Bring forth the babble!

[blackcauldron85]

Thanks, guys! I'm a "Bark Buddy", meaning I walk the dogs, play with them if they want, and can give them baths. I do anything with the cats since they make me sneeze. I didn't know that there was an at-least-8-hours-a-month rule there until just the other day- I read it in a volunteer email. My bad. I do so much other volunteering, I don't make it there much, but to my credit, the shelter I volunteer at was under construction (making a separate building for the cats), so I would've had to go to the shelter that I don't volunteer at.

Tim, I'm happy everything is so far, so great! I can't wait to hear more as time goes by!

Shawn, yay for own bathrooms- I bet that'd be nice! Good luck on your family coming, and good luck convincing your dad!

[blackcauldron85]

Late this morning, sometime between 10:30 and 11ish, I guess, Harry & Sally were barking in the living room. I went to the living room to see what was going on, and there was a Yorkie running from the street into my neighbors' yard. I had never seen the dog before, and I'm not in the habit of checking unfamiliar dogs' tags. Plus, the dog ran into my neighbors' yard.

Side note, which comes into play later: For the past couple weeks, on and off, there have been U-Haul trucks in my neighbors' driveway. I was hoping against all hope that they were moving, since, if you've read some rants of mine before, you know that I can't stand them.

About 20-30 minutes after seeing the Yorkie outside, I received a Freecycle email message in my inbox (Freecycle is a Yahoo! group that has groups all over the nation, and I think even all over the world, and you can give away things you would otherwise throw out, or ask if anyone has an item that they don't want anymoer), and it was about a lost Yorkie. I called the lady and said that I had seen an unfamiliar Yorkie on my street that went into my neighbors' yard. I gave her my address, but I was outside, and the phone was breaking up.

A little while later, I got a phone call from that lady's friend, saying that she was near where I had said, but couldn't find my street, so I gave her directions. She showed up, and I told her that she might want to knock on my neighbors' door, just in case. I told her that I don't like them, and I did see a Yorkie in their yard. She drove off, patroling the neighborhood for the dog, I guess.

A little while later, I heard someone outside, and it sounded like someone was calling for someone. I figured it was the lady, and I brought out a leash, just in case.

Side notes: I don't know if the ladies (the owner and her friend) had said that the dog just didn't have a tag, or if they thought that the tag could've been taken off by someone. I didn't get a clarification, but I didn't ask. Also, they said that the dog had been missing since July 4th.

So, the 2 ladies (the owner of the dog and her friend) knocked on my neighbors' door, and I went over there.

There was the middle-aged guy that has lived there, but everyone else was someone I hadn't seen before. Hence the U-Haul truck, but also, they have always seemed super-shady to me.

One of the girls was holding, what else, a Yorkie. One lady said she just moved in the house and that she has 2 dogs. I wish I had asked "Where is the other dog?", but I didn't. The owner & her friend said to me and to each other that the dog looks like theirs (but the friend said that it looks like she was clipped, I guess meaning had a hair cut), but they had no way of knowing if it was their dog or not.

The 2 ladies left and said that they'd keep in touch with me. I had asked them if there was a way to get the police involved or something, to see if the neighbors have papers for the dog, but they said that not all dogs have papers...I mean, I adopted all my dogs, so I didn't get them as strays, so I have paperwork...but a stray wouldn't have paperwork, I guess, but I would think that an owner would have a receipt from the vet or something. I also wish we had asked how long the neighbor lady had had her dog. Oh, another thing. The 2 ladies (the owner & her friend) had said that the dog's name is Lucy (they said afterwards that they were thinking of having the dog put on the ground and they'd see if she responded to her name), and the neighbor lady said that *her* dog's name is Lulu. She said that afterwards, so easily she could've just made that up. I'm very suspicious.

I already didn't like my neighbors, and I'm pretty sure that they (or at least the ones who have lived there before) know that, and I am a bit worried that, if that actually isn't their dog (I mean, if it was a *stray*

I still am super-suspicious, but there's nothing else I can do. I hope something is worked out. I hope either someone returns the lady's dog, or she tries to take action against my neighbors.

