Granny Smith Has to Go

Meet Granny Smith       1974 Ford Ranger XLT

The time has come to let her go. The old gal has served her purpose and we can't keep her here anymore. It makes me sad, but it is just one of those things. Maybe someone will see her here on my blog and want to take her home with them. She still has a lot of life left in her. She still turns a lot of heads and gets a few honks and whistles while ambling by. Yep, Granny Smith has been a great asset to our family, but sadly, she needs to find a place to live where she will be appreciated and pampered. Here she is folks. If you or anyone you know would like this classy piece of work, just drop me a line. Her price is negotiable.

Search for Money for College Continues. . .

My search for any kind of financial assistance for my daughter to attend college continues. She has chosen a state university that really isn't that expensive, if you have the funding. As I have written in a previous blog, my husband and I unfortunately had to file for Chapter 13 Bankruptcy a little over a year ago. One of the questions I asked our lawyer was, would we be able to get a student loan so our daughter can go to college? The lawyer said the bankruptcy probably wouldn't interfere with that. Well, the lawyer, in all his brilliance, was wrong! We cannot acquire any more debt while paying off our previous debt. I totally get that, but if we had filed for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, we would not be in this situation. We failed the means test for a Chapter 7.
I filled out the required FAFSA forms in hopes that she might qualify for some kind of help. The unfortunate thing is that it appears  my husband and I have a large income. Being a "displaced housewife," I only earn about $4000 a year, but my husband actually has a really decent job. The only problem is that out of each paycheck, money is  taken out directly and sent to the Trustee. We pay a whopping $5595.00 per month to the trustee. That leaves us with a meager $2000.00 per month to feed and clothe our family of six. We have had some unexpected car repair issues  and so in order to save enough money to pay to fix the car, I have not purchased groceries like a normal person would. It saddens me to say that my poor nine year old has gone to bed hungry and gone to school without breakfast on several occasions during the last three months or so. We made many an evening meal of watered down pancakes lately! We are quickly becoming accustomed to meat free/protein free meals around here! My point is, if our true finances were being reflected in the FAFSA forms, I believe my daughter would qualify for some sort of grant or loan. We are still waiting for the "Award Letter" from the school so I don't know for sure where we stand. I am heartsick that because of a terrible economy and some unwise decisions that my husband and I made, our whole family is paying the price--my oldest daughter being the one who is taking the brunt of it. It is just sickening.
In my search for scholarships and financial aid, I came across an appalling article that claims parents who do not pay for their child's college education are bad, selfish, negligent parents. I wish I could get ahold of the dude who wrote that piece! There are plenty of suggestions for paying for college for people who are in normal financial situations. I am all for parents helping their kids pay for at least some of their college. If we could just get our daughter started, by the time she is finished we will have paid our debts in full and have the money available to help her pay for any loans she would get. The problem is just getting someone to take a chance, and loan her the money. I am sure this saga will continue. If you are in a similar situation as I am and you have found my blog looking for answers, I am sorry to say that I have not found any, but if I do, I will certainly post them here. Please check back again for any new things I have found out.