Everything can be done online

I just ordered pizza online for the first time thanks to Pizza Hut! What fun! As a programmer I would like to help them make their system better. Now to see if its really ready when we get to the store in 45 minutes.

Credit Card Debt - My Bane

[NOTE: Be sure to jump to the bottom of this post and read "What spurred this post?" as it has some great links!]

Now

We are a cash family and have been for at half a decade now. I don't remember the year but it was probably 5-7 years ago I took a glass and cut all my plastic cards up into little shreds, filled the glass and set it on my desk as a reminder to myself. Like the cards, the glass was full.

The Seed of Debt

My debt story is probably not unlike many others. I was in college and walking to class. Someone had a tent and a table setup. I was thristy and they were giving away six packs of coke to anyone that applied for a credit card. I thought, "I have no income. No one will give me a credit card but I am thirsty." That application resulted in a VISA card with a $500 credit limit.

The Spending Catalyst

I have had 2 car accidents in my life. When I was 19, I drove a Triumph Spitfire under a junker whose wheel had fallen off in the middle of Poplar Avenue, Memphis during lunch hour traffic. The car in front of me zigged and I had no where to go but under the disabled vehicle. That's a different story and one that would trouble me for 10 years. The 2nd accident, a year or two later, was a hydroplaning incident on I-40 outside of Nashville in a pickup truck and a torrental downpour. That one wasn't so bad.

The truck accident was during the return to the University of TN, Knoxville campus after visiting the family for Thanksgiving. Christmas break was quickly approaching and I had to get the truck fixed to get home. Turns out the parts I needed (a new fender and new front bumper) came to just under $500. Wanting independence and not wanting to ask Dad for $500 I used my new found power of charge!

The Escalation

After Christmas I returned to campus with a check from Dad for my tuition. That's when I learned about "deferred payments". I applied for deferred payments which meant I could pay my tuition in 3 parts. 1/3 up front; and 2 other payments during the semester. I used part of the check to completely payoff my $500 credit card because I understood it wasn't good to carry a balance on these things. A lot of the other money was squandered on beer, some toys, eatting, oh, and of course beer. Did I meantion beer?

The credit card company was thrilled with my spending behavior and upped my credit limit to $750! Ironically, that was just about how much I needed to pay my 2nd payment to the university. I think I bought a $70 Australian Outback hat which to this day people say nice "cowboy hat". It is still one of my favorite hats.

I wasn't earning as much money as I thought I would to pay the deferments. I think my job only covered my beer and liquor expenses. So I was sweating the third payment when one morning my dorm phone rings. I'm groggy, possibly hungover and some voice offers me a credit card. I replied "sure", gave some information and went back to sleep instead of going to class.

The MasterCard arrived in the mail with something absurd like a $1500 credit limit. The party began and would not end until I was roughly $35,000 in debt.

The List of Cards

My apologies to any evil creditor whom I may have forgotten in this list:

Thirst begat NBC Visa;
Who begat MBNA Mastercard;
Who begat Capital One;
AT&T long distance begat the AT&T Visa;
Middle management begat an American Express card;
The TVA Employee Credit Union begat the TVA Visa;
Car repairs and tire rotations begat Credit First National Bank (Firestone card).
A suit begat a JCPenney store card;
JCPenney regular begat JCPenney Major store card;
A man's need for tools begat the Sears Premier card;
A washer, dry and ladder begat the Sears Plus card;
Business ownership begat the Fleet gas card;
Marriage begat a handful of pre-existing store and credit cards (which I paid off quickly and before all other cards..those cards of course left when the wife did);
The first wife begat Dillards store card;
Dillards begat Proffits store card;
Proffits begat The Limited store card;
The Limited begat Structure store card;
Vacation begat the Disney Credit Card;

There were debts outside the $35k range:

Marriage begat GM Motors autoloan;
A cracked engine head begat a TVA Credit union loan (Jeep loan);
A desire to not pad the pocket of a property owner begat a Mortgage.
Proprietorship begat several personal loans.
Proprietorship begat a laptop computer lease.
Re-marriage begat two student loans.

This also excludes regular recurring expenses:

• Homeowners Insurance
• Auto insurance on two cars
• Fire insurance
• Cable television
• Regular phone line
• Fax phone line
• Cell phone
• Two business phone lines
• Water bill
• Electricity bill
• Garbage service
• 3 post office boxes
• Internet access
• Gym membership
• $92 per month for a "Get out of debt" course - see the lesson?
• newspaper delivery
• medical expenses
• and food

[Note: much of this has changed dramatically over the years. Luxuries such as "gym memberships" are a thing of the past.]

The Breakdown, The Penalties, The Interest

It's no secret that as my first marriage failed and my business simultaneously collapsed that I had a little nervous breakdown.

