So in good news... I got the job! I'll be working part-time hours this coming week, then moving to full time. Very exciting! I'm definitely going to be a busy girl.

Now that I've got the job, this weekend I'm getting a car. I know, I know. I've already gotten the "you cant buy a car in one weekend!" speech. And I know it's haphazard, but it's what I've got to do. I dont really have a choice in the matter. Transportation has become a must. It's now or never, kids! So I'm going to go out over the next 2 days and see what I can get. I'd ideally like to finance an older toyota or honda. Spend between $3-5k. But that's wholly dependent on whether or not I can get financing. My credit score isn't terrible... close to 700, but my debt-income ratio isn't all that great. So we'll see what I can get.

If worse comes to worse and I cant get financing, my employer is going to help me out and front me some money to buy something cheaper... closer to $1200. So we'll see what I can come up with over the next 2 days!

In other news, my application for examiner was accepted, so I'll be writing for them as well as associated content. Exciting I'm almost positive they pay better than AC, and they're much more selective, so we'll see how it pans out!

Yesterday was also a no-spend day. I wrote 2 articles. I only have one more to make 5 for the week. Excellent!

So it's time to be off! Wish me luck!

Well, it's already november. Again, I haven't been keeping up with my blog here, and consequently my wallet has been suffering. I need to be more conscious of my spending or I'm never going to meet the goals I've put out for myself.

I'm still in the process of looking for a job. I had 2 interviews about a week and a half ago, and no word yet. The one place said, however, they weren't doing any hiring for another 2 weeks. I'll have to give them a call here soon.

The army has managed to really mess up my pay. I'm still being paid active duty pay... good I guess because I'm getting a lot of money. Bad because they are in fact going to take it back... through my pay for the next year or so. I guess I can treat it like a loan. They also managed to mess up my job training scheduling so poorly that my enlistment bonus is up in the air...

So very frustrating.

So, I have no car still. And no job. These are kind of top on my priority list at the moment. The good news is that I'm getting unemployment, and I'm enrolled in classes for the spring. A shining glimmer of hope indeed

Also, my student loan payments once again get deferred as of January, so I wont be shelling out over $500/month on those... I'll focus more on paying down the CC then.

With my finances being so screwed up it's relly difficult to budget and predict what my income is going to be for this month. I guess all I can really do is attempt to spend as little as possible. The good news? There's a new boy And staying in to cuddle and watch movies costs nothing at all!

I'm going to start tracking my spending again. It seems to be the only way I curb my spending. With xmas coming up, I'm going to need the extra cash for sure. Not only that, but it looks like I'm going to have to fund my own trip out of the country this summer if I cant get that bonus money. I'm not going to depend on it. I cant, or I know I'm just going to let myself down in the end.

Xmas is going to be a rough one. I'm definitely planning on buying the new BF hockey tickets. Because he loooves the Penguins. And so do I. Therefore it's really like a present for both of us! Mom's present isn't going to cost me a dime. But she's going to love it I'm making the BFF a scarf. There'll be a few more $ on that, but nothing crazy. We'll see what happens for everyone else.

This week is a busy one. Going to do karaoke tonight with a friend who is in town. I'll probably have a couple drinks. I'm limiting myself to about $10. Tomorrow night is my grandma's b-day celebration. FREE Wednesday night is a going away celebration at an open mic. I'll have a couple drinks there as well. Thursday night is going out night. Sigh. More drinks. The good news I suppose is that I've been DD the last few times we've went out, so I drink substantially less. Much cheaper. haha.

No plans for the weekend, but I see it being rather low-key. I like that. The halloween hubbub has passed, and it's kind of a relief, though it was a great one

So enough of this blabbing. Time to go do something productive! Hope you all have a wonderful day.

So I snagged a babysitting job last night, which is great. Only watched the girls for a few hours, but made $27. Not bad for last minute, out of nowhere!

Went grocery shopping during the day, and spent about $45. Could have done better, but BFF wanted to go to Marc's, so we ended up there instead of Aldi... next time for sure. Not only that, but I have to get back into the swing of things... cooking, planning meals is something I haven't done in almost 7 months. I'm so used to the military making my meals for me... and not having to pay for them. haha.

After the kids went to bed last night I hammered out my october budget. I'll post it here closer to October. Still working on my goals for october, but I think I've more or less finished my financial goals for the remainder of September:

*Dont use CC-- AT ALL.
*Get a job.
*Make at least $75 in extra income ($27 of which I already have covered).
*Minimal spending on entertainment.

I opted out of going to the bar last night, so I likely saved at least $10. Probably more... heh. I'm going on saturday to this Indian Festival in Columbus, so I've given myself $50 to work with, including meals. We'll eat breakfast before heading out. I'll probably pack a granola bar or two in my purse, and hope they have some cheap(er) food around the festival. It'll probably be better if we avoid sit-downs. And I'm sure I'll want to buy something while I'm there, so that gives me a little money to work with.

Going job hunting in a few hours with a friend of mine who is also unemployed. He has wheels, so it helps a bit. About to go on a nice 6 mile run here in a few. As my first sgt used to remind us all the time, "PT is free!" I should be keeping in shape anyway.

Not sure what the plans are for tonight. I may be going to watch my little sis play in the highschool band at the football game. Or I may just stay in. I haven't been feeling terribly social since I've been home. Not sure what that's all about, but hopefully it will pass.

Either way, time to get running! I've got quite the full schedule today. Hope everyone has a good one!

So it's come to my attention that I'll be back home in Ohio in less than a week. Holy crap. heh.

I've been trying to prepare for this for a while now, and each day it gets a little easier and I get a little more excited. I was dreading my return not a month ago, but I feel I'm finally ready. It's time.

Money is going to be INCREDIBLY tight until January. My grace period ended on the student loans, and I'm paying out about $400 a month until I'm enrolled back in school. The good news is once I am enrolled, my loans will be deferred again and I'll be getting my GI Bill-- with kicker. Which means the army will be giving me more or less $500/month. That's on top of paying for my school. So I'll still hold at least a part time job, and be good to go.

Until then, however, I have work to do. I'm lucky in that I'm going to be living with my best friend in her house, and she wants no rent from me. I'll secretly hide money in her pockets come November, but for the next couple months, I'll likely take advantage of that while I get back on my feet.

I'll get my bonus money within the next 2 months. After taxes that should net me somewhere around $8000. A chunk of that is going into a savings account for emergencies and my travel savings. The rest will be used to put a down payment on a car. I'll definitely need one come the wintertime. For job and school purposes. Until then, I'll be pedalling it on my bike and bumming rides.

I was looking at the local YMCA website, seeing if they had military discounts, and I went out on a whim and looked at job postings. They had a few, and I filled out the online application for the hell of it. Got a call a couple days ago from the director of the childcare department. I have a job interview the week I get back. I'm rather excited about that. I love kids, and I think I would like it a lot. I do need to discuss what I would be getting paid/hours I'd be working. At this point, however, it's nice to know I have the job hunt started. And with the way the job market is looking in Ohio these days, even if I'm getting close to minimum wage, something is better than nothing. I've got bills to pay.

