I'm off by a month

I had thought that March was going to be the month when things would get better financially, but it's looking more and more as if April's going to be that month. If I'm not mistaken, I've got a large proofreading project coming in early April (no fixed date, but I'm hoping it'll arrive within the first week to ten days), and I'll also be involved in a writing project this month that will net me around $750 (minus bank transfer fees) when I'm paid for it in late April. I could really use the funds now, but them's the breaks.

This month, I've got a direct deposit from my day job coming on the 23rd, plus about $430 coming from the publishing company that's providing the writing project, plus the remaining $150 of a private tutoring fee. The $430 is for work done in late February; all payments go out on the 20th of any given month, so any work done after the 20th of any month is shunted to the next calendar month.

So the windfall, such as it is, will happen in April. I'll be too late to renew my Costco membership (expires at the end of March) and won't be able to get new tires for the car for a while, but at least I'll be able to pay Uncle Sam the $280 I owe him (the Commonwealth of Virginia, meanwhile, owes me about $80), and once I re-purchase a Costco membership sometime in April, I'll be able to get another six months' worth of contact lenses (am on my last pair from the current six-month batch... I can make them last two months if necessary).

I also called Sallie Mae's automated line and requested a second forbearance. The first one ended in January and I paid my February bill, but that left me with next to nothing. A forbearance sucks because, on a scholastic loan, any accrued interested will be capitalized if it's not paid off during the forbearance period. At the same time, I've got too much hardship to pay the $320/month that Sallie Mae (bitch!) is asking for, so I've requested a delay in payment through August.

May April be as bountiful as I'm hoping it will be. It's not as though the bounty will last, but at the very least it'll afford me some breathing room.


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