Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1.19 coffee + $15 lunch

Yesterday I finished my string of brown bag lunches. It was fun, but it was nice to get a little fresh air and see something other than piles of paper around me. Food made especially for me is always much better to look at.

The big news is that my little bank is going public and have sent a prospectus, proxy card, order form. If you have money in it, you can be part of the IPO (initial public offering). I'll have to think about that, not the best time to invest in a bank. They will eventually pay a dividend.

Saving log - $6 tip box
Spending log - $4.50 groceries

New temporary staff orientation with a little breakfast provided. And again, another lunch with turkey salad on top of a toasted english muffin. There's only enough salad for a couple more days; even so that's a good 4 day run of bringing my own lunch.

Also paid a total of $375 to my DRPs - $300 in one, $35 for another, $40 for another.

Homework for gym last week was to hold a hollow plank - on the back, legs up at a 45 degrees, arms parallel to legs, shoulders up off the mat - for a minute and a half. I told the trainer that I practiced and that I'm ready.
Want a countdown? the trainer asked.
No, let's just see how long I last, I said.
So in the middle of this, I'm thinking that this is the llloooonnngggest minute and a half, and I was about to drop when the trainer said that I had nine more seconds. I made it past the nine seconds...and it turned out that I had held the position for two minutes.

Saving log - $2 tip box
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $15 chirashi lunch

Cashed in the $42.04 today, and received an account for more, different shares. It worked like this: I had 45.xxx shares of Company 1. It turned into - 45 shares of the new Company 1, check for the .xxx shares, and 15 shares of Company 2.

Found out that DJ friend got a resolution with the IRS, the auditor called it "convincing." So he pays 1/2 of what he feared he would pay. The consulting lawyer looked at the letter and the table, and suggested only a concluding sentence. My luck with letters worked again. I give good letter, I said to DH.

I get paid tomorrow, but I have a fair amount of money still in my account, so I decided to move $200 to ING.

Saving log - $8 tip box
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $5.45 lunch

One of my DRPs has spun itself off, so I am getting the paperwork for it, a 1099-B and a semi-surprise check for a fractional share. Into savings it goes - $42.04. The transfer agent finally cashed my $500 check to buy more stock.

Plan on hosting a small Thanksgiving here at my place, then head to lawyer friend's larger party for dessert.

Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1.65 coffee, cup of milk + 10$ lunch + $12 groceries

Yesterday, I found I had lost another two pounds, so I'm back to 186. Also lost another .5 inch of the waist. I'm trying and getting better at not sticking my head in the fridge when I get home. Eating an apple instead of an energy bar in the afternoons really helps too. Right now its all really about the waist, its giving up it's fat slowly. Not that I'm emaciated in other places, but the arms and legs are getting firmer.

Not much on any money front. It looks like I've gotten another fee for no reason that I have to ask about. I swear they just stick 'em on there just to see if the poor schub will just pay and they can get away with it. Getting the bank to take them off is not my idea of a great hobby.

All of my stocks have dropped. I feel happier about dollar cost averaging when the denominator is going down like that.

Saving log - 0$
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $6.50 lunch (footlong to nosh on for two days)

So lately watching my stocks and 403Bs is like playing eensy weensy spider over and over. Spider is at the top of the waterspout (last Thursday), the rains came (Friday) and washed the spider out, and now the spider's crawling back (Monday). I've got to stop monitoring it so much.

This Halloween my ambition is just not into the costume. I might just put a big fake blood spot on my forehead and call it a day. The Halloween potluck, on the other hand, I'm ambitious about. Go figure.

I'm working on a dark "Goth" potato salad - with purple potatoes, beets, red onion, pecan (walnuts weren't dark enough) dressed with olive oil and a bit of pesto. In other words, if you dribble, it will stain.. So far, the only way I've found to keep the purpliness is to get small, deep purple fingerling potatoes and steam them making sure that no potato touches the boiling water. Boiling liquid just kills the purple.

