About a month ago, I signed up with Mint.com. This was in an effort to a better sense of my financial situation. I want to start saving more money and possibly pay off some of my loans a little quicker. Mint is great at giving you an overall picture of your finances. It also has several other features. I've really liked some of them, and I'm still learning to use others. Mint is pretty customizable, so I can always change settings when I don't like the defaults. But I've been laughing at some things.
The best thing about Mint is having everything in one place. I can see my checking and savings accounts, my debt (credit card, student loan, and car loan), and my 401k. By far my favorite thing is being able to play with my 401k. Mint provides several features that aren't provided by the 401K itself. For instance, I can see the value every day, instead of simply receiving quarterly statements.This allows Mint to build graphs that let me see performance over time and compare my own performance to the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones. It has me excited to start some other investments, though I still need to do some more research on that.
Mint also adds up all my assets and debts and lets me know my net worth on any given day. I was really excited to discover that this is a positive number. I can also see how it changes month to month. Mint is all about the graphs, which is probably my favorite thing about it. I can see spending or income over time and break spending down by category or merchant. It's pretty handy for looking at where all my money goes.
There are a ways to set budgets and goals, which I'm still playing with. Mostly I use the goals to calculate how quickly I could pay off a loan with this or that payment amount. But since they don't integrate well with the budgets, I decided not to actually set up any goals. For example, my required student loan payment each month is $211, but I've been paying $300 to pay it down faster. When I enter in the budget and the goal, Mint decides to allocate $511 for student loans which isn't right and skews the budgets I have set up. So I just allocate the $300 right off the bat and forget about the goal.
I also haven't been able to figure out how to make budgets work for things I don't buy every month. I can say that I want to spend x amount each month and break that into categories. Mint builds little bar charts to show how much I've actually spent in relation to what I'm planning to spend across the categories. But if I make a one-time purchase in a different category (like a Father's Day gift), the amount doesn't show up in my total spending. It just disappears into the ether. I have to keep remembering to add my "uncategorized" spending to my "total" spending to get the actual total. I wish there were an easy way to integrate the two.
Mint also occasionally has problems categorizing things correctly. When I transferred money from my checking to my savings account, it got recorded as additional income. According to Mint I'd earned that money twice. I've also had some problems with credit card purchases getting recorded twice. My card doesn't get charged twice, but it looks like it was. This mostly happens at restaurants, when the card is initially charged for the meal amount and then a second time with the tip added in. Even though this overrides the initial charge, Mint doesn't always figure that out. It led to me thinking I'd spent significantly more while visiting a friend last weekend than I actually had. It's easy enough to delete or recategorize transactions once you figure out what's going on. But figuring out what happened can lead to some stress.
There are other features that are probably helpful to many people that I just find funny. On the mobile app, mint shows your net cash flow every month as a simple income - spending calculation. Since I get paid on the last day of the month, this is always negative and doesn't end up being very useful for me. There are also a lot of alerts I've had to turn off. Over the weekend I had to stop at a gas station ATM to get money for the tolls on the Pennsylvania Turnpike because I'd forgotten to do this before leaving home. Mint immediately emailed me to let me know that the ATM had charged me a fee, something I was perfectly aware of. It also let me know when my rent check got cashed with a warning that "someone" had cashed an exceptionally large check.
All in all, the features I like make up for the ones that I'm finding less useful. There are a lot of customization options with Mint, and it's taking me a while to get it to the best state for me. I would definitely recommend it. Seeing the big financial picture has been a big help for me. Although I have yet to see if I actually succeeded in spending less this month than in months past.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Caring for Introverts
Friday, May 18, 2012
Stuffed Peppers
I cooked again! And I'm posting the recipe here mostly for my own future reference. Because it was relatively simple, pretty cheap, quite healthy, and easy enough to alter depending on my mood. Not to mention that it actually resulted in leftovers. I've been eating stuffed peppers all week long.