Even if I dont get a very high paying job, the good news is that I get $150/month in drill pay. Not much, but it's something. And I do my fair share of babysitting. And I'll be getting back into my music once I get home, with a friend who is an exceptional guitarist. We're hoping to start playing out in the next few months. It would be great if that generated some income as well. Every little bit helps.

I'm going to post my financial goals here in the next week. I'll be posting much more often once I get home. My internet access out here is limited, so it's rather inconsistent. I also have to establish said goals, so look forward to them!

I've started doing some lightweight budgeting, but it's hard when I have no clue what my income is going to be. So it's a rough draft thus far. It's going to be pretty tight for the next couple months for sure. But I'm okay with that. Lucky for me, my friends and I do many cheap(er) things for fun... like playing board games and drinking haha. I'm definitely looking forward to spending time with my friends. Particularly my best friend. We'll call her DW, because on facebook we are technically married. haha. Her husband is actually returning from his deployment next month as well. It's going to be quite the party.

The only clear goal I have is going to Kenya next summer. I'm budgeting $2k for plane ticket and spending while I'm there (which will be minimal). If I use a chunk of my bonus money, monthly saving wont be too bad. But we'll see. I've been trying to get out of the country and see the world for a while now. I think this is my chance. I'm rather excited about it

So I think that's enough for now. Hope everyone is doing well, and I'll post again soon

So it's come to my attention that I'll be back home in Ohio in less than a week. Holy crap. heh.

I've been trying to prepare for this for a while now, and each day it gets a little easier and I get a little more excited. I was dreading my return not a month ago, but I feel I'm finally ready. It's time.

Money is going to be INCREDIBLY tight until January. My grace period ended on the student loans, and I'm paying out about $400 a month until I'm enrolled back in school. The good news is once I am enrolled, my loans will be deferred again and I'll be getting my GI Bill-- with kicker. Which means the army will be giving me more or less $500/month. That's on top of paying for my school. So I'll still hold at least a part time job, and be good to go.

Until then, however, I have work to do. I'm lucky in that I'm going to be living with my best friend in her house, and she wants no rent from me. I'll secretly hide money in her pockets come November, but for the next couple months, I'll likely take advantage of that while I get back on my feet.

I'll get my bonus money within the next 2 months. After taxes that should net me somewhere around $8000. A chunk of that is going into a savings account for emergencies and my travel savings. The rest will be used to put a down payment on a car. I'll definitely need one come the wintertime. For job and school purposes. Until then, I'll be pedalling it on my bike and bumming rides.

I was looking at the local YMCA website, seeing if they had military discounts, and I went out on a whim and looked at job postings. They had a few, and I filled out the online application for the hell of it. Got a call a couple days ago from the director of the childcare department. I have a job interview the week I get back. I'm rather excited about that. I love kids, and I think I would like it a lot. I do need to discuss what I would be getting paid/hours I'd be working. At this point, however, it's nice to know I have the job hunt started. And with the way the job market is looking in Ohio these days, even if I'm getting close to minimum wage, something is better than nothing. I've got bills to pay.

Even if I dont get a very high paying job, the good news is that I get $150/month in drill pay. Not much, but it's something. And I do my fair share of babysitting. And I'll be getting back into my music once I get home, with a friend who is an exceptional guitarist. We're hoping to start playing out in the next few months. It would be great if that generated some income as well. Every little bit helps.

I'm going to post my financial goals here in the next week. I'll be posting much more often once I get home. My internet access out here is limited, so it's rather inconsistent. I also have to establish said goals, so look forward to them!

I've started doing some lightweight budgeting, but it's hard when I have no clue what my income is going to be. So it's a rough draft thus far. It's going to be pretty tight for the next couple months for sure. But I'm okay with that. Lucky for me, my friends and I do many cheap(er) things for fun... like playing board games and drinking haha. I'm definitely looking forward to spending time with my friends. Particularly my best friend. We'll call her DW, because on facebook we are technically married. haha. Her husband is actually returning from his deployment next month as well. It's going to be quite the party.

The only clear goal I have is going to Kenya next summer. I'm budgeting $2k for plane ticket and spending while I'm there (which will be minimal). If I use a chunk of my bonus money, monthly saving wont be too bad. But we'll see. I've been trying to get out of the country and see the world for a while now. I think this is my chance. I'm rather excited about it

So I think that's enough for now. Hope everyone is doing well, and I'll post again soon

Well, I'm registered for my classes. The trick now is paying for them. This is not my favorite game, let me tell you. I'm one of the lucky random students being audited for my fafsa, so it's a mess of paperwork before I can even get evaluated for my financial aid. It'll take another 5 weeks. Because of this, I have to sign up for a payment plan, which includes a $30 fee and a $500 deposit. Argh. I'd have the money if I didn't just spend it all on my summer classes...

Soooo. I have until this coming monday to come up with the money, or I'll be slapped with a $50 late fee. Then, I have until next friday to come up with the amount plus the late fee or I get my classes dropped.

Why does it always seem like I'm racing against the clock? Or the calender, as it were.

The good news is that I think I may be able to wing it by monday. Assuming that I make semi-decent money at work in the next couple days. But then again, it is nearing the end of the week, so that may not be a possibility. We have more people on staff at the end of the week, thus more people to split tables between. Let's hope there are a lot of people out there who wanna drink at my restaurant!

In a guilty fuss I'm going to admit that I *gasp!* spent money on clothes in the last week. I was at walmart and saw plain tanks for $4 each, so I bought 2 (mine are getting kind of gross because I wear them like crazy). I was also at the consignment shop picking up the last of the profit my clothes generated (a whole $9) when I spotted a pair of american eagle jeans in my size for only $14.38. I reeeeeeaally needed another pair of jeans. Mine are all full of holes, and it's getting quite ridiculous. Thus, spending the money was well worth it. There you have it. My back to school shopping. $23-ish.

It's been a stressful week, and it seems that it's not going to get any better. I've got quite a bit of pressure on me to make some money. I have tuition and books (to the tune of $200) to cover in the next week. My credit card will be maxed out, and my EF is gone. It's times like these that make me happy that I opted to do school part-time this semester. I want to get some stuff caught up and whittled down. I hope business picks up a bit.

I was hoping to go out this weekend to celebrate the new semester, or at least mourn the last weekend I'll have free. My schedule is going to be quite hectic come next week. Here's how it stands:

Monday: Work 11-6pm. School 6:40-7:55pm.
Tuesday: School 7:45-9:00am. Work 11-6pm.
Wednesday: Work 11-6pm. School 6:40-7:55pm.
Tuesday: School 7:45-9:00am. Work 11-6pm.
Friday: Work 11-6pm.
Saturday: Class 12:00-2:40pm.
Sunday: Sweet sweet relief.

Saturday class wouldn't be so bad except it's 35 minutes away, so it's more like class from 11:15-3:30pm, which pretty much kills my saturdays. Ah well. Guess it's time to put those time managment skills to work.

It's looking like I wont meet all my goals for this month afterall, but I'm hoping I will have my classes all situated before long. That's definitely top priority.

At any rate, enough rambling. I hope everyone is doing well, and good luck to the rest of you students out there. I hope we all have a great semester!

Finally, the moment of glory has come. My summer classes are all paid off. Thus, I can go into the university and put in a form, pay a fee, and register for my classes. Things are finally coming together.

