Ask the Sluggy......Answers Part 1

Here are some answers to blog readers questions from the other day.....

*  Janet, One Family and Linda all asked how did I get the nickname Sluggy.

Ok, here goes the long answer....lolz

My middle child, the Daughter, was born in Dec. 1992.

My Daughter doing her Mr. Magoo impersonation at 1 day old.


Being the middle of freaking Winter in the Poconos of PA none of my family came to visit us after she was born, due to the distance/weather.
So that Summer in June Hubs, oldest son and baby daughter and I took a trip down to show off new baby to my mother and my brothers.
My mother was living with my oldest brother, Dennis, at that time so we stayed with them.  Daughter was 6+ months old by the time we went down to visit.

But let me explain before we took that trip--Daughter began teething at 4 months.  When babies teeth their immune systems go beserk so teething babies are prone to getting colds, infections, etc. plus teething babies drool incessantly.

My daughter once she began teething did so constantly for a year or more....so she also seemed to keep a cold that entire time too.
When babies teeth/get colds their noses run and they drool excessively.
A great combination!
If you've been around a bulldog IRL, you get the idea.  Many is the day I'd threaten to tie a drool bucket around her neck. ;-)

The Daughter was also orally fixated as a baby, meaning everything that made it to her hand, went directly into her mouth.  To experience something she had to taste it.

A normal baby activity, putting toys in the mouth and chomping down on it when teething.

 Grandma giving her a taste of cantaloupe after she kept dive-bombing the bowl sitting on the table while being held.  Later that trip Grandma gave her a pork chop bone to gnaw on.  The child wasn't even on solid foods yet.

 Trying out a new tooth on mom's nose.  I went in for a kiss and she opened her mouth and chomped down on my nose. It hurt like a sumabitch!

Nothing within reach to taste?.....go with the old standby of fingers.

 Tasting the stroller.

What's better than Cheerios?  Cheerios AND snotty fingers!

Tasting Uncle Dennis.....she is sucking on his hand.

Immediately after this shot she put her toes in her mouth....sigh

In the bath it's hard to decide between sucking on your bath toy or your washcloth.

A large number of baby photos of this child have her with something in her mouth edible or not.  These are just a few random shots from my collection.

So her hands were coated non-stop with drool and snot from the teething and she put everything in or on her mouth.
And once she started crawling she left a slimy trail behind everywhere she went.
She lived her fist year of life always wearing a bib and with an exhausted mother hovering nearby with a wad of Kleenex at the ready. lol

So after about 1 day of interacting with Daughter down in VA, my oldest brother christened her "the Slug Baby".....you know, because slugs leave a slimy trail behind.
And then, since I was the Slug Baby's mother I became known in the family as "Slugmama".

A few years later when I went online and joined a private forum group of collector's I used the name Slugmama.  These people started calling me Sluggy for short....I guess Slugmama was just too cumbersome. lol

So that is the story. 8-)


*  Linda also asked....."Where, how, when did you and Hubs meet and court? Did you play hard to get, just running slowly until he caught you?"

Hubs and I met at "The Rat".  The Rat was the nickname for the student bar/hang-out/café at Johns Hopkins U. located in the basement of the Student Union building there.
And every Thursday night at Hopkins was "Disco Night" in the Rat.

My college, Goucher, use to run a bus daily to Hopkins(back before Hopkins went co-ed, Goucher was the "sister" school to JHU)for social and academic reasons(living downtown, taking classes at Hopkins or Peabody, going to activities, etc.). 
I happened to go with a girlfriend to Disco Night in the Fall of my freshman year.  

Hubs asked my girlfriend to dance during Disco Night and she said no thanks. 
Hubs started to walk away.   Then my GF yelled at him and offered ME up as a dancing partner.....so he reluctantly asked me to dance.

After dancing awhile we went outside to talk since it was too loud inside(disco, remember that?).
We walked and sat and talked for about an hour.
I thought he was full of himself(and he WAS!)plus he was a really bad dancer(as in painful to watch).
But we hit it off.  I gave him my number(well, it was the dorm switchboard number and my dorm room #).

