We just had our budget meeting for May. A little later than usual, but still in the first week so that's good. This month was a breeze compared to last month. April had some growing pains in it, but it was definitely worth it.
We started budgeting in January 2013, using Mint.com to set-up different categories and allocate our spending. What we didn't have during January, February and March was "fun" or "blow" money as people out in the blogosphere like to call it. We had categories for shopping, entertainment and restaurants which probably encompass most of our normal "fun" money type expenses. Well, those plus travel, especially for me and all my game conventions!
In April, Jason specifically asked for a category that would be his own so that he knew exactly how much he could spend rather than having a nebulous amount in the aforementioned categories. So, we picked an amount and I set-up two new categories in Mint: "Jason Fun" and "Stephanie Fun"! We have equal amounts to spend on whatever we want. We also have the amount carry over from month-to-month so that if we don't spend the full month's worth, the surplus will roll over to the next month (and vice versa).
For April, we both finished with a surplus, mainly due to birthday presents from his family that we didn't deposit into our bank accounts until April.
I had kind of resisted the idea, but I'm glad we did it. It helps remind me that I have money that I can actually spend! I tend to spend money in mini-sprees. I'll hit up a few places all in one week and then chill on spending (other than groceries and eating out) for the next few weeks. So knowing that there's this amount in the budget that I can spend is kind of liberating. It's also nice because I don't feel guilty about spending it. I know it's an agreed to amount in the budget, so it's not like I'm spending money we don't have!
I think he likes it too because he can buy his video games or books or whatever else and not have to worry that I'm going to be upset that he's spending all the money and I'm not. I was getting upset about him spending our "restaurant" money on going out with his friends, so now that comes out of his fun money, so that avoids all arguments. And I can go out for my BFF lunch with Shane and not worry about Jason being upset that I spent $50 on lunch. It's a win-win!
Overall, I've been actually enjoying the budgeting. It's a little weird, I know, but it's nice to talk about it actively, instead of just sort of talking about it whenever a problem comes up. I like that we're on the same page. We both know exactly how much is coming in and going out and where it's going. It prompts discussion about the future, both short-term and longer.
Next up: Should I roll over my 401(k) to Vanguard?
Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
Monday, May 06, 2013
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Moving to a non-LA way of life
ISTJ (the aforementioned boyfriend) and I have been having lots of talks about our future over the last six months. One of the recurring themes has been whether we will stay in Los Angeles or move elsewhere. The top choices seem to be:
Nashville - His parents will be returning to Nashville in 2014, after completing their 14 year (by that point) mission trip to Venezuela. They'll be moving into their home that they've rented out all these years after a bit of renovation/updating. This, of course, makes Nashville a natural choice.
We'd have grandparents living locally, so that would be a great help and make it a lot easier for the grandparents to see the grandkid(s). Additionally, the cost of living is much more affordable, so it would put less stress on us financially to live a modest lifestyle allowing me to stay home to care for the babes. We'd definitely get more bang for our buck, real-estately speaking... >We would be within driving distance to many of the game conventions I love in the Southeast, which would make attending more affordable, if we could talk the grandparents into babysitting for a weekend every now and then!
The potential downsides: heat, humidity, making new friends (although I do know a handful of people there, but not that well), not being near an ocean, having a small-ish airport, not having 24 hour everything at my beck and call. Although, truth be told, it's fairly rare I need a grocery store at 2 AM, but when I have, I really have.
San Francisco - His job is in tech, so a natural choice. It's beautiful, cosmopolitan, the weather is aaaaawwwesome! How can you not love San Francisco filled with all its water and love? I love this town.
The potential downsides: It's really expensive to live here, which would make the whole staying-at-home-thing a lot tougher. Also, no family and only a few friends, so probably no support if we needed it for kid stuffs.
In a distant third...
Atlanta - My mom lives here, so we'd have family support. He doesn't love the city, but I know TONS of people, so friends would be the easy part. It's less expensive than LA, but more spread out so more danger of getting pigeon-holed in a weird little suburb somewhere and end up not close to anybody.
The potential downsides: heat, humidity, traffic, expensive real estate depending on the area we'd want to live in...
And of course, the
Staying in LA option - The weather is pretty awesome, we already have friends (although, they're not too kid-friendly for the most part), we know what we're in for, my rent is crazy reasonable because I'm the on-site manager. It's only $950/month for a good sized one bedroom in a decent and convenient part of town. We both have jobs, the beach is nearby, we have the world at the tips of our SPG Amex at LAX.
No decisions have been made, or probably WILL be made for at least a year or two, but just putting all this down as a kind of note to myself.
After having spent the last few days in Dunwoody (suburb of Atlanta) with my mom, it's been so nice to go to Costco and not wait in a HUGE line or sit in traffic while just trying to get in a parking lot. The less dense population is kind of nice. I feel like I have room to breathe!
Check out this lack of a line at 4:50 PM on a Tuesday afternoon!
I'll have to update this as more options/thoughts come up as to if or where we'd move, but these are the main options at the moment.
Nashville - His parents will be returning to Nashville in 2014, after completing their 14 year (by that point) mission trip to Venezuela. They'll be moving into their home that they've rented out all these years after a bit of renovation/updating. This, of course, makes Nashville a natural choice.
