The following post (after the break) was written back in May, and it outlines the differing tastes in tv that my wife and I have. However, the point of this post is now moot.
Today, I called charter and cancelled our service. I kept our internet, we will still have Netflix, plus any streaming options we can find to watch on the computer, but tv watching as we have known it is no longer an option. Since we have our own computers/mobile devices/etc to watch tv on, this entire post is not as relevant to us anymore.
Why did I cut the cord? The bill increased about 20% from last month to this month. $65 a month for internet and $75 for tv. I remember when I was young, watching tv from the floor at my grandparents' house - about once an hour there would be an add for cable TV - Only a dollar a day. This little kid would run outside, throw a silver dollar up into the air, run inside and sit down to watch TV. Whatever happened to those days?
The next post will be an update on our debt snowball, as well as an update on our goal for our first anniversary - paying off our car. The $100 a month we started saving today is going to help make that goal substantially more attainable.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Thursday, May 31, 2012
The Money Taboo
One of the hardest part about doing Dave Ramsey is containing the pure joy and excitement we feel every time we pay off a debt or make some other milestone. The people who care are genuinely excited for us, but those people are few and far between. More often than not, the response is comprised of raised eyebrows and questioning glares.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Farewell Fiero
Thursday, May 24, 2012
The Case of the Missing Bag (or, the Creeper who was 3 hours late for an appointment no sane person would ever request)
Even though Aleece returned safely and on time from Cyprus, her bag did not make it. Having never had lost bags before, neither of us knew what to expect. Naturally, we assumed in a day or two, her bag would arrive.
Wrong.
Sunday night, we were both sound asleep at 11PM. Her phone rings. In my groggy state, I sit up and list to her sleep filled voice, "Uh huh. Ok. Yes. Yes. Ok" In my mind I start thinking that someone has either been in an accident or worse, who else would be calling in the middle of the night?
United Airlines, that's who.
United Airlines just called to say they would be at our house in two hours. How thoughtful. Apparently, if you are a big company you don't have to work on Monday morning. So here we are, laying in bed, half asleep but unable to fall asleep. The most important question I had was who on earth do they get to drive luggage from the airport to our home at 11 PM (1AM arrival time)? What kind of person is going to take that job? Maybe I am being a little judgmental, but the mental image I have of this person is not all that positive.
At any rate, we both drifted in and out of sleep. 1 o'clock comes and goes. I was obviously worried about being asleep while my wife goes upstairs to deal with this stranger whose best career option was late-night lost baggage deliverer. Aleece spent some time upstairs with one of the dogs but eventually came back down to bed. At four am the phone finally rang, the driver from the airline had just dropped the bag off on the front porch and left our driveway. Three. Hours. Late. Yes, it was raining pretty hard at our house during the night, but hard rain does not turn a two hour drive in to a five hour drive. I'm bothered by tardiness in general, so three hours is a big deal, especially in the middle of the night. Maybe I'm not being judgemental, I'm just being right. Maybe this guy was so chronically late for all of his other jobs, late night delivery was the only option left. How does late night delivery save the airline money? Don't employers typically end up paying more for nightshift because nightshift sucks? Even if that isn't the case, what traveller wants to be woken up in the middle of the night after any kind of trip? Shouldn't there be a box you can check when you search for your ticket?
Aisle Seat [ ]
Window Seat [x]
$10 snack [ ]
In-flight wifi [x]
Airline willing to follow you home in the middle of the night to deliver a bag they lost [ ]
Who the hell would check that box?
It is almost like they are punishing you twice for their mistake! Not only do you not get your bag when you land, but you do get to have it while you are in the middle of sleeping! The sad part is there is some executive somewhere that thinks this is a great idea. Granted, the guy probably had a bag once or twice and needed his stuff back. Ok, I get it. I realize CEO types aren't normal people and don't need to sleep like the rest of us, but come on! Use some common sense and refrain from sending a creeper to my house at 4 am. At the very least they could wait until the sun was up, at least that way the creeper wouldn't have to work nights.
Anyway, after 5 hours of fitful sleep, we could finally get some rest. Between Aleece's jet-lag and my anticipated long week (concerts were on Monday and Tuesday, both ended up being 14+ hour days) we were both ready to sleep. In two hours, my alarm clock went off and I got up to start my day.
How is it ok for this to happen? I mean, thanks for delivering the bag and all, but my sleep is way more important than some clothes and souvenirs. The next time they lose a bag, I think I will just volunteer to pick it up later in the week myself.
Wrong.
Sunday night, we were both sound asleep at 11PM. Her phone rings. In my groggy state, I sit up and list to her sleep filled voice, "Uh huh. Ok. Yes. Yes. Ok" In my mind I start thinking that someone has either been in an accident or worse, who else would be calling in the middle of the night?
United Airlines, that's who.
United Airlines just called to say they would be at our house in two hours. How thoughtful. Apparently, if you are a big company you don't have to work on Monday morning. So here we are, laying in bed, half asleep but unable to fall asleep. The most important question I had was who on earth do they get to drive luggage from the airport to our home at 11 PM (1AM arrival time)? What kind of person is going to take that job? Maybe I am being a little judgmental, but the mental image I have of this person is not all that positive.
