fun holiday plans coming up? New Year's Eve parties?
- I want something good for lunch, any suggestions?
- I've been in need of a mani/pedi for over a month now. My toes are crying the blues right about now.
- Still trying to get rid of this cough. I'm in the season where my cold just lingers for 2 months. Sucks.
- My back is getting better....slowly.
- Sherri Sheppard irks my nerves.
- Are Greys Anatomy and Private Practice new tonight?
- T.I. and Tiny have a show...I sense some hot country ghetto mess coming. I need a translator to understand what Tiny be talkin' bout.
- It's a bit chilly out today - winter is just about here...and I'm NOT a snow person.
- What's going on at Syracuse man?! There's a special place in HELL for people like Sandusky (Penn State), Bernie Fine AND his simple ass wife. What is WRONG with people???!!!
- NBA is back! Who's happy? (DMoe, that's who ;-)
- Herman Cain is a clown.
- Question of the day: Has cheating ever made your relationship STRONGER? curious to hear responses on this one.
The throwback today - courtesy of DMoe!
Go!
-b
