I was at a happy hour on Friday and it was time to pay the bill. I pulled out my check-card and my best friend says "Where are your envelopes?". Uhhhhhh. Truth be told, I have not gotten paid from my part-time job for the hours worked last week. This money gets divied up and goes into my envelopes so I can pay strictly with cash for gas, food, and entertainment. No cash = no envelope system.
This is the first time in two and a half months I have gone sans envelope system. Sure, it's not great that I resorted to the check card, but the money does come directly out of my checking account and my transactions are limited. It's not like in previous months when I would check my online account balance obsessively to keep track of my transactions (here I go justifying things again:). Sure, I could have made a cash withdrawal and put that money into my envelopes, but honestly, I feel like these practices have become habits.
This habit has become so consistent, in fact, that people are taking notice and holding me accountable. Will I always use my envelope system in the future no matter what? You bet I will!
So here is my money memoirs advice for the day: Pay with cash and let them see you do it. Sometimes it is difficult to hold ourselves accountable 100% of the time, every once in a while we need the help of friends.
March 30, 2009
March 21, 2009
Financial Goals Update- March 2009
Time for a progress report on the financial goals I set at the beginning of 2009. Hard to believe we are almost a 1/4 of the way through the year!
1.) Emergency Fund- still intact at $1,000 and gaining interest. I have been pondering the idea of adding another $1,000 to it after I pay off my car this summer. The student loan pay-off will take a significant amount of time so it would be smart to increase the emergency fund...I'll revisit this idea in a few months.
2.) Credit Card Debt- If you read my recent post then you already know my credit card debt has been wiped out! Yay! I began accruing credit card debt when I started college (couldn't say no to the free t-shirts for signing up), which; hard as it is to believe, was about 10 years ago. Wow, almost a decade since I have maintained a zero balance on a credit card.
3.) American Honda Finance Auto Loan- My official balance as of today is $4,941.46 I had originally intended on beginning mega-payments on this loan in mid-March. But, in light of the recent vehicle repair, I have pushed back the start date to mid-April. This could potentially push back the final payment of my auto loan beyond July...makes me kind of sad because I wanted to celebrate this pay-off on my birthday. I am going to stick with this original pay-off date in mind though because great things are possible!
4.) Sallie Mae Student Loan- this still stands at $13, 350. My goal is to begin large payments immediately following the pay off of my Civic, somewhere in the July-September time frame. Also, my 2009 Federal Income Tax return (thinking way ahead here) will be applied towards this loan. Bottom line, I hope to have my student loan debt cut in half by this time next year.
I have to say I am delighted with my progress. There have been set-backs but I have been prepared for them all, what a difference a few months make!
Here's to what was before, what has been done to change it, and what will be in the future!
March 18, 2009
Oh Happy Day!
It's official. I am absolutely, positively, 100% credit card debt free!
How liberating! My credit card had a balance of $1,918, a $22 minimum payment and a 1% interest rate. I have been paying the minimum payment for the last couple of months until my federal tax refund check came in. I received the check on Saturday, it posted to my checking account yesterday, and the payment posted to the credit card today. When I logged onto my online account this afternoon I saw this $.00. What a sight for soar eyes:) Especially after the mild set-back last week. Also, I will be able to apply the $22 minimum payments to the mega-payments on my auto loan, which I will begin in April.
When I first started my debt elimination journey I contemplated the idea of a rewards system each time I met a goal, i.e. small purchase, ice cream, wine. Now I realize that the reward can be found simply in the feeling you get when you accomplish something amazing.
Here's to celebrating the extra little jolt I needed to keep looking ahead to the future and all the good that will come!
How liberating! My credit card had a balance of $1,918, a $22 minimum payment and a 1% interest rate. I have been paying the minimum payment for the last couple of months until my federal tax refund check came in. I received the check on Saturday, it posted to my checking account yesterday, and the payment posted to the credit card today. When I logged onto my online account this afternoon I saw this $.00. What a sight for soar eyes:) Especially after the mild set-back last week. Also, I will be able to apply the $22 minimum payments to the mega-payments on my auto loan, which I will begin in April.
When I first started my debt elimination journey I contemplated the idea of a rewards system each time I met a goal, i.e. small purchase, ice cream, wine. Now I realize that the reward can be found simply in the feeling you get when you accomplish something amazing.
Here's to celebrating the extra little jolt I needed to keep looking ahead to the future and all the good that will come!
March 16, 2009
Do you want the good news or the bad news?
