A look at FDIC coverage

The IndyMac Bank failure got me thinking about something most of us take for granted: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, usually referred to as FDIC, protection of our bank accounts.

The FDIC is an independent U.S. governmental agency created to protect bank customers against loss of deposits held in an FDIC insured bank or savings association that fails.

According to the FDIC Web site, insured deposits usually are available to customers of a failed bank within a few days. Since the inception of the FDIC in 1933, no depositor has ever lost a penny of insured deposits.

The key phase is "insured deposits," which means the amount meets the agency's limits. The amount $100,000 is tossed about, but there are some specifics that need to be noted, primarily in regard to the various account categories.

Single accounts: For accounts owned by one person and titled only in that person's name, the money in all such solo accounts counts toward the $100,000 insurance limit. That means if you have a checking account and a CD at the same FDIC-insured bank, both account amounts are added together and that total is insured up to $100,000.

Remember, it's per person/account and per bank. So if you have $100,000 in ABC Bank and $100,000 in XYZ Bank and both FDIC-insured institutions fail, each account is fully recoverable.

Joint accounts: These accounts are owned by two or more people. If the owners have equal rights to withdraw money from a joint account, each person’s shares of all joint accounts at the same insured bank are added together and the total is insured up to $100,000 for each owner.

For a couple with a joint checking account and a joint savings account at the same insured bank, like the hubby and I have, each co-owner's shares of the two accounts are added together and insured up to $100,000, providing up to $200,000 in coverage for the couple's joint accounts.

For example, the hubby and I have a hypothetical $200,000 CD at an insured bank with equal access to the account funds. So the hubby has $100,000 and I have the other $100,000 and we're OK if our bank fails, since we each get $100,000 of coverage.

If, however, our CD earnings bumped our account total up to $220,000 -- since we're being hypothetical, we're getting a great interest rate on this CD! -- that would put each of us $10,000 over the insurance limit.

Retirement account added coverage: While the basic insurance amount is $100,000 per depositor
per insured bank, retirement accounts get added coverage. IRAs are insured up to $250,000 per depositor per insured bank.

Additional assets uncovered: But other assets aren't usually protected by the FDIC.

As the fine print on bank literature and Web sites notes, the FDIC does not insure money you invest in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, life insurance policies, annuities, or municipal securities, even if you purchased these products from an FDIC-insured bank.

Calculate your FDIC coverage: You can calculate your bank insurance coverage at EDIE, the FDIC's online Electronic Deposit Insurance Estimator.

You also can get download a copy of Your Insured Deposits: FDIC's Guide to Deposit Insurance Coverage, which has details on insured account ownership categories, or you can order a copy by calling toll-free 1-877-275-3342.

Bad banks: IndyMac is the fifth bank to fail this year. Between 2005 and 2007, only three banks failed.

However, that escalated failure pace is not a reason for worry, according to the head of the FDIC.

"All bank depositors should understand that their insured deposits are safe," said FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair (reported by Reuters). "The chance that your own bank will be taken over by the FDIC is extremely remote. And if that does happen, you will continue to have virtually uninterrupted access to your insured deposits."

According to FDIC records, in the past 15 years, the federal bank insurance agency has taken over 127 banks with combined assets of $22 billion.

The Pasadena, Calif.-based IndyMac, which was seized Friday, July 11, by regulators after a bank run in which customers withdrew $1.3 billion of deposits over 11 business days, will reopen Monday. It will have a new charter and a new name, IndyMac Federal Bank.

Still in a movie mode: Keeping with today's earlier post about accountant movies, the best bank failure flick is, obviously, It's a Wonderful Life.

If only real life were as wonderful as the reel life in some of these great old films.

But, alas, there aren't many bankers like George Bailey or towns like Bedford Falls anymore.