Saving log - $0
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk

Ate the other half of the sandwich I bought on Monday. These days a lot of people use the work refrigerator, but no one used the vegetable bin. Ha ha, score for a hiding place!

Last night I got the final piece of mail from the executors - a Schedule K-1. I'll have to look it up in the IRS site to see when and if its used. The letter stated that they filed a copy with the IRS, so we shouldn't. I suspect that it means that they've filed and paid so if I file and pay, I've paid twice.

Tonight I voted proxy as on one of my DRP stocks - M&I - is splitting off one of its subsidiaries into a new company - Metavante. If the split goes through, I get some additional Metavante stock.

Payday next Friday - and none too soon.

I wrote a 400$ check for one of my DRPs. It was one in my stock portfolio trading at the low end of its price range. I'm confident that its not a "value trap" so I'm buying on the dip.

It does mean that as we are heading toward the last turn of the month I'm in a rare position - I'm feeling the frugal burn and counting my pennies with the possibility that I'm going to have to transfer some money from brick and mortar savings.

Because of the frugal burn, its a bit of a bummer that the Greek Festival is this weekend. DH and I did the wine tasting - the wines were a lot better than in years past, but still a bit pricey. I weakened and bought Greek olive oil, grape leaves, feta, sheep cheese, capers, taramasalata, sea salt, cracked green olives, and variety pack of Greek cookies. $70.50, and I put it on the credit card. Blegh. On the plus side, we get 70.50$ worth of pleasure out of what we bought.

I also encouraged DH to take the bus out to the festival. Even at $2.50 for the trip that's a lot nicer to do than to drive then drive around for very limited parking. And we are maintaining our habit that we bring our cloth bags. We'll figure it out yet.

Saving log - $1 tip box
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $4.50 curry

In the past two days, my paper profits dropped about $4K. Most of the drop was in the Vanguard taxable account, my 403B had a fair amount of ballast in bonds and cash, so those didn't drop so much.

I did a good job of moving my excess money in my checking out to savings - I'm running on about $60 until the end of the month. Too bad weekends are my worst time for saving.

Saving log - $3 tip box
Spending log - $1.84 coffee, milk + $5.50 lunch + $14.50 groceries

Most of the fun I have catching up with my credit card is that I can spend the cc payment on things I like - namely assets that pay dividends. I've put $500 on one of my DRPs, the one whose transfer agent is on the poky side. It looks like the transfer agent buys the stock once/quarter, but its hard to tell. If I think that the transfer agent is inefficient, then I'm not excited to put a little something in every month - I much prefer to wait until I have a chunk of money to put in. The stock price on that DRP (MI) has been see-sawing a bit, but its been down. I hope it goes down some more during the time that the transfer agent finally buys it.

As I was telling my DH, I didn't really mean to test 4 different cost averaging buying styles. Style 1 (MMM), where the transfer agent dependably buys the stock on Friday if you get it to them by the following Tuesday, I've been playing it like a tennis ball - sending money back as soon as I get the form. Style 2 (KO), where I have electronic deposit at $1/transfer, I allow the account to take out $51/month for a $50 buy. (sucks - that's like a 2% fee). Style 3 (WEC), where the transfer agent buys twice/month, I've treating a bit like style 1. Style 4 (MI), transfer agent is poky, so I buy in a lump when I can.

I can't really tell the difference in results. But it is easiest to buy on the dips if the transfer agent is dependable, so I've acquired those shares quickly.

Found a great deal on frozen corn - .99/bag. I was walking home, though, and I didn't have the energy to lug a lot of bags, not to mention its hotter than -h right now and I didn't want it to go bad. So I bought only 2 bags and called it a score.

Saving log - $3
Spending log - $1.85 coffee, milk + $6 lunch and snack + $6 stickers

DH sometimes has the sensibility of a 12 yr old boy. He told me last night that he wanted to change the stickers on his PDA - too flashy, he said. So I bought him some Japanese samurai and kabuki stickers.

