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Archive for March, 2006

Overwhelmed, but happy! :)

March 16th, 2006 at 04:38 pm

Oh my goodness! I am so in over my head right now! I passed my training for the at-home call center gig and start working my first shift tomorrow. I also got approved to start training for another line within the company to take calls for a well known known shopping channel. I have to complete that training within the next 10 days. THEN, I was just notified that I also got accepted at the other company I applied for (same type stuff - at home call center job). I start that training this weekend. Holy cow! When it rains, IT POURS!!!! I am definitely going to work for both companies. I'd like to keep my options open for now. Once I see how much I can make and can compare the pros/cons of each, I may drop one. We'll see. For now it is all about the hours. On days I can't get any with one, I may be able to get some with the other and vice versa.

Whew! Suffice it say, I am not going to be blogging much until I get the hang of things. I'm going to be a very busy girl until I can learn everything and get into a comfort zone. But, I am very excited and very happy. It's up to me how much I work and how much I make, but I am going to go for it! The great part about it is that if I get burnt out, I can take time off whenever I want. Oh the beauty of being an independent contractor!

On another note -- good news! The sharebuilder bonuses finally showed up! Yay! I transferred that $100 to my bank account. I'll post it to my challenge once I get it into ING. I do have a challenge update though. Added $31.72 from ebay profits. That makes my Current $20 Challenge Savings $298.18.

That's all for now. Gotta get some sleep for my "real" job, lol!.

Another Day!

March 14th, 2006 at 06:45 am

Ug! I feel ill. Hubby went and got dinner tonight (yes, we splurged a little, but had a coupon). I got chicken wings and asked for hot. He took that to mean the hottest they have and he came home with NUCLEAR! OMG - never again! My lips and mouth were on fire and I had to keep ice cubes in my mouth for about a half an hour after I ate, lol! Angry Smiley 005 Now my stomach is not happy....

Finally got to add some cash to my challenge. I got my Ebay and half.com profits transferred to ING - 89.63. That brings my Current Challenge Savings to $266.46. I'm still well behind my goal, BUT I am really hoping I can play catch up now that I'll have extra income.

The training for the new job is going very well. I studied today and will probably take the final exam tomorrow. The phone company is coming to put in my business line tomorrow too. I am getting very excited!

I do have one concern -- upsells, yuck! Next time you call to order something and the phone rep tries to sell you a bunch of extra crap, please be nice. We don't want to do it, but we don't have a choice if we want to keep our job! Ok, got that out. Some of the products have 5 or 6 upsells! And, we have to get two no's (a yes would be nice too!) from the customer before we can move on. Yikes! But, I am going to remember why I am doing this! Some of the other lines I get to train for later don't have upsells, so that will be nice!

Things have been slow with my challenge. I've been concentrating so much on the job that I haven't gotten much of a chance to read other blogs and surf the net looking for ideas and deals. I miss all that! I'll get back into the swing of it soon. I did have two Ebay auctions end for gift cards I got from trial offers. I made $32. I'll add that to my challenge when I get it transferred to my challenge account. I'm still waiting on a couple more GC's that I will post on Ebay as well.

That's all for now - have a great day everyone!

A Free Car (without the *)

March 13th, 2006 at 05:54 am

I am just in total shock. My parents are giving us their minivan. No strings attached, no ifs ands or buts, just giving it to us! I am torn between feeling extremely fortunate, extremely grateful, extremely spoiled, and most of all extremely GUILTY! We need a second vehicle and have for a while but we were basically holding out because we didn't want a car payment while we try to pay down debt. And now today, they say they're giving us the van! This is a nice van -- only 45,000 miles! How do you even accept a gift like that? (not that they're giving us a choice...) Wow! I am truly humbled and truly overwhelmed. I feel blessed beyond belief. I know I have said this here before, but if I can even do HALF of the stuff for my kids that my parents have done for us it'll be incredible. Wow. I don't even know what else to say!

Had a good weekend. Got a lot of training done for the new job. I am almost ready to take the last test. Then I have to do a one on one session with a trainer to make sure I have everything down pat. Then, I can schedule hours and start making money! Yea!

It's FRIDAY!!!!