When I went to leave with the GF to go back to school he tried to kiss me and I turned my head so he got a cheek.
Then I said, "Aw, how sweet." referring to a kiss on the cheek.
Hubs said I said it sarcastically so he didn't call me.

Hubs was roommates with a guy who was the then BF of a sophomore girl who lived in my dorm.
I don't remember how this happened but she either asked me or asked one of my dorm mates if I wanted Hubs to ask me out/call.
The next time she went over to Hubs/her BF's apartment she left Hubs a note....."Call Denise.  She wants it."  8-P

He called and the rest, as they say, is history..... 8-)

More answers later.

Sluggy


 

How Many Careers are Enough?

Ok, so I left the bulk of this comment on a PF blog but she decided not to publish it.  This comment was in regard to a discussion on "second careers".
Or as the younger folks call it "your Second Act".  This blogger was talking about people putting in enough years to "retire" from a career to receive a pension and then leaving to go do something else/have a second career.

First off, the number and types of jobs in our current world are quickly dwindling that offer pensions when you leave their employment.  Most pension plans are attached to state or local public sector jobs nowadays.....fire, police, teachers, etc. or federal or US military government employees.

The private sector employers(business corporations)have been discarding pension plans for the last 20 years.  And many of those that remain are rife with underfunding and borrowing from these funds to put the monies elsewhere in the company.  And when companies go under these loyal longtime employees who thought they had a securely funded retirement until they died are told the money is all gone so too bad.
This group of jobs that let you "retire" with a pension after 20 years in is a rapidly shrinking pool of employment.

But the thing is, this pensions disappearing act isn't only happening in the private sector either.  Remember in 2010 how the entire town of Central Falls went bankrupt in Rhode Island and the city workers near retirement were told not to expect much of a pension and all the then already retired workers' pensions were sliced by 50% or more?  "The state bailed them out(more tax hikes for working RI residents!)and now they are getting about 75% of their pensions for the next few decades.
But this scenario of pensions crumbling is playing out in other US cities as they become insolvent.

A few years ago, well before this current Recession, my Hubs major corporation asked all it's then current employees to choose between a company funded pension at retirement or offered to give them the equivalent balance in cash that was in their pension account to invest/manage themselves.  We chose the latter.  Any one starting work at this corporation no longer can choose a pension over a 401K/Defined Benefit/Cash Balance Plan.  Pensions are no longer offered.

Looking back at the last few years I am glad we decided against the pension.  Sure, it's more work on our part looking after our funds but I know I won't wake up some morning at the age of 72 and get a letter from Hubs' old company saying that their pension fund is bankrupt and there will be no more checks to live on.  Having my future in a corporation's hands is much scarier than having to decide how to invest our money ourselves.  It's almost as scary has having our future in the hands of our government. ;-)

There was talk on this particular blog about having a second career in the private sector because salaries were so much more lucrative.

While that may have been true 20 years ago, salaries as a general rule are no longer higher in the private sector.....plus they are also not as secure as they once were.   Many positions, even with-in large, long established corporations have little to NO job security!  Especially if you live in a "at will" employment state....you can be fired for no reason.

That's always been the trade-off between public vs. private sector jobs.  Private sector salaried jobs paid out more while public sector salaried jobs had better benefits and more security.  Since the recession hit many well paid private sector salaried jobs have gone away, never to return.

Leaving a job after "getting your time in" doesn't mean retirement necessarily.  Who needs to retire at 40 years old when it's possible you may live another 40 years or more?  They would spend the majority of their life not working in that scenario!  20 years though enough to "retire" with a benefit from some jobs, is a very small slice of your working life!

Why quit a job after "getting your time in" when you still plan on working a number of years?  Unless that job is so onerous the thought of doing it for any amount of time longer, why quit?  If you go elsewhere, you will be the "first hired, first to get fired" in the employee hierarchy.  If you go elsewhere you will have to start fresh fitting in, getting up to speed, learning the ropes.  If you go elsewhere you may also be starting at the bottom of the salary scale too.

If your job is too stressful I can see leaving after "getting your time in" but not every job is THAT stressful and all jobs ARE stressful to a degree in one way or another.

