Oh, Christmas shopping bills, Oh, Christmas shopping bills, no matter where I hide thee, you somehow find me…
Oh, Christmas shopping bills, Oh, Christmas shopping bills, how despised are thee…
No matter how many days I waited to pay my Christmas shopping bills, they somehow didn’t magically disappear and get paid on their own. Maybe I would’ve been better off by putting that on my wishlist for Santa –
“Dear, Santa, Dear, would you please pay my bills for me, pretty please with sugar-plum dancing fairies on top?!”
Even the elf couldn’t save me – I couldn’t avoid the inevitable…Parting with cash…
Nope, he didn’t and the bills somehow strategically replicated in the pile since the first shopping trip in November.
Just like lichen on a log, (or cat hairs on the chair…grr, reminds me it’s time to vacuum too) they appeared and stuck around growing larger and larger expanding out of the semi-organized holding bin, allowing no more space for new bills, so I had to pay them.
The day before they were late (aka, TODAY). Late fees are not my thing.
So, yeah, instead of a fun blog writing morning, I enjoyed giving thanks. I somehow have a mystical fortitude of saving enough money allowing for a successful, time-sucking, gracious bill paying session.
Bloody knuckles and all as I parted with the cash.
Poof – all the money has gone in one fell swoop. Like this poor little mouse that saw its last day by the hawk that landed briefly for a snack.
At least I can look forward to avoiding a hawklike bill collector. He won’t be showing up at the door or the front yard. Online payment processing is the way to $ vanishing these days.
The BP session squelched my creativity and then all I had left were photos of tree conks enjoying the anticipation of the warm sunrise and the potential of melting snow.
And carefully selected words from those whose creativity grew years before me. Thank goodness for Good Reads!
Here grew willows and alders, their trunks twisted like giants’ sinews. Around them bark lichen bloomed blue-white in the darkness. It felt like a good place, where there was old magic. – Duncan Harper, Witch of the Fall
One could speculate that lichens would be among the last inhabitants to succumb on a dying earth at some distant point in the future. – Steven L. Stephenson, The Kingdom Fungi: The Biology of Mushrooms, Molds, And Lichens
There is a low mist in the woods – It is a good day to study lichens. – Henry David Thoreau, A Year in Thoreau’s Journal: 1851
Post Inspiration – Dutch Goes the Photo – Anticipation
PS – Do you put off bill paying until the last day too? Or is that just me? Doesn’t it just suck the life out of you and your pocketbook? I promise to be in a better mood tomorrow, really, I will! 😉
I’ve given up the shopping and bake cookies for everyone. No bills shopping bills here…Merry Christmas
I love that idea for next year :-)! Merry Christmas to you, too!
Love the lichen quotes–good hunting!
Thank you, Rebecca 🙂
Funny how this is the time of year when cars break down, new glasses are needed, kettles break….🙄
It is truly a story begging to be told in the wee hours of the morning (by the full moonlight!)
We decided to do secret Santa’s this year with a $100 limit. It is very helpful as cash is tight right now. Other years though January is my dreaded month.
One of these years, we’re gonna need to do that. My mom and her husband’s family did that and it seemed to work well. Thank you for sharing the idea!
Yes I too am a “wait until the last minute to pay” bill person. I think the internet has effected that as we can wait until the last minute to pay as we don’t have to figure in the postal system. Oh well. It is what it is.
Loved your pictures. They remind me of my son. He is a chef and loves to forage for all kinds of mushrooms and weird stuff fancy chefs cook. I just want meat and taters and recognizable veggies, thank you. Have a great week.
You’re so right, online paying makes it easy to put off. Thank you – after I posted and thought about it more, I remembered those aren’t lichen and they are mushrooms or conks! My brother is like your son, he forages all kinds of mushrooms, not the fancy stuff, though. He’s more a eat out of the woods kind of guy – venison included. Hope you have a great week too.
My bills are the same each and every month. I’m boring. This Christmas however, I spent a little bit too much. Thankfully, I know how the billing cycle on my charge card works. If I buy after the 10th of the month, starting on the 11th, that bill won’t come due till 60 days. So I have 2 months vs 1 month to come up with the money! Doesn’t mean I will spend more. Just means I gave myself some interest free time. Whew!
I’ll let you know how I feel in February, however. Catch me then!
LOL – great tips, Cindi. Plus I read how you returned a whole bunch and brought your credit card bill way down. I maybe should have done that…!? I like the idea of planning purchases so I don’t have to pay for 60 days. That’s smart! I do look forward to seeing how February turns out for you.
Shelley, I’ve got the scotch ready. Lol. I think I’ll be fine. We’ll see.
LOL! Read my post today…I may be right there with you on the Scotch! 😉
I pay my bills as soon as I get them. I don’t like to think about them lurking in my house, waiting to pounce on me! 🙂
LOL – I used to be that way until I started blogging…it’s way more fun to write when I have a moment to spare than to pay bills. As you can see, that procedure comes back to bite me.
See, all that fun you had on Black Friday has caught up with you … it is like eating all the pumpkin pie and have to loosen your pants the following day!
Yep 🙁 I know…each year I know this familiar feeling!