So far so good on orientation. Yesterday was mostly a “hi, this is the faculty, these are your classmates, let’s eat sketchy burgers and questionable hot dogs now!”

Today was a little more productive. This morning I got my welcome packet (I feel welcomed), my textbooks (book bag heavier, wallet lighter), my ID card (with my senior year high school picture on it - yes, it is 6 years old), and my mailbox number and combination (which I will likely never use). I feel quite official now, and I’m excited that once again I can get the student discount at the grocery store - woot!

Then, this afternoon, we had a for real meeting with our program faculty members - 8 students, 2 teachers. Close and personal, eh? It was great to get to go over all the material that we had received in bits and pieces the past few weeks. We didn’t really learn a lot of new stuff, but I feel significantly less scattered now, and that’s nice. Also excited to hear that my laptop (which runs on Windows Vista, not XP) is not going to be a problem in my computer class. We’re gonna stick Office 2003 on it (I have 2007) and life will be dandy.

Still don’t COMPLETELY know my schedule as they are still working out the rotations for us (we each spend some time in marketing, development, box office, etc.), so I STILL can’t tell Starbucks what my hours are going to be. That has been more than frustrating, but I did find out enough to get by for the next week or so, so hopefully this will get resolved and my life will be complete.

On a side note, the orientation schedule has a lot of things that are not required for grad students . . . but it doesn’t really say that on the schedule. As a result, I’ve gotten a lot of free time this week (I took off from work since orientation seemed to be so involved). What am I doing with this free time? Why, goofing off with AJ and spending WAY too much time with the cats. They’re so awesome - I really want kittens of my own . . .

OK, off to bake cookies - if you’ve had my cookies, you know what you are missing. If not - trust me, you wish you did !

The other day in my travels around Bloggityville I found this post extolling the virtues of The Starbucks Refill. Yes, you heard right. This is not an urban myth. As an employee at Starbucks, I can vouch for our refill policy. If you come in and order a cup of brewed coffee, you can bring your cup back as many times and you want for a refill of about $0.50! Even if you get 10 refills . . . still only half a buck! Not only does that save YOU money, but it also cuts down on allllllll those paper cups going to the trash!

Another tidbit - you get a discount if you bring in your own personal cup for your cup of coffee, whether it’s just brewed coffee or your venti triple nonfat wet three Splenda cappuccino. Yay for not using the cups!

Saving money on high quality coffee and helping the environment? Works for me!

As I have posted a lot lately, I’m working on my finances, and the newest thing I’m working on is coupons. I need help y’all. I’ve never really shopped with coupons and sales before, so I’m having a hard time figuring out what are true good deals, and what I just think are good deals. I’ve read a series over at Biblical Womanhood about coupons, and I am shocked at the savings! She is able to buy groceries for her family for $35 every week! I spend about twice that every week FOR MYSELF!!! And I don’t eat a ton. Obvious, something has gone wrong.

I’ve found some things that are helpful, and I wanted to share with y’all the sites I’ve found. However, I’d LOVE to hear your coupon tips and sites!

* The Entertainment Book coupons - most DEFINITELY getting your money’s worth here!!!
* MyPoints.com - You get points for clicking through their links for things you buy (for example, Barnes and Noble online - use their link to B&N.com and it will credit you points) and for doing surveys and things. Then you can redeem the points for fun things like gift certificates!
* Office Depot coupons - It’s amazing to me how many deals they have on their site! And there are so many things that I use that I can get from there!
* The discounts I get from Quixtar are so good it’s sickening. You can buy pretty much anything from any online site and get a great discount!!!

So, as you can see, I’m pretty good about finding the deals online! I now I’m really trying to learn how to save money on things like groceries - I think I can really save a lot that way. Do you have any sites or tips to share?

Saving money from shopping online? Works for me!

Thirteen Things about PERSONAL FINANCE

I’ve been working on my personal finance situation a lot lately! Here are several tools and tips that I’ve come to depend on!

1. PearBudget: I know I’ve talked about this before, but I just have to put one more plug in. Everyone needs a budget, at least when they’re first getting started with personal finance management, and PearBudget is a great program that is free, super easy, and will keep you using it! I’ve been on it for more than 2 months now, which is a HUGE achievement, LOL!

2. Next, you need a way to keep up with your accounts. There’s the old paper and pencil checkbook ledger, but we’re on our computers for everything else, why not managing our finances! I’ve used both Microsoft Money and Quicken Personal Finance, and they are both great tools!