In other news, BF and I opened that joint checking account today. So we're on our way to having a system down. I'm quite thrilled. I made some stellar money this week at work, so hopefully I'll have a little to contribute to it.

I've been going a little off-budget in the last week or so. All in food and dining out. Always the culprit... However, other than that I've been really good. I just need to cook more. For someone who loves to cook as much as I do you'd think that wouldn't be a problem, but I've been spending too much on food at work again. And everywhere else.

A new week is starting soon, however, so things will get a fresh new start. I'm excited to register for my classes. I feel a bit accomplished that I've almost got everything set. It brings me closer to graduation and a job, so I'm doubly pleased

Good and bad news: BF may not be going to Iraq afterall. Good news is that he likely will not be going (at least not this year). The bad news is that he really wanted to go, so I feel bad in some respect. It would have been great for him financially, and he wanted to experience it. There is opportunity for him to go with his own unit in 2010, however. So things still may end up going down that road. In the mean time, he's got some stuff to think about in terms of what he wants to do with his future and all that.

So anyhoo. I'm going to cut this here. Too much rambling and all. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Well, my fiscal July is over, thus fiscal august is here. I made over $100 last night at work, so the month went out with a bang

I met all of my July goals save one: I only made $108 in additional income, so I didn't hit my $150 mark, but it still wasn't too shabby.

The same goal in August will be very easily obtained, as I have a babysitting gig, an editing gig, and sold 2 books on amazon this week. That alone will bring me up to over $100. It looks like it could be a good month

As for today, it's been somewhat of a lazy day, though I need to start stepping things up. I slept in, but also didn't get home from work until a little after 3am. Bars... bleh. Still, I have to do my grocery shopping, and then BF and I are going to go to the old apartment, get the rest of our stuff out of it, and then clean. Yippie. haha.

Still have yet to tackle that desk... I may just have to do it on my own. We'll see.

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone that commented on my last post about how BF and I are working out our finances. It makes me feel a little better about things. And to reply to BA briefly: Yes, it probably is easier to just split the bills and not bother with a joint account, but it's the act of doing it together that I think is going to really strengthen our relationship financially. Considering the rate of divorce and some of the popular rifts (financial problems being one of them), I'd like to make sure we can work together when it comes to money *before* we get married. So I'm thinking of this as a sort of beginning step to marital bliss in the future

Other than that, I have no ground-breaking news. It's going to be a very busy week, but it'll hopefully be a profitable one. I need to really step things up in the next couple weeks so I can be assured that I'll be going to class in the fall.

Wish me luck!

Everyone have a great day, I'm off to grocery shop!

Well, BF and I have had the chance to sit down and talk about some things concerning our finances. We've decided to open a joint bank account for our living expenses, and split the bills 30/70, as he makes substantially more than I do. I was really uncomfortable with this at first, but the more I think about it the more it makes sense. Besides, it will fluctuate, and who knows... there may be a time when I make more than he does, and the percentages will change accordingly.

I'm fairly excited to see how things will pan out with the joint expenses. I think it will be a good experience for both of us. I think it will help work more compromise into our relationship (not that we do poorly in that area, but still), and I also think some of my frugal budgeting hooplah will rub off on BF, and do him some good.

We got set up with renter's insurance. It's going to run us about $17/month. Not bad at all. I still need to talk through my life insurance policy with ma and see what my options are, and perhaps cancel my policy for the time being. $321/year really isn't THAT much money, but part of me would rather be investing it. But we'll see...

We're almost set in the new place, but we still need to get the desk organized. That's going to be a big project... ah well, a little at a time, I guess.

I sold 2 books on amazon, totalling about $80. Very nice. It will do wonders for the tuition payment I have to make here in a bit.

I'm not going to write out my total august budget here, but I am going to put down my goals. My fiscal august starts on monday, so here it is:

*Pay off summer classes by the 15th.
*Register for fall.
*Save up at least $100 for Kenya trip in may 09.
*Make at least $150 in additional income.
*Dont touch CC (except for paying off classes).
*Stay under budget.
*Pay off at least $150 on CC.
*No buying: Fast food, clothes, CD's, movies, or books for pleasure.

We'll see how it goes. Alrighty. Time to get ready for work. Everyone have a great day!

Well, we're getting moved into the apartment just fine. I'm loving the extra space and all the natural light. I never noticed just how dungeon-like the old place was until I had windows in every room!

I've resolved to not move again for at least another 2 years. This whole moving every year thing has gotten quite old...

There is no internet in the new place yet, so I've been doing a lot more reading at home. It's probably a blessing in disguise, considering the hours I waste away on the computer usually. I finished Suze Orman's YF&B, and it has definitely given me some things to think about. I'm going to start really planning out for my financial goals. Not just the small, short-term things, but also the longer-term things, such as retirement, buying a house, eventually owning my own business, etc.

I'm going to talk to my mom (my insurance agent) about different options on my life insurance policy. It's a variable policy, which means it does have an investment element to it, but I realize it's probably too expensive. All of the mail I recieve about the financial advisors and such makes me think I'm probably paying too much. So I'll get quotes on term life, and I'm going to look into opening a Roth IRA sometime in the next year or so. I'm going to do some shopping around for a while first. I'm assuming that a term life plan for someone as young as me isn't going to be very pricey, and I can put the difference into a Roth and probably fare better.

I'm also going to sit down and go over joint financial hooplah with BF. I like Suze's idea of having a joint bank account for living expenses. I think it'll be good for sorting through things together. Besides, I want to get out of that "his money, her money" mindset. We go out and I "let him pay" quite a bit, knowing full-well that his and my money will one day be the same, and he shouldn't be "paying for me," he should be sticking that money to something a little more useful (and we should just not go out to eat at all out of convenience).

Started my new shift at work yesterday, and I think it's going to be very successful. I'm pretty excited. I'm definitely ready to start making the big bucks.

I'm trying to get things in order for school this week. I have to call my university in PA and have them mail this university my transcript. I'm going to do the part-time thing in the fall, try and pay down my CC (that will be racked up to pay off these summer classes), and make up for it next summer by taking a few classes (that I will save up the money to pay for so I dont get stuck like I did this year).

It's almost time to do my July totals and budget for August! I cant believe how fast this summer is going by! Less than a month before school starts again... jeez. I'm looking forward to it, though I'm not going to get all hyped for fall until these summer classes are paid for. With my luck things will go awry and I'll have to put it all off. I'm hoping this is not the case, but in the event that it is, I dont want to let myself down.

Other than that, I dont think I have any real news. I'm just trying to get my mind-set in order to make the most money and get the most out of my job I can, while at the same time get my life in order and come up with a plan. It's strange to me trying to be a grown-up now. I'm trying to balance the things I love with paying off my debt, and planning for the future. It's a lot of work and most certainly a huge thing to tackle. But I'm enjoying tackling it, which is the nice part. I feel so much more responsible.

Either way, I should get going. I have more fun to have at the library before walking over to work.

Everyone have a wonderful day!

Just a quick plug. One of my articles got published on Associated content:

5 Pieces of Financial Advice for the Young Adult, by a Young...

Well, BF is back. Big smiles there We started celebrating his birthday last night. We went to dinner with a few friends (I bought), and then went back to the apartment and smoked the hookah. The sweet melon shisha I bought for him was amazing, per usual. And it'll last a good long while.

