I'm coming full circle. When we moved to Portland 8 years ago, I got Comcast triple play (voice, TV, internet) for $115, it was such a good deal! Well, over time it went up and up and last year, when it was $230 or so, I dropped voice and replaced it with a $12 extra line with our cellular carrier. That took the Comcast bill from $230/mo to $130/mo This weekend I dropped TV, something my kids have been telling me to do, since we hardly ever watch cable TV. That takes my Comcast bill to $95/mo for just 50 MB/s internet. I will also drop my TiVo service at $15/mo. I can reduce it to $85/mo by downgrading to 25 MB/s internet, or I can drop Comcast entirely and get internet from our local telco. They charge $80/mo for 40 MB/s, but there is a 1 year introductory $30/mo price, and I'm told they extend that for another year if you call and state your intention to drop. We are paying for $16/mo for Netflix and Hulu Plus. I might subscribe to an online sports streaming service for another $10/mo. In the summer, I might pay $30 to watch the Tour de France online. TL:DR version - "I was paying $245/mo for Comcast + TiVo, I am now $123/mo for Comcast + Netflix + Hulu + a cellular home phone, and I can get it to $58/mo for telco internet 1-or-2-year deal + Netflix + Hulu + cellular home phone." I will spend about $200 one-time for a used modem, Roku, cables to connect Mac to TV, maybe an OTA antenna. We are still figuring out the limitations of Netflix and Hulu. For example, my son asked how he could watch the current season of Doctor Who. Turns out that BBC UK streams it but only to the UK, and by going through a free proxy server in the UK, you can watch it in the US.

Here is something I found at Bankrate.com. Can't find the original link, but I saved the article. "Create accountability: When you receive a call, get the caller's full name, the company he is working for, a phone number where he can be reached, and the origination of the debt. If he refuses to give you any of these pieces of information, ask him, "Why? Are you planning to threaten me illegally?" Be strong: If he won't give you the debt origination, or he says that he doen't know, explain to him that you understand that this is traceable information; and that you would be happy to explain to a judge how you defaulted on your debt because there was no evidence of a debt even originating. Judges tend to dislike creditors and collection agencies that display slimy business practices and will favor someone like you with a legitimate argument. Be repetitive: Repeat yourself. Say the same thing over and over. Use the same phrase again and again. Repeat yourself (you get the idea). The collector will continue to ask, "When are you going to pay?" You can reply with a version of, "I want to pay this bill, but I don't know you, and I've got no evidence that this is a real debt. Before we negotiate any further, I require specific knowledge of this debt's origination." Justin Harelik is a practicing bankruptcy lawyer in the Los Angeles office of Price Law Group. To ask a question of the Bankruptcy Adviser go to the "Ask the Experts" page, and select "bankruptcy" as the topic. ÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃÃ Also: Check the statute of limitations for collecting debts in your state. The National Association of Attorneys General provides links to state offices that often have a consumer affairs section where you can determine what statute applies in your case. A few more links. http://www.bankrate.com/dls/news/debt/20050513a1.asp http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/menu-call.htm http://fair-debt-collection.com/

Exactly. And I have since checked out more on opensourcefood.com. I've also checked out recipes in Bakersfield. The same thing happended a while back when someone posted a recipe from another blog without giving credit. The "owner" of the blog posted on here to complain and that's when I discovered a wonderful new blog with some delicious new recipes. I don't always have time to read the converstions stuff and I might have missed it. I think Ann did the right thing posting it on here. I, however, was wrong in posting my question about the Bar Mitzvah on here yesterday -- it was totally not food related. But I needed an answer in a hurry and I knew I could trust the advice of some people on here. I was afraid if I posted it on conversations I wouldn't get an answer soon enough. So, I abused the CF.

My Husband and I just applied for a loan with mortgage broker to get a pre-approval letter for an upcoming offer we want to make. She told me all of our credit scores (6 in total, his 3 and mine.) I was actually surprised how different some scores were! My Husbands I remember specifically. His lowest was 800 and his highest was 850. He has what I would deem perfect credit, ie I don't recall him EVER making a late payment on ANYTHING and we have virtually no debt. We use a credit card for the reward points, but pay in full every month. So, I don't understand the difference in scores. However, for the purpose of the loan & terms, She explained they would use the midddle score of each borrower and then the lowest of those 2.That is the score they use to determine the rate and programs we qualify for. For us this score was 796 and she said that would qualify us for any program out there with the best rates available. Since it's new construction and the loan is 4-6 months away, we didn't get to the nitty gritty so I can't say specifics. She did tell me any score about 720 (at least with them) got you the best of the best.