In my grandparents generation people retired at 65 or so and most people didn't live much past that so no issue about saving/paying for retirement years.   Plus their jobs had pensions so they needn't save for their golden years.  Now pensions are quickly becoming a thing of the past in the US and as companies go bankrupt they are renigging on pension agreements leaving pensioners with nothing.

Nowadays everyone wants to retire "early".  My BIL retired at 50 with a nice company package to go that early.  He now lives in a mobile home, has no money and basically is waiting to die. Sad.
Though BIL chose to go when he did, sadly, post recession, many older workers were sacked and didn't get a choice about retiring nor did they get a package of extra cash/benefits.

Many folks near retirement age has not saved nearly enough to support themselves well and will run out of money at some point in their old age. 
If you figure that our grandparents lived not long past 65 and worked until 65 then we could possibly live another 20 years(or more)to 85 so for us, retiring at 65 IS early retirement.
But that's another discussion for another time.

As for the Millennial generation,  talk of a first and second career will be moot.  This generation may know 4 or more job/career changes before they see retirement.  And now with the ACA these workers no longer feel tied down to a location/job like the previous generations of workers because healthcare benefits are no longer necessarily tied to their company/position.  Our workforce is much more mobile than it ever was and work is taking on a whole new look.

Bottom line, I think it's a wise thing to save early and often and to run retirement numbers well before you actually get anywhere near to a retirement age(say 50+).  I'd recommend running retirement figures as early as your 30's and every 5 years after that to rebalance and reassess your savings and your goals.  That way you know where you stand with your "post working" income and have a better handle on when you can afford to retire.

Stop living a life on borrowed money now, keeping working as long as it benefits you not matter your first, second, third, or fourth career and save, save, save!

Sluggy
 

June Financial Stuff

It's the middle of June already....how did THAT happen?
Didn't I just get back from Louisiana?....no, it's been 2 WEEKS now.

June Income Update--

It's the 15th and I've paid all the bills that have come in this month so far....phone, internet, water, gas card, c/c.
That would just leave the long distance charge on the landline and the electric bill.

Hubs will continue to withdrawal cash for his personal spending this month.

4 days until the electric bill cuts and we are on track to owe $130 figuring our average usage per day so far. 

I had hoped for a lower than last month's electricity usage but College Boy is home and there a bit of unnecessary dryer usage now.
*ahem ahem*
I yell, cajole, demand, plead but nothing helps me get to this kid.  The only way I am going to get him to stop is to disconnect the dryer.

He is also an energy hog about the a/c.  We have a window unit for his room but I hold off putting it in the window as long as I can since he only knows one setting, HIGH.  I have honest to goodness walked into that room sometimes and left with an icicle forming on the tip of my nose.
He also leaves the a/c on when he goes to work or out for the night.  Shut the blasted thing off when you aren't in there for extended periods of time how about it!?!?!

The long distance is always about $7.50 per month so that's easily penciled into the spending chart.

We have one non-regular bills this month due to replacing the exhaust system in the CB's car.
$441.61

Savings Challenge--

Between that(and possibly another repair on Hubs new car this month-it's in the shop as I type)and a high c/c bill from our trip, the potential leftovers from this month's income that can go into my Savings Challenge for June aren't looking like much.

Looking at the last 2 year's of bills...June 2014 savings was over $2K but June 2013 was barely $800.  It's probably going to be a lot closer to that $800 year for June 2015.
Hey, as long as we don't go into the hole for June I am ok with it.  8-)

Medical Spending Update--

I just paid off the last of the medical bills before the high deductible kicked in for 2015 with the HSA funds.  We've got almost $1K left in there with still more cataract charges/surgery, a semi-annual OV, blood work for said OV, and possible charges/co-pays incurred for Hubs medical problem. 
Hopefully, once the other eye is done and Hubs problem is looked into, we are good to go with just normal rx refills for the rest of the year(plus 1 more semi-annual check-up for me)and can build a bit of a cushion in the HSA to help cover the high deductible charges that begin again Jan.2016.
We've got about $2,600 left to put into the HSA account this year so I am hoping we'll have close to $2K left in there Jan. 1st.  This doesn't take into account any other illnesses/drugs/tests/etc. needed for the rest of the year however so I am not counting on the HSA being that robust by Jan. 2016.