March 10th, 2006 at 06:43 am

Happy Friday everyone! This week has flown so far!

Not much to report in regards to my challenge. I do need to transfer some Ebay money to my ING account - then I will update my challenge amount. I haven't had a chance to get it to it yet! No sign of my sharebuilder bonuses. Frown I've read that it takes a month but it's been a little longer. I will try to be patient!

I tried to log into the training site today to start training for my new job and I got hung up on some technical issues. I had to run a program on my computer to make sure it has the proper requirements. But, it took me forever to get it to work because my firewall and antivirus kept interfering. I couldn't proceed with the training until I did this, so I got behind. Got it straightened out but it was already late and I just had to get to bed (I work nights for my regular full time job). So, I will work on the training in the morning. I can do it at my own pace, but I do have to complete it and take the test by Monday. I have no idea how long or involved it is....but I guess I know what I'll be doing this weekend!

I'm really happy about this job and the money that it will being in, but, I hate to spend money to make money (I know you have to....but I just feeling I'm going backwards instead of forwards)! I have to pay for the installation of a 2nd phone line, and a headset.

In all, I am excited about this venture. It's not a lot of money up front (not much more than min wage) but I know it's enough to bring in my $400 a month to meet my challenge goal so I can get my parents paid off. Once I get trained on more lines for different things, I'll be able to get more hours if I want them. The worst part about this is that you get paid for the amount of time you're actually on calls, not the number of hours you work. So a lot of it depends on how busy it is at the time. Some of the lines I'll get to work later do have a guaranteed $8 an hour, so that will be a little better. But, I keep looking at it this way -- I do not have to depend on this money to live -- it is all extra to pay off debt. And, that is a good thing!!!!

Anyway, this whole entry is one big huge ramble, so I'd better get going. Depending on how involved my training is, I may not blog much for a couple days.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Holy Cow - I got a second job!

March 9th, 2006 at 02:01 am

Wow! I am so excited! Did the phone interview this morning for the at home call center job and heard back later that I got it! I start online training in the morning!

I am psyched! Not only can I do it from the comfort of my own home, but I can work as little or as much as I please! The first line I'm training on is taking calls from people ordering things from infomercials, lol! That should be interesting... I have to call to get a second phone line put in. You gotta spend money to make money I guess, but at least I can deduct it on my taxes next year. I'll have to take it from my savings challenge money which means I probably definitely won't make my $800 goal this month. But, hopefully I'll be able to make up for it quickly with this job. Smile

If it works out, I hope to do the at home thing full time when we have kids. I'm doing a happy dance!



Thanks to everyone here, because I don't think I would have been motivated enough to do this without this challenge!

Coming Clean....

March 8th, 2006 at 01:11 am

Time to post about a cool website I found called inboxdollars.com. I admit, I've been holding out on all of you! (sorry...) I have been signing up for all my trial offers through it for a cash bonus. I was holding out because I can earn money for referring people, but who knows when we'll be allowed to do that here. So, out of the goodness of my heart, I am sharing my little secret. I have signed up for offers and received my gift cards, but I have not received any cash yet so I can't personally vouch for it. You have to earn at least $30 before you can request a payout (easy to do), but then it takes about 2 months to process. But, people on a freebie board I visit have gotten paid, so I am pretty confident it's for real. Also, when you sign up, you can get a $5 bonus for completing an offer. I didn't because I didn't want to pay for anything, but I got credited for the $5 anyway! So, don't complete the offer unless you really want to (I think they are all things you have to pay for). So, there you go! Sorry I held out for so long. This does seem like a cool site. I should be receiving my first check from them in April, so I will definitely post if/when I get it.

