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really?
monday, april 28, 2014
seriously, this week (well, coming in from last week, but, yea) can just stop now.
friday i paid bills. i paid the car bill first...shouldn't have done that since i apparently needed to split it up more evenly than i thought. plus, jobs, weather, and all kinds of crazy has been going on.
and thursday, while i may not have done much in the web update department, i was feeling pretty good about things in general. money is always a bitch, i can catch up to save my life, but things didn't look to be falling further behind and otherwise heading into wtf-ville.
first really? my u-verse bill. i knew it was going up, but this was...wow. even for $21 in rented movies, it was really wow. like i said, i knew it was going to go up, and from this bill, the next one was going to REALLY blow my mind. so i called to try to get this thing reduced. i don't know what was up with this customer service rep other than the whole "we're being pushed to sell this package" b.s., but it was like she could not hear a thing i was saying or something. the package she finally put me on will be like $10 less than the bill with me going off all my promotions. and that $10? savings i deliberately made myself: reducing my internet speed a bit and dropping their $5 movie package that we never freaking watch. AND she claimed she had to send a tech out to switch out the modem or something for the "upgrade" i didn't want in the first place.
on the one hand, what the hell? on the other hand, good thing she did. turns out my building isn't wired for the damn upgrade to begin with, and the tech person i ended up telling the story to helped me get a package that is only $10 more than i was paying (rather than what amounts to $50 more). in 3 months i have to cancel a movie package and pay an extra $10 for the one we keep, but $150 is better than the $170 the package the sale person tried to put me one would cost and even better than the $180 i was going to pay once all promos expired.
i mean, really, the c.s. rep couldn't figure this one out? it took having some poor tech guy come out, realize the order made no sense and discover we didn't qualify for the unwanted upgrade anyway, and HIM calling in to get someone to sort the mess out? wtf?
the second oh really also involves at&t, this time for wireless. my bill was supposed to go down, according to the woman i worked it out with, to about $90 before taxes. according to my bill, it went UP by the $35 i was supposed to be saving. i had to call in on that to find out wtf was going on and get it fixed. it'll now be pretty close to what i was originally paying, but that i can deal with. i'd rather it be less, especially since we're going to have to eventually add another line for the cupcake biz, but i'll take the same to more. and really, until this past week, i've had very few complaints about at&t (and had a ton with dish and comcast), but the double whammy on the bills after specifically being told i'd be paying less? yea, that made me pretty unhappy.
then there's the rent. first, the office manager that was here when we moved in was transferred to their main office or something last summer. she was unhappy and the residents here have been unhappy, and have become even unhappier with the stickler for detail new guy. up to now, he hasn't really bothered me. i've heard stories but not really had to deal with him. until last week. we got our notice indicating what our new rent would be for a new lease, and $20 more a month? not bad. but he wants proof of renter's insurance. which we don't have because we can't afford it. and now i have to shell out $87 for a down payment plus $40/month for that (thus one reason why i was trying to bring our bills down). and nothing i own other than my computer and a few other things that couldn't be replaced anyway is even worth it. with the deductible thrown in and all, we wouldn't get much of anything to replace what's lost. as for the things i can't replace, it's not like i can afford to get an official appraisal to get them fully covered, or they're personal items that have no financial value anyway. so this insurance is really more money going out that i can't afford for something that won't do me much good anyway. and i bet if i don't come in with proof that i have this wasted expense, i'll be out of a place to live. not like i really want to stay here anyway, but also not like i have any choice either.
then the water bill came in with a spike of $60. really? *head desk* someone had come and checked our toilets and sinks and etc last month, but i guess they didn't do their job right (seems to be a theme here)? took the bill in and it turns out we average $130 (which i call bullshit on: last month's was $116), but he's having us pay $140 (REALLY? $10 MORE than our average?) and having someone else come in and check us all over again at some point.
and today i get a call from the cardiologists office (i really wish this guy and his office staff were general practice because they've rocked from day 1) to tell me that, yea, humana approved my stress test, but hey, i have to pay $235 UP FRONT. really? can they bill it? no. REALLY? um, no. i just barely managed to set aside $35 for the office co-pay i don't have and am unlikely to get $235 any time soon. i probably won't be able to save $200 for dragon con. the whole stress test thing was kind of a puzzle anyway: i have one side that beats just a bit slower than the other but no other symptoms. according to the cardiologist, the problem is actually pretty common and usually doesn't mean anything. without other symptoms (fatigue, squeezing in the chest, sore back/arm/jaw, nausea/sore tummy, etc), i don't see the point in trying to pay for this test. so, that's three times canceled with no reschedule after this lovely piece of news got dropped on me last minute. i already owe a good $325 for the last test and appointment. at least in this case i avoided having to pay more, but...really?
and in saturday's mail? a letter indicating that the deferment on my ed loans is about over. in the mail today? the first bill for $460. REALLY? yea, gotta get on that and get back on the deferment payment plan we were on. (it wasn't a deferment, really, but it did put me at paying $0 per month).
at least something good has started to come together this week. saxy has been working the restaurants, but he's pretty sure he's not as interested in this area of the culinary field as he thought. he might do something like a pub or a food cart, but full restaurant has been going out of the picture for some time now. he still loves the idea of working with caribbean flavors with whatever he decides to do, though. but catering, even with big bad best in the area bold, tends to be seasonal, which means working catering is tough since it means you can't make ends meet in the off season. but bold does run things in the off season, it just doesn't usually need chefs for those things. when saxy took the job at alma, he'd heard of an opening in prep, but it came after he accepted the alma job, so bailing seemed a bad idea. apparently last night, one of the chefs/managers came into el taco and told him she had a non-seasonal position she wanted him to take. they pay more and he'd be happier there. he was still leery of leaving alma so soon, but as much as he's not UNhappy there, he's not really happy there either. he talked to them today, and apparently him leaving actually helps them with an hours juggle they were having trouble with. and they said he can start with bold whenever he needs to rather than give the traditional two week notice. coarse, now that that's all settled, he's playing musical phones with the people he needs to get in touch with to make the transition. really? the better news: hours are supposed to be equivalent at a bit higher pay.
i'm just going to leave the weather alone and end on that nice point. but, really, this week can stop. i don't need anymore shocks to the pocketbook. honestly what i really need to do is pay off the damn car, but that's not happening even with the slight bump in pay. hell, still won't be able to save for con with the slight bump in pay.
let's go back to focusing on the one good thing. really.
word of the moment: edenic
any place of complete bliss and delight and peace; a place of pristine or abundant natural beauty