Work environments can make jobs miserable

Like I mentioned in my last post, I am doing seasonal tax work again this year. As much as I love the work itself, I am actively seeking other forms of employment, because the job environment is simply unbearable. The reason I failed to update this site from January 22 to February 22 is because I was spending most of my waking hours in the tax office. I completed a hundred or so returns, and I also had to schedule dozens of appointments, file a mountain of paperwork, distribute a bunch of checks, and handle the problems of disgruntled and angry clients for hours on end. I worked 197 hours in a month of what is supposed to be a part-time job.
Things have tapered off quite a bit in the past ten days or so, but the incredible stress of the weeks before that won't be soon forgotten. And a lot of my stress could have been mitigated by effective management and proper training of our staff, as well as the thoughtful use of a temp during our busiest times. Here are some of the biggest problems:

• Our manager never bothered to give us any sort of office orientation. In previous years, the office managers have required an hour or two of paid office orientation, wherein they explain the filing system, the office policies and procedures, where to find things and what to do in the event of certain problems. Here this was never done and evidently hasn't ever been done. As a result, both old and new preparers are clueless about how the office runs, which leads to a lot of wasted time and dissatisfied clients.
• Where I work, payroll is king. The #1 goal of all office managers is to keep the personnel budget as low as humanly possible. It's a noble goal but it results in some stupid decision-making. My manager tries to save money by not hiring a secretary, and instead relying on tax preparers to answer the phones and schedule appointments. During our peak season this is a terribly short-sighted move, as this causes most preparers to quickly reach overtime, when we become more expensive than a minimum-wage temp. With the overtime my office has paid me alone, they could have hired a secretary for 28 hours. Even having someone around to answer the phones, help with the filing, and scheduling appointments during the busiest three hours of the day would have helped maintain a lot of sanity. Saving them a few bucks on payroll seriously backfired this year.
• I have a dreaded micromanager boss. Have you ever worked with someone who hyper-scrutinizes everything you do in an attempt to hide their own incompetence? This is the exact type of person my boss is. He knows very little about much at all, but more than makes up for it by driving me (and everyone else in our office) crazy. His philosophy seems to be that of a headmaster, where he looks and looks for the tiniest mistake, which was probably made due to a lack of proper training in the first place, and then rails on you for it. I'm pretty good humored and turn a deaf ear to it, because I know he's crazy, but he's driven a lot of my co-workers to tears. It will be interesting to see what the retention rate is going to be for next year. I really enjoy the work and am good at it, but even I am hitting my limits with the abuse.
  
• Despite being a micromanager, my boss does not delegate tasks well. Generally, delegation seems to be, "Make Dimes do it because she knows how." A lot of things don't get done because people either don't know how to do them or that they are supposed to do them. One preparer steadfastly refuses to answer the telephone, label and file tax returns, call clients, or do anything besides write returns. While not very team-oriented, that behavior was acceptable for peak, but now that business has slowed down, he needs to contend with a lot of other tasks aside from writing returns. Instead, he tries to leave during slow periods instead of checking to see what non-return-writing activities need to be done. I suppose at this point it's appropriate to add that this particular preparer has completed the most returns in the whole office.
  
• Climate control in our office is horrible. Our customers are constantly complaining about the temperature in the office, and a lot of preparers have a difficult time working because it is so cold. Fingers get numb, leading to typing mistakes, and the cold is actually a major distraction to workers and clients alike. If we turn off the AC, the temperature soars 15 degrees in an hour, and the office gets terribly stuffy. There doesn't seem to be a workable compromise.
  

There are other problems, but they're a little more abstract. The point though is that I love the work I'm doing, and I'd like to keep doing it, but the garbage I have to deal with in my working environment is making it not be worthwhile. I don't imagine every company is this bad, and I am willing to try my hand elsewhere to see if I can't find a more enjoyable environment with an equally or more enjoyable job.

Planning a vacation at home

This post is part of a “Summer Fun Guide” group writing project by the Personal Finance Network. More articles on the subject are at the end of this post.

Summer fun doesn't have to include an expensive road trip, a long airplane flight after braving security lines, or endless choruses of “are we there yet?”. You can have fun by staying right at home, without the hassle. And with fuel prices being what they are, enjoying a staycation instead of a vacation is becoming a more and more attractive option. (Although it's always been an attractive option to my husband — those are his favorite kinds of vacations.)

