Well, sat down this morning and went over the damage from the weekend and put it in the books. Yay. Not terrible... could have been worse.

My babysitting clients sent me a text this morning, I have a job lined up for saturday night. Woo! I'm making more extra cash here than I anticipated. Excellent news.

BFF's husband (my other great friend and roomate) gets home from his stint in Egypt tomorrow. Much excitement! So it's going to be an eventful week for sure. I have drill this weekend, so I wont be doing anything particularly crazy. Sunday is only going to be a half day, though, because I already went in and got my paperwork done.

Still need to head down to the university to get everything in line for January. Sometime this week, for sure.

Other than that, just talked to BF for a bit today. It's the first time this week we've really had time to talk. Things seemed to have calmed down a bit on base. He's feeling much better. A relief.

I'm off to get some dinner with the roomies, then I think we're coming back here and watching some movies I rented from the library. woo!

Hope everyone has a great night!

Well, as I should have expected, I spent a little more than I had intended at the Indian Festival on saturday. It was a really fabulous day, though. I bought 2 tunics, a yoga video, a henna tattoo (it looks excellent), and a bunch of amazing food. Got to have a girl's day. I would say it was worth every penny. And I was still under $100 for the trip in its entirety.

Not spending a whole lot this week, however. Last night went to dinner with Pop, BFF, and Bro#3. Pop covered the meal, which was incredibly nice of him. That's twice in one week, though. I'm beginning to feel like a mooch... bah.

I met with a man yesterday who posted on craigslist that he wanted someone to clean his house once a week. Took bro#3 with me for security measures, and it seems like he's not going to cut me up into little pieces, so I'm going over there today to start. Yay for odd jobs! I definitely need the cash flow, and he also runs an online radio station, which is pretty cool. Gave him a copy of my demo, so he may actually play it. Added bonus

Went to the movies last night with a good friend. His roomate is the manager at the theatre, so we got in for FREE So I got to see District 9 and pay nothing. A great deal, I must say. And the movie was awesome.

So other than that not a whole lot going on. Need to go to the unviersity tomorrow to get all my paperwork underway. Yoga tonight. Then meeting with a friend I'm having issues with so we can rehash the past... ugh. His idea, not mine. But I guess we'll see how it goes.

BFF's hubby comes home from Egypt here on wednesday, so it'll be quite the celebratory weekend. I have drill, though, so not too terribly celebratory for me haha. I can be DD...

Heard from pseudo-BF finally... something had gone down over in the big sandbox. Specifically, a black hawk, inside base. I found an article on it online, but there were no specifics, and he's not allowed to release the info. I'm just happy he's okay. There was one person that died in the crash and 12 that are hurt. I'm hoping they all recover successfully... I cant wait til he's home safe. It's hard to think of how much danger he really is in while he's over there. Sigh...

Welp, hope everyone has a great monday! I'm off to get my day started!

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 I wrote out a list of things I needed to get done, and I've completed quite a few of them...

Had a job interview this morning, which went pretty well. It's an assistant teaching position at a childcare facility, which is fabulous. But they dont really have all that much time available. So I'll likely end up working there on a substitute basis. They're going to call me back with the hours they can guarantee. The good news about this is I'll still get the training for free, which I can use elsewhere. Not only that, but it's through the YMCA, so I'll get member benefits as well. So it's not all bad. And if they do end up needing a more permanent person, I'll already be around.

So there's that... I'm leaving here in another hour or so to go fill out job applications elsewhere. I've been searching craigslist, and emailed my resume to a couple other places. Checked my credit score for the first time in a while... 696 Not TERRIBLE, but not good either. No bad accounts, just a lot of debt, and a CC very near its limit.

I started car shopping online. I found a couple that look promising. The one is a great deal... 2007 Corolla with only 50k miles for $8k. The only problem is that it's a private seller (I'm sure the reason the price is so good), but I only really wanted to put $4-5k down.

See, I'm getting my bonus, which will be around $8500 after taxes are taken out. I wanted to use about $2k to pay off my CC, the other $1500 to throw into a short-term CD to use to go to Kenya next summer. I mean, paying for a car in cash means I wont have a car payment, but it also means I'll still be paying on my CC... which has an outrageous interest rate. So I really need to find either a cheaper car, or one that I can put less down on and make monthly payments for a couple years. Even so, I'm not looking to spend more than around $8k on a vehicle.

Bah... this is all so much. Also called the University, and left a message for the military student office... hopefully they'll call me back so I can get the ball rolling on all that. Left a couple voicemails pertaining to other things as well. So the day has seen some progress.

At any rate, time to go put some laundry away and do more of it! I'm going to attempt to seek employment, and everyone have a great day!

So... called the bank today. That was a total mess... As it turns out, the branch I opened my account at in PA was taken over by an entirely different bank, so my account is through a bank that is nowhere near Ohio... Fabulous. The only good news is that they had already mailed a debit card to my mom's, and I have checks. So at least I have access to my money.

I just have to open a new account locally and transfer everything and it's all a big mess. Sigh...

Went to my armory to get my paperwork all in order, which went well until my readiness NCO mentioned me being a 15V. I told her I was trained as a 15S, and she said, "oh. we may have some problems." Both jobs are "small helicopter mechanic," but they're different models. My unit doesn't carry the model I'm trained on. So it's looking like I'm going to be reclassed here in the near future... joy of joys.