Tiny and not so tiny decisions - I have one of three recurring charges (ISP, Netflix, newspaper) on my credit card. This month was the first month I saw that my ISP charge made it from the credit card to my debit card. Think I will try moving the Netflix this month.

Not so tiny decision. This stock market is baffling me and has been for months. I don't understand the fundamentals and why its going up so fast. I decided to shift the 403B part of my portfolio a bit. Before it was quite aggressive - 90% stock (I have some bonds elsewhere). I decided to redistribute to 50/50 bond and stock, so I still have plenty of stock. I'm just trimming my sails a bit.

I'd do that with some of the Vanguard holdings, however they're in a taxable account and I've bought less than a year ago, so if I shift things around, any profits from selling will be taxed on the income rate, not long term capital gains rate. The next little bit of new money I receive, I'll put it in bonds and trim the sails a bit there, too.

Just to remind me that it's May in my yard:

Saving log - $7 tip box
Spending log - $.65 milk + $5.45 curry

Gained 1 lb back, dang, but I lost another 1/2 inch on the waist, 1/2 inch on the hips. The trainer and I were job shadowed by a trainer-in-training. Today my body behaved and I showed good form during most of the workout. I managed to hold a full plank position for one minute, one second.

T-bill matured and I got $15.96 in interest on the purchase of the next one. Put $40 in one Drp, automatically put another $50 into another Drp.

Saturday DJ friend and I hammer out an easy way to manually generate the royalty logs for the radio station. It looks like we can automate the log, but it will be a month or two of broadcasting beforehand. DJ friend is a bit depressed - like most big undertakings, this is a marathon, not a sprint - he needs a second wind. And he's worried that with all the hoops, he won't have enough time and energy to do what he really loves - create and broadcast his own mixes.

This week was going to be the week that I put that 20K into Vanguard. But this week was a wicked one for stocks (500 point drop), so I'm inclined to keep it in ING for just a little while longer. I hesitate to call it market timing, I just don't want to catch a falling knife.

Saving log - $5 tip box + $16.06 T-bill interest + $75 from checking to saving
Spending log - $1.50 coffee + $13 lunch + $40 ATM

Noticed that the matching piece of my 403B jumped up by about $2000. I'll have to ask around to find out what's going on. Rumors seem to be better than HR right now. A mysterious email appeared that there will be upcoming changes in the 403B and to find out about them on March 15.

Scanned through the transactions on one of my DRPs. The transfer agent changed in August. Before August, all the transactions were as neat as a pin - credited on the 1st or 2nd of the month, except on December, when it was credited on December 15th - afterwards its the 5th, 6th, 8th. And they take the money out promptly on the 26th. Ten days of float, in other words.

Savings log - 0$ tip box
Spending log - $1.50 coffee, tip + $4.50 soup for lunch

I was busy today so I went home to the news that the stock market's down big, big, big today. (-416).

Just because I wanted to know how a 416 point drop meant to me, I figured out that I've lost a bit over $3700 today. Who knows, it might be worse tomorrow or in the days to come.

Correction or crash, I've got to be philosophical about this.
From reinvesting dividends, my Drp portfolio is still in the black.
3 out of 4 of my drp stocks were (not now) close to their 52 week highs - bad because if you want to buy good company stock, you want to buy when the stock's cheap.
I have a fair amount of cash and T-bills (paying at 5.2%) to buck me up.
And 3% corrections to the stock market used to happen quite often, every few months or so.

Stocks go down, stocks go down. Repeat and note that its time for a glass of 3 buck-chuck wine.

Saving log - see below
Spending log - $1.36 coffee, 11$ lunch

Well I deposited the 3rd distribution of the estate today (its not really an advance any more). It seems to be more difficult to put it in. The difficulty isn't with me particularly, it seems like the bank is getting tighter. I know you all should have such problems!

I put the 25K into my checking account, dangerous to many, but not really to me - I know what I want to do with it.

It went into the bank just fine, but due to the size of the check, the bank is putting a 5 business day hold on the first 5K, a 10 business day hold on the rest. That didn't seem to happen last year. So the money has to wait in the bank until early February.