You can choose to literally stay at home, not even leaving your house, or you can choose to play tourist in your own town by taking in the local sights or enjoying the pool and spa at a neighborhood hotel. Choosing to stay in the area will help save you money too. You won't have to pay for additional gas or expensive airfare, and if you stay in your own house you won't have to pay for lodging or pet and house sitting services. In either case, a little bit of planning will help to make your summer staycation fun.

Here are some things to keep in mind:

• Treat it like a real vacation. Take off from work, and tell family & friends that you're on vacation and unavailable during that time period (unless they'll be vacationing with you.)


• Unplug and disconnect. Don't be tempted to sit at the computer all day or constantly check email. Vow to either ignore the internet altogether, or designate 10 minutes once a day to do so if you just can't bear the thought of possibly missing something.


• Pay all bills ahead of time, and have your mail held while you are “gone”. This will cut down on distractions and allow you to relax.


• Plan out crock pot meals or restaurants to eat at ahead of time, so that you aren't stuck cooking instead of relaxing. Or take turns having each family member be responsible for a day's meals.


• Contact your local tourist information office or AAA to get a list of area attractions. Another advantage of staycations is that residents often receive discounted admission to attractions. You can also scope out a hotel lobby for brochures and lists of upcoming events.


• Use this opportunity to explore what your own area has to offer. So many times we pay a small fortune to go explore somewhere new, when there might be some gems right in our own neighborhood that we could see for signficantly less. (I realized once while on vacation in Germany that I'd never seen the Grand Canyon or Monument Valley, despite having lived within driving distance of both for many years.)


• Most of all, relax and enjoy.

For more financially-fit ideas on having fun in the summer, take a look at these articles:

• Tips for packing light, especially when flying with young kids


• Money movies to watch this summer


• 10 Free Ways to get into Fitness this Summer


• Cool frugal ideas to stay away from the heat


• Frugal fun ideas for kids

Will Sprint Turn Korean?

How do you say "Can you hear me now?" in Korean? Just a short time ago, CNBC's David Faber just reported on "Street Signs" that South Korea Telecom is in talks to acquire Sprint. Apparently the deal is being backed, and most likely promoted, by private entity firms.

The bid is being presented as a friendly acquisition but the Sprint board is divided on the sale, Faber reported. Any announcement is probably weeks away. Unless, of course, Faber's hand forces the parties to start talking publicly.

Michigan Primaries – The State That Doesn’t Count

Well the primary elections are in town today.? Time to get out and vote.

For the republicans it’s business as usual.? You vote for the best guy they should put up for president.? But what about the democrats?

Well.? I guess they don’t want to recognize Michigan.? The only major candidate to put her name on the Ballot was Hillary Clinton.? So here are your democratic choices:

A.?Hillary Clinton

B.?Undecided

C.?Other: Write Name Here:_____________________

Here’s the funny thing.? If you choose C your vote doesn’t count.? What?? You read that right.? They give you a choice that invalidates your vote.?

Printing costs must be up because they’ve got a few names on there of guys who’ve already dropped out, so you can’t pick them either.

But the Obhama and Edwards supporters are still out in full force:

“Choose undecided,” they say.? “That way Michigan delegates can vote for someone else instead of Hillary down the road”.? Ok.? Let me get that straight now.? Vote for the guys that didn’t even want to be on Micigan’s ballot?

But what issues are important for Michiganders in this election? That’s an easy one:? JOBS.

1 in 13 people doesn’t have a job here.? So it should be an easy sale for the candidates that do actually want to get some votes out of old Michigan.

I’m a republican.? I haven’t made up my mind for their best guy yet.? But I’ll do some research today and go cast my vote later this afternoon.

It should be an exciting election year ahead.