Someone messed up and put me in the wrong school. It's bad because I'll have to go BACK to school, which means however many weeks more. The good news is that I'll be trained for 2 different jobs, which means more promotion points. And versatility. But it's another big pain... hopefully I'll know within the next month or so what's going to happen. They told me to still enroll in school, that they wouldn't pull me out in the middle of a semester for something like that. So we'll see what happens.

Other than that, the day has been pretty low-key. Phonecalls made, paid my student loan bill, rescheduled my job interview, and just continued trying to sort everything out. I'm going to my yoga class this evening, after having dinner at my mom's. Then back home to continue unpacking and hang out with the BFF.

I wanted to get a jump on the job application process, but my time spent at the armory was much longer than anticipated. I'll have to work on it tomorrow. I'll also have to go on a run tomorrow. I was bummed about not having time this morning, but my yoga class will be plenty of physical activity for today. And I certainly need it.

I've been awfully stressed out these last days home... it's hard to be back, with everything around me reminding me of the ex. Things with us are still sketchy and messy and all over the place. It's a really stressful situation. I think it's just going to take some getting used to. And time. And keeping busy.

Either way, hope everyone has a great night! I'm off to eat some ravioli!

So I made it safely home, thank goodness-- after almost missing my flight due to a bank error. Bleh. Words to the wise: if your platoon sgt tells you to wait to the last minute to get money out of the ATM to pay the cab driver to get you to the airport, do yourself a favor and just kick him in the face.

My checking account is frozen, zeroed out online for some strange reason. It says something about transfer balance for conversion, and I know they're switching systems here soon, but I have to pay my bills, and I cant if my money is locked in limbo. So I have to call them or go to the bank tomorrow. Yippie.

Other than that, my travel home was really quite painless. No terrible delays, spent a good portion of my layover chillin on a couch in the USO (those are pretty fabulous, by the way). And it was free! Didn't have to pay for a cab in the end, the flight, or my baggage (and there was a LOT of it).

Went to my storage unit to get my clothes out and pay my bill... mom was slacking. Told them I'd be out by the end of the month, so I'll get the rest of my stuff moved and I wont be paying for storage anymore woo! Thankfully the BFF has plenty of space in her house for all my crap.

We went out to dinner last night with a couple friends, which was *amazing*. And went out dancing til the wee hours of the morning, which is always a good time. It was a pretty excellent day. Well, except for the ex driving me crazy... but that's a whole different story. Sigh... I'm fairly certain men will be the death of me.

As for today? Art in the Park. The BFF is in the shower, and I'll be following, then we're off! And making dinner for her father in law tonight. His wife died a few months ago... everyone we know was really close to thier family, and it was pretty devastating to him. BFF goes over there every sunday to have dinner with him, and now I get to be part of the tradition

Other than that, no plans for today. Finish unpacking my clothes... try not to go insane... haha. We have to go get keys made for me. Party... haha.

Tomorrow I go to my unit to get all my paperwork copied and in order. Get my bonus paperwork in so it can get processed and I get *PAID*. Get my scholarship paperwork in and my GI bill rollin for the winter. I have to go to the university here soon as well, and get everything straight for school in January.

And job hunt... I need to do a whole lot of that too. There are a whole list of places I need to grab applications from. I did see my LES, and I will be getting paid on tuesday. Woo! So I'm not totally screwed for the month. It's a total relief. I just have to watch the spending. As soon as I get my bank situation under control, I'll get my budget in order and really buckle down on things.

So I'm going to go get my day started. Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!

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

So... it's been a while... over a year, as I look at my previous entries. What the hell happened, you ask? Well. It would be silly to sum it all up in a few paragraphs, but this is what I'm going to do anyway

My last entry was October of 2008. The BF was preparing for his deployment, and things were getting hectic on the job front. I was wanting to rip my eyes out every day studying accounting. Things were monotonous and frustrating and I realized I was far from happy.

In November I decided to enlist in the Army National Guard. Big step, right? haha. I did it for a few reasons: Mostly money. A $20k bonus, $18k in student loan repayment, and unlimited options for future employment in a rather unhealthy job market seemed like a good combination of rationality to up and do it. There was also the notion that I would have something to do for the year the BF would be away in the big sandbox.

That's probably the best decision I've made in a long time. I spent a few months working at my original job at the poultry place because I quit that bartending job I had. My boss made me miserable.

The cons to joining the military: Gave up puppy... that was probably the hardest and most depressing thing I've ever done. I still miss the crap out of that dog, despite the fact that she chewed up my favorite cookbook, and peed all over the carpet... There will always be a special place in my heart for Madi.

I also broke the lease at my apartment, as no one would be living in it. All of my things are now sitting in a storage unit, and I'll be living with my bestest friend in the whole world when I get back.

Basic Training was one hell of an experience. I left on St. Patrick's Day of 2009. I finished up on my birthday at the end of May. Since, I've been in fabulous Ft. Eustis, VA. My job is probably the best part about being in the military. I work on these tiny little helicopters. I'm a mechanic, and I love every minute of it. Like, a lot. It's definitely not psychology or accounting or any of that fluff. Just straightforward wrench turning and pulling out and putting back in.

BF and I split about a month and a half ago. It's a looooooong complicated situation and I'm still incredibly bummed about the whole thing. It's been a rough time. Really rough. Long story short, he wanted the freedom to do what he pleased when he finally comes back to the states, and neither of us wanted me to be the one to hold him back from that. A relationship with such distance in the way is hard enough to maintain without one person not really having their heart in it. I miss him terribly.

