A Penny a Day

Did I stick to the plan? The answer is yes! I had two egg salad sandwichs and an apple for lunch. Two of my friends tried to talk me into going out for Sushi...but I withstood the pressure...lol. Instead of buying Starbucks, I had a coffee w/ steamed milk (made with the office's expresso machine.)

Unfortunately, it still wasn't a very frugal day. My son's car put me back $556.

The only thing I plan on spending money on tomorrow is gas. I normally would be able to put it off for a few days, but since I'm out at clients for the next three days, I need to fill up. Lord, how I hate gas prices these days.

Plan for tomorrow:

1) Bring lunch again.
2) Spend no more than $25 for gas.
3) Stay off the internet shopping sites (especially the x-stitch sites I love!)
4) Journal my day.
5) Purchase only gas for my car. NO OTHER PURCHASES!

Well, I did better than I thought I would, but not as well as I would have liked. :-)

I ate out twice for lunch. However, the first one was work related and I'm getting reimbursed. The second...well, that cost me $12.00. I also did my normal Saturday morning "I really don't want to go to work" routine...I stopped at Starbucks and paid way too much for a coffee and bagel. In addition, I bought one for a co-worker who had had a really bad week. So, my Saturday breakfast set me back $11.00.

I'll try better next week. Actually, I won't have a choice. My son's car broke down last night (in the middle of a busy intersection) and had to be towed. He paid for the towing, but doesn't have the money for repairs. Now, in his defense, he just bought the car a month ago and has put money aside every week for maintenance. He just didn't have enough time to save it up. So, the repairs to his car are going to cost me around $500. Thankful I have it saved in my "Freedom Account" so I don't have to charge it. But that definitely means no eating out for lunch or trips to Starbucks.

Cheers~

"Kiwi economist Gareth Morgan, who pocketed $40.5 million when Fairfax bought his son's internet auction business last month, is giving away his share to charity."

The above is an article that was in the Sydney Morning Herald this morning. I found it a very inspiring story.

For those intersted...here's the link.

Lately I've been eating out at the office. With tax season comes long hours behind the desk and it's nice to get out and eat lunch somewhere else. And in my "tax stupor," I've been justifying the extra cost because of the meal stipend we get if we work more than 11 hours a day. And "what the heck" since I've been working 12 - 13 hour days...don't I deserve to eat out? Well....

I sat down this weekend and really thought about where my money goes and realized how silly a justification that is. That's money that I could be putting towards my credit cards or my student loan. So today instead of eating a frozen meal or going out, I took a home-made hamburger and some macroni salad. Funny...not only did the home-made meal cost less, it actually tasted better. :-)

Here's what I figured I saved today:

Breakfast: Starbucks $4.70 ( I had tea that I brought from home instead.)

Lunch: Restaurant meal $8 - $12 or frozen dinner of $3.50

Added up...by brown bagging it (leftover from dinner the night before) I figure that I saved between $8 and $17 today plus I also made money by not spending my meal stipend. Hooray! There is some hope for me after all.


Before I forget...I wanted to thank everyone who took the time to read my blog and leave a comment. I appreciate all of them. One reader suggested that I read Dave Ramsey's book...which, by the way, I do have and I have read. I also recommend that for everyone. I also recommend "Your Money or Your Life." Another very excellent book..actually the book that made me think about getting off the debt wagon.

Peace~

Every journey begins with a single step...the first step. Today, I take that step.

I'm 40 years old with little savings and a huge debt. Some of the debt comes from being a single mom, but in all honesty...most of the debt comes from my lack of self control.

You would think that as a CPA I would know how to handle money and I do...I give great advice. I just don't follow it myself. So, here and now...I am making a pledge...I am going to get out of debt and live a life of freedom after 20 years of debt slavery.

So, where to begin...?