Sometimes you have to just grow a pair, and ask.

Seriously, sometimes you have to just step up to the plate and ask for what you want. It might not be easy, but the only person looking out for #1, is you.

Want that raise you've been working hard for? Want that date with the chick you've been stalking eyeing lately? Ask for it! No one else will for you.

Personally, i had been waiting for some missing 401k deposits to hit my account. My patience was growing ten-fold, but my sanity wasn't going to last any longer. It really isn't easy for me to have money floating out there in "la la land", and i wanted it to finally come home where it belongs.

I wish i could explain all the twists and turns over the past year regarding it, but it's way too complicated this early in the morning. Plus, i really don't want to bore you to death ;) Let's just say it had been going on for way too long, and something needed to finally be done about it.

That's what today's post is about - asking your way to the solution.

When things go wrong, it's easy to point fingers. But flashing them everywhere seldom gets you answers, so let the other's flash! If the issue affects you, then what you need to do is find a way to get what you want. This usually takes a lot of questioning.

So, when i first realized these 401k deposits went missing, I started throwing questions (not fingers). I talked with a few co-workers first, then the 401k firm, and then HR. All of whom answered my questions, but didn't resolve the issue at hand - plopping my money into my account.

A few months went by (i just thought they'd "magically" appear after a while), but still nothing. At this point i realized that either:

a) I'm out my money, or
b) I have to bring it to the master of the domain - my CEO.

I ran with b), which isn't an easy thing mind you. We get handsomely rewarded here, like WAYYY more than others in our industry, and i'd continue to work here regardless of getting that money back (aka I love it here). So when you're basically telling the head honcho that he "owes you money", you gotta be careful, especially if you're lower management. But i HAD to ask - we're talking about $4,000 here.

And asked I did. I set up a quick meeting, explained the situaton in detail, and showed him the respective statements. And can you guess what happened? He gave me the money!!!

Well, not yet actually, but very very soon. The point is, i got what i asked for cuz i ASKED for it. Sure it was already owed to me, and was legally enforcable anyways, but had i not asked I'd still be stewing here in my seat wondering where the hell it's been all my life. and that's no fun for anyone.

Truth be told, my CEO hadn't even realized they were missing, so it was a problem that could have been resolved months ago! Lesson learned. I'll throw that little nugget in my pocket for later ;)

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Dear psycho stock "investors"...

Please refrain from selling off your investments every time a dirty piece of bad news hits the stands. You are causing a lot of pain and torture to us patient ones. Unless you are elderly and/or about to retire, i do not like you.

Thank you kindly,
J. "My 401K keeps going down the tubes" Savings.

ps: i'm not bitter ;)

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It's the principal of the matter ... Literally!

One of my all time greatest annoyances (i refuse to use the saying "pet peeves"), is getting gypped by cashiers. It's one thing to have it done every once in a while, but it happens allllll the time for me! Maybe i'm just super unlucky, but i seriously have to question a receipt at LEAST once a week.

Just the other day I was picking up a bbq sandwich with mashed potatoes, and it rang up as $13.00. Being in DC i didn't think much of it at first, but then a co-worker's meal rang up at $11.00, and he got MORE than i did, i was like wtf!, right?

So i asked the cashier why mine was more, and i got back a very annoyed "well i'm Sorrrrrrry okay, i thought you got something else!" wow. Anyone who knows me can tell you i'm a pretty un-confrontational guy (you know, those who curse people out in their head, but never to their face), so why this girl had to get all uppity was beyond me.

At any rate (a saying that i do like), she had a manager correct the bill and i gladly accepted my $3.50 back. That's a HUGE difference!

So, what do YOU do when this happens? Do you go back, cut in line, and begin your questioning - others call this "bitching" - or do you simply let it slide? I don't think there's a solid answer here, but i do know there's a way to avoid it altogether.

How do you avoid this? Simple. Review your total BEFORE you pay.

