Marvie's Crochet Corner

Saturday morning babbling

Mornin' everyone =) I'm in such a good mood! I have knitting needles winging their way to me as we speak. I decided that if I am going to do this, I am going to need supplies. I don't want to find something I want to make and be stuck without needles to make it with. So I hit Ebay of course =) First I did some comparison shopping at various online stores for interchangable needles. My neighbor got a set recently, the Needlemaster set, and she's quite happy with them. I used them for a short time on something I started, then changed my mind about doing, and I liked them pretty well too. So I compared prices, and decided that me being me, I wanted to get the best possible price. So Ebay to the rescue =) I got the set for $25.00! Yay me =) Thinking that would give me pretty much whatever I might need, I started pattern hunting. Then I learned that a *lot* of patterns (from hats to purses to socks and mittens) need dpn's. Well, I have several balls of sock yarn and I want to make socks in a bad way.... so back to ebay I went. I found an auction for 13 sets of bamboo dpn's. I watched it alllllll day and stayed up till 3AM bidding on them. And yup, I won =) I did compare prices first, and normally bamboo sells for $5-7 a set. Well, I got 13 sets for less than half that (per set that is)! Yay me again =)

So, for right now I only have three sets of needles in two sizes, but in a couple of weeks I will be able to start any project my little heart desires =)

Hmmm what else is going on? Not much on the crochet front. What little there is, I posted at the 'Ville. I really should sit down today and make some snowflakes. I am so far behind on those it's not even funny. I haven't even touched the Lacy Snowflakes book I got a while back!

Oh! We are buying a small air conditioner unit!!! It will be here sometime this weekend. I so can't wait =) Granted, we won't need it for several months, but just having it here and knowing that this summer wont be quite as miserable as the past two have been.... We're buying it from some friends who are lucky enough to be in the process of PCS'ing back to the states. They only used it one summer, so it's practically brand new. We'll turn around and resell it as soon as the summer is over, since this will be the only seaon we'll need it. Probably be able to sell it for what we're putting into it, so no loss on our part. We debated for days about it, finally deciding that since we should be able to get our money back in a short time, it's worth it. Hubby sits in a freezing cold air conditioned office all day, but I am stuck in this sweatbox. Sitting outside is omewhat better, but there are times when I need to be indoors. This will make Marvie a much happier and more pleasant person this summer. And might cut down on the amount of frozen fruity alcoholic drinks I partake in too *g*

On the subject of money, one of my weekend projects is to sit down and do some figuring on our current financial state. Hubby is trying to decide how to handle things in the next year. Lots to consider. We really want to buy a house when we go back. Our debt is pretty low, two loans, the car and a military credit card. The car will be paid off about 4 months after we return home, one loan has about 18 months left on it, the other I'm not sure how long we're under but it's the biggest and has the highest interest rate. The military card is just about maxed, but has a very low interest rate.

Hubby wants to try to get a couple of those paid off within the next 9 months or so. It's doable. But we're trying to decide how to go about it. I think we should hit hard and fast on the highest interest loan. It's got the biggest payment, the highest interest, and we've had it longer. Then take that money and pay double on the smaller ones. He thinks we should pay off the smaller loan and knock out most if not all of the military card, then take the money we've been paying those and hit the big one.

We also need to consider that we have absolutely no money saved right now. Which means come next year when we go home, we have nothing for deposits on utilities, house etc.

Plus, we need to make a trip home this year to get some things taken care of. Namely getting the car ready for our return. It needs some work after having been in storage all this time. Probably new tires, most likely a tune up or something. There wasn't much gas in it (less than 1/4 of a tank) and the oil was fresh then BUT we know it hasn't been started in at least a year. No telling what it needs. Plus we have to get it registered (tags expired while we were here) and get it insured.

So it's going to take money to get home, take care of that, and well you know, eat while we're there lol.

We can take a military flight, which would be almost free, both there and back. Though we might not be able to get exactly where we need to be, so we have to plan for transport from whoknowswhere to Va. but compared to nearly $3,000 to fly commercial, $30.00 to get across the water and then grabbing some cheap deal from wherever to VA is preferable. Same coming back, we can get across the water, but might end up in Italy or somedamnwhere and then have to get ourselves home. Again, not a huge deal bc you can fly SO cheaply over here. Or take a train which is cheap too.

Won't have to stay in a hotel, we'd stay with my best friend. Just pitch in for food and such. The only shopping I'd want to do would be school clothes for the boy for next year. Well, I'd *want* to do more, but that would be the only necessary shopping simply because it's so damn hard to find him clothes here that I can afford. I just can't pay $40-50 for a pair of jeans he's gonna kill in a couple of months! Not when I can get three pair for the same amount at home.

Sooooooo. I have to do some serious number crunching and planning. Figure out a priority list and make some sort of plan.

Lots of lists. Cuz there will be things we'll need to figure in once we get home too. Completely restocking the food items in the kitchen. The movers won't pack anything foodwise. since it can be on a ship and in storage for up to several months, they wont allow it. That's a pretty big chunk of change right there.

Then there will be other things, such as smll appliances. We sold most of our stuff before we came here because everything here runs on 220v rather than 110v. So we have to dump the 220 and buy 110. The 110 things we did keep, we have to consider that they might fry the first time we use them once we return home. The vacuum, anything with a motor in it.

Some of those things we can easily buy from the thrift shops here before we leave. People bring their stuff from home, then realize they can't use it or just don't have room for it, so to the thrift shop it goes. That's where we got most of our 220 stuff when we got here, and that's where it'll all go when we get ready to leave.

I should probably get rid of a lot of my clothes too. Most of the stuff taking up space in my closet and in storage downstairs is too small for me. I hate to part with it though, what if I do loose weight when we get back? I won't be able to just go out and replace it. We'll be too damn broke then rofl. Though I could probably get rid of some things safely. I will never be a size 3 again. My heart knows this. I won't need much in the way of wool sweaters in southern Virginia either. Nor would I need 6 winter coats. (they are different weights and fabrics for the various types of cold here in Germany) One would suffice, with a lighter jacket for the 5 minute spring and Fall. We won't even talk about the colection of hats and scarves *g*

Ok, enough of this babbling. I apologize for boring ya'll. I tend to think better when I am typing or writing so you bear the brunt of it.

Anyone who might have any advice on the debt paying issue I would be thrilled to hear it. I have no idea what I am doing, and neither does hubby lol.

K, gonna go get something done now... dunno what, but something!

posted by Marvie at 5:32 AM