Air Issues

My annual budget-friendly trips have become a highlight of, well, my life. During the past few years I've traveled on the cheap to California several times, to Washington and Oregon and to Ireland, to name a few. I early await trip-planning season every year. And every year, I book a reward ticket on American and use my credit card rewards to keep the cost of most trips around $1,000 for a week-long expedition.

But have you tried booking flights lately? It's out of control! I'd spend the cost of my entire annual trip on airfare alone. The cost of flying to the Pacific coast has doubled since the last time I flew there, and now my miles are ridiculously difficult to redeem. We were considering a trip to Belize, but the flights cost an arm and a leg. I checked a few other destinations and the costs and mile redemptions are nuts...

This is a vacation crisis, people!

I feel blindsided. I mean, I know the cost of gas is bad, but what happened to Southwest's cheap flights? I guess I haven't been following the effects of airline consolidation and the high prices of gas haven't really hit me yet either(don't laugh, I don't drive).

So what's a girl to do this summer? I was really relying on cheap airfare for the summer. I need some suggestions for a good August destination with outdoor adventures stat! I'm thinking now I should just try to go to the boundary waters in Minnesota or do something in the Midwest. Which kind of sucks because I really love meeting people from all over, learning about the history and culture of new regions and GETTING FAR AWAY with my long vacation time.

SOS!

Tasty food taxes

Did you have chips with your July 4th hot dog? If you live in one of 17 states, you likely paid tax on that snack.

According to the Fedreation of Tax
Adminstrators, sales tax at either the state
and/or at a more local level is collected on food products sold in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii. Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota,
Tennessee, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia.

One of the more interesting things about these taxes is just what constitutes food. Some folks say anything edible is food. But for tax purposes, there usually are distinctions.

Beverages, while sold at grocery stores, tend to be taxed while other items escape the levy. Snacks and candy are often taxed, while fruits and vegetables aren't.

Yes, it's another instance of trying to use tax laws to shape behavior, which gets us into the argument over whether that's appropriate tax policy. But that's a debate for another time.

Good food, bad food, taxed food: I used to work for Nestlé, so I'm a bit biased. As the world's largest food company -- yes, its brands go beyond yummy chocolate candy -- Nestlé joined with other food manufacturers to fight all forms of food taxes.

I've been gone from that legislative battle for while, but it still rages on, as evidenced by this Grocery Manufacturers Association's discussion of food taxes

And I still agree with GMA et al that selective food taxation is arbitrary, discriminatory, and regressive.
Taxing one item within a category and excluding others is confusing. Worse, food taxes, like sales taxes in general, disproportionately
affect households with less money to spend on everything, including food products.

Food is a basic essential. It just doesn't seem right to tax something that we need to live.

Yes, we all should eat healthier comestibles. Yes, obesity is a health issue that costs us all when weight contributes to illnesses that subsequently lower worker productivity and/or increase health care costs. And yes, taxes dedicated to programs to treat overweight and other other health-related problems do help mitigate those costs.

But I tend to the libertarian side when it comes to making decisions about what to do in my personal life and to my own body. And as someone who enjoys eating, way too much too much of the time, I can promise you that taxes aren't going to make me change my diet.

Plus, the whole idea of parsing just what is and isn't food is ridiculous … unless you're in a British courtroom.

Pringles: Potato or not? On Friday, Britain's High Court ruled that Pringles are not a potato snack, and thus are not subject to the nation's value-added tax (VAT).

Justice Nicholas Warren
overruled a VAT Tribunal decision that Pringles should be
subject to the 17.5 percent tax because it met the definition of
''potato crisps, potato sticks, potato puffs and similar products made
from the potato, or from potato flour, or from potato starch.''

In support of the case that Pringles should not be taxed as food, manufacturer Procter & Gamble UK argued, in part:

• Regular
  Pringles are not similar to potato crisps [aka chips here in the U.S.] on the ground of regularity
  of shape, having a shape not found in nature, uniform coloring,
  texture, taste particularly "mouth melt". Crisps do not contain
  non-potato flours as does Pringles. Crisps are not normally packaged in
  tubes.



