In the Ensuing Panic

Today, I made the first payment on what is left of CPI’s A&M bill after financial aid. Over $150 of it came from The Scheme, either eBay sales or scrapping. Not that they would kick him out at once, but I feel good knowing he doesn’t have to worry about it for another month. Friday, I found $.50 and today $.51. When I was young, people used to tell me not to use “fifty-cent” words. They thought I should not use words that might make others insecure because I was smart enough to know what they meant. I find it funny that I can now buy my son two of them.~~TSG

In the last two days, I’ve found $.63 on the floors and in machines. It is a bit slow paying for books word by word, but I’ll take it.~~TSG

After spending some time on the phone yesterday, I determined that I could make a partial payment and it would be applied to any of the installments I wanted. So, I paid what I had put away so far in our regular account onto the payment due January 31st. I still have the money I got from selling the books in another account. At work, I picked up $.26 .~~TSG

If you have been reading along, you know that I recently wrote an anthropology paper about dumpster diving and, as part of my research, did some myself. Although there was not time before the paper was due to investigate the selling things on eBay side of the activity, I posted two things I’d found a few days ago so as to help fund CPI’s further education. This morning, I got an acceptable offer on one of the items I had listed, a textbook. The buyer paid almost immediately and the package goes out tomorrow. After subtracting all fees, I netted $20.87. This will get CPI at least half of a book.~~TSG

Today, I sold the textbook from the Cultural Anthropology class I took last semester to a student currently taking the class. I had e-mailed the professor letting him know I was willing to sell the book for $30, which is more than the bookstore would give me to turn it in but much less than the $79 they want for it in used condition. So, I have money to put towards one of CPI’s textbooks and the buyer got a bargain on a needed textbook. I love it when everyone wins!

In various machines and on the ground, I found a total of $.57 in change. I also found a square silver/mother of pearl ring on a ledge in the bathroom. I will leave a note on the mirror tomorrow asking anyone who left a ring there to call my office phone number. I hope to return it to the owner. If, after a month, no one comes for it; I will probably either sell it or give it as a gift since it is not my style.~~TSG

Today was the first day of the Spring 2017 semester. I found $.21 in change today, but not on my walk. I found it on various trips to the bathroom or the cafeteria. I also found $.02 while cleaning the garage this weekend. More words in the textbook.~~TSG

CPI has now registered for his classes. I guess I can use the three pennies I found today to buy another word out of that textbook I was talking about yesterday. Maybe a “the”, since it is less than the dime. At a cent a letter, maybe the dime could get an “everything”.~~TSG

While walking with CPI across the Texas A&M campus, I found a dime. Considering the cost of schooling, it seems an awfully expensive way to obtain ten cents. Well, maybe I could buy one word out of a textbook for him.~~TSG