Jessys Journal

I have been really pressed for time lately and don't currently have the ability to write up a lengthly blog post, but I have been working on a few projects in my "spare" time and have come across some very useful sites.

Please feel free to check them out!

http://www.advantagehomerates.com/: A great resource for mortgage and home loan information, if you want to buy while we're still in a buyer's market!

Free Mortgage Quotes: Another site where you can apply for a free, no strings attached mortgage quote. Or, if you are lucky enough to have a high credit score, take advantage of Excellent Credit Mortgage Quotes.

Buy Medical Insurance: Here's a site that will help you obtain quality HMO or PPO care if you cannot get covered by your employer. See also Discount Medical Insurance.

Auto Insurance Quotes: Similar, but this one offers policies for your car, truck, or SUV. There are also Free Auto Insurance Quotes, and Cheap Car Insurance Quotes if you can't afford to pay a professional advisor right now.

Merchant Accounts: If you are thinking of taking your newfound knowledge on the road, make sure you can accept your customer's credit cards.

admin @ 13:36 | comments(0) | Permanent link

We have been going back and forth about cable television for over a year now! In December, I gave my partner a flat screen hdtv, and we were set for awhile -- even though we only pay for basic cable, we were suddenly able to get a great variety of channels because of our digital signal. The kids were thrilled to have Cartoon Network, Nick, and the Disney Channel back since they love to watch many of the shows that appear on those channels.

Unfortunately, a few weeks ago, we discovered that all of our "good" channels have disappeared. We only get the smallest selection now, and the kids are back to watching PBS Kids. In some ways, this is a big relief. My littlest was getting a bad case of the gimmes from watching television that showed lots of commercials for all the newest toys coming out. On the other hand, I would rather sit down and watch Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney instead of Sesame Street on PBS . . . and so would the kids! They're getting too big for television aimed at pre-schoolers.

Instead of giving more money to comcast, our local cable provider, we are thinking seriously about switching to satellite. After all, directv comes with free satellite dish installation. We would be able to get a wider variety of stations, and I feel really good about the prospect of free installation because there are quite a few government rules for installing a dish. I want to make sure that we follow our local and national laws, if we do decide to go with an alternative to cable.

My partner wants to make up his mind by September, since his favorite FX show (Sons of Anarchy) will be back on by then and he doesn't want to miss out! He is far too impatient to wait until the next day or so when it shows up online to watch -- he has to have his Sons as soon as he can!

jessy @ 15:06 | comments(0) | Permanent link

http://www.advantagehomerates.com/

jessy @ 12:07 | comments(0) | Permanent link

My car is not doing well.  Of course, I don't expect a lot -- it only cost $400, and Mike put some labor into it to make it run when we first got it.  I like it well enough, it's covered in my bumper stickers, and it gets decent gas mileage.   However, it's dying a slow death, and I'm not sure how much money I should throw at it before giving up.

This has prompted me to start looking for a new car, or at least a car that will be new to me.  I would really like a hybrid of some sort.  If I bought new, I'd buy the Ford Fusion Hybrid without a second thought.  However, I really can't afford to take on payments like that right now, and even if I could -- I am worried about the insurance costs.  I've been getting car insurance quotes online lately, trying to figure out if I can afford a used Prius or maybe a new Honda Fit or something! 

Can anyone recommend a great new or used car with good gas mileage?

jessy @ 12:36 | comments(0) | Permanent link

I started my holiday shopping already!  I'm never this prepared -- even though I don't typically leave xmas presents to the last minute -- so it's kind of exciting to start shopping in September.  I'm not using credit cards, either -- it's all money that I actually have in the bank!  Not only are my kids getting cool presents, but I'm not going to bankrupt myself to pay for them, either!

So far, I purchased some really neat Gorilla blocks for the kids to share, and a big Optimus Prime transformer for my son -- that's one of the things he is really hoping Santa will bring for him.  I want to buy more, but the darn Gorilla blocks are on backorder, and I want to see the money come out of my account before I spend more of it.  I hate having to keep track of stuff like that -- money that's been spent but that is still sitting there as if it hasn't!

jessy @ 13:38 | comments(0) | Permanent link

It's not a good feeling, but it's not going away, either.  I might as well indulge myself and my silly memories.

Today, I was thinking about when my daughter was small and I decided to start my own business.  We rented out this small storefront, bordering on dilapidated.  We painted it all up inside, these bright and vibrant colors -- a different one on each wall.  We decorated with skulls and other punk garb, and made up an awesome logo with the name Riot emblazoned on it.

Once we got up and running, we started making friends . . . friends with the newspaper photographer who came in to cover our opening, friends with the kids who walked by every day after school, friends with the customers who came in once and became regulars very quickly.  It was a great environment to be in -- if only we'd been making money! 

Of course, the money dried up, and we closed up, and the friendships disappeared as well.  However, we have some great memories from our time there, and I'm not adverse to opening another business . . . someday.

jessy @ 13:19 | comments(0) | Permanent link

I hit enter too quickly, before. 

Thinking about my friend from the previous post makes me think about another friend from Wizards.  We'll call him Pat, because that's his name. 

In the summer of 2001, Pat was far and away the best friend I had.  We went out to dinner almost every night, went to awesome concerts (several of which he paid for -- either with his at-the-time sizeable bank account or with a handy credit card), played pool at this dingy billiards place, made dirty jokes, and just had one hell of a time.  Another friend -- who was supposed to be a closer friend, actually -- said that he regrets that summer because it should have been our time.  The funny thing is, I don't regret a thing.  There were awesome people coming into my life, awesome friendships that could have turned into even more significant relationships, and just a general sense of happiness that whole summer. 

In thinking back, I'm sure I was angsty about something, then.  I was 21, and it's easy to be angsty when you're 21.  But wow, I really don't remember anything other than how freaking happy I was. 

jessy @ 12:44 | comments(0) | Permanent link

Not too long ago, I was driving home from the store and suddenly realized that I recognized the license plate on the car in front of me -- it was a former co-worker, from almost eight years ago, when I worked at Wizards of the Coast in Bridgewater.  I so badly wanted to flag him down and talk to him again.  He was an incredibly sweet man, just really such a lovely person.  Having recently had a bunch of old memories of that place stirred up by another old friend, I thought it would be excellent to sit down with this guy for a chat, lunch, something.  I decided not to start honking and waving at home, remembering that he was the one who used to go into panic mode when the credit card transactions wouldn't go through.  He probably wouldn't take kindly to being beeped at or otherwise harassed (even by well-intentioned old me) while trying to operate his vehicle.

Once I got home, I tried his old email address (which was from webtv -- guess they aren't even around anymore).  I tried facebook.  Myspace.  Nothing found him, though I turned up lots of other people with his rather common name.  I guess I'm going to break down and send him an old fashioned, pen and paper letter.  I still remember his address, and I miss him. 

 

jessy @ 12:12 | comments(0) | Permanent link