What clever savings strategies do you have for a homeowner/full-time working mother who doesn't shop for food at a grocery store? These strategies should take less than fifteen minutes a day to do and not risk bodily harm and physical discomfort.

I keep meaning to write something and then I'm dissatisfied or the topic degenerates. Let's keep this realistic but bright. I compared my 2006 and 2007 end-of-year statements. Most striking to me was that I had paid 9.4% of my mortgage principal. I also have mortgage payments in CDs coming due for the next six months.

I can't and won't try to beat the astounding $60,000 increase in retirement assets. The imaginary $40,000 home property increase over the past twelve months will disintegrate as I project, dourly, a 7.8% decrease in home value on account that my "developmentally delayed" metropolitan area has just arrived to the housing bust. My challenges will be to live creatively on less and to generate other streams of income. Maybe Prosper.com will be in my future with Treasury Direct. A hand to the government and a hand to the people.

And my other challenge: treating myself if/when I meet certain milestones with my monthly budgets or meeting a savings goal: Wise Traditions membership, hair colour, massage, Amazon.com wish list item, aromatherapy oils from The Herbalist, a concert, lessons, a CD, a trip to a restaurant I've been meaning to try...

In the winter wonderland that was my zip code yesterday afternoon, we travelled to a foreclosed house. It was purchased eight months ago. The foreclosed house is next to a house that took fifteen months to sell. I wonder what made the April 2007 buyer confident the house would flip. I notice flippers in our area rarely do their homework about how long houses take to sell.

We counted six houses for sale on our way back. We had travelled eight blocks. I have no ill to speak of houses selling in winter: the magic winter week mortgages dropped down to 6.625% APR we and two couple-friends of ours all bought. That was back in the days when PMI was slapped on mortgages made with downpayments smaller than 20%, and when buyers commonly had lawyers review the paperwork. So now we're thinking "if you can't afford a fixed rate of 6.625% for 30 years, you can't afford the house." I bet people 35 years older than me are thinking "if you can't afford a fixed rate of 5.6% for 20 years, you can't afford the house." Does anyone remember when mortgages were commonly ten to twenty years long? Do you think modern-day home borrowers are thinking "if you can't afford a 5/1 ARM with 0% down, you can't afford the house"?

The spouse and I spoke of the REIC term "starter house." We live on a block where many people who voted for Stevenson or Eisenhower are still in their "starter homes." I posited that one gets a smaller mortgage or a shorter term when one "upgrades" to another house. Otherwise, what is also being "upgraded" are property taxes and mortgage payments. If I could cut my energy costs and reduce the total principal and interest of what I'm currently paying by 20%, I would "upgrade" to another house.
* * *
I'm thinking about multiple streams of income in my 100-day break. I'm also thinking of taking another job, perhaps a full-time permanent one in the city so I don't have the hourlong commute. I see that people here get paid for surveys. A friend suggested waitressing but I don't want to be on my feet for that long. I'm still considering selling my books and stuff -- dematerializing. Might as well get a jump on the "Yard Sale Economy."
My friend challenged me to live off one income without touching my emergency fund during my break. It's true that on my last 100-day break I took only one week of unemployment insurance.

102 Personal Finance Tips Your Professor Never Taught You

...that some other countries have a mandated minimum percentage of personal savings?
...that between 1929 and 1933, 9000 banks in the United States closed their doors?
...that President Roosevelt shut down all banks for a short time after his inauguration?
...that U.S. courts have sanctioned an interpretation of the term "deposits" to mean not funds that you deliver for safekeeping but a loan to your bank?

I'm going to look into the financial ratings of my credit unions. It bothers me a little that my mortgage lender, one in the business for nearly 85 years and locally owned and headquartered, closed a branch. And it bothers me a little that every two-three weeks I see one of its mortgaged properties in a Notice of Trustee Sale County record. No mortgage lender is going to emerge from this unscathed, it looks like. But a mortgagee always hopes/thinks her lender's going to be different/sane. I wonder what Washington Mutual and CountryWide Financial mortgagees are thinking.

My buddy suggested I resolve not to compare my financial situation to others. That's a tall order, but mastering that will go a long way toward my happiness and security.

I might try to lose seven pounds. My body's not at an unhealthy weight, but there's no real reason why my bone frame and age should not be considered in calculating a safe/healthy weight. I won't sweat it if the weight doesn't come off easily however.

