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 »

Day 14

In lieu of "weight loss Wednesday" since I'm much too busy on Wednesdays even to get online, let me write today that I'm on day 14 of a new diet, which is 13 more days than nearly all of my attempts last. This is, in fact, the second-longest I've ever lasted on a diet, and in a few weeks it will be the longest. This should indicate how lousy my self-discipline is and why I've ballooned to this size, around 450 pounds. Go »

Good Company and Busy Nights

Highlights from my last two weeks, in no particular order: - Miah Poisson, his fiancée Ines, and her friend Denise have always wanted to see The X Files, and it just so happens I have the complete series on DVD. We've started getting together every Monday night to watch a couple of episodes and eat sandwiches. I'm taking the opportunity to do something I wanted to do the first time I watched the series, which is keep a kill-count. Go »

The Angry Number

Steve Dunn is bemused when people speak out against corporate America, as if it's a bad thing that they give millions of people jobs and create the products & services that enrich our lives. I'm with him, but sometimes I do get tired of being treated like a number. I've been a good tenant at this apartment complex for three years – always paid rent on time, no loud parties or messy pets or maintenance problems. Go »

Flak Album

Lately I've been enjoying Aimee Mann's I'm with Stupid. Oh, how I wish she'd saved that title for a duets album. Go »

Illinois 2014

Kelly and I are home after a week on the road visiting family and friends in Illinois. I wish that we had more time to see more people, but I'm also glad that we got out of town before the sub-freezing temperatures returned. It was important to us to spend time with Kelly's father and brother since this was the first Christmas after her mother passed away, and most of the trip was spent just being a family. Go »

Members of an Elite Squad

When I started watching Law & Order: Special Victims Unit a year ago (!!), I predicted that I would never write about its good episodes because it was a mediocre series. Along the way, it turned out to have plenty of mediocre hours and some lousy ones, but it had a lot more good or even great hours than I expected. Go »