List anything good that has happened to you lately...

[trinacriabob]

I patched up an old friendship just recently. Actually, it was with my best friend from grammar school.

We had had a falling out in 2001, and again in 2008. BOTH were about money.

For the first falling out, he had asked me to help him sort out some of the financial paperwork after his divorce. He literally handed me a file box in complete disarray. Not only that, he would ask me for small advances, and was never caught up in repayment. Total loss for me: less than $200.

For the second falling out, it was about sorting out his child support status. I told him I could only help him recalculate the right balance. He expected me to take his side that he should be absolved from his financial responsibility. A huge argument ensued.

Except for his financial mismanagement, which shouldn't impact me, we've had no other disagreements.

Last Friday night, I showed up on his doorstep with two gifts for each of his small children. He remarried in 2005 and has two little kids. They asked me to come in and have pizza with them. As long as we don't talk money, the friendship should last.

Ok, that's my good story as we enter the holiday season. ANY GOOD STORIES?

[Paolino]

It's unfortunate that I honestly can't respond to your request. I'd have to dig back over a year to do that.

[Robert Hall]

Another step in getting out of AZ in '10 fell into place last week.

[z28luvr01]

Today someone at work gave me homemade cream puffs, another person gave me walnuts cooked in wine, and I won a long sleeve T-shirt in a raffle for donating blood.

In general I'm with Paulie though. Good days have been hard to come by lately.

[FAPTurbo]

I walked into my old, old workplace and was handed a job on the spot. The manager's all knew me, and were very pleased to see my mug again. So not only am I going to have paid off next semester's tuition by Christmas Eve, but I've been seeing plenty of old faces that I've missed, and caught up with friends in the workplace.

[Drew Dowdell]

Found out that the huge raise that was promised to me back in September but never materialized will in fact show up after the first of the year... with retroactive pay back to June. Also getting a $250 Amex gift card for my 5 weeks of 70 hour weeks. I got plenty of overtime for it, but I'll take the extra $250.

[cletus8269]

i caused the country's deficit to go up another $8000 last week...

theres enough room for the impala and colorado to fit into the garage, Joy!

[ocnblu]

You win so far, Clete. Cool house, best of luck to you.

We three office folk got fruit baskets made by our manager's wife yesterday.

[Dsuupr]

1. I got a job that pays me enough for us to get a second home.

2. We got renters for our first home before we even closed on our second.

3. My new job comes with free Mochas, Lattes, Steamers, etc. because I have the "sweetest" Boss out there.

4. Our income for 2009 will be higher than we have ever seen it. 2010 looks to be even better.

5. I got accepted into Grad School

6. After 16 years of marriage, I was finally able to talk my wife into getting a decent 2nd car (our 2005 Maxx LT)

7. We moved so my daughters could go to an art based middle school and so far both are doing great. Straights A's and many new friends.

8. We won $100 in food gift cards at my company Christmas party and a fruit basket.

9. My Mother-in-Law got engaged last month.

10. We got all new furniture for our living room and dining room when we bought our new home.

11. My oldest daughter had her first boyfriend and they didn't even hug, let alone hold hands or kiss.

12. My wife got her first black evening dress at Nordstroms which was used for our free tickets to the Wine and Food Festival here in Portland (normally $90 each - thank you Buick!).

Though we have had trials along the way, 2009 has been a good year overall.

[XP715]

Umm.... I found a nickel on the floor at work yesterday!

Not too much going on right now for me that's notably good OR bad, which is fine with me. Normal and comfortable is good. Just moving along, doing my thing, trying to maintain speed and course. Got a couple things potentially in the works, but don't want to say anything unless I know it's a sure thing.

Cletus: congrats on the house. The pitch of the roof is super steep; expecting some snow?

[usonia]

I guess the best thing that has happened to me lately is that nothing bad has happened. I'm working. I'm healthy. I have a place to call home. I'm not scavenging for food. I'm not dodging bombs and bullets. My life isn't perfection by any means, but all things considered, I don't have anything to complain about.