That's all there is to it. No one else is gonna look out for your wallet, so making it a habit to pay attention can go a long way. And if you slip, don't worry about it - you're only human like the rest of us. That being said, it's not always easy. A whole bunch of variables can play a part in speaking up:

The point at which you notice this discrepancy.
For me, this is the determining factor. If i've made my purchase and am now sitting on my couch back at home realizing that an error has occurred, there's no way in hell i'm going back to raise a stink about it. I usually blame myself for not catching it earlier, and try to take home a nice little lesson from it ;) which i will no-doubt repeat again at another time anyway...haha.

If i notice it while mid-swipe of my credit card, however, you better believe i'll bring it up! These occurrences are the best because i don't even have to think about it - i just react naturally.

The actual amount in question.
I'm willing to guess this is the biggest one for people. If you got gypped a couple of pennies, i doubt you'd bring it up no matter where you notice it, it's just not worth your time. As the amounts go up though, i say from about 50 cents and up, the odds you'll speak up go along with it.

For me, this amount is usually around 75 cents - once it hits that mark, i'll start asking questions right away. Now, if i'm at home realizing this, then forget about it. I'm not gonna waste my time going back. BUT, if i'm at home and the amount is a good $4.00+, i'd be tempted to turn back around! Or at the very least call the store and see if i can do something about it over the phone.

The strictness of your budget.
A couple of dollars to one person can mean a whole lot more to another, especially if you have a family to look out for. At least that's what they say ;) I think your age also plays a big part in this. My grandma would hold up a line for 10 cents, bless her heart, while i was to lazy to pick up a dime yesterday on the street (sorry Mr. Change Race!).

The Confidence you have, or do not have, in yourself.
It takes balls to speak up when this stuff happens, no doubt about it. It's one thing if you're the only one in the store on a weeknight, but you drop that person downtown in DC/NYC during rush hour to complain about 25 cents, you better know how to take it! Every once in a while i can pull this off, but i wouldn't stake any money it.

In a perfect world we wouldn't have to worry about this, but unfort. employees have been known to smoke crack every now and then.

This time around i happened to stand my ground, but I've been known to let more than a few dollars slip out of my pocket in the past. And the only thing i can do to cope is to hit myself upside the head and tell my self i shoulda had a V-8!

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I'll be hosting my first Carnival next Tuesday - Aww Yeah!

As many of you know, I've been participating in a whole bunch of carnivals lately. Well, this time i'll be actually HOSTING one over at The Festival of Frugality! I have no idea how much time this will involve, but i'm sexcited ;)

I just have to come up with a clever theme for it now. Mrs. Micah had a cool one this week (posted below) which featured the sexiness of Buffy the Vampire Slayer! haha....maybe i could do one on Saved by The Bell, or better yet - something around being "sexy" :) That could come out pretty bad though, if you know what i'm saying.

Who knows. If you have any cool ideas though, by all means throw it out here. And if you need some inspiration - theme wise, or money wise - here are the carnivals i've participated in throughout the week:

• Carnival of Personal Finance #158 - "Vampire Slaying" ed. hosted by Mrs. Micah
• Festival of Frugality #131 - "Summer Savings" ed. hosted by Broke Grad Student
• Finance Fiesta #4 - "Cerveza" ed. hosted by Pinching Copper

Here are my all time top referrers - Thanks everyone, you know i love you!

• Give Me Back My Five Bucks
• Clever Dude
• Dink's Finance
• Chicky Finance
• Change can be a Good Thing

And now, after 3 hours of trying to get this out (the bossman took a few of us to lunch, where i was "peer pressured" into drinking a bit), i shall now post this. Giggity Gigg-it-y!

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USAA Now shares 2nd place in our wedding Bank Battle!

That's right, miraculously we're STILL getting wedding checks sent our way :) I guess that "1 year to give a gift" rule is pretty common these days. Not that i really care one way or the other, i just find it pretty funny. This rule doesn't apply to birthdays, graduation,or Christmas so why weddings?

I asked a couple friends but no luck, they all came back pretty much with "i dunno, it's just the way it is". Okay, so let's just say that's the deal. Why do it though? I mean, it takes a lot of time to make arrangements to go to the wedding, get a hotel (if needed), and schedule your family's life around it cuz of the time it consumes, so the present part should be the easy part, right?

