20saver

+I modeled today for 3 hours= $36
+I will be modeling two more times next week= $66
+I applied for a job today and will apply for at least one more before the week is out
-Jake informed me that he didn’t have enough money to pay his student loans and now has to pay a late fee
+Jake has a strong lead for a better job
-Wedding invitations are expensive
-I haven’t studied for the GRE in weeks
-Our old landlords still haven’t gotten the unjustified fee cleared up and will most likely deduct it from our security deposit
+I sold a shelving unit= $20
-We’re still not completely unpacked yet
+Thank you for the wedding encouragement

I managed to sell 2 DVDs, a CD, and a futon cover today for $19. That brings our total of money we’ve made from selling stuff because of the move up to $264.20. We also got $4 back from Kroger for returning our glass milk bottles. Now, if only I could sell the two pieces of furniture and large stack of DVDs and CDs we no longer need too…

Everything has finally been moved in. We just have to go back over and clean up the old apartment before officially handing over our keys.

I can’t seem to get a reliable wireless signal at our new place so Jake and I may break down and sign up for our own connection. I hear it’s pretty pricey, so we’ll see. My posts will most likely be as spotty as our internet for the next few days. Apologies!

Sorry for the general neglect lately- tomorrow is our final moving day and all my extra time has been devoted to packing and moving. I hope to resume posting tomorrow night or Thursday. See you on the flip side!

Jake and I started moving things into our new apartment today. I’m exhausted from getting up so early and sweating from the heat and exertion.

I dropped off my car and got it inspected today. Nothing was wrong with it and I only had to pay $16. I think that’s the first time that’s ever happened.

Jake’s mom sent me an envelope full of coupons. It was nice to come home to that little surprise after such a long day.

I woke up bright and early to get my car inspected this morning. When I got to the mechanic at around 8.30, they only had one inspector working and they wouldn’t even be able to look at my car until noon or 1. I was going to sit and wait for it, but there’s no way I’d wait that long, especially when I had other errands to do and I need to be at work at 4. I decided to come back another day before July 1.

I then drove to Rite Aid to pick up the Crest mouth wash that they have free after rebate this week since Jake has been asking for mouth wash for awhile now. I looked high and low, but, alas, they were all sold out.

Okay, fine, I said to myself, I’ll go across the street and get a loaf of bread at the bakery outlet to have something to show for my wasted time and gas. I had to wait about 10 minutes for them to open, but once they did, I grabbed a loaf of multigrain bread and held it like a baby.

I’m tired. And hungry. And I still need to get my car inspected.

I wanted to write a quick note before I start packing up the apartment to say that Jake and I now have over $3,000 in our savings account. This nice jump was largely thanks to my family’s generosity for my graduation and birthday. We have some more to deposit, mostly the remainder of Jake’s stimulus check, which we should get transferred in the next few days. Once we get that money and the security deposit back and deposited, our balance should be pushed up to $4,000.

After 7 long years, my beloved Birkenstock sandals finally bit the dust. One of the straps ripped out from the sole and no amount of coaxing will get it to stay attached anymore. Traveling an innumerable amount of places, we had a real good run and I’ll miss my all purpose sandals dearly.

Sigh. Now the bargain hunt for a new pair begins.

I got a notice from the Virginia DMV stating that my car is up for renewal at the end of July. At first glance, this wasn’t really interesting, but I read some more of the letter and I discovered that the DMV will charge you an extra $5 for going to one of their centers to renew your registration. Virginia is passing a law in July that makes this possible in the hopes of cutting down on the amount of people who visit the DMV centers, saving time and money for everyone. You can renew your registration online, by phone, or by mail in order to avoid this extra fee. If you renew online, you get an extra $1 off your registration ($2 if you renew for two years).

I was going to renew online anyway, but now I’m thinking about renewing my registration online for two years so I can just get it out of the way and not have to worry about it every year. Also, it looks like there was a proposal to increase the registration fee by $10, so if I pay for two years, I could possibly avoid paying an extra $10 for the second year.

So, if I renew my vehicle registration online for two years, I will save the following:
$10 ($5 per year for renewing at a DMV center)
+$2 (incentive for renewing online)
+$10 (if the proposed registration increase passes legislation)
For a total of $22. Not too bad for paying for something that’s required by law.

I think it’s very interesting that the tendency to do things online is so strong that they are willing to penalize people who choose to do things the “old fashioned” way, i.e., in person. It certainly is a sign of the times.

Please keep in mind that this information is only relevant to Virginia residents.

The next time you throw your change in the exact change bin on a toll road or bridge, be sure to check the return change tray for any change people may have forgotten to pick up. You won’t hit the jackpot, but you may get the amount you paid for the toll back.