My plan is to put 20K into my taxable Vanguard account, but that will be delayed too, because I sold 4K worth to put into my Roth IRA. A noble goal, but I now can't do anything for 60 days, until early March. I could keep that 20K in ING, but perhaps I should put it in another 4 week T-bill, if the interest rate is a shade higher.

Of the other 5K, I plan on putting 1.5K into gym class/ personal training, and the last 3.5K into ING with the expectation that I'll be using the money for the Paris trip.

It seems so odd to be writing about such a large sum of money when it seems many here are struggling. Let me know if I am offensive.

Back to the salt mines, I guess, but I implemented what I could at home.

1. Increased my 403B % to 13% of gross pay, up from 12%. I'll be bringing that form to HR tomorrow. It means that my 2% raise from 12/14 has been spent.

2. Put 4K into a 2007 Roth IRA. I didn't actually save it, I moved 4K from one Vanguard account to another.

3. Got my first piece of paper for my taxes Friday. Started my 2007 tax file.

Found a deal on cup of noodles. As I was waiting in the grocery line, the woman ahead of me bought a pack of brand-name cigarettes. $6.49/pack. I hate to imagine the fiscal carnage of a carton. In a sense, though, cigarette prices aren't high enough. We all pay for a smoker. Unfortunately, we all will pay for overeaters and non-exercisers and the non-prudent in general. Its the fiscal take on "judge not, lest ye be judged."

Last night was fun - conversation, Cranium, and Scene It? - although I had 5 little tacos, boodles of tortilla chips and guacamole, 2 glasses of wine, and a glass of champagne.

Judge not, lest ye be judged.

Well, its about as pleasant. I've been noticing that all my financial websites (banks, brokerage, 403B, IRAs, US Treasury) have been doing the same thing - beefing up their security.

Everybody's splitting the panels between the username and the password, forcing me to add characters to my password, forcing me to give the answers to stock questions that mean nothing to me (guys, how about me coming up with wacky questions, which I then answer...I can't answer questions about children's names when I don't have children!). My password has morphed into three. My bank is gripping about the fact that I didn't give them a cell phone number. I don't have a cell phone number!!!

I understand it, what with the advent of WiFi and the data theft of the past few months but man it is inconvenient beyond inconvenient. I'm just going to get my account locked up.

Saving log - 0$
Spending log - 1.50$ coffee + 8$ lunch + 4$ groceries (bag of salad for $1, broccoli, chicken stock ... warning - canned chicken stock will go up after Christmas!

Just like it sounds.

The non profit that I'm at (look at the sentence below the poem) has kicked off its workplace charity campaign this week. Last year and for a few years previously, I had given enough for special treatment. One of the perks was a breakfast held today. So no need for the coffee, milk, and energy bar - it was yogurt parfait, juice and high calorie, non Mickey-D egg, ham and cheese english muffin sandwich.

Then, for lunch, a strategy session for a cringe-inducing fashion show as a part of the charity campaign. Pizza. 1 piece of pepperoni and cheese was tasty enough and free, but yikes!

Salad, vegetables and red wine tonight.

Work is picking up and fast. Both my assistant and I have plenty to do, lots of questions to answer, and money and pledges to process. It feels good.

Not much on a financial front. I'm looking forward to 66.24$ in re-invested dividends this quarter, and 7.94$ in T-bill interest this week.

Thursday -
2$ in the tip box
7.70$ earned from T-bills this week, sent to ING.

Had breakfast coffee at a morning meeting, so only spent for a bibimbap lunch (6.50$).

The timeline firmed up for the first large quantity of pledges and money for this year - a week from now Monday.

Generally I try to make a week's worth of prepared food on Saturday and Sunday, but Thursday night I made the fixin's of lentil soup. DH fetched some carrots and more lentils (3$).


