Comments for Living Well

Comment on Out of the Grocery Store & Finding a Local Credit Union by Melanie

Melanie — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:17:37 +0000

I was just checking back here to see if you found out anything about your loan.

I think it depends on your loan as to whether or not you are penalized. At least with mortgages, the repayment terms can vary greatly. There can even be a “middle ground” allowing you to pay back a certain percentage of the outstanding principal each year (like 10%) without penalty.

Comment on Out of the Grocery Store & Finding a Local Credit Union by Gordon Reeder

Gordon Reeder — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:08:24 +0000

Credit Unions are a great idea. But they can be just as nasty with the overdraft fees as banks.
Check out Onpoint Community credit union. I know several people who are members and they love it. As for me, I have been a member of First Tech. Credit Union for about nine years. The nice thing I like about First Tech is that they don’t charge ATM fees, you can use your ATM card at any credit union ATM and there will be no fee. They also have a great on-line bill pay service. On-line bill pay, great for the environment and no stamps to buy.

Comment on Out of the Grocery Store & Finding a Local Credit Union by Maria

Maria — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:50:19 +0000

I will look into the Credit Union you suggest.

I don’t remember reading anything about the balloon payment at the end. It was a 60-month loan, that when the calculations are done, comes out to the minimum amount we were paying. The interest doesn’t decrease simply because we’re paying early, it was included in the amount (unlike, say, a college loan, where you pay off part of the principle and part of the interest).

Here’s an interesting sidebar: my brother, who has lived in Brazil for the last 6 years, said that it is a breach of contract to pay more than the set amount and I would be penalized for paying more/paying my loan off early there. I find this both outrageous but also encouraging; it makes you take the contract much more seriously, or, at least, it lives up to the idea of what a contract really is, which is an agreement between both parties.

Comment on Out of the Grocery Store & Finding a Local Credit Union by melanie

melanie — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 04:11:49 +0000

I don’t know if they have a branch in Portland, but when we lived in Oregon, we used Oregon Community Credit Union, and loved it.

Regarding your car loan – does the loan specify that you make a “balloon payment” at the end (that’s where, when you come to the end of the loan period, you have to pay a specified lump sum)? If so, they may have just adjusted what you pay between now and then to keep the balloon payment at the end the same amount. I really don’t know anything about loans, though! But that’s my guess.

Comment on My love of books turns into an opportunity by Melanie

Melanie — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:21:46 +0000

They have a store across the river from where I live! Yay! A new place to go exploring to, and even better, a bookstore!

Comment on Time, time, time… by Gordon

Gordon — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 08:32:52 +0000

“How to be Organized, In Spite of Yourself” by Sunny Schlenger and Roberta Roesch. “Time and space management that works with your personal style.” This is the book that did it for me. Instead of laying out a system, it looks at various personality types and how they tend to approach time and space management. Then the authors suggest some methods that would work for each type. And explain why other methods won’t work.

Comment on When you really, really, really want something by Maria

Maria — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 04:39:46 +0000

I try very hard not to. Nate’s making chocolate chip cookies right now…not sure how long before I crack.

Comment on Menu Plan Monday by Maria

Maria — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 03:40:43 +0000

Usually for the chicken pot pie (which on this occasion ended up being chicken & dumplings instead), I just make a biscuit dough and drop little rounded tbsp-fulls over the mixture. In fact, I think that’s the only way I’ve ever done it. Do you have Joy of Cooking? That was our first cookbook and so we use it a lot. There’s quite a lot of information in that one book alone.

Comment on Menu Plan Monday by Andrea

Andrea — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 02:46:40 +0000

i need a menu planning schedule! i am constantly forgetting this or that and feel like i go to the store a least once a day! thanks for sharing this.

also, how do you make your pot pie crust/dough? i have leftover chicken and would love to make it into a potpie, but am not familiar with the process. could you advise me on this???

Comment on When you really, really, really want something by Andrea

Andrea — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 02:42:44 +0000

you don’t eat anything after dinner? there’s torture!