Got great news today!!! A few posts back I mentioned that I applied for two work at home call center type opportunities. Just got word that I have an interview with one of them! I hope it pans out! I've heard that it's hard to get hours because everybody scrambles to get them (you schedule your own through their website) but even if I can get a little extra money, I'll be thrilled. Heck, if I can work a couple hours a week I'll be thrilled! There are several products you can take calls for, so the more I get trained on, the more hours that will be available to me. Sounds cool - I hope I can get it! Smile

My challenge is making me lose sleep - literally! I laid awake today thinking about how I am going to come up with that $800 by the end of the month. I had a zillion thoughts running through my head and couldn't stop. Frustrating! But, I do think I'm a little better off than I thought. I have some things pending that will come through this month that I haven't accounted for:

- $100 in sharebuilder bonuses
- 82.87 from Ebay sales that I've transferred from Paypal
- Hopefully $20 on an ebay item that ends tonight
- At least $50 for the GCs I'm listing on Ebay
- Approx $60 for 7 things I am going to list on Ebay very soon
- $20 from gas GCs that I am going to "buy" from myself

Those things would bring my total up to about $509... That means I would only need to make $291 more (an average of $12.12 a day from now til the end of the month). Hmm.... It could be possible. If I get that work at home job and actually get to start working this month, that will help. Still need to figure out what else I can do. But, it is looking a little brighter. We'll see what I can do!

24 days left...

March 7th, 2006 at 03:33 pm

Only 24 full days left this month to reach my $800 goal. I am not throwing in the towel yet, but man, this is NOT going to be easy! Argh! I am scared, lol!

Speaking of 24 - did anyone watch that last night? OMG - I cried at the end. SO SAD! Anyway....

Checked sharebuilder today - still no sign of our two $50 bonuses. Will check again tomorrow.... Also checked Providian for our FICOs - not posted yet! I am so impatient, lol!

Got the Purina Challenge free cat food coupon in the mail yesterday, so that's a good thing. That will save us on our grocery bill this week. I also got my Barnes & Noble and Bed Bath & Beyond GC's for the trials I signed up for. Posted those on Ebay just now. I was shocked to see that someone is charging $3.99 for the INFORMATION on how to get a $20 GC for only $1. I hope no one falls for that. That is just so wrong!

I read on the boards that you can open 4 bank accounts per quarter, so that means I need to open 3 more (for bonuses, of course) before the end of March. I need to talk to hubby about it, but I'm hoping he'll ok me opening them up in his name as well - double bonuses! You could make quite a bit of money that way! Too bad it won't help my totals this month. Sigh....

I did add some money to my challenge today - $25.97 for Ebay profits. That brings my Current Challenge Savings to $176.83. That means I need to make an average of $26 a day for the rest of the month to reach my goal. Not quite sure how I am going to pull that off! If anyone has any ideas, please leave me a comment. I REALLY REALLY want to get to that $800 mark. Speechless Smiley 03920: If I was single I would get a second job in a heartbeat, but hubby's not keen on the idea (unless it's something I can do at home).

Got some things accomplished!

March 6th, 2006 at 03:28 pm

I've had a very productive morning!

- mailed my taxes (can't wait to get that $300 refund!)
- used the concert money to almost pay off one of our smaller balance CC's (rest will be paid off on Friday)
- Signed up for a MyAccess checking account through Bank of America for a $50 bonus (won't get it til end of April though)
- Signed up for three $1 trials (in exchange for $20 Exxon GC, $20 Circuit City GC, and $20 Lowe's GC....gas card we'll spend and the other 2 will get listed on Ebay)

Also, my two Ebay auctions just ended and I made 57.05! I will add the money to my challenge total when it gets into my account. Tomorrow I will look around the house and see if there's anything else I can sell.

I'm eagerly awaiting my Fico score (and hubby's too!). I've been obsessively checking our providian accounts but they're not showing yet. The site says it can take up to 4 weeks for new customers. Shouldn't be too much longer. I am NERVOUS! I have never known my Fico score in my life. I don't know what to expect!

That's about it for now! I'm glad I finally got some things accomplished towards my challenge!

Monday again!

March 6th, 2006 at 06:04 am

Gosh - Monday AGAIN! Where does the weekend go?

