The past two weeks have been a bit topsy-turvy for us. First with the planned power outage, then with the Fork fire starting during the outage, about 26 miles from our home. The mandatory evacuation line was about a mile past our place, but we chose to voluntarily evacuate.

The evacuation order has since been lifted and the fire is fairly well under control. It is expected to be out soon. We are safe and fine.

We had some extra expenses during the evacuation which SB and I split. I am behind on my bookkeeping, but will catch up eventually.

We are crazy busy at work. My department has undertaken a BIG project on top of our regular work, and just as we were getting started one person left. (She got a big promotion and is now working in another department.) When I get home at night, I just put my feet up and relax. Catching up on my bookkeeping just hasn't been my priority.

On Thursday, I interviewed via Zoom for the job at the local water district. It went pretty well, but of course they have other candidates. They said they will be making a decision "early next week", which is this week. So, we will see what happens. I keep alternating between being excited for a shorter drive and thinking no, making less money would be a mistake.

On Saturday, my mom drove up for the day and brought along a friend of mine who lives in her town. (This is the same friend who occasionally comes to my mom's house when we are playing cards.) They got here early and we played cards all morning and into early afternoon. We have a canopy set up outside, with a mister, and you can hear the gurgling of the creek. It is a great place to hang out. SB grilled some burgers for lunch. They left around 4pm; the day went by so fast. It was so nice to have someone come to see us! It doesn't happen often.

Well, I applied for a job this week. It pays less than the job I have now. Why would I do this, one might wonder. The job is for the local water district, and their office is 10 minutes from my home. Right now, I spend a minimum of 45 minutes commuting each way. That's in good weather and with no road construction projects. Currently, I am taking a longer route due to 3 (!) construction projects on my usual route. It is just under an hour each way.

I'm not entirely certain if I hope that I get this job or hope that I don't. I really have some great co-workers and I don't have a desire to work as many hours while making less money. But, getting an extra 1.5 hours of free time daily is VERY appealing. Also, I would save a bit on gas and car maintenance.

The opening came up, I happened to see it, and just felt I had to give it a try. We'll see.

So I did end up cancelling the appointment to do the prep work for the implants. They re-scheduled for the crowns, but I have decided I am going to cancel that too. I am just not happy about the abrupt change in treatment plans. The former dentist, whom I really liked, said that I needed more fillings and a deep cleaning (below the gum lines). The new dentist says I don't need any of that, but do need crowns. The former dentist said nothing about needing crowns.

Maybe I am completely wrong, but I kind of get the vibe that I am more a source of revenue than a patient. I am going to get another opinion and most likely switch dentists.

Yesterday was payday and I sent $374.25 off to my dental sinking fund. I wish that I were sending it off towards the 5th wheel loan instead.

I filed my tax returns this morning using Credit Karma's free service. I am expecting a total of $1,109 between federal and state. Those dollars will go into the dental fund too.

We have booked our Panama Canal cruise ("we" being my mom, my nephew, my daughter and I). Sailing on the Caribbean Princess, with stops in Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Panama. Should be a great deal of fun.

Ten years ago on 1/1/10, I was already happily divorced and had been living in the only house I ever bought all by myself for just over 1 year (purchased 11/30/08). My adult nephew was living with me. My son was just 14 and I shared custody of him with my ex-husband; my daughter was 19 and was already married and living in Indiana. I had been dating SB for a few months (we met in September of 2009).

Financially, I had not yet started budgeting. Oh, I kept track of my bills, paid everything on time, did not overdraft, etc. but had never had an actual written budget. I had no debt but my mortgage (it was during 2010 that I accumulated about 4k of consumer debt and realized that I needed a written budget). I had a savings account, a traditional IRA, a Simple IRA, and had contributed a total of 4k to my Roth IRA. I don't know exactly how much my retirement savings totaled, but I do know that I broke 100k for the first time in 2007, just before that big correction. It took about a year and a half to get back there, so my best guesstimate for portfolio value on 1/1/10 is 100k-125k.

I was worried about my home value as prices had fallen and I was underwater quite a bit. It felt like a huge weight on my shoulders.