Friday -
8$ in the tip box (40$ total for the month)

I felt like a rich woman, so I splurged and spent on chirashi for lunch (11$) in addition for the for black coffee + no fat milk (2$)

It was a good day for my DRP stocks - KO went up $1.80/share; MMM went up $2.07. I write it now to cheer me up should they drop just as steeply. 3/4 of my stocks are close to their 52 week highs, only MMM is at its midpoint, bouncing back from its dip.

Put 300$ in a surprising place - in my PayPal account. Its paying at 5.02%.

Put out some small fires at work today. I feel bad about giving my helper a totally boring icky data job, but its important and it will help us... a lot.

Walked home from 15th Ave NW, 7 blocks further than I normally do - I have been doing off and on these past two months, but I figure this will be one of the last times this year. We go back to regular time either this weekend or next, which means walking in the dark.

2 Drp optional cash purchase slips, insurance invoice (regarding the chiropractor), light bill, a Schedule K-1 from dad's estate. No taxes owed.

I have to tell you that my heart gave a little jump when I saw the letter from the executors - I thought that the bid from the second property came in (early) and I would have to eat crow from my sister. I'm pretty sure that the bid would come in in late October - November.

Light bill was 61.67, a bit smaller than last year

Wrote a 35$ check to one drip, 40$ to another.

Watershed moment at work today, which was again crazy. On my white board I wrote the best advice I ever received about my job:

"No one dies if it doesn't get done today."

Don't get my wrong. I work hard and I'm sprightly about my timelines. Its just that if you let your co workers jerk you around, well, I can get jerked around very, very hard. The things that have to get done "today" usually mean that you are helping someone else get their work done "today". Have got to prevent that!

Gym: Held a plank position (very tough on the side abs) for 50 sec. Twice. Last night I came up with an excellent idea for a Halloween costume, which I ran by my trainer. I would go as a trainer. They have a specific uniform, and I asked her whether it would be possible to borrow a top. She laughed and thought it was a fun idea - bonus points for the self referential aspect of it - and for another irony. Halloween falls on a training session, so I would have to remove my trainer costume and put on my gym clothes to train, then put the trainer costume back on. The only snag in this is that tops are hard to come by. I'll have to think about the name tag, too.

So at the foursome lunch (16.50$ - one of us had a birthday so the other three bought) today, conversation turned to my new bed, the sleep number part, and the adjustable foundation part. Then it turned to how much it cost. I told them and the other three blanched, looked stricken like they were suffering from heartburn. Choices, guys. I don't have a car (which I still really don't need), and I rent. But I like to get 7-8 hours of sleep, which is going to happen to be a 1/3 of my life.

Planned the move of the 24K out of ING to Vanguard. Since it is a taxable account, and not part of an IRA, it should be tax and fee efficient, without a lot of trading. I picked the S & P 500 (VINFX) index fund, with the capital gains and the dividends reinvested. If I remember right, stocks get bought and sold at the end of the quarter - aka the "witching" hour - so the index matches the market. In other words, nothing's bought continuously.

Talked a little more to co worker/ DJ about what I would be writing on the internet radio station. We apparently have 4-6 weeks or so. He plans to switch things on when everything's ready, a luxury that maybe a regular radio station doesn't have. My assistant has been cranking along. Soon I'm going to have the opposite problem - keeping her busy.

Been walking home from 15th Ave NW about 80% of the time now, but since its getting dark more quickly, that'll soon change because I really don't want to be walking that long and far after dark. Another choice. The chiropractor suggested going back to the gym 3x/week, rather than just 2x.

With the stocks that I hold as Drips, the transfer agents are like the bank. I send my check to them, they buy the stock and keep track of my holdings. Since I have four Drips, each with its own different transfer agent, I have become a connoisseur of transfer agents. My order from best to worst...

Wells Fargo (MMM) - The online interface screams 1997, but the math is right. My check is posted as a pending transaction within 3 days of me mailing it. Every transaction is regular. The transfer agent buys this stock every Tuesday, so if my check makes it in by Friday, its bought and I'm off to the races. They then send an invoice and SASE envelope so the buying cycle begins again. If I'm on the ball, I can buy stock every three weeks. Awesome! Dividends are posted about two weeks before they are bought. MMM pays dividends on a September 15, December 15, March 15, June 15 schedule.