I guess this shows the importance of microchipping your animals. My Oliver has a microchip, since the SPCA puts one in all the adopted dogs, but Sally & Harry don't, and they really should get microchipped, just in case.

[PeterPanfan]

Wow. Maybe if you see the dog running around the yard you can yell "Lucy!" and see what happens.

I feel bad for the lady who lost the dog. I hope she finds it soon.

[blackcauldron85]

a) I don't know if the dog will be in the yard without at least one neighbor present.
b) Regardless of whether the dog's name is Lucy or Lulu, they are so similar that she would probably respond to either?
c) If the dog were to be in the yard by herself, if I did call her and brought her into my house, 1) my dogs would freak out, and she's so small compared to my dogs, and 2) the neighbors could say that I dognapped the dog. I don't want them getting so mad at me that they retaliate, breaking into my house and hurting my dogs. I need to reiterate to Bobby that he is not to let the dogs out of his sight when he lets them outside.

[blackcauldron85]

I guess it was yesterday, I was reading a fact-sheet article on Broadway.com about Drew Seeley. I've already been crushing on him majorly lately...

So, I knew that he had lived in Orlando for a little while, and the fact-sheet said that he went to the college that I went to! I wrote to him on Twitter that I had just read that and I said "Go Knights!", since that's the school's mascot, and he Tweeted me back: "Go Knights"! <3 I'm so happy!!! He made my day. I <3 Twitter. Haha.

[Chernabog_Rocks]

Last night I went over to my family's house since my uncle from the mainland came over for a visit, and a friend came over as well for the night. We had a great time, went shopping in the afternoon then had some KFC for supper. After things digested a bit, my cousin, friend and I went outside and had a huge water balloon fight.

Most fun I've had in a long time

[Prudence]

My brainchild for this forum is still alive. That makes me glad.

[Prudence]

Please hug the Prudy kitten (without squashing her). She's been through more than you know.



Edit:

Dear Darling YouTube Roleplayers,

Please stop it with the terribly lame comments such as, "Hello, ma'am. How are you?" Seriously, I think I have about three hundred of those... in shoddily written grammar.

Sincerely,
Her Grace... who was fine and dandy until you started asking her the same question so many times in a row

[Prudence]

Today was my first full day off of work since starting at the place.

[blackcauldron85]

How do you like your job so far, Prudence?

My babble:

1. I just cut my hair by myself! I was never that brave before, although I have cut bangs before. It wasn't hard, and it might not be quite as good as if I went to a salon, but it looks decent to me, and I'll ask Bobby when he gets home, and I wear it up most of the time anyway. It was just getting long, and I probably cut 3 inches or so off.

2. I started my job search again last week after taking some time off due to being beyond frustrated that no one ever hires me. I applied to 4 places last week and got 2 rejection emails (one even saying that my resume was impressive- wtf? If it was impressive, why didn't youi interview me!!!). I just looked through the Job section of the Sunday paper, and it has 2 listings for thrift store employees. I have extensive volunteer experience at thrift stores, and I adore thrift stores, so I'm going to head down with my resume. The printer needs to be installed on my computer (since Bobby and I switched computers), and so I called Bobby to ask if he could print out my resume at work and I'll come pick it up. He asked me for the address of the store, and I told him, and he said that it's "so far away". I volunteer farther away than that for no pay! Seriously, he drives me bonkers with statements like that. Don't pester me about getting a job and then when I maybe have found something, say that it's so far away! It's 22 minutes away! Ugh! I do hope they'll hire me, though. I need a job. And I like thrift stores. And I read online that they have sucky customer service, and I give amazing customer service, if I may say so, so they better hire me!!! Wish me luck!