The only thing i can think of is that perhaps it just gets forgotten w/ all this other stuff going on. Or it's just laziness :) I've never sent a late gift myself, but if i did it would totally come down to the lazy factor. But enough of this talk, my word vomit is going wayyyy off track now.

The reason for this post is to give an update on our newest check contenders in our Bank Battle! So here they are:

• USAA moves up a notch to 2nd place with a $200'er (holler)
• Commerce Bank brings in another $50.00
• And PNC makes it a 3-way tie for first, w/ another respectable $100.00!

Ooh, and i almost forgot about the BEST gift ever! A $500 Savings Bond :) Similar to the others in my safe, it's a "Patriot Bond" (EE) worth $250 at the present time, which will work it's way up over the years. I love it! (For more info on bonds, check out the snazzy Treasurydirect.gov site.)

There's just something about those little guys that bring absolute joy to my life. I think it's the whole "you can watch me grow, but you can't spend me!" thing. Fine by me, my other bonds will now have an extra friend to play with. No shame in that game!

So there you have it, our old cash gift total worked it's way up from $6,000 to $6,350, and USAA is battling Navy Federal for the 2nd place title...will it end here? Only time, and laziness, will tell ;)

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T-Mobile pumps out a $10/month land line plan!

Man, competition is getting fierce! Fine by me though.
I'm all for consumer goodness :)

So here's the deal, i got an email last night from a rep saying they're launching this "T-Mobile @ Home" plan today and thought it would be good to get the word out.

And, since i'm always a fan of saving money as well as new technology out there, I agreed! So, from me to you, here is my first piece of Breaking News :) unless you've heard it earlier, in which case it won't be *as* exciting, but it's nonetheless breaking news. so there.

Here's a clip from the email i got:

Tomorrow (Today) is the nation-wide launch of T-Mobile's $10/month home phone service called T-Mobile @Home. The service offers a simple way to cut costs for families who want to keep the convenience of having a home phone, rather than just carrying a mobile phone.

It also includes unlimited national calling! Cool huh? The only down side is that you'll need to have a T-Mobile cell phone plan already in order to take advantage of it, and also pick up one of their routers ($49.99 w/ a 2 year contract). But, perhaps you already use them or plan to soon anyways?

The real question, though, is if you even USE a land line? I know plenty of people who have scrapped it long ago, and use their cell phone for everything. I haven't done so myself, but only because my signal is pretty weak there. That, and I already have one of those 3 in one Comcast plans that covers phone, internet, and cable (It's Comcastic! haha.... now THOSE are funny ads).

But if you're paying $30-40 a month for a land line anyways, then you'll be saving mad money for sure. As long as you can get out of that contract okay!

So while there are plenty of things to think about before signing up, it's definitely a sexy step in the right direction for sure. I guarantee it won't be long until the other carriers catch up to the idea and put something out themselves!

If you're interested, here's a pdf on it for more info :)

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Rock, Paper, Scissors your way to FREE chips & queso!

California Tortilla is at it again! This time w/ the popular kids game :) Here's the info straight from their email campaign, which can also be found on the left hand side of their website:

Play Rock Paper Scissors every Wednesday through July 9th. If you win you get
our darn tasty chips and queso if you lose you get 50 cents off of your next
visit.

It's a Win-Win situation! Even if you lose you get a 50 cents off coupon, how sexy is that? Actually don't answer that. I know what can beat that any day - Their World's Largest Rock, Paper, Scissors TOURNAMENT!!! haha...If you live in the VA,MD, DC area, check out the details here.

Alrighty, i gotta go start practicing...although everyone knows Paper always wins!

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5 Gas-Saving myths that i was tricked into believing ;)

I came across these twice in the past few days - once on a pf site which i can't remember for the life of me, and the other in this month's Money Magazine - so I'm taking it as a sign to share :) Some of these i've fell for, and others are brand spankin' new (and interesting) to me.