Compushare (KO) - Nicer online interface, but it recently got revamped (it bought out Equiserve) so when I'm clicking at tabs to find what I want I feel a little like pigeon pecking at a disc for a reward. The transfer agent buys this stock every month on the first, and pulls the money out on the 28th for a 1$ fee (which I hate!). The stock shows as being in my account around the 5th or so. In other words, not quite as regular as Wells Fargo. Dividends get posted along with that months purchase. KO pays dividends on a October 1, December 15 (avoid the holiday rush), March 1, June 1 schedule.

Bank of New York (WEC) - The online interface is nice enough (dandy graphs if you happen to have more than one stock with them), but you have to run Internet Explorer to see it. Firefox shows it as a black, weird garble. Again, this transfer agent buys it at the 1st of the month. I mail this one in, and the check is posted as a pending transaction about a week after I mail it. Dividends get posted along with that months purchase. They send an invoice about 10 days after the stock gets bought so I can buy more on a comfortable 1x/month cycle. WEC pays dividends on a September 1, January 1, March 1, June 1 schedule.

Continental (MI) - my newest drip so I have less than a year's worth of experience but sheesh, transactions are poky. I have to beg for forms to buy stock, the check gets posted but it seems to hang there for months and months before the stock gets bought. I can apparently buy 1x/quarter. The online interface is the same as MMM, so I really have no complaints about the interface itself...its just that what's in it and the speed of how it changes is the problem. MI pays dividends on a September 1, January 1, March 1, June 1 schedule, but the transfer agent seems to post them between 9-15 days later.

I glanced out the bus window this morning. A tree was beginning to get some red color and around its trunk were plenty that had fallen. Fall is here.

On day 3 - I took down the boxes that I shoved on top of the bookcases "for just a little while" back in February 2000. It was quite a productive box - I found 2 copies of my birth certificate, a copyright form from my dissertation, and reviews of my last paper (unpublished).

Its funny - I remember the review being so awful that it was the last straw of my scientific career. When I reread it today, one reviewer liked it, the other didn't but the consensus was fix this and we'll publish.

I wasn't able to fix it (I was 2000 miles away from plants, genes, and equipment), sure, but my 40+ year old self is kicking my 30+ year old self ...why so sensitive - one person was positive, so what if the other's negative? Look at the glass as half full. It wasn't so bad.

Oh for a time machine! As if I would have listened.

And so it goes. I really feel much more optimistic and happy in my 40s than I ever did in my 30s. Just in case any of you 20+s and 30+s are reading and blogging. It might well be the level of savings above the debt gets you to sleep at night. Life is always better after you wake up from a sound sleep.

Anyway, I finished cleaning and dusting all the books. We still have slightly more book than bookcase, but less than a shelf.

Day 4 - Picked up a paper rope basket for 50% off at Cost Plus (think Pier 1, but cheaper and less kitchy) and put all of the blank office supplies in it. They fit nicely and it looks good on the floor. Fingers crossed that it'll be a good self-nagger, and we'll want to use what's inside. $13.

Got a call from sister about getting a Dell laptop. I was positive - I blog using a Dell laptop, although mine's a bit older with an older battery and the recall didn't affect me. Still going strong after 2.5 yrs.

No word on anyone interested in the second property. I consider the breather to be a blessing. I'm learning a lot on how to invest 30K and that is proving to be intense. I can't imagine handling 10X that amount all at once. Sister was interested in my 4 week T-bill buying, although I sensed that she didn't quite understand it. T-bills would work even better for her - she pays state and local taxes on interest (state of WA has no state income tax) and she would not pay that on a T-bill.

Put 40$ into one DRP and 35$ into another.

Lesson paraphrased from lrjohnsons blog -

--Aren't we nickel and diming our savings when we fail to do financial planning on what we save? Saving is one thing; making money and saving money as we make money is another, more important piece.