3. Almost any personal finance site that you read tells you that you need to have an emergency savings fund, just in case something happens like you have to go to the hospital, or you get laid off. The amount that goes in this fund varies - a great place to start is $1000, and many sites recommend you keep 3-6 months worth of living expenses. The most common complaint: I can’t afford to put money into an emergency savings fund! The most common reply: You can’t afford NOT to do this. I’ve got 2 that I’m working on right now. My immediate emergency savings fund is through my bank, and I’m currently building a long-term (the 3-6 months one) emergency savings fund in a high-interest savings account. The immediate one is in case I need the money RIGHT NOW - I can get it from an ATM. The long-term one is accessible within a few days, and it will grow because of the interest! Free money!

4. High-interest savings account? How do I get one of those? I’m currently setting up accounts through ING Direct, and I’m LOVING it so far. The interest rate is 4.4% - how crazy is that?! Accounts like these are run through the internet - there is no physical bank, and you don’t get checks. They’re just savings accounts. There are many other financial institutions, but ING allows you to set up sub accounts, which is too cool! I have sub-accounts for my emergency fund, travel fund, medical expenses fund, etc. And all are gonna earn 4.4% interest!

5. I Will Teach You To Be Rich - I’ve blogged about it before, but again, I have to mention it. There are so many different concepts, ideas, and terms that I am so clueless on, and this site explains them in a simple, no nonsense way that will make things clear! Amazing.

6. Don’t want to wade through all the personal finance sites? Then just get the goodies through the Carnival of Personal Finance every week! You’ll find topics about EVERYTHING, and there are three or four sites that I’ve found through reading the carnival that I’ve stuck with.

7. Get an Entertainment Book. They only cost about $20, but there are hundreds (probably thousands) of great coupons and savings in the book. Well worth the money spent!

8. Invest. There are many different kinds of investments (see my #5, he explains them all), but make sure that you are investing. The type of fund that I keep seeing more and more recommendations for is a Roth IRA, which I am still learning about. It involves investing your money and paying the taxes now, and then when you withdraw it, it will be tax-free (no matter how much more taxes are at the time).

9. Another great way to invest - the stock market. Ahhh, don’t be scared. If you read up on what to do, and find a great place to invest with, then you’ll do fine. And the place I’ve seen mentioned over and over again is ShareBuilder. As soon as I start to receive a regular income (aka, when I get out of grad school), I will be investing with ShareBuilder - the fees aren’t bad, and they’re not gonna try to trip you up because you have no idea what you’re doing.

10. Shop at discount stores and buy in bulk! You’ll be amazed at how much you can save at places like Costco and Sam’s Club! However, be wary . . . pay attention to the costs, and divide by how many you’re getting. Are you really saving? Discount stores can be great as long as you play it smart!

11. Take advantage of websites that offer promotions. For example: you need to buy a book for your Bible study in two weeks, and there was a CD you were wanting to get. You could go to Barnes and Noble or Borders that is right by your house . . . or you could go online and get them from Amazon.com for cheaper. And if you spend $25, it’s free shipping, so it’s like you bought it in person. You just have to wait a few days. So why not go for the discount? Or, even better! Do you buy books/DVDs/CDs/software/toys/groceries a lot? Do you shop on Amazon.com A LOT?! Then become a prime member. For a reasonable fee you get free 2 day shipping and significantly discounted overnight shipping. I was offered a free 3 month trial, and I loved it so much that I paid the fee. Now I NEVER buy these things from expensive stores in person! Click here for details!!!

12. Cook at home - don’t eat out, don’t go to fast food restaurants. I’ve been experimenting with my spending lately, and it’s AMAZING how much I’ve saved in food costs!

13. Want a great new opportunity to save HUGE on virtually anything you can buy online? I’m an IBO member, and we sell everything - we have our own product lines as well as partnerships for huge discounts on stores like Barnes and Noble, Office Depot, Dell, Things Remembered, Shop.com, Joann’s Fabrics, and SOOOOO many more! We run the business through Quixtar. The discounts alone are worth it, but if you’re a member, you get a check back based on your purchases and the purchases of your customers. Take a look, and if you’re interested in buying something, let me know! I can set you up as a client with ZERO obligation. Or, if you want to take a great opportunity and are interested in making some money, let me know, and we’ll discuss!

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