Here's something I posted over on the DR board:
Don't they say that confession is good for the soul? I wish my STUPID had only been $400. I know too that today, for me, that would be a huge amount of money but when I look at what I've done in the past, it's not so bad. In 1993 I was in a car accident. Other guys fault. A year later I got a settlement for $75,000.00. Yes, seventy five THOUSAND dollard! I paid off my husband's debt from his first marriage and blew the rest of it. Didn't invest a penny. STUPID. Fast forward to 2004. I received a settlement from my company for being 'let go' while I was on disability. $90,000.00. Yep, NINETY thousand dollars! Again, I paid off the new debt we had accumulated (hadn't learned anything in the intervening years) and blew the rest of it. I can't even account for how I spent it all. STUPID. Now zoom to 2006. DH withdraws $140,000 from his 401(k) emptying it out. He was trying to make up for lost time with his son so he bought a second home that we all could live in and fix up. All the money is gone. The kids move out of state and now the house has been foreclosed on. STUPID. Then we found DR. The only smart thing we've done in 20 years. :-) But it was a month after we had spent $1500.00 filing for bankruptcy (if we could come up with the $1500 how come we had to go bankrupt? ~looks confused~). STUPID. Now it might seem like I'm being hard on myself but I'm not. I'm actually laughing as I type this. I can't believe the things I've done in the last 20 years. If only I'd known better. But I didn't. Hopefully $400 doesn't seem like such a bad thing now. Give yourself a break. If I can cut myself some slack, you should too. Hope you're feeling better by now.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Thank goodness for web bill pay!
I wanted all the bills to be paid on time so I put them into the web bill pay for thier due dates. Only problem is that I've just started using Quicken to track my finances (never really tracked them before) and I could see on the calendar view that I'd be short for over a week with the way I had scheduled things. But thank goodness for web bill pay. Had I sent the bill traditionally, through snail mail, I would have just had to suck it up and go into the negative. I would have spent every day wondering if it was the day that i would take the hit financially. I'm new to all this TMMO stuff and I'm still working out the budget. Anyway, because I had the bill on web bill pay I could go in and cancel the payment and schedule it for next week when I actually have the money (what a concept!). I'm going to call to let them know that I need to pay the bill one week late (it's for the phone and they have worked with me before when necessary). Whew!
Why then am I feeling so guilty? I know I'm doing the logical thing. I shouldn't go in the negative (that's an old pattern) and incur NSF fees when I can remedy the situation by making a scheduled late payment. Guess my perfectionism is rearing it's ugly head. When I do something, such a the TMMO, I want to do it 'perfectly'. I made a budget and I should be able to follow it. Right? But I hadn't budgeted for a $250 hit for life insurance (yes, it was expected at some point, but because I didn't keep track I didn't know exactly when it would come ~sigh~), $60 in late fees for being behind on the mortgage, $30 to have the sprinklers blown out and turned off (we're not able to get under the house to do it because of physical problems, so we have to hire it out to be done), $10 more to electric than budgeted for (I'm on budget billing now, yay!), $30 for license tags, $25 for DH's flu shot (not covered under our plan) and $150 for DH's prescriptions (we do get them through mail order, again, I wasn't tracking so it was a 'surprise'').
I guess this is what you all mean by getting 'Murphy'd'. I'm going to be grateful though that I could pay for all of these 'unexpected' bites out of the apple and that I could reschedule the phone payment. I feel an incredible amount of relief now that the calendar in Quicken is no longer showing numbers in the red.
Just needed to vent. Thanks for being here.
Why then am I feeling so guilty? I know I'm doing the logical thing. I shouldn't go in the negative (that's an old pattern) and incur NSF fees when I can remedy the situation by making a scheduled late payment. Guess my perfectionism is rearing it's ugly head. When I do something, such a the TMMO, I want to do it 'perfectly'. I made a budget and I should be able to follow it. Right? But I hadn't budgeted for a $250 hit for life insurance (yes, it was expected at some point, but because I didn't keep track I didn't know exactly when it would come ~sigh~), $60 in late fees for being behind on the mortgage, $30 to have the sprinklers blown out and turned off (we're not able to get under the house to do it because of physical problems, so we have to hire it out to be done), $10 more to electric than budgeted for (I'm on budget billing now, yay!), $30 for license tags, $25 for DH's flu shot (not covered under our plan) and $150 for DH's prescriptions (we do get them through mail order, again, I wasn't tracking so it was a 'surprise'').