• The
  manufacturing process is different from potato crisps and more like
  that of a cake or biscuit, being made from a dough, then cut into a
  standard shape, and then cooked separately.



• Customers do not see
  Regular Pringles as potato crisps. The ingredients of products in the
  modern snack market are largely irrelevant to purchasers, as is
  demonstrated by the labeling requirements.



• No one ingredient of Regular Pringles is over 50 per cent.

That last point had an impact on the judge, who noted that Pringles were only 42 percent potato, and thus exempt from the tax.

Almost as intriguing to me is the fact that P&G argued so emphatically that its grocery product isn't food. As one who doesn't like Pringles at all, I definitely agree. The taste to me is akin to the cardboard in which the snacks are packaged.

Give me my good, greasy, salty, irregularly shaped, unhealthy Lay's any day of the week, tax policy be damned!

You can read the ruling here, and additional media coverage at Bloomberg, ; National Post, Associated Press, Scotsman, Forbes and London Telegraph.

The Key To Finding Cheap Car Insurance

The costs of car insurance, as with all things car related, have gone up in recent months for any number of reasons. Car insurance companies give all sorts of reasons for that, and most of them are complete garbage. Although we’ve all been taught to take everything with a pinch of salt, it doesn’t help you when you have to fork out for it after buying a new car! However, if you are with Tesco insurance you can save a lot of money.?

Tesco insurance insurance really can helps its customers in a number of ways. The choice of car insurance products is fantastic so you get the deal you need at the price you want to suit you perfectly. In fact, Tesco insurance can be the answer to your prayers. Obtaining a quote takes but a few minutes and is a decision that you will never regret!

Watching the Money Flow Out

I just paid out $3084.00 to the contractor for my apartment. It’s done. It looks great.

Total cost was $5684.00. Not bad for a DC area bathroom remodel. They’re between $7K-12K for a low-end estimate. But since my bathroom is exceptionally tiny to fit in my studio, I saved some money by ripping out a tile backsplash around the room (but also spending $300 extra to remove some extra concrete under the tile). Paint is a lot cheaper than tile, plus you don’t have to wait extra for the grout to cure.

My contractor left me extra bath and floor tiles, just in case they cracked. He’s going to send a granite care sheet for the countertop. (Basically no ammonia cleaner and wipe up all acidic liquids right away.)

I saved money by telling my contractor about a special deal at Home Depot for a towel bar, toilet paper roll holder and handtowel and generally keeping my eye out for the things that I liked in particular so he would have an inkling for what to pick up for me. We sent a lot of pictures back and forth via email. It really does help to have a cameraphone sometimes, though it’s the most loathsome of all cellphone features.

Half of the construction was paid for by my tax refund, stimulus package payment and the insurance payout. I took out $5000 BT on a credit card, but I was able to payback $2000 right away. It’s put a dent in my finances psychologically more than anything else. I have definitely depleted my emergency fund and added a little to my credit cards over the same period.

Was it worth it? Well, if I add up my construction cost to my remaining mortgage amount, I’m slightly over my original purchase price. If I look around my bathroom, touch my fixtures, and stare into the mirror with really good lighting, I am satisfied. Pleased. Happy.

While I won’t recover all the cost of the remodel, I think it was a good idea. There were small little patches all over the place. Just little stuff, but it added up in a way that didn’t look good. I figure I’m more likely to get a premium for the bathroom now if I sell it because it looks intact and unified.

The only downside is still the dust everywhere, but at least now I can rearrange my closet more efficiently. (A lot of studios in DC have a walk through closet with the bathroom on the other end. I hate the layout, but it’s what it is.)

Que sera sera. I’ll just have to live with it now! muhahaha!

2008 BAH rates will be available next week

I never quite understand why it takes so long for the Basic Allowance for Housing rates to be published. Base pay figures are usually available by October of the preceding year, but BAH tables aren't available until mid-December. It can make it very difficult for incoming families to decide where to live, as they don't know if the BAH will adjust downwards before they arrive or not. It can also complicate the decision whether or not to move into base housing in the face of higher rents. Plus, it's just plain annoying for people who are trying to create a budget for 2008. Why all the suspense? I'm ready to know!