What's Ahead for 2015--

I'll be interested to see where we stand financially at the halfway point of 2015 at the end of this month.

As for non-regular bills coming up---July is college charges(but that's put aside already in it's own account and doesn't come out of the current income), August is house insurance, September is taxes(local, municipal) and November is car insurance.
Have to make sure we keep a cushion in the checking account in September for taxes as the other 2 bills we can handle readily.

By the end of June(beginning of July) we should be hitting that spot in the yearly income when the withholding goes down(thank you progressive taxing!)and what Hubs takes home in pay increases.  In 2014 that meant an addition $433 per 2-week pay period for 13 paychecks or $5K+ more for the end of the year in take-home pay.  If I can hold the budget/spending to current levels that might mean, since we have no debt, an extra $5K+ to potentially put into the Savings Challenge.
Or maybe I'll do something wild like fly to Europe and take a Viking River Cruise with that money.

Hey!
It could happen....lol

While lots of stuff is up in the air, things are looking good here at Chez Sluggy with the money. 8-)))

Sluggy
 

This Week on the Dining Table

It's the "Getting Too Hot to Run the Oven" Edition-- 

This past week was muggy and humid so running the oven was not an option most days.  It's about time to drag out the crockpot again,, fire up the outdoor grill and/or revert to cold dishes.

 

Onward to the meal planning!

 

Here's what was planned last week.......

 

1. Sunday--Garlic Ginger Shrimp Stir-fry, Rice
2. Monday--Lasagna w/Meat Sauce, Tossed Salad
3. Tuesday--Sausage Sandwiches, Brussels Sprouts
4. Wednesday--Tacos or Taco Salad
5. Thursday--Leftovers
6. Friday--Smoked Brisket Sandwiches(cooked brisket in freezer), Cole Slaw, Green Beans
7. Saturday--Leftovers

 

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Garlic Ginger Shrimp Stir-fry, Rice
2. Monday--Lasagna w/Meat Sauce, Tossed Salad
3. Tuesday--Sausage Sandwiches, Brussels Sprouts
4. Wednesday--Tacos or Taco Salad
5. Thursday--Leftovers
6. Friday--Chicken Green Chiles Enchiladas
7. Saturday--Leftovers

Everything as planned except no brisket sammies on Friday.  I had all that cooked/grilled chicken breast to use up.  I made chicken salad for a couple of lunches for myself and then got tired of it so I decided to make enchiladas with the rest.
These are a "production" to make since I make my sauce from scratch with dried chiles but the chicken was already cooked so I just spent a chunk of Friday cranking this dish out.  I made 2 pans(6 large enchiladas).  Hubs ate 1.5 and I had a half of one, leaving a pan of 4 enchiladas as leftovers.

College Boy comes home from work Friday night with his buddy(who slept over)and they ate 3 of those 4 enchiladas at 2am.(The next night they finished off the remaining enchilada, some of my pan of leftover lasagna, 3/4 of a hunk of garlic bread I bought 50%off at Weis on Friday, 2-3 grilled cheese sammiches and 2 cans of tomato soup.)  Supposedly the restaurant where they work feeds them each shift but I have my doubts.  lolz

So much for NOT upping my grocery budget while CB is home!

Luckily I kept some of that chicken and threw it into the freezer and there is leftover enchilada sauce so I can make a few more enchiladas this week as that pan of them the boys ate was a "planned-over".

As for my grocery spending last week....ouch!
I spent $181.09 on $338.61 of reg. retail food-2 trips to Weis, 1 each to Dollar Tree, Sam's Club, Shursave grocer and Kmart. There was also 1 trip to Rite-Aid for toiletries.  46.52% savings rate on what I bought or 49.86% savings rate including the Rite-Aid goodies.
I also earned a $5 gift card at Weis for doing the Nabisco/Coke deal(and CB has cookies and cokes to last a couple of weeks).
The food spending is already up to $366.96 for June and we are only halfway in the month!

I only plan on hitting my 2 local stores(once each this wee)for oss leaders and maybe a trip to Ollies(Good Stuff Cheap!)later in the week as I have a discount card that expires on Sunday.

