5 to the 8 MEME, PF-style

I was tagged by Debt Fighter, who centered her answers around PF, and I’ll try to do the same:

What was I doing 5 years ago?

Finishing my junior year of college, I was living in the middle of nowhere, so my spending was relegated to Wal-Mart and the campus coffee shop. Good thing, since I wasn’t working and was graciously supported by my great parents. I didn’t have any debt, and I was living on little, but finances were the farthest thing from my mind. Silently, without my notice, my little stock portfolio was steadily increasingly.

Five things on my to-do list today ( or things I did today):
1. Praised God for beautiful weather, good nights of sleep, springtime and friends (all free, incidentally)
2. Talked myself out of coming home early, even though I felt sick all day: I’m not made of vacation days, after all
3. Heard about a friend who’s being transferred against her wishes, after being with her company for 10+ years
4. Checked my online back accounts and realized I overdrew on my extra account. *blushes* $30 down the drain.
5. Flipped through the latest Kiplinger’s

Five snacks I love, regardless of cost or nutritional value :
1. Dunkin Donuts decaf coffee (If I were made of money, I’d get it every day)
2. Buona Beef’s chicken pomodoro sandwich
3. Any and all bakery from any and all bakeries
4. Chocolate
5. Cheese and crackers

Five things I would do if I were a billionaire, assuming I had to spend it on me:
1. Own homes on both coasts and commute regularly.
2. Try a new restaurant every night.
3. Travel. Extensively.
4. Start my own business, knowing I wasn’t risking my future eating/sleeping probability.
5. Shop.

Five bad money habits I have:
1. Ordering lunch out with coworkers.
2. Fretting about my stock portfolio.
3. Wanting a condo outside my means.
4. Opting to eat out just because I feel like.
5. Overthinking spending.

Five (three) places I have lived:
1. Florida
2. Illinois
3. Wisconsin
4.
5.

Five jobs I’ve had:
1. Editor/Manager
2. Freelance reporter
3. Waitress
4. Secretary
5. Intern

Five PFers I am tagging:
1.The Writer’s Coin
2. Quarter-Life Finances
3. Kim’s Kitchen Sink
4. On the Home Front
5. Full-Grown Single

OK, Boss, Just Pay What You Feel

What would Friday’s paycheck look like if your boss got to pay you what he thought you earned this week? What if she were able to add/deduct at will, with no constraints upon a predetermined value for your time? Does it make you a little nervous, or are you excited about the possibilities?

That’s the strategy Radiohead made famous with their pay-what-you-want CD offerings. And while it hasn’t extended to workplaces yet, it is growing.

Now, restaurants in places like Seattle, Salt Lake City and Australia are doing the same thing: come on in, eat on us and leave what you feel is fair. It’ll all work out.

According to this recent article from Budget Travel, pay-what-you-like restaurants are changing the expectations of typical eat-out experiences. Rather than telling you what to pay, you tell them.

Imagine! That distgusting cup of coffee you got at the corner bakery? $.10. But that burger from In-N-Out that you raved about? Well, does $6 sound fair?

What I like about this is the innovative, new feel. I like shaking things up and trying different methods. But what I don’t like is the relativity of it all. I do very much want to get paid what I think I’m worth, not what you do. And if I owned a restaurant, I’d want to be paid what I felt the food was worth, not what you’d name the price at.

What do you think?

Money Story: Graduation Announcements

We were college seniors, finishing our bachelor’s degrees quite a ways from home, I from Illinois and she from down South.

As we left the mail room, in our hands were college notices, inviting us to order announcements with the school logo embellished on top.

I wasn’t sending them out, seeing that the people I’d contact had just received my high school announcements four years ago and had seen little of me since. I told my friend.

Her response? Graduation announcements are an investment! People will send you money! You have to send them!

This bothers me for a few reasons, not that I’m blaming my friend at all. I think pretty much almost everyone sees it this way, even if they don’t vocalize it.  Send graduation announcements = money. Send out invitations to people who won’t come to my wedding = presents. Have a shower = presents.

And I guess that’s not wrong, really. But I hate the mentality that anyone deserves or expects a gift. Then it’s not a gift, you know?

The New Look!

Well, here she is, up and running.

I have to say, deciding to buy a domain and host it has been a great decision so far. I bought the domain late last night, and it’s already working great! If I’d known it would be this easy, I’d have done it long ago!

How did I afford it?

If you’ve been reading this site long, you know I try to stick close to my budget. What I’ve never blogged about before, though, is my extra stash in my Paypal/other bank account. It’s only a few hundred bucks, but it comes in handy when I want something on eBay or etsy.

Thanks to some eBay sales, a sponsor at the blog and other things, I was able to pay for my hosting/domain without tapping my regular budget.

If you’re a regular reader, please update my link in your sidebar! (Please, pretty please?)