At any rate, we both drifted in and out of sleep. 1 o'clock comes and goes. I was obviously worried about being asleep while my wife goes upstairs to deal with this stranger whose best career option was late-night lost baggage deliverer. Aleece spent some time upstairs with one of the dogs but eventually came back down to bed. At four am the phone finally rang, the driver from the airline had just dropped the bag off on the front porch and left our driveway. Three. Hours. Late. Yes, it was raining pretty hard at our house during the night, but hard rain does not turn a two hour drive in to a five hour drive. I'm bothered by tardiness in general, so three hours is a big deal, especially in the middle of the night. Maybe I'm not being judgemental, I'm just being right. Maybe this guy was so chronically late for all of his other jobs, late night delivery was the only option left. How does late night delivery save the airline money? Don't employers typically end up paying more for nightshift because nightshift sucks? Even if that isn't the case, what traveller wants to be woken up in the middle of the night after any kind of trip? Shouldn't there be a box you can check when you search for your ticket?
Aisle Seat [ ]
Window Seat [x]
$10 snack [ ]
In-flight wifi [x]
Airline willing to follow you home in the middle of the night to deliver a bag they lost [ ]
Who the hell would check that box?
It is almost like they are punishing you twice for their mistake! Not only do you not get your bag when you land, but you do get to have it while you are in the middle of sleeping! The sad part is there is some executive somewhere that thinks this is a great idea. Granted, the guy probably had a bag once or twice and needed his stuff back. Ok, I get it. I realize CEO types aren't normal people and don't need to sleep like the rest of us, but come on! Use some common sense and refrain from sending a creeper to my house at 4 am. At the very least they could wait until the sun was up, at least that way the creeper wouldn't have to work nights.
Anyway, after 5 hours of fitful sleep, we could finally get some rest. Between Aleece's jet-lag and my anticipated long week (concerts were on Monday and Tuesday, both ended up being 14+ hour days) we were both ready to sleep. In two hours, my alarm clock went off and I got up to start my day.
How is it ok for this to happen? I mean, thanks for delivering the bag and all, but my sleep is way more important than some clothes and souvenirs. The next time they lose a bag, I think I will just volunteer to pick it up later in the week myself.
A Return from Cyprus and to the Blog
First, I have to come clean. I started writing Being Her Husband as a result of Aleece doing a study abroad in Cyprus for two weeks. In spite of the technological world we live in, a seven hour time difference is a substantial obstacle to communication. So, I missed my wife, plain and simple. Starting this blog and updating it so regularly was a way for me to interact with my wife even though she was half a world away.
Second, since she has been home, I have not updated this blog once. Obviously I didn't want to spend time writing about my wife when I could actually spend time with my wife. Not only that, but I also had two concerts at work this week. Both concerts were a great success, but they consume lots of time and energy. Now that concert week is over and Aleece and I are getting back into a somewhat regular routine, I will get back to updating with new posts again.
Second, since she has been home, I have not updated this blog once. Obviously I didn't want to spend time writing about my wife when I could actually spend time with my wife. Not only that, but I also had two concerts at work this week. Both concerts were a great success, but they consume lots of time and energy. Now that concert week is over and Aleece and I are getting back into a somewhat regular routine, I will get back to updating with new posts again.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Debt Snowball Update
My wife and I started Dave Ramsey's debt snowball in February. We had returned from the honeymoon in Aruba, and we had unwrapped all our our wedding gifts. One of our gifts was Dave's book, The Total Money Makeover. Ironically, we received the book from one of the vendors we used for the wedding. The people we rented chair covers from gave us the book. I mean, chair covers. How much more frivolous can you be?
Anyway, Aleece read the book, and I started listening to Dave everyday on my drive home from work. We were ready to start our debt snowball on February First and hit the ground running. Our debt includes (well, included) some left over wedding expenses, credit cards, furniture purchases, student loans, car payment, and our mortgage. As of May 1st, we have paid off over 10% of our non-mortgage debt! (If you count the mortgage we are at roughly 5%). That might seem like a small amount, but it is huge! By now we probably would have booked a vacation, bought more furniture or made plans to buy another car - all using debt. Instead of piling up even more debt, we have taken it down!
Communicating about money has helped add to a solid foundation for our marriage - we are both furiously committed to getting out of debt in order to have the freedom to go on a vacation, or buy a car, or whatever without worrying about the risk. Yes, 0% financing is great - unless you can't pay the bill and the 0% becomes 36%. When we are debt free, if one of us were to lose a job, or decide to stay home to raise a family, it would cause zero stress on our lives or on our marriage. This is just one reason why we both want to live debt free.
Every month I plan on posting with an update on our debt snowball progress until we are DONE!
Anyway, Aleece read the book, and I started listening to Dave everyday on my drive home from work. We were ready to start our debt snowball on February First and hit the ground running. Our debt includes (well, included) some left over wedding expenses, credit cards, furniture purchases, student loans, car payment, and our mortgage. As of May 1st, we have paid off over 10% of our non-mortgage debt! (If you count the mortgage we are at roughly 5%). That might seem like a small amount, but it is huge! By now we probably would have booked a vacation, bought more furniture or made plans to buy another car - all using debt. Instead of piling up even more debt, we have taken it down!
Communicating about money has helped add to a solid foundation for our marriage - we are both furiously committed to getting out of debt in order to have the freedom to go on a vacation, or buy a car, or whatever without worrying about the risk. Yes, 0% financing is great - unless you can't pay the bill and the 0% becomes 36%. When we are debt free, if one of us were to lose a job, or decide to stay home to raise a family, it would cause zero stress on our lives or on our marriage. This is just one reason why we both want to live debt free.
Every month I plan on posting with an update on our debt snowball progress until we are DONE!
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
First post about the "kids"
As lovable as both dogs look, they can be pretty devious. Both dogs are at times the most adorable animal you could ask for, but each also has moments where they are clearly just playing with my mind.
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