Getting Closer

Dear Friends and Family,

Our dream of starting a small business is getting closer.

We have a name. We have agreement on the basics of our partnership agreement - how we split the money, what happens if a partner wants out, and what happens if a partner dies. We're looking for a lawyer and we're looking at software to manage our finances.

My goal for September is to have a legal entity created, have a bank account opened and be able to process transactions. The first transactions will be dummy transactions - just to make sure we can do the simple things right (like bill a client and pay a vendor) then we'll add on more complicated things like pay an employee. And, then the fun begins.

I'm not sure if this will be a viable business which is why it's currently a weeknight/weekend venture. If it grows into something big, then I'll take the leap into it being a full time job. We'll see.


Cheers!
mouse

Consumer Sentiment?

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, it's not the end of the month yet, but I had a sneak peak at the retirement portfolio and it's not a pretty picture. And, the short term cash picture is better than it was a month ago, but still not feeling particularly fine there either.

Add to all of that lay-offs at the office and contemplating starting a small business and it's no wonder I've got the jitters.

Last September was surprise good news. Then, we had seven months of good news which left me feeling pretty buoyant. Then, May looked like a bump in the road. Then, June looked like a pot hole. Then, July looked like we would be on the cobblestones for a stretch. But, August, well, August looks like a sink hole.

August looks like we'll be working several more years than we wanted to. The light at the end of the tunnel? Don't have to worry about it being the train because it just went out.

Time to adopt a hunker down and retrench strategy because it's going to be awhile to wait this one out.

On a positive note, several friends seem to be moving so the job market seems to be loosening up. But, I'm not sure I want to make a bunch of changes. P likes her school. I am working on my business idea.

Time to hunker down and retrench.


Cheers!
mouse

08.29.11: Birthday Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

It's my birthday today. Happy Birthday, mouse!

The birthday weekend was a mish mosh of events. We went to a food truck social on Saturday - bust - incredibly long lines for some trucks and no food left for other trucks.

Sunday, we went to bruncher - as in breakfast, lunch and dinner all rolled into a single meal. Then, we went for a walk in the zoo. P actually enjoyed the zoo - looking at the flamingos and the ducks and the penguins and even the giraffes and the ostrich. She's still not a big fan of the lion, but it's a definite improvement over the last couple of visits. Perhaps it's time for a return trip out to San Diego or at least back to the local zoo.


Cheers!
mouse

Diagnosis: Mild Concussion, Prognosis: Continued Improvement

Dear Friends and Family,

I went to the doctor yesterday to have my head looked at since it was still bothering me from Monday. Given my condition on Wednesday, he was tempted to send me in for testing. But, given my improvement on Thursday, he was also inclined to send me home and have me watch for additional changes.

Well, I continue to feel better. Headache is mostly gone. Tenderness is mostly gone. Things still not feeling 100% up there, but I feel functional which is better than I've felt all week. So, I'm hoping I'm on the mend.

And, because I was there, I made an appointment for a follow-up general appointment. I'll be going in next Friday to get a check-up. Other than (or is it then? see, I'm still not 100%) my head, I feel like I'm in okay health. I know I need to lose some weight, but nothing's bothering me. Here's to hoping it's just a check-up.


Cheers!
mouse

Toddler Discipline

Dear Friends and Family,

I know sometimes Mr. mouse and I take helicoptering parenting to new levels. This is one of the reasons why we're probably only going to have one child. I can't see us upping the ante and doing this twice.

I try not to be too proud of P, knowing that there will be times, when I least expect it, that she'll let me down. I don't complain too loudly if she gets bitten in school, knowing that at some point she, too, may bite a classmate.

But, Monday, I got clocked on the head by one of her classmates. Bad enough that I'm going to see a doctor today. Headaches, sleepiness, nausea, dizziness - seems like a doctor's visit was in order.

I told my colleagues at work that P would at most do something like twice. Twice? Well, the first time we would say something like we don't throw things at people. Then, we'd monitor. If P were to hypothetically throw a second object at a person, it would be a non-stop 24/7 barrage of why we don't throw things at people. As in...

"I see my flag. American flag. My country flag." "In America, we raise our children to be polite. It's not polite to throw our toys." "Last light." "That's right, we're almost home. When we get home, we'll play with our toys. We'll play nicely. It's not nice to throw our toys." "P like brown ice cream." "Ice cream is for good little girls. Good little girls don't throw their toys."

And on and on until we thought the message had sunk in. She's a smart one, but more importantly we're determined ones.