I guess this is what you all mean by getting 'Murphy'd'. I'm going to be grateful though that I could pay for all of these 'unexpected' bites out of the apple and that I could reschedule the phone payment. I feel an incredible amount of relief now that the calendar in Quicken is no longer showing numbers in the red.
Just needed to vent. Thanks for being here.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Sell everything that's not nailed down
David stayed home from work today. He's still in bed. With the dogs. I got up early today and went for my walk. I finished my book on tape. It was a good book. I need to ago pick up another one. I didn't feel like I got much of a workout today. And my weight is up a bit. I think it's because I haven't been drinking enough water. I ran out of bottled water and didn't have the money to get any until yesterday. I tried to drink tap water, but it made me feel sick. I took care of the laundry and dishes already. I'm listening to a podcast of the DR show as I sit here. I'm trying to figure out how to make some money. We don't have any money. None. And I need to get some money in the bank. Quick. I've got some stuff on craigslist but only sold one $5 DVD player. I thought I had someone interested in some other stuff but they never emailed or called back. I'll probably have to lower prices to get the stuff moving. I wish I could think of something to sell that would go fast. But I can't think of anything. Guess I could look into selling some of my jewelry. I hope David isn't taking today off without pay. That would sink us. We worked up a budget but have had so many things to pay that weren't accounted for that we're already way over the budget for the month. I want to start the BEF but I'm not sure I'll have money to do that this month. I haven't been spending much of anything. When I bought water I went to Lowe's to get it because it's $3.97 there and it's $4.99 at Safeway and Target. Also got a half gallon of milk at Walgreens on sale. Needed some fruit so I spent $2.50 on that. That's all I have spent. I'm still cooking from what's in the house. I'm out of meat, but I know I can still figure some things out for meals for the next few days. Even if we just have rice we'll be able to eat for a while.
I made some calls yesterday to figure out why I have balances on some medical bills and saved myself from paying $170. They both need to be sent to Medicare by the provider. I'm not going to deal with them until I get something from Medicare. I'm sure I won't have to pay anything. I also called USAA and made sure that I was on time with the bill.
"Beans and rice. Rice and beans. On a written budget." That's what DR says. First save $1000 for BEF and then attack the smallest bill (the loan from Cork) first. I've got to get a part time job. That's all there is to it. At least until we get ahead a bit. I should go buy the Sunday paper so I can get the coupons and the employment section. I can come up with $1.50 in change from the change jar. Think I'll go do that right now.
I made some calls yesterday to figure out why I have balances on some medical bills and saved myself from paying $170. They both need to be sent to Medicare by the provider. I'm not going to deal with them until I get something from Medicare. I'm sure I won't have to pay anything. I also called USAA and made sure that I was on time with the bill.
"Beans and rice. Rice and beans. On a written budget." That's what DR says. First save $1000 for BEF and then attack the smallest bill (the loan from Cork) first. I've got to get a part time job. That's all there is to it. At least until we get ahead a bit. I should go buy the Sunday paper so I can get the coupons and the employment section. I can come up with $1.50 in change from the change jar. Think I'll go do that right now.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Quicken
I have been totally sidetracked the past week. Finances have taken over my life. Not that it's a bad thing since I'm learning stuff, but the house shows that I've been distracted. The kitchen is a mess, again. I know it will only take minutes to clean it up though so I'm not stressed about it. I have a bunch of stuff in the living room on the floor that I'm trying to sell on craigslist. I got an email tonight about the scrapbooking stuff. I have a lot of arts and crafts stuff that I just don't use that I am willing to part with. I'm also trying to sell the breadmaker that I never use. I have to come up with some cash and quickly. I went to the bank this morning to make a deposit forgetting that it's Columbus Day and the credit union was closed. I'll have to go tomorrow morning to deposit the cash that I do have. I really don't want to bounce any checks. I really don't. I can't believe that I didn't pay attention again. Anyway, I posted on the TMMO forum last night about having trouble keeping the check register. I got quite a few responses. All of the people who had a preference use Quicken, not Money. So I downloaded a free 60 day trial of Quicken. Wow! What a nice piece of software. It does exactly what I wanted to do on the wall calendar except it does it automatically online. I should be able to keep track much better now. So I know that I am definitely NSF right now. lol Oh well. Things will get better. As I use the DC and checkbook less and less and cash and the online system more and more, it will be easier to keep track of everything. I'm really amped up about using Quicken. I can even put notes on the calendar for non-financial stuff. Very cool.