[cletus8269]

thanks blu, it will need some work on the inside but all and all its turn key and is the same age as me. The property is what i was mainly after, 8 acres of what was family land some 35 years ago is now back in our hands after my great grandfather's estate sale.

the guy that had the house built was... er, unique to say the least XP. if it saved money he was on it, function over form seemed to be another logic he had. i assume that the roof is so steep so the shingles will last longer by not giving anything half a second to come into contact with them hehehe. here in SC we dont usually see the snow anymore, just ice...

one cool thing about it is that he laid the house's foundation out using a sun chart. thats why the side of it faces the hwy. said it was the first time he used one and after they had it inspected it was found to be of by a degree or degree and a half.

the garage is what i like though, 15' x 46' ooorah!

[balthazar]

>>"the garage is what i like though, 15' x 46' ooorah!"<<

We'll need some inspection-quality shots of this (assumedly) basement garage. For your garage CO, you know.

BTW- according to your county's charter, anything over 6 acres requires a mandated mini-junkyard of iron older than 1970 and totaling no less than 5 vehicles. You are well advised to begin accumulation immediately.

-- -- -- -- --

I'm with XP & usonia: no complaints, holding steady, edging forward business-wise... tho some future monies are getting lined up... for the future. Unspecified, but spoken of in glowing analogies. I cannot even think about 2 thin dimes going toward the Buick.... but is it possibly possible ???

Edited December 23, 2009 by balthazar

[Camino LS6]

WMJ made me laugh my ass off tonight.

Very cool purchase, Cletus!

I'm with Balthazar - we need garage pics.

[knightfan26917]

ANY GsomethiOOD STORIES?

Not a "story", per se, but something good that has happened lately:

Spent Christmas Day with the family ... particularly my 1+ year-old nephew ... who is absolutely a light in the world already.

Cort | 36swm.IL | "Mr Monte Carlo"."Mr Road Trip" | pig valve.pacemaker

WRMNshowcase.legos.HO.models.MCs.RTs.CHD = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort

"These are the moments that I'm gonna remember most" ... Miley Cyrus ... 'The Climb'

[regfootball]

my mom gave us an unused starbucks card yesterday, today i got a double shot with dark roast and my wife got a chi. there is anough left for two drinks tomorrow on our trek back.

the taurus x did fine busting huge snow drifts the last few days and got us around fairly safe, and has done so without fuss.

last friday before last some guy called and asked for my resume, he got my name from an excoworker and even though he said there was not hiring he just wanted to see it, so after a year of 'there's nothing' at least to have someone show a blip of interest was in intself interesting.

wifes family was almost all together this xmas. rare, and nice considering mom/grandma passed away this spring.

might be able to get hammered on NYE.

i assume there's been some good things, it will just take some digging to ressurect all of them. right now they are outnumbered but 2010 it can only go up.

and 2010 is an election year. i am presuming it will end with the great opportunity to throw out all the bums on their ass, despite whether they get rich off the corporates and lobbies first. people need to take the country back.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Spent Christmas in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands with my mother, brothers, wives and all the kids ... Was really fun !!! Still feels weird driving on the wrong side (left-hand drive) of the road there, on a U.S. Territory no less ...

[Z-06]

Spent Christmas in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands with my mother, brothers, wives and all the kids ... Was really fun !!! Still feels weird driving on the wrong side (left-hand drive) of the road there, on a U.S. Territory no less ...

???

I thought there was only one Mrs. PCS whom you flaunt so much. Did you badge engineer her?

[Oracle of Delphi]

???

I thought there was only one Mrs. PCS whom you flaunt so much. Did you badge engineer her?

[trinacriabob]

Still feels weird driving on the wrong side (left-hand drive) of the road

Exactly. My rule: don't feel comfortable renting a car and driving around, won't go there.

In only 2 days in London...

Day 1: tried to cross the street in front of Victoria Station, stepped into the roadway after looking the "wrong" way, almost got hit...

Day 2: had to get into the airport shuttle, opened the door, ended up staring at the steering wheel...

I found the people there incredibly polite, but it was soooo nice to be on a plane heading back to the U.S. Damn, Newark (arrival airport) looked good!

Today:

Bought my first free lunch, of about 4 that the gift certificate my boss gave me will cover.

[trinacriabob]

i caused the country's deficit to go up another $8000 last week...

Good for you! The Carolinas are beautiful.

[mustang84]

The company announced raises last week and will be giving out bonuses in January, so that was some good news. Between higher rent, higher utilities, student loans, and repaying my car loan my finances have been much more stretched this year than they were last year.

