Ready for a New Month

I don't know about you guys, but since I have a Mint.com account, I am always excited for a new month.  The month starts over, you can start fresh again, and stop looking at your "budget" that you clearly went over by way too much.

Now, probably the main cause of my guilt is the recent purchase I made--a new T-Mobile MyTouch 4G.  It was not cheap.  It was not frugal.  But I am so happy that I got it!  It is my first smartphone, and I couldn't be happier with a product.  It was a huge investment, and I feel like I am finally in the year 2011 (as opposed to like 2004 with my old stupidphone).

Now You Can Accept Credit Cards!

This device is going to change everything you know about money and getting paid.  Now, anyone can accept credit cards.  Do you run a very small business?  Do you sell things like crafts at shows or food at farmer's markets?  Or, do you just want a simple way for your buddy to pay you back that $5 she owes you?  SquareUp is your answer.  Just download the app, connect the device, and then people can pay you with the swipe of a credit card!

Get this SquareUp device for FREE by going to this website: https://squareup.com.  Just know that you'll be paying a 3% fee on all charges, just like most businesses.  So what are you waiting for?  Get one for free and test it out!

I just ordered mine.  I don't have a smartphone, but I should be getting one come April since I can renew my contract then.  So excited!!


Just got a smartphone--the MyTouch 4G--read about it in the blog post above ^^

I'll be updating with a new blog post and "review" once the Square comes in :D

Only $45 for a Custom Canvas Print!

Through Localiter.com, today/tomorrow ONLY, you can get a beautiful 16"x20" custom canvas print with the photo of your choice for only $45!  These canvases come from Easy Canvas Prints, are made on the highest quality canvas and with the highest quality inks available.  I highly highly highly recommend purchasing this, since the canvases are normally worth $98.  The $45 even includes FREE SHIPPING!

Localiter is founded in Austin, but anyone can use this group purchase deal!

Check out some blog posts of others who absolutely love Easy Canvas Prints:

A Place For Us Blog
Two Bears Farm
Funky Mama Bird
A Day in Motherhood
Ain't That Sherific?

Remember, to get this AWESOME deal from Easy Canvas Prints, click here to get your 16"x20" custom canvas print for only $45!!

My SXSW Adventure

This is going to be slightly off-topic, but I want to talk about my SXSW weekend.

It started on Thursday around noon, when A & I went to see our friends in Buxton and Robert Ellis play with Old 97's at The Belmont.  It went on for a good 5 hours or so, and everyone was amazing.  Buxton sounded awesome, and you should definitely check them out.  They recently got signed to the New West label and are currently touring with the Old 97s.

 Here is a photo of A and me sitting on the ledge at the Belmont.  

We were pretty darn close to the stage!

 Here is a photo of The Old 97s.  They did an awesome job, 

and of course played one of my favorite songs "Question" (Google it!).  

Then, it was on to Friday.  Around 2 PM, A and I ventured over to the Historic French Legation to check out their Lawn Party.  Artists included John Vanderslice (one of A's favorites) and Sean Lennon, John Lennon's son.  There were many more, but that's all we saw.  There was also plentiful free Izzes since they were sponsoring the event.

John Vanderslice had a great set.  His music is very calm, enjoyable, and 

well-written.  He's a very talented songwriter and producer as well.  

Saturday was a whole lot of craziness.  We started here (pic below), at Halcyon, a very well-known coffee shop in Austin, TX.  It's also a bar, as well as a humidor.  Their slogan is "Caffeine, Nicotine, Alcohol: All the vices under one roof.  I enjoyed a delicious egg/cheddar/ham panini and a latté here.  Yum!! 

After Halcyon, it was on to more sightseeing around Austin.  I considered myself a tourist in my own city.  We spent most of our time walking all around downtown, discovering new things, and getting a ton of SWAG.  One highlight of the weekend was going to the Austin Convention Center.  We picked up lots of swag, I found out about an amazing eyeglasses company called Tortoise & Blonde which I am absolutely ordering my next glasses from.  Then, there was an awesome Keds promo center where we entered a raffle and guess what...A won!  And is giving me the shoes to have for myself :)

The absolute highlight of the entire weekend was going to the PureVolume House.   We saw so many awesome bands, got endless free drinks, and FREE massages!

 Hands down best part: seeing James Vincent McMorrow singing

"If I Had A Boat" which is a favorite of mine.  He also said he'll be

at the Gallway Arts Festival when I'm in Ireland!

Also amazing: seeing Augustana live, a band I've loved since high school.

Unfortunately, they didn't sing my favorite song, but they sounded amazing.

All in all, I did a lot of things, saw a lot of bands, went a lot of places, and saw Austin in a whole new light.  Thank you to this wonderful city for giving me an awesome first SX experience.

20% Off First Purchase with BuyWithMe

Ever been to BuyWithMe.com?  It's just like all those other deal websites, only this one is offering an even sweeter deal.  You can get 20% off your first purchase to BuyWithMe using this promo code at checkout: 

47X32J

Make sure to click HERE to get to BuyWithMe.com.  


If you live in Austin, you can get a $115 massage for only $40 with the 20% discount. That's what I did!  Plus I had a $10 credit for signing up as well, so I only paid $30.  I am so excited to try the spa out!

