Today I decided to pay off one of my smaller debts with a portion of my tax refund and settled on an old pay day loan. I did not want to risk dealing with an inexperienced employee in the store so I just called the corporate office to find out how to proceed. Well surprise surprise they were able to take my payment right over the phone for no extra charge and cleared my account immediately. Worked for me!

Then I got a second surprise when she mentioned another outstanding pay day loan, but from a different company. I knew about this one and figured I would deal with it next month, but I was not sure how she knew about it. Turns out the other company is their sister company, which means they should not have given me a loan because I had an outstanding one with their parent company. Their bad. The upside is I can deal directly with the parent company to clear that one as well for no extra charge and the amount due is much less than I thought it was.

I knew getting out of debt would be a slow and somewhat emotional process, but it was really nice to not be hassled regarding this account. I expected there to be rudeness, snarky comments about my being irresponsible, and some ridiculous hoops to jump through just to get them to take my payment. How nice to be able to just pay and move on.

New cookware is on the way! After plenty of research and comments on this message board I finally settled on stainless steel. The set will have all the pots and pans I need and has a good warranty in case there is a freak accident. It should be here in a week and I expect to love it.

While I was at it I decided to replace my aluminum rice cooker that long ago became scratched up and also makes my food taste a bit off. I found one with a stainless steel insert and it has already arrived. I even found a pressure cooker and crock pot combo that has a stainless steel insert and that should be here in a week as well. I could also use it to make rice, but I am one of those prepare many things using every single pot, pan, and gadget at once kind of cooks. Waiting to free up something would just get on my nerves.

I grumbled a bit about the cost of everything, but this is more of an investment that should last quite awhile. Plus I am hoping the savings on takeout will lead to it paying for itself soon. Now I just need to decide on bakeware.

Yesterday I checked my mail and was surprised to find the title to my vehicle properly signed off by the title company and a final statement confirming that I am paid in full. What a strange feeling I had while looking at it. When things got really rough I did not think I would ever pay off that loan or see the title again, but here it is. Today as I went about my usual routine I finally figured out what that feeling was.... relief. I cannot remember the last time I felt that so strongly. Now I feel ready to pick up the pace and resume meeting my financial goals, instead of the lag I have been feeling since paying off that loan.

I am continuously amazed at the advancements in technology. I filed my taxes online on the 1st and my federal refund was deposited into my checking account on the 6th. I remember when I first started filing I would not get a check until April lol. I ended up owing the state under $100, which is not terrible, and I have already sent the payment to them. After some thought I think I have finally decided to divide my refund over a few things:

New cookware
I have so much hatred for my cast iron set I do not even want to bother cooking, which so far has meant spending more money eating out. I would like to change this.

Secured credit card
This is on my 2015 goals list and I like the idea of doing it now so I can spend the whole year benefiting from it.

Debt repayment
I am going to pay off one of my smaller debts in full.

Emergency Fund
I am going to put a little in here to keep the momentum going.

Something fun
I needed a change of scenery so I took a day trip yesterday and had a blast. It was mostly walking around and enjoying free stuff so the expense was really gas and food, which was not much.


Not a bad mix of things I think.

I have only been at my new job a few months and I find I am still getting used to all of the HR and payroll related things. I nearly had a heart attack when I got my paycheck and saw no deductions for my medical, vision, or dental. I know human error happens, but I did not want to deal with a false cancellation which would likely be really annoying if I actually had to use my benefits. Well it turns out my company has so many pay periods in the year that if they deducted the premiums on all of them we would be overpaying. So they just pick a couple to not deduct from and we get to enjoy the extra money. Would it have killed them to put a little blurb on our paystubs as a reminder?! Geez!