Well, it seems I just don't post here anymore unless it's the weekend.

But I'm happy to report my f/t job is still going very well. I do rather enjoy it and I am growing more hopeful that there will indeed be an offer of a perm position come September.

If they only extend the contract assignment (likely, 3 months at a time) that would not be terrible, because as of May 1 I will already be on the agency's health plan and paying MUCH more affordable rates, so the only thing I'm losing out on is the ability to contribute to a 401k and the paid vacation/holiday time. Which is not a small thing.

My preference is still the perm job, of course, though i do worry and wonder how much lower the offer would be than what I'm making now. Because I do feel what I'm getting now $35/hr, or $72k on an annual basis, is lower than what I should be getting, by at least $10K.

I guess we'll cross that bridge if we come to it. For now, I am still so exceedingly grateful to have been getting a regular paycheck for the past 6.5 months. It feels great! And it is super wonderful to be earning it after having paid my mortgage off. The money goes so much farther! Most is being funneled into retirement savings.

This weekend I am feeling blissful because I have no real obligations to anyone, for a change. I have the weekend all to myself.

So I started things off with Chinese takeout tonight and I've been considering how best to spend my time, just doing fun stuff. I hope to fit in the following "fun" activities:

1. Checking out a condo open house I've had my eye on for a while.
2. Renting some DVDs movies at the library.
3. Trying out a new craft, turning regular clear glass vases and such into mercury glass with a special spray and following directions I found online. (I love mercury glass.)
4. A little yard work.

I have a pile of cut hardwoods (dogwood, crabapple and birch) stacked in my driveway. It's got to be at least a third of a cord. I've love to sell it on Craig's List to recoup part of the $100 I paid the guy to cut it down for me, but I have a feeling not many people are thinking of buying firewood now, even if it is a bargain price. So I may have to live with it til fall. But firewood on the East Coast is always in demand as there are many wood-burning stoves around here, so I'll periodically post ads until I get a taker. I'm only asking $50. A full cord goes for $200, sometimes $225, although that may be delivered, so $50 for a third does represent some savings.

I called my dad and his ex, Kathy, to make sure they were ok as I've been seeing reports in the news of a large brushfire very close to where they live. They are fine. Had a good talk with Kathy about coming down for a visit first week of July (a mandatory week-long furlough for contract workers). Due to my cats, I would not go down for more than 2 days, but it would still be fun, and it would be the first long distance road trip with my nearly one-year-old Civic.
I want to see if it really gets 41 mpg.

For some reason, today after work, something compelled me to do a Google search of that old boyfriend from years ago that I've blogged about, the one who kept calling me at Christmas or my birthday, for years, even when I asked him to stop.

We dated when I was in my 20s, and he was 30-something, when we both lived on Cape Cod. He was a carpenter. We had a lot of fun doing things like camping and canoeing. He let me drive his MG convertible around town a lot. I still have his recipe for chicken soup, as well as a simple jewelry box he made me with his own hands. But we had a bad break-up; he hurt me in a parking lot when I tried to break up with him, someone at the restaurant called the police, a chase ensued and they filed charges against him for assault (against a cop) with a deadly weapon (his vehicle). I'm not sure whatever happened with those charges, but they may have been dropped.

Fast forward to his phone calls some 20 years later. Somehow he got a hold of my phone number. Maybe not too difficult since I'm not unlisted. I thought the calls were intrusive and I told him I didn't have an interest in renewing anything. He seemed to have forgotten about our bad break-up and kept calling, even after I told him I was engaged and/or married.

The last time he called me was probably a year ago. He told me he had emphysema and that the doctor had told him he had a year to live. I wasn't sure whether or not to believe him and wondered if this was just a ploy to get me to talk to him. But he had been a lifetime smoker.

So I googled his name tonight; i have no idea why. The very first thing that popped up in the search results was his obituary.

http://www.eagletribune.com/obituaries/x1767996312/Michael-Joseph-Nartiff

He died this past January. For some reason, the family chose to use a photo of him from when he served in the Army in the Vietnam War. I honestly would never have recognized him if it didn't accompany his obituary. When I met him, he had longish curly hair, a mustache and very long sideburns, which were the style back in the 80s. In the Army, of course, he had a crewcut, but I did recognize that smile and his teeth.

I have to say I feel very sad, as well as guilty that I didn't have a few more kind words for him. I had hardened my heart against him and now I feel very sad for him.

Today was another picture-perfect weather day. We had a lovely ride on the rail trail, which started in the commuter parking lot in Wassaic, the very last stop on the Harlem River line, which ends at Grand Central Station in NY. But this was about an hour and a half north of the city, in a very small town, to put it in perspective for those unfamiliar with NY State.

Here's a few shots:


This photo doesn't really do it justice, but all along the way (10 miles up and 10 miles back) we had great views of the surrounding farmland.


I loved seeing these stone walls with moss.



There were a lot of people out on the trail. We ended the 10 miles up there in the small country town of Millerton, NY. It's the home of Hanley & Sons Teas, so we stopped in and sampled some exotic teas at the "tea bar" and briefly browsed their store. We had a nice lunch outside, and then returned to the bikes for the ride home.

Once back at my place, I invited Mike in for a beer. He brought up the subject of "us," again, saying he'd sensed for a while that I am somewhat ambivalent about us, or holding back. Which is true, for all the reasons I told you about in my last post, but I hadn't realized it was somewhat transparent. He basically said he's fine with whatever I decide, if I want to be just friends or whatever, but he was also telling me he wants me to make up my mind fairly soon because he's been down this road before and he's not getting any younger. He had told me previously about the woman he dated for 4 months who was also ambivalent for that entire time.

He basically doesn't want to waste time on something that's not going to go anywhere, and I can't say I blame him. We agreed to talk again after Easter, since we both know we're both going to be busy with family stuff next weekend. But I've pretty much decided I have to let him go. It's not really fair to string him along, and while my initial impression of him was very positive, I just don't feel a strong attraction to him. He said two people should feel like they can't wait to see each other, when they're first starting to date, and he could tell that I didn't really feel that level of enthusiasm.

I'm depressed about having to end it becus this has been my problem in the past: it's hard for me to find a guy that really excites me. I really wonder if there's something wrong with me. I could be commitment-phobic, since my own parents divorced early on and my mother was married 3 times, so I didn't exactly have good role models.

I am somewhat reserved when I first meet someone but I also often feel that men want things to progress to sleeping together long before I'm really comfortable with that. And if I sense there's a real possibility things might not last, I certainly don't want to sleep with them, although it seems that for the guy, it's very different.

One thing I liked about Mike's profile is that he'd said he wanted to "take things slow," but then he brought up the subject and said so, you like to take things slow? and i said, well yeah, and i thought you did too since it was in your profile and he said well i usually go by what the other person wants to do. So i felt like he was basically trying to get at how long it might be before we slept together. I just don't feel at all ready to sleep with someone when I'm not completely sure I'm into the guy. I mean, today was only date #6.

Oh well. Meeting him was really great for my ego becus it had been a while since I'd dated anyone and it was very nice having someone who was interested and attracted to me. So, even though it didn't really work out, he has sort of spurred me on to want to find that elusive great relationship somewhere else.

Today I picked up my new eyeglasses at BJs. Honestly, I didn't see any cost savings. They're progressives, and they cost about $350.

But, I do like them. The frames are a maroonish color and the part that goes on the sides to your ear have an interesting art deco style design to them. I'm glad to get rid of the frames I'd worn for over 2 years. Truth be told, I NEVER liked them and they seemed too big for my face. But I'm pretty near-sighted, and couldn't really seem them well when i picked them out.

So now I'm thinking I want to update my sunglasses, too, as i have a very old prescription in them and they hurt my eyes when i put them on. The frames are fine, but the lady at BJs said I wouldn't really save much by not replacing them. However, they just didn't have that shape at BJs becus they're not on trend. Which I really don't care about. Trends, that is.

Today I also got some pyrethrin spray at Agway (used for horses) that I've read is much more effective in actually killing ticks than any DEET or Off spray. I never spray on my skin anyway, so I'm happy to have the pyrethrin.

I also spent a very nice afternoon working in the yard. The weather was perfect, and will be again tomorrow, when I will be doing a 20-mile bike ride with Mike on an off-road rail trail in the area of Millerton, NY.

