Reclaimed

Household Hazardous Waste Days

In Arizona, several cities host a day (usually a Saturday) where items that are unfit for trash or recycling can be turned in for proper disposal.

In Mesa, it's called the Household Hazardous Waste Program.  Mesa's is next Saturday, Feb. 4th.

In Tempe, it's called Zero Waste Day.  Tempe's next Zero Waste Day will be held in April.

Seeking A Higher Balance

Work Life Balance

Getting To Know Jesus

A worthy goal for 2017.





Another great set of videos?

Goals For 2017

I've been watching so many people posting their resolutions or goals for the new year, I thought I would do something a bit... contrarian.  I'm going to give you my goals, by stating what I will not be doing this year.

1.  I will not become the healthy fitness nut this year.

I just went to the doctor with a sinus infection that I've had since mid-December.  Sorry, but I'm not interrupting my break by trying to get an appointment - when most likely my doctor was already booked.  Today's appointment was scheduled as a follow up from the swollen legs, vertigo and other assorted junk I had back at that time.  Now my legs are fine, the vertigo has been remedied (many thanks to the department head at my job who mentioned she had it and found out it was from vitamin D deficiency) with vitamins.

Additional vials of blood were drawn today to check how my 50 year old hormones are doing, as I've been having hot flashes the last few weeks.  The doctor thinks it actually might be fevers caused by the sinus infection.  We'll see in about a week or two which it is.

2.  I will not have a spotless home this year.

While the amount of stuff has been significantly reduced, there is still a long way to go, and some of the organization requires remodeling in my home, which isn't going to happen this year.  Goal #1 is to get out of debt as quickly as possible.

3.  I will not be debt free by year end.

I honestly don't know if this statement will ring true on December 31st or not, but there are two credit cards I am working and budgeting to pay off this year.  I will be scrimping and saving, however, to pay down as much of the third and last credit card as possible.  Will I make it?  Time will tell.

4.  I will not always be the "cheerful one", whether at work, while spending time with Mom, at Church, around friends.

I will, however, try to be a bit more sociable this year than I have in years past.  However, if I don't join in on movie nights or other assorted outings that require money, please know I'm trying to keep to a tight budget.  To everything there is a season, this is my season to get out of debt.

My best wishes to everyone out there, good luck on whatever goals you have for 2017.

Recycling Load #2

I made it out a little earlier today, so the picture is better.

3 bags of plastics and cans, 2 boxes filled with cardboard boxes.  Also 3 of the boxes that the Hipce storage units came in.

Prior to this trip, I fed the cats, unloaded clean dishes out of the dishwasher and started up a load of the cat food dishes.  Getting an early start on these means I'll have time to get a final load in before I go to bed tonight.

Progress!

Touch Not The Evil Gift, Nor The Unclean Thing - FHE - 1-9-17

From the October 1993 Semi Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:

Elder H. Burke Peterson

Another video to take a look at discusses the MPAA Rating system in the United States:





Entertainment and Media - February 2013 Ensign

No Neutral Ground: How Media Influences Us - September 2016 Ensign

Sears And Kmart - Innovative Product Lines

One other idea is to have the designers for Craftsman and Kenmore get together with Goal Zero (or a different solar products company) to design tools and appliances for solar panels.  It will allow those wanting to live off grid to be able to do so without having to rely on an oil/gas product to power their electronics.

Sears And Kmart

This could have come out differently, but as this news story begins, Sears and Kmart lost their way.

Sears & Roebuck started off as the original Amazon, competing with Montgomery Ward over catalog sales.

Kmart was a cross between Dollar Tree and Wal-Mart.

It could come back, but the high priced managers are already lining their pockets and bailing the sinking ship.

So, what could have been done?

They each could have been combined in a unique, new experience.

Sears could go back to catalog - online catalog sales with limited physical locations that are combined with Kmart locations.

The only difference is that the combined Sears/Kmart stores would be part online fulfillment centers, part retail.  The customer would have the option of buying online, picking up at a store; buying online and having it shipped to the customer's home, or the customer could just show up at the retail location where they could actually view their item from the warehouse before buying it.

