this week
This is going to be a slow posting week. I’ll be traveling from Wednesday through the weekend, so I’ll probably be scarce around these parts. I’m not sure how much shopping I’ll be doing for presents. I’m trying to keep as much money as I can in my pockets. We do have food, and I have been cooking – a few days ago, I fixed chicken and mashed potatoes. Last night I made some meatloaf to go with the leftover potatoes. In the meantime, we had some party leftovers from my friend’s house. Hey, I’ll take food from where ever I can get it! I guess you’ll hear back from me at Monday. Happy Thanksgiving!
good weekend
I saved money from my paycheck. I bought enough groceries to last us through the beginning of the week. I drove around a bit, so I’ll have to refill my tank before leaving for the holiday. I looked for work. I didn’t find anything. That’s it. That’s all.
meeting goals
I am bent on getting to my $15,000 My Own Home Fund goal by the end of the month. That means that between yesterday’s paycheck and next week’s paycheck, I’ve got to get it together. It’s taking longer to get this money together than I thought it would, because of IRA contributions I’ve been making and because of stuff I don’t usually have to pay for each month, like car maintenance, car registration, annual parking permit fee… This car keeps coming up. I could count up the full tally, including next month’s state inspection, but I don’t want to piss myself off too much. I’m just going to do what I have to do to meet my goal and keep it moving. Although I’ll admit, my car is not my favorite possession right now. It’s five years old now. It doesn’t give me any problems, but it’s not fully paid for (I bought it used). You know when I get into the house, my first priority after strengthening my emergency fund will be getting rid of debt, right? You know that includes my car loan, right? Can’t wait to kill that debt. That way, all I’m paying for will be maintenance, insurance, and miscellaneous fees, not all that PLUS the stupid car payment.
they tried to stick me
I took my car to the shop yesterday and then I went to work. They called me in the afternoon to let me know the status of my car. Now I’d already had a free diagnostic test at an auto parts store, and their computer said that I had some kind of short in my electrical system. My dealership advised me that they couldn’t rely on someone else’s diagnostic, and that they would have to do their own test before working on the car for $99.00. But I have a state car inspection and an emissions test due by the end of next month, and I don’t have the time or money for foolishness, so I just took it to the dealer anyway.
They advised me that the engine light is on because of my car’s oxygen sensor. A replacement would cost $548.00! In addition, they said my car was due for scheduled maintenance, in which my rear differential fluid should be replaced. The total cost for that would be $59.99 for the rear differential fluid and $178.49 for labor. Oh – and one more thing, they tested my battery and it’s weak. So, in addition to the oxygen sensor and the diagnostic, I’d be looking at $359.00. Grand total: $1,006.00. That’s funny – Single Ma just asked her readers if they could get hit with $1,000 of sudden expenses and deal with it!
I can deal with it, alright! First, I have a Honda Care Warranty, which I opted for when I bought my car. That covers the oxygen sensor, both parts and labor, in full. It also negated the fee for the diagnostic. I opted not to get the battery at the dealer - I could take care of that on my own (or buy it at the auto parts store and get my dad or even an auto service chain to put it in for me LOL). I asked what the scheduled maintenance included, and besides replacing my rear differential fluid, I just had all of that stuff done, like, last month at the auto service place, which was way cheaper. I can’t believe they’d want $359.00 to balance my tires and check my fluids! So I chose not to get that either, with the exception of replacing the rear differential fluid, which I know I didn’t have done last month. The total came to $65.47. When I saw how low the total was, I called the auto service place for a quote on the battery. It was $35 less than the dealer’s, but I figured the premium was worth paying in exchange for my time and gas, so I had the dealer install a new battery, too. Total payment: $182.46. This is a $823.54 difference from what it could have been.
In retrospect, knowing that the first, free diagnostic didn’t exactly pinpoint the problem makes me feel less like a sucker for agreeing to pay for the dealer’s diagnostic – which I didn’t even wind up having to pay for, anyway because of my warranty. And even though they tried to stick me for my papers, I’m happy with my dealer – I got a snazzy loaner car for the day and I dropped my car off and got it back on the same day. I’m a happy camper.
credit card management
I initially planned to take my car in to the shop after my next paycheck. Instead, I set up an appointment for this morning. Of course, because I saved and invested the remainder of my last check, I don’t have the cash to pay. So, I’m going to put the expense on one of my credit cards and then pay the card back from this week’s paycheck. I hate having credit card balances, so I’m tempted to send the payment in as soon as I have the money. However, because I’ll be in the market for a mortgage, I still want to keep a good record of payment with my credit cards. Instead of sending the payment directly in, I will use my online bill pay to schedule the payment so that my credit card lender receives it AFTER I’m billed for the balance. That way, my record shows that I actually was billed that amount and that the amount was paid in full. I’ve done this once before with good results. It’s my new credit card payment policy. The key here is to treat the scheduled payment just like a check – count the money gone as soon as you schedule the payment, so that you don’t accidentally spend the money you’ve promised to your credit card company before the scheduled payment goes through. If not, chances are you’ll overcharge your checking account.
watch the register
They tried to trick me when I was shopping last night, but I watched the register. One of my favorite cereals was on sale, two for $5. But when I got to the register, they rang up at the regular price. Turns out it was for a different variety of the boxes I picked up. I wasn’t happy about that, but I’m glad that I caught the error as the guy was checking my groceries. I wound up getting the kind that was on sale.
fighting temptations
I was trying to be proactive and take advantage of as many things as I can over the weekend. I finally got my purse and wallet straightened out. Then I checked on my bills, which was good, because although I took care of all existing charges last week, there was an automatic charge for my EZPass on my AMEX that I had to pay, which I did. I reconciled my check register balance with my receipts. Then the easy part was over.