I was having this discussion
In a taxi heading downtown
Rearranging my position
On this friend of mine who had
A little bit of a breakdown
I said breakdowns come
And breakdowns go
So what are you going to do about it
That's what I'd like to know
-From: Paul Simon, Graceland "Gumboots" (lyrics)

What I did about it was basically ignored my mail for a year. In that time of igoring bills (I was flat broke anyway) I nearly lost my house, had utilities cut off, skipped meals to save money and watched my debt skyrocket. My interest rates of 9 percent shot to 27%. The cards had late fees put on them which caused some of them to go over their limits creating over the limit fees. Mind you, the card company created the charge that caused it to go over the limit in the first place. I had one card with a $700 balance that over the course of 2 years in fees, penalities and interest would grow to be $2100! A $7000 card rose to $14000 without a single purchase!

Payoff Strategies

I meantioned paying $92 per month for a Debt-Free program. This was not credit counselling. I knew how to get out of debt. This was a multilevel marketing program that taught techniques on debt reduction. The monthly newsletter and tape were worth the $92 for awhile. It served as a reminder to stay on track. Basically it taught the same thing that Dave Ramsey (see also Dave Says) teaches on his radio program. Adjust your lifestyle to maximize paying off debts. Do you really need a capuccino every morning? Pay the minimums. This number is the constant dollar number that will be applied toward paying your debt until it is completely gone. If that number is $1200 per month fix it in your head. Now any extra money that can be gathered will be paid toward the card with the lowest balance. Say that lowest balance is $200 and requires a minimum monthly payment of $10. The next lowest card is $550 and requires a minimum monthly payment of $15. Once the $200 card is paid off you don't look at the $10 you were paying toward it as "extra cash" but instead pay that on the next lowest card. So now the $550 balanced card still has a minimum of $15 but you are paying at least $25 per month because your debt reduction constant of $1200 must be maintained. If the third lowest card had a monthly minimum of $30 per month when the 2nd lowest is paid off that $30 per month will become $55 per month. You can see how that quickly escalates into eliminating debt;however, it assumes steady, predictable, regular income which is not what a consultant has.

What did it cost me?

Debt has cost me an enourmous amount of anxiety, opportunity, health and stress. To list everything it has cost me would require a post in length equivalent to this one but to name a few: I applied and was accepted to the college of Danube in Budapest for a summer program but could not come up with the money to pay for the trip (maxed out cards); I was inspired to hike Europe street performing and juggling but did not know how to pay the cards while doing so and it never happened; I passed up an opportunity to hike the Appalachian Trail with some friends because I did not know how to pay a monthly bill from the woods; and my family has lacked security, educational opportunities and those nice, unnecessary material things you'd like your kids to have as well as necessary things like a van. I also feel tired and old because I've carried this burden for so long.

The real kicker is that I am still paying on debts occurred for things that for the most part were either intangible or I no longer own. Even the ladder from Sears is trash now.

What spurred this post?

Today MSN Money ran "Take charge of your credit cards" with these fantastic links:

• Top Story
  • Why credit cards expire
• The Basics
  • 22 ways to foil credit card thieves
  • How to dispute a credit card purchase
  • Top 10 money-grabber credit cards
  • Don't fall for these stupid credit card tricks
  • The truth about credit card debt
• More on MSN Money
  • More games the credit-card companies play
  • Store credit cards: flashy perks, high rates
  • How to fight the credit card runaround
• Questions & Answers
  • Is it possible to renegotiate my debt with my creditors?
  • What is a debt ratio and what does it mean?
  • How can I teach my kids the basics of budgeting and investing?

Another resource: Cardweb - US Credit Card trends

Google Gulp Anyone get a cap yet? I bet they got for $200 on ebay!

You can pick up your own supply of this "limited release" product simply by turning in a used Gulp Cap at your local grocery store. How to get a Gulp Cap? Well, if you know someone who's already been "gulped," they can give you one.

Details of the flavors and FAQ

And yes, this is certainly an April Fools joke.For those that missed it, click here. Hold down your mouse button. And drag to the left.

 

Successful Interview!

My final interview this morning turned out to be a formality. The organization offered me a job that I couldn't refuse. As part of the relocation package they will purchase our house as it but at market rate and help us establish ourselves in a suitable house for our family! The only negative is also a positive. The new house will be in Denver, Colorado!! Well, I guess there is a 2nd negative. We must be moved by April 31st. Due to confidentiality I cannot say much about the job other than some of you may get called upon as character witnesses for the security check. Don't be weirded out if TBI or the FBI gives you a ring. I'm terribly excited! April Fools...no one bit.

Machine Updates

I installed some ram in 4 machines for a client this morning and it actually went without a hitch! I was beginning to believe everything I do is going to have a snafu.

Bird call found

Coffee kicked in and I figured out that Noah had left the bird call out and Cathy cleaned it. Noah has a shelf in the wardrobe where all his scout supplies are kept. I was looking in his room and had forgotten about the wardrobe. Noah beamed and now sits on the porch talking to the birds and trying to immitate the sounds he heards.