We'd have grandparents living locally, so that would be a great help and make it a lot easier for the grandparents to see the grandkid(s). Additionally, the cost of living is much more affordable, so it would put less stress on us financially to live a modest lifestyle allowing me to stay home to care for the babes. We'd definitely get more bang for our buck, real-estately speaking... >We would be within driving distance to many of the game conventions I love in the Southeast, which would make attending more affordable, if we could talk the grandparents into babysitting for a weekend every now and then!
The potential downsides: heat, humidity, making new friends (although I do know a handful of people there, but not that well), not being near an ocean, having a small-ish airport, not having 24 hour everything at my beck and call. Although, truth be told, it's fairly rare I need a grocery store at 2 AM, but when I have, I really have.
San Francisco - His job is in tech, so a natural choice. It's beautiful, cosmopolitan, the weather is aaaaawwwesome! How can you not love San Francisco filled with all its water and love? I love this town.
The potential downsides: It's really expensive to live here, which would make the whole staying-at-home-thing a lot tougher. Also, no family and only a few friends, so probably no support if we needed it for kid stuffs.
In a distant third...
Atlanta - My mom lives here, so we'd have family support. He doesn't love the city, but I know TONS of people, so friends would be the easy part. It's less expensive than LA, but more spread out so more danger of getting pigeon-holed in a weird little suburb somewhere and end up not close to anybody.
The potential downsides: heat, humidity, traffic, expensive real estate depending on the area we'd want to live in...
And of course, the
Staying in LA option - The weather is pretty awesome, we already have friends (although, they're not too kid-friendly for the most part), we know what we're in for, my rent is crazy reasonable because I'm the on-site manager. It's only $950/month for a good sized one bedroom in a decent and convenient part of town. We both have jobs, the beach is nearby, we have the world at the tips of our SPG Amex at LAX.
No decisions have been made, or probably WILL be made for at least a year or two, but just putting all this down as a kind of note to myself.
After having spent the last few days in Dunwoody (suburb of Atlanta) with my mom, it's been so nice to go to Costco and not wait in a HUGE line or sit in traffic while just trying to get in a parking lot. The less dense population is kind of nice. I feel like I have room to breathe!
I'll have to update this as more options/thoughts come up as to if or where we'd move, but these are the main options at the moment.
Thursday, October 01, 2009
Housing Swap
I love to travel. And really, the most expensive part of traveling seems to be the airfare and the lodging, whatever form it takes. I've long contemplated trying to find a housing swap to take advantage of the ability I have to work from anywhere.
So I placed an ad on Craigslist stating I have a one bedroom apartment and would be interested in swapping with someone and was open to the destination. So far, offers I've received:
So I placed an ad on Craigslist stating I have a one bedroom apartment and would be interested in swapping with someone and was open to the destination. So far, offers I've received:
- Swap for 3-6 weeks with a girl from Paris! That would be awesome...
- Swap during Jan - Feb for an apartment in the center of Madrid
- Swap during January for a Manhattan apartment that sounds way nicer than mine
- A local who needs a place for her parents to stay when they visit her and the new grandbaby, the parents have a place in northern Italy
- Swap during February with someone in Brooklyn
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Budgeting and Envelope System Update
I've now tried the Envelope System for two months. I allocated $150 each month for groceries and $200 for going out to eat.
December
Groceries - Wow, was December the completely wrong month to try to start this! Besides regular groceries, I cooked Christmas Eve dinner for Dave & his parents which was an extra chunk of cash. Trying to stick to a budget makes you realize how expensive meat is! I bought the prime rib on sale for $4/lb, so it cost $28. Between Christmas Eve dinner, there was also New Year's Eve. Those two "events" put me over my budget for the month by $89.
Dining Out - I managed to avoid the Christmas Eve dinner to Providence which would've set me back $150 easily. Instead, I came in $25 under budget. Woo-hoo! I really had to make an effort to do this. I had to turn down going out for dinner and stop myself from making a quick stop to pick up a quick something. This took a lot of conscious effort.
January
Groceries - I was out of town for over a week, which helped cut down on the groceries I needed to buy for the month. I stocked up on stuff that I can use over the next couple months, including 25 pounds of flour and hamburger patties. I came in $8 under budget!
Dining Out - I spent some money on the cruise for alcohol and ended up coming in $18 under budget!
So, over the last two months, I spent $38 more than I had budgeted, but! I feel like it's been a success. I easily could've spent a lot more money on both areas, but didn't because I was consciously spending. Or rather, consciously NOT spending. Normally, I'd just go with the flow and go out to eat whenever, but now I'm trying to plan ahead to figure out whether I want to spend the cash to go out. The groceries should be fairly easy to manage I think. It'll be tougher when I'm going to be entertaining more.
I'm going to continue on with the system for at least a couple more months and then reassess. The economy is totally going downhill, with no end in sight. Even though I have money saved, I'm definitely trying to save more money. It's always good to be prepared in case of an emergency and who knows, maybe I'll want to buy a house. I stopped at an open house yesterday and the home prices in Burbank have come down, with several of them even under $500K, but frankly, I think they'll come down a lot more over the next year, so I'm just going to sit tight and save up some more cash.