The first thing to do is cook the rice. The recipe told me I should have 1 cup of cooked rice per pepper. I missed the word "cooked" and ended up with roughly twice as much rice as I needed. But that's okay because rice is cheap and it made the leftovers last longer.
While the rice was cooking, I chopped up an onion and some mushrooms and sauteed them with garlic. Then I chopped up some tomatoes and shredded a bunch of Parmesan cheese. You can add anything else you want to the stuffing. I may try putting in some nuts next time. Or throwing some chicken or beef in with the onions and garlic.
I also prepared the peppers at this point. This is pretty easy. Cut off the top, just like a pumpkin, and remove all the seeds. Give them a good rinse to make sure you get all of the seeds out.
When the rice is done, throw it in a bowl with all of your veggies and mix it all up.
At this point, you can either throw everything in the fridge to be cooked later, or you can proceed. The most appealing part of this recipe to me is that you can get all of the heavy lifting out of the way hours before the food actually needs to be cooked.
When you're ready to go, spoon the rice stuffing into the peppers. Push it down to get all of the air out. Then stick the peppers into the dish you'll use to bake them (I actually used a pot. It worked. But I'll probably buy some corning ware in the nearish future). Once the peppers have all been stuffed, dump the extra rice mixture into the pot around them. You can definitely tell that I made way too much rice.
Now throw a bunch of mozzarella cheese on top (if you want) and grind some pepper on, too.
Bake at 375 for 10 minutes per pepper (so I baked this for 40 minutes).
Then serve! This is so much more food than it looks like. I ate about half of what I put on my plate.
These keep pretty well in the fridge and heat up nicely in the microwave. Next time, I think I'll want to add some protein to the stuffing so that I don't have to worry about that part of the meal during the leftover phase. I'll also remember to use less rice.
The first thing to do is cook the rice. The recipe told me I should have 1 cup of cooked rice per pepper. I missed the word "cooked" and ended up with roughly twice as much rice as I needed. But that's okay because rice is cheap and it made the leftovers last longer.
While the rice was cooking, I chopped up an onion and some mushrooms and sauteed them with garlic. Then I chopped up some tomatoes and shredded a bunch of Parmesan cheese. You can add anything else you want to the stuffing. I may try putting in some nuts next time. Or throwing some chicken or beef in with the onions and garlic.
 |
| Mushrooms and onions |
 |
| Tomatoes and cheese |
I also prepared the peppers at this point. This is pretty easy. Cut off the top, just like a pumpkin, and remove all the seeds. Give them a good rinse to make sure you get all of the seeds out.
 |
| Cleaned peppers |
 |
| Stuffing! |
When you're ready to go, spoon the rice stuffing into the peppers. Push it down to get all of the air out. Then stick the peppers into the dish you'll use to bake them (I actually used a pot. It worked. But I'll probably buy some corning ware in the nearish future). Once the peppers have all been stuffed, dump the extra rice mixture into the pot around them. You can definitely tell that I made way too much rice.
 |
| Stuffed peppers, plus all the extra stuffing. I think there was more rice around the peppers than in them |
 |
| mmmm, cheese |
Then serve! This is so much more food than it looks like. I ate about half of what I put on my plate.
 |
| A deceptively filling meal |
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Motivation
Three weeks after my first personal training appointment I'm not quite doing everything I want to do. I'll admit that I was rather ambitious. Six days a week is a lot to commit to. But the bigger problem was that I basically failed to get on my bike.
The weather is changing here. Days are alternating between muggy and rainy. I don't want to go outside in either type of weather, much less to exercise. Especially after walking the dog. Summer is coming and I'd rather be indoors. And that means getting my butt to the gym for some cardio.
It also opens up a new opportunity to motivate myself. I've started reading The Count of Monte Cristo on my kindle, but I'm going to try to only let myself read it while I'm on the bike at the gym. Hopefully this will provide the extra motivation I need to actually go to the gym. The book is long enough (1200 pages) that this should last for a while.