While i usually don't know what to believe out there, I'm sure these "experts" know what they're talking about. That's actually a pretty cool job if you think about it - going around proving myths aren't true! I wonder how much you get paid for that? They probably just go around asking experts in certain fields for their opinion....that makes more sense, but it's not as fun to think about ;)

Anyways, it's always good to separate a little fact from fiction, so here are the truths behind some of those gas-saving myths:

1. Gas up in the morning
I'll have to admit i've never heard this one before, but it has something to do with fluids being more dense in colder temperatures. So if you fill 'er up early on, you'll get more "gas molecules" for your money. Apparently the temperature of the gasoline straight out of the nozzel doesn't fluctuate much though, so it really doesn't matter. Oh well, it was a good try!

2. Change your air filter
Now THIS one i hear alllll the time! In fact, i heard it 2 weeks ago when changing out my oil at one of those Lube Centers (which i LOVE btw, you're in and out in 15 mins if you can beat the lines, and they check everything!) While changing your filter is good to do every now and then, the myth-busters say it doesn't help on gas. "Modern engines have sensors that adjust the fuel-air mixture as an increasingly clogged filter chokes off the oxygen supply". Huh. Interesting...unless you have an older car eh?

3. Use premium fuel
Same goes with this bad boy, your engine sensors can detect the lower-octane fuel and adjust accordingly. This only applies if the manual says premium gas is "recommended". If it says it's required - then you should DEFINITELY stick to that.

4. Put in an additive
A definite nope on this one unfortunately...and I'll be the first to admit i've tried a number of them out there! The idea of it is just so quick and easy, ya know? Oh well, guess we'll have to kiss those secret sauces away for now...at least it'll save a few bucks not putting it in anymore ;)

5. Avoid the AC
If you're driving in town, then it works! (hooray). BUT, if you're speeding along the highway, you might as well forget it. Keeping the windows down affects your mileage just as much because it causes aerodynamic drag...so you might as well choose your fav. option at that point - either way it just sucks. It also sucks that one of my boys told me this a few years ago and i just laughed it off....oops.

And there you have it, 5 myths all cleared up for ya! While it's no fair there aren't any secrets out there, at least you can concentrate on other ways to save on gas now - driving smoother, no heavy stop and go action, carpooling, riding public transportation, etc.

And who knows, I bet someone's devising a little somethin' somethin' as we speak to help alleviate our gas crisis!

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Wanna know what it feels like to have ZERO credit card debt?

It feels GREAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT! (in the voice of Tony the Tiger). I know this because the Mrs. and i JUST paid off all 3 outstanding credit card balances today. That means no more interest charges, no more budget fenagling, and especially no more annoying bills to pay ;)

While it doesn't feel all that *different* per se, my brain does feel a bit more organized and clearer. I think it's just nice overall knowing that the only debt we have left right now is our mortgages and car loan. Unfortunately this will only last through August when Mrs. Budgetsaresexy starts grad school - yikes! The word on the street, though, is that it falls under "good debt"! haha...i agree it's def. better than c/c debt, but it's still not fun .

Either way, you need a solid game plan when it comes to defeating those evil credit cards.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE fan of credit cards in general - i charge everything i can to them, and then *usually* pay the balance off in full each month using my c/c budget - but what i'm NOT a fan of is recurring balances and the fees/charges assigned to it. When I find myself in this nasty territory, I set up a game plan and get the F outta there!

Here's the 4 steps we followed to sneak outta credit card hell this time:

1. We set up a time frame. It's hard to reach a goal without a marked finish line, so we decided that we wanted to be c/c debt free in 1 year. This started last November for us when we picked up our new iMac, and continued as we added a little more debt along the way. (most at 0% financing, but it's still debt)
2. We took a look at our budget. I knew there was no way in hell we were gonna pay it all off until we figured how where this money would come from. Since I already had a sexy little budget to rely on, i pulled it up and started re-working it until I couls squeeze an extra $100 a month out of it. This Benjamin, matched w/ the Mrs.', would be enough for us to reach our 1 year goal.
3. We applied the alotted money efficiently. The trick is paying off the highest interest cards first, and paying the minimum on all others. Some prefer paying off the smallest amount first to get quicker accomplishments along the way, but it didn't make sense for us. So we paid $30 or so towards minimums, and then $170 to the card with the highest interest rate...which at the time was only 5% ;)
4. We applied unaccounted for money towards the cards. This was the final killer! We used a good portion of our $6k wedding money to pay off all remaining balances, despite the urges to refurnish our house or pick up a sexy new pair of Dolce and Gabbana shades!

