Debt $ense

Sorry for the hiatus, but I was on vacation and never quite managed to blog while I was gone.

I’m still wading through piles at work - amazing how much accumulates during an 11-day absence - but will hopefully be back tonight with a substantive post.

I’ve been remiss in my blogging lately. Most of it is because there’s a lot of stuff in flux, which has me rethinking some of my financial goals. I haven’t posted about it because I’m at a point where things need to evolve (or unravel, I’m not sure which) for two or three months before I can figure out what the big picture is.

That will help me adjust my financial goals accordingly. (i.e. which comes first, buying a house or replacing my car.) In the short-term - getting rid of my CC debt - nothing’s changed. In fact, doing so leaves me with many more options once I figure out the stuff in flux.

And yes, I know I’m being vague. It’s intentional, because this is all career-related flux. But no worries; it’s opportunities, not pitfalls.

Until things sift out a bit, I’m trying to stick to my budget, which I’ve struggled with during the last week. The heat wave has made me less inclined to cook, which means I’ve been running out for dinner. I’ve also wanted hot-weather foods, like sorbet, that I normally don’t. (first ice cream in about six months) I also bought shoes Monday, but that was because I needed a pair of black heels I could wear with slacks and a dress, and when I found a pair in my size (8W), comfortable, something I would wear and on sale for almost half off ($35, normally $60), I grabbed them. Now if only I could find affordable sandals in wide widths…

I’ve returned from my weekend helping a friend with home repair-type projects, and gained much fodder for the blog in the process. For now, the brief update is I will be able to put an extra payment of $400 toward my CC later this week - once a check for the bulk of that amount clears - which will drop my balance below $7,000. (Go me!) That’s even with dental bills, etc.

I should be back later today with a longer post, but I wanted to at least update those interested in my progress.

I just went in to update my electronic bill payments. It took less than five minutes to adjust my rent payment for the higher rent starting next month, kill my Adelphia payment because I don’t use their services and increase my weekly CC payment. And I don’t need to worry about making sure bills are in on time because the bank sends it automatically.

I had a great post earlier today, but the computer ate it and I haven’t had time to re-write it. So look for an update tomorrow, when I might also have news on my raise.

I should get a self-evaluation this week to fill out for my annual review, which likely will be the end of next week or the beginning of the week after. Once my review’s done, I’ll know what my raise will be, effective July 1, and can adjust my debt repayment plan accordingly. That’s going to make the biggest difference in my chances to pay my CC off by the end of the year, so I’m a little antsy waiting to hear.

July 1 also will be when I update my financial goals, rebalance my 401(k) and generally get my financial house in order for the upcoming year. Once I find out what that raise will be, I’ll be able to start the planning process. Expect blog postings to pick up a bit during that time.

Lunch was good, and I have plenty left for dinner. I even ordered one of the healthier items on the menu.

Aleta asked me to expand more about budgeting so unexpected expenses don’t trip you up - I’ll get to that later this evening. I also need to check my accounts and see new balances. And, since Thursday is the day our news service moves its PF package on the wire, I might have some items from there to blog about as well.

But first I have to get going on work so several meetings this afternoon don’t send me into a massive time crunch.

I finally figured out why my links won’t show up - they need to be placed in a category - but when I categorize them and save changes, they don’t save. Grrr. I’ve got a request in for help, so I hope to have this resolved soon. Stay tuned…

Hey, gang. Sorry for the brief hiatus, but I was out of town for the weekend and didn’t have as much time to blog as I thought.

I spent some of that time thinking, and came up with the two possibilities I’m going to try to bring in extra income.

One is Aleta’s suggestion to edit/proof papers for college kids. A former co-worker now works at the college up the street from my office, and I’m going to check with her to see if there’s any place to register or if it’s just flyers on bulletin boards. I’m hoping to get that going for summer session, and I figure I might be able to bring in $75 to $100 a month once I get going.

The other plan is making hand-decorated notecards for craft shows. I figure I can make enough in the next several months to get a booth at the big craft show in the county during the holiday season. (I also can make holiday gift tags.) Between now and then, I plan to use word of mouth, as well as using them for gifts for people who can spread the word. I figure I should be able to net a couple hundred dollars from the craft show, possibly more. I’ll have a better idea as things get closer.

I also decided to go the consignment store/used book store route for old clothes and books, plus a community yard sale for miscellaneous other stuff. Again, I figure I can clear $200 to $300 from all of that, which will be a nice lump-sum payment toward my CC.

As promised, I’ve added some links to the sidebar, though more will be going up during the next few days. Within all the PF blogs I read, there are a few I eagerly check for the next post because I enjoy them so much. In no particular order:

Debt Hater was one of the first I found, partially because of her blog’s name. Her posts always make me think, whether they apply to my situation or not, and she has a great attitude toward killing her debt that’s contagious.

Boston Gal’s Open Wallet is another regular stop. As a former Bay Stater, I’m always amazed at how people can not only afford to live there, but do reasonably well, especially when they’re young and single. Watching Jane Dough’s progress not only gives me great tips to use in my own life, it reminds me how much easier I have it down here without the housing madness in metro Boston. If she can do it, so can I!

The Family CEO doesn’t apply as much to my situation, since I’m single, but I enjoy reading it and she has some good tips even for those not heading a household.

Young and Broke does a great job of finding information that pertains to the situation of what Suze Orman calls the “Young, Fabulous and Broke,” then adding her own take on it so it’s more than just a link farm.

There are two carnivals I want to highlight, but I don’t have the links available, so I’ll have to come back and edit this entry once I get to the computer where those are bookmarked. One is the Carnival of Debt Reduction, which will post tomorrow. I took a leap and submitted one of my posts from earlier this week to this edition, and I hope it gets in. The other is the Carnival of Personal Finance. They’re great collections of PF posts that have helped me find blogs I otherwise wouldn’t have seen.