I learned Canadians are shorter, on average, than Americans. I was surprised by this: my Canadian family has always been tall. My friends with Eastern European lineage (Lithuanian, Ukrainian, Polish) tend to be tall too. I just didn't notice the US men having any height advantage, but at 177cm tall, why would I?

Hokay -- I am hoping this is IT for posting about gas bill anxiety. I woke up, thanks to anxiety and anger! at 5 am, found the house warmer than the 58F I programmed it to be. It was a mild 67F. No wonder I was roasting in my bed. I then learned more about how to program my thermostat! Sure I had the 'heat' settings at conservative levels, but the 'cool' settings had not been adjusted since July. I temporarily held the temp at 58F.

I saw the sun today! It was peeking through the iron cloud curtains, among patches of blue!

I read posts from people going through what I am (high gas bills, what's wrong with me--what am I doing wrong that I am living within my means and prepping for dark days but not living with as many comforts as other folk). I don't feel quite so alone now! Thank you, Saving Advice bloggers! *kisskiss*

Oh yes, and the most important thing, AMT adjustments at the very end of the year, possibly granting me, a lowly middle-income person holding up the poor and the rich, some respite! I don't think I should have to pay AMT unless I can afford sturgeon roe once a month. Or an annual trip to Hawaii.

I will try growing garlic and some herbs this winter, perhaps. Apparently using grow lights for seed starting is cheaper than buying fresh vegetables. I will also invest in myself, learning practical skills I can use for bartering. I can bake, I'll learn gardening. I'll try to "put myself out there" locally to build a social network.

so you understand my pain

I suppose I live highly. I have a house, a child, and three cats in a high cost of living area. I calculated my monthly budget twice: and with my Roth IRA contributions the total comes up to pretty much what the hubby and I already take home.

I gathered my calculations from the 2005 Survey of Consumer Expenditures: from the West, for our income quintile, for our age.

I'm not freaked, because we have some savings, but I am, rather shocked as to how much outgo there is, even for someone who tries to keep an eye on expenses. And it saddens me that the interest rates get lower, because then prices rise faster than wages and my savings rates won't accommodate these price increases.

It's not just me feeling this way, is it?
I think I've made as many 'feel-nothing'/low-cost adaptations that I know of to save some pennies, and now it looks like something big will have to give - like eating out every ten days, or resorting to fast food joints, or cutting out the landline. Or something that would require a major capital outlay. Don't tell me to cut the cable -- have never had it here in the States. Don't tell me to trade in the leased car -- I've owned it outright for eight years. Don't tell me to throw the cats to the coyotes. Don't tell me to plan my errands more productively: 40% of these errands I walk to. Don't tell me to refinance my mortgage, it's at a fixed 5%. Don't tell me to sell my kid down at the local bowling alley. Are you going to tell me I'm saving not enough for retirement? (16% 401(k), plus Roth IRA maximal contribution each year) Don't tell me to craigslist the television set -- I tried that and got no takers.
Don't tell me to do an energy audit -- I've visited the utilities' websites four times a year for tips. Don't tell me to carpool or take the bus -- I'm busing it when it's cold, dark and wet.

Again, I don't know how other families in my area can do it and afford kitchen remodels, vacations and new cars. I fretted like this when we were shaving $900+ a month for daycare, and I'm fretting again and I don't even have childcare expenses anymore.

I was asked how much my bill was at this time last year for gas. It was $76.64. My husband and child were away for a week at the in-laws, and I was working outside the house at that time.

The worst bills were (2007):
Jan. bill $147.52
Feb. bill $169.42 (this one made me cry)
Mar. bill $125.59

We were both working at home early this winter.

And the year before (2006):
Jan. bill $127.06
Feb. bill $131.77
Mar. bill $145.72

None of us was working at home at that time.

A longer billing period increased my gas usage.
The weather increased my bill by $14-$23.
I cranked up the heat to 73 temporarily twice to make sure my buns rose nicely. I've also used the oven for this but the oven heat and lack of circulation doesn't allow the yeast to properly expand.

The average similar home uses $103. I use $131. I wonder, again, how much of this is because someone who works at home during the day is not keen on his fingers being numb or tingly-cold. Our basement is not insulated, as it is unfinished. For average energy by day-of-week, it looks like the energy use is least on Wednesday and Sunday, the days my husband is in the house the least, and highest on Monday and Thursday.