I did decide to not max out my 401(k) this year, but instead take more cash in hand. There's no company match where I work, so it's not like I'm giving up any free money. I'm still maxing out my Roth IRA though. I'm still investing in my investment account that is outside of my retirement account. That has been the most difficult. To keep investing the same amount of money in there without feeling a twinge of "OMG I'm going to lose money". I keep remembering what I read in the The Coffeehouse Investor
about how the no matter what the worst five year span is, it basically always goes back up... at least historically, it has! So I'm going to just chill and wait. And cross my fingers and hope that everything goes back up eventually. Besides, like Chris said, "It'll eventually go back up and if it doesn't everyone will be screwed, so it won't even matter."
December
Groceries - Wow, was December the completely wrong month to try to start this! Besides regular groceries, I cooked Christmas Eve dinner for Dave & his parents which was an extra chunk of cash. Trying to stick to a budget makes you realize how expensive meat is! I bought the prime rib on sale for $4/lb, so it cost $28. Between Christmas Eve dinner, there was also New Year's Eve. Those two "events" put me over my budget for the month by $89.
Dining Out - I managed to avoid the Christmas Eve dinner to Providence which would've set me back $150 easily. Instead, I came in $25 under budget. Woo-hoo! I really had to make an effort to do this. I had to turn down going out for dinner and stop myself from making a quick stop to pick up a quick something. This took a lot of conscious effort.
January
Groceries - I was out of town for over a week, which helped cut down on the groceries I needed to buy for the month. I stocked up on stuff that I can use over the next couple months, including 25 pounds of flour and hamburger patties. I came in $8 under budget!
Dining Out - I spent some money on the cruise for alcohol and ended up coming in $18 under budget!
So, over the last two months, I spent $38 more than I had budgeted, but! I feel like it's been a success. I easily could've spent a lot more money on both areas, but didn't because I was consciously spending. Or rather, consciously NOT spending. Normally, I'd just go with the flow and go out to eat whenever, but now I'm trying to plan ahead to figure out whether I want to spend the cash to go out. The groceries should be fairly easy to manage I think. It'll be tougher when I'm going to be entertaining more.
I'm going to continue on with the system for at least a couple more months and then reassess. The economy is totally going downhill, with no end in sight. Even though I have money saved, I'm definitely trying to save more money. It's always good to be prepared in case of an emergency and who knows, maybe I'll want to buy a house. I stopped at an open house yesterday and the home prices in Burbank have come down, with several of them even under $500K, but frankly, I think they'll come down a lot more over the next year, so I'm just going to sit tight and save up some more cash.
I did decide to not max out my 401(k) this year, but instead take more cash in hand. There's no company match where I work, so it's not like I'm giving up any free money. I'm still maxing out my Roth IRA though. I'm still investing in my investment account that is outside of my retirement account. That has been the most difficult. To keep investing the same amount of money in there without feeling a twinge of "OMG I'm going to lose money". I keep remembering what I read in the The Coffeehouse Investor
about how the no matter what the worst five year span is, it basically always goes back up... at least historically, it has! So I'm going to just chill and wait. And cross my fingers and hope that everything goes back up eventually. Besides, like Chris said, "It'll eventually go back up and if it doesn't everyone will be screwed, so it won't even matter."
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Download the new Suze Orman book for freeeeee
You can download Suze Orman's new book Suze Orman's 2009 Action Plan
for free at this website. You can do it until next Thursday, January 15, 2009, so don't delay! Save yourself $9.99 and get some advice on what you should do in 2009!
for free at this website. You can do it until next Thursday, January 15, 2009, so don't delay! Save yourself $9.99 and get some advice on what you should do in 2009!
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
No Christmas Gifts This Year
I don't know about you, but I've definitely been much more conscious of my spending. Buying a new-to-me car took a big bite out of my savings and with my 401(k) and investments taking a dive, I've decided to just chill out for Christmas and not buy Christmas gifts. *gasp!*
This decision was also helped by doing Ramit's savings challenge the month of November. He created a website called No Christmas Gifts This Year and I've already used it to send out cute emails to some of my friends to let them know that instead of exchanging gifts, I'd much rather spend time with them playing board games or cooking a meal together. My free time has really become more precious this year and spending it with people I love is much more important that having more stuff. Especially when I'm constantly trying to fight the battle of The Stuff in my one bedroom apartment!
That said, this isn't a hard and fast rule. I adopted a woman through my church who needs some help and I'm planning to buy something for my boyfriend and my nephew. I might also give away things I currently own as gifts. I already started before I left town by clearing out my closet and giving Shane some clothes. I have my eye on something else to give her as a gift.
I also plan on sending out Christmas cards. I think I failed to accomplish that last year and I want to remedy that this year. I usually participate in the BGG Secret Santa exchange, but I downgraded myself to the Christmas card exchange. I'm very much looking forward to it as I have several people on my "to send" list and half of them are out of the country! If you aren't sure you're on my Christmas card list and want to be, send me an email with your mailing address!
