Cash Stash:

$50.01 cash for 2006
- 1.28 Taco Bell Lunch
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$48.73 remains
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This budget thing is really turning into a full-time job. My word. LOL.

Was going to drive home for lunch as my mom was going to visit and dh was going to work on clearing out storage.

She called me today at work to say she wasn't feeling well and wasn't driving up. So I had to sacrifice $1.28 for lunch. Considered going home anyway but gas would have been about $3 for the drive so I decided a quick lunch would be cheaper.

OF all things my work is providing lunch for us tomorrow. I am not sure if they have ever PAID for a lunch for us before. They host often, but we always have to pay our share. This is the kind of thing dh and I Were fighting over on the budget. Sure I don't have to but geez even the poorest person participates. LOL. I Can order a salad or something cheaper than usual of course. Anyway, when I saw the e-mail headline about lunch in I Was thinking - gah - my budget!!!! Now I choose between eating out with friends or eating in with people I see every day - or telling them I am too porr to participate in a $4 lunch. Ack! But I was very pleasantly surprised to see lunch would be provided. A first in 5 years? Awww, the money gods are in my favor this week.

Downside, 3 days of junk for lunch, but oh well. HAving pizza tomorrow.

Yeah, we are still trying to move money out of MErrill Lynch and having all sorts of problems. Back to square one on moving ALL of our money out. For the best. I am so ready to just completely cut out the middle man. OF course dh tells me today I Am the difficult one in the ML debacle. I have never met this guy or talked to him, but man he works some magic voodoo - turning dh against me - LOL. I Am like - dude, you said he said we shoudln't sell this fund and you wanted to keep it. I Said, "fine" though I Was not happy in the least. Now he says we can't keep it - so I Say, "fine" - I am happy to just leave. Then dh says I changed my mind and made it difficult. ????????? Oh well, I just have to let it go... Over and done with soon enough - I hope anyway. Obviously the sales guy in Mr. BRokerage is trying to sway dh to stay and it is annoying me to no end he is falling for it.

Speaking of falling for it, after the budget talk, dh went in for an oil change and they talked him into some work he didn't need - change the air filter or something. ?????? The rule is we ask our trusted friend/mechanic whenever they suggest anything - 10 times out of 10 it is BS. I Can not believe after talking budgets and all this he fell for it. IT was on our new van which has 1/2 as many miles on his car and we have asked our mechanic repeatedly on this issue because every time we go in they say new air filter on his old car. MEchanic says BS. I don't know where dh's brain was this weekend. Gah.

Speaking of cars the 2 gardeners working at my office, their battery died in their van. Apparently all the men were out of the office. Secretary asks around if anyone can give a jump and all the women look like deer in headlights. LOL. I am thinking I don't have my car today and not sure if I have jumpers. Then she pretty much tells the guys to wait until the men get back. LOL. They of course had jumpers, and so I bravely offered to give them a jump. IT was kind of funny. USually it pisses me off because I always offer and whoever needs a jump settles for a man for whatever reason. so today was my day of glory I guess - no alternative.

But I was thinking that I don't know what it is but society today does not have a clue on what is involved with a jump. I remember one time we were stranded in the middle of nowhere on I-5 - my dh's car just happened to die at the gas station as we were filling up. We asked 20 people for a jump and 19 looked at us like we were crazy. It felt like bizarro world - we thought maybe it was a small town thing. LOL. But looking at the same response today I think, um okay, people in California have not a clue what a jump is or how to go about it. I guess I have had my fair share of dead batteries. HAs no one else?????? IT is not exactly rocket science. & of course my dad taught me the basics of cars like jumping a dead battery and changng a tire, because you know it is important to be able to take care of yourself and not be a stranded, weak woman. I guess with cell phones and AAA it is more rare to find a woman, or a man that can fend for themself. I have to say my husband would not have a clue how to jump a dead battery or to change a tire either. I notice that a lot like when we are out together someone will ask for HIM For a jump and then I say okay and get out the jumper cables and hook them up - LOL. & they are looking at dh like, what is going on here??? LOL. But I think it is kind of an interesting phenomenem.

The end result? Don't expect to find a jump when you have a dead battery. Call AAA I guess. At least not in these neck of the woods. I grew up in a very large city and it was never an issue. Cow town folk are scared of car batteries is all I Can figure. LOL. Totally kidding. ; ) Cow town folk and women, eh?