While I'm looking forward to the bike ride (sort of) I'm having some doubts about Mike. Initially, I noticed some common interests, but now I've also noticing some major lifestyle differences. He's retired, I'm not. (Hence he has a lot more time than me to do things he needs to do during the week.) I have a house, he has a condo. (My house requires a lot more upkeep and especially outdoor maintenance.)

He's not the kind of guy who likes to hang around the house. He likes to keep doing things like long hikes (5 hours last week), bike rides, etc. I like to do those things, too, but I simply don't have the time to do them every weekend.

He was telling me last weekend of one woman he briefly dated. It didn't work out, he said, becus they'd often discuss doing something like a hike, but he'd go over her house and they'd wind up doing other things and she treated the hike as if it was optional, if they had time after everything else she had to do. He became resentful that they never seemed to get around to doing things he wanted to do.

Well, that woman sort of sounded like me. While I was hugely into hiking most of my life, especially in my 20s and 30s, I have gotten away from it in recent years in light of my 2 cases of Lyme. And, well, life also gets in the way.

I would love to date someone who had an interest in spending time at my house, helping me with various things, and I've also come to enjoy rather leisurely Sundays when I stay close to home and cook, among other things. I just don't feel a driving need to go out on long hikes and bike rides every weekend. Occasionally, yes, but I sense that Mike wants to do it regularly.

I also feel bad leaving my 2 cats alone on the weekends after they're alone all day long during the week when I'm at work. Mike doesn't have pets, and he had a pretty noticeable allergic reaction when he spent some time at my place last weekend. He seemed to be speaking in a rather disapproving manner when he was talking about how some people let their cats have full run of the house, including on the bed. Well, that would be me again, and if I tried to shut my cats out of the bedroom, there would be scratching and wailing.

Mike is extremely outdoor-oriented. I'm not sure I can keep up with him, physically, nor do I have a lot of free time to do all these things. I had forgotten that new relationships require a fair investment of time, and gosh, get together every single weekend? Once lawn mowing season starts, that just won't happen, especially if he's not willing to just "hang out."

I did talk to him about it a few nights ago. He sounded a little disappointed and maybe a little on the defensive, but better to bring it up now rather than later. We left things sort of unresolved.

I don't know if I'm "creating" an issue or making a mountain out of a molehill, or maybe I shouldn't spend so much time thinking about the future, and about all the "what ifs" and just enjoy the present more, like my Chinese fortune cookie from last night said.

I guess that's why i decided to proceed with the planned bike ride: It will be a gorgeous day and I have the time to do it now. I have never been on this particular rail trail; it's about an hour north of us.

The other thing is, I HATE to say this, is that I'm not sure I'm physically attracted to him. It is SO hard for me to find ANYONE I'm attracted to, so when I met this genuinely nice, intelligent, not bad-looking, not overweight and upbeat guy, I noticed he wasn't my physical type but figured, I'm an adult now, surely I can overcome physical issues becus there are more important things. Well, I'm not sure that's going to work since we did get a little romantic last weekend and it wasn't really doing a whole lot for me.

So i don't know. I guess it doesn't sound too good. Even at this early stage, it will be awkward to break things off with him. Although i guess the best opportunity to do that would be after Easter as I know both of us will be busy with family stuff next weekend. It would be easier to do over the phone.

My friend Ron told me something I don't agree with at all. He said I'd be better off on my own because the kind of guy who would be attracted to me would be very hard to find, plus, he said, if I'm moderately happy now, say at 6o or 70% (I'm not sure I agree with the exact percentage), then meeting a guy will never make me 100% happy, it will only boost my happiness up to, say 80%, becus no relationship is ever perfect. So in his rather warped way of thinking of relationships like a numbers game, he feels it's not worth the effort for me, even though he has started dating someone himself.

The life coach from Las Vegas whose manuscript I began editing (I did the first half) is back from her vacation and is very happy with my work. She already recommended me to more than other person, she said, so that's great. Word of mouth is better than any advertising,and since I don't advertise, it's a great way to expand my client base.

I got 2 very good bits of $-related news yesterday.

1. I learned my contract job is up Sept. 2, not in July, as I'd thought. What was the cause for the mix-up? Well, I was told it was a 10-month assignment, but the agency tracks your time according to hours worked, not weeks. So all those holidays I fretted about because I couldn't work them, and all those smaller paychecks also due to the the half days BEFORE the holiday I didn't work, and a times I took a few hours off for a doc appointment, well....I will earn all that money after all.

It's really just 1 extra month, so I don't know why I'm so happy about it, but I am.

Also, I had a meeting with my boss today and she asked me, IF there was an offer of a permanent position, would I be interested. I said yes, absolutely, you don't have to ask!! Everyone at the bank has wanted an in-house writer for a long time, she said, confirming what others have told me.

I'm just afraid that, what if they do what another contract employer did, decide they should advertise the position outside the bank to make sure they were getting the very best? I HOPE that wouldn't happen. There have been a number of other contractors who got perm offers at the bank, so fingers crossed.

I've also heard that usually when they hire a contractor, your salary DROPS compared to what you were making at an hourly rate, because they argue that you're now getting full benefits, paid time off, etc. I'm not thrilled about that, because I feel I'm quite a bit underpaid for the industry, my years of experience and this part of the country....I'm making $35/hr, which is about $72K a year. I feel I should be making around $85K.

I hope they wouldn't drop it below $65K, but who really knows?

2. The other good news I got was that, after working 6 months at the bank, I'm now eligible to get on the health plan offered by the recruiter agency that found me. I got the PPO paperwork this week, and after the agency chips in roughly half the monthly premium, I will have to pay just $175 a month!!! It's an Aetna plan with a $5K deductible (mostly all I ever use a plan for is the usual stuff that's 100% covered now anyway, like a physical, mammogram, gyno) and co-pays of $25 for PCP and $50 for a specialist. It covers meds. For other stuff, it covers 80/20%. I will be fine as long as, say, I didn't need surgery or some expensive procedure, because 20% can be quite a lot of money.

Anyway, I can't wait to get on the plan. Compared to the $404 a month I'm paying now, $175 will feel like nothing! I'll be effective May 1.

Now that I know I'm working til Sept 2 at the least, I anticipate having to repay about $1400 to the IRS when I file my taxes next year, to pay back the subsidy I got for Jan - April. Sometime in the fall, my earnings will exceed the income limit for the subsidy, which is about $46K.

I am doing well on my retirement savings plan (see sidebar, bottom). I aimed to save at least $800 a month toward my retirement, and I've already saved $6,100, not $3200, for the first 4 months of this year.

So I am finally loosening up the purse strings, just a little, paying for lunch when I was out with Mike last weekend, an occasional lunch at the office cafe, and some clothing and vitamins.

Now I can daydream about how wonderful it would be to get a perm job this fall. Even with a pay cut, I can easily live while making $60K-something, without a mortgage. Heck, not too many years ago, I lived on a $50K salary while I still had my mortgage!

So, knowing that, I would immediately max out my 401k, including the catch-up contributions for age 50 and above. And then I would really look forward to some paid vacation time, an excellent health plan and still a very reasonable work day. A lot of people leave there right at 5pm and at most, some stay til 5:30 pm. No workaholics there!

Today after work I had an optometrist appointment. I only went there because I want to get a new pair of eyeglasses. I've had my current frames for just 2 years, but I NEVER liked them. The problem is that I'm very near-sighted and really couldn't see them that well when I was trying them on. So my eyes didn't change much. I will take the prescription to Costco at the next opportunity (maybe Saturday).

I also hit Trader Joe's tonight.

Tomorrow is errands day, including major house cleaning cus on Sunday, Mike is coming over, we're doing a big hike somewhere and then we'll be at my place for a light dinner. I won't feel like cooking after a hike, but I plan to make a wheat berry salad tomorrow with celery, apple chunks currants, and orange zest. It's quite good. I'll pair that with some yummy tomato soup from TJs and some great croutons. For starters we can nibble crackers and guacamole. And I bought some Hawaiian beer to try as he enjoys drinking beer.

Tonight I'm really pooped and am glad I can turn the alarm off for tomorrow.

Today I was on the road for 7 hours (round trip) to attend a 1-hour meeting at another of my employer's offices out of state. Frankly, I'm exhausted.

I drove up with 2 other contract workers and i wasn't doing the driving, but it was still so tiring, as I had to get up at 5:30 am and due to hot flashes since 2010, I never sleep well to begin with, so having to get up early with the hot flashes just meant i got even less sleep than usual. So i am dragging now.

This was a meeting they pushed for us all to attend because we were to hear the new head of our dept. expound on her goals for the company, blah blah blah.