The final issue is this... I'm not sure about buying a Christmas tree. I love having one and decorating it, but they do cost about $60-90 depending on how tall they are. That may have to be my one Christmas indulgence. I'm hosting a couple Christmas get-togethers and I think a decorated tree will be a nice addition to the festivities. Maybe I could get a shorter one? I love the big, tall trees though. And I know the fake trees are more practical, I don't know if I can revert to one! The real ones are just so darn pretty!! Oh, the dilemma! I think I'll just buy one. It just won't feel like Christmas without the tree...
Next to try... the Envelope System...
This decision was also helped by doing Ramit's savings challenge the month of November. He created a website called No Christmas Gifts This Year and I've already used it to send out cute emails to some of my friends to let them know that instead of exchanging gifts, I'd much rather spend time with them playing board games or cooking a meal together. My free time has really become more precious this year and spending it with people I love is much more important that having more stuff. Especially when I'm constantly trying to fight the battle of The Stuff in my one bedroom apartment!
That said, this isn't a hard and fast rule. I adopted a woman through my church who needs some help and I'm planning to buy something for my boyfriend and my nephew. I might also give away things I currently own as gifts. I already started before I left town by clearing out my closet and giving Shane some clothes. I have my eye on something else to give her as a gift.
I also plan on sending out Christmas cards. I think I failed to accomplish that last year and I want to remedy that this year. I usually participate in the BGG Secret Santa exchange, but I downgraded myself to the Christmas card exchange. I'm very much looking forward to it as I have several people on my "to send" list and half of them are out of the country! If you aren't sure you're on my Christmas card list and want to be, send me an email with your mailing address!
The final issue is this... I'm not sure about buying a Christmas tree. I love having one and decorating it, but they do cost about $60-90 depending on how tall they are. That may have to be my one Christmas indulgence. I'm hosting a couple Christmas get-togethers and I think a decorated tree will be a nice addition to the festivities. Maybe I could get a shorter one? I love the big, tall trees though. And I know the fake trees are more practical, I don't know if I can revert to one! The real ones are just so darn pretty!! Oh, the dilemma! I think I'll just buy one. It just won't feel like Christmas without the tree...
Next to try... the Envelope System...
Sunday, November 02, 2008
The Financial War Within
I try to be good. Really I do. I want to save money. Heck, I do save money. But I know I could be saving more. Much more. If I was more disciplined... If I didn't travel to see friends... If I didn't have a boyfriend that lived across the country... If I didn't get talked into eating out all the time...
The problem? I haven't been disciplined enough about money. I've been thinking for months that I should make a budget and stick to it so I can save more money than I am now. That's why I'm happy to be focused for November with Ramit's "Save $1,000 in 30 days."
I am going to BGG.CON this month, so what I'm focusing on this week is not going out to eat. I go hiking almost every Tuesday and we usually go out to eat afterwards, so I'll probably do that, but other than that, I'm going to reduce how much I go out to eat. I haven't decided if I should pick a dollar amount to stay under or adjust the frequency? I think I'll aim for less than $40 this week. We'll see if that's doable! I think it should be. I don't have any plans to go out for lunch this week and other than hiking, so far, I don't have any set plans to go out for dinner, but I'm sure something will pop up on Friday or Saturday...
The problem? I haven't been disciplined enough about money. I've been thinking for months that I should make a budget and stick to it so I can save more money than I am now. That's why I'm happy to be focused for November with Ramit's "Save $1,000 in 30 days."
I am going to BGG.CON this month, so what I'm focusing on this week is not going out to eat. I go hiking almost every Tuesday and we usually go out to eat afterwards, so I'll probably do that, but other than that, I'm going to reduce how much I go out to eat. I haven't decided if I should pick a dollar amount to stay under or adjust the frequency? I think I'll aim for less than $40 this week. We'll see if that's doable! I think it should be. I don't have any plans to go out for lunch this week and other than hiking, so far, I don't have any set plans to go out for dinner, but I'm sure something will pop up on Friday or Saturday...
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Rollover 401(k)
I rolled over my 401(k) to Vanguard in July. It was super easy to do, but earlier this week, I finally sat down and figured out what I wanted to invest my money in. When I did the transfer, it defaulted to a prime money market fund, which is basically a cash/savings account at 2%. I put a chunk of it in the Vanguard 500 index fund based on this recommendation, but then split some of it out into other index funds. I moved about 20% of it over and I'm going to set-up an automatic exchange every week or two to make it move money over so I can do some dollar-cost averaging. Although, I'm wondering if I do it over such a short period (six months to a year), if it will really matter or not?
When I get home, I do want to start looking at my finances a bit more to see if I can save more money. The longer I date Greg, the more I start thinking that not working (or cutting back) after having kids is a real possibility, so I want to save up as much as possible to prep for that! It's a ways off I'm sure, but saving early is always a good idea!
When I get home, I do want to start looking at my finances a bit more to see if I can save more money. The longer I date Greg, the more I start thinking that not working (or cutting back) after having kids is a real possibility, so I want to save up as much as possible to prep for that! It's a ways off I'm sure, but saving early is always a good idea!
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Diets of all Sorts
I have eaten SO much during the last month. So, here's my plan that I'm focusing on for the next two weeks...
