Update

I'm back to trying to save up all the spare change I can. Every little bit helps, you know! That means no more getting depressed and buying loads of candy bars from the vending machine in our building. I'll have to find some other way to make myself feel better and sort of give myself that rush I normally would get from chocolate.

I'm going to try to see how much I can save up for my birthday, and then the back to school sales later in the summer, and then Christmas. I'm going to go get my ID renewed tomorrow (Tuesday) so I can open a bank account with my dad's check. I'm planning on opening both a checking and a savings account and putting back at least $25/month in savings.

One good thing -- I now have full-time housekeeping, paid for by Medicaid. So I don't have to pay for housecleaning anymore. Yay! Right now, we're just busy cleaning out my closet and drawers, trying to declutter things. I need to go through all my storage totes and see what I can throw out and what I can keep, and I need to see about renting a storage unit (there's a U-Haul place not far from where I live, so maybe I can get a place there for not too much money).

Let's see... not much else is going on right now. I'm still sad that I can't move down to Copperas  Cove with my friend (she sent me a text on Friday saying she's leaving today), but maybe I can find another roommate. I hope so. I really do need to get out on my own (relatively speaking, since I'll still be living with someone), and Alaska needs more space, too. My counselor told me about a dog park off of Mockingbird (note to self: find out where it is exactly) that I can take her to. He said they won't allow dogs on leashes once you're inside, but it's fenced in well so I can let her run and play. Hopefully there will be lots of other dogs there so she'll have other four-legged pals to get to know.

Well, that's it for now. Hopefully I'll have more good news as time goes on!

Had a great Christmas!

Donna's husband Jeff and their son Luke came and picked me up around 12:20 and we got to their house a little after 1. (It started raining while we were en route, and snowing shortly after we got there. I had my white Christmas, yay! :-) Jeff's parents Ray and Becky got to the house between 1:30 and 2:00, and were very nice. (I found out that Becky is an NCIS fan like me!) Jeff's brother's Doug and Curtis were also there with their wives Julie and Cheven, and a beautiful baby girl named Piper (I forget who is married to whom and who's daughter Piper is... oops! It was Piper's first Christmas, I should say. AAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!! :-D)

I think we ate lunch around 2:30 or 3:00, then we sat around and visited for awhile and opened presents around 6. Donna gave me a book about Mother Theresa (I can't wait to read it! I've always admired her), a mug and a can of chocolate mint hot chocolate (yum!), and a small picture of Jake and Luke. Her parents also sent me a pretty scarf. That was so nice of them!

Unfortunately I had to leave shortly after the presents were opened. We'd planned on me spending the night, but Donna had some stuff to do today, so they wouldn't be able to bring me home. :-( So I didn't get to go around and take pictures of all the Christmas lights like I wanted to. Maybe next year.

Jeff drove past our old high school (turns out he graduated three years ahead of Donna and me, and Ray taught shop there for 35 years... I felt kind of bad about not remembering him until Donna told me that the shop was kind of out of the way.) The only part of the school I recognized was the "new" front (new my senior year). He explained that the buildings were sort of falling apart, so several years ago they decided that instead of spending money making repairs all the time, they'd just tear virtually the whole thing down and rebuild it. (I wish we could have stopped so I could take pictures, but I don't have anything to compare them to, unless I could find some pictures of the old building online.)

All in all, though, it was a really good day, and I thank Jeff and Donna for opening their home to me!

Merry Christmas to all!

Well, Donna's sciatica was acting up all day yesterday, so I didn't get to go over to her house last night after all. Too bad. But Jeff is coming to get me after breakfast today (probably around 10 or so?), so I'll spend the day with them at least. I'm so excited to see them!

I'm still disappointed that I have no money to spend this week, but I should be getting my pension from my dad's retirement this weekend, so that's good. At least I'll be able to go out for New Year's Eve if I want to. (I just have to be sure not to spend all the money! I do need groceries next week. And I also need to put a little bit back for savings.)

I'm still hoping that I can save up enough from my SSI to get a new laptop this coming year. I also still have everything on my Amazon wish lists that I want to buy (I categorized stuff into CDs/DVDs, books, and everything else). I'm hoping I can get some of it for Christmas next year if not during the year. Two of the things I want soon are an iPod and a stereo with a disc changer and an iPod dock. Then I can get all the other stuff. (My laptop and printer, as I've said before, will be bought during the back-to-school sales in July or August.) I also want to get a new digital camera. The one I have now is only 3X zoom, and I'd like a 5X or better. (That way if I'm way off in Bumf***, Egypt, when I see Styx next time, I'll still be able to get some good pictures of them. When I saw them in Wabash in '08, I was in the 17th frickin' row, and the pix I took were really crappy.) I don't want that to happen next time.