Where I get cranky: the cobranded "Bill Center" the Home Energy Tools application, in Step 3, Find Savings, there are no low/no-cost "ways to save for weatherization." The investment ideas have at best a 17% rate of return.

Some graphs show that the average home uses $556 of electrical energy use per year. Mine uses $28. Gas usage, annually was $1103 for the average home. Mine was $846. $737 goes toward heating, $157 for hot water, and $56 for cooking. My heat spike came on Thanksgiving: 5 Therms. I was baking buns and using the oven a lot.

I shrug. There's only so much I can do when I'm home. I called my utility and spoke with an energy use advisor. I told her what I did and what I had expected. Windows reduce heating costs by only 10%. The insulation would do more. She told me that last year, instead of $1.07/Therm, I paid $1.26/Therm. She said for every $100 I spent on natural gas, I was saving $230 by not using oil. Okay. We may have paid $55 more this month but that is also how much we pay for gas for the car this month.

Oh, and for sewer/water/yard waste/recycling? The energy use advisor, who lives in my city and pays even more for her natural gas than I do, told me our city-owned utility charges a very high rate for that -- you might say we get soaked. And we don't even live in the desert.

Here is where I am thankful to have a car.
I help with banking in the morning. I vomited this morning after four sips of coffee so I was leery about heading off to work in a heavy piece of machinery. I remembered how much I don't like my house (see last post) so I went to work. I volunteer in my son's school, so I drive him there, and as my commuter bus does not run after 8:40 am, I am left on my lonesome to get to work so I took the car.I figure the money I earn today will help me pay for my gas bill (see last post).

I've not been completely forthcoming about the gas bill. We heat our house, range and water with it. Our electricity bill is usually $28/month. It does make me feel less alone to know that three-digit-dollar winter month bills are not unheard of in parts of the country. I had this idea that I was an energy-sucking cretin and people up in Maine or Montana were thinking "gee, my 1800 sq. ft. house costs me $98/month in January to heat." Maybe I am an energy-sucking cretin anyway. Jennifer Aniston takes three-minute showers and brushes her teeth at the same time. I wonder how often Ms. Aniston wakes up to face wet 38F dark mornings in Southern California.

Network connectivity is out in my building. This means no work. I played a round of Hangman with a coworker before being politely and professionally excused ("Hit the road, jack!") for the day.

So I'm reading Jasper Fforde, gifts to myself from the library. It's teeming rain. Without the car I'd have gone on the bike (ick! ick!) or on the bus (slo-o-o-o-ow). But car? Ahhhhh. Warm. Dry. Expedient!

I'm home now, but hot ginger-lemon-honey (oooh!) tea and some 1920s jazz with the novelistic stylings of Mr. Fforde have me a little soothed after a frazzling morning.

So here's me in August: blahblahblahwindows
September: blahblahblahwindows
October: blahblahblahwindowsandroofinsulation
November: blahblahblahroofinsulation
December: blahblahinsulationONEHUNDREDTHIRTYONEDOLLARS?!?

Didn't any one notice at the natural gas utility that I spent a five-digit figure on windows and a coupla hundred dollars on insulation so I could SAVE MONEY?!? I wash in cold! I keep the temperature at 68F at home, and 58F at night. I clean the filters every five-six weeks.

Sacrifice without deprivation

I live at an equal or lower standard of living in the same city as Cortni Marrazzo (Correction: Cortni Marrazzo has informed me she no longer lives in Seattle, making most of my post inaccurate. I hope it's still entertaining.), yet my expenses (with savings included) are $5800/month. Maybe because I have a kid. And a house.

The house itself makes me cry. Not because I can't afford it, because I can, but because I see the houses in sunny Phoenix, Sacramento and San Diego that are falling to foreclosure and they are, in the blue blue skies that are their backgrounds, newer and nicer and larger, and with the exception of San Diego, CHEAPER in price, currently. I get the impression that the families were in their backyards in October, grilling! Those emblems of security and family, glistening in the SUNSHINE and yet they are stops on the RepoBus tour. Oh, denizens of the Golden State and Goldwater Country, know that there is a SAD woman chugging down Vitamin D and cursing the darkness and cold, envying even the temporary homerenters turfed out in an economic climate gone bad, and wondering why li'l postwar Cape Cod boxes are still going for near half-a-mil in her sunless area.

