February 28: Grad Regalia!

Our first tax workshop went really well!  I was part of the quality control which double checks all the paperwork.  It was fun finding some mistakes that resulted in students getting money back, instead of owing money!

 

Also, it's official... Ginny and I purchased our graduation regalia!

February 1: Taxes

This is the  earliest I've every done my taxes.  I usually finish them fairly early, but don't submit because of fear.  However, this year, I really need the refund with all the upcoming purchases (grad regalia, editor, graduation fees).  And as of 4:32pm yesterday, the IRS accepted my return.  Woo!

January 24: Budgeting

It's hard to not budget on a grad school salary, however, it's also virtually impossible to save under those circumstances as well.  Yesterday I went to a budgeting workshop hosted by the training and development center and today I took a good long look at my budget.  I looked at loans, income, retirement, all in an effort to be prepared for what is to come...hopefully a job.  One can only plan so much when they don't know what their income will be in the future.  But it was good to take stock of the money I have and where that money is going.

January 22: New Battery

With the cold weather we've been having, my car has been difficult to start.  This has been happening since before the winter break.  So I finally took my car to auto zone and when they tested the battery, they couldn't even get a charge.  The guy asked when I purchased the battery last.  A good indication that you need a new battery is when you cannot remember when you last purchased one.  Yay for a new battery and a car that starts up easy.  However, when did the price of batteries rise from $50 to $90?! ... and I got the lower end as I don't believe I'll be keeping this car too much longer due to transmission issues.  That's another day.