Its a bit like this: when we first learn to save, we're trying to pay off debt to keep from drowning; a good saver can tread water for a very, very long time, but not get anywhere; but plan your finances along with saving and you swim somewhere - the stronger the planning, the stronger and faster you'll get away from the sharks and onto that tropical island.

This is my financial plan, and I'm the first one to tell that I have plenty of holes and gaps to fill.

My finances are like a three layer cake. Layer one is lemon - the 6 month emergency fund (for when life gives you lemons). How much is easy: I count paychecks. I don't bother with expenses - if you live at or below your means, your means become a unit of measure. I get paid twice a month, $1100/paycheck, net. My final emergency fund should be $2,200 x 6 or $13,200.

The lemon layer should be lemon creme - gooey and nearly liquid, but it still should earn as much as possible. I have most of my money in ING. I like the interface and that I can move money within a day, but I've become increasingly dissatisfied with the interest rate. So I've put a little bit of it (1 months' paycheck) in a 5% 6-month CD. I'm still not thrilled with the interest rate and that its locked up for 6 months. (Interest rates have been rising, so when its locked up you get left behind) I've been buying 4-week T-bills at a bit above 5%. I have two months worth of paychecks in T-bills spaced two weeks apart, and I've made the transactions repeat. The mature T-bill gets deposited in the same spot that the next T-bill gets bought from.

Layer two is the carrot cake. Intermediate layer (5-10yrs); healthy and diversified, and as tax deferred as possible. But percents and tax deferral matter here. I figure my I-bonds are here (5 yrs), and so is my little DRP portfolio (10 yrs or so). I like my DRPs here, because I can put money into stocks, the dividends are reinvested with nearly no fees. My KO drp charges a $1 to do online purchases (2% fees for a $50 purchase - which is barely acceptable). I pay taxes on the dividends, and I plan to buy and hold, so sell only after I get the long term capital gain (these days, only 366 days), or if the stock absolutely sucks. The inheritance CD is here too, and while I plan to slot it in as intermediate money, I haven't yet finalized my plans.

I don't really have a target dollar amount here, so I don't know when to stop with the intermediate cash. I know that my lemon layer protects me against the bitter carrot bits, sour pineapple, and dry coconut

Layer three is pure chocolate. Long term layer (+20yrs); inflation, fees, and taxes are your primary concern here. I have a current 403B, an old 403B and a traditional IRA. I plan on starting a Roth in 2007; I'm also thinking about converting the traditional IRA to a Roth. I get a match, so it is like adding chocolate chips to the cake. Stocks (equities) comprise 90% of what's in these accounts, bonds 10% - I have a lot of T-bills, I-bonds, and CDs in the other layers. My concern here is that my 403B charges excessive fees, as compared to Vanguard.

Two disparate analogies - cake and swimming - just make sure you wait an hour before doing them both.

3M is one of my DRPs. Last night I decided to send that DRP $2000 of inheritance money. Between the mailing, the cashing of the check and the actual buying of the stock, it takes awhile between the decision and the implementation - about 2 weeks. This afternoon I was pleased, in a speculative sort of way, that 3M is at a three year low. My fingers are crossed that it drops a little bit more while my check is in the mail.

I'm also buying another 4 wk T-bill at $2000. This one looks like it is going to be at 5.007%. My 6 mo ING CD is getting shabby, and my brick-and-mortar bank CD is starting to look very, very shabby at 4.35%, but I only have 3 more months to go on that one.

Tomorrow I also buy $100 I-bond.

I guess that instead of shopping for stuff like a lot of Americans, I'm shopping for money. I'd love to buy a dollar's worth for 70 cents; lately it seems like I'm buying a dollar's worth for 90-95 cents.

We are having a heat alert in Seattle tomorrow, so I expect to have another not-so-good night of sleep. Last night our 19 yr old cat kept hurking up, so his food is being cut back a bit.