I'm listening to Trans-Siberian Orchestra right now (Christmas Eve and Other Stories). I really want to get some more of their CDs. I first became a fan of theirs around Christmas of '91 or so (around the time this album came out), and the song I'm listening to now -- "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo (12/24)" was the first song of theirs I'd heard (I think it was the first song of theirs that was played). I love their mix of rock and classical music, which I'd never heard before. (I wish some of the "old masters" of classical music could be updated to have a more rock feel. Is it some sort of blasphemy for me to feel that way? lmao) Don't get me wrong, I can handle classical music in small doses, but I just like rock a whole lot better. Maybe I should add some classical music to my musical want list. I have almost every other genre on there. My dad, who was born in 1933, got me interested in big band/swing music, so I put some of that on my want list in memory of him. I also listed some country bands and artists that I grew up listening to, as well as some blues music. I need to get some jazz artists, too (Dixieland is my favorite). Maybe some light jazz, like Kenny G.

Speaking of jazz musicians, I want to take a trip to New Orleans sometime (go to some jazz clubs on Bourbon Street). Maybe during Mardi Gras (although not this coming year... maybe I'll go to the Mardi Gras celebration at the West End when they have it. I've never been, and I'm wondering how it is since the influx of Katrina evacuees in 2005. Did they influence it in any way? If anyone would know how to throw a good Mardi Gras celebration, I think they would.). Or maybe I'll find out when the Southern Decadence celebration is this next year and go to that. I'm not even sure what Southern Decadence is all about; I'll have to research it, but it sounds fun.

Well, it's 2:50 a.m. here, and I need to go to bed if I'm gonna be coherent later on today. Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and a 2013!

Chapter 5 of my fanfic has been posted

I went ahead and posted Chapter 5 of "Can I Trust You With My Heart" on Fanfiction.net if anyone wants to read it. I'm working on Chapter 6, but it's going slowly. I mentioned in my author's note that coming up with story ideas is hard, especially when I don't have someone to bounce ideas off of. A lot of the listed betas on FFN seem to not have time to do much, even though they say they're accepting requests. I'll have to hope that someone will step up to help me.

I'm taking my laptop over to Jeff and Donna's on Monday night, so maybe I'll have time to catch up on my reading and writing. I just accepted a request from a girl in England who's having trouble with people complaining that she's having the characters speak the Queen's English, lol. Well, duh... she's British, that's how she herself talks, so naturally she's going to write what's familiar to her. British spelling and grammar don't bother me. I can figure out what the writers are saying.

Other than that, nothing much is going on in my life. I'm sure I'll have a lot to say on Tuesday. I'm really excited to be seeing Donna after all these years. It'll be nice to do some catching up with her.

Fifteen days and counting...

... until I see Jeff, Donna, and the boys! I can't wait. It's gonna be awesome to be able to hang with someone I haven't seen since 2000. I can't believe it's been so long! Wow. Our next class reunion is in 2020, and I plan on going to that one (knock on wood). OMG, I'll be 48!!! Where have the years gone?!?! lol

Anyway.I need to go to the CBS website and see when the NCIS Christmas episode is on. It won't be on Christmas, for sure, but I don't want to miss it. Senior (Tony's dad) will be in it, and you know how I love me some Robert Wagner! :-)

I'm in one of my euphoric phases, as you might be able to tell (I have bipolar disorder), but in this case I think it's understandable. When I went shopping with my friend the other day, I was also, which is why I spent almost all my money. (Yes, I'm one of those "Yippee, money, and I get to spend it!!!" types. Unfortunately.) I have got to learn how to budget and save, especially when my other friend and I move in together. The worst thing I can think of is to have too much month at the end of my money. lol

One of the things we have to budget for is internet/cable. I might see about getting DISH Network or something. (Is satellite really better than regular cable? I mean, can you pick up channels from other countries, or how does it work?) I don't think we're allowed it where I live now (it's an historic building, so there's not much we can do to it, I guess... although we're supposed to have some remodeling done to it, so the city says. I hope we can get the heating/ac replaced, because the system we have now SUCKS!!!)

Ooh, one of my fave TSO songs is playing! ("Christmas Canon Rock" from The Lost Christmas Eve.) God, I wish I could still sing... I would so be belting this one!

