I was under the impression that to steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.

My professor at Triton didn’t quite see it that way.  So I was going to flunk her course, but she gave me an option. Take it again.  Which might sound reasonable until you figure out you’re going to have to pay twice for honor of enduring the pain twice.

But that’s life. Lesson learned. The even bigger problem was this was an expense I didn’t anticipate. And it caught me short.

So I did more research, on the Internet, and found a way to get fast cash.  You can use your car title, if you own it outright, to get a car title loan. I went to Rolling Meadows Title Loans for mine.  It was easy and fast and I got my money in a day. Amazing.

Next semester, I should be this resourceful in my schoolwork.

By the way Rolling Meadows is near Arlington Heights, Mt Prospect, Wheeling, Elk Grove Village, and Schaumburg.

There are a lot of unanswerables in life. Why is “abbreviated” such a long word? Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons? Why is the third hand on the watch called a second hand?

My new question is why do the commercials make it look like credit cards are about creating a wonderful happy life for you and your family, but car title loans are looked down upon? Lemme tell you about my credit card story.

I was given three credit cards when I went to college, and here, four years after I graduated, I’ve only gotten more and more debt accumulated. I paid the minimum balances for the last three years, then lost my job at United in the fall (just as well, it didn’t make sense to commute into the city now that they moved there from here in Elk Grove Village). My unemployment checks didn’t come close to covering my expenses, so I had to figure out how to keep them working in case I had to buy something on emergency.

Fortunately, my car is paid for (thanks dad!). So I went to Elk Grove Village Title Loans to see what it was worth. I was able to get a car title loan in less than 24 hours, which helped me make rent and get some car repairs that I might need if I take a job in McHenry County (yeah, who knew?). Either way, it was at a rate that is less than my 29% credit card interest charges.

Which goes to show, it pays to question some things we take for granted in life.

By the way Elk Grove Village is near Wood Dale, Bensenville, Mt Prospect, Arlington Heights, and Wheeling.

My mother has been haggling me to get married for about 23 years. She says it’s just not right for a girl in Bartlett to be single after the age of 30. Sheesh. Lately she’s been on my case about how I’ve allowed my cats (four of them) to “fill a void” in my life. She clipped these questions from the Internet that she thinks identifies my problem:

• Do you kiss your cat on the whiskers?
• Do you feed your cat tidbits from the table with your fork?
• Does your cat sleep on your head?
• Do you like it?
• Do you have more than four opened but rejected cans of cat food in the refrigerator?
• Do you watch bad TV because the cat is sleeping on the remote?
• Will you stand at the open door indefinitely in the freezing rain while your cat sniffs the door, deciding whether to go out or come in?

I answered yes to all of them, so I guess I’m guilty. So here’s the rub: She insisted I go on a cruise to meet a man. It seemed like a good idea at the time. So I plunked down my Visa to go on a 9 day cruise to meet the man of my dreams. Unfortunately, I only seemed to meet guys with toupees who were dreaming that a girl wouldn’t notice such a thing (I actually said to one guy, “is that a cat on your head?”). What I ended up with was a $2300 Visa bill just when my company laid off more than a thousand people, including me.

The cats stayed, fortunately, and so I wasn’t all alone in this problem. Next, I discovered I could get some money to cover the Visa charges until I find a new job. My source? Bartlett Title Loans, a car title loan company that lends money based on the title to your car. My Rav-4 has been handy for trips to the vet and a lot else. But now it’s where I find cash when in a pinch. Good deal!

By the way Bartlett is near Bloomingdale, Schaumburg, Elk Grove Village, Carol Stream, and Addison.