So today, I received my state tax refund. Direct Deposit is a wonderful thing. $1051 – not a bad chunk of change. But I have to be smart about what I’m spending the money on.

Most of my bills that will affect my credit score are paid for the month. So that leaves catching up on utility bills as my top priority. HOA fees, gas, electric, internet. I also need to make a Sam’s Club run for essentials for the house.

I did make a purchase this morning that I think will help around the house – air purifiers. One for upstairs in the bathroom and one for work. If they work well, I’ll get another for the downstairs. I’m just getting little desktop ones, so I’m sure I’ll need a couple. But I’m hoping these will get rid of the cat box smell and help prevent me from getting sick at the office. Right now I’m battling through a cold I got on Saturday, when I went to a friend’s daughters’ birthday party. Little kids, even though they aren’t sick, carry colds and viruses on them, then pass them to adults. And, I was helping clean up and touched their plates and cups, so I’m sure something got passed to me. Lovely. I’m feeling a little more human today, but still congested.

And my office is just a petri dish of germs and people. I always catch whatever is going around the office. I need to start having anti-bacterial lotion at my desk again.

So, this past weekend, I finished one room in my house – my furnace room/pantry. Before, It was always the clutter room and I had some free standing shelves that served as the pantry. Last weekend I built shelves into the walls. So nice and organized, and Kirby has its own little spot. The next room to get re-done is the bathroom. The money I have from refunds and the stock sale will go towards buying the tile for the bathroom. I have a workshop on Saturday to help me learn about bathroom updates and I’ve been watch YouTube videos on how to tile. Should be fun.

Oh, the stock sale! So, I received my stocks and promptly sold them. The stock price has been fluctuating a lot lately, but nothing above $50 a share. My mom thought I should keep the stocks, but knowing me, I’ll forget about them. I don’t like the idea of investing in a company and watching the stock price go down and me lose money. I’d rather put the money in a savings account where it may not grow as fast, but I will still have it.

People are always saying “Make your money work for you.” Here’s my thought – I was around when there was a huge stock market dip and a lot of people lost a lot of money in their 401k. All of a sudden, people couldn’t retire. Yes, I’d love for my money to grow and grow, but at what risk? A savings account is safer for my money that I’ve worked my butt off to earn – whether it is from my day job or my side gigs. I worked for that money and I want to know that it is there when I need it and not lost because stocks tanked again. Call me conservative, but the stock market just seems like a get rich quick scheme to me. I want no part of it.

So, I bought one more thing today while at work. I really shouldn't have my phone around me at work when I'm bored. I tend to shop. Anyway - I bought the Litter Robot. If you haven't seen these things, they are automatic cat litter boxes. After your cat does his or her business, the Litter Robot will sift the litter and deposit the clumps into a separate receptacle, removing smells and such. You then just have to empty the receptacle. Much better than scooping, I think. It looks like a space capsule! There is a money back guarantee, but everyone who has a cat and has this says that it is perfect as long as your cat is over 5 pounds. I don't think I would ever get a kitten, but you can disable the automatic sifting until the kitten is bigger. I hate scooping in the summer when my son is at his dad's.

Anyway, I've wanted one for a long time and since I'm reorganizing and redecorating the house, it seemed like the perfect time. That way the cats are used to it before their world gets turned upside down with my son not coming back. And I bought it on a payment plan. Hence, why the debt total has gone up again.

But on the other hand, the savings total has gone up as well. And will go up again soon! I will be getting my stock money soon and my federal tax refund should be coming on Tuesday (Monday being a bank holiday). Money coming in!

Okay, that's it for tonight. Hope to be blogging again soon!

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