Hopefully I can restrain myself enough to not see the backside of $500 food spending this month since July won't be pretty either. 
Oldest will be coming home next month so we can trip to NC but he'll be hanging out here a goodly portion of the month otherwise before he begins his new job down South.....and that means more mouths to feed.
But in true Scarlett O'Hara fashion I'll just think about that tomorrow. ;-)

Leftovers going into this week--2 sausage sammies patties, lasagna, maybe some taco meat.
 

Here is this week's food plan--

1. Sunday--Steak(bought last week), Green Beans, Grilled Pineapple
2. Monday--Hot Dogs(freezer) on rolls, Beans
3. Tuesday--Leftovers
4. Wednesday--Leftovers or Pizza or Pork Chops(freezer) or ?
5. Thursday--Flounder(freezer), Cole Slaw, Veg TBD
6. Friday--Smoked Brisket(freezer) on rolls, Cole Slaw, Green Beans or l/o Baked Beans
7. Saturday--Chicken Enchiladas

What I need to buy for this menu?.....cabbage for Cole slaw, pizza.

This coming week should be a light shopping one. 
The deals I plan on doing this week.....Weis-bagged Perdue chicken 40% off, maybe a couple of DiGiorno pizzas(on sale and I have a Q)for CB and some G2 Gatorades for me, Shursave grocery-cheese deal but I have a $10 store scrip to use so little cash OOP there.
$40 spending planned not included any deals I find at Ollie's.
 

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?    

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten that week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week? 

Sluggy

Changes in Sluggy's World

First Hubs is having an unexpected health issue.  Could be bad, could be just a little annoyance.  We should know more in a week or so.  Keep good thoughts out there for him if you will.

The best news is that oldest son got a teaching job.....after two years of looking!
They may say that you don't have to pay someone off and/or have a relative or political pull to get a teaching job in PA but don't believe it for a minute!  They may say there is no corruption and graft in the public schools in PA but we know better. 8-(

Anyway he will be a brand new high school social studies teacher come this August in North Carolina.  This has been his goal for years and it's finally going to happen and I am thrilled for him.

The best part is he'll only be an hour away from where the family reunion is held each September so he can go with us this year! 8-)

He will be coming home next month so I can go with him down to NC to apartment hunt since his girlfriend is still finishing up with school in Pittsburgh.  Please wish us luck with the housing search too.

We are wedging this excursion in between my cataract surgery on the 8th and one of my follow-up appointments on the 16th.  It will be tight but doable but depending on how this eye heals up he may have to do the bulk of the driving.

Then the end of July Hubs and/or I will be involved with helping them move down to NC.  The South in late July....meh...not my favorite thing but as long as I have a/c I can deal. lolz

I am happy to help my kid anyway I can but this means any plans for a Summer road trip for me the last half of July is out for this year. 8-(
August means getting College Boy ready and off back to school  the 2nd weekend that month as he has to go back a week early due to Marching Band.

Then late August we can take a deep breath and exhale......

There were tentative plans for a quick trip to Maine late August too before all this "life" happened which probably won't happen now either.

The Reunion is end of September and then we go to OC in mid October.....OC may happen or may not at this point too.

Then we get into the Fall and Christmas and how knows what will happen by then.
Perhaps a trip South for Christmas or Thanksgiving?  I know that would thrill my sister in-law if we could spend the Holidays with them. (Oldest will only be 2.5 hours from them too once in NC.)   ;-)

Oh well.....life happens and things change.....constantly!

I'm just going to take things as they come for the rest of the year.  That way I won't be disappointed if things  don't work out how I have things planned in my head.

2015 is turning into the "Year of Flux" here at Chez Sluggy.
And I am keeping an open mind about it all.

So that's the news here.
What's going on in your world?
Any big changes or life events or just the "same old, same old" in your life?

Sluggy

Ask the Sluggy

                   image from HERE


I've basically got nothing to post today.
We've got a few outdoor chores to take care of this weekend, as long as the rain holds off, plus I really need to do some photo and video editing/uploading this week from our trip.

Speaking of photos/videos I just realized this week while trying to clean out/up my computer files that I never finished editing photos from either of our last 2 trips to Ocean City MD, one in 2013 and one in 2014.  In addition I never blogged about those trips!

