X-Factor Review - First Live Show

When I heard X-Factor was going to be like another American Idol, I wasn't to excited to see it, but after watching it for the first few weeks, and seeing yesterday's live show, I have to say, it is one of my favorite shows on tv at the moment.  X-Factor differs from AI because it allows a wider age range, and lets groups compete along with individuals.  There are 4 judges who each team up with a certain group.  This adds some competitive nature among the judges which makes for good tv. 

Last nights 2.5 hour live show premiere was very entertaining.  I like how it was packed with content and no nonsense such as waiting until the last minute or going to a commercial break before announcing the results as is common for these types of shows.  Right after each group performed, they chose who was going home. 

Simon is his usual over-confident self.  LA is really into his group, maybe a little too much.  Paula is sweet and caring and Nicole is passionate. They banter back and forth when judging the singers after each performance.

One thing I don't really like about the show is the host.  He comes off as very impersonal and robotic.  I get that he has to keep the show on time, but many times he interrupted very important parts where emotions were high and people wanted to see.  He seemed to not know who the singers where, referring to them as "this girl" or "this boy".  It doesn't ruin the show, but he could show a little more compassion. 

I'm looking forward to next weeks live show where the viewers will start voting for their favorites.  Check it out if you haven't seen it yet. 

Deep Thoughts on Life

Life is tough, but you can do it.  Sometimes I get depressed and unhappy with my life. It usually happens when I think about my limitations and compare myself to other people who supposedly have it better.  I think about all the bad things that are in the world and wonder why it has to be like that.  Why isn't it better? 

I wasn't brought up religious.  I know a lot of people believe in God.  Isn't God suppose to be in charge?  He made the earth a everything on it right?  Why would he allow all the bad stuff to happen?  I'm not really looking for a religious debate, it's just something I think about sometimes. 

You really need something to look forward to in life. You need something to live for.  What I realized is that this can be different for everyone.  Some people desperately want to get married and have a family.  For them, that is something they look forward to.

I thought about what I look forward to and the things I came up with are: browsing my favorite sites on the internet, watching good shows on tv, and listening to good songs.  These are activities I enjoy and they continuously provide new content. It is kind of sad that those are the things that come to my mind when I think about what I look forward to in life. 

Some people might say they look forward to hanging out with friends or family; maybe going out and doing fun things or traveling.  To some, those things are much more important that the activities I mentioned.

I may be going off topic, but this is just free flow writing after a session of deep thoughts.  I wonder about if there is an after life.  Personally, I think there is a good chance there is, that when you die, your "spirit" goes on.  I would like to think that karma is involved and if you were a good person, you will have a good experience in the next life.  Same goes for people who were bad, they would be dealt with accordingly after they die. 

I wonder if I am not doing the right things with my life.  I think about my job.  I need to do it to earn money, but in the big picture, it seems like a waste of time.  There are better things I could be doing.  I could be making better contributions to society. 

There is so much to think about.  So much to consider.  So much we don't know.  Life is tough, but we can do it!

How to Live Well on $15,000 a Year

I have seen a few articles about people who live on a small amount of income. I too don't make lot of money, so I thought I would share my tips for how to live well on a low income. Here are some of the ways I manage to make it work. (Note: cost of living can vary greatly depending on location, so some areas may need more or less.)

Housing
For housing, find a decent place near your work that is big enough for what you need. If you are thinking about buying a place and having a mortgage, make sure the payments, assessment, insurance, and taxes are low before deciding to live there. You will need to do all the calculations ahead of time to factor in all expenses and income to make sure it is an affordable option.

Utilities
What about monthly bills? For electric, make sure you limit your usage. Only turn on lights when and where you need them. Avoid running the air conditioning/heating when you can get by without it. Unplug things you don't use very often. Use the new kind of light bulbs that use less energy. Same goes for water in that it should be used sparingly by avoiding long showers and running the water when it is not needed.

Internet
For internet, shop around for promotional rates from all available suppliers. You should be able to get a good deal for a year. If they raise your rates, call them up and haggle with them or switch to another company to get another promotion. If you want to cut out internet expenses completely, see if there are any free WiFi connections near your area.

