You don't have to tell me, I already know. ;) I started this blog with the intention of updating it on a regular basis, I really did. And then life took over and this blog got put on the back burner. Which sucks, because I really like this blog and want to be able to place a lot of good information here that will help people save
and make money.
So I'm going to try.... lol.
But here's an update of what I've been doing so far:
1) My student loan is now rehabilitated. I got a letter from the Dept. of Education earlier this month telling me that my student loan had been successfully rehabilitated and was now out of collections status. Woo-hoo! Of course, I'm still paying this ($85/month) but now I'll be paying them directly and it will look better on my credit report, plus I think this means I'm eligible for financial aid again, if I should decide to go back to school. :)
2) I reached the $1000 mark on Cash Duck!
Not too bad, huh? ;) I am now at the point where I'm earning a good chunk from referrals alone. But I also do my own offers... and a few surveys when I can. It really is easy money and I wish more people would get that. I recently lost a few days work after the Thanksgiving holiday. Well, because of that they wouldn't pay me for the holiday because I didn't bring in a doctor's note.
I also didn't get paid for the days I was sick because I was out of sick leave. So I lost a whole week's pay!
Normally, this would've been a big deal, but because I keep my earnings from GPT sites in a separate account, I was able to transfer money to my bank account to cover my normal expenses and it didn't affect me at all.
3) I became a coupon freak.
It all started because I was reading a lot of personal finance blogs and I would read about how much they saved using coupons. So I signed up with The Grocery Game. Once a week I would receive a list that showed a stores weekly sales (and unadvertised sales) and the coupons that matched up with it. I started buying 3 or 4 copies of the Sunday paper (for the coupons) and buying a few from coupon clipping services to build my coupon stash.
Somehow through all of that, I stumbled across a site that I've come to love - Hot Coupon World. Here people talk about their favorite stores and all the sales going on and the best part is that it's 100% free. I joined in late October and just this week I was made the "mod" of the Winco forum (a grocery store in the NW). So now I use HCW almost exclusively.
I have stockpiles of stuff that I use on a regular basis - everything from food (crackers, pudding, juice, spaghetti sauce, cake mix, cereal, etc) to health/beauty aids (make-up, shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, kleenex, etc.) -- even things like dishwashing soap - I bought 10 boxes yesterday for .60/each + tax. That stuff normally goes for $3-$4!
My subscription to The Grocery Game is up in January and I don't think I'll be renewing. But I will say that it's a great place to start, since they lay everything out for you. Once you get the hang of it, you'll be able to spot deals on your own.
If this sounds like something you may be interested in, watch this blog for an upcoming post about getting started in couponing. :D And if you want to sign up with either of these sites - use the links on the right-hand side of this blog. :)
So there you have it - a snapshot of what I've been up to these last couple of months. I have big plans for the new year. But I'll save that for next time. ;)Labels: coupons, debt, gpt sites