Our weekend was ok, with the exception of the concert being cancelled. I found out that they are definitely not rescheduling, so now I'm actually kind of excited to use the money as an extra CC payment. They say every cloud has a silver lining, so I guess that's it. Plus, I still get brownie points from hubby for buying the tickets in the first place (he didn't know about it right away -- it was a surprise). I am proud to do something responsible with the money, because in the past we would have just felt sorry for ourselves and blown it on something else. Not this time! Smile

Today my goal is to do something to make money! I haven't been putting that much effort into my challenge so far this month. I guess it's because I am sort of lost as to what to do next. Today I will do something -- probably a bank offer or something to that extent. When I get home from work I'll look into it. I gotta get moving on my challenge! I have a long way to go to meet my March goal. Tomorrow is one month to the day that I opened the sharebuilder accounts, so hopefully our bonuses will be available to move into savings. Also, received an Ebay payment over the weekend. I will add that to my challenge once it posts. I have two auctions that end today, and I am up to about $45, so that's a good thing. I only have one more auction listed after that...it ends tomorrow. I will have to check around the house and see if there's anything else worth selling.

I haven't really mentioned it much here, but I am absolutely DYING to get into a house of our own. We've been renting and it's definitely time to get a place we can call our own. Our lease ends August 10th and I am secretly praying that we can get a place by then. Of course, if we do, it will have to be through creative financing because we don't have the cash for a down payment. I don't even know if that's a smart financial decision. I have a lot of researching to do, which I plan to start immediately. Fortunately houses where we live aren't that expensive. We can easily find a place that meets our needs for $120-150K. I find that amazing, because where I moved from you couldn't get anything decent for under 200K. So, we'll see. I think about it constantly, especially since I don't really want to start a family until we have a house of our own. I hate throwing our money away on rent as well. It seems so pointless.

Forgot to mention that dad finished our taxes over the weekend and we are getting about $300. I thought it was going to be more, but we forgot about a 1099 for some freelance work that hubby did. Still, $300 is GREAT! Last year we had to pay a lot (as a matter of fact, we had to make payments and just finished paying that off). Of course, when that money comes, it is going to the CC debt! The way things have been going, I think we're going to be out of CC debt a lot faster than I thought. Dare I dream by the end of '06? Anyway, I am putting the taxes in the mail today!

Well, I'd better wrap this up. Happy Monday, everyone!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

March 5th, 2006 at 04:09 am

Wasted 3 and a half hours and a half tank of gas to get the Aerosmith concert only to find it was CANCELLED!!! And, we got lost on the way back... Angry Smiley 005

Section TWO floor seats, people!!!! SECTION TWO!!!! What are the chances of that ever happening again? Angry Smiley 001

I guess I should look on the bright side. If they don't reschedule (which I doubt they will), that's $250 I can put towards CC debt. But still - that was supposed to be our last big splurge. Oh well. Time to put on the jammies and watch a movie. Might as well try to make the most of our night!

Amy's Tip 'O the Day

March 4th, 2006 at 06:43 am

Hey all -- ran across two companies that monitor U.S. mail. Things are sent to you from different locations and you have to log them daily (online). From what I understand, it's to make sure mail is moving smoothly and quickly. You get paid, but not a whole bunch. Someone on another board said they do it for both companies and make $150 a month. Not bad! I applied for both, but they only accept one person per zip code. My zip code was already taken for one, but the other one said my application is pending. Hey, worth a shot!

Text is http://www.usmonitor.com/agentform/ and Link is
http://www.usmonitor.com/agentform/

Text is http://www.hauser.inetu.net/decoycheck/ and Link is
http://www.hauser.inetu.net/decoycheck/

Hope this helps someone!

$30.75 of my Ebay money showed up in my account today. So...
Current Challenge Savings - $150.86
Goal is $800 by the end of March and $4000 by the end of the year!

Friday at last

March 3rd, 2006 at 02:24 pm

I love Fridays! I live for the weekend... My job is ok, but I badly want a new one. Mainly because I know I'm worth more money, plus I HATE working holidays and through hurricanes. Being in the news business is cool (I love telling people I'm a news producer!), but in reality it's not that great. If you work in a small market like I do, you don't make squat for money and you don't get a day off for anything. If I could have seen into a crystal ball, I would not have chosen this as a career. Most days I wish I could be a stay at home mom. Too bad I don't have kids, lol! Anyway, I am sticking with the job for now because I keep hearing the length of time you've worked somewhere has a positive influence on your mortgage/borrowing rate when you buy a home. And, since we hope to buy a house in the not too distant future, it's just something I plan to stick with for now. But I am praying for no more Ivan's, Dennis', or Katrina's this year. Puh-lease! I just want to evacuate like everybody else (and get free paid days off!!!).

