Denied

I applied for a Chase Mastercard thru my Continental Frequent Flyer program. I was denied. On the outside looking in, my credit is pretty trashed. More like in the crapper after someone had eaten a batch of beans and needed to "let off steam". This is not completely my fault. The current state of foreclosure on my old house - thanks to the ever capable Washington Mutual, now JP Morgan Chase Banking facility- is to blame. (See one of my previous posts about the Short Sale fiasco my family and I went through and you will understand.

Still, the banks keep getting bailed out and will more than likely write off my foreclosure, thus enabling them to receive the full amount of the "loss". I, on the other hand, have damaged credit and high debts. Can you say "one-sided"? Lop-sided? Tremendously unfair? All those would apply.

So, why did I even bother to apply? Desperation. My dog needed surgery before a huge tumor in his body would burst and potentially be life-threatening. I didn't have the cash needed. Plus, I wanted to see if there was a slight chance I would be approved. Wrong. On the other hand, I applied for something called Care Credit and was approved. My dog had the surgery, had the tumor removed and is now doing much better. Plus, I think this approval will reflect positively on my credit report. It's a start.

A Little A to Z Spell-checkup

My husband calls me the human spell check. I can spot a misspelled word a mile away. I can't help it. I read the same thing hundreds of other people do and there it is, glaring at me. An incorrectly spelled word. Once, we went to the Star Trek Experience exhibit at the Las Vegas Hilton, and we toured "the bridge" that was used on the show for the Enterprise. I looked at the pretend buttons and what they were used for and I saw it! A misspelled word. Instead of "torpedo" the button read "torpeod". I giggled and called my husband over and he couldn't believe that his beloved show couldn't spell. The tour guide said I was the first person to ever notice that.

Since this ability comes so naturally to me I decided to put it to some use and started my own online Proofreading Services company. I hired a fantastic web designer (since I know zip about that) and in early November, http://www.atozproofreading.com/ was launched. Stop by and check it out and hire me to proof your work.

Where Has All the Time Gone?

My but it's been a while. What can I say? I've been busy? Since my last post, Emily and Lorelei, I mean, me and mom have made up and are now as we once were. Me and my family have been living in Las Vegas these past 5 months and love it. My parents came to visit in October and spent everyday with Christopher. We were there too but not as much. They also looked at houses for sale. While it looks as if they will be moving out here this year, my dad still needs the occasional nudge to move along. My mother, on the other hand, would be living here already if she had her own way.

Halloween was different than we are used to. Not as many kids trick-or-treating in our development and not as many houses decorated. Seems when us East Coasters decorate, we go BIG. However, you couldn't beat the weather. While it rained back home, it was calm and warmer here.

Thanksgiving was quiet with only the two of us eating turkey and all the fixings and my son having his Mac n cheese. Again, the weather was warmer and not wet.

Christmas was nice. For the first time ever, we did not put up a tree, but we did put out other decorations both inside and out. The reason we didn't put up the tree was because we flew back to NJ to spend Christmas with my parents and to see our friends. It was great to be back, although it was freezing with snow on the ground. Five months in a milder climate had spoiled us.

New Year's Eve saw us back in Vegas, watching the Strip fireworks from high atop a hill in the mountains. It was nice and quiet but strange to not have a countdown with Dick Clark.

Happy New Year!