Anyway, a week from now or so, you'll want to head over to the official pentagon site to see if your new housing rates have been published. The site will undoubtedly crash due to high visitor volume (as it happened in 2005 AND 2006), but eventually it will work pretty well. Other sites like about.com also publish tables, but I'm more trusting of the actual Pentagon page.

3 Crazy Nights in Chicago: Chapter 2 - Eating and Drinking Our Way Through the City

I was toying with calling this chapter "Texans Like Pizza and Drinking," because that pretty much sums up my weekend.

I'm not sure whether my Texan mamas (and some fellow Illinoisians, to be fair) fully expected the beast of a weekend we got. But one thing was clear from the start - they wanted pizza and drinking. And lots of it. And since I know all too well the city's famously hearty foods - and few of the famously foodie foods - I sent them to reasonably priced casual places. Though I'm always happy to provide recommendations for those looking for a trendier, less-touristy or more upscale scene.

So we started our caloric extravaganza at Gino's East on Friday night; their pick, although since I eat it so infrequently it's a treat for me. If I had to pick the best pizza in the city, it would be difficult, so I usually take out-of-town guests to the place closest to where I am at any given time: Lou Malnati's on the North side, Gino's East downtown, Giordano's or Salerno's in my hood and Home Run Inn on the Southwest side. You really can't go wrong with stuffed deep dish. We ordered a large one, two pitchers of beer (Goose Island, thank you), toasted ravioli and spinach sticks. Including the beer and a few mixed drinks, the total came to about $22 per person. Which is a great deal considering how much food was on our table!

After dinner, we went to Stanley's on Racine for a happy hour in the West Loop, where I taught my girls the fine art of playing bags in the dark. I think I only bought a few beers there, because our bag play amused the crowd, so folks kept our drinks coming whenever we were out. Gotta love the city. We made some new friends, but after losing both games to the Jeffs (that's Jeff and Geoff, to be precise), we were ready to move on.

A quick cab ride later brought us to English, a newish local hotspot downtown, where my smooth tap-dancing moves pretty much owned the top floor. Well, at least I thought they did. Another few drinks, some non-tappy dancing and the bar called last call. So we began our walk back to the hotel (which was a cool corporate apartment complex) with a stop at McDonald's along the way.

Saturday morning I skipped breakfast in favor of Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee and a chocolate donut as I frantically cruised around the city trying to get a phone. The other girls headed to Navy Pier and then west to Wicker Park, where they discovered Earwax, a trendy vegetarian diner that they raved about. I still can't stomach the name, because actual earwax really, really freaks me out, so despite its loveliness and dedication to keeping food real, I don't think I'll go there anytime soon.

Saturday night, we wanted something close, so we headed to the House of Blues, where we split bottles of champagne and racks of ribs. Weird combo? Yes. But also totally fun. There was a FANTASTIC musician performing and I've always thought the space itself is really cool, and they let us on the stage to take pictures with the band. That's usually more of a lunch place for me, but I'd go back for the BBQ ribs. Without the champaign, the ribs came to about $20 per person, including tip. Considering that we saw awesome live music with dinner, it was a great deal.

After HOB, it was up to Sheffield's for the beer garden. We planned to go to Funky Buddah Lounge but got rained on, and thus ended up instead at Trader Todd's because one of the girls was feeling some karaoke coming on. And apparently some shot-ski's... which my super fun Texan friends loved (you'll have to go there to figure out what those are). A few Virginia's Bananas, and some shot-ski's later, we were ready to call it a night.

But first, we finished things off with some late-night burritos. I couldn't even tell you where they were from. It was kind of a "hey cabbie, stop here!" thing. Though I can definitely offer some solid advice on picking a late-night burrito joint... look for long lines and happy faces! Two of my favorites are The Burrito House and the one by Wrigley Field, where Ish will serve you up burritos with a smile all night long at a tasty price. OK, LaBamba will also hit the spot when needed.

