fall classic
Well, according to this month’s net worth chart, I made less than $1,000 improvement this month, despite my saving over $1,500 and getting rid of over $500 of debt. My car is getting old. I mainly track its net worth because I want to keep track of how much I owe on it compared to its value. This month, car depreciation, combined with stock and IRA value losses, really dragged down my progress on paper. I’ll just think about it this way: look how much worse it would have been if I hadn’t paid off so much debt and saved so much money. My IRA balance would also be worse if I hadn’t made a "rescue" contribution late this month to pull it up from being down by 30%. I knew my progress this month would not have been as good as other months, because of some of the car maintenance and other expenses I wanted to face before getting laid off again. Hey, I did what I had to do – what I was supposed to do. I invested. I saved. I paid off debt. And even though my car depreciated, it’s running very well, it’s in excellent condition, it’s as beautiful as the day I picked it off the lot, and perhaps most importantly, it’ll take me to any interview I need to get to with no problem. The last thing you want when facing unemployment is an unreliable car – been there, done that – it wasn’t cool at all. So goes the month of October 2008.
One more thing. This is the two year anniversary of my wake up call to get my finances in order. Since October 2006:
- I have improved my net worth by $36,415. That’s a 51% improvement.
- I have totally eliminated my credit card debt.
- I have credit scores that are consistently near 800.
- I have saved over three months’ living expenses in an emergency fund.
- I have saved almost $14,000 for my dream of home ownership.
- I pulled my car loan balance down to less than the worth of my car.
- I finally started investing in stocks and retirement mutual funds.
- I changed my earning potential by getting certified in my profession.
- I have prioritized charitable giving on a regular basis.
- I finally got my student loan balances down into the principal amount borrowed.
I’m blessed. All of a sudden, I don’t feel so bad about this month’s slower-than-usual net worth progress. These past two years have been great!
home is priceless
I like sports. My city’s Phillies just won the World Series! I watched for free from my nice warm house last night. But some people paid $2500 a seat or more to shiver in 30 degree temperatures at Citizens Bank Park to watch the game in person. Believe me, I understand why they wanted to be there. But I’m really glad I could watch for free at home! I can’t imagine spending that kind of money… maybe, if I was rich… I don’t know. But I do know that I will be buying a nice new World Series Phillies cap or two.
GO PHILLIES!
money on stupidity
I think Halloween is stupid. Not so much for the kids, but definitely for the adults. But Mister Ant has been trying to get me to meet some friends of his, and with our schedules being what they are, I will be coming with him to a Halloween party to meet these friends. Well, of course, it’s a costume party. So of course I need a costume. I’m not into the gory/undead/devilish stuff – it’s one of my biggest objections to Halloween. I’m also not into spending money on stuff I think is stupid, like Halloween. But there I was this past weekend, shopping for a costume. I am going to cross-cross-dress in drag. I will be FABulous. I got the idea from a pair of outrageous false eyelashes. After picking up the falsies, a boa, and a wig, I was good to go, since I already have a glittery and slinky number that will fit just right. Total damage? Thirty dollars. Considering that I saw mere wigs for more than that, I guess I did okay. But believe me, I’d rather not have spent the money. If I’d thought harder about it, I would have just figured something out with stuff I already own. But the peer pressure from Mister Ant was ridiculous. He wouldn’t let me get off that easy. *Sigh.* The things we do to get along…
keeping tabs
I am STILL looking for full-time direct employment with benefits almost 11 months after I was laid off from my real-estate based company.
Recession 1, Sistah Ant 0
At its worst, my IRA lost at least 30% of its dollar value within a few months of buying into my current long-term mutual fund.
Recession 2, Sistah Ant 0
I bought some more shares of my IRA at a cheaper price.
Recession 2, Sistah Ant 1
I can afford to move into the house I’ve been dreaming about owning, because my increased temporary income has helped me save.
Recession 2, Sistah Ant 2
It’s not a great time for me to take advantage of today’s interest rates because my employment is unstable.
Recession 3, Sistah Ant 2
Things are getting hard for people with lots of debt, but I paid off my credit card debt back in February.
Recession 3, Sistah Ant 3
This thing ain’t over. I’m still fighting. Just wait ’til I get a job. I’m gonna kick this recession’s ass.
i was robbed
People, let me tell you what happened over the weekend. I checked my IRA balance again. Why did I do that? It was down 30%. THIRTY PERCENT!!! I figured I would finally put a few hundred dollars in the account as I’ve been planning to do, since I’m ahead on all of my bills. I clicked on the button to order more shares. But then I found out that there is a $250 minimum amount to buy more of the fund that I’ve been investing in. Darn it! Okay, fine. I added enough to make my purchase the minimum amount. Then I found out that there is a $12 low-balance fee charged to my account if it’s under a certain dollar amount. What!?! It’s not even my fault that the dollar value of my account is down! I’d be doggone if I was going to give them $12 that wasn’t going to go directly towards breathing some life into my ailing account. So then I added enough to my order to both have a $250 minimum purchase and make my account go higher ($3 higher) than the low-balance threshhold. Of course then I was only left with enough money to get groceries and wait for my next paycheck. I feel like I just got robbed. You know the dollar value of my account is just going to go back under the low-balance threshhold, right?