On a total random side note... Well, actually, I guess it's not totally random. It's kind of like a financial diet! :-)
I've also been stressing about retirement funds lately. Probably an odd thing for a 33 year old to worry about, but for some reason I do. I get obsessed sometimes about being prepared enough for retirement, worried that I won't have enough saved.
I was obsessing on this earlier this week and lucky for me, I had the good fortune to sit next to a retired person on each of my flights. I picked their brains and turns out, both of them were government workers, so they have pensions coming from that along with saving other ways. One of them told me to just save, even if it was a little bit and do it with every paycheck. I do that, so I am satisfied with that, but I feel like there's more I can and should do. I guess in reality, there's nothing more I can do about retirement since I'm maxing everything out. What I need to do is focus on saving more outside of my retirement accounts.
Anyway, random thoughts about the money stuff, I don't have a firm plan on that just yet. I think the first part is just looking at all the income and expenses and see how much I could possibly save if I wanted to and see how feasible that is. Luckily, I think I can make the next couple trips out to see Greg without actually spending anything by using miles that I've accumulated over the last few years.
I wonder how many people have budgets? And how many people stick to them? I should give myself a challenge of doing that! Making a budget and seeing if I can stick to it. For now, I'll do the research to see how much I'm actually spending. To be honest, I really don't know how much I'm spending other than my fixed expenses. My guess is that I'd be shocked at how much I'm spending going out to eat each month. Probably traveling too! Getting paid monthly should make it easy to divvy everything up if I make a budget. First step... see how much I'm spending and what exactly I'm spending it on...
- I'm swearing off all fried foods.
- I need to just eat less!
- Drink just water, UNsweetened tea or diet soda... but mainly water.
- Exercise!! Even if it's just 15 minutes...
On a total random side note... Well, actually, I guess it's not totally random. It's kind of like a financial diet! :-)
I've also been stressing about retirement funds lately. Probably an odd thing for a 33 year old to worry about, but for some reason I do. I get obsessed sometimes about being prepared enough for retirement, worried that I won't have enough saved.
I was obsessing on this earlier this week and lucky for me, I had the good fortune to sit next to a retired person on each of my flights. I picked their brains and turns out, both of them were government workers, so they have pensions coming from that along with saving other ways. One of them told me to just save, even if it was a little bit and do it with every paycheck. I do that, so I am satisfied with that, but I feel like there's more I can and should do. I guess in reality, there's nothing more I can do about retirement since I'm maxing everything out. What I need to do is focus on saving more outside of my retirement accounts.
Anyway, random thoughts about the money stuff, I don't have a firm plan on that just yet. I think the first part is just looking at all the income and expenses and see how much I could possibly save if I wanted to and see how feasible that is. Luckily, I think I can make the next couple trips out to see Greg without actually spending anything by using miles that I've accumulated over the last few years.
I wonder how many people have budgets? And how many people stick to them? I should give myself a challenge of doing that! Making a budget and seeing if I can stick to it. For now, I'll do the research to see how much I'm actually spending. To be honest, I really don't know how much I'm spending other than my fixed expenses. My guess is that I'd be shocked at how much I'm spending going out to eat each month. Probably traveling too! Getting paid monthly should make it easy to divvy everything up if I make a budget. First step... see how much I'm spending and what exactly I'm spending it on...
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Vanguard is still awesome
I originally opened up my Roth IRA account with Vanguard in mid-2002. In September 2006, I opened up an investment account with them. Both times I was very happy with how easy it is to open an account and how easy it is to get a customer service rep on the phone to help with questions.
So naturally, when I decided to rollover my 401(k) account that I have at my old company, I chose to roll it over into Vanguard. They have a very easy-to-find phone number on their website and I was promptly connected to a live person who helped me set-up an account online. It took all of about five minutes.
I wish all companies were like Vanguard. They really make everything SO easy! I highly recommend them!
So naturally, when I decided to rollover my 401(k) account that I have at my old company, I chose to roll it over into Vanguard. They have a very easy-to-find phone number on their website and I was promptly connected to a live person who helped me set-up an account online. It took all of about five minutes.
I wish all companies were like Vanguard. They really make everything SO easy! I highly recommend them!
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Savings Inspiration
As I've been endlessly pondering what should be my New Year's Resolutions for 2008, one of the topics (as always!) has been how much I should try to save! I ran across this blog post about the "America's Cheapest Family" and fell in love. I love it when people are committed and follow through on something like this. (In case you don't read the article, it's a family of seven that lives off of $35,000 net a year and paid off their house in 9 years!)
Is it for everyone? Probably not. Frankly, I think most people don't have the discipline it takes to pull off something like that. But man, it's inspiring, isn't it? And it's full of links and tips! I haven't had time to explore them all yet, but one of them is for how to pull off "once a month cooking" which I've been interested in for a while. The closest I came to trying that was doing the Saving Dinner Mega-Menu Mailer, which was actually pretty cool, but I just haven't worked up the time/energy to do a repeat of it. Perhaps something to work on this spring. The recipes needed work, but the idea was a good one!
Hey... maybe that's a good idea for a resolution? Hmmm... I'll add that to the list of potentials... Speaking of, I think I'll be finalizing the list sometime next week.