I also adjusted my lifting schedule. Instead of three days a week (back/biceps, chest/triceps, and legs), I'm down to two slightly more intense days a week. It'll be back/biceps and my easy leg routine one day during the week and chest/triceps with a harder leg routine on the weekend. Plus I'm going to try to do my core workout every time I'm at the gym. I think my lower back is getting stronger, and I don't want to lose momentum there.
I'm going to try to ride the bike three times a week. We'll see how this goes. At the very least, the book will make me more willing to stay on the bike for 45 minutes.
The weather is changing here. Days are alternating between muggy and rainy. I don't want to go outside in either type of weather, much less to exercise. Especially after walking the dog. Summer is coming and I'd rather be indoors. And that means getting my butt to the gym for some cardio.
It also opens up a new opportunity to motivate myself. I've started reading The Count of Monte Cristo on my kindle, but I'm going to try to only let myself read it while I'm on the bike at the gym. Hopefully this will provide the extra motivation I need to actually go to the gym. The book is long enough (1200 pages) that this should last for a while.
I also adjusted my lifting schedule. Instead of three days a week (back/biceps, chest/triceps, and legs), I'm down to two slightly more intense days a week. It'll be back/biceps and my easy leg routine one day during the week and chest/triceps with a harder leg routine on the weekend. Plus I'm going to try to do my core workout every time I'm at the gym. I think my lower back is getting stronger, and I don't want to lose momentum there.
I'm going to try to ride the bike three times a week. We'll see how this goes. At the very least, the book will make me more willing to stay on the bike for 45 minutes.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Is This What Growing Up Looks Like?
I was going to have a marvelously lazy Sunday. Kevin's sister was in town and the two of them were going on a 55 mile bike ride in the morning. Then his mom was coming over in the afternoon for a mother's day BBQ. There was nothing I really needed to do, and I was looking forward to a lazy morning spent in front of the television.
Even a year ago I would have been able to do this. I would have spent hours on the couch with a stack of DVDs. But somehow I wasn't capable of the much laziness yesterday.
After a single episode of Angel, I began to seriously crave a shower. Then I came downstairs and realized that the dishes needed to be washed and I should probably clean the bathroom and clear off the dining room table. Suddenly I was scrubbing the toilet, folding laundry, and sweeping the floors I had just swept the day before. Between the mud the dog tracks in and the amount of hair she sheds I'm having a hard time keeping the floors clean. (Kevin: They don't seem that much dirtier to me. Me: Because I clean them.)
By the time Kevin and his sister got home, the house was clean and I was about to enjoy a beer and a book outside. The amazing thing is that even with all the cleaning (and later cooking), Sunday still felt like a perfect lazy day. In some ways, it felt even more relaxing (or possibly rejuvenating) than spending all day on the couch would have been.
All of this responsibility has got to be a side effect of growing up. I just hope it doesn't slip away from me again (though ten straight hours of Supernatural can be enjoyable in its own way).
Even a year ago I would have been able to do this. I would have spent hours on the couch with a stack of DVDs. But somehow I wasn't capable of the much laziness yesterday.
After a single episode of Angel, I began to seriously crave a shower. Then I came downstairs and realized that the dishes needed to be washed and I should probably clean the bathroom and clear off the dining room table. Suddenly I was scrubbing the toilet, folding laundry, and sweeping the floors I had just swept the day before. Between the mud the dog tracks in and the amount of hair she sheds I'm having a hard time keeping the floors clean. (Kevin: They don't seem that much dirtier to me. Me: Because I clean them.)
By the time Kevin and his sister got home, the house was clean and I was about to enjoy a beer and a book outside. The amazing thing is that even with all the cleaning (and later cooking), Sunday still felt like a perfect lazy day. In some ways, it felt even more relaxing (or possibly rejuvenating) than spending all day on the couch would have been.