As a contractor who doesn't get the benefit of the full range of employee benefits, I guess I have less than the desirable rah rah attitude.

What's more, they want to start doing "team building" meetings at same location once every quarter now. An all-day event, 9 to 5 p.m.

I've just decided I can't do this again. Now my boss goes up to this location very frequently, like nearly every other week, but the difference is, she'll go up for several days, sometimes the whole week, and she'll either stay in a hotel or at her daughter's. But we are told to get up there and then drive home same day.

Even worse, you'd think they'd schedule the meetings with some consideration for those of us coming up from CT, but no, they often schedule the meetings for 9 a.m., forcing me, for instance, to get up at 4:30, to leave by 5:30, to be there by 9 am.

Ridiculous.

Of all the people who go there from CT, I probably have the longest drive becus i happen to live furthest west. But even so, the others still have a total of about 6 hours on the road, so just a little more for me.

I'm wondering if I should just tell my boss or what. I really want to before the next meeting in May. Otherwise, they really like me there becus I'm doing a good job. They keep a tight lid on expenses so they probably wouldn't permit to stay overnight in a hotel, especially when others don't do that.

A recent Businessweek story suggested that you should split your take home pay into 3 major categories:

50% towards Essentials, like housing, transportation, utilities and groceries.
20% towards Savings, like retirement accounts, emergency funds, or debt payments.
30% towards Lifestyle Choices, which are basically whatever discretionary purchases you wish to make, like eating out, shopping, entertainment, etc.

So the goal should be 50/20/30

Since I already track all my spending each month, I thought it would be fun to see how my numbers stack up.

My numbers For the month of February look like this:

Essential spending: 33%
Savings: 64%
Discretionary: 3%

One big reason why I can do this is because I paid off my mortgage, so my total expenses for February, for example, were just $1559. I also don't have children.

My teeny bit of discretionary spending in February included a few things for the house, some clothing and eating lunch out a few times.

I'm saving a lot now, which is great, but I know I will be needing to spend a fair amount to make the various upgrades I feel are needed before I put my house on the market.

I'm finding myself really reluctant to spend the money as I prefer to boost my retirement savings, but I'm taking my "to do" list one slow step at a time, and trying to save some bucks by cajoling friends to help me with certain things. Like, last fall I bought a new shiny brass door handle for my storm door at front entry; the old one was an eyesore. But there are a LOT of little parts to it and I feel it's beyond my capabilities. Haven't done anything with it because it got too chilly outdoors. So I plan to ask my friend Dave for help and bribe him with another home-cooked meal. I think he'd do it even without the home-cooked meal, but at least this way I feel he's getting something in exchange.

I want to wait til it's a little warmer outside before asking him. If I had to pay a handyman to do it, they'd probably charge at least $50 to do it.

Friday nights for me are a welcome event, but in truth I do absolutely nothing, as the wear and tear of the previous week seems to cumulatively build up so that by the time the end of the work week is upon me, I'm just looking forward to chillin' before the busyness of my weekends begins!

But as for this weekend, I was busy Sunday and M. was busy today, so earlier in the week, he was saying he really wanted us to see each other this weekend (I agree, it helps to keep the momentum going in our fledgling, dare I say, relationship?), so I agreed to head over to his house last night after work.

I was worried I'd be too tired. Which I was, but it was still worth it. He got us a pizza and he had a Netflix movie for us to watch. I got to see where he lived. I very much liked his condo complex in the woods, although inside, it was very much the bachelor pad, in that, well, he's no interior designer.

It was clear that M. doesn't care about possessions; what he does care about are people, relationships and outdoor experiences like skiing, hiking, biking and soon, kayaking.

Anyway, we watched The Tunnel (foreign, with sub-titles, based on a true story about Germans who dug a tunnel to the other side in the 1960s before the wall came down). He asked me more about my dysfunctional tiny family, something I don't really like to talk about, but he seemed to accept it.

This was date #4. I told him that it wasn't until date #3 that I realized he really was interested in me, romantically, becus he was too much the gentleman. And personally, I don't like it when a man "asks" you if it's ok to kiss you cus of course that just makes me nervous. He should just swoop in and do it. I got home after midnight.

I reconnected recently with another guy (Dave), someone who had organized and run a biking group I was very involved in 10 or 12 years ago. This was the guy who, as a teen, was involved in a terrible accident when his friend accidentally shot him in the head with a hunting rifle, in a boat. Becus of his limp, he always had a tough time keeping up with hikers in the larger hiking group we were both involved in, so he began to "recruit" people from the hiking group that he thought would be interested in his little biking group. Because on a bike, he was anyone's equal.

But I drifted away from that group, partly becus he hit on me several times (by planting a big kiss on me) even after I told him I wasn't interested, and when he persisted, it made me uncomfortable, so I just stopped going on the rides. (Everyone else in the biking group knew of his infatuation too, so it made the whole thing even more public and embarrassing.) Over the years, he still called from time to time, always sent Christmas cards, so this past Christmas I finally picked up the phone and we had a nice talk. Then, more recently, I invited him down and I made him a nice beef stew.

I sense that he's lonely. He never remarried after his divorce many years ago. He just retired a year or so ago, from Johnson & Johnson, with a nice pension; he lives in his mother's house. He lived with and cared for his mother until she passed away from dementia and cancer. He wants to get together again, and I think we will. I am coming round to place a greater value on relationships, and not so casually tossing away friendships with people that I've known for a while.

Bumped into a friend at the garden nursery as I was browsing for some birthday gifts. I've avoided calling her becus i was afraid she'd ask how my home improvements went, for which I hired a guy she and her husband had highly recommendedo. (I was extremely unhappy with the outcome in terms of both the workmanship and the price.) I didn't want to have that conversation with her, and really, it had nothing to do with her and her husband, but I knew she would feel bad about it if she knew. But I was happy to see her; she gave me a big hug. She was the person I "job-shared" with at the $12 an hour p/t job I took last year out of desperation. We shared the same desk/cube. She still works there, after I moved on, and she informed me cheerfully that she'd gotten a .40 an hour raise, so now she makes $12.40. She's a retired school teacher in an unhappy marriage.

Then I bumped into my neighbor walking her beagle. We both remarked on how happy we were that spring is here, at least for today.

It's small conversations and interactions like these that make me happy.

Today I'm doing more freelance editing (and tomorrow too). And tomorrow I'm cooking dinner for my sister and mother's birthdays, a delicious lamb stew/casserole that I've cooked a zillion times. Comes out great every time.

A fun calculator to try.

https://www.livingto100.com/

I've had a pretty productive and enjoyable weekend.

I told The Bachelor that I could not see him this weekend as I needed to start editing a manuscript for the Vegas motivational speaker. He was fine with that.

The weather on Saturday was the warmest we've had yet, in the 50s, and it was also bright and sunny, so I didn't get started on that editing right away. Instead, I checked out the annual pet and equine show at local college and picked up 7 different sample-sized bags of dry cat food for the boys. I also did some grocery shopping, filled up the gas tank, stopped at the landfill to unload some trash, and vacuumed and washed my car. Phew.

I started editing last night and continued today for most of the day. I'm up to page 35 of 99 pages, which is just the first half of the book. The client is away on a trip right now so I have a solid 2 weeks to finish the rest of this first half, which shouldn't be too hard. Happily, I already deposited her check of $500, which made me happy.

Had a nice long phone conversation with my friend Michael, who is dealing with a hellish commute right now in a contract job but making very nice money. I also made a batch of granola and a three-grain dish (barley, brown rice and quinoa) with sauteed mushrooms and onions, along with spinach. This will serve as the core of my workday lunches this week.

I learned that next year my employer's lease is up on the building and they don't plan to renew! This means they will either lay people off, relocate some to other offices or possibly let some people entirely telecommute. We occupy 3 floors of this building and it will be a blow to the downtrodden city we're in as they can use all they help they can get. So there's a lot of uncertainty, and there have been a few more layoffs.

I got my IRS refund of close to $1,000, but this is just going into savings. I anticipate having to pay about that much back to the IRS when I do my taxes next year if I get an extension on my contract job. I think I have a decent shot for at least another 3 months as I've seen as 3 women I know there whose terms were about to expire got extended another 3 months. However, this is no way to live and it's impossible to plan anything if you don't know if you'll have a job beyond 3 months. And I'll hate like the dickens to have to pay back at least $1100. It would be a lot more if I worked the rest of the year and continued getting the healthcare subsidy, but I am HOPING that when I become eligible for the recruiter agency's health plan April 1 that it will be cheaper and that I can switch to it.

