I sometimes worry about not having been to college, and I kind of keep it in the back of my mind that I will, indeed, go someday. And then I get to talking with my friends about their experiences. And I thank my lucky stars for my ‘free education’ I’ve gotten online. I really have learned an awful lot online, and I continue to learn more every day.

My friends, however, are working their tails off to pay off student loans. The friend with whom I was talking yesterday has been out of school for eight years and her husband has been out for twelve – and they are still working on paying those college loans! Oh my freaking gosh! Ouch! Remind me not to go to college, ok? Gah!

I have heard many stories just like theirs, where people are horribly in debt by the time they get out of school. It sounds like such a nightmare. I know that much like credit card debt, there are companies out there to help people handle their debt from school loans. And just like with credit card debt, there are creepos out there preying on people bogged down my student loans.

John’s got a list of helpful and scrupulous websites where people can go to try to find their way out of student loan trouble. Debt is such a scary thing, so many of us suffer with it, and it just chaps my hide that there are low-life’s out there that would actually take advantage of people in their time of need. Ugh.

That’s what I’ve been told…

• You have exceeded the maximum number of payments allowed on this account.

And which fine company do you think has shared this lovely information with me? The electric company, perchance? Yes – the electric company. You know, Alabama Power Company – the ones that want me to pay them extra money for not having enough money – now won’t let me give them any money! WTH??

Nutters, I tell you, it’s just plain nutters. See, I’ve been paying them bits and pieces here and there as I can, and it just so happens that in the last two weeks, I’ve been able to send them four or five different payments.

And I had $200 I could send them on Friday, but, it was on two separate cards – which would mean two separate payments. I paid the first one, no problem. The software then asked me if I’d like to make another payment. Why, yes – I would. How did you guess?

So I head back in to do just that and that is when I received the lovely message above.

And yet, it is due to be cut off on Wednesday. Just lover-ly.

One more chapter in the ongoing saga of Lisa VS. Alabama Power. Heh.

Yesterday at lunchtime I was getting so hungry and I so badly wanted to order some Chinese food for myself. And it just so happened, my friend in South Carolina, Tsoniki, of Me Being Crafty, was Twittering the same exact thought!

I’ve got a wee bit of money in PayPal, so I could easily order myself something. But, I’ve got bills due. Bills that I haven’t enough to pay. So what does it matter, anyway? Oh me, oh my – I’ve been listening to someone saying those words for too long! I’ve made them my own! Ack! Banish thee, financially irresponsible thoughts! Be gone from my level-headed head. (Level-headed? Ok, maybe no one ever went that far in descriptions of me, but, close – they came very close!)

So I dissuaded myself from the carefree spending of money on one’s self for lunch and went digging in the fridge to see what goodies I might find hiding in there! Gaze, thee, upon my sumptuous spread:

Gorgeous, isn’t it? I thought so. I was so intrigued by all of the color – that I just had to take a picture and show you! I’m doing a lot of that lately, because, I’m completely in love with my new camera.

I feel better knowing I didn’t give into spending that money, and I wound up with a perfectly lovely and delicious lunch! My eyeballs were definitely bigger than my stomach – I definitely couldn’t finish all of it. That’s okay, though, because, they were all leftovers.

…to pay us what you owe us, so, we would like you to pay us even more

What the heck?! I’m late on my electric bill, because, the darn 100 degree days just did. us. in. Our darn bill is $359! And I guess I had a slow blogging month, or maybe I would do better to say, an unproductive blogging month. Things have just been so busy around this house, that it has been really hard to get much work done online! But that is a whole ‘nother sack o’ potatoes! (I need an office with a door, to lock the family out, so I can get some work done!)

What I’m really bitching about here, though, is that, for two weeks, I’ve been bustin’ my rumpus trying to get all the money together for that stinkin’ electric bill, among others….when I get this just loverly letter in the mail from them:

The electric service account at the above referenced address indicates a delinquent payment record. As a result, a deposit in the amount of $250.00 must be paid on this account.

See what I mean? “You can’t pay, so pay us some more.” That’s intelligent. Gah.

This same thing happened to me at the bank a couple of years ago – it was just like credit cards, you’re drowning, and in your dire struggle to get caught up – they push you back down under the water!

Life makes so much sense sometimes, doesn’t it? Ugh! I am almost there – to the original bill amount, that is! But, I still don’t have the total amount – I have until tomorrow. Wish me luck! And feel free to help out, if you’d like! All you have to do is click on my pretty Hippie Spelunker mug up there in the top left, and you will be taken to PayPal, where you can send me a buck or two, if you like. I only need $69 more, and I’m trying to avoid the pawn shop, but, I’m definitely not ruling that out – Mark’s got lots of watches, maybe even some Luminox watches. He loves those darn dive watches, but, they might just pay a bill this month!

I will work better this month. I will work harder this month. I will work more this month.

Work better, work harder, work more.

My new mantra. Heh.

Mark and I have been together for fifteen years and we have been renting for fifteen years! Do you know how much money that is that was just basically flushed?! We were, of course, young and just starting out when we got together. So it made sense that we were renting back then. And just about the time we were getting more financially stable, credit card offers came in the mail! One right after the other! And – you guessed it! We wound up in a heap of trouble! Well, we are almost out from under all of that mess, and thinking about buying again.

But all of the millions of details that go into lending and mortgages can really get confusing! But, there is a wealth of information to help us out at America’s Lending Partners. And they have two main mortgage and lending services that they offer.

If you choose to use the 4 Loan Offers service, you will submit your information one time and then you will be contacted by four different lenders, and deal directly with them.

Or, if you choose to use their new Mortgage Planning service, America’s Lending Partners will do all of the work for you. Your Mortgage Planner will conduct a personal consultation with you, offering their guidance and expert advice. And with this service, they will do all of the negotiating with the lenders for you.

LendingPartners.com has been such an informative website for me this afternoon – I’ve learned so much! Their help center is packed with information – a mortgage library, articles, and even several mortgage calculators. Their site has been very helpful for me!