Saving up is hard to do. I'm spending every dollar I have after the holidays to move Kelly here next week, then we have to move again in two months to a larger place. And I have more than a grand to pay in taxes. And I just got hospital & doctor bills totaling nearly three grand, with another five grand looming in possible medical bills. I don't even have a mortgage or kids yet and already I feel buried under life's expenses. I feel bad complaining when friends have worse debts and worse problems right now, but it still feels like I can't come up for air.


Ten Replies to Bill$

Amy Austin | January 25, 2008
In my best Bill Clinton tone, Scott... I feel your pain. ;-)

I know you want to move Kelly there as soon as possible -- I'm guessing the wheels are probably already irreversibly in motion -- but is there any reason why you couldn't/didn't plan your two moves simultaneously???

It's so scary how easy it is to be devastated by a hospital trip. I have been *very* lucky in that, as a military dependent, my emergency visit when I wrecked E's car didn't cost us a few grand. And ten years before that, when another crash/head injury put me in the ER, I was "lucky" enough to be unemployed! That way, I was covered as an "indigent" -- if I'd had even a minimum wage job, I'd have had another few thousand to pay!!!

This being the major issue that it is, part of me thinks that Michael Moore's latest will get the award... but I chose to go along with you on that one. I *might* feel differently if I'd actually seen it -- I don't know -- but I do think it's probably worth seeing, at least.

Oscars aside, I hope all this other crap will sort itself out in a way that lets you see the light at the end of the tunnel! Please let me know where/how you'd like to receive that donation I mentioned -- I was serious! -- by PayPal maybe? And I might very well be interested in setting up a site on your server, too -- "personally" at first, and then perhaps a bit down the road as a paying "business" guest. (I have a *whole lot* to learn about building a site first... can I choose any domain name that isn't "taken"??? I really am interested -- let me know!!!)

Denise Sawicki | January 25, 2008
It definitely sucks that all the things people *have* to pay for are so expensive... makes it difficult to justify buying anything just because one *wants* to. Or maybe that's just my twisted take on things. I feel for you.

Lori Lancaster | January 25, 2008
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Anna Gregoline | January 27, 2008
Even without kids, life's bills add up. I know you feel, Scott. That money pressure is the worse feeling in the world (debt consolidation was the best thing to happen to us - except for a future house payment, I never want to be in debt again - EVER). I'm sorry you're feeling that pressure. Soon Kelly will probably be working to help pay bills though, right?

Lori Lancaster | January 27, 2008
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Anna Gregoline | January 28, 2008
? Lori, honestly, I don't know why you think I'm antagonising you simply by speaking. I wasn't trying to fight with you at all. You're reading my words as snarky when none is intended, and I wish you would stop viewing me as your enemy. I thought we put this all behind us? I don't have any grudge against you.

Lori Lancaster | January 28, 2008
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Aaron Shurtleff | January 29, 2008
I totally second the donation idea! I would love to give back to the site in a more substantial way than annoying people with my bad Rock Block playing, and promising to make a few GOOs which never materialize (they're coming!).

But, seriously, (and not that I'm not serious about donating) I know what you mean (sort of...different bills, same results), and it gets more managable with time. It doesn't seem like that now, but you'll see.

Kelly Lee | January 29, 2008
Welcome to my life Scott...:P Though I'm in debt cause of college which did nothing for me, and no high paying jobs in Springfield. That last paycheck I'll get when Imovethough should help our problems I hope..it has two weeks plus my vacation balence.

Jackie Mason | February 2, 2008
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Logical Operator

The creator of Funeratic, Scott Hardie, blogs about running this site, losing weight, and other passions including his wife Kelly, his friends, movies, gaming, and Florida. Read more »

That's All I Have to Say About That

Remember those somber anti-piracy messages before theatrical movies a couple of years ago? Like the near-weepy set painter whose wife and kids were going to live in the poorhouse if you illegally downloaded The Big Chill? They must have had an effect on me, because instead of sadness or sympathy, they were all I could think about when I read that the make-up artist for Forrest Gump killed herself and her husband. Go »

More Hypocrisy

Well, now that I've written at length on TC about how I consider online videos an unpleasant medium, this is the perfect time to share some! This year's Lazy Sunday might be this SNL bit with Justin Timberlake and Andy Samburg. NSFW. Go »

Downtown A-Town

I can't write about why I spent the week in Atlanta because it's too confidential and work-related, but I can say that I had a good time around the margins of that event. The first day was the only loss. I got so little sleep the night before (seemingly a part of every trip I take) that I spent it groggy and exhausted. Go »

Roger Ebert Should Lay Off the Facial Reconstructive Surgery

When Roger Ebert took ill last fall, I thought it would pass in a week like his previous cancer scares, and he'd barely mention it. Then he didn't come back to work for months, and I thought he'd announce his retirement, because it's really hard to go back to doing something full-time when you've rested too long, even if you love it like he does. Then he announced that he'd be present at his annual film festival this month, and I thought the recovery was done and he was about to return. Go »

Comedian

The bad news: I have a miserable cold (thanks Charlotte) and I slept for an hour last night. The good news: I had to speak in front of a hundred people today. Why is that good? Go »

Blood Lines

A few weeks ago, I dropped a glass bottle of salad dressing on the kitchen floor, making the house smell like vinaigrette for a day. Today, I stepped on the last errant bit of glass hiding in a crack of tile by the corner. Better my foot than the cat's paw, I guess; I don't lick between my toes. Go »