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mousmeWelcome to another chapter in How Phnee's Finances are T3h Suck. There's a little bit of ranting in here, be warned.
I got a call from Bell, which I received late, of course, having not checked my messages since Monday or thereabouts. Turns out I owe them a metric assload of money. Now, let me explain something first: I am lousy with money. I am lousy with remembering to make regular payments on just about anything. I know myself well, and thus on ALL my bills I arrange to have automatic payments withdrawn from my account every month. It's simpler and prevents me from having to worry about it.
Apparently the automatic payments didn't work for Bell, for whatever reason. However, they didn't see fit to warn me about this until, oh, about two seconds before they threatened to disconnect my phone line. Okay, in theory I should be checking my invoices online every month to make sure things are going smoothly. However, I have mentioned that I use automated services precisely because I'm lousy at that sort of things. Touching, my naïve faith in the system. :P
So, mostly my fault, but kind of also partly theirs. None of which makes any difference, because it's ALL my problem.
*sigh*
I am going to the bank tomorrow to see if I can get a loan, or a credit card on short notice. I was very pleased about no longer being in Massive Amounts Of Debt, but apparently my smugness is now being thoroughly punished. Dramatic irony: gotta love it.
Still, I figure this will be an opportunity to consolidate all the BFO's (Big Financial Obligations) I still have into one neat package. I am still, thanks to the stupid paycheque snafu from last August, one month behind on rent. I owe Bell a ton of money, and I have a few SFO's (Small Financial Obligations) that would do well from getting handled all in one go.
Jesus H. Murphy.
The worst part is, is that I can't really rail about the Vast Unfairness Of It All™, because, really, if I had been more on the ball about this, I wouldn't be having these problems. Well, I'd be having them, but in reduced form. Part of me wishes very much that Bell had waited until August to get their panties in a bunch, because then The Car would no longer be a huge damn financial albatross hanging around my neck. Ooh, I like that expression much better than BFO. HDFA it is.
Okay. This is not the end of the world. This is not the end of the world. Remember to breathe, and repeat: This is not the end of the world. Lather, rinse, repeat. Aloof, unavailable elf princess. Aloof, unavailable elf princess. This is not the end of the world.
I shall endeavour to view this as an opportunity rather than a massive pain in the ass. I shall endeavour to find the silver lining in this very large and annoying storm cloud. If I consolidate all my HDFA's now, then I could potentially be entirely debt-free by this time next year. Potentially.
I think my credit rating is still okay. It can't be fabulous, but I don't think it should get in the way of a small loan. For one thing, I've never missed a car payment, and I know that goes a long way to keeping a good credit rating. Hopefully it will act as a counterweight to all the really crappy financial things that have happened in the past three years or so.
You'd think that two years of gainful employment would cancel out a year of unemployment, but you'd be wrong. Two years later (almost to the day, in fact), and I'm still fucking paying for the fact that I couldn't get a job and was ineligible for EI benefits (I quit Bell Mobility, since it was making me a psychological wreck, but because I quit then the government considers it All My Own Fault if I don't have money).
Did I mention that the Quebec government decided that I owe them money, in spite of all my taxes being taken off at source? I give them a quarter of my paycheque every week, and somehow I STILL end up owing them money. Someone explain to me how that's supposed to work. No, I'm not bitter at ALL. Bah.
Okay, enough whingeing. This is a blessing in disguise. A very, very cunning disguise, but nevertheless… Tomorrow I shall go to my bank and get their help to fix my problem. One day, I will have money. Today is not that day, but some day, mark my words, I will be worry-free.
I got a call from Bell, which I received late, of course, having not checked my messages since Monday or thereabouts. Turns out I owe them a metric assload of money. Now, let me explain something first: I am lousy with money. I am lousy with remembering to make regular payments on just about anything. I know myself well, and thus on ALL my bills I arrange to have automatic payments withdrawn from my account every month. It's simpler and prevents me from having to worry about it.