I go back to Ohio in a little over 2 weeks, and I'm not ready in any way, shape, or form. I never thought I would dread returning home, but the fact of the matter is that I've had all my decisions made for me for the last 6 months, and it kind of works for me. For anyone who has been on this site since 2004, you've seen me live my life, seen me change my mind and make decisions that have totally reorganized my world time and again. It's hard to tell if the decisions I'm making these days will really be all that good for me. It's hard to trust a 5 year crazy streak...

Not only that, but I do love what I do in the Army, and I dont have a steady job waiting for me when I get home. I do have a rent-free place to stay, which takes much of the burden off, but I dont want to be a total mooch.

I will be purchasing a new car when I make my return. Haven't had one in the last 4 years. I'm pretty sure it's going to be essential to the job-getting process. That, and I get the first half of my bonus... so I'll put about $9k down and pay off the remaining balance over the course of the next 2 years. Have a warranty and a car that shouldn't break. I'm buying a Yaris. Drove BF's back before I left, loved it. It'll be a manual. Much more fun, and much cheaper. I'm pretty excited about it.

I need to find a job ASAP. I'll be attempting to find a full time tech position at my unit. Pays great and I'll be doing something I really love. I'll return to school either full or part time in January, depending on what job I find. If the tech thing doesn't work out, I'll probably go back to waitressing, and do school full time-- reaping the benefits of my GI Bill.

Other than that, things are just kind of suspended til I get home. The last month has been really crappy, and I'm hoping that getting back will get me in gear rather than make me feel more hopeless, which is what I'm dreading.

Regardless, I apologize for the depressing nature of this entry. I'm hoping that getting back in control of my finances will help me feel some amount of control over the rest of my life. I'm a single gal now, with endless possibilities. That should be exciting. Really, it's overwhelming because I have no idea what in the world I want to do.

Sigh.

At any rate, I want to say hello again to all the old friends hanging around still, and I hope to find some positive support here in my financial endevours. As always, what I intended to do didn't really end up happening, and the amount of money I saved/paid off my CC with wasn't nearly as much as I had hoped for through all this.

Time for change.

At this time, I'll let y'all move on to other entries or the activities of your everyday life, but I look forward to blogging with you all again

Hello again, friends!

It's been quite a while since I've posted a blog... I've been incredibly busy with school and work. No big suprise, I'm sure

I'm not 100% on what my last post said, but things are going alright. I still have yet to get my financial aid pushed through... have to talk to the office tomorrow. Class itself is going well, but it's tough while working full time. I've been slipping financially because of my constant motion. I grocery shopped on sunday, however, so I can stop dumping so much money at restaurants Things are getting back on track progressively as I get accustomed to this new schedule.

BF and I are doing fabulously. It's 9 months now. It's scary that he's going to be leaving for his pre-deployment training here in just a couple weeks. It's coming up so soon! That being said, the new puppy will likely be bought next month. I cant say I'm not excited. I've wanted a puppy for many years now.

Work is going alright. I'm making good money, though I'm a bit miserable working for my boss. He's turned into quite the monster over the last couple months. I need to talk to the university career center and work on getting an internship or part time job for the spring semester. It's in the works.

I put together my october budget, and I'm determined to stay on track. I never put one together for september, which would explain the casual spending left and right :/ That's what happens when I stop tracking my expenses...

At any rate, I'm going to get going. There is homework to be done! (always).

I hope everyone is doing well, and I'm happy I could pop in and give you all an update!

Have a wonderful night!

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, it's been a little while. I cant say that there is much news outside of my boss driving me absolutely crazy at work. Last week was quite hellish. I really dont get employers who give no training and expect their new employees to be perfect at their job after only 2 weeks. It's beyond me. But, for this week, I have a job. And my boss has not threatened it yet this week (of course, it is only tuesday. haha). Let's hope he removes whatever object is stuck in his rear-end.

It's getting close to tuition time, and I have almost what I need. BF owes me a bit of money (I paid the security deposit, the stuff we got at IKEA over the weekend, groceries for the last 2 weeks, etc). He only gets paid 2 times a month, and I'd rather it all be in one lump sum. That way I cant spend it.

I'm a little concerned about how tuition will work for the fall, but I'm going to cross that bridge when I come to it. Hopefully I'll be able to get on a payment plan.

Other than that, just settling in the new place, trying not to lose my mind. You know. I made my goal of making $150 in extra income already this month. I made $106 selling books on amazon in the last couple weeks, and I babysat the other day which netted me $60. So perhaps I'll shoot for $200?

I think that's it for now. Everyone have a wonderful day!

Well, not that much on the financial front. I made really decent money yesterday, which was great. Ate dinner in last night: zuchinni and shells in chunky marinara. Mmm. BF and I were both terribly tired and ended up going to bed fairly early.

I have a couple of errands to run this morning. I need to go to the bank to make a deposit, then I have to go to the post office to send out the books I sold on amazon.

Then work til 6. Bleh. Work has been going good except my boss has been a raging jerk for the last few days. We need to call in a doctor to surgically remove the stick that's been up his *ahem*. Enough griping, however.

Tonight BF and I are going to mom's for dinner. My little brother is in town (he's been doing basic and training with the Airforce for quite a while now). I'm pretty excited to see him and hang with the fam

Well, I've got to get this day rolling. Everyone have a good one!

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!

BF and I had quite a breakthrough yesterday. We're trying to get everything set to start moving next weekend (seems so close!), so we have to get all the paperwork sent in, etc. We were filling out the rental application yesterday, and there was a section where you fill in your liabilities, and how much you pay on them every month.