Television
For TV, use standard antennae to get the basic channels. It is free and there is enough good programing on the main channels to get by. If there is a show you really want to watch that is on cable, you may be able to watch it on your computer using the internet. Also you can get free trials for some of the top streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu.

Food
For food, avoid going out to restaurants or even buying fast food. Get most of your food from the grocery stores. Compare all the stores near you to see which ones have the best prices for the items you want. Get familiar with sale prices verses regular prices. Try to buy things when they are on sale. Use coupons if you find them for the things you are going to buy. Check discount stores such as Wal-Mart and Target for general grocery items as they tend to have good prices. Here are some of the best foods on a budget as well as easy and healthy meal ideas.

Grooming
For haircuts, look into getting a pair of electric clippers which are great for doing your own haircuts at home. I have been using Wahl clippers for 10+ years and it is one of the best investments I have made in terms of saving money. The clippers only cost about $20 and will save literally thousands of dollars over the years from not having to go out to salons or haircut shops for hair cuts.

Cars
If you need a car, get a used car and make sure you are not overpaying on insurance. If you are a good driver, often you can get by without comprehensive insurance. Shop around to get the best deal by comparing different insurance companies. I personally have had good luck with Geico and State Farm. If possible try to pay off the car early to avoid paying interest in the long run. This tip also goes for the mortgage although this one may take time to pay off.

Insurance
For health insurance, if it is not provided by your employer, you will be able to get it through the Affordable Care Act at HeathCare.gov. There are plenty of plans to choose from and you will get a credit to lower the cost each month if your income is not that high. You may even qualify for Medicaid if your income is under a certain amount each year.

Entertainment
Avoid entertainment expenses. There are plenty of free activities to do or ones that don't cost a lot of money. Personally, I don't go out a lot, so most of my entertainment is from tv and computer. Other options include going to a park, walking, bike riding, going to a library, a free museum, or a public concert.

Shopping
Whenever you have to spend money on things, for example clothes or household items, research them to find the best prices. If you know what you want, look online and order it. Often the best prices can be found online at sites like Amazon and eBay and you can often avoid taxes and get free shipping. For local stores, check dollar stores and thrift stores for the best deals.

Payments
You can use a credit card to buy things but make sure it is paid off in full every month to avoid paying any interest. Often you can actually get cash back rewards for certain cards just by making normal purchases. I use the Chase Freedom card which offers 1% back or more on all purchases. 

Living like this, you won't get to eat at fancy restaurants often, drive expensive cars, or travel the world, but you can have good living conditions without having to earn a lot of money. Always try to spend less than what you take in so you have a profit each month. Over time it will add up and you can start to buy nice things and live even better!

Do you have any tips for frugal living? Feel free to share them in the comments below. 

Rules of Engagement - One of the Funniest Shows People Don't Know About

The new season of Rules of Engagement aired last night.  In case you haven't heard of it, it is a sitcom on CBS that has been on for about 5 seasons.  Due to odd scheduling and not much promotion, the show has gone someone unnoticed compared to other comedies such as The Office, Big Bang, or Modern Family.  I was lucky enough to catch onto it a while back.  I loved it and went back to watch all the episodes.

The show follows 2 couples, a middle aged couple, and a young couple.  It also features 2 side characters, one who is a rich, arrogant jerk, and another who is his employee who pretty much does what he says.  They all have different personalities and interact with each other throughout the episodes.  

In this new episode, Russel accidentally gets married to the girl Liz who he doesn't want to like, but for some reason, he can't help it.  I love this new character they have introduced.  I think she and Russel have great chemistry.  This should be a good season.

If you are new to the show, I recommend starting from the beginning so you learn who these characters are.  It is one of the best comedies on tv right now.  Don't pass it up!

More Frustrations with AT&T - U-Verse

I have had a lot of problems with AT&T internet as I have expressed in previous blogs.  Well, after a year, the frustration continues.  My 1 year promotional rate for DSL was up so I called them up to see if I could get a lower rate or change plans.  After talking to 2 people and going over different plans for over an hour, yes that is correct, I managed to get a "pending" plan.  So if I decided to change, I could call up and set it in motion.