So after some re-budgeting, patience, and good fortune, we are now c/c debt free and ready to start saving that extra money! That is, after we take a month or so to enjoy the spoils first :)

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Would you rather...take $500k now, or $1 million in ten years?

I know some of you can't sleep without a "would you rather" question every now and then (that someone being me), so figured i'd throw one out there to celebrate this glorious Friday. That, and I'm also trying to procrastinate here at work....only 12 more minutes to go ;)

I came up with it when i was commenting on Mrs Micha's "question and answer" post:

“Would you rather have $500k now (no taxes, fees, etc) OR would you rather get 1 million ten years from now (no fees again)?”

You're welcome.

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Is it time to lock in our Home Equity Line rate? I'm Stuck!

*Update: We've decided to go w/ option #1 :)

Similar to my car dilemna, now going on 4 months w/out a decision, it's enough to drive a person crazy.

Do you lock in a rate now and hope you caught it on the rise, or do you wait it out a bit and save more money each month?

The funny part is that Mrs. Budgetsaresexy and I JUST had our first talk about this last Saturday, and we told ourselves that we'd lock in the next time it goes up...thinking we'd have at least a couple months before thinking about it again. Ooops. So I now bring this dilemma to you guys for help :)

Here are the details on our current loan:

• This is our "2nd Mortgage"
• It's a maxed out Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)
• It's an interest-only loan
• The rate is variable
• The current rate is 4.55% (Prime - .45%)
• The current balance is $62,602.23.

So basically, our current rate is lower than ANY OF OUR OTHER LOANS. It beats out our 1st mortgage, our car loan, and all credit cards. Sexy, ain't it? Of course though, that's only how it works out today.

There's a load of variables to consider here, not to mention hefty pros and cons, and we def. want to stay with USAA for a number of reasons. Here are the 2 options we're considering

Option #1 - Keep the loan as-is. Rate at 4.55%

• This rate can change at any time, depending on the Fed.
• We have 172 months to pay back this loan...8 months have already passed ;)
• This means monthly payments of roughly $230.
• PRO: Since we budget for $540 here, we save $300 every month!!! (our original amount when we purchased last year was $540, before re-financing and the fed lowering rates)
• PRO: Our emergency fund and house savings account gets padded each month with this $300!
• CON: We have no control since it's variable - The rate is associated with the WSJ Prime Rate, so it's all in the hands of the Fed. And considering it's been cut heavily over the past 10 months, I'm starting to believe the hype that it will start going back up.
• CON (in theory): It's interest-only - we are only paying off interest each month, adding nothing to the principal. I say in theory because the average home owner will not add extra to pay off the principal. We usually pay portions off sporadically, rather than a set amount each month. Our initial HELOC was $72k, so we've knocked it down by $10k already, even though we have an interest-only loan. Granted, most of this $10k was on accident.

We've been with option #1 from day one of buying our house, making it even harder to switch out as we're so used to it. It's so freakin' nice having that $300 cushion to play with :) BUT, we also know that we'll eventually need to lock in a rate as the tides WILL turn...it's just a matter of when.

It also gets a bit tricky because the rate above moves with the WSJ Prime Rate plus or minus the lender's points, while the rate to lock it in moves with the 182 T-bill (3 year ones I believe) plus or minus the lender's points. So it's like you have to judge two different trends.

Option #2 - Lock in a rate now at 7.72%.

• The interest rate will stay exactly the same now, as it will in 10 years.
• The HELOC would essentially convert into a Home Equity Loan (read about the difference)
• The loan will ammortize over 180 months
• The monthly payment would be around $588 (i used this simple loan calculator)
• PRO: We would now be paying both interest, AND principal. The main portion of course going to interest, but it's now all built in and mandatory - similar to a normal loan.
• PRO: No more worrying/thinking about interest rates adjusting, as it won't matter here.
• CON: The monthly price tag drastically goes up! no more padding any of our accounts :(
• CON: We'd now need to re-budget for an extra $45 a month, which is quite different than having an extra $200 to play with!