*Sluggy shakes her head in disbelief. *

Between chores, I'll be working on photos, videos and trying to write up posts on those 2 min-vacations....because I know y'all are just aching to hear about a 2 year old trip, right?  lolz

So for a post for today, how about I open up the comments and entertain questions from my readers?
Sounds like a plan!

If there is anything you ever wanted to ask me about anything at all about me, my life, my money, etc. or have a question about frugality, personal finance, etc. or about life in general I'll attempt to elucidate(see how I threw in that $20 word?) any and all seekers.

And don't be surprised if I ask you a question right back.......I am sneaky that way.  ;-)

Sluggy
 

More Provisions Shopping

I went down the mountain to take advantage of that KMart Pharmacy Coupon/Rx Transfer I got in the mail in May.

I had to wait until I had 2 prescriptions needing refills at the same time so I took them in and had them transferred from Rite-Aid.
An hour later I had my pills(and saved .90¢ total over having them filled at Kmart instead of Rite-Aid!)and this......

A Kmart "Award" Card with $60 on it.

Get free $$ AND save .90¢ on my drugs for a little bit of my time?
Yes please!

I had bought College Boy 4 pair of Levi's branded jeans at the Kmart in LA on our trip.  CB loves him some Levis but I only buy them when I can get a deal.  The Shreveport KMart had Levi Signature jeans on clearance for $15.99 and $16.99.
I got a waist size I thought he could wear only to haul them home to PA and find out they were too big.
Ugh!

So I returned them to my Kmart while I was there anyway and got those charges taken off our c/c.

After putting in my rxs to transfer/fill I wandered around the store and found the exact same pants in a smaller waist size that would work for CB for $10.99.  2 pair of them.
Score!

Then I saw they had that special Baja Blast Mountain Dew CB lurvs for $3 a 12-pack so I picked him some up.  A clearance box of Cheese Nips got thrown in the cart too for him...imagine that! lol

And I forgot to use the $60 Kmart card to pay for it all at the register......
Ugh. Ugh.

I also had $7 in surprise points on my Kmart SYW card so it all came to $22.95 instead of $29.95.
Not bad.

While waiting for the rxs to be filled I went next door to Dollar Tree and picked up a few things....

I picked up 3 bags of cinnamon Jolly Rancher candies....it's my favorite snack for a sweet tooth craving.
Also got 3 potsticker dumplings as they restocked, a box of lasagna noodles, a box of vegetable stock(trying this brand), 2 refill bags of hand soap, a tube of Udderly Smooth hand cream for CB(he's washing dishes at work), 1 2-pack of corn dogs(used a coupon so was .45¢) and a box of Swanson "Cream Starter"....it's stock with dairy in it for cream type soups.
$13.69 OOP.

And I splurged on myself(besides the hard candies)and got a book.....

I am nearly finished with my Stonewall Jackson book so I need something light to read.  This looked fun and was the only thing I considered in the book section at the DT.  DT use to have a good book selection....now? not so much.  I know I could have gone to the library and possibly checked this out for free but I didn't....sue me. ;-)

Some women splurge and buy themselves name brand clothing, or day spa treatments or trips to Europe.
I have much simpler needs so a $1 book takes care of that "itch" for me.
Maybe that's why we almost have enough saved to retire?...because my needs are simpler than many others.  Or is it just plain luck?  It certainly isn't due to buying lottery tickets and hitting the jackpot. lolz

I also hit Sam's Club this week for cheap Hydrogen Peroxide(much cheaper than using those Oxi products in the laundry), fresh fruit, lunchmeat for Hubs, pecans(cheapest price around), cashews(ditto), sinus meds(a year+ supply for what I use to pay for 1 monthly rx fill), chili, special taco shells and French fried onions for CB.

And there was a quick trip to Weis(PMITA)Markets on the way home for a couple of deals.
The video about that is HERE.

 Next week I am staying out of the grocery stores mostly as the shelves here are overflowing with goodies.

Did you find anything good to buy at the grocery/drug/discount/dollar/warehouse club stores this week?

Sluggy