My priorities started fighting with each other. I have to get the engine light fixed on my car before I get it inspected next month, and I want to make sure that I have the money to pay for it without using a credit card. My car insurance premium is also due next month, and I am considering paying the entire balance instead of splitting it up over the next six months. Since I know there’s a chance I won’t be working, this is a way to get my future monthly expenses lowered. In addition, I have to chip in on the household expenses for the month and next month’s rent. But the goals that meant the most to me emotionally were contributing to my IRA and to my My Own Home fund. Oh yeah, and getting holiday gifts and affording holiday road trips.
After some consideration, I decided to take care of household and car expenses on my next paycheck because of the limited amount of money I had to work with this week. I’m still undecided about my car insurance premium. I will have the opportunity to pay it in full for at least the next several weeks either way, so I didn’t put a high priority on making my decision right now. That left two priorities, my IRA and my savings. I made the minimum allowable contribution to the IRA and then after leaving myself $100.00 for random day-to-day expenses in my checking account, I deposited the remainder in the My Own Home fund. But I know I left some plans undone, so I’ll have to make some difficult decisions with my next check, even though my bills are paid through the middle of next month.
big fat mess
My purse is insane right now. Receipts and change everywhere. And here I am, supposed to make sense out of this. I’ve been such a slob lately – I don’t know if I even have all the receipts I’m supposed to have. And I really don’t feel like cleaning it out, but if not, I’m just going to have to take the credit union’s word for it regarding what I have in my checking account. Oh, well, that won’t do. Guess I have to get to work.
staying safe in the storm
Oh yeah. This is a recession. It’s getting ugly out there, folks. Governments are feeling crunches. I read one article that said a few states only have enough in their unemployment funds to last for a finite amount of time. This is what I’m telling myself in order to be proactive about any hard times to come:
Keep Investing
And the stock market averages are constantly in the red. I already know what I want to do with my next paycheck – buy more mutual fund shares for my IRA! The price per share is as low now as it’s ever been, so I can get more for my money.
Keep Saving
I also want to shovel as much as I can into the My Own Home fund. You don’t know this yet, but I’ve been in touch with a realtor, and Mister Ant and I have gone to look at a house. I know, I know – I’ve been grousing about how I shouldn’t buy with my unstable income. But I couldn’t resist. The picture pulled me in. And don’t worry, we didn’t put in an offer. I just wanted to experience viewing a home as a prospective buyer. It was fun! When the time comes, we are going to be so ready. In any case, the more money there is in the My Own Home fund, the better, both as a backup emergency fund and as a nest egg should the need not arise to use it in place of lost income.
Keep Controlling the Spending
I’m being extra conscientious about energy use, since our gas bill goes up in the winter, and the nights are cold again now. I’ve read suggestions to have the heat on during the day and turn it way down at night. I find that stupid and I do it the other way around. We turn the heat way down and let the sunlight in when we leave for work, and then turn the heat back up to about 68-70 when we get home. We both like it hot, so that’s a real sacrifice. We keep plenty of blankets around. I’m also buying lunch, and ordering delivery and take-out much less often. It’s a two-for-one deal to cook at home, because you save money on food, and you warm up the place while you’re cooking. I’d gotten lax when I started making more money, but I’m using more discipline lately. I want a new waist-length peacoat, but I’m not in a rush to get one – the 3/4 length wool coat I have is good enough for now. By saving in these ways, I don’t feel so guilty about the things I do spend money for, like the new Toni Morrison book I ordered online the other day.
Keep out of Debt. Period.
I don’t have credit card balances, and I aim to keep it that way. I don’t put anything on my cards that I can’t pay off in one billing period. If I don’t have the money, I can’t buy it – cash or credit. Not having balances means less monthly bills. I can definitely get with that.
That’s about it. Keep investing. Keep saving. Keep controlling the spending. And, keep out of debt. Period.
organizational fees
When I was in college, I joined a sorority. I really am proud of my choice, and I had some very fun, enriching, heartwarming, character building experiences in my sorority. But I have not been active with my sorority for the past few years. One of the main reasons is because when I made the decision to take control of my debt and my finances, I cut all unnecessary expenses out of my budget, and that included sorority dues, sorority functions, outfits for sorority events, expenses for sorority trips – everything. The last time I paid annual sorority dues, I used a credit card because I didn’t have the money to write a check. I decided that I would not do so again. With my income up in the air, I haven’t yet found my way back into the fold.
The only other organizational membership fees I pay are for professional associations that are related directly to my career. I find that dues paid to these organizations which help me with networking and staying current on trends in my field are an investment in my future income. I pay these dues without hesitation and without using credit.
I am thinking about joining a gym again. My dance lessons experiment hasn’t quite worked out, but I still need exercise. Even though I’m cheap, it’s still not enough motivation for me to do free things, like jog around my block in the wee hours of the morning or at twilight, or take a bike and ride the local trails on Saturday mornings. It’s cold out there. I don’t do running, and I don’t do cold.
Of course, with my income unstable, I hesitate to add any other commitment expenses to my budget. But one of these days, I hope to start contributing financially to my sorority involvement and to working out regularly.
