12/11/2010

Free Money

Money-supplyImage via WikipediaI know what your thinking - "money ain't free". I not talking about a handout. What I mean by "free money" is unearned money; obtained through means other than my paycheck. I guess you could call it random passive income. I always seem to get some free money here and there, whether it be a rebate, a class action settlement, or selling something on Craigslist. I wanted to know how much free money I received, so I started tracking it in 2010. I created a Google Docs spreadsheet to do so. The total free money amount for this year is a whopping $1337! About half of that came from a contest I won which had an approximate retail value of $598. I won the Redskins "AAA Ultimate Fan Zone Sweepstakes" for the Sunday night game against the Colts back on October 17. The prize included: 2 suite tickets to the game, 2 passes to the AAA Ultimate Fan Zone pre-game hospitality area & 1 FedEx Field purple parking permit. Although technically not cash, I didn't pay for it out of pocket and is in essence free money so I'm counting it. The second biggest amount was $200 in Southwest Airlines credit we got for a long delay coming home from Louisville, KY for Lebowski Fest a couple years back that I used to purchase my flight to the National Beard and Moustache Championships in June. Rounding out the top three is $101.65 in oil royalties. My wife's family owns a small stake in land leased for obtaining oil in Texas. The smallest amount is $.59 which was another oil royalty. We actually cashed a $.59 check. It probably cost more to drive to the ATM. But every little bit counts.
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Debt Free

First 4 digits of a credit cardImage via Wikipedia(Cross-posted on the Shock Family Circus blog.)


My family is debt free! That's the best holiday present money can buy. We paid off our car two years early in August and I paid off my student loan a few days ago. We pay our credit card each month in full, so we don't have any credit card debt. As one of my friends so eloquently posted on Facebook "Congrats! not owing shit to anyone is a great feeling." It is.


We celebrated by spending money! We are going to an exclusive New Year's Eve party in New York City with my sister Lisa (a.k.a. Aunt Lili) and bro-in-law Steven. My company has an office on the 31st floor of a building in Times Square, eye level with the ball drop! We're going to be all dressed up with an awesome place to go. We also booked a weekend getaway to a quaint riverside inn at historic Smithfield Station for just the two of us. Thank you Living Social Escapes.
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