In January of 2014, I finally got rid of my old Mitsubishi Eclipse. Now, it was a 2007 model year, purchased in September of 2006, so I say old in a figurative sense. It was a great car.
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| Brand new the day I bought it in September 2006. |
However, it was not getting around well in the massive snowstorms during the winter of 2013-2014. Therefore, in January of 2014, I made the sad but necessary decision to trade it in on an SUV. It was nice being without a car payment for a year or so, but it was even nicer not worrying about getting around in winter weather anymore. I managed to get a good price on the trade-in, considering that I'd cracked the bumper, and there were a decent amount of scrapes on one side of the car. I kept with Mitsubishi and purchased a 2014 Outlander Sport. The car payment was lower than the payment on the Eclipse, and the insurance went down somewhat, so the overall hit to the budget wasn't terrible.
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| Brand new the day after I bought it in January 2014. |
It has 4-wheel drive, and has had no problems whatsoever getting around in the snow that followed the remainder of the winter season in 2014. Of course, we've had no snow yet this winter season, but I expect some at some point. I mean, I live in central Illinois after all!!
In April, my wife and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. In May, I graduated from Midstate College with a Bachelor's Degree in accounting. I started my new job right after that. In June, I turned 36. In July, I quit my job with Coca-Cola, the company I had worked for since I was 20, 15 years of my life. In September, I took my wife to Vegas for a weekend. It was her first trip to Las Vegas. I went for a weekend alone in October, she went with me in November, and we saw Zumanity. It was a great show! In December, I went for 6 days by myself. Well, while I traveled alone, I spent nearly every day with either Lightning36 or Robvegaspoker. It made a good trip great!
That brings us to 2015. I suppose I should list a few goals for 2015, and maybe a small explanation for why I am choosing those particular goals. I am listing them in no particular order. So, here we go!
Goal #1: Keep up with this blog. I've tried to do that before, but now I have more time, and realize I don't need to do a blog post every day, maybe not even every week. I can write posts and save them in order to space them out. Actually, I've already done this! I'm hoping to keep at it to help improve my writing and communication, and if you're reading this and want to help, comment please! lol
Goal #2: Go back to school and work on my Master's Degree. I have started by ordering a study guide for the GMAT test. I will take that, talk to a guidance and admissions counselor at Bradley University in Peoria, IL, where I intend to attend, and go from there. I need to decide whether I want to enroll in the MSA (Master of Science in Accounting) or MBA (Master's in Business Administration) program. My intention is to start back for the fall semester. It would be on a part-time basis, which would take 2 years to complete. My reasons are to have even more job opportunities, which I will have with a Master's Degree. I want to eventually have my own business, whether it be tax or accounting.
Goal #3: Lose weight and get my diet back on track. Using myfitnesspal and the new fitbit flex I got for Christmas, I intend to get back to my diet and need to make time for some sort of workout. Walking, exercise bike, whatever I can do. I need to eat better due to my diabetes, and weight loss will also help control my blood sugars according to the dr. Hopefully the myfitnesspal app, along with the fitbit flex, will help track my food and exercise and keep me on target.
Good luck to you with any resolutions/goals in 2015, and may you have a Happy New Year!!
happy new year.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year to you as well!
DeleteSWEEEEEEEET!!! post brother but need pics of chicks in yoga pants and big BOOBIES LOL
ReplyDeleteThanks, but I think if I started doing that it would be almost like plagiarism. lol
DeleteAhhh ... my car, my baby, turns 15 in 2015. Bought it with about 6,800 miles and have had virtually no problems with it. I keep thinking I'll get a new car, but ...
ReplyDeleteYeah -- 2014 was a biggie for you. If you do decide to go to grad school, just remember that it is not the coursework that is difficult, but more just the volume of what you have to do and then fitting all that in with your life. At least you are used to making things work with school, family, a job, etc.
The Las Vegas trip was a blast -- one of the most fun ever for me. What we need to do is just win all the damn money from the Par-A-Dice poker regs in 2015!
2014 was certainly full of achievements....Hopefully 2015 has potential as well! Those luckboxes at the Par-A-Dice can't win all the time, right? It sure seems like it sometimes.
DeleteHopefully having just finished my Bachelor's Degree not too long ago, while working and being married, helped prepare me for the time I'l need to work on the Master's Degree. We shall see. If nothing else, the opportunities it will offer in the long run will help me focus!
My vehicle before my last one was an Eclipse - fun car... :) I hope that you keep up with your blog because it's interesting. I like to post on regular days when possible so people know when to expect an entry. However, I've come to appreciate the realization that it's my blog, and that I can write about whatever I want, whenever I want... ;) Have a great 2015!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words of encouragement! That's the kind of response that makes me think I can keep up this time, and makes me want to put the effort into doing so.
DeleteI loved my Eclipse....I only had problems the 1 winter, and I'm pretty sure it was more due to the different tires I tried than anything else. It was sporty, quick, and the first car I had the title to all on my own! When I bought it new in September of 2006, there were 4 miles on it when i test drove it, and 99% of the miles after that were put on it by me. I miss it, but I also realize I made the adult decision of getting a reliable vehicle for winter transportation.....sadly, so far this winter season, no snow.
I'm thinking weekends will be when I update the blog. I also intend to tweet the link so as to help remind anyone who's interested that there's a new post up. Some weeks may be short posts due to having problems with content, but I'm sure I can find something to ramble on about...lol
Hope you have a great 2015 as well!
If you don't already, keep a memo pad on you so that you can jot down interesting things to lblog about (to remember them). Definitely don't give up on the blog - I'm amazed at how many people stop writing completely because they feel they can't write regularly. I've varied my post amount several times in three years due to how busy I've been at the time... I make both Facebook and Twitter 'ads' for every blog post I do (that's why my views have almost reached double digits). I think you're at least the 3rd person in this group of bloggers with a degree in accounting - not sure how you aren't a Steelers fan also... :) Funny how all the accounting majors like playing poker... And being from NH originally, I have to say that the new vehicle purchase was worth it if it keeps the snow away... :)
DeleteThanks for the memo pad suggestion. I have started taking one with me when i go play poker, after watching Rob do just that, For other places where I might see or experience something blog worthy, I always have my phone to make voice notes if necessary.
DeleteIf I can make it through until August, I have a feeling that school will provide some material as well. Hopefully in a good way!
Oh, and there are things in the blog I wouldn't want co-workers to see, some of whom are facebook friends, so I don't post my blog links on facebook. Next time I get a new job, I'm just going to tell them I don't think it's a good idea to have current co-workers as friends on facebook. That way I can post about job searching and opportunities and not worry about current co-workers finding out!
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