Letter Ten: Coupon Queen

I love coupons. Yes, I am totally one of those women you see lugging around a humongous binder and tying up the checkout lane. Don't like it? Tough. When I can save $200-$250 on a shopping trip, and you're paying full price, I don't mind making you jealous. I mean, what is jealousy other than counting other people's blessings instead of your own?

Now, I'm not one of those psychos you see on TLC who takes 500 PowerBars when I've never tried them and don't know what to do with them, just because they're free. That's just dumb, if you ask me, unless you plan on donating them to a school sports team or a food bank. I'm all about donating to people in need, because the good Lord knows I have been there. I am not ashamed to admit that I have been to the local food bank when my family didn't have food but my parents were too proud to ask for help. I have accepted food from generous friends who got wind that I had been living on croutons for two days. I don't go looking for a free handout, but I'm not too proud to accept help.

I digress...I love my coupons, and I love earning money any (legitimate) way I can. Two years of unemployment have had me trying to earn money via babysitting, selling cosmetics, taking surveys, clicking links, and any other means I can think of.

So here are some of the means I have found to earn a little cash in my time spent unemployed. Feel free to use any of them. They're all legit (most of them I found via other couponing or money saving ladies).

InboxDollars:
This website has various things you can do to earn money, such as clicking on a link in an e-mail (it's SAFE), taking surveys, using coupons, completing research tasks, watching videos, etc. It's not much, but if you open a couple of e-mails a week, do a couple of surveys, and watch some videos, you can find yourself with a little pocket change for a tank of gas, or extra money for groceries.

Go Here

MyPoints:
Pretty much the same concept as InboxDollars. Lots of ways to earn money.

Visit Here

SurveySpot:
This company actually has a pretty good payout for taking surveys. I earned $10.00 (the minimum threshold at which you can redeem your points) fairly quickly from them just for taking a few surveys a week.

Check them out

Superpoints Network:
A typical website where you get points for menial tasks. My favorite thing is the SuperLucky Button.

Go Here
or Here...
or Here!

I hope some of these websites can help you put a little extra money in your pocket.

Letter Nine: Glad That It's Over

I used to be someone who LOVED the holidays. I got excited, looked forward to all the traditions, and enjoyed the warm fuzziness that generally accompanies Thanksgiving and Christmas (I've never been much of a New Years person; I'm perfectly happy to stay in with my family watching a movie/television and chowing down on noms). The last few years have put a drag on the holidays for me, however, and I absolutely dreaded them this year. I just wanted to get them over and done with. 

2009 was the first year we had to go through the holidays after my grandmother's death, and it was completely depressing, as absolutely NOTHING was the same. It was also just weeks after I lost my job. Last year my mom nearly died in November, and didn't know who I was half of the time. Then, she pulled a little stunt that put her back in the hospital for Christmas and she barely knew who anyone was that time, either. Did I mention my dad was in the hospital as well? I swear, I aged about 25 years between January and December of 2010.

This year, I spent my Thanksgiving and Christmas with a sense of foreboding, waiting for the other shoe to drop and something to go majorly (not a word, I know) wrong. Nothing went too wrong, other than we had no money whatsoever, so I am able to breathe a sigh of relief and be thankful that it's over and done with. I'm completely exhausted, and looking forward to going back to my job next week. 

Oh yes, my job: It is full of "teh awesome." I love that I get to work with kids again. I don't love that I have to be up at 4:30 a.m., and I'm not officially done until after 6:00 p.m., so most nights I crash as soon as I get home. But the sense of accomplishment every day, the sense that I'm contributing to society once again, and the fact I'm not sitting at home all day makes life so much better. More to come on that front.

A Short Note from the Pessimist

Since my last post was rather negative, I thought I would add a little cheer by saying: I GOT THE JOB! I am officially the Site Director for an extended learning program at one of the local public schools. I'm incredibly happy about this! You should be too.

Letter Eight: Girls Get Put in the "Friend Zone" Too

Okay, so I'm sure most people have heard men complain about that awful no-man's-land known as the "Friend Zone;" what was a promising relationship (or even the promise of a romp in the sack) somehow at some point in time got off track, and the girl in question has put a guy in a platonic category, dooming him forever to "lunch dates" and having to listen to her stories of other men. It is a loathsome circumstance for all who have experienced it.

But here's the thing: Women get put in the "Friend Zone" too. Some females just seem to get stuck in that non-romantic, non-sexual category that is akin to a sister. And it is no less loathsome to women as it is to men. Why am I blogging about this? Well, it seems my dearest of readers, that I have once again (for the umpteenth time) been stuck in the limbo of "Friend Zone" territory.

Those close to me know that I was with the same guy from 2003 until 2010, and I was engaged. I have moved on and started dating again (the perils of dating again after most of my adolescence was spent with one man could fill up pages and pages of blog posts). Most recently I dated a guy from NY who moved here in August. This guy is gawjus (sound it out). I mean, I couldn't believe my luck when this guy asked me out, because I personally think I have few redeeming qualities in the looks department. After a few amusing incidents where we weren't able to go out, we finally managed dinner and a movie. And the steamiest make out session I've ever had as an adult. On our second date, I made a big mistake, something so totally uncharacteristic of me, it had me scratching my head and wondering if I had regressed to a teenager (I'm sure if you think about it, you can guess what that mistake was). And immediately afterwards, I knew something was wrong. Apparently he forgot to disclose that he had just gotten out of a relationship at the end of July (which is why he moved here) and I was the first person he had dated since then.

I should have listened to all of those sirens and alarms going off in my head, as earlier this year, I dated a guy who had just gotten divorced not long before (he forgot to mention to me how recently-divorced he was), and after two months of dating, he decided he wasn't ready. I do not like being the rebound girl. It kind of pisses me off, actually.

Well, being the intelligent being that I am, I decided to ignore the warning bells, and even though he told me not to fall for him, guess what I did? That's right, I fell head over heels for the sucker. And then I proceeded to royally screw things up. Let's just say the word "crazy" was used and he told me to never contact him again.

You'd think that would be the end of this little tale, but I got a text from him Monday night. He wanted someone to talk to, and he said he remembered that I seemed to be a good person. He was having some drama with his best friend. We ended up talking for hours, and then he said he had nowhere to stay. Being the big softy I am, I offered to let him crash on the couch. Well, he has now crashed on my couch two different nights, and has been talking to me ever since. The only problem: I'm now firmly in the friend zone.

Do you know how hard it is to watch someone you're so attracted to sleep on your couch? *sigh* I guess us women can be pretty stupid when we want to be.