Here’s the RSS feed, too: http://feeds.feedburner.com/thiswriterswallet/feed.

The Way to Wealth: Rudeness?

I know someone in her 40s, once a beauty model and now a career woman. She prides herself on her skill set, her life’s accomplishments, her satisfaction in a job well-done. She makes well over six figures.

She’s also the most obnoxious, meanest, most selfish person I know. I get the pleasure of dealing with her regularly.

While some, more humble businesspeople would give credit to underlings, thank service workers, smile at people who have nothing to offer in return, this woman turns on charm only when it benefits her. I, if you haven’t guessed, don’t benefit her.

Sometimes I look at her and look at me and compare. $100,00+, flex hours, pride in accomplishments, people who fawn all over you. OR Hourly pay, set 9-5, constant placating, peacemaking and stroking.

I don’t believe rudeness is the way to success (or joy). But sometimes I wonder why it seems the meanest people climb the highest on the ladder?

Blogger vs. Wordpress

OK, blogging buddies, I need your advice: should I stick with Wordpress, or do I switch to Blogger?

Originally, I chose WP because of its more varied templates and popularity. I’d used blogspot for other, personal things, and WP seemed new and different.

What I hate about WP: using the free version means I can’t alter my template very much (i.e., I can’t display banners/advertisements, I can’t rework the HTML of my pages, etc.).

Options to do something about this: I could (1) Buy a domain and use Wordpress at my own site, in which I could have more control (Negatives: I don’t know how the heck this works or what I’d have to do, and it costs money) or (2) Switch to a blogging software that allows me more control (i.e., Blogger).

Do you have an opinion? Have you used both softwares? Which would you recommend?

And, if you are a blogger who switched urls at some point in your history, did you lose a lot of readers?

Money Story: Lunching

Recently, my mom was invited out to lunch by Z, who wanted to pick her brain a little, regarding an organization Mom is involved in. They went to a average restaurant (Z picked), and Z ordered a meal that cost $12.99. Mom ordered something similar, maybe a little lower in cost.

The bill came, and Z pulled out her wallet.

“Well, I have $10,” she said.

No, that’s not a typo: She spent $13 and was willing to contribute $10. So my mom paid the difference, happily.

Anyone been in a similar situation?

Room in Progress

Room in Progress

Originally uploaded by GG Chicago Gal

I’m still on that home decorating kick of a few weeks back, and here’s the latest update.

The duvet, IKEA: $50
The matching lamps, Linens N’ Things: $25
The rug, Urban Outfitters: $50
The round mirror–far wall–, Meijer: $60?

You’ll notice random papers taped up to the wall above my bed. I’m sort of playing around with a framing arrangement, still to be determined.

Slowly, but surely (and fairly frugally, due to the spacing out of buying), things are coming together.

Raise Your Hand if You’ve Tried Online Dating!

You know, no matter how many times I see those smiling couples on eHarmony or match.com commercials, I still hang my head in embarrassment and shame when I admit I’ve tried them. Yes, I’m serious, both about trying online dating and about being humiliated. In fact, in the interest of full disclosure: I am mentally deleting and rewriting this post, wondering if I’m even comfortable admitting this to the PF-blogging public.

My second cousin met his wife online, after 40+ years of being a bachelor. Unfortunately, they’re now divorced, but I could name a handful of other people who I know successfully found a match on the Internet. Different social spheres, different values and interests; one thing in common: looking for love.

I just don’t know.

A friend of mine is a new tester of the online systems. She’s been on two dates so far and is choosing to be very selective. “I narrowed all my criteria as far as I could,” she told me. The second guy, whom she met last week, seems promising. “I signed up for six months, even though I might be someone sooner. I figure, if I meet someone, it would have been a small price to pay.”

What’s your opinion?

The Best Chicago Bakeries

I can’t say this post is especially frugal, but it is food, and it is some of the most delicious food: in Chicagoland: the bakeries.

Whether you’re from the city or visiting, you need to make time for some of the amazing bakeries around here. Seriously. Can you think of anything more fun than a nicely packaged box of cupcakes or cookies? I can’t. And in Chicagoland, here are my top four favorites:

1. Swirlz, 705 W Belden Ave, Lincoln Park, Chicago: The best frosting anywhere and gorgeous presentation.

2. Sweet Mandy B’s, 1208 W Webster Ave, Lincoln Park, Chicago: Literally, get anything. I dare you to be disappointed.

3. Bleeding Heart, 1955 W Belmont Ave, Roscoe Village, Chicago: Best Earl Grey cookies I’ve ever had. Extra bonus: all organic!

4. Bennison’s, 1000 Davis St, Evanston: They get points for the supercool vintage storefront and the window view into the actual bakery. I love, love the petit fours, and the prices are very reasonable.