Now playing: "Waltz of the Flowers" from The Nutcracker... and with this, I'm getting off here and listening to some Christmas music! Ta!

Went shopping today...

... and as usual came back with a lot of stuff I hadn't planned to. I spent over $100 at Target, buying not only two trashcans (one for the bathroom and one for my living area), but a new blender, some frozen fruit and o.j. for smoothies, and some new socks and underwear (which I really did need). So I got what I wanted, I just hadn't planned to buy it all today. Oh, well. Now I can spend my Christmas money on something really nice that I want. (And if I need groceries, I always have my food stamps. It's only $28/month, but every little bit helps.)

My friend commented that Alaska probably won't be happy once she realizes that she can't play with my trash anymore, lol. I have to agree. But she'll get over it. I'm always buying her little squeaky toys at the dollar store or at Target if I have money. She likes those.(Funny thing... the squeaking never gets on my nerves. I guess I'm just happy it keeps her entertained.)

I think one of my neighbors just went by with his dog. (There are two guys on my floor who have dogs.) She's barking at something outside, and she usually only does that when she hears raised voices or when she senses another dog. (Our dogs don'/t play together unfortunately, so that's another reason I want to move in with my friend. Our four dogs would be able to play.)

There's a dog park that's a part of the new Clyde Warren(?) Park that just opened. Now that I know that I can take Alaska in a cab, maybe I'll take her down there once in awhile and let her meet some other dogs. She needs the socialization, and so do I, so it'll be good for both of us. Maybe I'll start after the new year; I'll have to start saving up for all the cab fare. (Unless I can find someone here who could take us and drop us off for a few hours. I wonder if there are any dog-friendly restaurants in the area where I could stop for lunch or something.)

I'm hoping that Criminal Minds is on tonight. I've developed an interest in that show, and that's one of the ones I want to start a DVD collection of too. (Along with NCIS: L.A. and maybe Bones. I also want Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed, Angel, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (hey, don't judge me! ;-)), Simon and Simon, The Golden Girls, Hart to Hart (yes, all the shows from my child- and young adulthood that I love... and as you may remember, Robert Wagner starred in Hart to Hart, and as I mentioned last night, I love his acting.)

So that's what some of my plans are. Like I said, I can't buy all this stuff at once, but I can save up for it.

Nineteen days til Christmas!

Eighteen days (roughly) til I see Donna and Jeff for the first time in about twelve years. (The last time I saw them was at our ten-year high school reunion.) I'm excited! (Note to self: Next time you see Pam, ask her to babysit Alaska!!!!!)

Okay, slight change of plans about my Christmas money. I have more important things to buy than CDs unfortunately (although I'm still getting my NCIS Season 9 boxed set). I really want a blender so I can make my own smoothies -- the price for smoothies at Subway and places like that are outrageous,  especially for someone on a limited budget, and I can make my own a lot cheaper. (Although *whispers* I do sometimes break down and buy the occasional iced cappucino at Starbucks. I love iced caps!) I can wait until after the new year to buy all the other stuff I want. I've waited this long, after all...

I need to go to the Old Town shopping center (Lover's Lane/Greenville in Dallas) and see if the new&used CD place I used to haunt is still there. I can probably find some of the CDs I want there, and if they're not cheap enough, I can still get them on Amazon. (If I bought them on Amazon first, I'd have to pay the overnight shipping, which is pretty expensive. Yes, I'm one of those "instant gratification" freaks... when I want something, I want it now!... usually. Like I said, I've waited this long to buy a laptop, iPod, etc., so I can wait a little longer.)

A friend of mine is taking me to Target today to get a new trashcan (maybe two if I can afford it -- one for the bathroom and one for general trash) with a lid so Alaska won't keep getting into the trash. (Why do dogs like eating poopy and/or bloody toilet paper, anyway?!) Trash can with lid=problem solved. :-) So that's what I'll do with the money I have today.

Happy, happy!

I learned earlier today that I have enough money saved up to have a pretty nice Christmas after all. I need to figure out what to buy my friend Donna for having me over for the holiday. Cookies are nice, but I want to buy her something else, too. Maybe a nice candle? A holiday figurine? I'll figure something out.

I'll also have enough to buy Season 9 of NCIS. Maybe I can even get the first season of NCIS: L.A. I've been wanting to start a collection of those DVDs too. I can order them from Amazon and save around $30 probably.

