ms. bing
07-28-2004, 04:05 PM
every year about this time i get an itch to move into town. the thing that makes this year different is that i could potentially afford it now. there are some catches, though.
case for moving: everything i do is in tyler, which is about an hour from here. i make that drive every day with a 2 year old. i have heard the shrek song enough times to sing it in my sleep. she's normally pretty good, since she's used to it, but she gets carsick. i have to leave for school a full hour and a half before i have to be there in order to get to tyler, get her dropped off at daycare, and then get back over to the school and park. that means that for a 9am class i have to leave no later than 7:30am.
on the way home, once again i have to leave early. it's the same thing in reverse. if i leave whereever i am by 5:30pm (which happens alot when i work) then it will be about 7pm before i get home. then i have to pick up, cook dinner, get her bathed, myself bathed, and her in bed by 9:30, and if i have any homework to do i have to pray that she goes right to sleep. otherwise it will be a very, very late night. then turn around and get up at 6am in order to get everything done and leave in the morning.
gigantic pain in the ass.
financially this costs me, also. the amount of miles i put on my car is making the value drop very quickly. i will need to make some double payments in order to trade it in on something else in january and not end up owing on it anyway. i bought it last january with 48k miles. now it has 73k. i figure next january will be the longest i should want to keep it or else it will cross 100k into the no value zone. i have to fill up about twice a week. even in a very economical car, at todays prices here that's about $30 a week.
also, living with my dad has disqualified me for food stamps. he is a good guy who would never say anything, but we split the food bill between 50-50 and 70-30, depending on how much money i have. however, he makes too much money for me to keep them. i know what some people would say about govt handouts, but with the cost of non-food stuff i counted on the money i was getting in food stamps to make ends meet. now it's been gone since march, and i'm feeling it.
case for staying: dad keeps all the utilities paid. the mortgage is paid for, so i don't have to worry about splitting that with him or about the burden on him having to pay that and the bills. if it werent paid i would feel like i would have to split some utilities with him, since i do at least one load of laundry every day and most of it is mine and eva's. couple that with baths, tv, lights, etc. (i do pay my own phone bill) and it makes me and him very glad the mortgage is paid. it gives both of us some leeway i know i wouldn't have if i rented a place in town. we have a nice place with a big yard and it is all relatively safe. dad is here to fix things that break and keep the lawn mowed. our back back yard (the non-fenced part) is big enough to drive golf balls or run the dogs. there are bunnies and birds and walks in the woods. we are 15 minutes away from a nice lake with a cool beach. the ratio of good neighbors to bad is better than in the city, and there are stars and crickets at night. not to mention the fact that my dad helps me out so much with eva, and she loves him alot. i know they would miss each other. after her bath, she always wants grandpa to brush her hair (funny, when i was little i always wanted him to brush my hair instead of my mom). if we lived in town there would be alot less than that. and on weekends, everything i need is here. i can go to walmart, the grocery store, get gas, eat out, whatever within 10 or 15 minutes of driving.
so what should i do? i'm really torn. i have'nt done the figures yet, but while they can be helpful, some decisions cannot be made fiscally.
oh well, it'll pass.
case for moving: everything i do is in tyler, which is about an hour from here. i make that drive every day with a 2 year old. i have heard the shrek song enough times to sing it in my sleep. she's normally pretty good, since she's used to it, but she gets carsick. i have to leave for school a full hour and a half before i have to be there in order to get to tyler, get her dropped off at daycare, and then get back over to the school and park. that means that for a 9am class i have to leave no later than 7:30am.
on the way home, once again i have to leave early. it's the same thing in reverse. if i leave whereever i am by 5:30pm (which happens alot when i work) then it will be about 7pm before i get home. then i have to pick up, cook dinner, get her bathed, myself bathed, and her in bed by 9:30, and if i have any homework to do i have to pray that she goes right to sleep. otherwise it will be a very, very late night. then turn around and get up at 6am in order to get everything done and leave in the morning.
gigantic pain in the ass.
financially this costs me, also. the amount of miles i put on my car is making the value drop very quickly. i will need to make some double payments in order to trade it in on something else in january and not end up owing on it anyway. i bought it last january with 48k miles. now it has 73k. i figure next january will be the longest i should want to keep it or else it will cross 100k into the no value zone. i have to fill up about twice a week. even in a very economical car, at todays prices here that's about $30 a week.
also, living with my dad has disqualified me for food stamps. he is a good guy who would never say anything, but we split the food bill between 50-50 and 70-30, depending on how much money i have. however, he makes too much money for me to keep them. i know what some people would say about govt handouts, but with the cost of non-food stuff i counted on the money i was getting in food stamps to make ends meet. now it's been gone since march, and i'm feeling it.
case for staying: dad keeps all the utilities paid. the mortgage is paid for, so i don't have to worry about splitting that with him or about the burden on him having to pay that and the bills. if it werent paid i would feel like i would have to split some utilities with him, since i do at least one load of laundry every day and most of it is mine and eva's. couple that with baths, tv, lights, etc. (i do pay my own phone bill) and it makes me and him very glad the mortgage is paid. it gives both of us some leeway i know i wouldn't have if i rented a place in town. we have a nice place with a big yard and it is all relatively safe. dad is here to fix things that break and keep the lawn mowed. our back back yard (the non-fenced part) is big enough to drive golf balls or run the dogs. there are bunnies and birds and walks in the woods. we are 15 minutes away from a nice lake with a cool beach. the ratio of good neighbors to bad is better than in the city, and there are stars and crickets at night. not to mention the fact that my dad helps me out so much with eva, and she loves him alot. i know they would miss each other. after her bath, she always wants grandpa to brush her hair (funny, when i was little i always wanted him to brush my hair instead of my mom). if we lived in town there would be alot less than that. and on weekends, everything i need is here. i can go to walmart, the grocery store, get gas, eat out, whatever within 10 or 15 minutes of driving.
so what should i do? i'm really torn. i have'nt done the figures yet, but while they can be helpful, some decisions cannot be made fiscally.
oh well, it'll pass.