3. Jonas Brothers concert tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so excited!!! :pink::pink:

[PeterPanfan]

1. Congrats on cutting your hair! You should post pics!

2. Aw, I really hope you get the job!

3. Have a lot of fun!!!!

[blackcauldron85]

1. Thanks! I could post pics...maybe later!

2. Thanks! I went there and filled out the application and handed it to the manager or whoever she is. I had never been to that thrift store before- it's quite massive. My thrift store experience should impress whoever calls people for interviews. There were 2 ads in the paper- one for cashier/floor and one for retail/production. I'm still not quite sure what that one is, but as I was filling out the application, there was a worker next to me, and I asked her what her position is, and she said supervisor, and I asked her if it'd be okay to apply for both jobs, and she said yes. So next to "what position are you applying for?", I put both and wrote that I have thrift store experience and am interested in both. The ad said that both jobs pay $7.75/hr, which is pretty low, yet at the same time, anything is better than the $0/hr I've been making for a long time. I prefer the smaller thrift store that I volunteer at- this place has SO many workers, it's bonkers. And I read online a few reviews, and customer service was complained about, as was a rule that if something doesn't have a price tag, it will be priced "for tomorrow"- meaning you have to come back the next day if you still want the item; even if you find an exact item with the same price, it still won't be priced until the next day, and one review said one toy was marked $4.95 and an identical one didn't have a price, and that person a) couldn't buy it, and b) said it was marked to $14.95 or something. So it doesn't sound like the best place, and I don't know why they need so many workers. By the looks of it, I don't know if I'd enjoy it, but it'd be a job. 9am-6pm. And there was a worker there who made friendly conversation with me while I filled out my application, so yay. Ideally, I'd get a job based on a resume- jobs where you need an application only bother me. And, how would I move up in that company, or transfer my skills elsewhere? I don't know if it'd be ideal, besides the fact that I have thrift store experience.

And when I went to Bobby's work to pick up the resume I didn't need, he said sorry for complaining about how far the place is, and that it's not far at all. Except it took forever to get home, since I should've went a different way (there were at least 3 options to get home, I think), but didn't.

3. I intend to!

[Prudence]

How do you like your job so far, Prudence?

I love it!

[blackcauldron85]

Yay, I'm glad!

[Chernabog_Rocks]

Various bits of babble

1) I am SO excited about the new Wheel of Time book coming out, especially since the release date was moved up a week I decided to start re-reading the whole series in prep for the new one.

2) I've been told my Great Aunt has contacts with different Publishers, therefore if I ever do start/finish my book there's a good chance it will actually get put out.

3) I'm going on vacation in the next few days, get to visit family and we're having a big get together/picnic. With games, lots of food and supposedly horses as well.

4) I got money today, huzzah! Just in time for Pete's Dragon to come out, and in time for my vacation.

[blackcauldron85]

To Shawn:
1. Yay!
2. Yay!
3. Yay!
4. Yay!

What a happy post yours was- I'm glad you're happy!

I hate being irresponsible with money. I'm an excellent grocery shopper- I use coupons and buy what's on sale, and am good about not wasting food. But with my spending money, my "play" money, it's always been something that I think about every so often. There have been numerous CDs and DVDs that I've bought and sold over the years. I guess I figure that there are other things that I'd rather have, or sometimes I just would rather have money than something that I don't use often.

Today I was scrounging around my house for CD jewel cases- I was going to sell some CDs that I don't listen to, or that I have doubles of, to CD Warehouse- I figure that I could use some extra spending money and if I haven't listened to the CD in a while, I probably don't need it. It's hard. Take No Doubt's "Tragic Kingdom" album. It's a good album, but I barely ever listen to it. Will I miss it when I sell it? I've been thinking about getting rid of excess- I sold some clothes on eBay (but with clothes, I've been starting to buy medium shirts, since smalls shrink, and I'm now thinking more long-term about my clothes, like how they fit and what's on them (as much as I like Elmo, I'm almost 24 1/2, and just the other day I've decided this about my clothes), and those clothes didn't sell for much, and the others didn't sell at all. Oh, well.

Oh, I got sidetracked- the CD Warehouse near me was closed! As in, for good. I could drive to the other CD Warehouse sometime, or try selling on eBay or Half.com.

It's hard to know what things (underlined because I'm emphasizing physical things, not using the term generally) you'll want to have in the future, and which things that you currently barely use that you won't miss. Should I not sell these CDs, because then I'll miss some of the songs, or should I sell them, since I don't really ever listen to them? I'm not 100% sure yet. And with my non-Disney DVDs (and TV DVDs, including Disney), I don't have the cases anymore, since I keep them in a CD wallet. I would probably post some DVD lots in the Trade section here first, and sell some for cheap.