I'm not sure if some kids are feistier than others. I'm not sure if it's a gender thing. I'm not sure if it's a parenting thing or if P gets special treatment in school. I don't know. I just know we wouldn't have much tolerance for it in the mouse house.

We did have a throwing incident at home once when she was much younger. She was learning to throw a ball and we were giving her smiles and words of encouragement and having a fun evening. Well, she picked up a ball-shaped toy and threw that next and we had to explain that not all round toys were balls. It hasn't happened again since so we didn't have to test our discipline theory.

Here's to hoping that we won't have to.


Cheers!
mouse

Stock Purchasing

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm making my first re-entry into the stock market. We spent a bunch of months paying down the house, building up the emergency fund, etc. And, then, we spent a bunch of months sitting on cash because the market seemed like such a crazy place.

Why the change? I had a conversation with a friend yesterday. And, I'm not sure I agree 100% with everything he does. But, sometimes he says things that make sense. And, yesterday, it did. The concept is to invest in strong companies which bring a "buy high" implication which is counter-intuitive, until you think about it in a people context, where if you were investing in people, you invest in good performers, not in mediocrity.

So, I took a very "bold" move and decided to invest less than what some people spend on a new outfit. At the same time, I'll be entering in a stop sell later today which should theoretically further limit my losses.

We'll see. It won't make us wealthy, but it's something to continue looking at.


Cheers!
mouse

08.23.11: Weekly Weigh In

Dear Friends and Family,

weigh in: 140.4

A loss is a loss is a loss and one I'm not complaining given that I had cake before heading to the game, kettle corn at the game and wine with the neighbors after the game. Sunday, I got to indulge in my love of thin crust pizza. Given all that a couple of days before weigh-in, I'll take a 0.2 pound loss.

I have to admit, I've fallen in love with a new service they offer at work. It's a concierge service, but without any service fees. There is a minimum purchase requirement of $20 for which they do your "shopping" for you. Yesterday, I got my Diet Cokes, a couple of Lean Cuisines, paper towels, dried blueberries, diapers and P's crackers all boxed up and dropped off at my desk. I don't use it for fresh foods (remember, I need to cross oceans to get home from work), but it does reduce the temptations, having someone buy exactly what you need. Plus, it saves time and money. See why I've fallen in love?


Cheers!
mouse

08.22.11: Quiet Weekend at Home

Dear Friends and Family,

Actually, it was a quiet weekend at home with our old friends from the Winter Cabin. We went to visit for a baseball game and because FB seems to be my scheduling nemesis, we had a quiet weekend with our old neighbors which isn't a bad thing.

The game wasn't even close. But, it was nice to spend the evening out watching a game, watching the sunset and enjoying the times. And, while it took longer than you would have thought humanly possible, Mr. mouse crossed another item (vaguely) off of our "yeah, right" list. We have a third cell phone. Three people still call us on it. I have already contacted one of the three people. It's a personal mission to contact the other two in the next year. Because, yes, my clutter hoarder husband also hoards phone numbers in the off chance that someone somewhere will try to reach him and be stymied by a disconnected phone number. Somehow, these long lost people will not think to check google and find him on facebook or linkedin. Yes, this is the world I live in.

Well, I had harbored a secret hope that we would FINALLY lose this number. AT&T had discontinued the phone and the rate plan. And, if we did nothing by 8/31 we would be minus an extra number and plus $60 a month that we pay for this lunacy. $720 a year for the off chance someone needs to find us. Yes, this is the world I live in. Instead of letting the madness end, Mr. mouse spent an hour and half on Sunday at the AT&T store converting his sad appendage into a prepaid plan with a new phone. I hate myself and am torn as to whether or not I should cross this off of the list or leave it on there and tackle it next year. As in, what do you want for your birthday? I want you to cancel that effing third cell phone number.

Seems a little melodramatic. I don't know. For now, it's still on my list... We'll see if I continue copying it over each time or if at some point I cave and let it go. If only Mr. mouse wasn't sure a hoarder.

On a completely non-related thread, I had a moment of inspiration while on the plane. Dinner needs to be addressed. I pick up P by 6PM. We hit the road and get home somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 to 7:30PM. Before you know it, it is 8PM and I am starving (since I eat lunch at 11AM). Dinner is on the table somewhere around 8:30 on a good night. And, then, by 9, we're trying to get P to sleep. Yes, I know the real problem is the fact that it takes an ungodly amount of time to get home - and we have three options there - stop working, move work closer to home, or move home closer to work, but I'm ready to cross any of those bridges quite yet. So, back to dinner.

In a perfect world, Mr. mouse would also leave work at 6 and get home and cook and we'd have a hot meal when P and I get home. Folks, we don't live in a perfect world. So, here's my draft at something that may work.