Up to this point, BF wouldn't tell me how much debt he had. It really bothered me, as we may potentially be getting married in the next year, and working together on money-related issues is a big deal when your married (if you're going to have a successful marriage, anyway). I want to start working together *before* we get married, so that when we eventually are, it wont be some huge change.

That being said, I got to see. I even offered to not look at it if he was uncomfortable with it, but he said it was okay. He's really embarrased about his debt, so it's not something he ever shares. With anyone. But he shared it with me, and even acknowledged that he needs a little help dealing with it. He doesn't have as much debt as I do when you talk straight numbers, but most of his is CC debt, and he has to pay the car off still.

He's convinced that once he get's back from Iraq that it wont be a problem anymore, because he'll get a check enough to pay off all his debt and then some leftover. I stressed the importance of paying them off as soon as possible, however, so he doesn't end up losing a bunch in interest in the mean time. He's trying really hard. He never uses his CC anymore, and we've been working together to save on the little things.

I feel like we're really working as a team now. It's fantastic. I think a lot of it has to do with moving-- into "our" place. In BF's eyes, I've been more or less "squatting" at his place. But he told me yesterday that he was looking forward to moving into "our" place. I can say the same, and it made me so happy to hear it from him We'll be splitting bills and really mingling finances now. haha.

It's a big step to move in with someone, I think. I've done it in the past, and it's tricky. I think it's really the closest thing to being married without actually being married. Technically BF and I have been "living together" for 3 months now, but this will be different. It's a little peice of home we're building together. I love it! But I also acknowledge that it's going to take a little bit of work and organization to get us on the same page.

I've been reading those personal finance books, and it got me thinking about financial goals. I have the basic ones: pay off debt, eventually buy a house, travel the world, retire by 60ish, have enough money to really raise a kid, put him/her through college (or at least help). I asked BF about his, and really the answers were similar. He wants to retire young (50-55), he wants to travel, he wants to have kids.

We want to raise our children in a foreign country, at least through thier teens. We definitely want to live in a foreign country. That's a huge step, and one we're going to have to think through very carefully (for obvious reasons). I want my kids to be bilingual and go to a school better than the ones you find in my area. haha. I want them to have cultural exposure, as so little people, even adults, do in the US. We've talked about how many kids we would eventually want, but he caught me off guard yesterday when he told me he wants to have as many as we can afford and raise well. He thinks we would both make great parents I hope he's right. I guess we both come from relatively big families, but I dont know about popping out more than 3! If we could split the labor maybe it would be different, but unfortunately, he doesn't have the equipment But of course, this is all a really long way off.

I just feel really good about things. School will hopefully work out. I'm putting all my savings on my CC so I can lower my interest payment on the 2nd of the month. Then I'll put basically all my tuition payment on my CC. Then we're back to square 1. I'll spend the rest of the summer trying to pay it off. Sigh. I have to admit I'm a little worried that I'm not going to be able to pay the difference. I had my can-do attitude the last time, and it got me really far (about $1500 far), but not far enough.

Falling short never feels good, so perhaps that's affecting my attitude. But this time I dont want to be caught by suprise. If I cant pay it, I'm going to take the semester off. I really dont want to do that, because I want to get this degree asap. But on the positive side, that will give me some time to get my finances in order, perhaps pay off my CC.

On another positive note, Associated Content Published 2 of my articles:

The Best Sushi in Akron, Ohio

Friends with Benefits: A Healthy Alternative

The first is a review of Sushi places in my area, the second is an unorthodox relationship piece. Total of $7.55 for both. Half of it is already in my paypal account.

In other little tidbits, I've successfully taken leftovers and not ordered food from work all week. That is to be continued today and tomorrow, saving me approx. $10 for the week. And I've been eating much healthier!

A little team victory last night: Went to mom's to cook dinner and do laundry. Mom and sis were heading to the drive-in, and we were invited to go at a really good price ($10 for both of us). However, we opted to watch movies we got from the library at home instead. Also, on the way home from mom's, we passed Taco Bell, and even at the mention of possibly getting something by BF, we opted to just go home and eat some homemade hummus and smoke the hookah

BF's foot is doing a little better, but he's still off work til tomorrow. I'm enjoying having him home!

Alright, enough rambling. I'm sorry if you read all the way through it. Must have been painful

Well, the week continues being good. Things seem to be turning around a bit for me

I woke up and saw that I sold yet another book. So I packaged it up and stopped at the post office. Between the 2 books, after shipping, I made $20.38. After going to the post office, I stopped at the library to pick up some stuff I had on hold. I got a CD, and 2 movies (well, one was Scrubs season 3 disc 1), and picked up 3 financial books: The Everything Personal Finance in your 20's and 30's Book, 50 Simple things you can do to improve your personal finances, and The complete personal finance handbook. We'll see how they are.

Work was okay. I didn't make fabulous money, but I didn't make bad money either. I brought my leftovers again. That's about $4 so far saved this week!!

After work I walked home and stopped to get coals for the hookah.

BF went to the hospital today because he fractured his foot somehow and it's been bothering him really bad for a couple days now. Lucky for us, he has pretty good insurance. Looks like he's probably going to be home for the rest of the week. Poor guy.

I had my second job interview today. Well, it was a phone interview with the bank. They're setting me up with a face-to-face interview. It's been quite the process. haha. I had to take an online questionarre, a math test, and do a phone interview before I get to see anyone. I feel like Indiana Jones. haha.