So I think with a little bit of encouragement, Mike will wind up purchasing a kayak. He needs to do more research, but this is something he had thought of before, and then when he met me, well, it would make it even more appealing with a built-in kayaking partner. As soon as weather permits, perhaps in April, he wants to take a drive up to a kayak shop I told him about and then also bring the bikes so we can ride on the rail trail in that area. Like I've said before, I just hope I can keep up with this guy! Not an ounce of fat on this one!

It's been a relaxing weekend; while it's not usually that painful to go back to work, I do wish I could just lounge around a bit more.

Oh, I'm so tired. That will happen when you're tromping through the woods in the snow.

Today was my 3rd date with Mike. When I got up this a.m. I wasn't really feeling like walking in the snow, and I was feeling kind of tired from the usual work week. But we had already planned the date. We walked for well over 2 hours in a good 6 inches of snow, which made it really difficult and slower going.

Keith Richards is known to have a house that you can see from one of the trails in the preserve. It looks pretty nice from the outside, but it's not enormously-sized or anything.

What was cool is that Mike said he'd read Keith Richards' autobiography ("Life") and that he talks a little about the house and the fact that it's next to a nature preserve, although he doesn't name it. There are also pictures of it inside.

The walk was very tiring (I am so out of shape), but it was quiet and peaceful at the same time. It also was fairly warm today with blue skies with temps in the low 40s. The small parking lot was full with about 10 cars. I was so surprised.

After the walk we came back to my house. It was his first time there. We changed out of our wet boots, hung around and talked in the kitchen over tall glasses of V8 and then decided to head to the local Chinese place for dinner.

So I guess we broke the ice as he tried to kiss me twice as he was saying goodbye. It was a little lopsided, I told him i was a little rusty and he said that's ok, he's a little rusty too. It was oh so awkward! If you think it gets easier when you're older, no it doesn't, not at all! Egads.

But I guess it tells me he's interested. He was actually such a gentleman on our previous 2 dates that I was wondering whether he wasn't sure if he wanted any romantic thing with me and maybe just wanted a hiking partner.

The whole idea of romance just gives me the heebeejeebees, if you know what I mean. It's NERVE-WRACKING to even think about it.

Tomorrow I have a lot of freelance work to do. Just in tonight is the first part of a legal report to edit, and I also have the manuscript of the motivational speaker to start, although I haven't gotten the first payment for that yet. She SAID she mailed it a week ago, a check for $500, but I told her I never got it so she said she would mail another one. I guess I would be more concerned about a check that didn't arrive. She also offered to draft it into my checking account; i have no idea what that entails but I'm guessing it would mean giving her my bank account number, and there's no way I'm doing that with someone I don't know.

I think our next date will be a movie.

One of the many things I wanted to do to fix this place up for eventual sale was to replace the two faucets in my upstairs bath. On one faucet, the hot water valve is totally locked up, frozen in place. I haven't been able to use it in over a year. The other faucet works but the stopper is getting rusty, as I made the mistake years ago with my late cat of keeping the bowl filled up with water, which she liked to drink.

Both these faucets were Kohler brand but lasted less than 15 years.

I found some Pfister faucets on Home Depot's website that were very attractive and just $42 each, but they were on back order for a very long time, even after a rep told me they'd become available.

So yesterday I stopped in at my local Home Depot and wound up buying two Pfisters from the store. They were, umm, about double the price, but I liked them.

When I got one out of the box, I saw how simple it would be to install them. It was literally just 2 pieces: the faucet and the stopper. The only tool you needed was a wrench. So I had the brilliant idea of trying to do it myself. Honestly, I don't know what got into me, but I think it looked so ridiculously simple, plus I had a strong incentive to save money. So tired of overpaying for everything....... The local Handyman Connection was going to charge me $120 to do this.

First, I had to disassemble the existing faucet. I cleaned out the cabinet underneath and turned the hot and cold water valves off. A lot of plumbing is hand-tightened, so I was able to disconnect the trap part of the pipe, and then I went on to disconnect where the water tube under the sink connects to the bottom of the faucet. I got the cold one done, and then the hot one, but both of them were still seeping water. I kept trying to tighten the shut off valves I had already shut off, but the water kept coming out and I didn't notice it at first because it was just seeping, not spraying. But soon I was mopping up all kinds of water with towels, etc. Water partially filled the top drawer adjacent to the cabinet directly below the sink, and I know some water got behind the wall where I couldn't get to it.

Who knows how much water. Maybe 1 or 2 quarts? That's a lot when it's water where it's not supposed to be! I was freaking. I had no choice but to shut off the water to the whole house down in the basement.

I didn't sleep at all last night as I was worried about what possible damage I could have done to my walls. I kept checking my downstairs bathroom, which is directly below the upstairs bath and is wallpapered. I don't see any evidence of water or water stains, thank God.

So now I've had to inform my boss at work that I need to work at home today so I can attend to my plumbing emergency.

I called Handyman Connection as soon as they opened at 8 this morning and someone's coming over around 9, 9:30 am. I hope he knows what he's doing. I just don't want any more water in my bathroom and I'm still worried about it because when I left it last night, I had reconnected the two water tubes to the bottom of the faucet, thinking that at least I could have use of water in the house until the plumber came to fix it. But the hot water valve was in a very awkward position and I wasn't really able to tighten it much and I was so afraid to "test" it by turning the water on in the basement again (being here alone, I've to run up from the basement to the upstairs bath to see if it was leaking, and I decided not to take that chance. This morning when I again started loosening the hot water tube, just to see, I heard water flowing again. Mind you, the water is now shut off to the whole house AND under the sink. I know there must be water still in the pipes, but without pressure, there shouldn't be much that would come out.

I have a bucket, but the water was seeping down the coiled tube in a spot where I couldn't fit the bucket.

To top it off, I really hate the bathroom cabinet. It was here when I bought the house. A basic white ceramic top with the double sinks and just particleboard white cabinet. It looks OK from the outside, but when you open the doors you see signs of previous water leak damage and the laminate is broke in spots; it just looks terrible.

I'd love to replace it but I have wallpaper in that bathroom in pretty good shape, and ripping out the cabinet would probably really mess things up. Not to mention it might be difficult to find a cabinet the exact same height and length so I wouldn't need to do any more wallpapering. Don't know if that pattern would still be available or not. So that's why I haven't replaced this cheap-as-s*** cabinet.

Laying contact paper down on the bottom would help a little bit, but would really just be a band-aid. So it kind of bothers me to be paying to install beautiful new faucets when I'd love to get rid of that ugly cabinet, too. But I really don't need any more "projects" right now.

Update: It's all fixed now (at a steep cost). Handyman Connection told me on the phone that the cost to replace two faucets would be $120. I thought that was fairly reasonable, so I agreed to that. When the guy showed up, he said, oh, you want the stopper installed too? That'll be an extra $75. That ticked me off; I mean, the stopper is part of the faucet assembly. It comes in the same box as the faucet. I never heard of anyone replacing just the faucet and not the stopper. So I felt like he was just trying to get more money out of me. I refused, knowing a regular plumber would cost me more, but I'd rather pay an honest plumber higher rates than a cheaper but dishonest plumber a lower rate.

So I scrambled to find another plumber who could come out today, since I don't want to work another day at home just for this.

One plumber had a special formula whereby it would cost me $177 for the first faucet, and then, since "the truck was already in the driveway," as he put it, another $130 for the 2nd faucet, for a total of $307, not including any parts, if needed.!!!!

I kept looking for a better priced plumber, and found one that charged $100 an hour. I wound up paying him $254, but he also fixed the shut-off valves which as I mentioned were still allowing water to seep/leak even when turned off.

The cost of the 2 faucets were $80 each for a total of $160, but I used a Home Depot gift card I'd bought a while ago to take advantage of some credit card offer, so the total price for the 2 was about $98. So roughly $400 to get 2 new faucets installed. OUCH.

Though they are lovely.

It's the last day of the month, so I did my monthly expense and investment report. Thanks to saving and a rebounding stock market, my assets hit an all-time high:

$603,484

Eee-ha.....

I had been stuck in the $500s for what seemed like forever. (Since 2011, my records show).

Today I'm working from home. Nirvana. I have an eye doc appointment toward the end of the day and I lose less time at the office if I can simply work from home; luckily, I have an accommodating boss.