I really need a recording off one of these early mornings.

Early Bird Catches the, er, Bird

I noticed a lot of people coming here trying to find the resin so I made a post called Where does one find powdered resin? Hope it helps!

Last night at scouts we made bird calls.

MATERIALS: 2" hardwood, eye screw, resin powder

Take a close grained hardwood such a rock maple or mountain ash, about 2" long.
Drill a hole in one end, slightly smaller than the screw threads of your eye screw. Turn the eye screw into it. Unscrew the eye, put a little resin powder in the hole. As you twist the screw back and forth in the hole, very slowly, you can make a chirp chirp or trill in loud, clear notes.
With practice, this device will produce an astounding variety of bird noises.
Paint or decorate if desired.
Elective 12h in the Bear Handbook

They work great! We encouraged the scouts to get up early today and use the birdcall to attract birds to their porches. As we walked around the school grounds last night the scouts sounded like a flock of birds and actually attracted several birds to us despite their jumping around and loud talk.

Noah was so excited he woke up at 5:40 this morning. But his bird call is missing. He is walking around with the sadest look on his face. I feel bad. He is so dejected. I looked and just became more and more aggitated. I know he brought it home and I know he put it somewhere in his room. At least I think he did. I just hate to see him get so excited over something that is outdoors and involves nature then get so shot down. I can't get the kids to put things away or clean up and this happens all the time.

Someone is about

I heard footsteps upstairs. Better change computers.

Good meeting

My meeting went well and I came home with enough energy to want to work through the night. Then I woke up at 3:30am. After a dog walk and a coffee brew, I'm working at 4am.

If I can get my work done and keep this wakeup schedule I'll start working out again!

Productivity Interupted

3:45.
Pounding keys.
Ring Ring.
Sarah missed her bus.
Grab car keys.
4:30.
Pounding keys.
4:50.
Ring Ring.
Flip yellow pages.
Make 15 minutes of phone calls to answer a question.
5:15.
Pounding keys.
5:45.
Discover something that would have saved me 20 hours work.
Pounding head.
6:00.
All coding halt.
Ftp ftp ftp.
Pizza.
Quality time.
8:00.
Confrontation.
9:30.
Stop!

Progress!

There is some NASTY malware out there called "sixty pop six" and if you are seeing an Internet Explorer window open that is blank and says "sixty pop six" in your title bar then get help for your computer quick!

I'll post removal instructions on Spy Journal Tech Tips soon.

So I've worked on some machines and done some errands. It's now 2:30pm and I'm speed coding. I must finish today!

JACKPOT!

Check your numbers folks! The Powerball winner of $25 million was in TN!!

(see also Complete Lottery Info)

Ugh!

I'm on such a roll! The code is pouring from my finger tips and my stride is about to be broken. I must wake the kids and prepare them for school then get the to their respective bus stops. After that I have a maintenance client that needs 2 computers repaired with a potential 5 hours per machine (fortunately they can be done simultaneously). I may still be running the Den meeting tonight which ends at exactly the same time I'm supposed to be presenting this finalized, finished, kaput, code to the client. I'll have 4-5 hours today to accomplish roughly 10 hours of coding.

I am soooo close!

Progress!

Woohoo! I'm make good code but I still can't make it fast enough!

Nice storm

Have a good thunderstorm going right now. Makes me wish I had screened windows in the office.

It's 3am and I'm up and working! I still need to bend time to fit everything in today.

Love Love Love...all we really need....

Love Your Reporter! Love Your President! Love Your Obgyn!

It was hilarious the first time around. It's even better when the reporter loses composure.

3 year old creativity

Amy eats a poptart and sudden holds it up and declares "it's a dress!" On her own she had made bites that turned her poptart into what did indeed look like a summer dress.

Earth at Risk

We are using the Earth to improve our lives, but our children and grandchildren will live in a worsening environment that endangers their existence, more than 1,300 scientists warn.

Some of the recommended changes:

• Remove subsidies to agriculture, fisheries and energy sources (such as fossil fuels) that harm the environment.
• Pay landowners to manage property in ways that help the environment, such as storing carbon dioxide, which causes global warming.
• Use free-market incentives to reduce farm pollution and global-warming gas emissions.
• Protect more areas from development, especially in the oceans.
• Invest in cleaner technology for agriculture and energy use.

I wish our city planners would read these recommendations as we continue to leave old buildings empty and build new buildings. And plan unnecessary roadways like the Knoxville beltway (the Orange Line).

Kicking self

I woke at 2am! Wide awake! But ambivalence kicked in. I could not decide between two courses of action so I decided to lay in bed and think about it. 2nd rise at 5am but now I'm dressed and ready to face the day.

Productivity!

Wahoo! Received my 2nd check from Google!
And made another milestone on one of my projects.