Mrs. Marrazzo pays more for DSL than I do. We do pay for lattes twice a week, three times during the shortest days of the year. I do not have a sun roof on my car, because I am in a land without sun. I am scratching my head as to how to save more money. I do not have a gym membership but rather walk for exercise. I do not know why a Seattleite would not visit Scarecrow Video, choosing to rent DVDs from Netflix, unless the Seattleite was not a cineast(e). My last seven video rentals came from the public libraries. I guess that is where I would splurge more than the average person -- I like REALLY GOOD, independent, classic and foreign films. They bring meaning and colour and escapism to my humdrum, melancholic, grey existence.

I am not commenting on the SA blog because the cookie preserves my name and e-mail address, and I'm afraid someone from the same work IP address will see my contact particulars. But I am disappointed. I personally know people more frugal in my community.

It's a good day.
Nobody hit me on the way to work.
I was prepared for the cold wet weather with cap, gloves, coat and umbrella.
I smiled at everyone today.

I want this book for Christmas. Cramer is little more than an amusement, but he did interview a Presidential Candidate, and he amused my tot enough for the tot to work on his Jim Cramer impression -- think August 2007 Mad Money meltdown about Washington Mutual. (honestly, why the kindergarten teacher can't appreciate my son's genius for conveying bombast and theatrical tantrums is beyond me!)

Someone elsewhere posted that he achieved his goals through rage and frustration, and I have to admit that those emotions are good motivators for me. They helped me out of debt back in the early part of the millennium, and the heat of rage and frustration helps me blaze a path to action, achieving more. I don't externalize my rage and frustration in such a way that my child imitates me though. I want him to be a good husband or civil partner when he grows up. I'll continue to demonstrate critical thinking and awareness, and see if the child picks up on those.

In fact, instead of being the patriarchal 'First National Bank of Dad' I am going to be the 'Global Investment Service of Mom.' Mommy knows currency fluctuations! Mommy knows how to be competitive in a global market! Mommy knows about stealth taxes!

Some of my on-line connections are participating in a "What Dungeons and Dragons character are you?" quiz. Their character qualities are self-rated, and these critters generously gave themselves Intelligence of at least 15 (one did 17) out of 18. These connections don't answer my about personal or retirement finances. I don't mean the crass "how much do you have?" or even the more tastefully posed "what percentage do you sock away?" but "what funds/equities/ETFs do you have?" and "where do you sock your retirement cash?" or "who do you read for investment philosophies and ideas?" topics.

I think wisdom, more so than intelligence, is a greater factor in retirement planning and success. Sure one can have the brains to know one SHOULD save, and know how to research the vehicles one should use FOR saving, but it takes wisdom to implement and keep at that plan.

Passion Saving's essay on Money and Personality

I expect responses of "well that's silly to claim that some Myers-Briggs types are more likely to retire early, I am an expert planner, have been all my life and now I've got four million in cash, waterfront property, and I'm a ESFP!" That's great for you! The essay is about the most common early retirees -- kudos to you for being both lucky and disciplined, but are you in a luxury retirement community where most everybody is an ESFP?
Motivation, as the essay argues, is everything. For some it takes a mercenary personality; for others it could be bad memories of having to move every time rents went up, or not having much personal freedom as a child because brittle adult roommates constantly demanded quiet.

In case you were wondering, depending on the shape of the moon I'm either an ISTJ or an INTJ.

I really love the freedom of having enough money to see to my present and future needs, and having a little for my wants. I don't ever want to lose that freedom. When my online pals don't answer my retirement question I tend to assume they have some inheritances coming their way and therefore haven't given the matter much thought.

USDA Food Plans: Adobe Acrobat Format in case this helps with your budgeting.

Budget categories we should cut down to be at national average for our income, according to Mvelopes:

Water/Sewer/Recycling
Groceries
Allowances
Auto Maintenance
Home Maintenance

Budget categories we should raise to be at national average for our income:
Donations
House furniture
Clothing

Where we rule:
Savings
Electricity

I was pleased to see that the nation was spending 22% of its net income on mortgage/rent... ours came to 21.1% but we have a twenty-year mortgage. So we're "just right" with our three bedroom house with yard in the city.