This would involve much prep in advance, but it would free up weeknights for spending time with P while keeping food on the table.

4 meals prepped in advance, 1 night out (in no particular order):

Sandwich and Soup: one sandwich on good quality bread with two extra ingredients thrown in so that it's not just meat on bread and a bowl of soup

Salad and Soup: one salad with two extra ingredients thrown on top so it's not a bed of mixed greens with meat and a bowl of soup

Fried Rice: exactly what it sounds like

Rice with Meat and Vegetables: rice with stir-fry

Dinner Out: because realistically, we need a night out each week

What I would need to prep in advance:

1. plan the menu
2. shop for ingredients: stop by the bakery for good quality bread, mixed greens, whatever is on the plan for the week
3. prepare the stuff: make ahead meat, two sandwich adds, two salad adds, soup
4. pre-portion it out: pre-portioned meat for the stir-fry, pre-cut vegetables for the stir-fry, 6 oz sandwich meat, 6 oz salad meat, 2 oz fried rice meat, rice for fried rice, two sandwich adds, two salad adds, two fried rice adds, four servings soup in two containers

What's left to do on the weeknight:

Soup and sandwich night: heat the soup, toast the bread, assemble the sandwich

Soup and salad night: heat the soup, wash and dress the greens, assemble the salad

Fried rice night: heat the pan, toss it all in with an egg, stir and serve

Rice with meat and vegetables night: heat the pan, toss it all minus the rice, stir and serve with rice

Huh, I need to continue to revisit this. I'm exhausted just thinking about this.


Cheers!
mouse

Yeah, Right

Dear Friends and Family,

I made it through another week at work. And, while it wasn't a fun week by any measure, I think I made a difference this week. We had to let someone go in our department and two people were taking it really hard. I think I made a difference for them in making the week more bearable.

On a personal note, we crossed an item off of our "yeah, right" list. You're thinking, huh? I sort my to do list into three buckets:

• NOW!
• whenever
• yeah, right

Mr. mouse had a camera that stopped working. It sat in a bin for months on end. He finally sent it in to be repaired. They couldn't repair it and sent it to level 2 repair. They couldn't repair it. He researched the crazy list of options of cameras available (new and used) to come up with a list of price, feature, benefit, etc. And, he bought a new camera which just arrived. That's why it's on our "yeah, right" list.

Other stuff on that list?

• our dead desktop
• digitize wedding video
• the dead watch
• the marginal air conditioning
• the third cell line that we don't need
• our decrepit gym membership
• our sad money market account which earns almost no interest
• the worn out deck table

Yes, it's a sad list of stuff that usually gets copied from week to week to week, untouched, with little faith it will ever get touched. When it does, it's an extra dose of feeling good.


Cheers!
mouse

Yikes!

Dear Friends and Family,

There's a mouse in the house. I saw it this morning. And, so did Mr. mouse. I can't think of anything else at the moment.


Cheers!
mouse

Mormonism Meets Buddhism Meets mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

First and foremost, I'm not even considering converting to Mormonism - raised a Catholic by a mom who once considered entering a convent, I've found my comfort level with religion in being a Buddhist of sorts.

Being a Buddhist, I am 110% comfortable with the idea that there are useful concepts and constructs to be found everywhere and if you find something that works for you, it's fair game to pick it up and adapt it to your use.

One of the things I do like about Mormonism is the approach to money. Replace "tithe" with "donate to charity" and "replace 10% of your income" with "what you think makes sense to you" and we have a workable solution of sorts.

Another tenet is to avoid debt - to live within your means and to recognize the difference between wants and needs. Amen.

Followed by use a budget. This one I've gotten a little slack on. We used to have a very strict budget. Now, we know how much we need to save for retirement and as long as the monthly budget balances, I don't get too hung up on the details. Last month and the month before were tight, but this month is shaping up better.

Let's see... Build a reserve. Yes! This is a tough one and one we took a couple of years to do. I'm still not sure if it's the "right" amount, but it's enough so that I can sleep soundly at night. If one of us loses our job or decides to try something new or both, then we can last indefinitely on the other income although retirement will slip out several years if that were the case. If both of us lose our jobs (I'll assume we don't both decide to try something new spontaneously and simultaneously as that seems like poor planning) then we have one or more years of reserve depending upon how much we cut back on our expenses. Again, not sure if it's the right amount, but it's enough so that I can sleep soundly at night.

And, last but not least, get the word out. Family? Not very successful on this front as I'm concerned any conversation on the above makes several family members begin to believe I am an angel investor and they are a worthy start-up. Friends? Yes, especially ones with a natural interest in managing their finances.

