<< Back to all Blogs
Login or Create your own free blog
Layout:
Home > Feeling both discouraged and proud

Feeling both discouraged and proud

August 13th, 2014 at 05:06 pm

I just reran the numbers. It looks like I'm going to be lucky just to get my car paid off this year. While I've made a lot of progress over the past year, I feel like I got sidetracked a couple of times and now I'm paying for it. If I hustle and am very discerning, I should have the car paid by December. My moving fund will only be the equivalent of one month's rent, so I will have to wait a month or two longer to build that to two months rent.

One thing I am thankful for is the ability to cash flow many unexpected things without contributing more to my debt pile. I'm so glad that I'm going to be able to treat my family to a great vacation for so little out of pocket. I was able to do necessary car maintenance without putting it on credit. And most recently...

I was able to pay for my mom's flight to see her mom one last time before she passes AND cover the deductible for fixing my car after some punk demolished the driver's side mirror and didn't bother to leave a note. (Both stories to be explained in an upcoming post.)

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

3 Responses to “Feeling both discouraged and proud”

  1. Carol Says:
    August 13th, 2014 at 06:55 pm 1407956140
    1407956140

    Good job on the cash flowing!

  2. snafu Says:
    August 14th, 2014 at 03:24 pm 1408029876
    1408029876

    You've done really well on planning, prioritizing, thinking it through, writing it down, wishing to de-clutter, finding new sources of income by cancelling gym costs, adjusting income tax deduction, getting a raise, polynesian dancing, and more. I'm not wishing to sound mean but I'd like to see you building success on top of success by lessening the sabotaging of your own excellent plans. It gets more serious if the babysitting gig ends and you have to add rent and outfitting an apt.

    What sets off alarm bells is that you've mentioned your mom does not do well managing her money and sadly has set a worrisome example. I'd like you to manage your money with the best possible outcome. We offer ideas and suggestions with the best of intentions trying hard to be helpful. For example... It means setting goals which you do so well AND following through. Continue to plan spending which you do very well but STOP impulse spending by asking yourself if the spend is planned or an impulse. Most importantly, you need to be able to understand your mom's manipulation. If you don't tell her 'no, she has to stop expecting you to pay for her decisions,' your efforts will just melt. It would be wonderful if you could counter her requests with suggestions to help her to get her financial house in order. Isn't it time your mom managed her money instead of her money dictating what she can do?

    Okay, off my soapbox and looking to cheer your every success.

  3. debt-free by thir-ty Says:
    August 14th, 2014 at 04:48 pm 1408034933
    1408034933

    Snafu, you stay up on that soapbox! My goal is to ultimately be up there with you...one day. I'm trying really hard, but there are definitely areas I need to improve in (read: impulse spending!!). While I would like to get the moving fund in place, I've also been a little more relaxed about it lately as the dad left again, and it became clear my babysitting job was not in danger anytime soon.

    I'm at a loss about my mom. I've offered to help make her a budget as I'm pretty sure she's fine if she just managed her money better. I figure the best I can do at this point is prevent her from making the situation worse, so that her debt does not crush me in the event something were to happen to her.

Leave a Reply

(Note: If you were logged in, we could automatically fill in these fields for you.)
*
Will not be published.
   

* Please spell out the number 4.  [ Why? ]

vB Code: You can use these tags: [b] [i] [u] [url] [email]