Clutter

I feel really good today. I had to stay home from work in order to prevent everyone from getting my cold. It was a doozy. I have been feeling grumpy. So I read my blogs today. I decided to step by step catch up.

Yesterday I was grumping about the health insurance. Well I have resolved ONE of the three things I needed to do. I also started to track down my old financial information from a company I used to work for. I have some documentation but not enough information. And I have a TON of useless information I don't need. It will take me some time to track it all down. I am not sure where to start looking but I have begun the hunt. One blog I read had a post Applying GTD principles to your personal finances It was very good. It made me really stop and think. So I began to accumulate data from the past which lead right into finding my old folder where I had kept the benefit information. It is only partial but head and shoulders over health care info I had and did not need.

I was also able to clean off my desk. I took every single paper that was on top of the desk and either threw it out or found a home for it. I feel so much better. The room looks much more peaceful too. I want to develop a positive attitude about my bills. I want it to be a freeing experience. Stand up and be free from debt. I want to feel good when I pay down the card. And mostly I do. Some days the grumpy turkeys get me.

I have developed a better system. A system needs to be logical and one you trust. Something I have been lacking is trust. Today I know where all the current bills are. I know what needs I have pending. I know I need to create a budget.

I have been reading Girl get your credit straight by Glinda Bridgforth. She has some basic ratios for budgeting. If I had known about these before I might have pulled the credit cards sooner. Questionable. But it turns out I am a very good budgeter and spender. I am under her percentages in all categories..... Care to guess....... Yep that's the one... Credit cards. I pay DOUBLE what average debt is manageable to carry. What a big honkin' hole. So I suppose that is the purpose of these exercises. I am struggling greatly this month. The number of extraordinary expenses is mounting and I feel overwhelmed. May should be better and June will be the summer program for my daughter. She is so excited. We finally got the acceptance letter in the mail today. No financial aid though. How can they do that? But with help from Grand parents she will be able to go. Way to go kiddo! I still have hope, but I am daunted by how hard it really is to cut back. I brought my lunch to work today. I will again tomorrow and Friday it is being provided. So I will maintain low cost for the end of the week. Good thing too as my funds are very low.

More to come...

I am not a financial professional. If you are looking for financial advise you should seek it elsewhere. If you would like to join me on the journey, walk with me for a while and be my friend......

Changing times

Changing times.... We have had to make a lot of adjustments this month. There were solid reasons for all the choices we made as a family and I made on my own. It makes me realize that as an adult I have come a long way. I probably still have a long way to go.....

First we had to change our plans for my daughters spring break. A devastating choice for her. Then she was traveling for a week. Her last week in her winter sport ended quickly with not feeling well and a drive to go and rescue her. (That's what parents do....) And now this weekend is Prom. I remember my first Prom and I wish for her a much better time then I had. I also do not wish to spend an arm and a leg for her to have that good time. Nails, hair, dress, prom bid... Mom does not mean made of money. If she had a job of her own I would encourage her to pay for the special things she wants. I have instead encouraged her to pursue sports and arts to develop independence for going on to college. In a way I got what I wished for. So now I just have to fund it.

Goals.... Paperwork. I am feeling frozen again. Whenever there is something I do not want to do I drag my heels and move more slowly then I should. I do not want to fill out some Insurance forms. And tracking down a 401k from two jobs ago seems useless. But I think its worth it. My logical good sense mind knows I need to do these things for me. My child inside is frozen and I don't know why. I cannot voice what I am afraid of but I know its fear. The consequences will be worse by not taking action. I did one thing today. I have two left to fill out and a phone call to make. I can do it. Even writing it here seems so silly to me to say what on earth is holding you back? Step up! you can do it.... and I will now that I have said it out loud.

My other goal is stop buying lunch at work. Its not too bad $5.00 per day. But I think I can save more by taking a frozen meal, soup and crackers, that type of thing. Plus soda is a big expense and I need to buy more effectively. I'll bet I could save about $25.00 a month if I brought in my own from home instead of buying sodas at work. And please don't tell me not to drink them at all I am too addicted and way to old to change that habit.

Inspiration today came from this article on MSN and here at the No credit needed podcast. The phrase debt burden keeps ringing in my head today. I will get out. I will get out I will get out from all this debt. This month is proving to be a bigger challenge then I thought. However.... I have hope for May. And who knows maybe Fed ex could use a box loader for a short time.

On the Major positive side... Work has promised me a laptop and a desktop computer. Way to go! It will be a lot nicer to use that then this old PII and I have. I am running out of memory and disk space!


I am not a financial professional. If you are looking for financial advise you should seek it elsewhere. If you would like to join me on the journey, walk with me for a while and be my friend......