My stats are steady!
Even though I’ve taken a break from WordPress, and pretty much from all social media, my views are every bit as good as they were when I was posting on a regular basis. Good to know, I suppose – at least I haven’t been forgotten already.
The last couple of months have been hectic. One family member sold a house and bought a new one, another family member got divorced, and yet another eloped. Busy, busy, busy!
In addition, hubby and I completed the refinancing of our own home, which lowered the monthly payments and thus allowed me to pay off the balance of a small home improvement loan – in total, I’m saving $218 a month. Which sounds great, except that we then got the school tax bill, and the taxes increased by $300 a year – meaning the monthly mortgage payment will go back up by about $25 a month. I can hardly wait for the newly-assessed County bills to come out …
On top of that, my cell phone carrier informed me that they’re upgrading their network and my old [really old] phone would no longer work, not even for voice calls and text, so I was forced to obtain a 5G smartphone. And of course, if I lease that phone, there will be an additional monthly payment. Haven’t decided yet whether to just buy the phone outright or continue to lease it. I really hate those monthly payments. But does it make sense to purchase a phone that will likely be obsolete in a few years? Feel free to weigh in on that.
In any case, I am now the proud owner (or lessee) of a Samsung Z Flip 3. For the time being, I’m having fun with it, never having owned a smartphone before. I love the fact that it folds in half to fit nicely in a pocket (and to protect the screen), but opens fully for ease of viewing. I don’t like the way the battery runs down rapidly when applications are used. So far, I haven’t had to charge it more than once a day, but just in case, I purchased an extra charger to keep at my office. Probably if I only use the phone for talk and text, the battery life will be just fine, but hey, it’s a smartphone – I can now surf the web, play games, watch movies & TV on a device that can easily be hidden when the boss walks into my office. (Don’t judge unless you personally have never sneaked a web search in while at work.)
The nice young man at the carrier’s store even synced the phone to my car. I promise not to play Candy Crush while driving.
By the way, did you know that many cell phones no longer come with chargers? People like me, going from older technology, don’t have a bunch of chargers lying around the house, so I had to go to Best Buy to purchase them before I could get the phone activated. Minor annoyance, but these days it doesn’t take much to irritate me.
Another annoyance is the fact that we were informed that my husband’s older i-Phone also needs to be upgraded in order to be usable on the new network. More money! But at least he’ll pay for his own – and he already has a compatible charger.
Meanwhile, Puppy Cody tolerates the humans in the house as best she can. She spends a large portion of her day looking for the last remaining spot of sunshine:
Happy Weekend, Everyone!
__________
I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com
__________
Images by Cordelia’s Mom/TeddyRosalieStudio
Cordelia's Mom, Still 
Good to see a post from you. Lovely photo of Puppy Cody.
Bravo on the new phone!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Di. Good to be back, even if only temporarily.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hope you are all OK.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, everyone’s fine. All well with you and yours?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Doing well thanks. Still looking for a new pup.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad to get the update on how you are doing…
You are definitely NOT forgotten.!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Aw, your comment makes me feel special today. Thanks!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I just thought of you the other day, so your “return” was well-timed for me. It seems the current trend is to charge more and give less – phones without chargers, printers without cables, groceries without bags. . . I’ve had smart phones for years and do use them to surf the web, but only when I’m away from my devices with larger screens. Old eyes, you know.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m touched that you thought of me. Thank you. (Printers now come without cables? Not everyone has all wireless devices!)
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re not forgotten, CM! Thanks for the update. That’s a cool phone you got there. Just yesterday, my daughter said she wanted a Samsung Flip phone. I said no way, it’s too expensive here. Love the pic of puppy Cody. She looks like a golden girl. ❣⃛(❛ั◡˜๑)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, NBC. Yes, the phone is expensive, but I really wanted a flip phone that would fit in my pocket. I believe the prior Z Flip model might be a little cheaper, although I agree it’s probably still too costly for your daughter unless she gets a job and pays for it herself (assuming she’s old enough?). I remember when my middle daughter asked for the most current i-Phone and I told her no, but she was old enough to work part-time and did pay for it herself. She actually turned out to be the most financially responsible of all my girls.
LikeLiked by 2 people
That’s right, CM! She gotta earn it. And I said to my daughter, ‘start saving’😅🌈
LikeLiked by 2 people
Updating phones is beginning to seem like taxes – a fee we can expect but one for which the benefits are hard to see.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree. Before you manage to pay for the current phone, it’s already obsolete. As for taxes, I wouldn’t mind the increase if only the town’s services were increased as well, but it seems the more taxes we pay the less we get in return.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Son, Shimoniac hasn’t posted in over two and a half years, but recently gained a new follower. 😕
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s amazing, isn’t it? Not CM occasionally gets a new follower, too, and she’s been “dead” for a few years now.
LikeLike
Good to see you here, CM! It’s been one warm October in our part of the world. I think when IT comes, we are going to get hit this winter.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I believe you’re right, Mark. The squirrels around my house have been frantically digging holes to store nuts, more so than other years. Makes me think maybe I should also stockpile supplies against a long, frigid winter.
LikeLike
Nature knows. I’m with them and you, CM.
LikeLiked by 1 person