I was happy at my job and was thinking I would work full-time until age 65. I had relinquished my dream of world travel when I signed away my claim to ex-husband's pension. I was not yet thinking that I could still have a nomadic retirement but in a different (more modest) way.

I was happy with my life, but I am happier now.

One of our main sources of entertainment is watching YouTube. I watch financial channels, full time RVing channels, and OK a crochet video every now and then.

A few weeks ago, I stumbled on to Quest to FIRE. The vlogger is a 30 something married woman w/ no kids living in NC, working towards her FIRE goals. She has a great sense of humor and is fun to watch. I think this is my favorite channel right now.

I also used to really like GazelleIntents, who were doing the Dave Ramsey thing. They were a young engaged couple when I started watching, and they were just adorable. Then they got married, had a beautiful baby, she got some promotions and became the sole bread winner while he was doing the full-time sahd thing, but then they took down their channel.

Another FIRE channel I really like is GoWithLess. This couple is late 40s/ early 50s, FIREd a year or two ago, and are just about to embark on full-time world traveling (not RVing).

My favorite RVing channels are EnjoyTheJourney.Life and Long Long Honeymoon.

Anyone have any favorite YouTube channels they want to share?

So last Sunday, a friend of mine from my old area came up for the day with her mom and her 23 year old son. This particular friend and I met when we were in the same 3rd grade class. That's been a few years back at this point! She is a country girl; grew up in the country, has horses, etc.

They came in the late morning and stayed until early evening. It was her first time up here to visit me. We had a very pleasant day.

Yesterday morning, she texted me that she and her husband (who has yet to visit here) talked about it and decided that they would like to purchase one of the houses in disrepair and 2 acres from SB. For now, they would come up on the weekends to work on the house. Eventually, they would move here. I said I would pass that on to SB and they would have to discuss it.

Apparently, they had decided they will not retire in the beautiful home and acreage they have now, but will sell to their son and move elsewhere. (They would never sell out of their family, she lives on property her great-grandparents purchased way back when. At this point there are multiple family members in homes on land which was once part of the original property purchase).

It turned out, SB is not opposed to the idea. He said they would have to talk about a lot of details first, to be sure everyone is on the same page.

I am trying to not get too excited about this idea, just in case it doesn't work out. But my goodness, this would be so great!

I have known for awhile that my daughter and son-in-law have been looking at different homes and considering both traditional and alternative homes. When my daughter was here a month ago, she shared that they were no longer looking in Colorado as prices have gotten so high, but were instead looking in southern Illinois.

Today I learned...they found a place and are transacting business tomorrow. It is a modest single wide mobile home on a small piece of land (half an acre), and they are paying cash for it. I am so excited for them! They will no longer be paying rent and so will be able to quickly save for whatever they choose to do next. You may remember, my daughter is currently attending college. She will be able to continue online, so this move will not disrupt her educational goals.

In other news, our power went out Wednesday afternoon, came back on Thursday evening, went out again on Saturday. It is crazy windy today; unsure at this point when power will be restored.

We went to my mom's yesterday and spent the day. I had cousins visiting from out of state. When we returned home last night, it was surreal driving on the highway through towns with no power. It was so very dark.

I have seen video footage of fires on the side of the road next to cars lined up to cross the Carquinez bridge in Vallejo, a bridge I have crossed myself many times.

Tomorrow is a payroll processing day, a task which is deemed essential. I am to report for work at 1pm to a county building (with a generator) which is not my regular workplace. Three others from my department have received the same instructions. My little piece of payroll processing takes 3-4 hours to complete. We will all be paid time and a half for our worked hours; everyone receives straight time for their missed work hours. I did not work last Thursday at all; this coming Tuesday is still an unknown.

Early this past Wednesday morning, a sheriff's deputy (in our county) was killed in the line of duty. He was only 37, had a wife and 3 children. I did not know him, but some of my coworkers did. It was a very emotional day.

Anyone here on a plant based diet? Frugal Texan is I believe, any others?

Looking for some information resources and will happily take your suggestions.

Thanks!

We were informed today that PG&E will be turning off our power this Wednesday at 2 pm. The plan is to turn it back on Thursday at noon. However, turning it back on is a process which takes 24-48 hours.