slipping
I noticed that since I’ve been eating out a lot lately, I’ve not been putting all of my receipts where they belong. I have this little pocket in my wallet, and I’m supposed to put my receipts in there while I’m standing at the register. That way, I can keep track of the changes to my balance without depending on my bank. Except lately, only some of my receipts are finding their way into that little pocket. And I’m depending more and more on my online statements from the credit union to remember what I spent, where, and when. Not cool. I don’t like taking their word for it. I don’t like not having my own record to compare with theirs. As I do better financially, I guess that my fear of overdrawing an account is getting lower, and since that was the main reason I started being so meticulous with my check register in the first place, I guess that’s why my record keeping is slipping. That, plus, life is short. I’m doing other stuff. Balancing my check register is never the highlight of my day. I know I would be more comfortable if I just kept the records like I used to do. But I don’t feel like it. What to do, what to do?
nine blessed lives
My current project has been extended for at least another month. I will have income and health insurance for at least another month. I get to look for a way to keep continuous employment to follow this project for at least another month. Tomorrow is not my last day on the project. And I can feel another interview coming up for another position, which I will leave my current position for if I get the call. I am still going to follow through on my "get the monthly expenses as low as possible" plan. But this was a nice bit of news to get this week.
bracing myself
Personal finance is very emotional for me. I am bracing myself for the disappointment that I’m sure to notice when I check my net worth next week, and even, perhaps, for the next few months. My progress won’t be as high as I want it to be, because I’ve been spending money that under normal, not-facing-unemployment circumstances, I would have saved. Now in my head, I know this is okay, because I am doing what I have to do under the circumstances that I’m in. But in my heart, I will have to buck up. I feed off of continuous progress and momentum. When those things wane, I get discouraged about my efforts being less effective. But at least I know this about myself, and I’ll be able to deal with it. I’ve been here before. I’ll just keep plugging away.
anticipating the what ifs
My car is fully insured. I also have renter’s insurance. I called for a health insurance quote yesterday through my professional association. The quote was for the same kind of insurance you’d get on a job – co-pays for regular doctor’s visits, emergency and in-patient care, and prescription co-pays. The monthly premium they quoted me was slightly less than my car note – almost twice what I’m paying now, and I’m already paying too much because I’m a temporary employee. Here I am trying to get my monthly expenses as low as possible so that I can get through my upcoming bout with unemployment, and this health insurance premium would basically put my expenses back at "normal," as if I were still employed. That’s a lot of money, and the name of the game when you’re unemployed is to make your money last as long as you can by stretching it as far as you can. I’m healthy. I don’t regularly purchase prescription medications. The most my doctor charges for a regular visit is $60. I can afford that – IF I even need to go to the doctor – while I’m unemployed. I got an offer through my bank for $18-a-month emergency care insurance. I think I’ll take them up on that one. But I’m not sure about that other health insurance. I think I’ll pass on it. They don’t exclude applicants with pre-existing conditions, so if a chronic health problem pops up, I’ll do what I have to do to sign on at that point. The only other thing I can think about that I should have is disability insurance, which I haven’t had in about a year, anyway. I firmly believe that I should have it. But I’m going to wait – I don’t need to pull on any more bills if I can help it. I know that in the "what if" sense of this discussion, I am making the wrong decision. But it’s a gamble I’m willing to take for the sake of stretching funds now. Now, ready or not, here comes my last day of work, fast approaching.
spending
Spending. Spending. Spending.
She’s a spending machiiiiiiiiine – watch her get down, watch her get down, as she do do do her thing… with a debit card. To the tune of $234.26. In one weekend. That’s a lot for me. What’d I spend it on?
A housewarming card and wrapping paper, gas, eating out three times since I was out all day, an oil change, wiper blades, auto floor mats, a car wash, hair products, and the movies with Sistah Beginner. I made it a priority to take care of my car. The other stuff was incidental. I actually did shop – I was looking for a good winter coat, since I gave last year’s coat, which I got second hand in college and had been wearing for the past ten years, away. However, all the coats I found were more stylish than functional, so I didn’t wind up buying a coat. (By the way, what’s up with that? I mean, I want to be cute. But shivering in a lightweight coat isn’t cute.)
Anyway, on an ordinary week, I would have sent this money directly to my savings account. But since my income will be changing soon due to being laid off, I’m just trying to get what I need for the winter, like car maintenance and a coat. Just like the Ant I named myself after. I can’t imagine what it would be like to spend this much money every weekend, but I know some people do it. I’ll say this, though – nobody was shopping. I went to two malls today, and the crowd was so thin, it could hardly be called a crowd. There were some empty stores that I didn’t even know had closed. One store was going out of business – jewelry as far as the eye could see, all for 50% or more off! I was tempted to go Christmas shopping then and there on the spot for our mothers… but then I remembered I need to spend conscientiously from now until my income is more predictable. Anyway, those empty stores let me know that the news is right. People are not spending like crazy anymore. I hope they’re saving instead. And in the banks, not the mattresses. Because trust me, if I didn’t need to prepare for winter, I wouldn’t be spending either, I’d be beefing up my savings.
Anyway, next time you want to go to the movies, please go see the Secret Life of Bees. I really liked it! And take tissue. LOL!