Because I like to end each post on a high note, I'll start with the bad news. I took my car in last week because the dashboard fan was not pushing out any air. Silly, naive little me assumed it would be a quick fix and $100 in the worst case scenario. I received a call on Thursday from the repair shop with the news, $523.74 to fix it! OMG, I let out a little wimper when I heard the number.
Rest assured I cancelled my previous vacation plans immediately; my vacation likely would have cost about $500 and I cannot justify both fixing my car and going on an unnecessary vacation. I wasn't completely committed to this as I had not purchased a flight or booked a hotel.
Even though this news is a bummer, I'm so relieved I have the financial means to pay for it. If this were a few months ago, I wouldn't have thought twice about putting the expense on my credit card and paying interest on it...things are really changing for the better around here.
Now for the great news. I received my federal tax refund check in the mail on Saturday. I deposited it immediately and it should post to my checking account by the end of the business day today. Do you know what that means? Once the money is applied to my credit card balance I will be credit card debt free for the first time in a long time! No worries, I will dedicate a single post to this momentous occasion later in the week:)
Rest assured I cancelled my previous vacation plans immediately; my vacation likely would have cost about $500 and I cannot justify both fixing my car and going on an unnecessary vacation. I wasn't completely committed to this as I had not purchased a flight or booked a hotel.
Even though this news is a bummer, I'm so relieved I have the financial means to pay for it. If this were a few months ago, I wouldn't have thought twice about putting the expense on my credit card and paying interest on it...things are really changing for the better around here.
Now for the great news. I received my federal tax refund check in the mail on Saturday. I deposited it immediately and it should post to my checking account by the end of the business day today. Do you know what that means? Once the money is applied to my credit card balance I will be credit card debt free for the first time in a long time! No worries, I will dedicate a single post to this momentous occasion later in the week:)
March 8, 2009
Confessional: I planned a summer vacation
The further I get into my debt elimination journey, the easier it becomes to justify straying from the path. Becoming debt-free truly is a discipline.
In an earlier post I vowed to postpone vacationing for 12-18 months until the bulk of my debt is gone. But then I went and planned a summer vacation for July 2009. I have the opportunity to go on a short trip to Florida for a wedding this summer. The trip will probably cost $400-$500 when it's all said and done. I justified this decision by telling myself I will simply work extra hours at my part time job which will allow me to stick to my original debt-repayment schedule. After crunching the numbers I've determined I will have to work an extra 2.5 hours per week at my part time job to make up for the trip.
The bottom line is, I need to allow myself some flexibility (within reason). Am I the only debt eliminator who tells themselves it is better to stay at home on a Friday night and list items on Ebay than it would be to go out for dinner with friends? Probably not, surely we all deal with this internal struggle on a weekly and daily basis. But that is by no means any way to live.
I know I will continue to struggle with finding a balance and making decisions between snowflaking money or allowing myself a little nicety as a reward for my progress every once in a while. This part will definitely take time and will evolve as my journey continues. Making exceptions to my budget, of course, will not turn into a trend.
I can enjoy life and eliminate debt, I can and I will! Ahh, I feel better already. It's amazing how putting something down in writing really helps sort through it.
What are some of the financial exceptions you've made in your journey towards debt elimination?
In an earlier post I vowed to postpone vacationing for 12-18 months until the bulk of my debt is gone. But then I went and planned a summer vacation for July 2009. I have the opportunity to go on a short trip to Florida for a wedding this summer. The trip will probably cost $400-$500 when it's all said and done. I justified this decision by telling myself I will simply work extra hours at my part time job which will allow me to stick to my original debt-repayment schedule. After crunching the numbers I've determined I will have to work an extra 2.5 hours per week at my part time job to make up for the trip.
The bottom line is, I need to allow myself some flexibility (within reason). Am I the only debt eliminator who tells themselves it is better to stay at home on a Friday night and list items on Ebay than it would be to go out for dinner with friends? Probably not, surely we all deal with this internal struggle on a weekly and daily basis. But that is by no means any way to live.
I know I will continue to struggle with finding a balance and making decisions between snowflaking money or allowing myself a little nicety as a reward for my progress every once in a while. This part will definitely take time and will evolve as my journey continues. Making exceptions to my budget, of course, will not turn into a trend.
I can enjoy life and eliminate debt, I can and I will! Ahh, I feel better already. It's amazing how putting something down in writing really helps sort through it.
What are some of the financial exceptions you've made in your journey towards debt elimination?
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