Today I spent stupid money. I left my bus pass in my yesterday's pants pocket, I had to beg to get on in the morning and pay $1.50 on the return trip home. Lunch out with lawyer friend, but at places charging only 6$. Compared to 10-11$ a month or two ago, we are making progress.

Last night I was going to change a bit of information on my Treasury Direct account. I was so clever a year ago answering the security questions. Too clever: I locked my account. I highly recommend their customer service - no hold, no hold music, just a nice guy who answered the phone on the second ring, asked me some security questions and unlocked my account in all of five minutes.

I've still been doing gym. I haven't been measured lately, so I think I will ask next week. My large gym shirt is comfortable (It'll be years before I become a medium), the upper ab bulge is disappearing and the shirt is not creeping up. Yippee! My trainer is now working with my two co workers, who are now gym buddies and come in nearly every day. I'm excited for them, too.

Spending log - $1.65 coffee + $6 lunch + $1.50 bus ride.
Saving log - $1 tip box, scheduled a $2000 transfer from ING to another 4 wk T-bill, moved $1000 into another DRP.

I wrote a check and an OCP slip out for 35$ to a DRP and I put it in my purse along with the latest Netflix return. My first stop was the grocery store. In addition to groceries, there is a blue mailbox in the parking lot. After parking, and about a third of the way to the mailbox, I reached into my purse and just found the Netflix envelope. No DRP envelope. Back tracked, but no envelope. Okay, maybe it means that I forgot to put it in my purse. Mailed the Netflix DVD, ran my errands, got back home, looked around, dug behind the couch...

No DRP envelope. Found the cover envelope that everything came in, so I wasn't imagining things.

I want to think that a good samaritan found it and mailed it, or tossed it, or even would stick it back into my mailbox. I fear the opposite - that someone opened the envelope, steals the check and my account, or worse, sells the shares I have. I mean we aren't talking thousands, just hundreds, but ick.

What to do?

That was this weekend, and that's today. No economic news.

4$ in the tip jar. $35 in another Drp (dividend reinvestment program). Dropping stock prices excite me when I'm adding a bit of money to my stock position via drps; its not exciting me any looking at my 403B. Both of the two advances are in a 6-month CD or in ING, just patiently generating cash.

Inflation is going up a tiny bit, so I'm still happy with putting a *little* bit in I-bonds ($100/month), but it soon will be time to call it quits. I figure about 10K for that style of fixed income.

Fun spending right now is for work, if you can believe it. I'm in the prize procurement business for a little bowling event at work. I found a person at work even luckier than I am at a yard sale - she found a beaut of a bowling shirt. Best individual score prize, if you ask me.

Not so fun spending right now is for several weddings. Tis the season. I hate the wedding-industrial-complex, so I never look at the bridal registry. My imagination on where a gift like a silver fish fork will end up (eBay, the yard sale, husband's forehead, melted down for silver) will just depress me. Unless I come up with a more brilliant idea, I go to my fallback position and give a gift certificate to Hardwick's, a consignment hardware store.

Only spent $4.50 today. $2 for a coffee and $2.50 for 1/2 a good tuna sandwich. Saved the first half of today's lunch from yesterday.

Put 40$ in the 3M drp. After 2 years, I now have 27 shares. Put $35 in a WEC drp two weeks ago, I now have 18 shares of that. Put $50 electronically in KO last week, I now have 72 shares of that. Dividends for this quarter are: $22.28 (KO) + $12.05 (MMM) + $3.95 (WEC) + $2.98 (MI) = $41.26. It's not a bad deal - I put in money in quantities that I don't miss and it generates reinvested money that I also don't miss.

Haven't heard boo on the 2nd property.

The trainer has raised the resistance weight on most of the machines. Where it was 20 lbs, its now 30 lbs. We are now being to do "future" exercises. She had me try to do several real man-style pushups. I could still only bend my elbows and dip a couple of inches or two. For the future, the trainer said. I surprised both of us by holding a decent full plank position for 45 seconds.