Things for which to be thankful.

Found money. Today, while searching for a final nickel (I was a nickel off. Get it? Its a pun! Oh, nothing...) to buy a bottle of water to take on the train with me, I found a Starbucks card with a $3.55 balance on it. I promptly went downstairs and acquired not only a triple tall Americano (to which I added a bit of half-and-half and some cinnamon) but a heavenly slice of one of their new chocolate cupcakes, which they were sampling today. They have chocolate shavings on top, perched like a heavenly head of Cupid's curly locks on a bed of shockingly rich chocolate frosting. Nutrition is for losers.

And on that note... Finding ways to save money can be a nice thing. I cancelled three subscriber services in addition to dropping my credit card interest rate, which should leave me an extra $100 or so per month. Which is good, because I have to start paying student loans someday. (April 2007, to be exact.) I take the train to work now, so that is already saving me $200 each month for gas and parking, but I still need to pay off the credit card before April of next year. I would have been able to with this year's tax return, except that...

Tax returns. Except that... I screwed up my 2004 tax return. So this year, I got back $2295 for my 2005 return, but then the 2004 audit showed that I owed $2245, so I got to keep exactly $50 of this year's return. That'll teach me to exercise my stock options. My new battle cry as far as that goes is, "No more stock options! EVER!"

Short classes. My Accounting 423 class is over this Saturday. I cannot wait to get out of this one! I spent about an hour last night on a bit of homework that could conceivably be the death of me if I don't get it by the weekend. And I still have the rest of the homework to start on.

Red cashmere/lambswool cableknit sweaters. We need not say more.

Friends who know things about stuff. I was talking to my boss last week, and we were on the topic of finances and income taxes. We both have a few problems for various reasons (I have bad spending habits and mediocre income, she has a husband with bad spending habits and high income). We were talking about interest rates on credit cards, and how it is better to make minimum payments on our mortgages because interest on those is tax deductible, and instead of paying extra on the mortgage we pay extra on the credit cards to pay them off faster. She asked me about my interest rate, and I didn't know what it was. I looked at my statment and ... oh, there are so many things I could say to describe my reaction. Everything got all dark and quiet... So anyway, I called them today and quoted my 759 credit score and their usurious interest rates, and I told them that if they didn't lower it I would cancel my account. It took a whopping 15 seconds or so for them to drop it to 8%. From 27%. I was paying 27% interest. On a card with a limit high enough that I can buy a car on it. Inconceivable! Does that sound right to you? Now that I'll be paying a reasonable amount of interest on that monstrosity, I should be able to get rid of it sooner. Now all I have to do is work on my savings account. If I take all the money I've got saved right now, I could maybe buy a moderately-sized gerbil.

Goodwill. I've got a ton of crap to get rid of. I can't afford to take it to the dump and I'm too lazy to sell it on eBay. And they pick up!

Speaking of picking up... Safeway delivers groceries. I don't know about you guys, but I loathe the grocery store. Too many people, too much noise, too much time wasted.

Scrubs. And not just the TV show. You can get cheap scrubs on Overstock.com. They're great for lounging around in, and if you have to answer the door, it doesn't look like you're in your PJs. (Even if you are! Hee hee!)

PostSecret. I have so many secrets on this website, and I didn't even send them in.

Frogs. Just 'cause they're cute.

Strawberries. Safeway's got 'em on sale two-for-one, and they raise your serotonin levels like chocolate does. Berrylicious...

Fences. I finally rebuilt that last section of fence that I had that blew down back in, uh, December (I think). What's weird is that I feel more secure, even though anyone could get in just by going through the gates.

Spring. I know it isn't quite yet, but the trees and plants don't seem to be aware of that. My trees are blooming, my rosemary is blooming, my grass is growing (drat!), I've got irises and tulips coming up, and my allergies are in full swing. My head is clogged like I'm just getting over the flu. But hey, it is still light when I leave work, and you can already see daylight on the horizon when I'm getting on the train! Yay for longer daylight hours! Woo hoo! I'm just hoping I don't have a repeat of last year's yard fiasco, in which I had a neighbor come to check to see if I was OK because my lawn was about 4 feet deep in the back yard. Everyone around me is so used to me having a nice yard (I've been told that I have one of the nicest yards in my neighborhood) that it gave everyone a bit of a shock that I let it go so long. If it doesn't rain on Saturday, I'm going to mow.

Chanel No. 5. Perfume doesn't stay around for a century unless it smells this good.

iPods. So much better than having to change the CD every 45 minutes.

Private cubes at work. I used to be in the Accounts Payable department, but I got promoted to Staff Accountant. Then they moved the AP department all into one office. I would die. One of them occasionally uses a Betty Boop voice that I would be embarassed to use, listens to KIXI all day, and won't open the blinds or turn on the lights. I would be trapped in an office all day with her if I was still in that department. I like her, she's great, but I just am not a good enough person to tolerate some quirks. My current cube has one very solid wall and two cube walls, and I can see out of the window of the office across from me. I can dig it.

Firefly. Granted, it is no longer around, but it lives on in our hearts.