Anyway, sorry for the vent. I guess I am not over my "funk" yet. Sold a DVD on half.com overnight so that is good. Also had an ebay auction end last night for 5 bucks. Not much, but not bad for something I got for free. I'll update my challenge total when the money comes.

There is absolutely nothing going on today. I do have to pay some bills and clean house but that's about it. Tomorrow night is the concert, so that's something to look forward to.

Have a great Friday everyone!

In a Funk...

March 2nd, 2006 at 05:05 pm

I seem to be in a funk today. Probably because I played hooky and didn't work last night. So, instead of working, I slept, which I needed, but now my sleep schedule is all messed up. Oh well, only one more work day til the weekend.

Also feeling a little down and out about money. I just don't know how to make $400 a month! I applied to another "at home" call center job but from what I'm hearing it takes quite a while to hear back from these places. It really would be perfect for me. I could work a couple hours a day when I get home from my overnight job and it would be great. Plus, I hope to be a stay at home mom when we have kids in the next year or so, so this would be a great way to bring in money then, as well. But, time will tell!

Made a whopping $20.08 on my auctions that ended last night. I only have one that ends today. Got lots of stuff out in the mail so that's at least taken care of. Also got my dad's gift done and shipped out. I thought I was being frugal by baking him cookies, but after buying ingredients for 4 kinds, plus shipping, I spent $32.

So, I dunno... Just feeling down and wondering how I can boost my challenge. For those who don't know, I am using the money to pay back my parents for a very large debt. So, it's really REALLY important to me that I make good progress. I love and appreciate what they did for me and I need to repay them. There has to be a way, but I just haven't figured it out yet.

Here's a mini-boost for myself, lol!

Took the plunge

March 1st, 2006 at 03:26 pm

Well, I've been worried about how I am going to make my challenge goals and decided that a second job (work at home) is the best way to go. I just applied for a call center job and am crossing my fingers... I would work from home and could work as few or as many hours as I want. I've done that type of work before (not at home though) and it was ok. I wouldn't want it to be my fulltime job, but I really need something that can bring the money in. So, cross your fingers for me! I hope to hear back SOON!!!

Also, sold a book and a DVD on half.com - YIPPEE!!!

And, yes, I know this is BAD, but I am planning to call in sick tonight. I've worked there well over a year and only ever called in sick once. I am ACHING for a mental health day! My sanity demands it, lol!

Trudging into a new month

March 1st, 2006 at 06:35 am

So, it's March. At least here in Alabama it is... 12:18am. I am at work gearing up to put my show together but thought I'd check in.

Today will be a BUSY day! I need to sit down and write a very long and thoughtful letter to my dad for his 60th birthday. I've been jotting down ideas of memories I want to recount and things I admire him for, etc, but actually writing it is going to be the hard part. I have so much to say and putting it into words that I feel express my feelings properly is not going to be easy. And yes, I am a procrastinator. This has to go in the mail tomorrow (Thursday). Did I mention I am also making 4 different kinds of cookies to send with it? AARRGGHHH! I'll be lucky if I get any sleep at all. Sigh!

So, I listed another Ebay auction yesterday and have 3 that are ending today. My total is only about 14 bucks for all three. Not great, but something, right? Also added a few books and movies to half.com.

Thanks to the inspiration of others here, I am going to do something I have never done. I am going to write down every penny I spend all month long. I already do that in a sense - I know how much comes in and how much goes out, but I want to see where the money is going exactly and if I can cut anything. I need to know categorically where the money goes. I feel like we've cut everything we can cut, but I'm sure there is more we can do.

My biggest concern this month is figuring out where I am going to come up with the money to meet my challenge goals. My rule is that has to be all "outside money", meaning none of it comes from our regular income. Right now we live pretty much paycheck to paycheck and any extra goes to pay off CC debt. I want to make it to the $800 level by the end of the month but I need a plan in order to make that happen. I will keep selling on Ebay, but eventually I am going to run out of stuff. I'll keep doing surveys, bank deals, and whatever online things I can find to make some extra cash, but I don't think those things alone are going to cut it. It has to be something I can do from home, in my spare time, on my schedule. I am out of ideas. If anyone has any, please share!