The holidays are dunzo, and I trepidaciously stepped on the scale this morning to assess the damage. Miraculously, I appear to have only gained 5lbs. I'm not sure how that is possible with the copious eating and drinking I packed in, and the sorrowful lack of exercise due to snow and sickness, but there it is. Hopefully it'll go away quickly and my fitness will bounce back, cause that 1/2 marathon ain't getting any farther away.
But that is not the fat I speak of trimming. I am speaking of the money fat. I want to eliminate my consumer debt, increase my savings, and generally learn to manage my money in a more balanced manner. I am working my way through the Smart Cookies book, and I'll share my successes and slip-ups here so I am accountable to the blogosphere. Additionally, I'm thinking of trying to form a ladies money group so that, much like a weightwatchers weigh in, there will be a group to report to, be accountable to, and help each other along.
So now it begins . . .
My financial fears:
1. I do okay paycheque to paycheque (supplemented with the courses I teach on the side, otherwise I would not be able to make ends meet some of the time), but I don't have any reserve to deal with something unexpected, like a car repair.
2. My full time employment ends in just less than six months. I'm afraid I won't be able to earn enough or save enough to support myself and pay for school next year without going into the hole. I've also got to come up with money to pay for some of our wedding this summer.
3. I'm afraid I won't be able to save enough for Paul and I to buy a home down the road.
A money blunder I've made:
Paul and I moved in together effectively tripling what I was spending per month on housing, food, bills, etc. I had some savings which I blew through buying furniture for our apartment, and a down payment on a new car. I was not in any way living within my means, and quickly racked up around $3000 in credit card debt I couldn't seem to pay off. I swallowed my pride and went to my parents for a loan to pay off the card, and then promptly racked up nearly the same amount. I couldn't face telling them I'd done it again (and still haven't, so keep your mouths shut!) so I ended up taking out a line of credit at a drastically reduced interest rate (down to 5.2 from 18%) and transferring the debt there. I'm still chipping away at it, and truth be told I've dipped into it a few times to make tuition payments or even credit card payments, so the debt still sits at around $2500, PLUS the $3000 I plan on paying back to my mom eventually. Ugh.
The fact is, I spend more than I make. The extra work I do on the side is allowing me to break even and not accumulate more debt, but I'm not paying it off and I'm not saving. This changes now.
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2 comments:
Heh. This year, I'll pay off two credit cards (one is almost done) and promptly decrease my credit limits. I may even cancel the Amex since its almost useless here.
The third one is :ahem: substantially larger and will take quite a bit of time to pay off. That one will get decreased once its paid off (because really, who needs a $24K limit on one card?)
I take 10% off the top of each of our paycheques (net, not gross) and dump it into a savings account which is our slush fund.
Yeah, I'll join your group.
don't worry about the 5 lbs! you can afford it!
it's crazy how everyone has a money story like this but doesn't talk about it. we have similar stories. it's all about learning more all the time about managing money in a world that doesn't value that skill and when we are not taught anything about it growing up.
you're doing great! try the book "women and money" by suze orman.
xo.h
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