Well, I weighed in today: 251.8! Woohoo. I'm down about 22 pounds so far. I was thinking of changing my 'workouts' to include intervals and the NEWO but I'm been giving it some thought and realized that I shouldn't try to fix what is not broke. I love walking every morning and listening to a book on tape (still listening to the Stephen King one) so I know I'll get out there and do it. The other workout: not so much. I'm already not wanting to do it. But I do want to go for my walks every day. And it's definitely helping me to lose weight. Staying away from the soda and junk food is also helping. I've continued with the Frugal Week and I'm still trying to not use the DC, drinking as much water as I can and cooking meals with what's already in the house. It looks like there's 'no food' but there's still a ton of stuff. I know I can make it through the week with the food that I have in the house right now.
Tomorrow I need to try to get back on track with the house and my routine. I'm still getting things accomplished but the house is suffering, like I said. I don't like having a messy kitchen. And I need to do the Zone Work and I haven't been doing that. Someone on the TMMO forum said that the reason I wasn't keeping a check register was 'sloppy, lazy financial habits' and I agreed. I can see that I have the same attitude about cleaning the house: I have sloppy, lazy cleaning habits. The floors really need to be cleaned. The dogs make a mess of them now that the grass is wet in the morning. We had our first frost last night, by the way. Anyway, the dogs track in all kinds of stuff on their paws. I need to keep up with the floors better now that fall is here. Winter will be a nightmare!
I was up until 2am this morning doing financial stuff. I'm going to bed at a decent hour tonight. I was exhausted all day. I took a half an hour nap from 6:45 - 7:15pm. It didn't help much. I need to take my meds and some benadryl and head to bed here soon.
Not much going on this week. I have to get the paperwork to the attorney by Thursday for our meeting next week. And Friday we're scheduled for Lisa's. That's about all that's going on in my world this week. I have plenty of time to work on the house and try to sell stuff on craigslist. I sure hope I get some more interest in stuff. Not sure what I'll do if this stuff doesn't sell. I won't get rid of it. I'll have to hang on to it until I use it or sell it. I pray for sales.
Okay, off to bed I go. David and Huxley are already there. Blitz is on the couch waiting for me to go to bed. She'll go in once I get up to go brush my teeth and take my pills.
Tomorrow is another day. I'm looking forward to going for a walk in the morning. I don't have any smoothie mix so there won't be a smoothie tomorrow. That's a bummer. I guess I could go over and just buy one bottle ($2) out of the coin jar. I might do that since I have to go to the credit union anyway. Not sure what time they open though. I'll have to look that up.
Okay, I'm really going now! lol
Well, I weighed in today: 251.8! Woohoo. I'm down about 22 pounds so far. I was thinking of changing my 'workouts' to include intervals and the NEWO but I'm been giving it some thought and realized that I shouldn't try to fix what is not broke. I love walking every morning and listening to a book on tape (still listening to the Stephen King one) so I know I'll get out there and do it. The other workout: not so much. I'm already not wanting to do it. But I do want to go for my walks every day. And it's definitely helping me to lose weight. Staying away from the soda and junk food is also helping. I've continued with the Frugal Week and I'm still trying to not use the DC, drinking as much water as I can and cooking meals with what's already in the house. It looks like there's 'no food' but there's still a ton of stuff. I know I can make it through the week with the food that I have in the house right now.