This lock in rate changes every month with USAA, on the 3rd Tuesday of the each month, so we have a few weeks to decide. It's important to note though that over the past 3 months it's gone from a steady 6.75% (from as long as I can remember) to 7.18% last month, and now to 7.72% this month.

As i mentioned, we're eventually going to have to lock in a good rate before everything goes up, but is that time now? According to that graph up at the top, taken from BankRate.com, i'm thinking option #2 is looking like the best bet here. What would YOU do?

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A whole mess of random goodness for ya today ;)

There's a lot on my brain this morning, but i can't seem to formulate paragraphs very well at the moment...so hopefully you don't mind the random listing of all my thoughts (I haven't had my beautiful coffee yet).

From my brain, to yours - here's what we got:

My man Baily, over at Thoughts from the Change Race, mentioned he has a few $5 Best Buy certificates he might be willing to part with! Not sure if you need to convince him or not, but if you're interested go ahead and leave him a comment on his latest blog posting. Tell him J from BAS sent you, and that he better treat you right ;)

It's another WOOT OFF baby! Not familiar? It's when Woot.com offers up a new product (usually electronic) at a REALLY cheap price until it sells out, and it then throws up another! It basically goes on for a good 24 hours, so if there's anything in particular you're looking for - like a stereo, memory card, watch, etc - keep hitting refresh throughout the day and more often than not you'll get lucky. Check out my Woot Post for more info.

Sometimes it's cool to track all the financial spam you get in the mail. And by "cool", i mean kinda "dorky", which really means "kinda cool". haha...Anyways, i've been keeping a list of this junk mail for a month or two, and some of it is actually pretty damn GOOD stuff. Here's everything i kept track of/remembered to keep track of, plus links to the companies:

• Chase Visa Platinum card (#1) - 0% on all purchases and xfers until August 1st, 2009. No annual fee, and no xfer fee! 6.99% thereafter.
• Chase Visa Platinum card (#2) - 0% on all purchases and xfers until September 1st, 2009. No annual fee, and no xfer fee! 7.49% thereafter. haha... it went up! Mrs. Budgetsaresexy actually gets these allllllllllll the time. Like once every 2 weeks!
• Chase Pre-Approved Home Equity Loan - Zero closing costs, and offers up to PRIME - %0.76 APR when you pay off $50k from another HELOC.
• Commerce Bank Pre-Approved Home Equity Loan - 4.24% + $100 bonus!!! No closing costs, nor annual fee. Sexy time for sure! (the
• PETCO P.A.L.S. Coupon - 10% off our entire purchase. geared towards my fishy fish too, they are sneaky little marketers ;)

I was featured as an "editor's pick" again during this week's carnival season! I think that's my second or third time for me in a month - i'm on fire baby, someone put me out! Here are all those I participated in:

• Money Hacks Carnival #17 - "Music of the 80's" edition - hosted by Mrs. Nespy's Frugal World *My editor's pick one.
• Festival of Frugality #130 - "The Eight Little Pigs" edition - hosted by OutofDebtAgain.com
• Carnival of Debt Reduction: "Advice from Dad" edition - hosted by BluntMoney.com (and not that kind of "blunt" money!)
• Carnival of 20-Something Finances - "The June 2, 2008" edition - hosted by Dollar Frugal (kinda old...forgot to post earlier!)

I thought i had something else to share, but i guess it slipped my mind...I think it had something to do w/ oranges? Oh well, probably best to get my coffee now ;)

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Want a Best Buy coupon worth $10.00?

