I’m sure it’s all over the news everywhere, California has 800+ fires that were started by lighting.  I live in Northern California and the is air thick with smoke, we haven’t been able to see the sun since Saturday.  Last night when it cooled off we opened our front door to let the cool night air in and the air that blew in the house set off the smoke detector!  We ended up having to shut the door.

All this smoky air is doing a number on my already dried out nose.  My nose got so dried out, cracked and bleeding that on Tuesday out of desperation, I went to the feed store and bought bag balm - the stuff they put on the teets of dairy cows and shoved some of that up my nose.  It worked like a charm!  (I’m not a doctor so if you use bag balm use it at your own risk.)

I’ve been super busy on Monday we went and dropped off two of my girls at 4-H camp.  I’ve been down to just two kids this week, my house is extremely quiet and I’m not liking it one bit.  I really miss the girls.  Tomorrow my husband and I are picking them up and I can’t wait to hear all about camp.

My husband has been working from home all this week.  His cell phone is basically his job.  While I LOVE having him home 24/7 I’m also missing the time I used to have alone.  I guess I want it all - him home and my time alone.  Maybe this is what happens after 13 years of marriage?

I got another website/store up and running.  I’m hoping to build another in the next week or so and then submit them both to directories and search engines at the same time.  Including this blog I have 4 sites up and running and about 20 more I’d like to get going, it’s just a matter of finding the time.  So far my online earnings total about $70 and all if it was from completing surveys.

April 7th, marks the 75th anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition.

Beer drinkers unite! Let’s all have a cold one and remember just how lucky we all are.

Photo by Tracy O

I’m excited to get this. According the the Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator our family should be getting $2,400. According to this site the payment is not considered taxable income on 2008 returns.

We’re due for a direct deposit on May 16th. That’ll be a happy day! I’m going to take half of the money and pay my property taxes and the other half will go straight to my state (we owe taxes from 2006). I won’t be having any fun with the money but at least I’ll be doing the responsible thing by applying the money to my debt.

Here’s the payment schedule:

Update: I’ve ran this calculator several times and got different answers. It turns out we don’t even qualify for this. Bummer…

From The Consumerist

The Mom With $135,000 In Credit Card Debt Who Spends $400 A Month On Starbucks

“I love new clothes. However, I like getting rid of the clothes just as quickly to go buy new ones.”This lady who appeared on Oprah lives the life of a big house in the burbs, new cars, six beautiful kids, and spending way beyond her husband’s $5,000/month salary. Felice drops $400 a month on Starbucks, $240 on tans and manicures, and her children have no health insurance.

“I have six kids and I sell their toys sometimes just because I don’t like them.”

When money runs dry, as it often does, she takes out cash advances. She handles the family finances and hides receipts from her husband underneath a baby blanket in a drawer.

When I do shop, I do kind of get a rush. It makes me feel good… but afterwards, though, I get depressed. I’ll buy something even if I really don’t like it because I have to come out with something.

On page 5 you learn they’re on the brink of being totally financially destroyed with $135,000 in credit card debt, $1,700 a month for three cars, two mortgages at $685,000, and are two weeks behind on their mortgage payment. Before you make Felice out to be the totally baddie, the husband is just as culpable for not asking more questions and making sure the numbers add up. He even says that he would get credit card bills and not know where $10,000 of it came from.Suze Orman’s solution for them? Sell the houses and cars, move to Seattle, and for Mom to get her ass a job. Perhaps at Starbucks, since she likes it so much and they offer health insurance to part-time workers.

Keeping Up with the Joneses [Oprah]

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I can’t believe this woman. First of all I don’t understand how she could juggle all that debt on $5,000 a month take home pay from her husband’s job. Her debt makes mine look tiny. Before I switched my balances around and lowered my interest rates I sometimes felt like I was just drowning in debt and I really hadn’t charged anything for years. Paying my credit cards, month after month, for stuff that I don’t even remember buying or better yet, have most likely thrown out makes me feel awful. I’ve never even been to a Starbucks and I don’t get any pleasure out of buying clothes, I tend to think about all the money I’m spending and it makes me feel anxious.

I wonder how she does it? I wonder if there is any hope for her? I’m sure if the people in my “real life” knew about the debt we’ve accumulated they’d look at me like I’m looking at this woman. I am really no one to judge her but I really can’t help myself, probably because on some levels I can identify with her. For the sake of her marriage, her children and herself I truly hope she can turn things around and get back on financial track.

This guy has some serious mental problems. Not only is he a sexual predator but he also believes he was molested by Big Foot.

This really isn’t news to anyone, consumers are taking on record debt.

This information is provided by Experian. The full article appears in USA Today.

It’s pretty obvious that my household is WAY above average, we’re two adults with more than 4X the average for my state. Next months payments should bring us down to 3.9X the average for my state, I guess that’s something to be happy about? It’ll be better than before.

How do you compare?