Is it for everyone? Probably not. Frankly, I think most people don't have the discipline it takes to pull off something like that. But man, it's inspiring, isn't it? And it's full of links and tips! I haven't had time to explore them all yet, but one of them is for how to pull off "once a month cooking" which I've been interested in for a while. The closest I came to trying that was doing the Saving Dinner Mega-Menu Mailer, which was actually pretty cool, but I just haven't worked up the time/energy to do a repeat of it. Perhaps something to work on this spring. The recipes needed work, but the idea was a good one!
Hey... maybe that's a good idea for a resolution? Hmmm... I'll add that to the list of potentials... Speaking of, I think I'll be finalizing the list sometime next week.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Work Update
My company was purchased by another company yesterday. They bought us and two other companies in the Southern California area. I think it will be a good change for me. The good news for me is that they want me to be in charge of the accounting for the three companies, which would be a promotion for me. The upside potential is unknown at this point. They gave me a decent raise in my salary, but it's not as much as I thought it would be, but is it ever?? Additionally, it looks like I'll probably switch out of the current bonus pool for all employees at my current company and participate in one for the management of the corporation. My new boss said the "new" bonus pool will pay me more than I'm getting now in the general bonus pool. The other perks I have are staying the same.
Making a lot of money is great, but I have a pretty rich life outside of work and I really don't want to feel like I'm sacrificing that just for more money. For me, life is about more than money. I have no problem working hard. I just don't want to be stuck at the office for 50-60 hours a week and driving all over Southern California and being so exhausted from work that I can't enjoy my real life. If it's for short bursts, fine. But if it was consistently like that, I'd have to look elsewhere. The good news is that I have been working with a woman who works for another company owned by the same corporation and she really likes the corporation and my/our boss. She also seems very together and is a great worker. I enjoyed the last couple days she was in the office. So the signs are good that I will like working for them. But since it's an unknown, I've been considering all possibilities.
The big question is what the change in my workload and responsibilities will be. That can only be really assessed over the next few months. So my plan is to see how the next 90 days go and go from there.
Making a lot of money is great, but I have a pretty rich life outside of work and I really don't want to feel like I'm sacrificing that just for more money. For me, life is about more than money. I have no problem working hard. I just don't want to be stuck at the office for 50-60 hours a week and driving all over Southern California and being so exhausted from work that I can't enjoy my real life. If it's for short bursts, fine. But if it was consistently like that, I'd have to look elsewhere. The good news is that I have been working with a woman who works for another company owned by the same corporation and she really likes the corporation and my/our boss. She also seems very together and is a great worker. I enjoyed the last couple days she was in the office. So the signs are good that I will like working for them. But since it's an unknown, I've been considering all possibilities.
The big question is what the change in my workload and responsibilities will be. That can only be really assessed over the next few months. So my plan is to see how the next 90 days go and go from there.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Signed up for cable AGAIN
Last year I had cable for about six months because they were running a special for about $40 for basic cable. Then it jumped back up to the regular price of $66 a month, so I canceled it. I just got a flyer in the mail about the cable company offering a package deal: Internet, phone service and cable for $90 plus taxes. I already spend $60 (including taxes) on my phone plus DSL, so I signed up for it. I figure it'll be nice to have Food Network again and be able to watch Heroes without the extreme fuzzies. Plus, if I stay home to watch TV, I could easily save the extra $40 a month it'll cost me. I just hope I can make sure my TiVo is all in line and ready to go.
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
Christmas Shopping
It's now November. Usually by now I've purchased at least a few Christmas gifts. I hadn't made any progress, but last weekend I bought my first official Christmas gift! I need to start making progress, like now!!
Here's a not-so-shocking confession: I have too much stuff. I have too many cookbooks, too many books, too much clothes/shoes, and in general just too much stuff. I need to spend some time purging it bit by bit.
Therefore, anyone who is interested in doing the "no-buy" agreement for Christmas, please let me know! I'm perfectly happy to have our gifts to each other be to spend time together, which is much more valuable to me than anything material.
That being said, I'm going to start making my Christmas list and budget today. Which means, I will start buying stuff soon. This is a friendly reminder to those of us out there with Amazon wish lists, please take a few (or several) minutes and update them!! Delete items you've received (maybe for your birthday in June!) and add other things that have popped up on your radar since then. Even more importantly, please double check the priority of the gifts. Is the thing you added to your list five years ago STILL the "highest" priority? Take the time and review it!
Who's on the list? How much to budget? I have lots of friends and clearly, I can't go around spending $50 on each of them, as much as I'd love to! I have to pare down the list. Most likely, besides my family and a couple co-workers, I'm only buying gifts for friends I see on a very regular basis... And then pick a reasonable amount for each of them. I hate picking an "amount" because I love finding the perfect gift and thinking "THAT'S the gift for ________!" Sometimes it might be $10 or $30.
What are you planning on doing for gifts this year? How much do you plan on spending?
Here's a not-so-shocking confession: I have too much stuff. I have too many cookbooks, too many books, too much clothes/shoes, and in general just too much stuff. I need to spend some time purging it bit by bit.
Therefore, anyone who is interested in doing the "no-buy" agreement for Christmas, please let me know! I'm perfectly happy to have our gifts to each other be to spend time together, which is much more valuable to me than anything material.