The health of my three remaining grandparents has all improved. My grandpa on my dad's side underwent surgery earlier this year and lately seems really energetic again. His wife broke her hip a few months back and had to go into a nursing home until it healed, and now she is back home and back to normal. And my mom's mom is 87 and was very ill earlier this year and we feared the worst, but the past few months her energy has come back and she is in good health again. For being 87, she still gets up every morning at 5:30, cleans the house and gardens, and makes the boys lunch every day when they come in from farming.

I'm heading to Keystone, Colorado to ski over New Years. It'll be my first time on the slopes.

[ShadowDog]

The first full year working with my brother only a mile from my home has provided the greatest benefit I could hope for, more time with my wife and our two boys. I even drive/bike/walk home for lunch.

Living close to my mother allows my eldest son (2 years old) to enjoy a couple hours outside with his grandmother almost every day while my wife can be free to care for our 6-month old. All the loving hands a family needs are all walking/driving distance.

Having a need for a life outside the home, my wife accepted an offer by her former employer to come in two days a week to help them out. I stay at home those two days to be with my sons. This will likely change in April, when I may be needed more at my job; however, we'll see what happens.

[intrigued]

I've been very blessed this year.

1. Despite still not having completed my under grad after dropping to part time status after my sophmore year of college I found a good job thanks to networking, an otherwise excellent resume with recommendations and a lot of luck after being laid off twards the end of 2008.

2. My relationship with my girlfriend continues to be fantastic and she moved in with me in march. The transition to co-habitation has been scarily smooth and we are "engaged to be engaged." I should have the money to buy a ring twards the end of 2010.

3. My family is in good health inlcuding my Dad who has had MS for the past 20 years. He worked really hard this year to reverse the decline of his health that had left him wheel chair bound in 2008. Now he gets around fairly well on his own with a walker.

4. I have a third niece or nephew on the way!

Life can always throw curve balls at you but 2010 looks to be a very good year.

I should

1. have all my high intrest debt paid off by April.

2. I should be engaged by the end of the year.

3. I will be taking the LSATs and applying to Law school in December.

[frogger]

I've been learning to snowboard the last week or so, I've been 4 times so far and knock on wood no bad injuries yet, just a lightly bruised knee and I'm getting the hang of it while having lots of fun. It'll be nice to have something new to look forward to for the winter season.

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

....

....

....

....

(yep, same 'ole &#036;h&#33;ty luck)

Oh wait, I did graduate with my SECOND degree!

But have yet to find a job, and now my school loans are due.

What can I say... Oh wait, MetallicA said it best: "Birth is pain, life is pain, death is pain... It's all the same."

The GF says that if I'm more optimistic (bless her heart, she's a hopeless 'fuzzy, feeling, love-y' person -- she just hasn't been kicked in the face by life enough yet) better times will come my way. I tell her that life and being cursed with perpetual bad luck has made me the pessimist I am and that being pessimistic is my way of surviving the world we live in. I am so drastically different from what I was not even 10 years ago. Then we get into the 'chicken or the egg' debate.

Make no mistake, I have a great life for the most part and I wouldn't change a damn thing. But it's been hard fought and that adversity is what keeps me going.

Anyway.. At least I did graduate... AGAIN, LOL.

Edited December 29, 2009 by FUTURE_OF_GM

[Oracle of Delphi]

....

....

....

....

(yep, same 'ole &#036;h&#33;ty luck)

Oh wait, I did graduate with my SECOND degree!

But have yet to find a job, and now my school loans are due.

What can I say... Oh wait, MetallicA said it best: "Birth is pain, life is pain, death is pain... It's all the same."

The GF says that if I'm more optimistic (bless her heart, she's a hopeless 'fuzzy, feeling, love-y' person -- she just hasn't been kicked in the face by life enough yet) better times will come my way. I tell her that life and being cursed with perpetual bad luck has made me the pessimist I am and that being pessimistic is my way of surviving the world we live in. I am so drastically different from what I was not even 10 years ago. Then we get into the 'chicken or the egg' debate.

Make no mistake, I have a great life for the most part and I wouldn't change a damn thing. But it's been hard fought and that adversity is what keeps me going.

Anyway.. At least I did graduate... AGAIN, LOL.

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger! I know this as fact in my life ...

[trinacriabob]

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger!

+1 !