Tomorrow I need to try to get back on track with the house and my routine. I'm still getting things accomplished but the house is suffering, like I said. I don't like having a messy kitchen. And I need to do the Zone Work and I haven't been doing that. Someone on the TMMO forum said that the reason I wasn't keeping a check register was 'sloppy, lazy financial habits' and I agreed. I can see that I have the same attitude about cleaning the house: I have sloppy, lazy cleaning habits. The floors really need to be cleaned. The dogs make a mess of them now that the grass is wet in the morning. We had our first frost last night, by the way. Anyway, the dogs track in all kinds of stuff on their paws. I need to keep up with the floors better now that fall is here. Winter will be a nightmare!
I was up until 2am this morning doing financial stuff. I'm going to bed at a decent hour tonight. I was exhausted all day. I took a half an hour nap from 6:45 - 7:15pm. It didn't help much. I need to take my meds and some benadryl and head to bed here soon.
Not much going on this week. I have to get the paperwork to the attorney by Thursday for our meeting next week. And Friday we're scheduled for Lisa's. That's about all that's going on in my world this week. I have plenty of time to work on the house and try to sell stuff on craigslist. I sure hope I get some more interest in stuff. Not sure what I'll do if this stuff doesn't sell. I won't get rid of it. I'll have to hang on to it until I use it or sell it. I pray for sales.
Okay, off to bed I go. David and Huxley are already there. Blitz is on the couch waiting for me to go to bed. She'll go in once I get up to go brush my teeth and take my pills.
Tomorrow is another day. I'm looking forward to going for a walk in the morning. I don't have any smoothie mix so there won't be a smoothie tomorrow. That's a bummer. I guess I could go over and just buy one bottle ($2) out of the coin jar. I might do that since I have to go to the credit union anyway. Not sure what time they open though. I'll have to look that up.
Okay, I'm really going now! lol
Crap!
I just re-did the budget. Good thing that I did. I messed up again. I forgot to record some transactions and now I'm $30 short. Yikes! All I can do is hope that the check won't come through until Friday when David gets paid. I can't believe I messed up again. It happened because I had to order prescriptions for David and they were $150. I didn't check ahead of time to make sure that I had enough money in the account. My fault totally. I really hope the DR plan helps me to keep more on top of this. We're not spending money on anything right now. It's all going to bills. I have other bills due this coming week and it will be difficult to get them paid. I guess I'll have to shoot for Friday pay dates. I better look at that now too, to make sure I'll have enough to pay what's due right now (Qwest, USAA & some other misc. bills). I'll have to go to the bank first thing in the morning and make a deposit to cover the bills that I can cover. I'll take what I have in the change jar too. But I don't think that will cover the $30 I'm short. Oh well. Live and learn. I just don't want Ent to kick us out for being NSF so soon. I hope I have learned my lesson from this. I HAVE to keep track of the check register. No more guessing!
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Day off
Today is my day off - no walking. If feels weird to be able to go walking but staying home instead. Jonathan says that it's good to take a day off to let the body recover. So that's what I'm doing. I miss my book on tape though. I can't wait to get back to that and walking tomorrow morning. No smoothie this morning since I didn't go for a walk. I'll save it for tomorrow. I had frosted mini wheats. They were okay, but nothing to write home about.
I just realized that I didn't much follow my routine this morning. I just went right to the laptop. That's not good. I don't want that to become my routine. I have to get stuff done around here. I didn't do anything last night (never quite got the franny going). So, it has to get done today. I usually like to take Sunday's off but I can't if I've taken Saturday off. Can't have a day off every day, now can I. ;-)
I just realized that I didn't much follow my routine this morning. I just went right to the laptop. That's not good. I don't want that to become my routine. I have to get stuff done around here. I didn't do anything last night (never quite got the franny going). So, it has to get done today. I usually like to take Sunday's off but I can't if I've taken Saturday off. Can't have a day off every day, now can I. ;-)
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