YAY! I bought myself a new pair of tennis shoes, so that I can go out for walks again (the old ones were bought before my pregnancy and are too tight now!-- yes, my feet grew 1/2 a size!)...so, now I have no excuses to NOT go out for walks: I have the shoes, I have 2 pairs of sweatpants, I have plenty of socks and plently of t-shirts...

AND, since I'm not going to be teaching classes at night starting this week, I won't be exhausted in the mornings (or, at least, I shouldn't be!)...

My goal to start with is 3X week...

1. keep better track of my spending- I still having a hard time sticking to this one!

2. Send out at least 15 resumes in January(best time of the year to find a new job in ES!) and, at least one more per week for the rest of the year until I find a job that pays better! Interesting development in this area

3. FINALLY decide on a school for Alejandra, AND save money for her enrollment fee, uniforms and school supplies Went to see a school that had been recommended. Think it's a good fit for us!...reminds me of the first school I went to: small, few children, re-converted house conditioned to be used as a school...strict but loving owner/director...AND, the initial enrollment fee is $380, and the monthly fee is $110!!...(at the preschool I pay $200 and $70, so the differnce is not THAT much!--at least, it's not $1,000 and $200!!!)...I think this one's a go, so, now I can really do numbers and work on the rest! yay!! Have to take care of this before April ends, though, to ensure there's a space for Ale at the proper grade!

4. continue to lower my overall debt - I started Jan 05 with ~$17K (out of which ~$4K were for a loan and the rest -~$13K!-pure cc debt) and, am starting Jan 06 with $~11K (with ~$8K for a loan and ~$3K in cc debt)... expect to be able to end Dec '06 with ~$7K, which I expect to be purely for the loan... to come partly from the English classes/$20 challenge. Same as last month, all "additional" income going towards the "car account"...

5. Help Ale find a way to earn those $3 she's missing to open her account with HER OWN money...Pending...

Woo-hoo! I got 3 more paid translations for April!! - that's $36 more for my April total!! (and it's only the 5th!)

Well, I was looking at my entries for March of last year:
I was getting TONS of creditor calls and could not even manage minimum payments...I was paying every other month!...My car broke down and had to spend a lot of money repairing it!...also, Fiona, our dog, was then just a puppy and creating all sorts of trouble at the house!

What a difference a year makes!
Nowadays, I am making payments that are slightly higher than minimum payment (of course, I have less credit cards, and lower balances!! YAY, ME!!)...I am trying to get money to buy a new car, so I guess in that sense I'm worse off than last year...and, while Fiona still creates trouble sometimes, these are now exceptions, and not the rule!

This was a good exercise, it helped me put things in perspective...I've still got a long way to go, but, there has DEFINETELY been a lot of progress!!

Translated 3 pages for a friend, that'll be $36 to be added to April's $20 challenge...

Posting it so I don't forget to add it at the end of the month!

Total for March

Challenge statistics:
invested:
$20 gas for cousin
$48 for taxies/March
=======
$68.00

Earned in March: $448.00

net for January: $12.15
net for February: $318.40
net for March:$380
Total ytd for 2006 (net):$710.55

1 small translation- 1 page
need to add $12 for my March total...just noting it down so I don't forget!

I was looking at my cc account on line and found a $25 late payment fee...I did NOT pay late!...soooooo, I look for my voucher, find it, it's safely tucked away with the cc, check the date and...oooops! ....I took the wrong plastic with me when I went to pay!...so the payment was applied to a different cc....soooooo, I ran to the cc company at noon and, explained the problem to a customer service rep who proceeded to transfer the payment to the right cc...and I asked if there was any chance of reverting the late payment fee...and she said YES!!!...and she did!!!...woo-hooo!...I feel $25 richer!!

I've been working like crazy and I still didn't finish even half of what I needed to do...the good thing is, I finished with the most important things, at least!...tomorrow I get another chance to catch up with work! LOL!...have to find something that I can do in 10 minutes before leaving for the school...hmmmmm

Have spoken to H regarding the job he wants (to put all his 100+ presentation cards into Outlook contacts for him), says he'll pay me $10/hour...should I cry? If I translate my regular pay/regular hours,it's almost double!...
so, we'll see how long it takes...I'll probably get started tomorrow, as I don't have to teach a class!