So it looks like I will have some more non-working paid hours this week.

I don't mind being paid for hanging out with SB and Bella at home, but it is a frustrating interruption to keeping up with my work.

There are 15 counties affected by this planned power outage.

Budget and spending are going well for the month. Nothing else to report.

My area is experiencing a planned power outage. The power went out early Wednesday morning between midnight and 4am. The utility company, PG&E, said to plan on no power for up to 7 days.

As you know, I work for the county in a clerical position. While some county buildings are equipped with generators, mine is not.

My office was told to report for work Wednesday morning as usual and await further instructions. So I did, sat in the dark twiddling my thumbs for 40 minutes along with my co-workers, at which time we were instructed to leave and report back this morning at 8am.

I drove the 23 miles home and enjoyed a pleasant day with SB and Bella. (We have a small generator, fresh water in the tank, propane, and battery backup. Not everything works when there is no power, and of course we have to conserve since what we have has to last, but we manage fine).

This morning I got ready for work, drove 23 miles to get there, and by 8:05 was told to go home and come back tomorrow at 8am. So, now I am home again. I am pleasantly surprised to have a bar on my phone, so this entry is what you get.

Some people around here are very angry about this power shut-off. But I feel it is to be expected. If PG&E is going to be held financially responsible for fires starting from downed power lines during windy weather conditions, what choice do they have? Of course they are going to turn off power when high winds are expected. And if that's safer, then I am all for it. A little inconvenience is nothing compared to the loss of life and property suffered by people in the town of Paradise.

I am being paid for these days without using any of my accrued vacation or comp time.

Tomorrow, SB will take the little travel trailer down to my mom's house in the central valley, where power is not currently disrupted. We will spend the weekend there.

Well, thanks to CeeJay, I was able to recover quite a few entries. Some I found were not cached so I could not recover them, and I don't doubt some I just did not find. Oh well, it isn't as if the world has lost anything or even noticed.

Yesterday I went over to a friend's to help her with her QuickBooks. This is the same friend I mentioned a few months ago who was living in a 5th wheel while building a new house. The house is still not done, but it is done enough that they have moved in. The house is absolutely gorgeous, they chose to do it in Tuscan villa style. It is VERY upscale, but they didn't spend nearly what you might think at first sight.

When they got a quote for the cabinets (kitchen, baths, linen, storage), it came in at 121k. (A big part of that is she wanted high cabinets with arches.) Well, that was far more than she wanted to pay, so she got on eBay. She found someone on the east coast who was selling beautiful high end custom cabinets and granite. It was all 8 years old and the person was redecorating. My friend spent 12k including shipping last year, then stored it (on her own property). When the house was ready for the cabinets and granite, her second-hand stuff went in. It looks fabulous.

She got most of her light fixtures, ceiling fans, and french doors the same way. Someone who had a Tuscan style home in Folsom was redecorating and sold it to her cheap.

If you did not know, you would never guess.

The house sits on a ridge, and you look out towards Folsom lake in the distance. Their house is all glass to the west, opens on to a patio with outdoor kitchen and fireplace. I took this pic with my phone. The picture quality is not great, but I think it gives you an idea of their view.



How awful, right? Oh, and I had to take a pic of their dog, Gracie. She is such a sweetie. Plus, you get a look at the main tile they chose. (In their entryway, there is a wood and tile pattern).

Originally Published 09/21/19

I have been meaning to share this. I did this project for my little great-niece, born earlier this year. At one time, I did a lot of cross-stitch. It had been years, but I wanted to make something for the long-awaited sweet baby girl of my grand-niece and her husband. I enjoyed doing it, and have already begun another project.

Originally Published 8/11/19

So early this year, we lost our beloved Nala to laryngeal paralysis. This is a condition in which the nerve controlling the laryngeal flaps stops working, and so the flaps stop moving between the esophagus and the trachea. This was hard on everyone.

After grieving for a few months, SB and I adopted a female 2 year old English bulldog/pit mix. She was being fostered but was the property of the Bradshaw animial shelter in Sacramento. She has quite a personality and has successfully taken charge of SB and I, as we are both besotted with her. Her name was already Bella, and she knows it, so Bella it is.