Sunday was a late breakfast at Potbelly followed by a heaping spoonful of pride at the Pride Parade (more on that later), and then the girls wanted MORE PIZZA before they got on the plane for Texas so we hit up Giordano's for one last stuffed deep dish and some fried zucchini.

Sure they missed out on some things - Al's Italian Beef, Taylor Street Italian Ice, Nicky's Hot Dogs, Garrett Pop Corn (get the Chicago mix), Portillo's and every foodie place in the city...

And of course they missed out on museums and most indoor activity aside from shopping, but that's why they need to come back in the winter. Maybe by then I'll have a handle on the places that require a coat and tie.

Phew.. a lot can happen in a week

It's been a bit busy. I started my new job last Wednesday and things are going pretty good. There was actually some back and forth about how much I was going to get paid.. I talked to Top Doc on the phone who just said, come in and talk to the office manager. So I showed up Wednesday morning and he had a very fuzzy recollection of me - apparently he had gotten about 15 seconds with Top Doc who just said, she's coming. So they had not had a conversation about my salary. He says he'll talk to her, and then for the next few days, I can never find him, plus I keep shuttling between two of the offices. Finally on Thursday evening before I leave, I sent him an email listing what I wanted to talk about (salary plus a couple other things) and said if I couldn't get a hold of him I would call him. I finally got him on the phone about 2PM on Friday and he said that they'd set me at $40k. Which is fine, I told them $40-45k in the interview, and while it is a little less than I used to make, I probably would have accepted less, but it does seem like bad form to cheap out on someone who's already BEEN there three days.

Something that is definitely a bonus though is that instead of working at the main clinic, which is out in the suburbs and is about 20 minutes of highway to reach, I'll be assigned to the downtown office, which is literally about five minutes from my house. So that's pretty awesome. Unfortunately it'll be longer after we move, but definitely not bad at all - about 12 minutes, none highway. If I REALLY wanted to, I could take a bus, with only a few blocks' walk to get to the stops at each end. But that's $41 a month for the bus pass, and I don't know how much the garage pass is going to be, but unlikely to be that much, and 12 minutes drive in each direction is pretty good on gas too. I'm also excited to be downtown because it's actually in a hospital, which means there are a lot of resources (like a cafeteria, a lot more bathrooms, gift shop, etc, as well as being able to schedule tests for my patients onsite.) Downtown also has a lot of lunch restaurants and some street vendors, so I could go out and get all kinds of good stuff.

(for those who used to read regularly, yes, I do now own a car. It is a 2002 Chevy Cavalier with about 9823498 dents, which is why it was about $2700. But it hasn't required much in the way of maintenance and I'll probably drive it into the ground. Driving is WEIRD but fun.)

One really awesome bonus though is that they FEED YOU LUNCH on Mondays and Tuesdays, and sometimes Fridays. Today I actually got two lunches, because I was in the suburban office in the morning when they were passing round the menu. Apparently the drug reps pick a restaurant and we all get to choose what we want off the menu. Most people got an appetizer or dessert in addition to a meal. So I picked out coconut shrimp (which they ended up not having) and chicken parmesan with pasta. Then at about 10:30 I got a call saying that there was someone to see down at the downtown office. I am meeting with the most experienced coordinator down there frequently for training. So by then the order was already in, and I went downtown before lunch arrived. And what do you know but they had Panera boxed lunches. Five kinds of awesome. So I got Panera for lunch, and my chicken parmesan was there when I got back to the suburban office. Hooray for free lunch! I am totally going to milk that. I don't think they do the menu ordering at the office I'll be at, but free food is still awesome.