The rest of the weekend we'll be celebrating as well. Tonight we're supposed to go out to the bars. I think I may be DD, and only have a couple. My wallet would appreciate it. Tomorrow we're going to the Mongolian BBQ for lunch, and I joined thier email list, so they sent me a coupon for a free stir fry. Thus I'll be eating for free I think we're going over to mom's for dinner tomorrow night, which will be free as well.

So that sums up expenses for the rest of June. My financial July starts as of monday. I did some totalling for June, and the results were a bit more than expected, but overall not bad:

INCOME:

Work Total: $1085.57

Additional Income:
Consignment: $32.50
Free groceries for helping mom move: $12.50
Stimulus Check: $300
Sold book on amazon (after shipping costs): $3.67
B-day present: $50
Babysitting job: $40
Pinecone Check: $3
Sold book on amazon (after shipping costs): $13.09
Sold article on Associated Content: $3.19
Total: $457.95

Total Income: $1543.52

Granted, it wouldn't have been as much without the stimulus payment, but still, I met my goal of $150.

Expenses: budgeted/spent
Rent $0/0
Electric $0/0
Gas $0/0
Internet $0/0
Sprint $67/62.86
Perscription $30/0.00
Groceries tba
Travel $10/43.81
Food on campus/at work $0/20.77
Clothes $0/0
Entertainment tba
Insurance $80.25/80.25
Misc $40/58.33

Entertainment is going to be way above. But BF was also out of town, thus I didn't have someone here paying parts of my bills. haha. I did spend a little too much a couple nights I went out. That hopefully wont happen in July. Travel was more than expected because I went out of town a couple weekends, and BF was gone, thus no free gas from his work :/ I probably wont spend too much in July. The misc was over budget because of B-day gifts for BF. The tin of shisha was $26 on the internet, and the book I bought him at Barnes and Noble was about $30. I spent too much on food at work, but I'll cap that this coming month hopefully.

I've got my budget set for July, and I think I'll do a little bit better than I did in June. Though I'm still pretty happy with my results. There really were no purchases that I look back on and want to kick myself in the butt for. That's a good sign, I think

As for my June goals:

*Keep track of all $ spent. check
*Stay under budget. nope
*Dont touch savings. check
*Dont use CC. nope
*Make/save as much as humanly possible by July 11. check
*Make at least $150 in additional income. check

I only used my CC for textbooks. Though they were terribly expensive. It's hard to stay under budget when you set the standards as high as I do. I should work on that And I'm up to $1510.00 in my savings. I still have a bit to go before the 11th, but we'll see. I did get $1000 funded on lending club, and my listing is open til the 4th. I hope I get at least another $1000...

Well, I'll post my July stuff here in the next few days, after the weekend. Hope everyone his having a great day!

I feel a little better than I did yesterday, but I was still so sick I couldn't work. My boss doesn't particularly like his servers sneezing/coughing all over people's food (can you blame him?) The downside is that I'm out 2 days' of tips, which stinks.

I didn't have any projects to work on today, though i've thought about a few I may start soon. I really need to get a sewing machine...

A few things I did do today, however, included:

*Signing up for pinecone.
*Signing up for mysurvey.
*Listing my microwave on craigslist.
*Listing a few more books on amazon.
*Updating my myspace music page and listing an ad looking for a guitarist to work with.
*Setting up a paypal account.
*Figuring out my may expenditures.
*Doing my June Budget and goals.

So the day wasn't a complete waste, it just feels like a big heap of bad news. I figured out how much debt I have as of today, and the numbers are not pretty. Granted, they're about the same as they were last month, but still, that's not good news.

I've decided that this month I need to find a different lender to get my student loan for classes this summer. I would have to figure out part of the balance anyway, but if the interest rate is lower than that of my CC (which it will likely be), it's smarter for me to use the money I'm saving to pay off my CC rather than using it to pay part of my school costs.

So here is the rundown for May. The first number is how much I budgeted, the second was how much I actually spent:

Rent: 0.00/0.00
Electric: 20.00/8.56
Gas: 50.00/67.14
Internet: 65.00/32.82
Sprint: 67.00/100.18
BC: 30.00/52.26
Bus: 20.00/0.00
Groceries: 60.00/62.28
Travel: 20.00/10.67
Food on Campus/at work: 15.00/13.25
Clothes: 10.00/3.40
Entertainment: 40.00/44.50
Misc: 25.00/78.17

Overall I was only $51.23 over budget, which really isn't all that bad considering the areas where I mostly "went over budget" were things like my gas bill and phone bill. I just need to watch my minutes this month and get a different (cheaper) perscription. I went high in the misc category because I bought my bike this month ($30) and had to get it fixed a couple times.

June is going to be even less spendy. BF will be out of town for most of the month doing silly military stuff. so I'll have less pressure to want to go out and do stuff. I'm just fine with staying at home and crafting, reading, or other fun, cheap/free activities. Also, I dont have any utilities or rent to pay this month or next, because BF doesn't let me pay anything.

I do want to have a yardsale at some point this month, and I see a great opportunity coming up soon, so I need to start rounding my stuff up. I think a lot of the books that wouldn't really sell for anything on amazon I'll put out for a couple bucks each. At least then I'll get more than a few pennies out of them.

I need to go to the bank here at some point. I have that $100 check to deposit, as well as a little bit of cash. I wish I had worked the last couple days. I'd have a little more to put in my account. sigh. I need to mail my last check to verizon and transfer some of the money into my emigrant account. My stimulus check is supposed to be deposited by saturday, so let's hope it gets there!

Hope everyone has a great day!

Well, I've had quite the stressful week. As mentioned previously, Sallie Mae would not approve me for the loan to take summer classes. Not even with mom as cosigner. So then we come to the first day of classes. The university dropped all of them. So I had to go re-enroll in all of them. Sigh.

The good news is that I'm enrolled in classes. The bad news is that I need to come up with $3707 by July 11. Some can go on the CC, but I max out with another $1000 or so. BF and mom both said they would help as much as they can. BF mentioned he had an empty CC we could put some of the balance on, but that would be a last resort measure.

I'm going to do it somehow, it's just a big bummer that I have to put more on the CC. I really wanted to pay it down, not rack more up. And I'm a little worried about the interest payments once it is up there. I'm already paying a little over $50 in interest a month as is. Seems as if I need to start fundraising asap.

If anyone has any ideas, let me know!

I'm not making nearly enough at work to put any considerable dent in it, so I really need to focus on saving as much as I can and finding more sources of income. As it is, I really dont have time to work a second job and go to school. In the fall I'll have time to get a second job, but right now there's no possible way. I'm thinking now is the time to start listing as many books as I'm willing to part with on amazon, get rid of anything in the house I dont really need that could bring me in some cash, and start crocheting/crafting up a storm and start attempting to sell things online.

I picked up some books at the library yesterday. I got a crocheting book, a candlemaking book, a beading book, and a book on making chinese knots. I wanted to get some inspiration. I have a whole huge box of yarn and such that my grandma gave me at my mom's. My mom also said that I could have my other grandma's sewing machine. So I've got some stuff to start with. I was thinking of starting an etsy shop, I'd really like to sell with a theme of recycling. I think I can make it work pretty well. I'm fairly creative. Besides, it gives me a reason to reuse some of the things people would ordinarily throw away, and get cheap supplies (thrift stores, garage sales, etc) as well as crafting supplies that may be a bit pricier.

