Posts Tagged ‘Receipt’

The Saturday Weekend Review #13- Happy Easter! Why Can’t People Just Be Happy?

Posted: March 30, 2013 in The Saturday Weekly Review
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Weekend Review

It’s going to be a Happy Easter this weekend for us but I often wonder why some people just can’t be happy. I’m a Yahoo nerd and I pretty much scan through the headlines every day to see what’s happening in the world. I mean who needs to pay for a newspaper subscription these days when all the glory and misery is at our finger tips. I am generally a happy person that I hope people enjoy being around. I often try to understand the reasons why I might be thinking something negative in order to improve by inner health. I’m also one of those guys who is happy for my friends and family when something good happens in their life.

Why Can’t People Just Be Happy?

We’ve all had friends and family who have had a rough day or are going through tough times in their lives and we should be there to lend an ear to listen or a shoulder to cry on. When something good happens to people sometimes the jealousy monster come out in people where you kind of sit back and say, wait a minute, who are you to rain on their parade because you didn’t succeed or you weren’t given something free or won money in the lottery, etc? We had friend who won the lottery years ago and man oh man the rumours about how they don’t need it, they don’t donate, they are greedy bla bla kept coming up.

There’s always got to be the people with the conspiracy theory about everything especially when it’s something good that’s happened to someone. I’m sure if people put more energy into making their lives a bit more happier rather than whining about why it’s not the way they anticipated they’d get further ahead. Remember there is someone else who has it worse off than you.

All this chat above leads me to this Reddit thread I read and on Yahoo Canada about this family who went to the Olive Garden restaurant after their parents house suffered a fire. The manager greeted the family and asked how they were and one of the kids told the manager that her grandpa’s house had burned down. I’m sure if anyone was to hear this especially coming from a child that it would be so compelling to hear because of the genuine emotions of someone so young.

Olive Garden Restaurant Receipt

When the bill for the meal arrived the manager had comped the meal meaning there was no charge. What a lovely gesture on his/her part simply to say, I’m sorry to hear about your grandfather, I hope your days get brighter, keep smiling etc. Whatever the meaning, it came from the heart. It touched this family so much that one member posted the receipt on Reddit which quickly went viral.

My brother, wife, 3 year-old daughter and I went to Olive Garden after a recent house fire at my parents. When the manager asked how everything was my daughter said “Grandpa’s house burned down”. Here’s how we received the check:

What caught my attention was the amount of people who came up with all these theories about whether it was true or not and if it was a ploy of the Olive Garden to market their brand. Seriously people need to get a life and just leave it be. The poor guy had felt so compelled to come back and say yes it was true. Really? Did he need to do that for the idiots who had nothing better to do or say. Why can’t people just be happy for other people? In life we have choices, we have the choice to be miserable because we didn’t get everything we “think” we are owed or we have the choice to make positive things happen.

Olive Garden restaurant receipt

Author:Tankek42

Over 1.7 million views of this receipt and 1755 comments and counting after 2 days of being posted on Reddit.

The next day the original poster Tanek42 has to redeem himself and say it is a true receipt and as far as I’m concerned I don’t think he needed to say anything at all. Let the people complain, who cares and really what is this going to prove anyways? Nothing, so that leads me right back to the point of why bother. He did this to make the critics feel at ease that a total stranger that they don’t even know hasn’t ruined their day by posting a positive story that could have been made up in the best interests of the Olive Garden. Bloody hell, there are worse things happening in this world. Better still, Olive Garden stepped up to say that the receipt was real. There are people in this world that do things out of the goodness of their hearts.

My story is real, and I apologize for not responding faster to my critics, but I posted this last night while working on a law review assignment and fell asleep. Luckily, some crafty redditors were able to search and find my entire life history, including my Facebook page where I had posted the story a few days ago. If anyone needs additional proof/evidence, feel free to ask.