All of this responsibility has got to be a side effect of growing up. I just hope it doesn't slip away from me again (though ten straight hours of Supernatural can be enjoyable in its own way).
Monday, May 7, 2012
Geeky Day
The fourth of May wasn't exactly Star Wars day for me, but it was still filled geekery.
After work (which I left a tad early) I went to see Kristin Cashore speak at a library in Bethesda, MD. Well, I tried to. Google told me it would take about 20 minutes on the metro and I failed to account for either rush hour or my complete lack of direction. I didn't arrive until nearly half an hour after she started speaking, but I did get to see the Q&A. Most of her talk seemed to be about the writing of Bitterblue. I recognized the end of it from some of her blog posts.
The Q&A led to some fun tidbits. Like the fact that Katsa means peenis in Italian, or that Po means butt in German. Some of the names had to be changed for translations. And on the topic of crazy fans, someone (not at the event, this was just a story) asked if Leck had been based on President Obama. Some people just completely fail reading comprehension.
Cashore also confirmed that she wants to write at least one more book in this world. She didn't drop any other hints, but I'm excited for any news that comes next. And I got my book signed. :)
Later that night, Kevin and I went to see The Avengers. It was so awesome. I can't remember the last time I had that much fun in a movie theater. The whole audience was laughing and groaning and cheering. I almost missed Hulk's "puny god" line, because everyone was laughing so hard at the scene that immediately preceded it. I'm definitely going to have to get the super special edition feature packed DVD when it comes out. And I may even need to see the movie again in theaters.
All in all, it was a pretty awesome and very geeky Friday
After work (which I left a tad early) I went to see Kristin Cashore speak at a library in Bethesda, MD. Well, I tried to. Google told me it would take about 20 minutes on the metro and I failed to account for either rush hour or my complete lack of direction. I didn't arrive until nearly half an hour after she started speaking, but I did get to see the Q&A. Most of her talk seemed to be about the writing of Bitterblue. I recognized the end of it from some of her blog posts.
The Q&A led to some fun tidbits. Like the fact that Katsa means peenis in Italian, or that Po means butt in German. Some of the names had to be changed for translations. And on the topic of crazy fans, someone (not at the event, this was just a story) asked if Leck had been based on President Obama. Some people just completely fail reading comprehension.
Cashore also confirmed that she wants to write at least one more book in this world. She didn't drop any other hints, but I'm excited for any news that comes next. And I got my book signed. :)
Later that night, Kevin and I went to see The Avengers. It was so awesome. I can't remember the last time I had that much fun in a movie theater. The whole audience was laughing and groaning and cheering. I almost missed Hulk's "puny god" line, because everyone was laughing so hard at the scene that immediately preceded it. I'm definitely going to have to get the super special edition feature packed DVD when it comes out. And I may even need to see the movie again in theaters.
All in all, it was a pretty awesome and very geeky Friday
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Adventerous Kitty
The cat decided to go on an adventure. And while he's fine now, the last day was a little harrowing.
Onyx is an indoor kitty. It's not just that we don't let him go outside; he mostly won't go outside. I've carried him into our backyard a couple of times, and he always flips his shit and runs back inside as soon as he can escape from my arms. He may sit at the back door for hours staring outside, but as soon as we open the door he disappears.
This led to us being a little lax about leaving the back door open. Especially now that we have a dog. Kina likes to go in and out. She'll explore the backyard for a bit, then come back in to make sure we're still around before going outside again. Mostly we close the door when we go up or downstairs. Certainly if we're going to leave the house.
Unfortunately I forgot to do this at some point on Sunday. Either that, or the cat was sneakier than I can really imagine him being.
While I was putting laundry away on Sunday afternoon, I noticed that Onyx wasn't in his usual spot under the bed. I had been impressed that he wasn't howling at the dog, but it turned out he just wasn't there. I assumed he had found a new and exciting hiding place and tried to put it out of my mind.