Ugh, it's driving me bonkers, but money management is important. I'm already in debt, thanks to the $9.50 I paid for parking for the Jonas Brothers concert last night (which was, of course, AMAZING, btw!). It's just important to really buy only what you really want. Yes, I have music on my external hard drive, including a lot of music that I've downloaded, just singles and whatnot. And if I sell those CDs, I'll have to take the music off, unless I know that I had previously downloaded some singles prior to purchasing the album. With music, I decided a couple hours ago that maybe I should just focus on/spend my money on my favorite artists, because I know that I'll enjoy their music. There are some albums that are scratched that I've been using backup CDs, and part of me feels like I should rebuy the albums when I have money to rebuy the album, so I'll be using all original albums, and not some CD-Rs. But it's just a thought and it'll take a while to accumlate all those again. By focusing on my favorite artists only, then I'll know that I'll enjoy their music and the money is well spent. I mean, obviously I can get new favorite artists... Then there are the artists who, while I'm a fan of theirs, and I buy all their albums, they're at the bottom of my favorites list, and I can't sing all their songs, etc. Like Ashley Tisdale's new album- I like Ashley Tisdale and her new album isn't bad, but it isn't as good as music made by people that are my favorites. So maybe next time I should listen on YouTube before I buy and not rush to Target right when it opens, and see if it's worth spending my hard-earned money on. As it is, I get what comes out to be $7.50 a week (but I get it bi-weekly, so $15), and I think I'm still paying off my Hanson ticket, and now I'm going to have to pay off my Jonas Brothers parking garage visit. (By "in debt" and "pay off", I mean to our main bank account, not my "play" account.)

I was also thinking about trying to sell some work clothes that I have- I bought them for my internship a couple years ago because I needed businessy clothes (a few pieces I bought in 2004 for a job I had, too) at a cheap price, but some of them just aren't my style at all. If I can sell them on eBay, I could find a few new pieces that are more me, more classic worky versus flowy blouse crap.

My Disney books are great references, and many I use more than others. I may post some here to sell for cheap, I guess. I also need to start telling people that for Christmas, really only get me things I ask for, because otherwise I have things that I don't really want. My aunt and uncle, a few years ago, gave us a Bed, Bath, & Beyond gift card. We got a Pasta Express, which doesn't cook pasta well and we never use it, and a lazy susan, which is collecting dust. Sure, we could've bought other things, but we just don't shop at that store. If you get something that you don't know you're getting, though, then it's different; I'm a project coordinator for a volunteer group I work with (it's a volunteer position- I still have no job), and a couple months ago, we had a bowling night. I won a $20 Borders gift card in the "Let's Make a Deal" or whatever game we were playing. I don't shop at Borders; it's far away and everything costs a lot of money. I had been saving up for buying Pete's Dragon and Hannah Montana: The Movie, and then when I got the gift card, I figured that I'd use it to subsidize the cost a bit. Well, I saw that Pete's Dragon was listed at $31.99 for pre-order on Borders.com, and I told Bobby, and he said that he would sell the Borders gift card for me (he'd go to the store and ask a customer if he/she wanted it), but he never did that, so I told him that he can do whatever he wants with the gift card since he did nothing with it for me, so I used our main bank account debit card to pay for the movies and just reimbursed it the total price minus the $20 (I had spent some money on song downloads, and I did that because I figured I have an extra $20...but I didn't spend too much, and I had bought a few t-shirts, but they were only a few dollars each).

I had bought a bunch of TV-on-DVD titles, and ended up selling them...as for hour long dramas that I hadn't seen too much of before, it was just too time consuming to get into them. And for comedies, I just wasn't watching them. Even the TV-on-DVD I bought after I sold those I just haven't watched. But I feel like I should get "Degrassi" on DVD, since I love watching the marathons of that. As much as I love Disney Channel and watch/watched the shows when they're on, I haven't touched my "Hannah Montana", "Lizzie McGuire", or "Life with Derek" season sets, not to mention my "Malcolm in the Middle". I don't have the cases (although I have the HM slipcover), but should I sell them? Or will I eventually watch them? I just don't know. Ugh. It's hard to know what I should keep and what I should try to sell.