That being said, I'm going to start making my Christmas list and budget today. Which means, I will start buying stuff soon. This is a friendly reminder to those of us out there with Amazon wish lists, please take a few (or several) minutes and update them!! Delete items you've received (maybe for your birthday in June!) and add other things that have popped up on your radar since then. Even more importantly, please double check the priority of the gifts. Is the thing you added to your list five years ago STILL the "highest" priority? Take the time and review it!
Who's on the list? How much to budget? I have lots of friends and clearly, I can't go around spending $50 on each of them, as much as I'd love to! I have to pare down the list. Most likely, besides my family and a couple co-workers, I'm only buying gifts for friends I see on a very regular basis... And then pick a reasonable amount for each of them. I hate picking an "amount" because I love finding the perfect gift and thinking "THAT'S the gift for ________!" Sometimes it might be $10 or $30.
What are you planning on doing for gifts this year? How much do you plan on spending?
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Vacation Time
I was working on updating and reconciling the vacation time for all the employees at work and reviewed my own account.
I have been on vacation for 33 days this year (so far!), with another 3 days scheduled off for BGG.CON. Plus, I'll get another week off between Christmas and New Year's because my company is shut down. We have the option of using vacation time to cover two of those days, but I probably won't. I have been off of work for almost two months this year and that's not including holidays.
WOW! And of those days, 20 were paid, so that means, by the end of the year, I'll have 18 days off without pay. I didn't realize it was so high. That's almost a month's worth! I knew I had taken a lot of days off, but putting a number on it like that was shocking!
The breakdown: I earn 10 hours a month of vacation (three weeks a year) and I started the year with about 9 days of vacation. So, I still actually have a day or two on the books. But I think I better save them up because I'm already starting to plan the trips I want to take next year!! I might have to consider taking less vacation time though... or not. Life is for living, right?
I have been on vacation for 33 days this year (so far!), with another 3 days scheduled off for BGG.CON. Plus, I'll get another week off between Christmas and New Year's because my company is shut down. We have the option of using vacation time to cover two of those days, but I probably won't. I have been off of work for almost two months this year and that's not including holidays.
WOW! And of those days, 20 were paid, so that means, by the end of the year, I'll have 18 days off without pay. I didn't realize it was so high. That's almost a month's worth! I knew I had taken a lot of days off, but putting a number on it like that was shocking!
The breakdown: I earn 10 hours a month of vacation (three weeks a year) and I started the year with about 9 days of vacation. So, I still actually have a day or two on the books. But I think I better save them up because I'm already starting to plan the trips I want to take next year!! I might have to consider taking less vacation time though... or not. Life is for living, right?
Friday, October 05, 2007
Funny post
I read some personal finance blogs and saw this post this morning called "Treating Marriage as a Business Relationship." It's hilarious!! Craigslist... what did we do without you?
Friday, August 24, 2007
Kitty Update
I finally got results from Evie's blood test and urinalysis yesterday. The good news is that she's not diabetic and her kidneys & liver seem fine. The bad news is that she had a fever this time (which she did not on Monday) and they still aren't sure what's wrong with her.
The most likely prospects at the moment are pancreatitis or some kind of intestinal issue. When I took Evie in yesterday, they did an IV rehydration again and gave her three shots: pencillin (to help the fever), pain killer (so that she would hopefully start eating again) and vitamin B-12 (apparently, the beginning of a course of treatment for her if it is pancreatitis).
I have to take her in again today, so that they can check to see if her fever has gone down. She has been a bit more mobile and she's been seeming more interested in food, but she still won't eat anything. Surprisingly, she still hasn't lost any weight yet either. Hrmmm...
One thing that sucks is that this has cost some serious cash! I spent $172 yesterday for the visit, so now we're up to $414. The only way to diagnose pancreatitis for sure is to do an ultrasound and I don't know how much that costs, but my guess is that it's like $500 or something. Geez! It's a good thing I got a bonus check last week! Between Evie getting sick and doing the 120K mile major service on my car today, that should just about take care of it!
And thank you to everyone who's been inquiring about her. She is doing a bit better and I'm happy about that!
The most likely prospects at the moment are pancreatitis or some kind of intestinal issue. When I took Evie in yesterday, they did an IV rehydration again and gave her three shots: pencillin (to help the fever), pain killer (so that she would hopefully start eating again) and vitamin B-12 (apparently, the beginning of a course of treatment for her if it is pancreatitis).
I have to take her in again today, so that they can check to see if her fever has gone down. She has been a bit more mobile and she's been seeming more interested in food, but she still won't eat anything. Surprisingly, she still hasn't lost any weight yet either. Hrmmm...
One thing that sucks is that this has cost some serious cash! I spent $172 yesterday for the visit, so now we're up to $414. The only way to diagnose pancreatitis for sure is to do an ultrasound and I don't know how much that costs, but my guess is that it's like $500 or something. Geez! It's a good thing I got a bonus check last week! Between Evie getting sick and doing the 120K mile major service on my car today, that should just about take care of it!
And thank you to everyone who's been inquiring about her. She is doing a bit better and I'm happy about that!