Ideas are still in the works.

But all that being said, my financial world has more or less been turned upside-down, and the goals are a bit different now. My challenge money is really my college money at this point, my goal is a bit different, and focus is now away from paying off the CC, and now to paying my summer classes off. The good news is that the more I save the less I have to put on my CC, so I have quite the incentive.

As a start, I'm proofreading a paper of a friend of a friend that is paying me $100 to go through and correct her 55 page master's thesis. It's a start. Also, I didn't buy any food from work today. I ate my pb&j and thought, "wow, this sandwich tastes like my education. definitely a hint of western civ in here..." haha.

Every little bit helps. Wish me luck.

Well, this weekend was a little spendy. Yesterday for mother's day me and the sibs went to lunch with mom and grandma. Me and big bro paid for the meal-- though my $14 was puny compared to the rest of it! Then me, mom, and grandma went paint shopping and house shopping. Mom signed a lease on an apt, so she'll start moving in next month. While we were at bed, bath, and beyond, I found a bathroom carrier thing that I bought for my stuff in the tiny little bathroom I've got now. None of my stuff has a place :/

Saturday night was pretty crappy at work. I got there at 5:00pm. I didn't have one table for 3 hours, and ended up being one of the last people cut. Just kind of worked out like that. I didn't complain really, which was good because the girl that was complaining got sent home (thus why I was cut after her), and the owner and the manager were not too impressed with her attitude. I did what I could to help and keep busy. The worst part about it though was that I only made $43 for the whole shift, which was 7 hours long :/ I guess you win some, you lose some. It just wasn't busy at the restaurant. I'm counting on this week to be better.

Total made at work this week: $157.72. This is something that I can survive on, but I'm still counting on it getting better.

As far as spending, I'm only over budget on my "Misc" category-- mostly due to my bike and the 2 repairs. I also put the restaurant cost on mother's day and the bathroom carrier in this category. So I'm $50 over budget in that category. But I haven't spent a dime in my grocery or "bus" category. BF went grocery shopping the other day without me. I'm going to ask if he wants a few bucks, but odds are he wont accept any money from me.

I sold another book on amazon yesterday. I made $10.15 on it. That will get split between my challenge money and CC. Which reminds me, I have to pay off what I put on my CC for my most recent bike repair ($7.43). That's not going to count toward my CC payments for the month, because I really didn't want to use it.

Did laundry yesterday at mom's. And cooked dinner for the family. All no-cost. Love it

So This week's goal evaluation:
[x] Keep track of all $ spent.
[x] Stay under budget (I am overall under budget still).
[x] Dont touch savings.
[ ] Dont use CC (though I'm going to pay it off this week).
[ ] Save $75 (not yet).
[ ] Pay off $150 on CC (not yet).
[ ] 3 NSD/week (I only had 1 this week).
[ ] 12 NSD in May (still only at 1).

So I've got work today at 10:30am. I'll ride my bike there, so I wont have to worry about parking meters, or gas for that matter (not that it's really all that much, but I'm looking forward to riding my bike).

When I get home I need to start filing my FAFSA. I should have had it in a while ago... I also need to print off an application for a summer loan, and go switch one of my classes. Finally, I need to price my books. Class starts next week! Eek! It's gonna get busy!

In other news, Mom is giving me her sewing machine. Very cool. I need to go get it, and take a look through the crocheting box.

Well, time to get this day started! Hope everyone has a good one!

Well. I've come up with my May goals:

*Keep track of all money spent.
*Stay under budget.
*Dont touch my savings (challenge money).
*Dont use credit card.
*Put at least $75 into challenge money.
*Pay at least $150 on my CC.
*Have 3 No-Spend days per week.
*Have 12 no-spend days in May.
*Look for new ways to bring in extra income.

Also, I set out a challenge for myself-- no buying books, movies, or CD's. For 3 months. So this is month #1.

I've been thinking about the extra cashflow... I started thinking about my cookbooks. I have a few really nice ones. The problem is that I never use them. And generally, if I find a recipe I really like, I just write it down in a notebook I keep specifically for this purpose. Now, there are a couple that I wouldn't part with because they are not just cookbooks (like the joy of cooking). But for all intents and purposes, I can check cookbooks out at the library. I can also take them into the cafe at barnes and noble and copy recipes out of them while I sip on tea (which I've done in the past). So I'm going to look into selling a few of the really nice ones I have (Paula Deen, Williams-Sonoma ones, Jamie Oliver, etc).

I plan to list my microwave on craigslist. We dont need 2. Mom is taking one of my tables and 2 chairs, and I think she's going to give me a little money for them. That will also clear up some space in our apt.

Also, I had mentioned the idea of doing more crocheting and crafting and possibly opening up an etsy shop. I picked up a few books from the library today on crafting to sell, being a "weekend entrepreneur," so we'll see if I get any other ideas.

Because I put half of extra income into my CC and half into my challenge money, I would need to make $150 in extra income to meet my goal. Or $126 if I meet my goal for No-spend days. I think this is do-able. So we'll see. Oh, and today was a NSD, so I'm on my way!

Either way, it's my bedtime! I have a busy day tomorrow. Going to do some cleaning and unpacking, and then I start my first day at the new job in the evening! Wish me luck!

So March is coming to a close, and that hellish month April is upon me. It's going to be a BUSY month. Now, busy usually means less spending for me, but we'll see how things play out. I'll be in the apt less often on the weekends because I need to be downtown a lot, and BF isn't going to be around as much on the weekends (both a blessing and a curse). He's got silly military stuff to attend to a couple weekends, and I have mucho tests and homework to get done. I'll be happy if I make it out of the month alive.

I finally filed my taxes, and I'll be getting about $600 back from the fed. Assuming I filed my PA taxes properly (questionable), I should be getting about $300 back. And then there's my stimulus check coming at some point-- most of which will be put into my credit card payments. I'm going to keep at least some of the fed return just in case I dont find a job in Ohio right after moving.

March totals went well. There were categories in which I was over (entertainment spending this weekend got a little bad, though it could have been much, much worse). Overall, however, I was $12.35 UNDER budget-- which I am happy to report, I put toward my CC payment. Woo! Every little bit helps!

I may have a couple big expenses coming up this month though. I'm setting aside $300 for vacation, though it should be less than that (we'll see). And I might have to take this test to get out of a class at my university, though it seems I may be able to get credit from my highschool spanish classes (cross your fingers!).

This weekend was alright spending-wise. BF paid for a LOT (including the few items that made up my groceries for the week!). I of course really appreciate all the help he gives, especially considering he's got some hefty debt himself. We never did get around to going over his finances, but he'll be back to PA on tuesday for work, so perhaps we'll have time this week. I did take a trip to the mall to use my $50 American Eagle gift card. I got the bathing suit I've been looking at, and also a cute shirt. I spent a little over the $50 (about $20 when everything's said and done), but I'm not fretting. I need some more summer/spring clothes.

I wrote out (a much more detailed) budget for April. I think some of my expectations for last month were a bit silly. Maybe not, considering I was under budget, but I was a little more specific this time around. My goals for the month are the same as last month, though I'm not seeing as many no-spend days.