Wow, this is long. Wow, if you read all that, wow. Thanks. I've been blabbing in my emails lately, just thinking out loud. Yay for my friends, huh. I just want to make wise decisions with my money, and I'm still young and make mistakes...*sigh*

[DisneyFreak5282]

I hate being irresponsible with money...With my spending money, my "play" money, it's always been something that I think about every so often.

I hate being irresponsible with my play money as well. A few years ago, before I started my summer job, the only money I made throughout the whole year was from my birthday and Christmas. My parents used to pay for things for me. If I was going out (bowling, movies, whatever), they would offer me some money so I wasn't broke, and it was nice. But every summer I am a camp counselor and I make a decent amount of money, and my parents told me I should start paying for myself, which is why I blow through lots of my money fast. But hey, I guess it's all part of being 17!

Today I was scrounging around my house for CD jewel cases- I was going to sell some CDs that I don't listen to, or that I have doubles of, to CD Warehouse- I figure that I could use some extra spending money and if I haven't listened to the CD in a while, I probably don't need it. It's hard. Take No Doubt's "Tragic Kingdom" album. It's a good album, but I barely ever listen to it. Will I miss it when I sell it?

I go to FYE very often, but every few months I go through all my CDs and DVDs and figure out what I'm going to trade in. Back in January I got $68! Anyways, whenever I go through CDs and DVDs I have the same problem. It's hard knowing if you'll miss the CD or DVD when you sell it, which is why I don't really sell a lot. If there are a few of songs you really love on the album, but not too many (like 3 or 4, not like 10 or 11), I would sell it and buy the songs you like on iTunes. This saves shelf space and you can get the songs you really love.

I've been thinking about getting rid of excess- I sold some clothes on eBay (but with clothes, I've been starting to buy medium shirts, since smalls shrink, and I'm now thinking more long-term about my clothes, like how they fit and what's on them (as much as I like Elmo, I'm almost 24 1/2, and just the other day I've decided this about my clothes), and those clothes didn't sell for much, and the others didn't sell at all. Oh, well.

As for clothes, I would definitely think about how they fit and what's on them. If you're trying to cut back and save money, clothes would be first on my list of things to modify. When you buy clothes, try them on when you get home, but leave the tag on. If the shirt or whatever article of clothing fits nicely, hang on to it. If you find a shirt you like and it shrinks in the wash, buy a size up. Don't worry about how much you make when you sell it on eBay, if you're anything like me and you really are money-conscious, every penny is a great help.

Oh, I got sidetracked- the CD Warehouse near me was closed! As in, for good. I could drive to the other CD Warehouse sometime, or try selling on eBay or Half.com.

I've never been to a CD Warehouse! Oh well. Anyways, try trading in your CDs and DVDs at FYE, they give really good prices. Keep in mind they're not going to give you tons of money, but they ask you if at the end you would like your money in cash or credit. If you have other CDs and DVDs you would like to buy or you know are coming out, take the store credit, because they give you 25% more of what they would pay you if you take your money in cash. If it's a CD or DVD that's much older, you're not gonna get much no matter where you sell it.

Should I not sell these CDs, because then I'll miss some of the songs, or should I sell them, since I don't really ever listen to them? I'm not 100% sure yet. And with my non-Disney DVDs (and TV DVDs, including Disney), I don't have the cases anymore, since I keep them in a CD wallet. I would probably post some DVD lots in the Trade section here first, and sell some for cheap.

Keep in mind what I said before about buying the certain songs on iTunes and stuff.

With music, I decided a couple hours ago that maybe I should just focus on/spend my money on my favorite artists, because I know that I'll enjoy their music. There are some albums that are scratched that I've been using backup CDs, and part of me feels like I should rebuy the albums when I have money to rebuy the album, so I'll be using all original albums, and not some CD-Rs. But it's just a thought and it'll take a while to accumlate all those again.

Definitely don't re-buy the album if you have a backup and have previously purchased the CD. That can waste money fast, and you're right, it will take a while to accumulate again.

So maybe next time I should listen on YouTube before I buy and not rush to Target right when it opens, and see if it's worth spending my hard-earned money on.