I don't know what to do about the water. We don't have a dishwasher, and we have aerators and low-flow toilets. I looked into tankless water heaters but was convinced that they would cost us more money rather than save. I do crave my hot baths once a month, and even more frequently in the winter... Could it be that my area charges more for water/sewer/yard waste/recycling than others? And my area is dirt cheap (third lowest in the nation) for electricity?

Ready to try it yourself? Here's the link

Off-topic:
Oh yay. Stock up on the nonperishables and the silver.

Are you tired of me mentioning my area is expensive?

Food: $786.97 (includes eating out, vitamins, cod liver oil, spirulina, booze, pet food, four major food groups groceries)

Housing: $2379.20 (includes mortgage, household operations, apparel, services, furnishings, utilities, savings plan for new roof)

Transportation: $1257.20 (includes savings plan for new car, FlexCar usage, maintenance, gas/oil, parking, public transport, taxis, insurances, lube jobs, license fees)

Living: $883.54 (includes healthcare, entertainment, warehouse store membership, allowances, toys, games, birthday gifts, cards, stamps, personal care products/services, veterinary costs, reading, education, miscellaneous, cash contributions)

Subtotal:$5813.35
Savings: $ 948.69 ( 16.3%, includes IRA)

I received these numbers from a 2005 Survey of Consumer Expenditures, used mostly numbers from the second-highest quintile, and multiplied by 1.21 to account for stealth inflation, and for the attempt of reducing expenses by 10%.

I might have said this before, I will say it again: I want to meet local people who earn what we earn and manage two cars and home maintenance and have $2K left over at the end of the month after post-tax retirement contributions.

I'm reading Bill McKibben's Deep Economy and this NY Times article from 2006 about happiness. I am sad that my lifestyle is not sustainable, and I wonder if I'm going to downscale gracefully enough to remain "above water." What I want is, if my net worth should tumble down 10-15% next year, to be able to shrug my shoulders, do a kickstep, and shuffle down the road, thinking "big deal. As long as I'm happy."

Also, a link to a clue as to where my head has been for the last nine months.

Goal: $16,956.44 in 'Savings' by Feb. 21.
'Savings' = CDs, Savings Accts.
Savings right now: $15,532.20

(I shall look for work from Feb - May, in addition to starting a garden.)

I'm posting it here because I feel raw and sad and I feel safer posting this here than elsewhere.

Someone who was one of my earliest friends when I first moved to Seattle lost her battle with cancer and died yesterday. We hadn't been in touch since December 1998, when I was in a Seattle Cacophony event designing wacky calendars for 1999. Weirdly enough, she had made some acerbic comment that rubbed me the wrong way -- my mother was weeks away from dying from cancer and I was hyper-sensitive.

I still am very sensitive when I read of any female acquaintance having cancer, and succumbing.

We did have good times at events, making our own harmless performance art fun: playing Broadway Bingo, performing a puppet play in February, creating our own installation piece at Sand Point. I have not lost my appreciation for serendipity and homemade play and entertainment.

You don't have to write anything about being sorry for my loss -- I haven't seen this person for close to nine years. I will pray for and offer consolation to her widowed husband. If anything, I'll be stricter about developing and following my moral code, and accomplishing my mission here, with whatever time I have left.

God rest the departed.

Does anyone else above the 40th parallel get the itch to buy fuzzy mittens, fluffy slippers, cashmere and merino sweaters, colourful scarves and cozy fleece or flannel nightgowns or pajama sets when the annual J. Crew or Land's End catalogue comes to their home? Especially if you're trying to save on heat by keeping the thermostat below 67F?

Give me strength!

Also, are you experiencing an urge to do some drastic or severe economic change in 2008, like oh, maybe not renting movies or
not eating out unless it's food you brought with you?

My second vehicular accident in three months. Once again I am not at fault. This time was in our car, with all of us. I am not happy, but we all are safe and unhurt and for that I am thankful.

But I have a trickle of dollars in my new car fund and no collision insurance as the car is eleven years old. I can't get a new vehicle on a trickle of dollars.

Seriously, the rearview mirror is dangling by its cables and there's some paint transfer.

My poor fractured mind is trying so desperately to attribute meaning and pattern to this, but no. I'm angrier now than I was when I was physically injured (whiplash) in the motorcycle rearend mishap, because my son was in the car. I guess I've earned my Mom Badge.