I went the rest of the day without seeing the cat, which isn't that unusual. I mentioned this to Kevin, and we weren't able to find the cat after a quick search. But we decided not to worry too much. He'd come out when he got hungry enough.
Early Monday morning we were woken up by fight outside. Kevin assured me that the howling was too high pitched to have been Onyx. But when I noticed that he hadn't touched his food I began to get really worried.
There wasn't much I could do, so I went to work and tried to keep my mind off the cat. When Kevin got home, he put the dog in the basement and left the back door open so Onyx could come home if he wanted to. I sat in the backyard and read for a while, occasionally calling for Onyx, but he never showed up. I decided to go searching through the woods behind our house to see if I could find him, certain that if I found him at all he wouldn't be alive.
Eventually the sun went down and I had to go home. A few hours later, Kevin went back out with a flashlight. When we called Onyx this time, he meowed back. But since it was so dark, it took us a while to find him. It turned out he was sitting on the neighbor's fence.
We went to collect him, but he ran away, hopping from one back yard to the next. So we went inside to give him some time to calm down and decided to try again in a little bit. It didn't take long for Onyx to make his way inside on his own. I think the prospect of food and water is what ultimately convinced him to come home.
It seems that Onyx spent most of the day and night hanging out under our neighbor's deck. He didn't have any scratches or bruises. The worst he seems to have suffered is a little bit of dirt. I'm really happy that he managed to make it home okay. I'll definitely be more careful about keeping the door closed in the future.
Onyx is an indoor kitty. It's not just that we don't let him go outside; he mostly won't go outside. I've carried him into our backyard a couple of times, and he always flips his shit and runs back inside as soon as he can escape from my arms. He may sit at the back door for hours staring outside, but as soon as we open the door he disappears.
This led to us being a little lax about leaving the back door open. Especially now that we have a dog. Kina likes to go in and out. She'll explore the backyard for a bit, then come back in to make sure we're still around before going outside again. Mostly we close the door when we go up or downstairs. Certainly if we're going to leave the house.
Unfortunately I forgot to do this at some point on Sunday. Either that, or the cat was sneakier than I can really imagine him being.
While I was putting laundry away on Sunday afternoon, I noticed that Onyx wasn't in his usual spot under the bed. I had been impressed that he wasn't howling at the dog, but it turned out he just wasn't there. I assumed he had found a new and exciting hiding place and tried to put it out of my mind.
I went the rest of the day without seeing the cat, which isn't that unusual. I mentioned this to Kevin, and we weren't able to find the cat after a quick search. But we decided not to worry too much. He'd come out when he got hungry enough.
Early Monday morning we were woken up by fight outside. Kevin assured me that the howling was too high pitched to have been Onyx. But when I noticed that he hadn't touched his food I began to get really worried.
There wasn't much I could do, so I went to work and tried to keep my mind off the cat. When Kevin got home, he put the dog in the basement and left the back door open so Onyx could come home if he wanted to. I sat in the backyard and read for a while, occasionally calling for Onyx, but he never showed up. I decided to go searching through the woods behind our house to see if I could find him, certain that if I found him at all he wouldn't be alive.
Eventually the sun went down and I had to go home. A few hours later, Kevin went back out with a flashlight. When we called Onyx this time, he meowed back. But since it was so dark, it took us a while to find him. It turned out he was sitting on the neighbor's fence.
We went to collect him, but he ran away, hopping from one back yard to the next. So we went inside to give him some time to calm down and decided to try again in a little bit. It didn't take long for Onyx to make his way inside on his own. I think the prospect of food and water is what ultimately convinced him to come home.
It seems that Onyx spent most of the day and night hanging out under our neighbor's deck. He didn't have any scratches or bruises. The worst he seems to have suffered is a little bit of dirt. I'm really happy that he managed to make it home okay. I'll definitely be more careful about keeping the door closed in the future.
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