Monday, June 04, 2007
New Cell Phone Number
I decided that it was high time I changed my own cell phone plan. The one I've had since 1998(!) was a super low cost one, costing only $15.00 per month for 100 minutes. No long distance or roaming was included, but it did feature first incoming minute free (which they usually don't offer anymore). I hardly ever went over my minutes, so it's been an excellent plan.
However, with all the traveling I've been doing lately, I decided to sign up for the Sprint Employee Referral Offer that was described on MyMoneyBlog.com. Here's what I'll be getting for $30/month:
The downside? I had to change my phone number because it only works for NEW phone lines. So, once the new phone is activated and confirmed to work, etc., I'll be sending out an email to everyone with my new cell phone number on it.
However, with all the traveling I've been doing lately, I decided to sign up for the Sprint Employee Referral Offer that was described on MyMoneyBlog.com. Here's what I'll be getting for $30/month:
- 500 anytime minutes per month
- Unlimited nights and weekends starting at 7 PM
- Includes long distance and roaming
- Unlimited text messages
- Unlimited PCS Vision (web browsing) capabilities
- Free mobile-to-mobile calls
- Caller ID, 3 way calling, voice mail
- No activation fee
The downside? I had to change my phone number because it only works for NEW phone lines. So, once the new phone is activated and confirmed to work, etc., I'll be sending out an email to everyone with my new cell phone number on it.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Sprint Cell Phone Plan
When I saw this, I should've immediately posted it to my blog, but I didn't. I hope it's still available!!
Check out the details on this Sprint plan. It's $30 a month and it includes 500 minutes, nights start at 7 PM and you get free text messages and Sprint vision!! I think you can get another $50 off. Read his "Deals" section.
Jump on it though. It may run out soon!
Check out the details on this Sprint plan. It's $30 a month and it includes 500 minutes, nights start at 7 PM and you get free text messages and Sprint vision!! I think you can get another $50 off. Read his "Deals" section.
Jump on it though. It may run out soon!
Friday, May 18, 2007
Housing Swap Vacation
What is a housing swap?
You basically trade where you live with someone else in another city/country. It's a great way to save some money if you have faith in your fellow man that they will respect your space and not steal from you. Some people might think it's nuts, but I don't! Maybe that's the eternal optimist in me. I would be perfectly willing to swap housing with someone in order to save money on hotel costs.
The reason I'm considering this?
I have five more weeks of vacation time scheduled off between now and the end of the year. I won't have five weeks of vacation time accrued (maybe about three weeks), so I'm going to have to take a couple weeks of it off without pay. I, for one, am all about creative ways to save some money so I don't feel it in my savings account.
Here's what I did:
I posted a couple ads on Craigslist. One in the Chattanooga area because I'll be there for a week in July and one in the Paris area because I'll be there for a week in October. I'm hoping to get in touch with people who will be willing to trade housing for the same time periods. The Paris swap could be unequal because I'll also be going to Germany after Paris, so they could stay at my apartment for two weeks while I just stay at theirs for one.
The results so far?
I received an email from a woman in Chattanooga who might be interested in coming out this way. I replied with some points she may want to consider and hopefully I'll hear back from her soon!
If I can actually swap with her, I'd be able to save about $375 for the week I'm Chattanooga because I won't have to pay for a hotel room! That $375 is the cost of half of a hotel room since I'm planning on sharing while I'm there. That will certainly make it easier to take the time off without pay. I'm guessing that the savings for Paris could be even greater. I haven't started looking into the cost of hotels and such, but I'm guessing it's far more pricy than Chattanooga!
I hope to get more interest in the swap for Paris later in the year. We'll see!
You basically trade where you live with someone else in another city/country. It's a great way to save some money if you have faith in your fellow man that they will respect your space and not steal from you. Some people might think it's nuts, but I don't! Maybe that's the eternal optimist in me. I would be perfectly willing to swap housing with someone in order to save money on hotel costs.
The reason I'm considering this?
I have five more weeks of vacation time scheduled off between now and the end of the year. I won't have five weeks of vacation time accrued (maybe about three weeks), so I'm going to have to take a couple weeks of it off without pay. I, for one, am all about creative ways to save some money so I don't feel it in my savings account.
Here's what I did:
I posted a couple ads on Craigslist. One in the Chattanooga area because I'll be there for a week in July and one in the Paris area because I'll be there for a week in October. I'm hoping to get in touch with people who will be willing to trade housing for the same time periods. The Paris swap could be unequal because I'll also be going to Germany after Paris, so they could stay at my apartment for two weeks while I just stay at theirs for one.
The results so far?
I received an email from a woman in Chattanooga who might be interested in coming out this way. I replied with some points she may want to consider and hopefully I'll hear back from her soon!
If I can actually swap with her, I'd be able to save about $375 for the week I'm Chattanooga because I won't have to pay for a hotel room! That $375 is the cost of half of a hotel room since I'm planning on sharing while I'm there. That will certainly make it easier to take the time off without pay. I'm guessing that the savings for Paris could be even greater. I haven't started looking into the cost of hotels and such, but I'm guessing it's far more pricy than Chattanooga!
I hope to get more interest in the swap for Paris later in the year. We'll see!
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