Important message: if your child is in a booster seat or child seat in an automobile accident, get it inspected, much as one would a motorcycle helmet after a two-wheel spill, to see how much impact was absorbed and whether it is safe to use again.

It has come to my attention more than once that I have a narrow, skewed idea of the rest of the country's finances, even though I am a Constant Reader of personal finance forums and blogs. I hang out with people who are either debt-free or actively minimizing their consumer credit and home mortgage debt obligations. Their reality is my perception. Until the Federal Reserve publishes its quarterly Flow of Funds report.

Federal Reserve Flow of Funds (Adobe Acrobat PDF)

Consumer Credit Debt Growth grew by 6.1%
Home Mortgage debt growth grew by 6.8%

Consumer Credit borrowing is the highest it has been since 2001Q4. Home mortgage borrowing in 2007Q3 is the lowest it has been since 2002Q2.

Debt outstanding in 2007Q3: a staggering $10,399,400,000,000 for home mortgage. I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP. An all-time high of $2,516,400,000,000 for consumer credit.

Think about where that money goes. Whose pockets does it go into? Does it evaporate?

Thanks, 'Another Goal' commenters
Having read your comments, I don't feel quite so alone. Physically removed, because I am touched enough by the comments to want to give hugs, but not alone.

Anyway, some links on frugal eating I found interesting:
Scrumptions Sprouting for Your Meals

Five Foods I Grew Tired of Buying and How I Quit
Food Stamp Nutrition Connection: Recipes Finder -- not just for people on food stamps!

This one is on healthy eating, which could be frugal if it means fewer healthcare costs. I recommend it to people who are into cancer prevention diets: Dr. Mercola's Food Facts

to become a person whose intrinsic worth is RECOGNIZED AND APPRECIATED more than the money she is able to give to/earn for other people. I'd like to be valued for my me-ness, rather than sought out near all the time as a potential client.

"I don't want to hang out with you, but I want you to come to my Pampered Chef parties. I don't want to hang out with you but I want you to come to my party so you can give me a gift that I won't bother sending a thank-you card for, and make other people think I am really popular. I don't want to put my real age or my real interests other than my photo studio on MySpace.com, but I am Requesting you Add me as a Friend because you have a kid and live in the area. You don't mean anything more to me than a measure of my marketing success. I'll claim on public forums that despite your 25% or 28% tax bracket and that 80% of your income is outgo that you are a big drain on the American economy but I'm not going to lead you to what I think you need to learn or be so you can be 'as educated about US and world history as' the American citizen claiming all immigrants are a drain on the economy. You need to learn about and study our Constitution so that when you become a citizen your nominal vote can go to a party determined to dismantle it; otherwise you are a drain on the US economy."

Doy... dur... my only value is commoditized and as a potential customer... I feels oh-so-validated in dis reel gud consumer culture...

I would like to be a healthy, gainfully employed, loving and sane financially secure middle-class/middle-income homeowner. To me, this means:

limiting expected, standard expenditures to $5130 a month. This includes savings and Roth IRA contributions.

yoga and meditation for the stress-free life.

performing at least three times weekly, aerobic exercise strenuous enough for deep breathing and circulation improved enough to stop foot/calf cramping and cold extremities in winter.

maintaining a mostly organic diet of fruits and vegetables, with a weekly allotment of 14 ounces of untainted, non-toxic meat.

working up to nine months of emergency expenses: $28852.

starting subaccounts for replacement car, roof, and water cistern/greywater collection/filtration system.

building an organic vegetable garden in the backyard sufficient to hold twelve crops.

A plus would be a small reduction of the net worth: maybe an 8% cut. I have a pessimistic view of the economy, probably because I am reading Robert Prechter's 2002 book.

I'd love to try coupon-clipping, but those seem to be mostly for manufactured, processed foods and cleaning products. The best I can do so far is to happen upon sales, like I did on Saturday, receiving 40% off a valuable multi-nutrient "whole food energizer", or making my own with baking soda, vinegar and essential oils, or happening upon a Dr. Bronner's discount.

I may reward myself, for meeting my Roth IRA maximum contribution for 2007, with a subscription to Wise Traditions.

Flooding: someone is flooded out of her basement apartment seven blocks north of us. We're not flooded, but we have some water trickling in. When it's dry we'll call a pro in to come look.