I need to contact verizon, my gas co. and electric co. to let them know I'm moving at the end of the month. Hopefully that'll go smoothly. I should stop at my mom's house and make all those calls though. I dont want to use up all my minutes on my cell plan. We'll see.

Other than that, I'm just babbling and tired, and I really wanted to clean my apt tonight, but I got so wrapped up in taxes and budgeting that I seem to have run out of time. It's already getting late and I have class in the morning. ugh. I feel like I didn't get a break all weekend. I did homework constantly, even while visiting in Ohio. Sigh.

And I'm going to have to start packing soon! I move in less than a month! Gaa! Someone help me, I'm going to drown in all of these things to do!

I'm really gonna need that vacation at the end of the month

Well. It seems like it's going to be another NSD. I've got an event at the university tonight, but it is after dinner time, so I'll eat before I go. I'm going to drive BF's car (gulp). I've been doing well for the last couple days driving it, but this'll be the first time I take it on the highway. No matter, it's usually the getting-going that gets me, not the actual driving part. hehe. Silly manuals... I just need to get decent at it so I can drive to the airport to pick BF up on saturday. I'm so excited to see him! Less than a week now!

I'm going to work out here in a bit. I need to keep up on that. Especially since I baked chocolate chip cookies last night to cure my lonely. They were free, but not healthy in the slightest Baking cookies makes me think of home, though, and it definitely helped!

I planned out my meals, but want to come up again with goals for this week:

1. Keep track of all spending (did good last week!).
2. 3 No-Spend Days again.
3. Stick to my meal plan (as to eat as much of the food I already have).
4. Keep to the Budget (I was under this week, exciting!).
5. Avoid dining out with BF. We're really bad about this, and it eats up our money so easily! I think this'll be easy considering we're both very strapped for cash and we'll be eating Easter dinner with our families on Sunday!

I want to write out a list of free/cheap things that BF and I could do together. Or even do with friends There are so many things, afterall!

At any rate, everyone have a great day!

It's been a fairly productive day... I planned out my meals for next week, as I'm going grocery shopping either tomorrow or sunday morning. Also was on the treadmill for an hour and I'm down to 133 lbs, which is exciting news!

Yesterday was my test, and it was better than I had expected it to be. I stopped by the bookstore yesterday and bought something that I could use for one of my papers, and something that I just wanted anyway. That was $13.86. I also took a trip to taco bell last night with friends... yes, unhealthy AND an extra expense. But as that's really the only entertainment (hanging out with my friends last night) expense I've had all week, I didn't feel bad. And I definitely worked it off today. lol.

Today is a no-spend day. Which makes 4 for the week. Tomorrow I'll likely be doing my grocery shopping and laundry, so I'll spend a little. Hopefully only around $20. I made up my grocery list today. So my weekly goals have thus far been achieved

I kept track of my spending, kept to the budget (actually, thus far I'm under), for the most part kept to my meal plan (with the exception of that taco bell last night), and I had 4, not 3 no-spend days this week. Overall I'm pretty proud of myself!

I'm going to celebrate by spending the next day doing homework. lol. Perhaps I'll watch a movie tonight or something as well...

Have a great day, guys!

It is a beautiful day The temperature is getting up there (41 degrees!) and the sun is shining. I cant express how drastically this improves my mood.

I've already reached my weekly goal of 3 no-spend days! And I'm 1/4 of the way to my monthly goal. I've been keeping track of the spending still (though that may have more to do with the fact I haven't been doing much of it! haha). And I'm sticking to my meal plan. Tonight is whole wheat spaghetti with turkey meatballs.

I'm going to work out again later as well. I need to get in shape! I've set a goal to lose 11 pounds. I've gotten down 1 in the last few days, just improving my eating habits a little (haven't been going to restaurants... that helps substantially). Let's hope I can reach at least some of my goal in the next couple months!

In other news, I must have gotten on the same bus today because my ride downtown was again free! Another $1.60 saved. And at my university they had "Stress free day" and were giving out free cereal and energy bars, as well as some other little things. I found that exciting

Well, time to study and work out. I've got a big test tomorrow! Wish me luck!

Well, I've got no-spend day #2 My march goal is coming along, even though I didn't actually start counting til the 8th. I happened to get dinner for free (a friend of mine put me on as a guest on her meal plan at the school cafeteria. woo!), so I didn't spend a penny.

I avoided buying a caffeinated beverage, even though I left my travel mug at home (but brought my tea. ugh). Probably better that way.

Turned in my paper, took a test tonight. Hope I did well. I have one more on thursday, so it's going to be a looong week. I'm just beat. I'm feeling awfully burnt out and missing BF quite a bit. Sure, it's been only 4 days since I've seen him, but when you're used to multiple text messages and at least a couple phone calls through the day, going a whole day with nothing is kind of rough. I haven't heard from him yet... he should be getting out of his silly military class any time now. He's off at some training thing til easter. I'ts gonna be a long couple weeks...

Guess I should get used to it. He's leaving for Oaklahoma for training in January, then off to Iraq in March. No BF for a year... It's going to be a rough year.

I'm looking forward to seeing him though. Easter should be fun! We're both going back to Ohio to spend time with both families. I absolutely love his family. They're so down to earth, so much like my family (though we're awfully crazy. haha). Lucky for us, his parents live a whopping 3 blocks or so from mine, so travelling between wont be an issue!

I've decided I need to color easter eggs at some point. That'll be a fun activity for me and my friend (cheap too!) yay for holidays involving large amounts of chocolate!

Well, not really lazy, as I have a paper to write and a test to study for. But a sunday inside nonetheless. In my pajamas

I made out my list of dinners for the week yesterday, so I'm going to try to stick to it the best I can. I move in less than 2 months now. I have to start using up the food I have as much as possible so I dont have to transport it. Not only that, but BF doesn't really have a whole lot of room in his apt for anything more. It's going to be a squeeze... I'm likely going to have to put my stuff in storage for a few months until we move into a bigger place.

I decided to write down my goals, as I haven't re-evaluated them for a while. Looking at the ones I've had posted, I think they're too long term, which is why I stray so easily. So I put down some goals for this week, and then a few that are a little longer-term:

This week:
-Keep track of my spending. Every penny. For the whole week.
-Stick to the budget (that kind of goes for the month too).
-Stick to my meal plan.
-Dine out at most once this week.
-Have at least 3 no-spend days (not including bus fare).

Longer Term:
-Use up as much food I already have as possible before the move.
-Do more cheap/free things w/ BF-- especially dining out less.
-Find a job/internship to start in May.
-Sort out debt, and come up with a plan come May to start tackling it.

I'll be out of school for a year, so my grace period will be over next Feb if I graduate in August. I have a bit of CC debt accumulated because of the frozenness of my checking account in January (I couldn't touch it because I was waiting for my school loan check and had to pay my bills). Not to mention, I had to buy new furniture (Ex-BF took all his when he moved out).

I need to file my taxes- my entire return is going to the CC. It's kind of sad, but it was the plan from the minute I put a $500 IKEA charge on it. haha. Still, $500 to furnish an apartment aint bad. I want to eliminate the bulk of my CC debt by the end of the summer. I've got about $2700 on it now. After the CC is paid off, it's on to the student loans. I'm not even sure what those numbers look like now, but pretty soon here I'm going to have to look.

