I remember that write up and thought it was all very sensible. But - and maybe this is a stupid question/point - the reason I liked having a permanent account on LJ wasn't the cost angle, it was so that I didn't have to be online and available when the time for renewal came round. I travel a lot and sometimes have erratic access to both social media and my bank/cards. Maybe you could consider setting up an automatic renewal option? Or is there one already and I'm just blind?