I�m going away at the end of June for a week and I just hired my neighbor to watch my sweet baby kitty Jubes. I�m so excited that she is available! She and her husband rent one of two apartments in the house next door to me and, while I don�t really know them, they seem mature and responsible. Now I feel like I can really relax when I�m away, knowing that someone will be keeping an eye on my house as well as taking care of the cat.
What is a reasonable daily rate for someone to stop by once a day to replenish food & water, scoop litter box, and make sure that kitty is ok? I was thinking $15 � 18 dollars a day. Is that enough? What do people pay these days? I think I�ll be gone 8 days total.
My quest for healthy eating continues, which is helping both my grocery expenses and my waistline, although not as quickly as I�d like it to!
I just got notification of my company�s raise percentages this year and I�m really disappointed. I will receive a 3.3% raise for high achievement. Ugh � I got a 3.5% raise last year for normal achievement. High achievement was 4.5% last year! I was expecting to get at least 4.0%. I feel like I�m getting ripped off by 1.2%. Arghhh. I�m so annoyed and pissed! So much for incentive for this year. Boo.
Well, off to drop a bunch of money on getting my hair colored. Yeehaw. 
How much to pay a cat sitter? and craptastic raise...
June 13th, 2013 at 08:26 pm
June 13th, 2013 at 08:40 pm 1371152458
June 13th, 2013 at 08:58 pm 1371153497
June 13th, 2013 at 09:04 pm 1371153870
Clients who refer other clients to me also get a % off their next house sit.
it is a fun side business that I am working to grow. I have a goal of by this time next year making an extra $1000 per month.
June 13th, 2013 at 09:08 pm 1371154124
June 13th, 2013 at 09:20 pm 1371154808
Hey, have a terrific vacation...it is what it is!
June 13th, 2013 at 09:29 pm 1371155366
June 13th, 2013 at 10:35 pm 1371159314
June 13th, 2013 at 11:09 pm 1371161349
Most of us got a less than 1% raise here ... so 3.3% sounds pretty good to me.
June 13th, 2013 at 11:50 pm 1371163844
June 14th, 2013 at 12:03 am 1371164634
Everything is a business write off. I just ensure that the first amounts I earn go to saving for the following years business expenses. I write off mileage and other things I purchase (cleaning supplies or poop bags) as well.
After the business expenses for the following year are saved I put any thing paid to me into my IRA. Once that is maxed out I put in five different categories: extra to student loan (20%), vacation savings (20%), fun (10%), car expenses (mileage adds up, more oil changes and maintenance concerns (20%), miscellaneous (30%). Sometimes this is placed in a particular category sometimes placed in a miscellaneous savings account.
And I would love a 3.3% raise. I have not had a raise (indeed have experience furloughs for the past 4 years) since 2007. This year we may get a 3% raise but 1% immediately goes into retirement (mandated by our union contract) so it becomes a 2% raise as a time when the cost of living has been more than 2% in the past 6 years.
At least our state furlough have ended but since I have lived so long without it in my budget I am putting it all into my 401k.