Oct.13-19 - More Returns and Changes

Fiscal Fright Friday

Another busy workweek kept me from all but the most cursory of blogging activities, I'm finally settling into my Friday evening and weekend in general. First order of post-dinner business is trying to clear away various chores so as to better clear the weekend. Sunday's still going to be taken up with some Work work (things that Must Needs Be Done for Monday), but I'll leave Sunday to Sunday. Friday evening was when I ran into a potential trap.

I'm continuing to press ahead with paying every bill almost immediately as it arrives (well, within the week) even though it leaves what I think of as a very thin amount of cash in the account. Granted, it's better than I can easily recall not so very far in the past, where it could swing down double and even singe digits, the wall between this dimension and one of cranky creditors wearing uncomfortably thin, but with all the things that casually go on around here - including the number of prescriptions I have to pick up over the course of a month - a couple hundred uncommitted bucks seems extremely thin. Others, I know, have money in savings accounts which they can shift into checking as needed -- but as some old song goes, "I've never been one of those." The only real saving that goes on around here is in retirement programs. Ha! As if I'll live to see any of that...

Keeping a good thought - that that'll be more than enough of a short-term slush fund for incidental, daily expenses until next Friday's pay - I pressed on to pay the bills. One of these was one of my wife's credit cards (yeah, I see a problem in that phrase, too...) which I looked over through my miser's spectacles. (In my defense, I'm at least wearing pants.)

"Uh... were you sending floral arrangements from some business in the UK?"

I'll leave it to you to guess the gist of the response.

So, there were well over $200 in direct purchases and international currency conversion fees from greebacks to pounds sterling we knew nothing about. I had her call the credit company so those are now officially disputed. Paperwork (an affidavit) is on the way for her to sign to formally dispute it, and a new card and number is being issued.

Fun, fun, fun.

Well, I'll see how quickly and decisively they move on that in the week to come.

Saturday appears to be on track for the second big Heroclix match at Crypt Leak and Abbygal's, with kindly rant master Erig G. (always happy to tell us what History has proven) in the house, too.

Making sure I have all the prospective teams collected and grouped in ziploc bags is part of this evening's fun, which I mean in utter honesty. As some other clix players can attest, forming the teams can be fun in and of itself. We likely see ourselves as Grandmasters in training, though I suppose we simply have the souls of bookkeeper's gone unprofitably awry.

The 48" x 36" sheet of acrylic is standing where I left it earlier in the week, though I still have the protective sheeting on each side to peel off. That'll give us a good, safe surface to play on, holding the map flat and safe from spills, and the ID rings we'll have on all the clix bases should grip nicely to the surface, too.

Music cranked up, (coming through the headset) I have a shuffle of favorite songs playing. David Bowie's talling me about a message from the Action Man - reminding me indirectly that I want to pick up a copy of Hunky Dory (yes, I know that cut's not on it) sometime. I only have Changes and Oh! You Pretty Things ("...all the nightmares came today, and it looks as if they're here to stay." and "Let me make it plain, gotta make way for the homo superior") on a greatest hits disc, and the more I've looked into it the more I want most of the rest of the disc. Something for me to toss into the Amazon basket when I make my next order once a few fiscal dust clouds settle.

Time to clear a little more time for later.

I'll try to catch up at least a little a little later in the weekend. For now, a sincere wish for as pleasant a weekend as our lucky charms can bring us.