Archive results for “July 2009f 2009”

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Cheap Vacations…

My husband and I wanted to take a nice vacation this year but our debt diet prevented us from going on our annual trip to Hawaii.

These are the times when I hate the fact that I’m finally living below my means – even though it’s good for me.

But, that didn’t stop us from booking a great place just steps from the Pacific Ocean. The gentle sea breeze and the sounds of the ocean will caress us as we drift off to sleep.

How did we fit this into our budget?

Hello beach camping.

Sure I’ll have sand in my ears and hair for a week straight but… I’ll be soaking up the sunshine, grilling 97 cent chicken while spending $90 for the weeklong campsite.

As San Diegans/Californians, we are fortunate to have beach camping sites within a few hours of home. With very careful planning (6 months in advance through ReserveAmerica.com), a great California vacation can be very inexpensive. Didn’t reserve 6 months in advance? A lot of these campsites have last minute cancelations. Sometimes you can get an unclaimed campsite for the same day.

I know California isn’t the only place with good, inexpensive campsites.

Name your state and share the best cheap vacation spot. America is a BEAUTIFUL place. Let me know what your neighborhood has to offer. I want to know where to go next year!

Looking for a good California beach site? You can’t go wrong with Carlsbad State Beach, San Clemente State Beach, and Doheny State Beach. All three will put you steps from the ocean and run about $35 a night. You can put multiple tents on each site and can split the cost like we did. You can (and need to) book the sites 6 months in advance. Sign on to the Reserve America website at 7:55 am on the 1st day of the month. Example: We booked a site for a week in July on February 1st a 7:55 am. Happy camping!

Posted by Beks on July 9, 2009 at 5:00 AM in Good Info, Living Frugal, Saving Money, Ways I Save Money | 10 Comments »
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Self-Confidence Revisited…

It’s funny that I was thinking about self-confidence yesterday and then stumbled across the below article. Sure, I wouldn’t run after an attacker, but I’ve got to admire the success of the woman who knew what she was capable of (and the fact that she’s a marathon runner – something I’m trying to be – made me smile a little more).

A little back story, the rapist she ran after has been terrorizing San Diego women for a while. She was far from his first victim – but she has become his last. He later killed himself in his prison cell.

My favorite quote was from her husband, “That’s the kind of woman she is, very strong — doesn’t back down.”

When it comes to our goals… may we always be very strong – never backing down.

Woman didn’t hesitate to run after attacker
By Brooke Williams
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
2:00 a.m. July 4, 2009
MISSION VALLEY — The woman who survived a suspected rapist’s attack at knifepoint in her garage on Wednesday said she didn’t hesitate for a second to run after him.

Christina Hennigan, 33, was doing laundry in the garage of her Mission Valley home when a man identified as Thomas James Parker, 39, grabbed her from behind, wrapping his arms around her so she couldn’t move. Parker, who was later arrested, hanged himself in his jail cell yesterday.

Hennigan said her attacker put a kitchen knife to her neck, the blade almost touching her skin. On his hands were black gloves with rubber grips.

“Lie down with your arms behind your back and don’t say a word,” Hennigan recalled the man saying.
So she did. Then he closed the garage door, leaving them in the dark.

As Hennigan lay with her face on the concrete floor and her hands behind her back, she heard him fumbling with a bag of supplies.

“It really freaked me out when the garage door closed and he started breaking out the zip ties,” she said.
The second stall in her garage was empty, and Hennigan told the man her husband would be home any second. He slammed her head against the floor.

Hennigan started screaming and tried to hit the garage door button on the wall but missed.
Then to Hennigan’s surprise, the man hit the garage door button, allowing light to fill the garage and took off running.

“I think he got spooked,” Hennigan said.

Hennigan said she didn’t have a second thought about chasing him. As a marathon runner, she knew she could keep up with him.

“I knew that I was probably going to be near him,” she said. “I kind of figured this guy wasn’t that fit — he didn’t look like a runner.”

She was right. But when she caught up to him, he turned around and hit her in the face. That was the first time she saw his face.

Hennigan, who was barefoot, kept running. She was determined to get identifying information. At one point, her attacker darted across Friars Road, narrowly missing being hit by cars.

On the other side of the street, an off-duty Border Patrol agent saw the chase and parked his car in the turn lane. He hopped out with his gun and handcuffs and chased Parker, eventually arresting him.

Meanwhile, Hennigan’s 29-year-old husband, Matt, a pre-med student at the University of California San Diego, was shocked to hear a voice mail from police asking him to come home quickly.

When he learned about how his wife chased the assailant, Matt Hennigan said, he was amazed but not surprised.

“That’s the kind of woman she is,” he said. “Very strong — doesn’t back down.”

Christina Hennigan said she went running the next morning but didn’t wear headphones like she usually does.
“I am already changing the things that I do,” she said. “When I drive home, I keep the car running until the garage door closes behind me, and I’m more cognizant of my surroundings.”

Hennigan said the incident will stick with her, but she won’t let it hold her back. That’s one reason she went running the next day.

“It was to prove to myself that I can do this. I can begin my life again, too.”

Union-Tribune

Look this article up at: http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/jul/04/woman-didnt-hesitate-run-after-attacker/

Posted by Beks on July 7, 2009 at 5:00 AM in Keeping Motivated | 3 Comments »
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Learning to Believe in Yourself…

My husband received a second call back for the government position. I know he’s talented, smart, and hard working – I just didn’t expect him to be one of the top candidates in a position where 1,324 people applied (they released the final number of applicants at his test site). In this market, there are 20 year veterans looking for work with college degrees.

I excited he has made it this far. It’s good for him to know his value – even in a bad economy. If his journey ends here, he can feel good knowing he’s in that top 5% – and the only reason he’s here is because he’s incredibly hard working and dedicated to learning.

The debt we have been carrying has made us feel like failures. It has affected our self confidence and made us believe we are incapable of doing anything. Digging our way out has helped to make us feel like we are more than just a number.

It’s nice to feel valued.

Posted by Beks on July 6, 2009 at 5:00 AM in Keeping Motivated, Life Experiences, work | 6 Comments »
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Happy Fourth of July!!

Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July!

We will be staying home this year celebrating with friends while watching the fireworks from our backyard.

Please be safe and please, above all else, don’t drink and drive!

Posted by Beks on July 4, 2009 at 11:18 AM in :) | Comment First »
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Saving big money on taxes…

A few months ago, I completed the paperwork to appeal my property tax. The value on my house decreased more than $125,000 and as a property owner, I have the right to appeal the assessed value of my home.

After a long wait, I finally received a letter in the mail approving my appeal. We will be receiving a check for our over payment in the amount of…

$1,100

AND, we will be paying less next year, saving nearly $100 a month.

Check into whether or not your city has the option of property tax assessed value appeals. Don’t pay a company to do it for you! You can do it yourself!

It’s worth it!!

Posted by Beks on July 4, 2009 at 4:00 AM in Good Info, Home Ownership, Saving Money | 4 Comments »
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