If you want all these albums and can wait a few weeks to a month after it gets released, go to FYE and buy the album used. Newer albums usually are sold used for $8.99 - $9.99, and usually some sort of promotion on used items (buy 3 get the 4th free, buy 3 get the 4th 50% off). They have a 100% Guarantee, which is you can return the used product if you're not satisfied, and they clean / resurface the discs before they put them on sale. I've only had 1 or 2 problems in the 5 years I've been buying used from them, and they're very good about it. If you have a defective used product and it was the last copy used, they give you the option of either a store credit for the amount you paid or they give you the option of buying it new and just paying the difference between the used price and the new price. They don't ask questions and they're very good at handling it.

I was also thinking about trying to sell some work clothes that I have- I bought them for my internship a couple years ago because I needed businessy clothes (a few pieces I bought in 2004 for a job I had, too) at a cheap price, but some of them just aren't my style at all. If I can sell them on eBay, I could find a few new pieces that are more me, more classic worky versus flowy blouse crap.

Again, definitely sell the clothes on eBay. You never know who will be online shopping for that flowy blouse crap

I also need to start telling people that for Christmas, really only get me things I ask for, because otherwise I have things that I don't really want.

If I were you, I would put some CDs and DVDs on that Christmas list, that way you're set for a while and you have backup "play" money.

I won a $20 Borders gift card in the "Let's Make a Deal" or whatever game we were playing. I don't shop at Borders; it's far away and everything costs a lot of money. I had been saving up for buying Pete's Dragon and Hannah Montana: The Movie, and then when I got the gift card, I figured that I'd use it to subsidize the cost a bit. Well, I saw that Pete's Dragon was listed at $31.99 for pre-order on Borders.com.

.

Always check the actual store when you're about to buy a CD or DVD, because there's a 90% chance that the prices aren't going to be the same online as in-store.

The only store I know that has consistent online and in-store pricing is Best Buy. Even if you search for something on their website and it's on sale for a certain price, and you walk into the store and there's no sign indicating it's on sale, trust me, it will ring up as being on sale. This has happened many times to me before with that store, and that's why that's the only website I look on when I want a CD or DVD because they don't advertise all their sales in the weekly ad.

I had bought a bunch of TV-on-DVD titles, and ended up selling them...as for hour long dramas that I hadn't seen too much of before, it was just too time consuming to get into them. And for comedies, I just wasn't watching them. Even the TV-on-DVD I bought after I sold those I just haven't watched. But I feel like I should get "Degrassi" on DVD, since I love watching the marathons of that. As much as I love Disney Channel and watch/watched the shows when they're on, I haven't touched my "Hannah Montana", "Lizzie McGuire", or "Life with Derek" season sets, not to mention my "Malcolm in the Middle". I don't have the cases (although I have the HM slipcover), but should I sell them? Or will I eventually watch them? I just don't know. Ugh. It's hard to know what I should keep and what I should try to sell.

I never sell my TV DVDs. They're great to have, and they actually aren't as time consuming as you think. For one thing, there's no commercials! I also love having them because I love watching a show commercial-free, and on my own schedule. Your life's very busy, so maybe TV-DVDs would be the best route for you, that way you don't have to worry about when your favorite show is on, and what time and all that crap. I never regretted buying a TV DVD (well, except the season sets of SNL, but that's a story in itself).

Wow, this is long. Wow, if you read all that, wow. Thanks. I've been blabbing in my emails lately, just thinking out loud. Yay for my friends, huh. I just want to make wise decisions with my money, and I'm still young and make mistakes...*sigh*

No problem, Amy! It only took me 43 minutes to respond to this!

[PeterPanfan]

I love reading long posts, so feel free to rant anytime you want!

Ryan covered nearly everything I was going to say, and I definitely agree with everything he said.

Also, Ryan, since we're both fans of FYE, do you have that card or whatever that enables extra discounts, etc.? I've been thinking about getting one, but IDK yet. I need opnions.

[DisneyFreak5282]

I love reading long posts, so feel free to rant anytime you want!

Ryan covered nearly everything I was going to say, and I definitely agree with everything he said.

