I’ve been saying I was going to buy a laptop for several years now, but it hasn’t happened yet due to budget issues. But I’ve done lots and lots of shopping around, so that when I’m finally able to get one, I’ll have a good idea of what’s out there and what I need.
I’ve looked at lots of netbooks, and while the prices are nice on them, I would probably need something a little more powerful. They’re great for those who just want to be able to browse the Web, use Facebook and things like that when they’re on the go. But if you need to have several programs open at once and have a decent amount of speed, they’re not ideal.
Still, I don’t need a big expensive gaming laptop, either. Not that I wouldn’t love to have all that power and be able to do anything I wanted to with it, but I can get what I need out of a less expensive machine. And when money is an issue, you get the least expensive thing that will do the job.
So I’ve come to the conclusion that I’ll need to spend at least $300-$400 on a laptop that suits my purposes. Of course I’ll be hunting for sales and coupon codes and anything else I can find that will save me money when the time comes. Where have you found the best laptop deals?
As one of the millions of Americans without insurance, I know what a strain medical bills can put on your budget. Just a routine trip to the doctor can put a serious dent in it, especially if you’re already barely making ends meet. But I do know a few tricks to getting less expensive medical care, and I’d like to share them with you.
Look for clinics that charge on a sliding fee scale. Your local Health Department probably runs one, but it’s unlikely that it’s the only one in your area. I live in a very rural community, and we have not only the Health Department, but another such clinic as well as a free clinic. You will probably have to meet certain income requirements to qualify, but if you do, you can save a lot of money on routine doctor visits.
Ask your doctor about discounts for patients that have no insurance. My doctor offers them, and he’s one of the busiest physicians around here, so it’s not like he’s hurting for patients. It never hurts to ask. The worst they can do is say no.
If you have an emergency room or hospital bill, ask about financial aid. I’ve never done this myself, but I’ve heard of several people who have had their bills reduced or paid in full by special programs. Most hospitals also offer payment plans and will work with you to find the best terms for your situation.
Healthcare providers have to make a profit – doctors and nurses have to make a living, and those exam tables and point of care carts don’t pay for themselves. But there are programs that can help make medical care less of a burden on those with no or inadequate insurance. If you have any other tips to add, please share in the comments!
I try to avoid vanity as much as possible. But I’m only human. I care what I look like, and that’s not such a bad thing. Taking pride in one’s appearance doesn’t mean that they feel like they must look better than everyone else. It just means they want to look their personal best.
I feel fortunate that I don’t have to contend with fine lines and wrinkles yet. But I’m not getting any younger, and I know they’ll eventually start making an appearance. I’m hoping that my naturally oily skin and lack of habits like smoking and sunbathing will keep them to a minimum, but that remains to be seen. I’m sure that one of these days, I’ll be looking high and low for the latest fountain of youth. I probably won’t shell out as much money on anti-aging products as a lot of ladies do, but I will do lots of research and try to find the most promising products to try.
Who knows, the secret to eternal youth could be something simple and fairly inexpensive. Visit www.vitamincserum.org, and you’ll find that good old Vitamin C, the vitamin that we’ve used since time untold to keep our immune systems running efficiently and ward off illness, has numerous benefits for the skin as well. Who’d have thought?
Natural products at reasonable prices with good science behind them are at the top of my list for any beauty need. And when the time comes that I have to contend with wrinkles and such, things like this will be the first things I try.
Sleep has been a rather strange issue for me lately. Some nights I sleep like a baby. Others it takes me hours and hours to get any shuteye. But either way, I tend to sleep until about lunchtime. Not usually because I want to, but because even if I wake up early, I don’t feel like doing anything but going back to sleep until then. If I fight it and stay up anyway, I’m so draggy that I can’t get much done.
I’ve talked to the doctor about it, and he upped the dose on my anxiety meds and told me to take some when I had trouble sleeping. It hasn’t helped much. But I don’t really want him to give me something that will knock me out. Because if he does, I’ll probably end up sleeping way too much due to my tendency to sleep late during the day. I really need to try those herbal sleep aids that I’ve got in the medicine cabinet. No, I haven’t gotten around to it yet, and they could be just the answer I’m looking for. If I can remember, I’ll get started on them tonight and see how it goes.
Pumpkin’s face has started breaking out, the first official sign that she’s venturing into adolescence. Poor girl. I was hoping she wouldn’t take that after me. But it’s happening to her at the same age that it happened to me, so I’m afraid she’s going to have a long, exhausting battle with acne, just like me.
I’m going to do the best I can to help her fight it. There’s tons of information online about acne treatments that really work, I just need to sort through it and find something that fits within our budget. I’d prefer to go with something I could make at home, but as much as I tend to dislike those chemicals that are in acne treatments, some of them work much better than homemade concoctions. But there are acne treatments that are made out of natural ingredients, too, so maybe I’ll get some of those for her (and me) to try.
I’m sure this will be an ongoing experiment. So I’ll be posting periodically about the things I find that show promise.
It’s halfway through basketball season for Pumpkin, and I still haven’t found her any basketball shorts. Actually I bought her a pair of black leggings and cut them off for her to use, but those mysteriously disappeared after her first game. So she’s had to wear blue jean shorts to play in, because those are the only kind she has that fit.
I’ve searched high and low for a pair of girls’ basketball shorts for her, but I haven’t had any luck at all. I did find a site that sells all kinds of athletic shorts, from kids’ jersey shorts to men’s running shorts. I thought my search was finally over, but it wasn’t. They didn’t have her size in the color I needed. Back to the drawing board.