The eye doc appointment is a field vision test, which basically tests your peripheral vision where you push the button whenever you see flashing specks of light in all areas of a black field.

They're doing this because probably 2 years ago after a routine exam with an optometrist, she said my eye pressure is on the high side of normal. This had been flagged by another optometrist years earlier, but his tack was to watch and monitor. This one recommended I see an ophthalmologist, which I did. High eye pressure is a red flag for glaucoma. Doesn't mean I definitely have it; I could just have somewhat higher eye pressure than most. But the field test will establish a baseline for me I guess. Believe it or not, glaucoma can be treated with eye drops, although it's symptomless, so it's important to get your eyes checked regularly.

While I certainly want to make sure my eyes are ok, this does sort of remind me of other encounters I've had with the medical establishment which wind up costing a lot of time and money for no real benefit.

That was pretty much the case about 5 years ago when I wound up having an ovary removed. Although I had no symptoms, my gyno said the "mass" she felt around one of my ovaries had gotten a little bigger. She had mentioned a "cyst" in the past, and so I never became that alarmed until for some reason she got my attention when she said it had gotten bigger. Her approach was also to keep an eye on it, but I was concerned enough to seek a 2nd opinion, from an oncologist at Yale, which was basically my undoing, because OF COURSE he was going to recommend surgery, that's how he makes his money. He said there was no way to tell if this "growth" was malignant or not until they cut me open. So now the fear of a cancerous growth made me undergo a totally (in hindsight) unnecessary major surgery. Let me tell you, abdominal surgery is not an easy recovery, and not only that, the surgery messed up the smooth and rounded appearance of my lower belly. I have a scar that runs 6 inches down from my belly button.

I'm just bringing this up because it seems to me there's a lot doctors don't know, and their tools seem to be largely limited to 1. surgery and 2. powerful medications that often do more harm than good. If you mention something like good nutrition and antioxidants, they smile politely and move on.

I hadn't really planned on this being the focus of my post today, but I suspect the whole glaucoma scare may be along a similar vein. I guess it's better to be safe than sorry, and perhaps the doctor's desire to avoid malpractice suits spurs him to be more thorough than perhaps is really warranted. At least I have insurance. This is the sorry state of our health insurance system in America today.

I always look forward to the end of the month because I enjoy (!) doing my end of month expense and investment reports. I also get to make my first of the month transfer to savings, and since I'm not tracking these savings on a special 5-year spreadsheet, I can literally see my long-term progress, which is highly motivating to me.

That being said, I can tell you that as of now I have a ways to go to meet my end of 2014 savings balance. At the growth rate cited above and with my regular contributions, my balance should be $623,000; as of end of January (see profile at left), my balance was just $571,000. a shortfall of $52,000. So I have 10 months to make up that shortfall! I GUESS it could be done, even though my minimum contributions for the rest of the year may only be $8,000 ($800 a month).

I just don't know if 6.5% overall return is doable. Here's an interesting report about 2014 markets: http://www.russell.com/documents/corporate/2014-global-annual-outlook.pdf


I was thankful to have finally gotten my mail delivered again yesterday after a week of suspension because the mailman couldn't reach my mailbox due to all the snow along the roadside. I am expecting the first of 3 installment payments from a new client.

All told, there are 3 new freelance projects that could start any day now for me; two of them are big jobs while there's one involving editing a legal report, I could knock out in a weekend.

I'm also anxiously awaiting my IRS refund of about $1,000. I filed real paper forms that I mailed. I prefer to do the taxes myself, and all the free software programs they make available on their website seem to take charge and walk you through the whole return, but not in the way the return is laid out in the IRS forms and booklet, and having already filled out those forms, I would have liked to do the same online, but none of those other companies offering tax return services seem to do that. They want to do the calculations FOR you, and I'd rather do it myself, thank you. I did file my state tax form online and already got the small refund ($119) associated with it.

Today since I'm home I plan to call the woman who is part of the close-knit hiking group the man I'm dating belongs to. I haven't spoken to her in several years so I'm sure she'll be surprised to hear from me, but she does live right here in town and there was a time we were friendly. I'd like to hear more about what she thinks of...oh heck, it's tiresome to keep referring to him in other ways, so let's just call him by his real name....MIKE.

We had another lunch for our second date. There's not always a ton of stuff you can do. We ate at a very good restaurant in his town that' s well-known for its healthy food and interesting rotating art on the walls. (My mother's exhibited there.) I had a yummy kale salad with chopped up beets, gorgonzola cheese and some other things that I'm going to analyze later (i brought home leftovers) so I can recreate it myself.

After lunch, we didn't really want the date to end, so we decided to take a walk. We ended up walking 3 or 4 miles; I wasn't wearing the best shoes for walking and now I feel the start of a blister, but oh, the things we do for love. I think we both just wanted to spend more time together.

And in the course of talking, I was describing a friend of mine and he said, do you know so and so? He had guessed the person I'd been describing and not only that, he knows her very well because they are part of the small, close-knit group of people who for years have been doing frequent hikes and overnight hiking trips together.

Talk about "small world." Maybe 7 years ago I used to cat sit for her when she went on these trips and I even remember seeing photos of the hiking group posing together. I guess the man I've been dating was in those very photos. Little did I know I'd be meeting him myself.

I guess I've lost some confidence at some point because after each date I find myself asking what he sees in me. Not that I don't think I have anything to offer, but he seems much more outdoorsy/active (the way I was in my 30s, but he's 57) and also much more outgoing. I'm more introverted and am perfectly content to spend long periods of time alone, or with one other person, at most.

So for that reason I'm not sure what long-term potential we may have, but we have already been talking about another get-together, and definitely another walk/hike, when the weather's better and I have better shoes on.

On the way home, I stopped at Shop Rite to pick up 3 cans Amy's Tuscan White Bean soup, which will have to do for my workday lunches this week. That and the leftover kale salad and to round things off, some nuts, fresh apples and a square of dark chocolate.

After coming THIS close to letting my BJs membership lapse without renewing, I wound up renewing it for another year after my mother said she would again split the fee ($50) with me. All because she loves their macadamian nuts and Costco doesn't have anything like it.

So for $25, I guess it's worth it.

It's currently 3:41 am in Connecticut. For some reason, there was a passing snow plow that woke me up, even though it's not snowing and the roads are clear. At least, it sure sounded like a snow plow but I didn't actually get up to look out the window.

After fruitlessly tossing and turning and trying to get back to sleep, I'm "up" and at the computer until I get tired again.

Wrapped up another busy week (and another paycheck) at work. The "honeymoon" period there is over, in that I don't have nearly as much time on my hands as I did the first three months. That's mostly a good thing, as it that can make for a very long day.

Tomorrow ....er...today, first thing I have to go to the post office to collect my mail and a small Amazon package. They stopped delivering my mail about a week ago without bothering to tell me, but I know it's because the snowpack on the plowed road, which still extends out from the curb a good 2 or 3 feet, prevents the mail man from leaning across the snow to put mail in my mailbox. I guess they don't want to waste time driving up my drive, which is also mostly clear (though still narrow).

Most of my bills I now get an email notice for, although I am expecting a first installment check from a new freelance client, but that will come in today's mail or Monday's mail,neither of which I will be able to get today, and I suspect the mailman still won't deliver mail to my box after today. The warmer temps in low 40s have melted a lot, but still not enough, and then we're in for another cold spell after the weekend. I'm "done" with snow shoveling and will not shovel the street! They want you to shovel an "approach" to the box of 15 or 20 feet so the mail truck can just pull alongside the curb up to the box.

After that it's lunch at my mother's and main reason for going over there is to try to help her with her mounting piles of "paperwork," which she constantly complains about. I suspect my mother has dementia because she is increasingly unable to deal with things like this and her memory is terrible. She will be 80 next weekend.

Then I'm doing my last shop at BJs, before my membership expires end of February. I decided I didn't want to pay the $50 renewal fee, partly because there are a limited number of things I buy there and partly because I bought into the organic farm CSA program this year.

So the stocking up part of it will be focused on things I know are good buys or are favorite foods I can't get elsewhere, like the 44 lb boxes of cat litter for $9. One box lasts about a month for 2 cats and I believe I have 5 boxes in the basement, so the goal is to get another 7 boxes so I'm good for a year, by which time I may wish to rejoin BJSs. I'll also get more nuts, raisins, Paul Newman's salad dressing (huge savings there), Truvia and bean burritos.