In the meantime I'll be looking at grad schools, etc. So much excitement! And living in Ohio with BF/friends/Mom (who is now in the middle of the divorce proccess).

In good news, I used my national city points to get a $50 American Eagle giftcard. I thought about using it for something practical, but I know me... not only are spring and summer coming up, but a beach vacation and my birthday in May as well. I'm going to want to buy clothes. Better than putting them on my CC! haha.

And it's going to be a no-spend day I was going to buy a book on amazon, but I decided instead to get it from the library. Yay for free!

Well, off to do homework. Everyone have a great day!

I keep finding myself taking long breaks from SA. Why? Short attention span? Too busy? Not sure, but I'm back again. hehe. Many changes have occured in the life of Tara. Well, changes in attitude and/or life plans. Class starts back up again at the end of this month, and I'm looking forward to it, the nerd that I am. It's going to be a VERY busy semester, as I decided recently that I want to graduate next summer (read that?? In a YEAR!). In order to do this, I need to:

1. Test out of a spanish class (studying as I type...).
2. Either talk my way out of 2 general sciences courses or test out of those as well (quite possible).
3. Take 21 credit hours this semester (insane, but do-able, I believe).
4. Take 18 credit hours in the spring and 12-ish in the summer, while writing my senior thesis.

...unless of course I can test out of more classes... I'm still researching that one. Now. The reason I want to graduate in June is because I'm going to be applying for the JET Program (the Japanese Exchange and Teaching Program). If I'm accepted, I leave for Japan at the end of next July/beginning of next August. Let's cross our fingers.

The other thing I need to do is survive all this. haha. It's going to take some incredible time-managing and most likely a ton of redbull, but a friend of mine just did all this (minus the Japan part), and seemed to live to tell the tale. Also, the less time I'm in undergrad, the less time I have to pay for.

I plan on being in Japan for a year, perhaps two before grad school, and then I plan on applying to the University of Colorado. I'll worry about that after I graduate though

BF and I are still together, graduating about the same time ideally, and he plans on applying for the program as well! So wish us both luck!

And the financial breakdown of Tara as of right now: Savings have been for the most part depleted, and I'm working on putting more back in. My vacation at the beginning of the summer ended up being pricier than expected and work has been a bit slow. Other than that, I'm doing A-okay. Just trying to keep myself from going out and spending too much (so difficult during the summer, I've noticed). Once school arrives, though, I wont have much time to go out anyhoo Well, I think that's enough for one day. Glad to see everyone's doing well still! Later!

1. Go to Macy's and exchange the gifts Gram bought me (She gave me very serious permission in case I dont care for the jewelry she bought).

2. Make up a shopping list for vacation (about done).

3. Pick up perscription.

4. Buy stamps and mail bills.

5. Go to the bank (this is a biggie!)

6. Go to KMart/Walmart for a duffle bag and/or picnic basket.

7. Go to the grocery store.

8. Clean out fridge.

9. Clean the apartment.

I'm going to save taking the trash out for tomorrow, in case something sneaks its way in. So much to do!!! I cant believe we're leaving on wednesday! Well, better get crackin!

I doubled today, and in between shifts, a coworker of mine and myself went to the Tokyo Store (i.e. Japanese grocery store). I had never been there, and it's probably good I dont go back for a long time. haha. I ended up spending $34 total. $13 of it was spent on a greeting card for BF. Read: Beautiful. I didn't even write on it, I wrote my message on a scrap peice of paper and taped it to the plastic the card was in. haha. BF and I love Japanese decoration of all kinds, dishes, etc. He liked it quite a bit. It was set with a fan that had sumo wrestlers painted on it. I'll have to post a pic here soon. I also picked him up some Pockey (a favorite japanese snack) and some other little odds and ends. For me, I picked up an Ogura Mocchi cake (a small rice cake filled with sweet beans, for those who are unfamiliar) and a kid's magazine. I'm trying to learn a bit more Japanese, and not only was it adorable, but it was educational as well. And imported, so it was $10. Totally worth it, though, in my opinion.

So I spent $34, but part of it was gift-purchases. I've been doing good, I'm not going to beat myself up over it. As for tomorrow, I'll be making dinner and perhaps surprising BF with oatmeal cookies. I haven't decided on that one, as I got him sweets already and he's trying to lose some weight Nonetheless, I plan on celebrating in some way! I'll figure it out between now and tomorrow evening. He goes to school for a bit tomorrow, I'll have time to plan!

At any rate, I can hardly believe it's been 2 years already! It seems so much shorter and so much longer than that all at the same time. I guess that's a good thing? hehe. Nonetheless, I think he's sticking around! Not that he has any choice in the matter... Have a good night, everyone!

p.s. Vacation savings up to $442 already! Not bad...

I've been posting so frequently in the last few days! Hope you all arent getting sick of me!

So I sat down and did a breakdown of my numbers currently, something I've been meaning to do for a while. I added up all the student debt I have right now. $14,964.81. AHHHHH!!!! Looking at that number makes me queasy, especially considering that's not where it ends! I still have more schooling! My measley EF right now is at $225, which is a dangerous low. My vacation savings, after you take away the rent check I'll have to pay and expenses that will be due either while I'm away or when I get back is at $95. hahaha. I'm sure this isn't funny, but the upside is that I still think I'll be okay. I've got this next week ahead of me, and I'm more than sure I'll have the alotted $500 or so I was planning on spending for the trip.

Now, some more number crunching. My estimated income for every month is around $1390. This is assuming I average $60 every night and $20 every lunch shift. Obviously, these averages are not always on the dot. Usually, I make more than this average. I added up my expenses: rent, electric, gas, cell, perscription, transportation, internet, life insurance, and groceries. That was $617 altogether. I added an extry $83 to round it off to $700 and account for things like eating at restaurants, entertainment, and clothes.

This $700 in expenses should make up approx. 50% of what I make in a month, leaving me with an extra $700 to distribute. So why is it that I dont have $700 in my checking account at the end of every month? Well, I spend it. Erg. The goal? To live on that $700 a month. I'll dip into $50 more if necessary (our utilities aren't always on the dot either), but I think that should be more than enough.

I figure the remaining $700 can be alotted to both my EF and my debt, which though I am still in school and not REQUIRED to pay off now, scares the living something out of me, and needs to be taken care of while the interest is still piling high.

So, here are my financial goals:

1. Get my EF up to $1000 by the first of the new year. I dont think this should be difficult. Eventually I want it to reach $2100 (that's 3 months' expenses).

2. Keep track CONTINUALLY of my finances, to the penny, for the next year. I have a bad habit of trailing off every once in a while... that seems to be the periods when my spending gets a little out of hand.

3. Live on $750 a month. This of course means that my "pleasure spending" needs to be capped pretty tightly. It needs to remain in that $83 range.

4. Take all money that is not spent on my expenses (within the $750) or put into the EF and send it all to my debt.

Some shorter-term goals:

1. No eating at restaurants until I go on vacation (the 20th of this month).

2. No Starbucks for the rest of this month.

3. No buying clothes for the rest of this month.

4. Save up $500 by vacation.

So after a short hiatus to work things out with BF, I feel back to normal. My finances were on the fritz for a while because I happened to not record things :P

At any rate, there have been some new happenings in the world of Tara! For one, I've had quite the social week... despite all of the homework that I *should* have been doing. But I'm relieved that things are picking up a bit in that department!