The plan was to switch from DSL to U-Verse.  I wanted to stay with DSL and just go to a lower plan, but they said I couldn't.  Odd because on the website it still shows the lower rates.  They said the only thing to do was to switch to the new U-Verse and get a 1 year promotion on that.

At first they wanted to charge activation fees, and make me spend $100 for a new modem, but after negotiations, they waved those fees.  They offered me a decent rate for the new internet, but still it was more than I was paying for DSL before.  I said I didn't want to commit yet so the representative said, we could make the order pending until I was ready.  

Sounds ok right?  Next thing I know I am getting emails about order confirmations, and they are send me a modem!  Are you serious?  I call them up and try to figure out what is going on.  It turns out the order was set in motion, the only thing is that the activation was set for a later time in case I wanted to cancel it.  Still, now I have this modem I don't even want.  So I decide to cancel the whole thing.

Next day the modem shows up at my home and I then had to put new labels on it, go to the post office, wait in line and mail it back.  Not a good use of my time AT&T.

So now I still have my original DSL at the higher rate and I'm not sure what I want to do.  I might end up canceling the whole thing, who knows.  Why is everything so difficult with this company?

UPDATE 11-25-11

I thought I was done with this fiasco that is AT&T after I canceled my account and followed their instructions by sending the modem back.  Guess what?  I'm still getting a bill that says I owe them $100 for the modem, the one I never asked them to send me and the one I returned when they did send it to me.  I call customer service and they are not there.  I try the chat help on the website, they can't do anything about it.  So now I have to wait until Monday and call them when I get home from work.  I don't have time for this nonsense AT&T!

Good Deeds - Helping People

The other day I was in a grocery store and I saw someone had left their keys on a table where you get your blood pressure measured.  I thought, should I leave them there, or turn them into the pharmacy right by it.  I decided to turn them in because then they would be safe and if someone called the store or asked about them, they would have them.  As I was walking away, someone who was in line said something like, "There's a good Samaritan".  It made me feel good.  I hope the person comes back and gets their keys.

Not everyone does the right thing.  A few years back I remember a student of mine saying how he had once found a wallet and instead of trying to return it, he took the cash and tossed it.  I can't believe he did that.  Granted, he was young and one of the more troublesome students, but still, you would expect that people would try to do the right thing in a situation like that.

Today, I had the opportunity to help someone out, and I wanted to, but I passed on it because I was unsure.  Let me explain.  I was shopping for some parts for my car when a stranger approached me and asked if I could give him a jump start for his car.  I was a little surprised, but I was willing to help. I asked him where the car was and he said it was little ways away, somewhere where I was unfamiliar with.  The area I was in, is not a very good area, and I was not sure I could trust this guy.  He was friendly, but something about the situation just told me not to risk it. 

I thought perhaps I would go to this car with this guy to help him out and then get jumped or robbed or worse.  I didn't have a lot of time to think about all the different variables at the time, so I told him I was kind of in a hurry.  He thanked me anyway and we parted ways.  I would have liked to help him for sure, if only I could be certain his intentions were genuine.  At the time I thought, why couldn't he call someone he knew, or ask someone out by where his car was parked.  I just felt like it might have been a scam or something, so I passed up the opportunity.

Have you ever been in a situation like this?  Have you done a good deed for a stranger or have someone go out of their way to help you out?

Last Man Standing Show Review

I watched Tim Allen's new sitcom last night and overall it was better than I expected.  It's your traditional family style comedy with Tim as the dad in a house full of girls.  The first couple episodes have focused on this theme with plenty of "man" jokes.  This is ok, but I have a feeling it may get old soon.

The wife in the show I didn't care for that much. She came off as a drunk mom who didn't really care.  Maybe that is her character, but it is not appealing.  There are 3 girls in the house, each with different personalities.  I thought they were ok.

I think the relationships are what will be the best part of the show, both between the family and the supporting characters.  Overall the jokes were quick and funny for the most part.  I'm not yet declaring it a required viewing show, but I'll probably check it out next week if nothing else is on.

Update: 4-5-15 Wow this show is still on the air.  I did not end up sticking with it but it is surprising that is is still on after all these years!