I'm pretty excited about this position if I get it. It's $9.75/hr, which is more than the record company would pay me. At the same time, I would be limited to $20 hrs/week, but if I can schedule them for 3 days rather than 4 hrs/day, I can still work a couple days a week at the restaurant. The branch I'd be working at will also be about 2 minutes from the apartment we're likely moving into as well. haha. When I asked her I found it so funny. Also, I'd get some benefits. They'd start me with a 401k and I'd get some vacation time. I'd have health insurance, though the woman said it would obviously be more expensive than if I was working full time. But also, there would be room to move up, and it is more directly related to accounting than office work is.

Tonight I guess BF and I are going to his brother's house for dinner. He's making lasagne. He needs to call his brother and ask if he wants us to bring anything. Regardless, it'll be nice to spend some time with them. I also have all those movies that we could bring over and watch with them.

I still need to head over to the university and sell my books back, but they aren't going anywhere. I feel pretty productive today regardless

Well, I need to get going. Need to do the dishes and start reading all these books! I feel like a nerd getting so excited about personal finance books. lol.

So this has been the best day I've had in a while. It was a great start to what will hopefully be a great week.

BF and I went and looked at an apartment today that is perfect. It's much bigger than we thought it would be, less than $500 a month, has 2 big closets, plenty of counter space, a little storage closet that would be great for BF's gas-soaked work clothes, on site laundry services, a little yard. It's a 2nd floor apartment, so I wouldn't have to worry about leaving my windows open at night, it feels really secure.

It's also within walking distance of a bar we frequent, the restaurant where BF's family goes all the time, the grocery store, and closer to my mom, BF's family, and good friends of ours. It's $20 extra per month for pets, but that puts it at still cheaper than any of the other apartments we were considering. So when I finally get my puppy, we'll be set.

Needless to say, I'm pretty excited about it. I was really not all that thrilled to be moving again, until I saw this apartment, and now I'm totally stoked. We were going to look at a few more places, and we still may, but I'm pretty sure my heart is set on this one. It's the best price we've found yet, and in the perfect location.

Adding to all that, when we got home from looking at the apartment, I got a call from a woman about my application at the bank. I have a phone interview tomorrow at 3pm. That's 2 job interviews this week

I made decent money at work today-- about $45. Much better than any day last week. Told my boss today that I was looking around for another job. He understood. No one at the restaurant is making any money, which is quite the bummer. It's a really fun place to work, and the food is really quality. It's just a really bad location, especially in the summer months when there aren't as many people downtown.

I had my first job interview of the week this afternoon, and it went well. After talking to the owner of the record company for a while, he gave me an application so they could do the background check and all that fun stuff. It seems like it would be a fun place to work, but there would be some running around to do. I think working for a bank may be a little nicer. It's more stationary (for days that BF has to drop me off, etc). But it's really going to depend on what branch I would be working at, what hours I would be working, how much I would be paid, etc. Those are the kinds of questions I'll be asking tomorrow, of course. BF's sister used to be a bank teller, and she said she made around $9/hr. Which is about the same as what I would make as an office assistant for the record company.

So we'll see... Regardless, it seems like August is going to be an exciting month, between a new apartment and a new job.

Last night I picked BF up from his unit and made dinner. The greek salad turned out amazing. Tonight after my interview I picked BF up from his grandma's. He was cutting her grass. We stopped at Dairy Queen and picked up a couple blizzards. Definitely an uneccesary expense, but it was such a nice warm day and it had been way too long since I had icecream.

I didn't buy any food at work. I packed my sandwich, and some leftovers. That $2 I saved was spent on icecream. lol.

I made dinner again tonight. I made a lemon-dill chicken salad, which turned out really good. We ate it with the leftover salad. In addition, we have enough for at least 2 or 3 more sandwiches. I'm out of chicken now, so I'll have to figure something out for the rest of the week :/ maybe we'll go all-vegetarian for the rest of the week. We have stuff for salads, so we should be fine. I've been quite the chef lately. I'm looking forward to moving into a bigger place. I miss inviting people over. I want to have people over for dinner more often

BF and I seem to be getting on the same page with not spending money. I like that a lot. For instance, he was talking about a bedroom set he wants to get for the new apartment. He said it's "only" $700-some dollars, and it's really nice. But I explained that I think it's uneccesary to get anything like that. We have everything we need, and the closets in the new place are huge, so we dont really need another dresser. I told him I'd prefer it if he put the $700 on his CC. He agreed Sometimes you just have to talk some sense into these boys! haha.

He went off to work, and I made him a sandwich to take with him while he was packing. He also took a few cans of the diet mountain dew we bought on sale in cases, rather than blowing way too much money on it at gas stations.

This week shouldn't be terribly pricey, until sunday. It's BF's sister and nephew's b-day, so we're going to a water park. I think they sell discounted tickets at the grocery store, but I'm not sure how much it's going to cost, or if you are allowed to bring food into the park, etc. Guess we'll see. I work friday and saturday nights. Hopefully this week I wont get sent home early both nights, and I'll actually make some money. That would be nice :P

I have a couple more things to list on craigslist/amazon. I'm going to make a couple more peices of jewelry, too. I need to work on generating that extra income. Last month I did pretty good.

A couple little victories I noticed today:
*I haven't bought a book for non-school reasons since April.
*I haven't spent any money on clothes since may, and the month's total then was $3.40

Trying to keep up the good work in July

Hope everyone has a great night!

Well, it's been a fairly productive day. I washed my dishes, straightened up the apartment, and put my laundry away. Then I listed 7 books on amazon. Eventually I met my coworker out at this place for a drink and an appetizer. He insisted to pay the bill, which was nice. I paid the tip. So $7 out of pocket (much better than $18).