The only thing I'll miss saving on, on an ongoing basis, is the huge clamshell boxes of organic salad greens and their low-priced gas. I may occasionally ask my mother to go with me to Costco, where she has a membership.

I got my Discover $150 reward promptly deposited to my checking account shortly after I paid off the 2nd statement, after I'd met the spend target. Nice. I also billed another client for a small amount and see that he already paid me thru PayPal. Thanks Andy.

Sunday it's a 2nd lunch date with The Bachelor. We rescheduled from last weekend because I had too much freelance work to do and also had cold feet (even though he seems incredibly nice). Maybe we'll do a casual walk in the area if it's warmish, which it's supposed to be.

This has happened to me before with AT&T, but it bears repeating.

For some time, I've had AT&T UVerse Internet ($15 a month) and phone ($31). Apparently, the Internet price was "promotional" and would have expired next month, at which time my price for both would jump from $40 (before fees and taxes) to $66.

That's a bigger jump than I'd like. So I went on hold, waiting for AT&T's customer service for about 40 minutes til I got a rep on the line. I asked her nicely if there was anything I could do to avoid that fee increase and she said there was nothing she could offer me at this time but suggested I call back after the price increase went into effect. I didn't want to wait til then and I casually mentioned I'd probably be preparing to get either Magic Jack or Ooma.

Truth be told, I'm lazy and would rather not have to do that, but mentioning my plan to switch was like saying "Open Sesame." She transferred me to another department, where, after another 30-minute wait on hold, another rep quickly told me he could keep the same price intact for another full year AND he would upgrade my Internet speed from 3mb to 6mb, no charge.

The only catch to keeping the $15 Internet price is that if I chose to end UVerse Internet before the one year was up then I'd have to a pay an early termination penalty equal to $15 a month for each month I'd gotten the renewed $15/mth price. If I ended it becus i moved to a location where UVerse was not available, then they would not charge me the early termination fee.

So I'm very happy to have averted the price increase. I realize I could save even more more by going ahead and switching to something like Magic Jack, but I'm not a techie person and always worry I can't set it up right and I don't really have anyone nearby I can ask for help with that. Compared to what I've seen other people here pay for phone and/or Internet, I think this is a pretty good price.

The thing to remember is, if you just whine or complain about the price, that won't be enough. You have to specifically say you'll switch plans and go with someone else.

I am working at home again today...it was snowing ferociously this morning, right around commute time, though now it appears to have stopped, altho they say it will not finally end til around 4 or 5 p.m.

The snow, that is.

To recap: We had a 24-hour snowstorm Thursday, which ended Friday morning. I worked from home both days, finally shoveling out Saturday morning. It snowed another inch or two on Saturday. More shoveling, because if I don't clear it off the driveway, the sun will melt it and then it will refreeze at night. Yesterday afternoon I was out there chipping softened ice on the hilly section of my driveway with a metal hoe. This morning, there was a dusting of snow on my car. Tomorrow, it will snow another 3 to 6 inches.

Enough already!!!! I guess I'm working at home again tomorrow. Not trying to take advantage, but the snow will be widespread by 8 am and I don't like to take chances.

Today I am "going to the birds." Meaning, I'm making some tasty treats to help our feathered friends get through this harsh weather.

It's a fun way to occupy some kids. Go out and collect some pinecones (or use what you have on hand), then use a butter knife to slather peanut butter in between all the crevices. Then roll the pinecones in a tray of loose bird seed.

Attach a string to the stem of the pinecone and hang outside. The birds will love them!

I decided today it was time to cancel another credit card. Actually, I wound up cancelling two. I have a bit of a hard time canceling cards just a few months after opening them solely for the purpose of earning rewards bonuses after you hit certain spend targets. So I hang onto them for a bit longer.

I'm sure they could care less (unless all of America began treating their accounts in this way). But anyway, I do feel a little sheepish having to talk to an acct rep who will inquire as to why I want to close the acct. I usually tell them, truthfully, that I have more cards than I need and don't really use this particular one all that much. Which is true, as far as it goes.

Plus, after cancelling my Barclaycard today, I count 10 cards still remaining in my wallet! That means that any rewards points I earn will be diluted among 10 different cards and I could more quickly earn meaningful points if I was using fewer cards.

It's interesting to me that, despite being an intelligent dollars and sense person, that I get inordinately attached to certain cards, simply because of the pretty picture on certain cards that I was able to choose. This is the case for my two Capital One cards (a starfish on the beach on one and a closeup of a peacock feather on the other) as well as my World Wildlife Fund with its tiger design. I also like that a tiny portion of each dollar I spend goes to support that organization. I'm surprised that more credit card companies haven't caught on to this psychological angle or done study groups to reveal this.

I would like to cancel one of my 2 BankAmericards, but I see I have about $5 worth of points earned; every time I cancel a card, I lose those points entirely. OK, so I just cancelled a second card today, my Chase Freedom card.

I know my credit score will take a hit with these 2 cancellations, but it's temporary and since I have no need for further credit or loans anyway, I'm fine with that.

That leaves me with 8 cards. Still too many. Two of these cards have very minimal rewards programs, but I will keep them forever since they are much older than the slew of new cards I've acquired in the past 2 years. To make sure they don't get closed on me, I try to make one small purchase on each every month or so, though it's hard to keep track. I've had my USAA Visa and Amex cash card for many years.

The next card to go will probably be my Bankamericard cash rewards card, which is actually a pretty good little card. But I may wait til I can cash out those rewards.

I should be able to redeem my $150 from my new Discover It card next week. I may like low after that for a while; I'll map out when I'll be getting some big bills. (October I pay both car and homeowners insurance so that's a no-brainer for opening a new rewards card prior to that.)

After doing this for 2+ years, a $100 reward doesn't seem like all that much (!) and I'd like to hold out for larger rewards, although I'm just one person, a frugal one at that, so I'm not usually a big spender.

This morning I belatedly cleared my driveway of snow. My arms are exhausted. I can't believe I still do this at my age, but that's another story.

Now I have a long, 3-day weekend ahead of me and as usual, not sure what to do with it.

I have sort of been in the mood to go to Ikea, which I usually do maybe 3 times a year. They're in a city about an hour's drive, though, so that's part of the problem. It would be much easier to go there right after work, cutting the drive in half, but then, who feels like doing that after a long workday, in the dark? I never do.

Do I NEED anything there? No, not really. They had a great deal on duvets, though, one for $10, although I never cared for their strange prints and patterns. Must be something about the Scandinavian sense of design; just doesn't appeal. I do love to wander through there, even just poking around at the ground level floor through the small stuff.

I am excited to see my cancelled check for the CSA cleared, proof that I'm accepted into this season's harvest share. I won't start pickup up of my weekly produce each Sunday til June 29, but it goes til Nov 16. I know how to cook most of what they're growing, but I'm less familiar with using Swiss chard, fresh beets, bok choi and eggplant. I will learn! If anyone has some fantastic recipes using any of the above, let me know.

I'm so happy that February is halfway over. Underneath the foot of snow on the ground are an slowly spreading mound of snowdrops waiting to bloom. Always the first sign of spring, long before the daffodils or other bulbs.

We're going to get another 3 inches or so of fresh snow this afternoon. Enough is enough.

It started snowing early Thursday morning and finally ended mid-morning today. It was, as they said, a 24-hour event. I worked from home both days; it was quite busy, and since I was working, I didn't have much chance to shovel out my driveway.

I shoveled for an hour last night after my work day ended, in the middle of the storm, getting about 3/4 cleared but leaving the hardest part still to do: the part down by the road where the snow plow packs in the snow. Seeing as how we got about 11 inches, there's a waist-high pile at the bottom of the drive. And then of course it snowed on top of the part I shoveled.

I was also able to complete a 1,000-word article for Connecticut Builder Magazine that I'm ghost-writing. It's DONE. Thank God. It's always a lot of work (I've written at least 8 of these articles before, usually every quarter) and he kept sending me more articles, like around 20, to read and absorb and somehow weave into the story, which is about the outlook for the state's housing market. It's always very data-heavy and involves interpreting a lot of numbers. Anyway, it's done.

Next up was a little two-page sample edit I did for a possible new freelance client, a motivational speaker in Las Vegas who was referred to me by a local author (aka The Author) whose books I've edited.

I finished the sample edit and emailed that just a little while ago. If she likes it I'll quote her a price for her entire book/manuscript.