New SmartyPig Account

Not too long ago, I set up a SmartyPig savings account.  This bank is a bit different from most, in that it's A. fun to use B. has a high yield % rate and C. concentrates on savings goals for the future.  You can choose to save up for things like a wedding, a home, a car, or even something like an iPad.  One of the really cool features is that you can refer friends and make $10 per friend, up to 100 friends.  I referred my friend to it since she had been asking me where to save, and I suggested it.  And guess what?  I made $10 off that toward my goal!

Now, I have several different bank accounts.  I have a checking and a Way2Save at Wachovia, a checking and a savings account at Chase, and now a SmartyPig account!  My Way2Save is my backup savings that I can quickly get to.  I have about $900 in there, but I'm saving that for a trip to Ireland in July.  My goal with the SmartyPig is to save up $1000 as a legit emergency fund.  I want something that I can't touch, in case something bad happens.  I want to pretend like it doesn't exist.  I want to save $1000 in one year, and am doing so by contributing about $80/month to it.

Check out the little gadget on my sidebar to the right.  It's actually in case people want to "contribute" to my fund.  Now, I don't expect anyone reading this to do so...but hey I won't stop you either haha!

Dry Cleaning is Not Frugal or Cheap

Want to know what's NOT frugal OR cheap?  Dry cleaning.  I shiver when I hear those two words.  I haven't done it in at least a year, but I had a pile of professional clothes (which I don't have to wear to work) building up in my closet.  I also had a couple dresses that can't be thrown in the washer unfortunately.  I've just been dreading it and dreading it for a long time.

Today was the day (okay, so Monday was the day but who's counting) that I took the pile to the dry cleaners.  I gave them 7 pieces to launder, and 3 pieces to dry clean.  Guess what the total came to?  About FIFTY DOLLARS!  $50 for 10 pieces of clothing.  I could have gotten a new outfit at Forever 21 for that amount of money!

Now, if you just launder clothing, it's about $2.50 a pop.  Not so bad.  But those 3 dry clean items will get you--$11.50 each!!  I was in shock.  What are they doing, gluing diamonds on my dresses?

I'm considering buying this little *gem* over to the left called Dryel.  At-Home Dry Cleaning Start Kit.  Now THAT'S what I need to keep my pretty clothes clean, and my wallet full.

Has anyone else used Dryel before and have any advice?  Is it good?  Bad?  Let me know!

Confession of 20-Something Professional

I'm still new to this "on my own" thing, and have a confession to make.  I do not understand a zip about my 401K.  As much as Mint tries to "explain" it to me with graphs, I am thoroughly confused about how I'm making or losing money.  I truly believe there needs to be a personal finance class given in either high school or college (or both!) so that people like me and the rest of the working world can understand investing in an easy-to-swallow way.  Anyone else with me?

PS I also thought the "Confused Ikea Man" was super cute to use in this post.

Still Getting Headaches from My Hospital Bills

I have come to accept my fate that I will be spending close to $2000 on a trip to the hospital where I was there for only a few hours.  However, yesterday I got a whole nother headache from the same company that I've been having problems with.

This company's name: Team Health or TeamHealth.com.  If you are ever given a choice, do not choose them.  They have terrible customer service (if you can call me a customer) and even worse handling of insurance.  Their call center employees are rude, and not helpful at all.

My hospital stay was November 14, and I am STLL dealing with these people.

Here's the story:

I unnecessarily paid them $1011 when my insurance company was supposed to pay them.  They sent the bill to the wrong insurance company!  I sent the bill to my insurance company, and it took them forever (about 6 weeks) to pay it.  I just got reimbursed TODAY (4 months after the date of service).

Then, my insurance company said that TEAM HEALTH charged them $591.36 and discounted them about $180, and that I was responsible for about $240.  I call TEAM HEALTH and apparently they didn't give my insurance company a discount at all!  They don't have a contract with my insurance company, and my insurance company was under the impression that they did.  So here's the breakdown:

I paid $1011.
My insurance company paid $591.
Discount was supposed to be $180
I was supposed to owe $240

NOW I apparently owe about $420 instead of 240.  I don't know what to do and I am going in circles calling both TEAM HEALTH and my insurance company.  No one will give me a definitive answer, and I'm going to have to be the one to foot the bill for it.

I HATE TEAM HEALTH.  I HOPE WHEN PEOPLE SEARCH YOU ON GOOGLE THEY SEE THIS ARTICLE AND KNOW THAT TEAM HEALTH SUCKS TEAM HEALTH IS A SCAM AND TEAM HEALTH HAS TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE.

Sorry, I never write in all caps, but that was necessary.

$9 for Two Movie Tickets

Want to pay half price for two move tickets (from Fandango.com)?  LivingSocial is having a deal today where you can get two movie tickets from Fandango.com for only $9.  That's like half-price, at least here in Austin, TX!  I know in LA it's about $11-12 for a movie ticket so it's a really ridiculous deal!

Make sure to click here to check it out on LivingSocial.com!

$2 Off Large Sub at Quiznos

"Like" Quiznos on Facebook today, and get $1 off a small sub, or $2 off a large sub.  There aren't many Quiznos near me, so I think I'll pass.  Otherwise, I would totally do this.  Quiznos french dip FTW! :)

Click here to "Like" Quiznos on Facebook and get your coupon!