We have had so much going on, and so much more is on the horizon. My brother and sister in law will be here in two weeks for an overnight visit. My birth mom is coming in late August/early September and will stay for a bit. And then my daughter and son-in-law will be here in late September for a visit.

This September also marks our 10th anniversary. We are planning to take a short trip, possibly to Lake Tahoe.

In financial matters, I have decided to make paying off the 5th wheel a priority. I have re-arranged my budget some and will begin paying the loan aggressively with my next payment. I have cut back my personal allowance, trimmed my travel budget, and will not contribute to my Roth. Instead, all of that money will go to the 5th wheel loan, along with every other dollar I can scrape up.

I will add a Page to my sidebar with the loan amortization to track my progress. I have already made a small amount of progress by making the first 3 payments before the due date (interest accrues daily). If you are interested, take a peak.

Originally Published 05/04/19

I enjoy serendipity so much. Some friends of ours who are close to finishing their new build home have been living in a 5th wheel. They just offered it to us for 5k.

We went to see it. It is not as pretty as the one in the pics I recently shared, but it would be quite an increase in space for us. It is 27 ft with 1 slide and is very clean. It is a 2002 model with worn green carpet which would have to go. It does not have an on-demand hot water heater which is a MUST; those run $1,600 installed. There is more counter space, more living space, and more fridge space. The bathroom is smaller than our bathroom now, but with more storage space. I said I would let them know one way or the other by Tuesday. I am leaning towards "yes".

In other news, SB found a 2006 Toyota Corolla LE with 42k on the odometer, asking price $5,400. He bought it and sold his Acura MDX. It is in excellent condition and gets great mileage. It is now his daily driver in good weather.

On 4-30-19, my Wells Fargo savings account with $10 in it earned a cent of interest. This prompted me to look at the interest rate. It has shot up to 1.22%. This is the highest rate I have seen paid on a regular savings account by a brick-and-mortar bank in a long, long time.

Just heard about this no hoops money market account, currently paying 2.5%. Their marketing strategy cracks me up.

Last weekend, we were without power from late Friday night through Monday night. This means a good many discomforts. Chief among them: no running water.

For heat, we have a small generator we can run which allows us to turn our space heater on low. The generator is gas powered, so running it longer than 4-5 hours requires going outside to add more gas. "So what?" you may ask. Well, our little love nest gets a bit chilly when the sun goes down:









We also have the option of turning on a stove burner. This is our warmest option. The stove runs on propane and is much more efficient than the gas powered generator. However, we will only use this option during waking hours.

I had to melt snow on the stove for a sponge bath to get ready for work on Monday. By Tuesday, thankfully the power was back. But it was a long, cold 3 days.

So when SB texted me this most recent Friday afternoon that the power was out AGAIN, with more snow forecasted, we decided to rent a motel room for the 3 day weekend. I started calling around, when a friend invited us to spend the weekend in her home. So that's where we are at the moment. It's snowing here too, but just a few inches and we have power.

It's always an adventure.

What a wonderful feeling of relief!

So the mortgage debt is gone, the Heloc debt is gone, and I have already paid my WF Visa in full. (I had overdrafted due to a bill pay error, so was paying 24.99% daily and could not wait one moment longer than necessary to put an end to that).

Over the next few days, I will be paying my remaining debts in full, sending money to my Roth IRA and various savings accounts, and making a small but (I hope) helpful gift to each of the two people I love most in the world.

Going forward, I'm going to see how much savings I can pile up in the next few years. Oh, how I am itching to retire.

SB and I are at my house, clearing out and packing up the last few things. I am scheduled to sign docs on Monday, close on Thursday. The proceeds will be wired to my checking account.

I am going to miss this house, but I am looking forward to traveling light.

I bought another fancypants planner for 2019:



and so at the end of January I calculated my net worth, which I had not done in awhile. I did not include my vehicle as an asset, though I do have the loan added as a debt. I had limited space so just skipped it for this month. This spread is in the front of this year's planner:



I intend to use it to get back to tracking monthly. The 275k for the house is my best estimate for selling price minus commission and costs. In a few days, I will find out how close it is.