Just got home not too long ago, checked my email to find that one of my books sold for $17 Let's hope I have just as much luck with the other 6. Some of them were really pricey, mostly textbooks. 2 were around $30 and one was $75, so we'll hope!

I'm pretty excited for my interview tomorrow. I have to admit, I love job interviews. As narcassistic as it sounds, I love spending an hour talking about myself. Something aobut the idea of selling myself is really fun. I've also never went on a job interview and not gotten hired. Let's hope I dont break my stride. I decided what to wear today, and I think I'm ready. Wish me luck!

It's going to be a busy week. I work mon-fri lunches, friday and saturday night at the bar. I'm going to look at an apartment in the morning, and have my interview after my work shift. I need to get some stuff taken care of for school this week. I have some phone calls to make, applications to put in, etc. I think I'm going to go for the BA in accounting. It seems the most logical thing to do. I may eventually get a master's degree, but for now I need to focus on getting a job and paying down all of this debt.

Last night I got sent home again at the bar. We were supposed to have a big party of 100 people (the reason I was scheduled to come in), and they never showed up. I sat around for 3 hours doing nothing. I have to admit, it was quite the bummer. I'm really trying to make some money, and it seems like it doesn't matter what I do sometimes, I just have terrible luck. Mom and her BF took me to dinner, though, which was very nice. I ate my leftovers for breakfast

I have some really good meals planned for this week. I'm going to be bringing my leftovers to work for lunches, so I needed some real motivation. haha. Here are the tentative meals:

*Tofu Cabbage Salad with Peanut Dressing
*Greek Chicken Salad (though I may make it with tofu)
*Chicken Salad Sandwiches (or on top of greens)
*Grilled Chicken (or tofu) and mashed sweet potatoes
*Salad with cottage cheese, pineapple chunks, and poppyseed dressing.

I figure at least 2 of the nights will be throw-together nights, but regardless it's going to be a real salad week. I'm trying to get my eating habits back in order. I'm going to make some hummus here soon. Actually, I may make some before BF gets home in a couple hours. Suprise him

I also came across a recipe for home made energy bars. It may have been in the SA forums. I dont remember, but I might try them this week. They would be good to take to work on nights.

Because I dont have evening classes anymore, I'm also going to be going to the gym at least mon-thurs. I was doing really good when BF was gone, but for some reason dropped the ball. Really busy, I guess.

Well, this weekend has been pretty fun thus far. Last night I went to work, but it was so slow that I sat for an hour with nothing to do, and they sent me home. I work again tonight, hopefully with much better luck.

This morning I sent another resume out for an executive/office assistant position. It's 30 hours/week and it only pays $8.50/hr, but it's still far better than what I'm making currently.

I went grocery shopping with a friend of mine. I introduced her to the glory of ALDI. Then we stopped at Giant Eagle because there were a few things that I needed that ALDI didn't have.

The damage:
ALDI
12 pack of Toilet Paper $5.29
1 Grapefruit $0.59
3-pack cucumber $1.19
1 Red onion $0.49
1 Bag of spring mix salad $1.99
1 quart soymilk $1.39
5 tomatoes $3.95
1 bag radishes $0.89
1 can chunk pineapple $0.89
1 box granola cereal $1.59
1 tub yogurt $1.59
1 tub cottage cheese $2.29
1 thing peanutbutter $1.39
1 can black olives $0.99
1 bag baby carrots $1.19
Total with tax: $26.05

Giant Eagle:
Feta Cheese $2.00
Soy Sauce $3.09
Can Chickpeas $0.60
Sesame oil $2.99
Firm tofu $2.99
Green onion $0.79
Total: $12.46

Complete total: $38.51

It seems really high, but BF will be reimbursing me part of it. Also, shopping today convinced me to cook lunch with my friend as opposed to going out to chipotle where we each would have spent $10. He bought the avocados, I bought the tomatoes we needed to make our shish kabobs and our tomato-avocado salad.

Also, I have to confess... I've been cheating a little. I bring my sandwich to work every day, but that's never enough food for me. And I know this, of course. So every day I've been splitting a meal with my coworker. I only usually spend a max of $2.25 every day, but if you take an average of $2x5 days of work, that's $10/week. $40/month. I bought extra groceries so I cook more, and I'll be taking my leftovers to work.

Speaking of work, as I was getting back from grocery shopping, I got a call from the place I sent my resume to this morning. We talked a bit, and set up an interview date-- monday at 3pm. Yippee! I need to figure out what I'm going to wear now...

Monday morning BF and I are looking at an apartment. We really need to figure out where it is we're moving to. The lease is up the first week in august.

So my friend and I went to my mom's and we cooked lunch. It was nothing short of amazing, and we both had leftovers to take home. And mom got a nice meal for free. All she had to do was the dishes It was a really nice time.

Tonight I have work, tomorrow I have some cleaning to do around this apartment, and I'm getting together for lunch with my coworker. Then it's off to the drive in to see Wall*e again after BF gets home.

Got a pinecone check in the mail today

This coming week is going to be a very busy one. Still chugging away at that to-do list, it's been a slow process, but I see things looking up. Anyhoo, time to finish getting ready for work!

Everyone have a nice evening

Well, still didn't make that great money today. Boo. I'm really glad for this second job thing. Also, I got a call today from the woman who had me babysit her 2 girls a couple weeks ago. As it turns out, her and her husband have season tickets to the football team out here, and they need a sitter for quite a few of the games. They're going to pay me $60 every time, so that's pretty exciting. She emailed me the dates, and it seems like it wont be a problem for any except a couple (work would interfere and all that). But we'll see. I'm not sure what my schedule is going to be like at the new place.