You pick your path in life but what I do know is I sure as hell don’t want to be a miserable person all my life just because I think that others are better than me, get more than me, luckier than me, smarter than me, richer than me or more successful than me. Just be you, be happy, make people smile, laugh a bit and loosen up. You might find that people will want to stick around and chat to you, strike a conversation and tell others what a nice person you are. The more people complain the further away people run so stay positive and think  of ways to improve life even if it means helping others just because you can with no expectations, nothing in return.

I posted this quote on my Facebook wall today and it really does say alot about life and how the simple things in life are free and what memories are built on. Leave the negativity and stop wasting useless energy on things that don’t matter. I hope that family finds the strength to pick up the pieces after this devastating event in the family and move on.

Have you ever dealt with people who were jealous of something you did or got? 

Spending Time With Children

Happy Easter Everyone!

What’s Happening At The CBB House?

It’s Easter this weekend which means we will be working on the Easter menu although we aren’t quite sure what we are making. Last year we wanted to come up with Easter food ideas that might help families enjoy their Easter with the family rather than hanging out in the kitchen. That was the popular Easter Dinner in the crock pot that a fan shared with me and I took to another level with my own ingredients.

It doesn’t always have to be ham and spuds at Easter dinner although It’s not often we pull out the ham card until special occasions. It’s sort of like cooking a turkey when it’s not Christmas which seems a bit odd but it’s not as unusual as I once thought it was. Tomorrow I will be sharing my friend Nicola’s mums Easter Butter Shortbread cookies recipe. I love shortbread but that is what my mum always used to make so it’s a cookie that is somewhat traditional for my family.  

I was talking to my family the other day in the UK and my mum who was babysitting said the kids were working on Easter crafts which I thought was a great way to get them involved other than decorating Easter Eggs. (we never got crafts mum, ha) She said that we can expect some art in the post shortly.

Now I hope the wife hides some chocolate eggies around the house for me to find. When you don’t have kids you can still play find the eggies with your spouse can’t you? :)

Happy Easter Crafts

Other than that our plants are growing at a fairly rapid pace and with the sun shining more each day I’m seeing a vast improvement in our other plants that we brought in for the winter. We really can’t wait to get them back outside because some plants simply don’t like to be indoors, it’s like trapping a bird who wants to fly free.

Next week I’ll be taking the snow tires off our vehicle because according to the weather experts we shouldn’t see any more snow. The worst thing we could do is drive the vehicle when it’s warming up with snow tires. That’s a sure-fire way to wear them down quicker and they cost a bloody fortune to replace, so get them off as soon as you can when the snow is gone.

I’ll be gearing up to get out the deck furniture but I need to prep the deck by giving it a good sand then add a coat of protection and a light stain to jazz it up. It cost me around $2000 to build my deck which would have cost me over $5000 if I didn’t DIY build it. I’m going to make sure that I spend the $25 to protect it so it lasts longer and looks good.

There’s nothing worse than spending money on big-ticket items such as  wood decks, gazebos, lattices, and fences to just let them rot to the ground without maintaining them. Might as well just throw your money out the window. It’s no different from a car, if you don’t maintain it the faster the car will turn into a lemon which will cost you a fortune to run, if at all. ON the positive side as long as I take care of my stuff that’s all that matters.

How are your vegetable seeds growing?

What’s Happening With  Canadian Budget Binder?

This week Katrina joins me in bringing CBB fans some landscape and gardening posts this spring and summer along with sharing her experiences with personal finance. Nothing big has happened on the design home front but I’ll be sure to keep you in the loop. I must say that CBB has done well since the beginning of 2013 where we have seen a steady rise in views and subscribers. By the end of today we will have over 40,000 views this months which is amazing only because that means we are reaching out to more people.

Numbers are only numbers but to me the numbers mean more people are coming around to read and learn and I’m happy about that. I have to thank all the supporters of CBB especially the fans who undoubtedly go above and beyond to share, communicate and make CBB a place of their own sharing their personal experiences.