See? Totally fine adapting and using good stuff from everyone.


Cheers!
mouse

08.16.11: Weekly Weigh In

Dear Friends and Family,

weigh in: 140.6

Well, at least the number is going in the right direction - down (in case you were wondering). Actually, this is tied to my happiness map. I have a lot less interest in eating out - it's a good way to save money and to help with the weight loss.

There's still a place for eating out in our routine. It's just not as often and when we do eat out, it's for something more worthwhile. Realistically, we'll eat out at least once each week on a weeknight - when the traffic is bad or we're picking up mail or something comes up. Then, I think twice on the weekend is a reasonable goal - once on Saturday, once on Sunday. That might seem like a lot, but it's down from our current trends.

We typically ate out 1-2 times during the weeknights and maybe 3-4 times on the weekends. Toss in 5 lunches at work and it adds up. I've been taking Lean Cuisines in for lunch so lunches at work are down to a more manageable 1-2 per week as well.

before: 11X per week
after: 5X per week, still a lot, but a lot better

Eating out is mindless. You order, play with P, and someone brings you your food. It's an easy routine to fall into. Eating in takes work. But, we've come to realize P rarely eats what we eat for dinner, so the bar gets set lower. She can have rice and beans and we can have leftovers. It can be equally mindless if you want it to be.


Cheers!
mouse

08.15.11: Smorgasbord Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

Highlights and lowlights. The weekend had them all.

Mr. mouse's best friend flew out to see a concert with Mr. mouse sparing me the need to go to the concert and sparing us the expense of an extra ticket and baby sitting money. P and I got to spend the evening at home reading books in bed.

On the flip side, we discovered a new leak in the house. This one, we think is caused by a leaky pipe. We closed off the main and the leak went away. We have a plumber coming in today to diagnose. In the meanwhile, we're bringing to bear a lot of lessons we learned travelling overseas on how to conserve water.

P's weekend was a huge success. She got to go through airport security twice. And, she got to play at the indoor park avoiding the crowds on Saturday and the rain on Sunday. She got to go to the supermarket. She had chocolate for dessert on Saturday night. She avoided her haircut (until Tuesday) and had pasta for dinner, not once, but twice. If she could have gotten on the plane with her uncle, she would have gotten everything she wanted this past weekend.

Added bonus for me, because we've spent a good piece of the month entertaining instead of travelling, the credit card bill came in lower than typical increasing my happiness. We'll continue the eat out watch and see if we can continue on this happy trend.


Cheers!
mouse

Happiness Map II

Dear Friends and Family,



(Note: click on map to see a legible version)

It's draft 1.0 so there are probably many things missing. Both squares and ovals and arrows. But, here's my happiness map. How to read it? Square are "stocks" things that have levels. Ovals are "flows" things that increase or decrease stocks. Red arrows show decreasing stocks, blue arrows shop increasing stocks. Got it?

Next disclaimer. Not in any particular order. This is just a way to get it to fit on a single diagram with no crisscrossing lines.

Now, please don't think I'm vain for the "when things look good" stock. I don't need things to look great. But, honestly, there's something to when my house is in order and I am at my goal weight that just makes me happy.

It's funny. Even a day in, I started making decisions based on my map. Will this activity make me happier? Yes? Okay, then I should do it. No? Then, I shouldn't. It might be revealing to draw your own.


Cheers!
mouse

Happiness Map

Dear Friends and Family,

I sketched out my first draft of my happiness map yesterday and no surprise the two constraining factors are time and money. I'll post it on-line later when I have more time to write about it.

For now, I had two ah-ha's, eating right is an unconstrained activity - there's no downside to it and there's not limit to good for you food. Truth be told there are constraints - eating right does technically take time and money, but in smaller increments than what my high level map is capturing so for now I'll consider it good.

And, the second ah-ha is eating out. There's two types of eating out. There's the saves time eating out and the being relaxed eating out. They both cost money and they both take away from my goal of being in shape. So, while I can semi-justify the being relaxed eating out, I'm going to take a sharp look at the saves time eating out. It may be more "expensive" than I realize.


Cheers!
mouse

Inertia

Dear Friends and Family,

Today is "the" day. According to rumors, we'll be "right-sizing" our department and today is when we'll find out who is "impacted." Well, we'll see. Nothing I can do can control this at this point, so I don't want to fret a lot over it.

And, today is another day. Yesterday, my boss, or rather my boss' boss' boss challenged everyone in the meeting to draw a map of what makes them happy. I will try drawing that map. It may prove enlightening.