I got the package - turned out to be an envelope!, and left the documents at the Ministry. I called a school ref info for enrollment and have a meeting with the principal tomorrow (HAVE to look into this!)- I called the Ministry of Education ref teaching accreditation, definetely a no-go unless you have your diploma...hmmmm... found the website for the university I attended...turns out now you can do a lot of stuff on line...for other things, though, you have to go there!...they also don't list the courses on line, so I'd have to go there and get a list of the courses required to graduate nowadays (the plan is probably different, if it isn't, all I need to do is make my social hours - translations, maybe? and I'm set!)...if the plan is different, it might require going back for a course or two...or taking a test! ...depending on what the courses are, this would be a good option...
All this and it's still 2:26 here!....Oh, and I graded the listening comprehension/structure part of the English tests!...still have to do that pivot table for the modules feedback... (waiting on 1 overall final survey to update the presentation, though)..
Not bad, not bad at all!

I have a car (my sis is out of the country and I can use her car today and tomorrow, yay!), so I'll go drop off some documents for one of our trainers, pick up some mail that has arrived for one of our PM's, drop off a letter for one of the directors (yes, I also run errands on occasion!...but, if I leave these things with General Services, it takes about a week...I can do them in just one day!)...I've finally finished inputting all the data from the feedback forms from our training, so all I have to do now is the pivot table and update the presentation, so that can be ready for Friday (I promised it for next MOnday, so...I'll do that this afternoon)
I left the documents for my loan application for the car at the bank yesterday, so I have to remember to call the sales rep and see if the preliminary investigation is ok (they do a credit pull)...then I can either relax or go back to fretting about it! LOL!...
I also have to call the Ministry of Education (they wrote back "please call this number") to see what can be done about accreditation...OK, break's over, back to life!

they $157 for the last translations have already been deposited into my account (-$17 for taxes), so I have to add $140 to my challenge money for March!

sent out 2 more resumes: 1 to Berlitz and one for another call center...figure these would be ideal "additional" jobs to supplement my income, either here or at the school if I get the job...Depending on what they pay...the current language school is paying me $5.75/hour...if any of these offer the same hours @ a better rate... I have nothing to lose, and a lot to gain! right??

The person who is going to interview me is not available on Monday at 4pm, so they rescheduled it for Tuesday...
I{m really getting excited about this!!
Can you imagine?? Even if I don't have DD at the same school, I could go home after work and help her with homework, play a while and then go to the other school for my lessons (I need the money!)

They (the school) wrote almost immediately!!!
they want to interview me on MOnday!!! (i'm trying to change the time from 4:30 to 4:00, though, to make sure I arrive on time at the other school for my English lessons!)

::HAPPY DANCE::

Total for February

Challenge statistics:
invested: ~$6.00 initial (Jan)
~$2.55 (addtnl) gas/Jan
~$5.00(addtnl) gas/Feb
~$21.00 taxies/Feb
=======
$34.55

Earned in Feb: $344.40

net for January: $12.15
net for February: $318.40
Total ytd for 2006 (net):$330.55

*******************
This would be funny if it weren't so tragic: my earnings for the month at the school are greater than my bi-weekly pay at work!!

1. keep better track of my spending- I somehow have used the car problem as an emotional excuse not to keep track...will have to be harder on myself and start again!

2. Send out at least 15 resumes in January(best time of the year to find a new job in ES!) and, at least one more per week for the rest of the year until I find a job that pays better! Have sent at least 7 this month, so that's good...haven't received any answers, though! But, some of them were sent yesterday!!
3. FINALLY decide on a school for Alejandra, AND save money for her enrollment fee, uniforms and school supplies Same as last month: the looking/deciding part is on hold until May- when schools start accepting applications...Have already set up a direct deposit from my salary into my Coop account ($90/month)...

4. continue to lower my overall debt - I started Jan 05 with ~$17K (out of which ~$4K were for a loan and the rest -~$13K!-pure cc debt) and, am starting Jan 06 with $~11K (with ~$8K for a loan and ~$3K in cc debt)... expect to be able to end Dec '06 with ~$7K, which I expect to be purely for the loan... to come partly from the English classes/$20 challenge. Current debt still at ~$11K due car broke down and need the additional money to try to purchase a new one...in the meantime, pay only slightly above minimum payments!

5. Help Ale find a way to earn those $3 she's missing to open her account with HER OWN money...have not found the training wheels for the bike yet...

Ok. I received a bank transfer for 1 of my translations (2 pages + recording), for $100.00
This goes towards my $20 challenge! yipeee!!

Challenge statistics:
invested: ~$6.00 initial
~$2.55 (addtnl) gas/Jan
~$4.00(addtnl) gas/up to feb 17
=======
$12.55
earned: $120.70

net for January: $12.15
net for February*: $96.00
Total ytd for 2006:$108.15

++ think might need to use the money for car instead of for cc debt payment! Still, if I have to, this is money that I won't be borrowing, so I'm counting it as progress!