The retail space could be for items being sold at a discount, on top of the warehouse and operations centers for the online.

The online catalog would be an experience site, with products that are limited in nature:

Kenmore for the appliances
Craftsman for tools
furniture designed for tiny homes, apartments, condos.  Multi purpose.
Electronics geared for vloggers.

Adding:

Modest clothing lines from American designers - with a much greater line of full figured clothing
Guinne Sax/Jessica McClintock clothing

Organization areas with agreements to sell from:

The Container Store
Avery
Smead
Erin Condren

Kitchenware from:

Pyrex
Corning
GreenLife (Ceramic Non-Stick Cookware)


The online catalog would contain easter eggs - trivia, games, as well as an online lite CAD site for designing the look of your space with products sold by Sears/Kmart.

The store would also hold demo classes for customers wanting to do more with their homes, as well as vloggers.  This would also include financial management classes.

The Other Major Goal For 2017

With the advent (and expense) of bed bugs last year, it meant a lot of my furniture had to be removed and disposed of.

The two queen sized beds in my home?  Gone.

The couch and upholstered rocking chair and ottoman?  Gone.

Office desk and two upholstered desk chairs?  Gone.

In order to have space for the extermination process (four visits), more had to be removed and placed into an offsite storage unit.  One that had full sunlight access in the middle of the Arizona summer heat, which would kill any bed bugs that might try to travel.  It worked.

I've since moved the boxes back in December, and sprayed everything down with 91% alcohol, which kills any surviving bed bugs on contact.

Needless to say, they are now gone.

But, where to start?  

I've got a whole mess of boxes in various places around my home, and now it's getting cleaned up and either found to a new home in my home or donated.

The other mess of boxes that now sit in my office, however, are a litany of papers dating back to high school and probably even before that.

In light of this, I've made an investment into a ScanSnap Document Scanner, identical to the kind used at my workplace, in order to scan in what I want to keep and shred the paper copies.  Some will need to be kept, due to legal or tax purposes, however there is a lot here that can be shredded.  I had already purchased a shredder at Costco a few years back, it's still sitting in it's box. Between these two machines, I plan to eliminate mountains of boxes.  

The video below will give you an idea of what can be done.

And, as last month was Christmas with the document scanner I have been wanting was on sale...

I already have the shredder and purchased a box of 500 clear plastic bags to use with it, the time has come to get organized!

Why do I need to do this?

This is just the recycling:  Eight bags, plus cardboard boxes and a box that is filled with paper recycling.

And these boxes are filled with papers dating back to the 1980's to now.  And these are just the ones in my office.

Recycling Load #1

You can't see from the picture, but there are SEVEN kitchen trash bags, but they are not trash.  RECYCLING!!!

FHE - 1-2-17

Tonight's Family Home Evening is courtesy of YouTube - Pioneers In Petticoats





Youth Lesson:

Choosing Not To Gossip

"He Asks Us To Be His Hands" from the April 2016 General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Sister Cheryl A. Esplin

Day 1 - 31 Days To Get Organized

I'll admit, I was lazy on this one and cleared a few items from a tv tray table I use in the living room.  I won't share any pictures of it, because both Beezer and Rachel decided to take turns perching on it for the remainder of the day.

Setting Goals

From The Simple Dollar:  it's all about the bits.

How To Create and Succeed At Personal and Financial Goals In The Coming Year

Angela's Budget Boot Camp Day 1

This is actually from 2016, but hey, better late than never, right?  Who wants to join in?




The video below will play the entire 30 day playlist:

Are You Ready?

Happy New Year!

Buckle your seat belts, roll up your sleeves, it's time to get to work.

Write down your goals for the year.

Get a budget started for January.

Calendar out when you will get paid, and when you will pay your bills.

Look for ways of cutting back and/or adding more income.

Are you there yet?

If not, what will it take?

Here are a few examples of people who talk about their moments of "being sick and tired of being sick and tired", a phrase used by Dave Ramsey.


















My own update:

As of December 23, 2016:

Current Debt:  $19, 990.61
Debt Paid in 2016:  $4,625.86