I guess I need to go back to the store where I bought those leggings and buy another pair to cut off. I know they won’t last as long as a proper pair of basketball shorts, but they were a steal at five bucks, so it won’t be a big loss. Unless I find her a pair pretty soon, that’s probably what I’ll have to do. Then I’ll look for a good pair in the spring and summer so she’ll have them for next year.
Having allergies is no fun whatsoever. I have to watch what I drink, what I use to clean with, and even what jewelry I wear. If I wear the wrong kinds of necklaces, bracelets or rings, I get itchy and my skin turns funky colors. But earrings are the worst, because if I wear any that aren’t hypoallergenic (as well as some that are), my earlobes are red, swollen and itchy within an hour.
So when it comes time to shop for things that are questionable, it seems like I inevitably end up spending more money than I want to. The cleaning products problem seems to be more or less solved, thanks to my handy dandy steam cleaner. The drink problem doesn’t cost me too much money, because even though my decaf tea bags are a little on the expensive side, making tea still works out cheaper than buying soft drinks to drink at home. It just costs more if I buy it already made. But if I want jewelry, I can’t just buy any cheap bauble that tickles my fancy. And that stinks since I really don’t have terribly expensive tastes.
If anybody out there has any tips for saving money on hypoallergenic jewelry that really doesn’t cause a reaction, I’d love to hear them!
I recently got the opportunity to receive and review the Gruene steam mop. When I found out, I was a very happy camper. That’s because I’ve long been intrigued with the concept of steam cleaners. You see, I’m allergic to a lot of cleaning products, and if it’s just plain water I’m using, I don’t have to worry about breaking out with hives. Being able to cut chemicals out of my cleaning routine would also be better for my family and the environment.
The first thing I noticed about the Gruene is that it’s very easy to assemble. I had it put together with no help and no tools in less than five minutes. I also noticed that it came with lots of attachments that you can use when you use it as a hand steamer. Yes, that’s right, this little steam mop converts into a hand steamer with which you can clean just about anything, and even steam your clothes. This is one feature that competitors such as the Shark steam mop do not offer.
The first place I tried it out was on my kitchen floor, and it did an outstanding job. My kitchen floor has never been a top priority, because it looks crappy no matter how clean it is due to breakage of the cheap tile that it’s covered with. But the steam mop took out even old stains in short order. Here’s a demonstration of how it obliterates muddy footprints, which are also a frequent problem in my home. (Please excuse my bare feet. What can I say? I’m a hillbilly.)
Pretty impressive, huh? But what I really wish I had gotten on video was the job it did on my kitchen sink. There was this black gunk all around the faucet and handles that no matter how hard I scrubbed or what tools I used, just wouldn’t come off. I detached the steam cleaner part, hooked up the hose and nozzle, and gave it a quick blast. I was amazed to see the gunk come flying off of there, even in the hard-to-reach nooks and crannies. Just a quick wipe with a paper towel, and it was nothing but a bad memory.
The only thing I would change about this little miracle machine if I could would be to somehow alter it so that it could steam clean my carpet. Most of my house is carpeted, and I’d love to be able to obliterate dirt, dust and germs in it as well as on the hard floors and surfaces. But I realize that converting the Gruene steam mop into something that would work with carpet would require an extensive redesign, which might make it less suitable for those other jobs. Therefore I give the Gruene an A+ for doing the jobs it was designed to do so well.
FTC disclosure: I received the Gruene steam mop for free, and was compensated for doing this review. However, the opinions contained herein are my own and were not influenced by Gruene or any other party.
I’ve been sick for nearly a week, and am finally starting to recover. I haven’t left the house in about that long, and have scarcely stepped outside since it has been bitterly cold and snowy. If I weren’t so accustomed to being at home a lot, I’d have a serious case of cabin fever. As it is, I’m ready to see something other than these walls. But I’m willing to wait until the weather quits being so crappy and the roads clear up.
Hubby has been taking care of me and doing most everything around the house, just like I did for him while his back was in such bad shape. He hasn’t even let me carry in a stick of wood since I got sick, even if he had to just carry in a few sticks at a time. When I’m back to 100%, I’m going to owe him big time.
He says the front steps are so icy he’s afraid for me to go down them, even if I were feeling fine. If things are that bad, I guess it’s just as well that I stay in the house. I’m rather accident-prone, and I’d probably make it down two steps before my feet flew out from under me and I landed face-first on the concrete walkway. I can’t afford the medical bills that would ensue, and it wouldn’t do me any good to call the insurance company or a maritime injury lawyer or anybody else. Since it would be on my own property, it would be my responsibility.
So it may be the weekend before I’m brave enough to venture out. That’s when it’s supposed to warm up slightly (although not very much), and hopefully we’ll be able to carve out a path. I sure hope so, because if we don’t, Hubby, Pumpkin and I will probably drive each other insane.
Since Pumpkin didn’t get to be in Girl Scouts this year, I told her she could choose another extracurricular activity to do and I would make sure she got to do it. She chose basketball. I was apprehensive about it at first, because she played before and ended up losing interest in it. But she insisted that she really wanted to play, so I signed her up. So far it looks like that was a good decision, because she’s doing well and seems to be enjoying it very much. I’ve even thought about getting her one of those cool personalized basketballs with her name, team and date on it.
But now she has another interest she wants to pursue: the violin. I don’t know where she got the idea, but she says she would like to learn to play it. There’s no way it’s going to happen right away, because we don’t have the money to buy her a violin or lessons. But if she’s as into it as she says she is, I’d like to see that she gets to do it.
I’m not one of those moms who signs their kids up for everything coming and going, but I do like to encourage Pumpkin to participate in the things she’s really interested in. As far as I’m concerned, anything that keeps her productively occupied is a good thing. If she gets started now, maybe she’ll stick with it and stay out of trouble when she gets older.