Finally got it!!!... so, tonight I'm going to dig out last year's tax file so that I can re-create it for this year and file my taxes!!...I'm doing it in February, as the Government has announced that all people filing in February will get their refunds before Holy Week (April)...I want my money!!!!- of course, I'll only get to hold it for a few minutes before handing it over to the cc company, but....I'm buying my freedom!!

I paid half the rent (will pay the next half on the 30th)...so that I have enough for grocery's and 2 weeks nanny's pay and gas...will receive my translation $$$ tomorrow...I think the school only pays once a month...

I got a call from a friend of my sister's...he wanted some scripts translated into English and German (won't do the German, though, I really haven't got the skill to do it, and I feel it would be dishonest to even try!)...I will, however, do the Spanish to English one...and I also get to read both the English and German texts so he can incorporate it into the documentaries he's putting together...He says he has $150 for the whole package, so, what I get depends on how much he has to pay for the translation into German...

Once I get paid, this goes to my challenge money/CC debt

I just got a request for a translation...they send me part of the document, and still pending on the other pages, but, still, only with what I have right now I should get $100-$120....add the rest (say it's only half of what they've sent) and it should be AT LEAST $150-$200... woo-hoo!! AVAL CARD, HERE I COME!!

Oh, since this is extra, it would count towards my $20 challenge...but, I'll post a summary of the earnings for this at the end of the month!! (just this morning I was praying for some extra $$$ to pay debts!!)

Of course, now I have to stay late at the office to get started (our computer at home just died...we should get it back on Sunday...it'll cost $15 to repair it!! - we asked a friend...the technician we called first said it would cost $190!!!- could you believe that??)

1. keep better track of my spending- although there seem to be less "leaks" than before, I'm still not as accurate as I should be! - I'm going to buy a mini-notebook and keep track of every penny!!- haven't done this yet!! - I know, I know...- have started as of today 060201

2. Send out at least 15 resumes in January(best time of the year to find a new job in ES!) and, at least one more per week for the rest of the year until I find a job that pays better! managed to send out 4, in answer to promising-looking ads...This is an ongoing quest!

3. FINALLY decide on a school for Alejandra, AND save money for her enrollment fee, uniforms and school supplies the looking/deciding part is on hold until May- when schools start accepting applications...$$ for fee, etc to come out of the English classes...

4. continue to lower my overall debt - I started Jan 05 with ~$17K (out of which ~$4K were for a loan and the rest -~$13K!-pure cc debt) and, am starting Jan 06 with $~11K (with ~$8K for a loan and ~$3K in cc debt)... expect to be able to end Dec '06 with ~$7K, which I expect to be purely for the loan... to come partly from the English classes/$20 challenge. Current debt still at ~$11K due car repairs in Dec 05

5. Help Ale find a way to earn those $3 she's missing to open her account with HER OWN money....still at a loss with this one!...perhaps get her to sell more toys at the next flea market??- decided on selling her bike, which is already to small for her!...where did we put the training wheels?? hmmmm (060402)

I received my first payment yesterday!!...due the cut-off date for accounting, I only got paid for the first weekend, so I only received $20.70...oh, well, I paid it towards the cc with the highest interest rate! yay me!!...Did I mention my challenge earnings are going towards debt repayment??...AVAL Card SA de CV practically owns my salary!!...When the next payment comes in, I will divide it between AVAL and "Ale's school fund"...Need to find another way to make more $$$...but, at where will I get the time??

***************
Challenge statistics:
invested: ~$6.00 initial
~$2.55 (addtnl) gas/Jan
=======
$8.55
earned: $20.70

net for January: $12.15
Total ytd for 2006: $12.15

I had already paid it off, but I still hadn't gone to the cc company to have it cancelled (which I did today!)...they asked me if I would re-consider if they gave me a preferential rate (good for one year only! -thanks, but, no thanks!)...tomorrow I'll go and cancel the other one that I already paid off, then I'm undecided on which one to tackle next...

I have also decided not to renew my loan with the company's credit union to pay off credit cards (it's a good deal because they offer much lower interest rates, but I need to have these $500 available for Ale's school instead!)At least, I'm going to TRY not to do it...

I'm also going to try to save at least $80 from the English lessons towards Ale's school...If I can do this, I might have enough in my bank account by June in order to enroll her in school without incurring in any new debt!- wish me luck!