The personal finance Bloggers that take the time to read, comment and share are without a doubt a great bunch of writers who inspire me more than they know and I will always pay that forward. We are well on our way to reaching our 5000 Likes on Facebook a milestone that I never dreamed would happen but we are getting there slowly but surely. We do have one heck of a Facebook page so if you aren’t part of the gang come on over and introduce yourself. Don’t miss our “What’s for Dinner” post nightly which is the most popular ongoing post on the Facebook wall.

Giveaways
  • Win! $250 Cash and a copy of the A-Z of Saving Money E-Book! Click HERE to enter now! Contest open to everyone around the world. This contest runs from March 18th 2013 to April 1st 2013. At the end of the contest a winner will be randomly drawn to win a free copy of the e-book titled – “The A-Z of Saving Money and $250 cash”.
  • Enter to Win $500 Cash in this Spring Giveaway I’m co-hosting by clicking the link below! Like Canadian Budget Binder on Facebook! While you are here Subscribe to my blog on the home page so you don’t miss any upcoming contests and posts!! Contest runs March 11, 2013- March 31, 2013
  • Click to Enter to win $500 Cash>>> Starting Our Frugal Garden From Seed
Canadian Budget Binder Blog Posts
Canadian Budget Binder Mentions Around The Web

If you are a CBB fan you must check out these blogs. I follow them all!

Survey Compare Named Canadian Budget Binder Blog of the Month and Interviewed me

Carnival Mentions

web search terms

Google Search terms really help me to understand what people are looking for at Canadian Budget Binder! Any typos below are simply how the person who searched Google and typed it in search incorrectly, or me ;-) Another week of thousands of search terms but only a few good ones worth mentioning.

Top Pick: The Importance of Saying Thank-You Quote- Perfect for today’s topic and something more people would benefit from if they just said Thanks for what they are grateful for in life.

  • Turbo Tax the How To Book Canada- I had no idea they had a “How To” book, I thought the program walked you through step by step
  • Parent upset because day care costs too much money- Day care prices are astronomical for some depending on where you go. If you want to have kids be prepared for all these costs.
  • Chocolate- Really? I think that’s great that someone found me with such a common word like chocolate.
  • Inside the Financial Advisors Mind- I hope that’s not another voodoo attempt to get inside someone’s brain to see what the next big thing will be on the stock market…
  • Chocolate Chewy Bites Mr. CBB- Oh ya.. searching for my recipes is a good thing.
  • Witches Spice Rack- I’m only guessing there is a spice rack that is made by a company called Witches or real witches have their own spice rack…. who knows?

Quote-Budget and Money

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How We Designed Our Budget Step 9-Reading Our Bills!

Posted: May 9, 2012 in All About Budgets
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Why you should check all your bills and what to do if you find an error

Does this scenario below sound like you?

You either open the front door, walk to the post box or go to the post office to gather your post…You scan through it all and then you try to avoid the bills but you know you should read them. You proceed to either open it check the total owing and file it or you simply never open it and toss it in the bin,drawer,on top the refrigerator etc.  Is this a big mistake?

You bet it is…It is so important to keep your finances organized and in check!

There’s more to a bill then looking at the total cost of the bill.

For example

When our credit card bill would come in we would have typically opened it and looked at 2 things

1-The Due Date

2- How much we owe

We never gave a second thought to look at ;

1-Where did we spend the money we owe?

2-What did we buy?

3-How much was it going to cost us if we didn’t pay off the bill on time (yep there’s that “time is money” saying without saying it)

We personally like to use credit cards mainly for monthly perks and rarely use cash. If you use cash and save your receipts that is your ticket to all the information you need. You won’t be billed anything further. Good Old saying “Cash is King” stands, I suppose.

Image representing iPhone as depicted in Crunc...

Sadly, mistakes can happen when it comes to credit card bills or any bills that you are billed for and have to pay. Over the years I’d like to think that I was diligent in saving money but now realize that I could have potentially saved more if I only was mindful of the numbers. Moving forward I read every bill that comes into my hands including receipts from the shops. Human error is a given, we all make mistakes but so can computers..a simple glitch could cost you.