Other than that, I dont have much financial news. I've been thinking more about my school situation. It occured to me last night that it was ridiculous to finish my degree in sociology and then get a master's in accounting. I could finish my BA in accounting in 2 years, and it would take me a year to finish up my BA in sociology + 2-3 years for a master's program. So I may just go into the business college, finish up my BA in accounting, then take the CPA exam. I may eventually get an MA, but I really want to get a decent job sometime in the next few years. I really need to start paying down this debt.

BF will get home tonight about the time I get out of my exam. Not sure what we're doing tonight. I know he has some paperwork to do still, so it's looking like it will probably be a night in. I guess that's fine with me, I got 3 movies from the library today: Cinderella Man (a good one I haven't seen in a while), Casino Royale (a favorite of mine), and Ratatouille (which I have not seen, but am totally stoked to watch). So I suppose I have things to keep me busy, and I'm sure BF is going to want to relax a little. He's had a looooong week.

I've got saturday during the day to do whatever. That'll be nice. I still have a hideous to-do list. Sunday I have plans with friends and my co-worker to go out to lunch and have a couple drinks. My only entertainment money spent this week. Sunday night mom suggested going to the drive-in to see Wall*e. BF and I have already seen it, but loved it so much we'd be willing to pay the $2 each to see it again. So we'll see.

Well, have to get to my exam. It's the final, so after today I'm done til fall. I'm pretty relieved. I didn't really care for this class, afterall. And I get to sell the books back

Have a good night, everyone!

Well, today was a NSD. I ate leftovers for breakfast, packed my sandwich for work. I made okay money today, but not really all that great. I'm definitely going to need that extra money from job #2 this week. Did the dishes and all that. Went to class. Tomorrow is my final, and then classes are done til fall.

At mom's now helping her put together a budget. We've made some progress. Still a little more to put together, however.

I've got some movies and CDs on hold at the library now. Hopefully my movie will arrive at the branch here tomorrow. It would be nice to have something to watch with BF sometime this weekend. As it is, we wont have a whole lot of time to spend together, but I will see him tomorrow night and sunday night. He has drill saturday and sunday, and I work friday night. I am looking forward to seeing him. I haven't all week, so it'll be nice. And I'll be done with my class, which I'm also excited about.

Not much other news. I have a lot to do, and I'm dragging my feet, which I shouldn't. It's just that between school, finding a new apartment, and job hunting, I've got a lot on my plate and it's awfully overwhelming. The massive hunk of debt I'm trying to pay off, along with tuition, doesn't really help much either. One thing at a time, I guess.

There are some things I need to get selling. My textbooks, my various other books, that willow tree thing mom gave me to sell, more jewelry, etc. Still waiting on those articles on Associated Content. Another pinecone survey wouldn't hurt either. haha. I have a loooong to-do list, just not enough time to do. haha.

But at least my dishes are washed.

Babysteps... hehe. Everyone have a great night!

Well, I made better money at work today than yesterday, thankfully. It still seems to be not nearly enough. I sent a couple resumes out yesterday for receptionist positions. We'll see if anyone bites. I did find my second job, working at a bar a few nights a week. I start friday evenint, which I'm very excited about. I was hoping I would be able to start this weekend. I definitely need the money. Besides, BF is out of town this weekend anyway, so I'll need something to do (my friends are obviously not part of the equation. haha).

Did my laundry at mom's last night. Still waiting to see if my articles get published. Trying to keep busy and make some money. Today is my last week of class til the fall. Final is on thursday. I'm not really looking forward to that. It's been a rather lazy day. I haven't really wanted to do anything. I'm trying to motivate myself to go to the gym, as I really should. I'm paying all this tuition for essentially 2 classes, so I may as well take advantage of the perks.

I have an endless to-do list, and it's so overwhelming. I wish I could snap my fingers and all that debt would erase itself... ugh. At any rate, better get on those billion things I have to do.

Hope everyone has a great night!

Well, the weekend was exciting. Quite busy. Spent some time with friends, family. Didn't drink too much, probably ate too much though. haha. We saw the fireworks twice, both times were pretty good. The first ones we saw we were so close we were being showered with ashes-- some of which got into my eye, and that wasn't quite pleasant. But otherwise, it was a great weekend. Got to see Wall-E and Hancock. Both were good, though I would reccomend Wall-E more. It was nothing short of amazing.

Think I found my second job. Need to go in tomorrow to find out what my schedule is going to be, and when they want me to start. The manager wasn't in today. I wrote another article today, so I'm waiting for that one and the last to be approved. I published another poem on associated content:

Persephone

I put on my sidebar a list of the articles and poems I've published if anyone wants to check them out. I like to think my poetry is pretty good, so if you're into that kind of thing, definitely check it out!

Still apartment hunting. I called a few places on saturday. I'm starting to get some calls back about them, so I'll be looking at there here within the next week. Unfortunately, BF is out of town most of the week for work, and then has drill this weekend. It feels like he's always gone! Likely because he is... haha. I guess it's something I'm going to have to get used to. Good practice for him going to Iraq.

Didn't make good money today. The restaurant was dead. Makes me want to get a job with more hours. I feel bad deserting my restaurant, though. I'll think over it some more. I've been scouring craigslist every morning, looking for a better paying job. but once school starts up again in the fall, I'm going to need a flexible job, so I'm trying to steer clear of anything too serious. I'll only be able to work a couple more months, afterall.