In house news, we did our inspection on Tuesday, and there are of course a few problems. The ones we were most concerned with were the wiring and the hot water heater. The house is about 100 years old, so the wiring is pretty old, but it looks like someone rewired the downstairs but not the upstairs. The upstairs is not grounded at all, and there is knob and tube wiring in the attic that is under a foot of insulation. How this was explained to me as bad is that knob and tube has nice big copper cables, which can be good because they are much thicker than wires used today, and usually enclosed in a wall with air all around them to let heat escape. So being under a foot of insulation means the heat can't escape and this is a fire safety issue. So that's bad. The other big issue is that the hot water heater's air outlet is not drafting properly. The house has two chimneys and the air is supposed to go up one of them, and it's not. This might be because the chimney is full of leaves and crap, or it might be that the chimney has collapsed internally. Who knows. Not our problem. It's a safety risk. So we asked on our request to remedy that they replace and ground the upstairs wiring, and that they fix the hot water heater so it's drafting properly and the basement doesn't fill up with carbon monoxide. That's bad. We're waiting to hear back from them probably tomorrow about what they're going to do.

We also went in early this morning and Boyfriend signed lock papers. We are locked in at 6.25% paying half a point of discount (probably covered under what the seller is paying) and given the way the markets look now, that's probably the best we'd be likely to get, even given what our mortgage person was up to. When we first met she had said 6.25% with no points, but this is acceptable given that we are putting so little down.

In completely unrelated news, I've also been spending money on clothes. This is kind of new for me, and I forgot how much I actually really enjoy having nice clothes and looking like an adult. At my last job I kind of fell into wearing the same pants every day with different solid colored t-shirts and long sleeved t-shirts, and I felt like I was starting to look my age. (this is not something you want when you are as young as I am in the professional world where people have to trust you are providing accurate, potentially life-altering decision-making information.) So I spent some time at the outlets on Tuesday and spent about $250 on clothes, and for this got six dresses, a couple tops, and some assorted other items. Went to a different store a couple days ago and spent $75 on four dresses. Kind of getting into dresses now, to some extent. But like the commercials say, feeling like a grown-up at your new job: priceless. I'm going to try to weed out some of my older, less attractive clothes and slowly turn over my wardrobe. At this point, if I can't wear it to work, there hardly seems a point in buying it since I already have plenty of t-shirts and shorts, and you can wear black pants any day. I do need to buy some black closed toed shoes that I can wear barefoot, since I a) hate pantyhose b) bought a bunch of knee length skirts and dresses and c) you can't wear open toed shoes in a hospital. So that might end up costing more than my outfit on any given day, but hey, no one said looking like a grown-up was cheap.

2008 BAH rates available Wednesday

At long last, we have an apparent publication date! The 2008 Basic Allowance for Housing rates will finally be posted on Wednesday, December 12, according to the pentagon site. Don't know for certain at what time they will be posted, but check often, and when the site crashes, that's a pretty good sign they're available. :-)

Did you know that most military personnel, their spouses and their dependents will not be eligible for Refund Anticipation Loans this tax season? Details to follow tomorrow.

And We're Back

What transpired in the 4 hours since Count Vikula hacked into our system and shut this place down?

-- Massage enthusiast Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty to paying underage girls to awkwardly stand by while he jerked off into a towel. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison, plus a year of house arrest, and will be given the official title of sex offender. Adding insult to injury is the news that he will definitely not have the scratch to take up with the prosts, at least not with the same vigor, following the hard time. Epstein lost $57 million as "Major Investor No.1" in the Bear Stearns hedge funds.

-- Vanity Fair/Bear blamed CNBC, where "there is simply no adult supervision," for BSC going down, and also claimed that a group of hedge fund managers celebrated the collapse at a breakfast the following Sunday morning during which they "planned a similar assault on Lehman" for the following week BUT FAILED TO TELL US WHAT THEY ATE.

-- We received cloak and dagger emails from a few of you about "something happening at Lehman."

-- Carney, as one of you guessed, staged a Free Epstein rally, topless, while I watched one of the best "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" episodes ever, "Charlie Wants An Abortion." If you haven't seen it, stop what you're doing and rectify that now. My favorite part is this little bit of dialogue (looking for a clip) between Mac and Meg, a pro-lifer he's trying to bed, at an abortion clinic protest: