Sabby Ann

After over a year of going back and forth on grad school, debating whether or not to pursue an advanced degree, and deciding between three separate programs (Civil Engineering, Business Administration, Public Administration), I’ve finally decided! 

A Masters in Civil Engineering would give me expertise in my current field, but wouldn’t really create any new opportunities for career advancement. Michigan State, University of Toledo, and Wayne State are the three local universities that offer it (with a focus on Transportation/Traffic Engineering), but Wayne State is the only one that has primarily evening courses…. and they only have one faculty member with that specialty, and he’s very close to retiring, from what I’m told. It’s also the most expensive option. 

A Masters in Business Administration (MBA) is what most of my coworkers & peers are pursuing (or have already!), and would help put me on a management track. I could still get there without it, but it would enable me to remain in a competitive position. Unfortunately, when I spoke to the MBA Advisor, I wasn’t particularly happy with what he had to say. He indicated that I would be required to take a few pre-requisite courses prior to enrolling, for a total of 48 required credits (16 courses). He also stressed how superior the MBA degree is in comparison to the MPA, citing a significantly higher earning potential and a wider variety of career opportunities.

He was completely oblivious to the fact that some people choose a career for reasons other than money. Conversing in the office with him reminded me of just how boring the business-types are, and how I don’t really want to be stuck in boring classes with stuffy boring people for the next four years. 

But the Masters in Public Administration offers the best overall combination: the local government concentration is highly applicable to what I do, and will offer future advancement opportunities while allowing me to stand out from MBA graduates. The department is much smaller in size, and everyone I’ve spoken with appears to be very friendly and helpful. I’ve satisfied all their pre-req requirements, so I’d only need 40 credits (10 classes, including the capstone project). And most importantly, the course descriptions seem interesting. 

The application requires two short essays and a couple letters of recommendation, in addition to the usual form+transcripts. The transcripts and recommendation letters will be sent next week… hopefully I can motivate myself to draft the essays this weekend!

Eric & I had a couple of wedding photography gigs in the Grand Rapids area this past weekend, so we sent Snickers over to stay with my parents for the weekend. He seems to enjoy going there, and he gets a lot of attention and lap-time while there. This time he got a DIY haircut too. 

Eric’s reaction, ”The in-laws made the dog look like his face got stuck in a pencil sharpener…“- posted on Twitter, for all to read. I still can’t stop laughing at that. 

Snickers, from the side.

Snickers, from the front.

For reference, this is what a typical short-haired Yorkie looks like. —> 

Although some Yorkies have hair all the way to the floor, I’ve kept Snickers with a shorter cut (similar to the dog in this photo)- much easier to brush and bathe! 

During the winter, I keep his hair 2-3″ in length, so that he at least has something to keep him warm. During the peak summer months I’ll trim him even shorter, sometimes even shaving him completely. 
 

Mom had called to tell me that she trimmed the dog, and that he looked a bit like a fox. Eric, on the other hand, thinks he looks more like a raccoon. I guess I can see a vague resemblance to both. 

Any other opinions? 

It was another great coupon day at CVS! 

The store that I stopped at was either sold out or didn’t carry a few items that I had planned to “buy” (all would have been free, after sales and/or coupons). Even so, I made out quite well!

All this, for only eighty cents!
       (1) 18-ct box of Playtex tampons 
       (2) boxes of Band-Aids 
       (2) Johnson & Johnson First-Aid To Go kits
       (1) Colgate Total toothpaste 
       (1) Sensodyne travel-size toothpaste

CVS has a rewards card program where you have to sign up for their card in order to receive their sale prices. A lot of their “sale” items are discounted slightly, and then they give you an additional store credit (called Extra Care Bucks, or ECBs) to be used at a later date. 

I used $10 worth of ECBs (from previous purchases), plus six manufacturer coupons, bringing the total to only $0.80.

I also got back $9 in ECBs to be used for a future visit.

I’ve posted several blog entries on the subject of the Making Home Affordable (MHA) Refinance program, and how we’d like to try to get into a lower interest rate than the 7.00% & 9.625% that we’re now paying. But as more information about the program becomes available, the less appealing it is to pursue a refinance right now…. 

The MHA program has been plagued by several lengthy delays getting off the ground. It took far longer than originally indicated just to get the guidelines established and the Desktop Underwriter (DU) “streamline refinance” software deployed. It took several months before banks were able to provide any information whatsoever, and many still aren’t able to accept or process applications under the program. Appraisers are swamped, and it’s taking 30+ days before they’re even able to get out to complete the new appraisal. The banks are taking even longer to process the refinance loans - once all the paperwork and documentation has been submitted, including the new appraisal, it takes 30-45 days (or more!) before they can completely process the loan. With the delays being so long, it’s difficult to “lock-in” current interest rates: a 30-day lock is too short, and it’s even questionable whether a 60-day lock would be enough time for the bank to get the new loan through. 

And it turns out that Fannie Mae has implemented some very consumer-unfriendly pricing schemes for mortgages underwritten through them… both on new loans and on refinance loans. They’ve tacked on what amounts to two new hefty fees: the Loan-Level Price Adjustment (LLPA), and the Adverse Market Delivery Charge (AMDC). Both are intended to compensate Fannie Mae for the “extra risk” they’re taking on. And it’s not just limited to Fannie Mae… Freddie Mac is doing it too, they just have their own pricing matrix. 

The LLPA was announced in April 2008, and takes into account several factors about the loan and borrower. They’re tacking on extra points for condos & co-ops, interest-only mortgages, investment properties, cash-out loans, having a subordinate loan (2nd mortgage), high loan-to-value ratio, and sub-optimal credit scores (which currently includes anyone <720). And of course, these points are all cumulative. 

The AMDC is the particularly irritating part. They’re essentially charging a fee for making a loan while the economy sucks. The amount has fluctuated since it was first announced, and is currently 0.25 points… even for the “perfect” borrower!  

For us, since we have a second mortgage, the LLPA means an automatic 1.5 point fee by Fannie Mae, if we try to refinance. Tack on another point or so for the credit score/LTV numbers (based on Fannie Mae’s MHA Pricing Matrix), plus 0.25 points for the AMDC, and our refinance loan just got really expensive. Oh yeah, plus there’s still all the normal fees - the $400 appraisal, the $800 title company fees, and the miscellaneous bank fees… 

It would probably still be beneficial to refinance, over the long-run (I think the break-even point would end up being around 3 years!), but it’s quite frustrating at how the Making Homes Affordable program seems to have failed in it’s original purpose. 

Not only do the banks get free money (upwards of several thousand dollars, per loan!) from the federal government for “helping” homeowners get into more stable loans with lower payments, they also get to charge me a fee to administer the paperwork. The appraisers and title companies also each get their share (they’re the only ones that I think have a legitimate reason to get paid for their services). And now Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac get a huge chunk, just for reducing the interest rate on a loan that they ALREADY have underwritten. Something seems wrong… 

But hey, that’s our tax dollars at work.

For most civil engineers, becoming a licensed professional engineer is a huge milestone. Just graduating with a degree in engineering doesn’t mean much. You can get a job, and you can practice engineering, but you can’t “sign off” on plans or specifications. In order to submit plans, an engineer with a license in THAT state must sign off. In order to get licensed, it’s a multi-year process that includes:

• Obtain Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree from an AEC/ABET or CEAB-accredited school
• At least 4 years of engineering experience after graduating (co-ops/internships don’t count)
• Pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, an 8-hour test (usually taken during senior year, but can be taken after graduating)
• Pass the Principles & Practice of Engineering (PE) exam, another 8-hour test
• A satisfactory review by the State Board of credentials (transcript, work experience, professional references) 

In order to take the PE exam, there’s an application process to determine if you’re even able to register. For the most part, they review your transcripts, and then you have to certify that you satisfy the experience requirements. Once you pass the exam (and for first-time test-takers, the pass rate is only about 60% for the Civil Engineering exam), they perform a thorough review of your engineering experience and references before granting a license.

The official eligibility criteria in Michigan requires four years of “acceptable engineering experience at the date of examination after graduating with an EAC/ABET… bachelor of science degree in engineering.”  

The exam is only offered twice per year, in April and October. In the past they’ve allowed a little leeway with regard to the four years of experience requirement. May graduates were typically granted permission to take the April exam, even though they were about three weeks shy… because by the time the results come back, the four years is easily satisfied. But for December graduates, taking the October exam was questionable, and only some applicants gained approval… despite that the four year requirement would still be satisfied by the time the results are posted. 

It’s an $80 fee to apply for “Michigan Pre-Approval of Education for the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) Examination”, and since I was a December graduate, I had figured I’d just play it safe and wait until I had my full four years of experience after graduating. That put my exam date for April 2010.  

Well, the State of Michigan just updated their PE Pre-Approval FAQ, and they now specifically indicate that December 2005 graduates can be approved to take the October 2009 exam. Six months earlier than I had previously anticipated I would be able to take the exam. 

Now I’m stuck in a quandary. I can’t decide whether to take the exam as soon as I’m eligible, or if I should stick to my original plan. I’m a bit rusty on several of the disciplines (water/waste-water treatment, hydraulics, hydrology, geotechnical, & structural engineering), which together represent over 40% of the exam, so I plan to take a 7-week PE review course from the Engineering Society of Detroit. 

I need to decide 3-4 months ahead of time, to order all the review materials and reference books (you have to bring your own reference materials into the test), complete the Pre-Application, take a review course, and register for the exam. That leaves me with only six weeks to decide…

I definitely inherited poor eyesight. I got my first pair of eyeglasses in elementary school, a pair of bright pink frames that I selected. And I’ve been wearing contacts since high school.

When I first got contacts, I was meticulous about wearing each pair for exactly two weeks, then throwing them out and getting a new pack of disposables. I remember being surprised at how much they cost when my parents would have to order refills, but everything seemed expensive back then…

Now I’ve got my own vision insurance. It’s supposed to cover the exam, minus a $10 copay, and then either up to $105 for contacts OR a pair of glasses (with various limits and another copay).

I had an eye exam at Pearle Vision earlier this week. They were having some “computer” (I would allege that it was just the user) troubles, and couldn’t figure out how to bill it to insurance… So they wanted me to pay out of pocket right then, and then if/when it gets processed by insurance they would issue me a credit.

Umm, thanks, but no. What would I do with a store credit there anyway? And besides, I called ahead to get it preauthorized, so why should I have to pay?

They were planning to charge me:
-$64, vision exam (w/o DFE)
-$45, contact lens fitting (measure eyeballs)
-$138, four packs of CooperVision BioXL disposable contacts (a 6-mo supply, and the quantity I’d need to “max out” my insurance benefits)…

I waited for over an hour while they unsuccessfully attempted to enter my data in their insurance billing system, and argued the amount I should have to pay. Eventually they determined that they would break policy by leaving my order open overnight, and someone else would fix it the following day.

When I returned to pay and pick up my receipt and prescription, the extended receipt showed that insurance had discounted $61 off of my $109 exam & fitting… They only actually paid $48! Yet Pearle Vision wanted me to pay the full $109.

For the contact lenses, the retail price worked out to roughly $35/box. Searching around online, I was able to find the same contacts for as little as $12/box. I’d have to pay the entire amount up-front then fill out the reimbursement paperwork to submit to insurance myself though.

Using the online company associated with my insurance (they handle the insurance automatically, and I just pay shipping + any overages), the contacts worked out to about $20/box, including shipping. A significant premium, for sure, but totally worth it to not have to fill out the paperwork and wait for a reimbursement check to arrive.

So that’s what I did. And for $28 out of pocket, including that $10 exam copay, I will have a 9-month supply of disposable contacts (which I’ll easily stretch out for an extra three months). That same order at Pearle Vision would have been $112…