I need to go to the university and get a bunch of stuff in order. Paperwork jungle all over again... I'm not really looking forward to it. I'm just trying to stay optimistic and be excited about it all. I do love change, after all.

Either way, I should get going. I have some homework to do before class. Only a week left, and no more til fall. Yay!

Hope everyone has a great night!

The last couple days have been absolutely horrendous. It seems that even though lending club approved me for funding a week ago, that the same credit information wasn't good enough a week later. I lost my $1000.

That being said, things have to change. First of all, I had to drop a couple of my classes. Had I not they would have dropped them anyway, and I would have paid full price. As it stands, they're only reimbursing me for 30% of the one because it had already started. Total BS. I have to talk to someone higher up. But that's neither here nor there at this point.

I have to transfer schools again to avoid moving back to Pittsburgh, where I would face tuition that is way too much. I'm starting to kick myself in the butt for ever having moved there and enrolling in a private university... but it was my decision, and I have no one else to blame.

I'm switching majors, as the psych program at this university is drastically different from the one in PA. I'm going sociology, it'll be much less painful than going through a cognitive-behavioral psych program, and I can specialize in social psycology. I'm actually a little excited about the program itself.

I talked to a transfer counselor, and I would only have to take 1 or 2 gen ed courses, so the bulk of what I would have to take would be major courses. It would potentially only put me back a semester. It'll be a little more money, obviously, but not much considering the price difference between the universities. My tuition in PA is $20k a year, here, it's $10k. So an extra semester will be about the same, if not less.

So it's bad news, but I'm trying to make the best of it and remain optimistic. I always knew there was a chance that I wouldn't be able to pull the money together, and I did my best, but no cookie.

Class ends next week, and then I [hopefully] start my second job. I'm pretty sure I'll be hired. I met with the manager the other day. I'll be bartending, hopefully 3 nights a week. So let's hope I make some cash! I made a nice amount at work yesterday. I'm hoping the trend continues.

BF is back to work and stressed again. It really sucks sometimes, because I feel awful. He works terribly long days quite often, and in times when I really need him (like over the last couple days), he's been unable to really be there for me. But I understand. I think it's great that I'm mature enough to realize that I have to deal with things on my own, that everyone has thier own problems and not everyone is able to support another when they're dealing with themselves. We got into a bit of a spat yesterday, but we're okay again. We're both stressed, but lucky that we are both willing to work things out and be understanding.

My last article I submitted,

Eating Healthy on a Budget, didn't make the grade for an upfront payment. I guess they have too many articles like it. But they did publish it, and I'm still getting pay per clicks. So give it a read if you could please haha. I wrote another this morning, so we'll see how that goes.

I like writing articles. BF made a comment last night when I asked him to throw out a topic idea, "You trying to make your next $3?" haha. I can proudly say that $3 is worth quite a bit to me. Because it all adds up I've gotta get this boy on track! haha.

I'm supposed to get together with a woman next week to go over the children's book she's writing. She saw my ad on craigslist for editing/proofreading and sent me an email. So I have an editing job! I've never edited a children's book before, but I'm pretty excited. I guess the illustrator is doing his job now, and we're going to sit down and go over the text with the illustrations, and I'll be checking the text as well. I'm afraid I'm probably not charging her enough, but I want to be reasonable (I am a bit inexperienced afterall, and a children's book is minimal page count). But still, I find it rather exciting, and it could open up opportunities in the future.

I think that's really all the news I have now. I'm supposed to go see mom soon and help her get her finances in order. I sent her the link to SA, and I think she might join haha. Guess I should stop talking about her all the time now. haha.

I hope everyone has a great 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!

Well, it was a NSD. Brought my sandwich to work. Made okay money. Not really all that much. I sold a book on amazon, though. And one of my articles got a $3.91 offer on Associated Content. I also heard back from a woman who saw my craigslist post about paper editing. It seems she wants me to edit a children's book she's writing. She lives in the area, we'll be getting together in 2 weeks. So that should pull in a little bit of extra cash.

Also, a friend of my mom's BF said he was looking for an occasional sitter for his 2 girls, and I gave him my number. I guess him and the wife dont get out very often because they dont want to hire a sitter they dont really know. Totally understandable.

I got on the elliptical machine for an hour today, so my workouts have been kept constant. I'm pretty proud of myself, I must say.

At any rate, I should get going. I have cleaning and sleep to catch up on. Everyone have a great night!

Well, this weekend was quite profitable. The extra hours at work pulled me in an extra $120 or so.

I applied for a second job tonight, so we'll see how that goes. BF is a little apprehensive. I think he's worried about not seeing eachother very often... I think 2 or 3 nights is pale in comparison to missing him a year he's in Iraq. And it's kind of a necessary evil (you know, paying bills). But we're going to talk it over a little more.

In other news, I took a 10 mile bike ride today, from my apartment to my mom's. It was about an hour and a half, I most definitely felt the burn. lol. Feels good to be active again.

My new class starts this week, so we'll see if I'm going to actually need the book. Hopefully not. That would be awesome if I didn't have to pay $70... I lucked out with my music class. Cross your fingers for me!

As far as my update on Lending Club is concerned, I'm 1/3 of the way to the total funding I was looking for. But if I only get funded for $2000, I'll still be okay. Also cross your fingers that I get that last 2/3!

I think it's going to be a busy week, though I have no idea what my work schedule is like. Guess I'll find out tomorrow. The boss does a terrible job of giving us any notice...

Oh, and BF comes home friday night!!! So there's something to look forward to!