Then you're in luck my friends! Unless you said No, in which case....um....please wait...thinking of something funny... sorry, i got nothing. Just read this not-so-randomly generated post of mine instead :)

But back to this coupon I mention. While a free and clear $10.00 coupon SURE sounds nice, you know it comes with "ifs" and "buts" so here's the dilly, yo. This coupon grants you $10.00 off when you:

• Use it in the store (can't go online)
• Spend $75.00
• And you spend it on video games, or video game accessories

If you want this coupon, you have 2 ways to get it:

1. Grab mine! Be the first to say "mail that bad boy to me!" in a comment, and i'll contact you for your address and then drop it in the mail for ya ASAP.
2. Use this money hack - Go to Safeway this week (other groceries may work too but haven't tested) and purchase a $25 Best Buy giftcard. You *SHOULD* get this coupon printed out on the back of your receipt - and voila! If you have a Safeway card, swipe it too just to be sure... but i didn't, and it still worked. Just make sure you then use this gift card to help pay for your $75 purchase ;) Cuz if you don't, you will have then just spent $100 to save $10.00 - and that would just be pointless.

So, if you've been a good little boy, or girl for that matter, and have been patiently waiting for Halo 3 or Grand Theft Auto IV to go down, now's the time to pick 'em up!

Already have them? What about a getting an extra controller or system altogether so little johnny can play too? Wait...why am i trying to convince you to BUY things? haha...okay, so scratch that last part.

Just use this coupon if there are things you *need* from Best Buy, but wanted more incentive first :)

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OMG - Today is actually "National Splurge Day"!

What are the odds? Seriously, i totally made that day up when i posted about it yesterday - how freakin' insane! I literally had no idea whatsoever - it was actually my boy Jonathan over at MyMoneyBlog.com (my all-time FAV pf blogger) who notified me of it. I tip my hat to you good sir.

I followed his advice and googled it, and sure enough it's a *holiday* (or *holidate* as some call it). Here's some interesting info from KOOPERSMITHin' -

NATIONAL SPLURGE DAY ©1994 slated annually for June 18
Celebrating its 15TH Year in 2008

Celebrated 63 Days after Income Tax Day (April 15TH), this HOLIDATE is designed to jumpstart the Economy (as Recessions have been plaguing Societies since Biblical Times). One will instantly recall the terms of “7 Years of Feast followed by 7 Years of Famine, Hardships and Troubled Times.” Abundance vs. Depletion can be classically traced back to Egyptian Days where Shortages were offset by Periods of great Wealth. Some Things don’t change, but merely remain in a Cyclical Balance throughout Time. This is the leading Force to be reckoned with.

They even have e-cards made for it! haha... Man ... this is either one silly a$$ coincidence, or i'm the coolest person ever ;) (I'm not looking for an answer on this one).

So Happy National Splurge Day everyone!!!

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Sometimes splurging is okay to do - it really is!

I'm tired of my poor friend, the word "splurge", getting so many negative reviews all the time - it's really not fair. What's so bad about giving in every now and then? We can't be rock star savers all the time, it's just not natural (plus it's REALLY boring).

So, in honor of this magical word - I hereby proclaim today the - "It's Okay to Splurge" day!

It's not smart to go overboard with it, of course, but you know what? You sure as hell can do it responsibly, and that's really the key here. Splurging can be VERY refreshing, and bring many a joys into your life ;) I mean, the definition itself is freakin' sexy!

Thefreedictionary.com has it right:

Splurge(splûrj) - (v) To indulge in an extravagant expense or luxury.

Ooh la la, sounds fun! "To indulge" in an "extravagant expense". Man, just thinking about it gets me all riled up. haha ... That doesn't mean that you *have to* go blow money on something crazy, it just means that we take a few seconds to reflect on all of the positive effects of splurging:

• You get to feel alive!
• You get to do/buy/go somewhere new!
• You get to do something you're "not supposed to do" - always fun ;)

If there's been something you've REALLY wanted, and think it'll make you feel sexy, I say go get it! It doesn't have to be today, or tomorrow, but you deserve to pick up something you've really been dying for. Just try and not go crazy overboard, ok? And if you need a limit, go with $200.