Cheers!
mouse

08.09.11: Weekly Weigh In

Dear Friends and Family,

weigh in: 143.8

The weigh-in from hell. Up 3 pounds. Seriously?

Well, I'm going to try a couple of things this week - 3 servings of fruit, 2 servings of milk, and most importantly, 1 multi-vitamin.

Hopefully I have better news next week.


Cheers!
mouse

08.08.11: Where Did the Weekend Go?

Dear Friends and Family,

It's Monday and I'm in a bit of a daze trying to put together the past 48 hours.

Let's see. Saturday, we went to the library and then to the salon to get our eyebrows done and then to the park to let P ride the swing and then to the car to go to the grocery store. Oh, it's all coming back to me now. Then, P fell asleep in the car and I did as well. Mr. mouse went the rounds while we slept in the back seat.

Saturday evening, we had a boat load of people over for dinner. The weather turned out perfect. We had appetizers in the house and then headed to the deck for dinner. A jaunt over to the local ice cream shop rounded out the evening.

P had a lot of fun playing with everyone. She isn't as territorial around adults. It's only other kids that get her on edge.

Sunday. Sunday. Um. Sunday. How does my memory fail me on these trivial instances?

We went out for brunch which turned into lunch. We were going to go for Hawaiian, but instead went for fusion Korean of the kimchi taco variety. Then, we split for the afternoon. P and Mr. mouse went for a "walk" to get her to nap while I took the afternoon to work on the house - got some laundry folded, some papers organized and the gate down. Yes, we're down to one gate and one plexiglass barrier. I'm tempted to put the gate up (the one we just took down) at the top of the stairs once P's crib rail comes down. That way she won't be able to go downstairs without us. But she shows no interest in having the railing removed, so for now, I'll store the gate in the basement.

We spent the evening playing with P - she rode her elephant (it's a good thing I didn't give that away) and putting zookeeper to bed using the kitchen towels and looking at pictures of herself on TV. P didn't want to eat, but when we finally convinced her to sit down at her table, she wolfed down her goldfish and her pasta. She looked like she couldn't get the food in fast enough. I felt guilty, like we had starved her without realizing it when in reality we spent the entire evening trying to get her to sit down for dinner.

And, now, it's Monday and time to get ready for work.


Cheers!
mouse

Organization Hold

Dear Friends and Family,

I've gotten slack about getting the house in order.

For awhile I was making really good progress. Then, I started sleeping. And, now, it doesn't look so good. I'll have to reboot my efforts.

Tonight doesn't seem like a particularly auspicious night to begin organizing. And, our weekend is chock-a-block with stuff to do. So, I may begin Sunday night. Hopefully by the end of next week I'm back where I started and can continue to make progress on taming the CHAOS that is our home.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse? Here!

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm a little off schedule because I'm a little off schedule.

Tuesday, I took a quick day trip and I wanted to have my computer with me with a fresh battery so I didn't turn it on in the morning.

Wednesday, I woke up late so I was in a scurry to get to work.

And, now, I'm back. I feel like a kid at roll call in school.

In the interim, I read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo which I enjoyed. I've decided not to read The Girl Who Played with Fire for the moment because the plot line is a little nerve wracking and I would like my free time right now and the book ended at a good stopping point for me.


Cheers!
mouse

08.01.11: Things We Take for Granted

Dear Friends and Family,

Our neighbors are in town. Yay! May the food begin.

Saturday, we got the house cleaned. Then, we played at home, out of the heat, until the neighbors came over. The daughter and I stayed at home while Mr. mouse and the dad went to the airport for pick up duty.

P did the cutest thing when she got up from her nap. Instead of crying or calling out for Mr. mouse or me, she called out, "Mommy, Daddy, I'm awake!"

Dinner? Barbecue followed by ice cream.

Sunday, we went to the farmer's market. Then, had brunch followed by deck time. It was brutally hot so we huddled under the umbrella. P got a couple of dips in the pool and got to enjoy a popsicle stick for a snack. P called, "Daddy, P have pink shoes on in bed!" when she woke up from her nap.

Dinner? Tacos followed by frozen yogurt.

The highlight of the weekend? When the generator powering our house was finally removed. Yes, starting Friday night it was on-again, off-again power. There's nothing more irritating. Well, I guess off-again, off-again power would be more irritating. But, still, it was nice to have the generator gone.

And, P discovered directions on Sunday, as in, No Mommy, restaurant all over there, and, No Mommy, our home all over there - in response to when I turned the "wrong" way when pushing the stroller.


Cheers!
mouse