For example just yesterday we used a “Spend $50 save $10 Coupon” at Shopper’s Drug Mart. The cashier scanned our printed coupon for the discount and it presented on the receipt as “coupon”. When I got home I took out the calculator and did the math. The $10 was in fact Not deducted from the bill. I could have potentially lost $10.

Our money after all is hard-earned and to just dish it out without reading all the details is silly. We are also seeing more and more consumers using their Blackberry or Iphones for mobile banking but take caution by reading the Do’s and Don’t s here before you tech up your finances. Also, check with your bank to see how you are protected.

Terms and Conditions are also very important to read when you sign up for a credit card but also when paying for anything that might have such a disclaimer. When we started to read our credit card bills we noticed what we owe is at the top of the bill and VERY clear

New Balance $540.24

Balance Due $540.24

Minimum Due $10.00 (cough cough choke… is that all, don’t get happy it’s nothing to smile about, crikey that’s like trying to move a mule)

Due Date: April 30,2012

BUT… in 2 spots one at the top the other at the bottom you will read  in tiny wording like on our Canadian Tire MasterCard Bill…………

“The Balance Due is the amount you need to pay in order to avoid interest charges on purchases appearing on this statement for the first time. The Minimum Due is the minimum amount you need to pay to avoid your account going into default.”

and….

Repayment Calculation.. (oh ya this is the kicker, you ready for this)

If you make only the minimum payment required each month, it will take you about 4 years and 7 months to repay the balance shown on this statement.. which is ONLY $540.24.…. seriously  are you ready to pay this for 4 bloody years… think about it the next time you swipe the plastic whether you will paying the bill off in full.

Don’t ignore the numbers, they don’t ignore you. This alone should shake up your financial budget and get you thinking about how to pay off a credit card as fast as you can. We always pay our bill in full but for those of you who don’t, read the fine print.

Also,

Every month when bills start arriving we open our CBBBS and match up any receipts we documented and to what credit card. We make sure that every expense on the bill matches what we have on our spreadsheet. You never know if you are billed twice, or any other errors have occurred. Same goes with any bank fees you are charged.

Make sure you can account for all the times that you were charged. If you find a discrepancy contact your financial institutional. How do you know if someone used your credit card to even make one purchase?  Credit Card numbers in my opinion are so easy to get hold of and fraud happens every day around the world.

Credit card

What is Credit Card Fraud?

According the Royal Mounted Police credit card fraud can happen several ways. If your card is lost of stolen a criminal can use that card to manufacture a new card and use it just about anywhere including shopping on-line or over the phone. You can read more here about how to protect yourself.

You may think oh, it’s only $1.00 or $5.00 but if that keeps happening it will all add up. What would you do if you found an extra charge on your bill? You could be using this  money to pay down your debt but only if you catch the errors. If you don’t well its money out the window! Take steps to protect your credit history and always be on the alert for scammers !

Another reason you need to read your bills is to make sure they get paid on time. If you don’t pay your bills on time if you read closely it will tell you they may tack on a nice percentage to the total bill. I remember our first tax bill we messed it up as it was the first we had ever had to pay. They charged us an extra $10 for being late. I was a new home-owner in Canada and still learning the ropes so the City gave me a break. It’s not an excuse but it was the truth so next time I planned to be informed and ready rather than having to explain myself.

 Here’s another example of our Hydro Bill:

Our May 2012 Hydro Bill

Total Amount Due: $263.73

Pay by Due Date: May 11,2012

Amount Due AFTER Due Date $267.68

So, if we don’t pay this bill On time we will pay a further $3.95  which is compounded monthly (19.56% per year) 1.5% … Have you read this on your bill or something similar?

At the end of the day we’ve always been told to read before we sign but the same stands before we pay, Always read before you pay!

You can Find Canadian Budget Binder on Facebook HERE or Twitter Here.. it’s a conversation you Don’t want to miss! Mr.CBB

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