In other exciting news, I'm taking a trip for spring break! And if you're thinking Cancun, you're wrong I'm going to New Orleans with a group from my university to help rebuild houses devastated by hurricane Katrina. Hard work to come, for sure. I think it's going to be a great experience though and I'm really looking forward to it. I just have to hit the gym quite a few times beforehand. I'm going to be hurting. That's without a doubt!

Other than that, I'm just doing the same old same old... work, school. I've got a lot of schoolwork to do tomorrow, including a paper that I put off way too long. I better get sleeping! I have a long day ahead of me!

So... I talked with BF about a bunch of things that I see going wrong with the relationship, and we're going to change/work on a few things... like becoming better friends. We dont talk as much as I'd like to.

But nonetheless, I feel much better about things. We're still planning on moving--together-- in April. But our plans for marraige are going to be pushed back a bit. I want to start, and perhaps even finish grad school before then. But we'll see what happens.

Oh, and luckyrobin, my friend is gay I dont think he's too interested in stealing me away. hehe.

As for today, I'm going to campus early to work on some stuff for class. There's a poetry reading/workshop at 1:00, which I'm really excited about. I love poetry and it'll be nice to go do something on campus that isn't going to class. I just wish I had someone to go with.

After that ends, I have nothing to do until class at 6:00. Which means working on more homework/readings.

It seems as though I may have to pack lunch AND dinner today... But perhaps not. Maybe I'll stop and get Wendy's or something. I've had a good week, and I've only used 20 cents of my Food on Campus budget, which is $20. A junior bacon cheeseburger and a baked potato... or maybe chili. It's so cold! At any rate, $2.23 for a meal aint bad at all.

I need to figure out what I'm going to get/make for BF for Valentine's day. He has just about everything he wants. That makes it pretty hard. I'm not big on buying things for people for the sake of buying them. I try to put a lot of thought into my gifts. So that will be one of the day's ponderings. What to get the boy who doesn't really care for chocolate or candy, and wants nothing? Sigh. This could be hard...

CHALLENGE TOTALS:
February total: $12.72
Year total: $142.29

Some other bloggers here commented earlier this week about laziness and its pros/cons in the financial field. I'm not so happy to say that today I learned a valuable lesson:

Never go to HR Block.

The fact that I paid $60 to do what I could have done just drives me up a wall. I thought my taxes were complicated, but really all I had to do was put in one additional peice of information that I didn't have last year, and I get everything back. That information was nothing more than my tuition statement. Ugh. I could have done it myself.

Not only that, but they didn't do my state taxes... it would have been extra. So I have to file those myself. Ridiculous.

On the upside, my federal is filed and I'm getting $810 back. Not too shabby at all! Of course, the majority of it will be put back into student loans. Perhaps a hundred of it or so will go to my challenge. Just because And another hundred will go toward my emergency fund.

I packed my dinner tonight and had lunch at home. So all money spent today was on groceries, perscriptions, and tax preparation. Boo.

My grocery budget is coming along fabulously. I managed under $10 for the week, and I'm fairly confidnent that I'm going to reach my goal of spending under $50 for the month. I haven't really spent any money on campus either. 5 cents for a cup with hot water in it, but I've been reusing the cup for the last 2 days. Bringing my tea to campus with me...

I'm meeting a new friend for coffee tomorrow on campus. It should be nice. We've been talking over Facebook [for those who dont know, it's a university-based networking community type of thing]. He goes to my university and seems pretty cool. Let's hope I make a lasting friendship! I've been feeling rather social lately. I keep telling myself that I dont know anyone here, but really I've made quite a few aquaintences. I wish a few of them were closer friends, but I guess that comes with time.

At any rate, I better get going. I've got class in the morning! Everyone have a great night!

So me and BF went out of town for the weekend. We just got home, and even though we set the thermostat at 60 because we were gone, it's only 53! We've increased the temperature, but our little furnace that unfortunately couldn't is working its tail to no avail...

My trip was GREAT. I got to visit with family, and me and my mom went out with our cousin last night. I got to spend time with loved ones, and it was very inexpensive on my end. The only thing I paid for was Wendy's for mom and me because she had no cash on her. AND I ended up coming home with more than I went with for FREE. Yay!

2 pairs of jeans. Mom gave me one of hers that didn't fit her right, and we went shopping. Hit a great sale at JC Penny.
1 shirt.
1 pair of great boots.
1 can of spray to waterproof them (thanks again mom!)
1 bottle of Pinot Gregio
Half a family package of string cheese (mom wont eat the non low-fat kind anymore)
A whole container of Ferrero Rocher chocolates (Thanks to my Aunt and Uncle!)
Small package of granola.

Not too shabby! And I hit Ulta on our way to Ohio and took advantage of a freebie that was posted... a smashbox lip palette. Woo. I also had a 20% off coupon I recieved for being on their email list. AND my coworker gave me a $25 gift card there that she said she wouldn't use. So I spent $3 total and got the lip palette, moisturizer, a really cute shade of urban decay eyeshadow, and a 4 color combination eyeshadow from Covergirl. Not bad at all!!

But now I'm home and things are good. I've got class tomorrow, despite the single-digit weather. BF said he'd give me a ride to class, though. Whew!

I've decided on my own challenge for the month. In January, I spent $175 on groceries... just for me!! This month I budgeted $50, and I'm stickin to it. I'm gonna aim as low as I can. The money I save will go toward my student loans, but if I get under $50, I'm putting the money toward the challenge. Only food grocery items apply. I budgeted a separate amount for non-food grocery items. So here we go! I haven't grocery shopped at all in February. Yet. I think I'll be set for the week. I bought enough yogurt and apples to last me 2 weeks. So that covers lunch both days I'm on campus. But we'll see. At any rate, I'm gonna get going. I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Alright... here it is!

$ Earned at work: $1019.70 [not so great at all...]

Expenses:
Groceries: $172.79 [$100 budgeted] $72.79
Dining Out: $98.00 [$45 budgeted] $53.00
Food on Campus: $7.92 [$15 budgeted] $7.08
Clothes: $9.40 [$15 budgeted] $5.60
Entertainment: $55 [$55 budgeted] $0
Gifts: $3.00 [$10 budgeted] $7.00

So about $106.11 over budget...

On the upside...
$20 Challenge total for January: $129.57
$ paid on student loan: $175
Total No-Spend days: 10 [my goal was 7]

Considering the fact that $140 was stolen along with $150 in gift cards I was going to use to buy my books, I can honestly say I did well. I made very little money this month compared to normal, which sucks. But I was able to pay my bills AND buy the World of Warcraft expansion, so I really have no room to complain. And I can only see positively into February. Life is getting back to normal.

I got my final W-2 in the mail today, so I will be taking a trip to HR Block to get my taxes taken care of. I'm not sure what thier rates are, but I'm sure it's going to save me a lot of confusion, as well as money, in the long run.

At any rate, I'll be getting off here now. I have to get ready to go to court. Everyone wish me luck!