Adam Luke

Money and Me

Yes, the title of this entry should actually be “Money and I“, if you’re going to get all grammatically correct on my ass. I…I liked the alliteration OK? IT’S MY BLOG AND I’LL TAKE POETIC LICENSE IF I WANT TO!

Ahem. Anyway, since I’m eagerly awaiting a few hundred dollars of tax refund to be deposited into my bank account, I thought I’d write about money. Money is awesome, am I right? I like to hoard it, and have two bank account for this very purpose:

Primary bank account
This is where all my money from work is deposited, and where I withdraw funds from when I need them. I don’t keep much money here, instead transferring it often into my second account. Whereas some people get pleasure from spending, I feel guilty for doing so, and prefer watching all the pretty numbers rise!
Savings account
Basically, a “high” (currently 4.90% p.a.) interest savings account where I keep most of my money, and never touch. A lot of people have a coffee habit and/or a shopping habit. As for me, I don’t drink coffee, and I avoid shopping trips at all costs. This is (partly) why I have $14,000 in here, which I’m certain is more than most students my age have, but of course in grand scheme of things, it’s nothing at all. That said, I’m quite satisfied with the hundreds of dollars of interest I earn on it yearly! I don’t really know how much Stuff costs, but I think I have nearly enough money for some sort of car? Not that I need one at the moment, but when I do…I’ll be all up in that.

Also! If I somehow manage to stay employed¹, I think I can double that balance over the next year. I’ve really hit stride recently, in that I’m getting a lot of hours, and my wage has also increased due to an increase in the national minimum wage. Also, since I’m classified as a “Level 3″ employee², I’m actually ever-so-slightly above minimum wage for my age (which only equates to a few extra dollars per week, but it’s still nice to have!)

Check back next month for another instalment of “Adam Tells the Internet Stuff He Should Probably Not Tell the Internet”.

Working at a video store = very low job security. It’s hard to feel settled when all the other rental stores around you are closing down. I’m expecting to be out of a job in the foreseeable future. Obviously I have a second job, but only a minority of my earnings come from there.
Which means I can open (i.e., am entrusted with the security alarm code and safe combination), close (i.e., do the figures at the end of the day and lock up), and work solo.

August 11th, 2010 · Money and Work · 14 Comments »

One Year On

Oh look, it’s a milestone! I’ve officially been blogging for a year now. Thanks to everyone who read and commented, blah blah. Of course, I haven’t really done anything groundbreaking, controversial, or scandalous over the last year, but it’s nice to be gaining new readers at the speed of something like one per month (lol), and it’s a fun hobby to have.

Here, have some fun statistics. The comments’ members’ stats doesn’t exactly work when multiple people have the same name, though. There are a couple of instances of that.

Oh, and yes, your favourite self-loathing narcissist will be returning with more of the same for another year.

July 16th, 2010 · Internet and Websites · 11 Comments »

Self Improvement

I recently finished another semester of university, which means I have officially completed half of my degree. Yay, or something. Anyway, since I have another few weeks with little in the way of commitments, I feel it’s time for some self improvement.

You see, I want to become “smart” again. When I was younger, I was, pretty much, smarter than everyone else my age, and achieved more academically, without having to do any work. And because of it, I frequently got special privileges, and got to participate in special programs. These days? It seems that everyone has “caught up”, and I’m no longer better than everyone else. It annoys me that it’s possible for other people to beat me in assignments, exams, etc., even when I put in effort, as there’s nothing I can do about it. I hate being second rate. I probably sound like a spoiled brat here, and I’m not going to deny that I am one..!

But. I would like to rise up and regain my status of “super smart”. I don’t know whether this is achievable (I suspect it’s not), or how it is achievable, but as part of my “master plan”, I would like to increase my general knowledge. Certainly, I can hold my own in a game of Trivial Pursuit, but screw that; for me, it’s all about winning. I want to own. For sure, I have areas that I can definitely improve in. History, for instance. Most of my current knowledge about history comes from the Horrible Histories series of books for children, which I used to read. This is fine, but I don’t know whether those are wholly historically accurate, and also I want to read something aimed more at an adult audience. Oh, and something that looks at the history of science and technology should be interesting, rather than the usual people-and-events focus.

Also, I’m not averse to using documentaries to improve my knowledge. In fact, I quite like them (related posts: Dinosaurs, Koyaanisqatsi).

So I plan to go forth and learn. Or, be overwhelmed and give up immediately.

July 9th, 2010 · About me · 9 Comments »