I have also heard from The Author that she is just about ready to send me her third book, another novel and the sequel to books #1 and #2, for editing.

When it rains, it pours.

Last weekend, I did my taxes and between state and federal should get back a refund of $1100.

I was excited to learn recently that in April I will be eligible to enroll in the health plan of the recruitment agency that hired me for my bank contract job. I was vaguely aware that they had some sort of health plan but hadn't really focused on it since 1. you're not eligible to enroll until you've worked on the job for 6 months and 2) I was doing so much research on the plans available through the Affordable Care Act. They say in the handbook that they pay 50% of the monthly premiums, which sounds pretty good. Usually health plans offered by employment agencies are sub-par.

I had thought I was all set with the new plan I enrolled in via the Affordable Care Act, however, if the agency's plan proves to be cheaper, which I think it must be if they pay 50% of the premium (compared to the $404/mth I'm paying now thru Affordable Care Act), then I will switch plans and then I don't have to worry about whether my income in 2014 will eventually exceed the income cut-off point for the subsidy if the job gets extended past July. If it did, then I'd lose the subsidy (and possibly have to pay back the subsidy I got up to that point).

It would be really nice not to have to worry about the subsidy at all, actually. The ACA plans certainly offer better choices than what was available before to a self-employed or independent contractor employee. If the bank job does eventually end, I will then have a choice between continuing on that plan through COBRA for a while or switching back to a different plan under the Affordable Care Act.

My health insurance has never been so topsy-turvy!

So anyway, after doing an amazing amount of work these last 2 days, all I have to worry about tomorrow is shoveling out my driveway. And buying groceries.

I see that wethesavers.com finally finished my winning post. I wasn't bothered too much by the delay since they already paid me my $100. If you've been reading my posts here, you're familiar with the story, I'm sure, but if you're curious to read it, you can head on over there.

On my lunch break at work Friday, I went to the federal courthouse across the street; there's an IRS office in there so I wanted to get as many tax forms as I could, plus the booklet. My friend warned me security would have you lift up your pants legs, but instead of doing that, I had to remove my belt.

This morning I went to see Gravity with Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. I was using a $25 gift card I got from the agency that hired me, a Xmas present, but because it was an Imax movie, I had to pay $12.75!

It was a good movie. Sandra has to be about my age but she has the perfect body. (I'm assuming that's really her body in the movie.) The 3D was really something with all the pieces of space debris flying right at you.

After that I decided to head down to Whole Foods; it was a zoo but I did spend $27 and I hit the salad bar again....so many goodies. I loved the roasted brussels sprouts. I probably won't make a habit of going there, except for the salad bar, as it's so overpriced.

I love the bright green seaweed salad I get at the Japanese restaurant, but why is it unappetizing dark green at Whole Foods? Do they cook it? Is the bright green dyed?

Another contractor at work, a friend I walk with, learned that her job, which she thought was going to end this month, has been extended yet again, til end of May. So she has a reprieve during which she's going to save, save, save. She said they are only renewing contracts 3 months at a time now, due to the continued restructuring of the company this year.

Of course, I'd like my own contract extended past July, but if it is, I'll lose my $350 a month healthcare subsidy and will likely have to pay it back. Of course, I'll maker more at the job than I'll save with the healthcare subsidy, but that subsidy is worth about $4,000 for the whole year, not chump change.

Lately it seems I've run across so many crazy drivers on the roads. Or is it I'm getting more impatient as I continue to commute? Some lunatic insisted on passing me on the right before 2 lanes turned into one, and he nearly lost control on the snowy road after muscling in front of me. After just a few miles, he turned in at Starbucks. Was it worth it to cause an accident just for a cup of freakin' coffee you a******?

I got some really nice compliments from someone I've been working with a lot lately, and so i couldn't resist passing his email on to my boss for brownie points. She then complimented me as well and said the job, and more specifically me, is working out very well, and she plans to tell her new boss. So all's well on the job front.

Meanwhile the gal who sits in front of me, the one who finally got her Jamaican husband a visa so he could live here with her in the states, learned she is now pregnant. Her job ends in March. Her husband can't exactly support her as he doesn't know how to read or write and has only lived in this country since the day before Christmas. Her parents, who I am pretty sure bought her the condo she lives in, will now have 3 people to bale out, financially speaking.

She used to take time off before she got her husband here, claiming she was totally stressed by the whole process. Now no doubt she'll use her pregnancy as an excuse to stay home more. The day she told me the big news, she claimed she had a migraine and went home. I've never met anyone who takes such advantage, and gets away with it.

Ugh, More snow. CB took the words right out of my mouth. I started doing the driveway, but it was just that. A start. I will have to go out in a little while again to do some more. I am not even sure I can finish it before tomorrow. There's a waist-high wall of snow packed in at the bottom by the snow plow.

I headed out yesterday to meet another bank employee at a commute parking lot. To my surprise, she was alone. The other 3 people who were supposed to go bailed out due to the weather. The roads were perfectly clear at that point, but one person's driveway was still snowed in,another was getting over a sinus infection and the other, well, she always bails out at the first opportunity.

So I got to meet some people I've only known through email and phone, which was fun. I am envious of these offices, which are in a big shopping center with upscale shops, a movie theater, restaurants and a WHOLE FOODS. So for lunch I checked out Whole Foods for the first time. There is one sort of near me, but I never made it there. I got a great healthy lunch for $7, which I thought reasonable. I will definitely visit their salad bar again.

We left work there early to meet at a nearby restaurant to say good by to the head guy who was laid off. I thought it odd that everyone was talking shop, while he must have felt weird about it since he was leaving. I didn't really get to talk to him, but I was introduced. I did talk to a few other people in my larger group who were super nice.

We finally headed for home around 6:45 pm and I got home at about 9:30 pm. Tiring day.

Got to work at home today, of course, since the snow began falling a few hours after I arrived home and has yet to stop, really.

Well, stupid me, I relied on a weather forecast that, as recently as last night, was calling for just an inch of the white stuff today. So I didn't bring my laptop home Friday, which turned out to be a mistake, since it's snowing steadily all day today and they're expecting up to 6 or 7 inches.

So...I drove into work this morning, stayed for a 9 am conference call, and then left promptly (with my laptop this time) after that. The drive was pretty messy and slow both ways, and I passed 3 accidents on the way home.

I HAD to go in for the laptop, not only because I can't easily work from home without it, but also because tomorrow, 6 of us are driving up to Boston together about 3 hours) for a going away dinner with the head of the dept., who got laid off. So we will work up there, on our laptops, for most of the day and then we get to drive again at the end of the night after the dinner. It's supposed to start snowing again tomorrow night around midnight; i should be home by 10pm, but i do hope that forecast is not off by even a few hours.

It will make for a long day, either way. None of us wants to go, but what can you do. Seems like a lot to to disrupt the work schedules of 6 people (4 of them contractors)for what will probably be a 2-hour dinner.

I am seriously considering signing up for a "half share" of the local organic farmer's CSA produce this growing season. I mean, I just committed to 100% vegetarian eating a few weeks ago and what could be better: I've got an ORGANIC farmer right here IN TOWN. (The farm is very close to the school where the tragic shooting took place.)

What do you think of the prices?

Full Shares: pick up every Wednesday from June 25th till November 12th - $565.00

Half Shares: pick up every Sunday from June 29th till November 16th - $420.00

Here is a list of crops he's growing this season:

*Cherry Tomatoes *Heirloom Tomatoes
*Beefsteak Tomatoes *Watermelon
*Beans *Kale
*Swiss Chard *Lettuce
*Summer and winter squash *Scallions
*Leeks *Beets
*Radishes *Celery
*Bok choi *Peppers
*Eggplant *Basil
*Green and Napa Cabbage *Cucumbers
*Garlic *Potatoes
*Sweet potatoes

From his email: We hope to include our fresh eggs at least twice a month in the shares provided the hens are laying well. We will also include our non organic sweet corn and fruit (mainly apples and possibly peaches and nectarines depending on there availability.) You can opt out of the non organic produce by letting us know when you send in your check.

The half share would work well because the pick-up date is Sunday so I could do that whether or not I was working. I'm just wondering how his prices compare overall if I chose to buy organic in the supermarket. I'm sure his produce is superior in quality and freshness.

I have purchased eggs (very excellent) and some limited produce from him in the past. No complaints at all but I suspect his prices may be on the high side. He needs to make a living.