We still haven't heard the final amounts sold from the exhibits that we mounted, but, I don't think it's much and, I need to pay off the credit card expenses that I had in December (new car battery, new fish tank!- the old one broke, so those were NECESSARY expenses!, still, I had counted on the proceeds from the school supply sale to cover them!- it's a good thing I didn't go ahead and charge a lot of "wants" counting on that money!!)

while at the school selling supplies, I ran into an old friend, who's a teacher for their English extension program...classes are from 6:15pm to 8:15pm Mon-Thursday (and the place is like 10 blocks from my office!) and they have classes on Saturday mornings (8-12) and afternoons (1-5)....I have signed up to give classes either at night on the weekdays or in the afternoon on Saturday....so far, they have only offered the Saturday afternoon (night classes are considered "prime" hours, and they pay a bit more, so they don't give you those unless you've been there for at least 6 months)...the pay is not much and, after taxes, it'll be like $5/hour, so I'd be getting ~$23 for each Saturday...not great, but, it'll work out to about $80/month, which, added to the $70/month I currently pay in tuition for Alejandra, gives me enough money to cover her tuition at the new school (bilingual schools charge anywhere between $125-$400 per month...obviously, we are NOT talking about the American or British schools here, so $150 should cover it!!)...If, in 6 months I am given night classes I'd probably drop the Saturdays...eventhough financially it would make more sense to keep both...

I'm not in love with this solution: It steals time from my daughter, which I hate, and from my rest, which is not good, but, I NEED the money and, frankly, at the moment this is the best offer I have - I DO love teaching, so that's a positive!....I wish I could find a job that I loved that would pay all the bills (meaning, that would pay $1,200-$1,500 per month!!)....((sigh)) At least, it's something!- and it brings the -$200 on my budget to -$120!!

No news either from the American Embassy or the European Union yet!

1. keep better track of my spending- although there seem to be less "leaks" than before, I'm still not as accurate as I should be! - I'm going to buy a mini-notebook and keep track of every penny!!

2. Send out at least 15 resumes in January(best time of the year to find a new job in ES!) and, at least one more per week for the rest of the year until I find a job that pays better!

3. FINALLY decide on a school for Alejandra, AND save money for her enrollment fee, uniforms and school supplies

4. continue to lower my overall debt - I started Jan 05 with ~$17K (out of which ~$4K were for a loan and the rest -~$13K!-pure cc debt) and, am starting Jan 06 with $~11K (with ~$8K for a loan and ~$3K in cc debt)...now, partly this decrease has been because of the sale of the apt and also the farm money, which I won't have next year, but, still, I expect to be able to end Dec '06 with ~$7K, which I expect to be purely for the loan... in order to make this happen, I need to find a way to make ~$100 more per month than what I'm currently making...so I HAVE to find another job, get a raise (yeah, RIGHT!) and/or take on additional work to bring in some extra money...it's going to be a TOUGH year!...need to post a separate entry to think this through, but I might switch jobs for slightly less money than I originally thought (I had said I wouldn't go unless they paid me at least $1,200/month, but...)...convoluted, and I have to do the math

5. Help Ale find a way to earn those $3 she's missing to open her account with HER OWN money....

My cousin brought me an ad for a twin-sized bed, with headrest and side rails, which was on sale for "only" $16/month...Ale will soon outgrow her toddler bed and, it WOULD make sense to get her one of these...especially since the headrest comes in white, red, PINK and blue....but, I said no! I told her I'd rather save and buy it cash, even if not "on sale" later on.... I know it's "just" $16, but, I'm living about ~$100 above my means as it is...this situation is partly relieved at the moment because of the English lessons, which bring in ~$120/month, which would bring me to live ~$20 below my means, but, this, of course, is not completely satisfactory...and, to think of adding $16 MORE is just plain stupid!...no, I'll try to save those $16 if I can and then buy the thing...at least, now I know of 1 place that carries them - I'd still have to "shop around" for best available price!

Aren't you all proud of me??...This is all thanks to this site!!

I got paid for the November lessons up to now: $100!!...AND, one of the PM's that used to work here had left his car - engine didn't work and he couldn't sell it...with the instructions that, if I managed to sell it, even as scrap, I should keep half of the money and give the other half to the maid at the house in which he was stationed...well, I got a call a while back and they delivered the money today!! It sold for $200, but, I had to give the maid an additional $40 for a desk that other PM's took, but haven't paid for yet - figured it's easier for me to get paid than for her, as I see them everyday - so, I actually took $60....I took 10% of my money and gave it to the Padre Vito home and another 10% and put it in my Cuenta Futuro - which is my savings acct...I'm giving Ale 5% for her own bank acct, I'm leaving $10 for fun money and using the rest towards debt!...I'm planning on doing this with any extra money that I make this year. Starting next year, I'll do 10% Padre Vito, 5% Ale and all the rest towards debt, as I need to pay as much as possible to be able to live on my salary next year....(no more farm money!)

The English lessons are extra, but, those are not always reliable, as the amount changes depending on the number of times you actually give a class!