While I, for once, don't have anything currently on my list to get, here are a handful of items i picked up last year - aka my personal "splurge year". (i'll count the wedding as the only item in '08)

All of these items I wear/use literally every single day:

• Diamond earings - It was about time to replace my cubic zirconias with REAL bling. While i picked them up on a Kohls 60% + 15% + $10 off extra special savings day, i am that much closer to being a baller for real ;) Holler!
  My watch - I wanted a pretty nice one for once, and one that also blings. This time i used a store on eBay and got the hook up with 1/2 off the listed price.
• 62" Tv - What better way to watch reality tv, eh? No need for a flat screen, totally high level for my use, so i got an old school looking "projection screen" type. You know, those bulkier ones that can fit in the corner? Thus, cutting off at LEAST $2k. Oh, and i also applied some giftcards towards it to really knock down the price.

Saving, investing, and budgeting is important for sure, BUT every now and then you have to treat yourself to something you're really excited about - that's what gets you through life baby!

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My contact form *may* be acting wonky...not sure

I've been getting a few blank emails through my Contact form, so if i haven't responded to anyone - I'M SO SORRY! Try me again via email: J(at)budgetsaresexy(dot)com .

Not sure if this is a problem or not, but wanted to holler just in case...i've been getting some messages perfectly, so who knows ;)

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Save $10 bucks and wash that sexy car of yours.

Money Hack #13456i89 - Start Spraying Away!
It's seriously one of the easiest ways NOT to spend money - just like when you make your own card instead of buying it at Hallmark.

While it may not be the quickest way to save or earn a buck (wash out that dirty mind of yours), it def. does the trick! Will Smith does it so why not you?

Here are my TOP 10 reasons to wash your own car:

1. Save Money! $7.00 to $15.00 depending on where you do it, and what you want done.
2. Get cooled down - A great way to deal with this massive heat wave.
3. Feel productive - when was the last time you did something yourself, instead of paying to have it done?
4. Feel like a kid all over again - Unless you're already a kid...but then you actually get PAID to do it ;)
5. Show off your sexy bod - Throw on your bathing suit and flip flops, and spray away!
6. Impress your other half! Hook up their car too and score mad points :)
7. Impress your neighbor! Hook up a neighbor's car while you're on a roll - i swear you'll be rewarded for this one.
8. Kill 2 birds w/ 1 stone - Water the flowers, plants, bushes, lawn, etc too. Or how about washing away those cobwebs on the outside lamp post?
9. Do it on your own time - Don't have to worry about store hours, or long a$$ lines.
   
10. Drive away looking hot and sexy! My personal favorite part - rolling down the windows, and pumping out Kanye West with the shiny paint, and rims blingin'!

So whatcha waiting for? Unless you're at work reading this (as am i), it's time to get outside and enjoy the summer. Come on, peer pressure!

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Wachovia, Bank of America, & PNC are really that popular?

POOP! What about my USAA? According to all of the wedding checks we got from our friends and family, it only ranks in 5th place :( Turns out most of them prefer Wachovia, Bank of America, and PNC. Oh well, at least we got some extra $$$ to help start our married lives, right?!

This is decidedly a GOOD thing, as our wedding budget had finally burst at the seams, and it's now time to clean it all up ;)

So, being the big dork that i am, i took some time to sort through all of our cash gifts and analyzed the bajesus out of 'em. It's just sooo fun, i love it! Plus, what else do i have to do on Friday the 13th? haha... Chew on these fancy facts:

After counting it all up, we were given a total of about $6,000 $6,350!
- $700 of them were pure cashy cash
- $5,300 $5,650 of them were old fashioned checks.

Here are how the amounts broke down:
- $1,000 was the biggest gift (holler)
- $40 was the smallest gift
- $138 was the average gift

And these are the banks the checks came from (most popular to least):
- 5 @ Wachovia Bank
- 5 @ Bank of America
- 4 5@ PNC Bank
- 3 @ Navy Federal Credit Union
- 2 3 @ USAA Federal Savings Bank (the best e-v-e-r!)
- 2 @ Citibank
- 1 2 @ Commerce Bank
- 1 @ Chase
- 1 @ BB&T
- 1 @ SunTrust
- 1 @ Hudson United Bank
- 1 @ Harleysville National Bank
- 1 @ Bank Fund Staff Federal Credit Union

Wasn't that fun? No? Well you are just too cool aren't ya ;) I certainly enjoyed breaking it all down - especially when it came to banking. There are so many options out there, i wonder what made