It's just that $420 sounds like a lot for just veggies, but it is for the entire season and it IS organic and about as local as I could get except if I grew my own. I will likely have a garden this year, but it is on the small side and I can't grow tomatoes, peppers, squashes or cucumbers this year because of the insect infestations. They talk about the need to rotate crops, which I can't do, but I can just try to content myself with growing something else so that whatever population of insect pests has developed because of my annual tomatoes, they should pretty much disappear when I don't grow tomatoes this year. At least that's my hope. I may try some dwarf cherry tomatoes in pots, if I can find them.

I'm not really sure how much produce I'll get each week from the CSA; it SHOULD be plenty given that I'm a family of one.

I need to decide very soon because he has limited shares available and he completely sold out my March last year.

Just got back from a nice lunch with another "bachelor." We actually enjoyed some pretty good conversation. It helps that we share some of the same political views; he comes from a very political family in Westchester County with an uncle who was mayor in Yonkers and also served as the state's lieutenant governor. He's also very active, outdoorsy and seems to have lots of different networks of friends (this could be a problem with me as I'm much more of a one on one kinda of person and prefer to do things with my sign other rather groups all the time. He just retired less than a year ago, so I'm quite jealous. He's off on a ski trip tomorrow up to Vermont but we agreed to get together again, possibly for a walk, weather permitting. He drives a Prius. The thing I like most about him is that he's pretty intelligent. He also likes reading and arthouse movies, just like me. Now if I could only persuade him into getting a KAYAK, we'd really be all set.

Today is one of those rare work at home days, this time necessitated by a middle-of-the-day visit with my neurologist, who I see once a year unless I'm having MS problems.

I'm not having any issues, so I just asked him to write a year-long prescription that could be divided into three quarterly refills so I don't have to deal with the monthly refills, which, believe it or not, is a pain. Although my new ACA health plan has the patient paying 30% coinsurance, not a flat fee, the pharma company that makes my meds is picking up most of the bill so I only have to pay $35 a month.

Truth be told, I really don't like working on the company-issued laptop. It may be perfectly fine for someone who's mostly checking email, but as a writer, I find the tiny screen much too small; I often like to have 2 word docs open side by side, and that's just not possible when you're squinting at a tiny screen.

Of course, I would never complain about this because this is what enables me to work at home on occasion.

Restructuring at my company has already begun. A few weeks ago, the head of our dept. was fielding questions from employees about layoffs and other possibilities. Little did any of us know that he would be the first to be let go. They made the announcement this week, and there are a lot of people now reporting to different managers. So far, it's nothing that affects me personally.

The vegetarianism is still going well. I do have some random pieces of fish in the freezer which I will use up eventually, but otherwise, it's a wholly plant-based diet. I'm doing it whole hog; that is, no meat, poultry, fish, dairy or eggs. Also trying to minimize sugar. I remember diving in like this many years ago when I quit smoking at the age of 21. A bad habit my very best friend introduced to me when I was 16. Fortunately, I didn't stick with it long, but I felt then as I do now that after thinking about it a long time, I needed to just do it, and not halfway.

I was happy to see so many other people here are on the same path.

I sent out a press release today that I did last weekend (freelance) and then billed them for that and the bio I wrote for her. The other realtor's supposed to call me in a little while to discuss revisions to her bio.

It's been too cold to walk outside during my lunch hour at work these past few weeks, but on most days I'll walk the interior stairs, with or without my walking buddy. I usually walk up and down 12 flights, twice. My legs are like jello afterwards, but it certainly gets the heart pumping, which is good, because I usually don't even break a sweat when we walk outside.

By some miracle of concentration, I managed to complete three separate freelance jobs on Saturday. That included interviewing 2 different realtors and then writing 2 bios and a press release.

I hadn't wanted the work to take up my whole weekend. So with that out of the way, today I went to Macy's to use a $10 gift card I got as a credit card reward. I picked out a sleeveless shell, the kind of thing you wear under a blazer or other blouse, and saw it had been marked down to $22. I was even happier when I checked out and the real price was now $9, so I didn't have to spend any money.

Also went to Trader Joe's and filled up the gas tank, then back home to do some cooking: used up the rest of the kale to make some more kale salad (with fresh squeezed orange juice, organic orange zest, scallions and dried cranberries), a basmati rice pudding with cardamom pods, cinnamon stick, raisins and cloves with pomegranate seeds as a garnish (wasn't crazy with the way it turned out), some homemade baked beans with mustard, onions and mushrooms and a black bean/rice/corn salad which is also just "ok."

You win some, you lose some. I've been able to build up a solid lineup of 4 or so soups that I hit out of the ballpark, including my homemade pea soup with parsnips (a longtime favorite), a great vegetable soup, a tomato soup with sun-dried tomatoes and unsweetened cocoa powder and an excellent mushroom barley soup. I'd like to get a few more great soups so I can rotate them all winter long with no problem. I try many new recipes practically every weekend.

I'm being very good about sticking to my new vegan routine. I do have things in the house that should not be on my new diet, like some fish, but I'm not throwing anything away. It costs too much.

Interestingly, I spend just as much money grocery shopping for just veggies, fruits and nuts as I ever did when shopping for meat and fish. One reasons is that I often buy organic produce.

I have eaten very little red meat for years now, but what gave me motivation to go all the way vegan was after getting 4 or 5 books I'd asked for, for Christmas, all on healthy eating and nutrition. Their essential message was very similar (ie, eating a plant-based diet and all the bad stuff not just about red meat, but about poultry, dairy, eggs and MILK in particular)and hearing it from so many angles, it's hard to refute that. Not that I ever did, it was just laziness and human frailties. But now that I am in my 50s, I'm conscious of the fact that this is the time when many people start coming down with serious conditions or illnesses.

I already have one pretty serious illness....MS....but I do believe that my generally healthier diet these many years has helped me avoid the more serious relapses that many MS people have. The last time I had a relapse was in 2006, so I'm doing pretty darn well. I do have Dr. Swank's famous book on diet for MS people on my book shelf, and I do want to read it again.

I must say that eating nearly completely vegan for the past 2 weeks, I feel I have a lot of energy.

If I eat out or am at someone's house where something not on my diet is served, I'm not going to make a big deal out of it and refuse to eat. But when I'm home in my own kitchen, cooking for myself, I will stick to fruits, veggies, grains, nuts and seeds. And I think very small amounts of certain cheeses, like Parmesan and goat cheese, will be acceptable.

I keep making modifications to my diet as I go. For instance, I discovered how delicious roasted sunflower seeds were, and I bought bags of them before reading that the high heat used in the commercial roasting process changes the composition of the oil and makes unhealthy free radicals. Or something to that effect. So I am transitioning over to raw sunflower seeds now. I returned a few bags I hadn't yet opened, but to be honest, it's hard for me to throw away the remaining, opened bag of roasted seeds and I'm hoping that just a little bit more won't kill me.

Honestly, the hardest change that I have yet to make is to give up pasta entirely. It's really not good for you. And I don't like whole wheat pasta at all. Pasta is my go-to food whenever I need comforting and I can eat a pile of it in one sitting.

I've been pretty successful following Dr. Fuhrman's abbreviated prescription for healthy eating:
Every day, he says, you should eat:

1. at least a half cup of some kind of beans
2. one large bowl of salad greens
3. one ounce of nuts
4. at least 3 pieces of fruit

If you only concentrated on these 4 things, you'd go a long way toward really improving your health, not only becus of what you're eating, but becus the items above are also taking the place of at least some things you won't eat if your stomach is full from beans, fruit and nuts.

Closing on a happy note, I'm thinking back to a meeting at work last Friday where my boss was telling about how right before Christmas around midnight, she had to work on a message for the bank's website about the Target credit card fiasco. She said if I'd been writing it, it would have taken me 20 minutes but it took her an hour and a half. I said oh, you should have called, but it was on a weekend, at midnight, so actually, I'm glad she didn't. But she said again that she was so happy that I was there now (so she doesn't have to write anything because it doesn't come easy to her).

This was a great documentary on free Hulu.

It's about how 10 modern-day Newfoundlanders try to live the lives of their ancestors in Placentia Bay, Newfoundland. Back in the 30s, there many bustling little communities along the coastline as they made a living off the sea, fishing for cod until the fishing industry collapsed and everyone left for an easier way of life.

It was very interesting, just 4 episodes. There was the 14-year-old girl who was always somewhat petulant and not really embracing a phone-free life. I personally was amazed by the vitality and energy of a 75-year-old grandmother who held her own with the others doing a lot of hard labor for 62 days.