And I'll get some of the CDs I've been wanting. Some Christmas music, and some heavy metal. (Ozzy Osbourne, Tesla, Rob Zombie, etc. I've never really been a metalhead, but I can start.) I borrowed some of my downstairs neighbors CDs and put them in my iTunes library (now have more than 1400 songs in there!), but can always put more in. I've also got some contemporary Christian (well, if you consider the 80s "contemporary", lol) artists that I really like on my Amazon want list, so I can order a few of their albums, too.

Um, lemme see... I think that's all I can really get with the amount of money I have. I'll have to save up for stuff like my iPod, Kindle, and other things. I'm still planning to get a Dell laptop; I have that on my want list too.  And an iPad. (I've said this in previous posts. You know you seriously have nothing to talk about when you just keep repeating stuff from earlier posts. lol)

I bought a new planner at Target when I took Alaska in for her grooming on Saturday. I also have a new paper journal (my favorite color... purple ftw!) I still have a couple of pages left to write in my old one, but when I finish it, I'll be using my new one.

I do need to save up to see Styx this coming year. I really wanted to go this year and have a big 40th birthday blowout, but yeah, didn't happen. :-( So maybe next year. Ugh, and moving. I have no idea when that's going to happen. I just have to keep that open-ended, and that's so not my style.

Can't wait for Christmas!

On the 24th, Jeff and Donna and the boys (Jake and Luke) are going to pick me up and take me over to their house in N. Richland Hills for the holiday. I'll be staying over until the 26th. I'm so excited since I won't be able to spend Christmas with my family this year (my brother Lonnie, who usually hosts Christmas when he's home, won't be this year. :-(). We always have a group dinner at my apartment building, but it'll be fun to be able to have a "family" Christmas (even if I am sort of crashing another family's party). And hopefully this time next year my roommate and I will be having our own "family" Christmas (and maybe I'll be able to host... I'll have to talk to her, of course, but it'll be nice to be able to reciprocate sometimes my own family's hospitality).

I still need to ask my neighbor if she can dogsit while I'm away, or at least come over a couple of times a day to play with Alaska. I know the poor little girl will miss me, and I just hope she won't think I've abandoned her. I took her to the groomer for a bath and a trim on Saturday, but before I had to go cash a check. I had to leave her in  the taxi while I ran in, and she went crazy whining and all. She was so happy when I came back. :-) (I've never left her for more than a few hours, and never with a stranger, which the cab driver obviously was.) So it'll be interesting to see how she gets along for a whole day and two nights.

I still need to buy Jeff and Donna their host's gift. I'll have to stop by Albertson's or someplace to pick up a tray of cookies (not much of a baker here) to take over with me. I also need to pick out a nice card to give them.

Edit: Just had to add the above pic which I shared from a friend who shared from someone else. Amazing that this is what Christmas now amounts to for a lot of people. Like I commented on my facebook post, Christmas should be so much more than the season of "gimme", it should be the season of "'Tis better to give than to receive", even for those who don't believe in Christ/celebrate his birth.

Well, Thanksgiving is over and it's now time to start thinking about Christmas. I'm so looking forward to spending Christmas day (and a couple of nights) with Jeff and Donna and the boys. I just need to find someone to take care of my baby while I'm away. I've never been gone for more than a few hours, certainly not a day and two nights. I'm afraid the poor thing will think I've abandoned her. :-(

My neighbor Pam is going to take us to the groomer's next week so she can have a bath. She really needs one, and it only costs about $15.  Plus $15 for gas, and that's a pretty good deal.

I'm not sure how much money I've saved up for Christmas. I'm thinking of withdrawing all of it shortly before Christmas and seeing how much I can spend. I need to buy something for Jeff and Donna for hosting me. She suggested cookies or something (I was thinking about a bottle of wine, but she told me Jeff doesn't drink much, although she'll probably have a bottle or two for dinner). Everyone likes desserts, though. lol

I've about decided to save up as much money as I can by July/August so I can get a new laptop and printer during the before-school sales. I also want an iPod and a stereo with an iPod dock.  Then for Christmas I can get a tv and DVD player. I'm thinking of buying a Dell laptop this time (my current one is a Toshiba, but I think Dells are better). I'm not sure what kind of printer to get... I think I have a Canon on my Amazon wish list. And then of course I'll need to buy ink. (Lots of ink. I do lots of printing, lol.)

I still haven't found anyone willing to help me out with the fanfic I'm working on. I'm about ready to give up on it. :-( I've been working on it for over a year now! God, why won't anyone help me?! I'm not a bad writer; I'm just stuck. I don't expect anyone to write it for me, I just need some idea of where to go with it. Sighs Oh, well. Maybe I can find someone to help. I'll just have to keep trying, I guess.