Layout:
Home > Archive: September, 2012

Archive for September, 2012

Jeez....

September 27th, 2012 at 07:53 pm

The exterminator came today. I decided to work from home until he came so I didn't have to take a vacation day. The news....not so great. With a discount...probably because I started crying while he was there...it is $936.00. I didn't cry to get a discount. I cried because I am completely and financially overwhelmed. I quickly dried it up and realized that THIS IS WHY WE HAVE EMERGENCY FUNDS AND SAVINGS ACCOUNTS. Unfortunately, we don't have enough to cover all of our recent financial "happenings." But we have to have our house treated. Its not optional and he said we need to do it within the next couple of weeks. Which means shortly after that, we HAVE to do the siding on the house, to protect us. And of course, we still have to fix my husband's transmission. And changing the oil filter on my car...didn't fix the problem.


*deep breath*


I am so overwhelmed. The good news is that I did get the job at the restaurant. I am just a cook. Should be easy enough. The pay is not huge, but its extra and if I could put $100 of it a month towards my debt repayment, I could probably knock it out pretty quick. And put the rest towards EVERYTHING else. I start tomorrow.

My Status

September 26th, 2012 at 06:15 pm

We have termites. A little while back, I was afraid we may have termites, so I invested in some home treatments and home test kits. And...we have them. I am afraid of what the treatment will cost. I think it could be anywhere from a couple of hundred to a thousand. I will know tomorrow. I am hoping with every ounce of my being that we caught it early and it is the low end. We don't have a huge savings, but we could cover that.


My husband's transmission is in the repair process. I am hopeful that he is able to fix it. He does not want to pay someone 2K to do it nor do we have 2K to pay someone. So... what can you do?


My car was also having some issues. My husband truly thinks that is was because the wrong oil filter was on it. I hope that he is right. We will see if I have any more issues, because he changed the oil filter last night.

And finally, I applied and interviewed for a part time job last night. Its Monday - Friday, 5-8 PM. Waitress and possible cook. I enjoy the restaurant business, its only 3 hours a night, it will bring in a little extra cash, and its only 6 miles from my house. Which for being in the country, that's pretty good. I just realize how much I miss our savings account. When we had 10K in there, I knew we would be ok if something came up. I feel like now I am just floating in a sea of danger in a saran wrap dingy.

Oh no....its the transmission

September 21st, 2012 at 07:23 pm

I am trying not to let the fact that we have to fix my husband's transmission get me down. The upside of this situation is that my husband is going to try to fix it. Should be $300 - $500. If it doesn't work, then rather than deplete our savings, my husband is going to sell one of his "man toys" to pay for it. Down side is, I won't see my husband much. Luckily we have another vehicle he can drive (eventhough it is a gas hog) and he can also ride his motorcycle.


Other financial ramblings... I'm looking forward to October. Excited to make bigger credit card payments. I will also be able to put a little into savings and boost my Christmas savings.


Luckily this week will not be as tight as last week. And I am hoping that no EXTRA expenses pop up. Lots of work to do at our shop and around the house, so I should be too busy to spend money. And I took Monday off from work, so I'll save a little on gas.

Retirement

September 17th, 2012 at 04:19 pm

Retirement has been on my brain a lot lately. A year and a half ago, I didn't even have a 401K. And although my contribution is small and I do not get an employer match, I still feel like I am accomplishing something by having one. I had a 401K years ago, but due to financial "ignorance" I took a total distribution when I was laid off. But....you live and learn.

But retirement has become so overwhelming. According to Merryl Lynch, I need at least $600,000 at retirement. I do have over 30 years before retirement, but how in the world can I save 600K? Pay off debt and put that amount towards retirement? Even then, its not enough.

Retirement

September 17th, 2012 at 03:55 pm

Retirement has been on my brain a lot lately. A year and a half ago, I didn't even have a 401K. I did have a 401K at my previous employer, but being financially dumb I took a distribution when I was laid off. Not the best decision. But you live and learn. My employer now doesn't match %, but I feel like I am accomplishing something by just having one. Unfortunately, I can't change my percentage for another couple of months, but I plan to raise it.


But retirement seems so overwhelming. How am I supposed to come up with $600,000 (According to the retirement calculator, that is the minimum I need)? Pay off debt, then use that money towards retirement? Find a different way to invest? I have over 30 years until retirement, but the days are just flying by. And I don't want to be stuck with nothing.

Hump Day....but its been an uphill battle to get here

September 12th, 2012 at 07:13 pm

So, its Wednesday and I have 0.00 of my $2.96 left. I had to make 2 trips to our shop so I am completely out of gas. I had a little bit of cash set aside to get gas to get me through the week, but with the unplanned trips, that is gone. Luckily we do not need anything from the store until Friday, so I will have to steal from that jar for gas. Ugh. We also had a last minute invite to watch a show premiere at a local bar last night. My husband had cash so he bought our drinks. So that worked out.

My plan for tonight is to stay home and make a grocery list. We have not eaten off my meal plan so I should still have some things left. Luckily we have been eating off the inventory so its slowly going down. Husband will be home later than normal so maybe I can do some stuff around the house too. We have just been so busy lately...I am just glad I don't have to be anywhere tonight.

Tight week

September 7th, 2012 at 04:26 pm

This past week we had some unexpected expenses - termite treatment (do it yourself kind), household items, and one of our insurance policies went up. So when I got paid today, I went ahead and did all my financial planning and paying...transferred money away for our utility bills, paid credit card payments, accounted for car insurance coming out in a week. And I have $2.96 left. I even took out cash for us to eat out once this week and filled my car up with gas. So I am hoping that I still have $2.96 left next Friday. Luckily I have groceries and I think I have $10 in my "Food" jar at home in case we need milk or something along those lines. But it will be a tight week. But next week will be better.


And even though I am saving for Christmas and my husband's birthday right now, I will be able to pay 4x the minimum on my 3 credit cards in October. I feel like I'm doing ok.