Also, Ryan, since we're both fans of FYE, do you have that card or whatever that enables extra discounts, etc.? I've been thinking about getting one, but IDK yet. I need opnions.

The Backstage Pass? I've wanted one, but I've been on the fence about it. It's $25 a year, which is sort of expensive if you ask me. Plus, there's only a 10% discount, which really isn't much at all. They're so expensive to begin with so by the time you get the 10% discount it's probably still more expensive than Best Buy or Target or Wal Mart (you get the picture). Online it says you receive "special promotions" through e-mail, which sounds interesting because it makes you wonder what sort of promotions. I probably wouldn't sign up for it if I were you, I just think $25 is a little much, when the only thing that you 100% are certain about is the fact that you get 10% purchases. For all we know these 'special promotions' could say something like "40% off your entire purchase!...when you spend $75 or more" or something like that. If you want to try it, go for it. I'm actually still very curious about it myself, but the last thing I signed up for was Best Buy's Reward Zone and that is the biggest rip off ever. I feel like it's only a card that they scan and nothing else.

[blackcauldron85]

Anyways, try trading in your CDs and DVDs at FYE, they give really good prices. Keep in mind they're not going to give you tons of money, but they ask you if at the end you would like your money in cash or credit.

I haven't sold at FYE in a while, but at least in the past, I was only ever given the option of an FYE gift card as payment. I forgot about FYE, though, and I could rebuy some of the scratched albums I have, and I want Kelly Clarkson's new CD and maybe her last one (she's one of the artists I'm sticking with), and I could buy some Elvis music I have and buy some of the Beatles music I only have copies of.

Definitely don't re-buy the album if you have a backup and have previously purchased the CD. That can waste money fast, and you're right, it will take a while to accumulate again.

Even though it will cost extra in the end and will take a while to accumulate, but I really would like original copies again...it just makes me feel better! For something like my Britney Spears "Oops, I Did It Again" album, only one song is briefly affected, but I'd still like to have an unscratched original again...

What stinks is that for some albums (but not many, really), I downloaded so I can’t trade them in. Like Ashlee Simpson’s newest and Paramore- I just don’t listen to them often at all.

Does FYE sell slim jewel cases? I need some of those...

If you want all these albums and can wait a few weeks to a month after it gets released, go to FYE and buy the album used. Newer albums usually are sold used for $8.99 - $9.99, and usually some sort of promotion on used items (buy 3 get the 4th free, buy 3 get the 4th 50% off).

That's actually really good advice, Ryan! But if it's Hanson, Corbin, Jonas Brothers, Backstreet Boys, or Mandy Moore, then there's no way I can wait that long, haha, but for the other artists who aren't in my top 5, then yeah, that's really good advice.

f I were you, I would put some CDs and DVDs on that Christmas list, that way you're set for a while and you have backup "play" money.

It's hard, though, because if we go home to Massachusetts for Christmas, then I do send my parents a list to give to everyone, but here in Florida, I don't give a list to my aunt, uncles, or cousins...I mean, I'm grateful for whatever they give. I don't want to sound selfish and ungrateful for things I've previously received. Maybe the things they get are what they can afford and they got them on sale, I don't know. I'm pretty close with my cousin, though, so I could ask her opinion on the matter. Even asking for a Target gift card- they won't know that I won't be using it on towels and lamps and stuff!

Always check the actual store when you're about to buy a CD or DVD, because there's a 90% chance that the prices aren't going to be the same online as in-store.

I know that, but at the same time, I know that Borders is more expensive than Target or Best Buy. And a heck of a lot farther away.

No problem, Amy! It only took me 43 minutes to respond to this!

Thank you!!! :pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink:
:pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink:
:pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink:
:pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink:
:pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink::pink:

Those are for your hard work! I do appreciate it!

And thanks, too, Dan- it's the thought that counts! :pink::pink:

the last thing I signed up for was Best Buy's Reward Zone and that is the biggest rip off ever. I feel like it's only a card that they scan and nothing else.

That's been free for years! I never signed up for it when it cost money, but for the past few years, it's been free. I would check with your local Best Buy...maybe it's not in all areas?