Apparently the automatic payments didn't work for Bell, for whatever reason. However, they didn't see fit to warn me about this until, oh, about two seconds before they threatened to disconnect my phone line. Okay, in theory I should be checking my invoices online every month to make sure things are going smoothly. However, I have mentioned that I use automated services precisely because I'm lousy at that sort of things. Touching, my naïve faith in the system. :P
So, mostly my fault, but kind of also partly theirs. None of which makes any difference, because it's ALL my problem.
*sigh*
I am going to the bank tomorrow to see if I can get a loan, or a credit card on short notice. I was very pleased about no longer being in Massive Amounts Of Debt, but apparently my smugness is now being thoroughly punished. Dramatic irony: gotta love it.
Still, I figure this will be an opportunity to consolidate all the BFO's (Big Financial Obligations) I still have into one neat package. I am still, thanks to the stupid paycheque snafu from last August, one month behind on rent. I owe Bell a ton of money, and I have a few SFO's (Small Financial Obligations) that would do well from getting handled all in one go.
Jesus H. Murphy.
The worst part is, is that I can't really rail about the Vast Unfairness Of It All™, because, really, if I had been more on the ball about this, I wouldn't be having these problems. Well, I'd be having them, but in reduced form. Part of me wishes very much that Bell had waited until August to get their panties in a bunch, because then The Car would no longer be a huge damn financial albatross hanging around my neck. Ooh, I like that expression much better than BFO. HDFA it is.
Okay. This is not the end of the world. This is not the end of the world. Remember to breathe, and repeat: This is not the end of the world. Lather, rinse, repeat. Aloof, unavailable elf princess. Aloof, unavailable elf princess. This is not the end of the world.
I shall endeavour to view this as an opportunity rather than a massive pain in the ass. I shall endeavour to find the silver lining in this very large and annoying storm cloud. If I consolidate all my HDFA's now, then I could potentially be entirely debt-free by this time next year. Potentially.
I think my credit rating is still okay. It can't be fabulous, but I don't think it should get in the way of a small loan. For one thing, I've never missed a car payment, and I know that goes a long way to keeping a good credit rating. Hopefully it will act as a counterweight to all the really crappy financial things that have happened in the past three years or so.
You'd think that two years of gainful employment would cancel out a year of unemployment, but you'd be wrong. Two years later (almost to the day, in fact), and I'm still fucking paying for the fact that I couldn't get a job and was ineligible for EI benefits (I quit Bell Mobility, since it was making me a psychological wreck, but because I quit then the government considers it All My Own Fault if I don't have money).
Did I mention that the Quebec government decided that I owe them money, in spite of all my taxes being taken off at source? I give them a quarter of my paycheque every week, and somehow I STILL end up owing them money. Someone explain to me how that's supposed to work. No, I'm not bitter at ALL. Bah.
Okay, enough whingeing. This is a blessing in disguise. A very, very cunning disguise, but nevertheless… Tomorrow I shall go to my bank and get their help to fix my problem. One day, I will have money. Today is not that day, but some day, mark my words, I will be worry-free.
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no subject
Date: 2006-05-18 11:19 pm (UTC)Suffice it to say: I couldn't prove I'd returned the modem and asked to be disconnected, cause there was no way I'd ever be able to find the receipt, so we compromised on my paying them for 2 months worth of service instead of 6. Then I gave them my updated credit card number and authorized them to bill it, which they never bothered to do. This happened 3 times before the account went to collections, and the collections people were very competent and helpful and straightened it out right away.
Then I found the receipt that proved I'd returned the modem while I was doing my taxes. Which is good, because until then I always had a nagging suspicion that I'd forgotten to cancel when I moved.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-19 01:26 am (UTC)Ayup. We're still working on paying off debt from the year and some that Rich was unemployed/underemployed, and then my school expenses on top of that. Long hard roads they are, but I refuse to give up on the light at the end of the tunnel.
Like all things, this too shall pass. {{massivesquishyhugs}}
no subject
Date: 2006-05-19 03:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-19 03:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-19 03:49 am (UTC)Leave Bell. Move to Videotron.
Date: 2006-05-19 04:30 am (UTC)(Not that it actually helps that much but if you need someone to help you destroy Bell and beat up some people... I haven't lost any weight since we last saw each other! :o)
But, seriously, if you need a helping hand or an ear to listen... I am available to help, as always.