debt diet wk 1- getting organized

My debt diet is in full swing.  I did make a purchase earlier this week but said item will save me in the long run.  Details about the purchase to come after it arrives in the mail but I'm super excited!

One thing that I need to do is set aside some extra money for random necessities since I haven't budgeted for them at this point.  I had to fix my viola bow which cost $80.  Inexpensive for the work done but unplanned for nonetheless.

Eventually I'd like to do the 50/30/20 money rule where you use 50% of your income for necessities, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings.  I'd probably use my 30% want money for credit card payments since what I want most is for them to be gone.  I'm also trying the "snowball" payment method in which you pay off your lowest card first vs. paying your highest interest card first.  I love the idea of being completely done with one credit card instead of have multiple for a longer period of time.  Experiments!

I found my old receipt organizer that I've decided to use for bills paid and it will also house my check books which always seem to get lost.  I have my NY bank but I still have an account in WI and also an investment checking account so... yes, I have 3 checking accounts, and yes, I do need all 3.

I am going to keep all paid bills in the month slots and all pending bills will live in a TBD organizer on the office desk.  I need to make a Target/BBB/Container Store run to find the organizer I have in mind.

In other news my kitchen vanity is finally getting installed today and I will be able to post pictures soon!  I love love LOVE my apartment more and more every day.

worst. blogger. ever.

So...

I haven't done any of the things that I said I was going to do.

In fact, I may have moved slightly further away from my initial goals of working less, spending more time with loved ones, etc.

2014 is a rough year so far and I must say that it's kicking my ass.

Last year I thought I may have started getting allergies, but I wasn't sure.  This year has punched me right in the face with seasonal allergies and I've been name calling Mother Nature bad names every day for the past month.  Because I have absolutely no self control, I also basically gave myself an eye infection from itching and scratching my eyes every day causing extreme irritation.  I really thought that I had pink eye, which is yet to be fully ruled out in my opinion, but either way, I seem to be on the tail end of my eye issues.  I think that I have previously mentioned, but I'm pretty sure that I have one major, weird health issue every year (i.e. shingles, stress eczema, etc) so hopefully this was it.  I really don't think I can handle any more health issues this year.

For good things that have happened in the last 5 months:

I got a puppy!  Rick and Andrew actually got a puppy and it didn't work out for them so, I got a puppy!  His name is Mookie and I love him with every fiber in my body.  This was from the first day we got him so he's bigger now (5 months old).

Dan and I also moved to the Bronx!  I am really happy to have moved and am loving the apartment and my shorter commute.  We have tons of space, tons of conveniences around, and the animals love it!  I will post pictures once it's really cleaned up (we have no doors to the rooms yet...).

I got a promotion at work!  I am now the ops manager at CM 57th street and I have a love/hate relationship with it currently.  I still feel like I haven't gotten into a good groove yet and I am still getting to know people so even though it's been 3 months, I'm trying my best to have an open mind.

Due to my complete failure of my last goals, I'm making only one revised goal:  DEBT DIET

It's hard for me to do a complete debt diet because my job requires me to look nice and wear the current clothing and we get new clothes every month.  I can usually get away with not getting new things for a month or so but after that I am clearly not current at all.  Luckily, I work in the back so I can hide more than other managers.  

The goal of this debt diet is to reduce my credit card debt to oblivion.  I realize that if I did this until I paid my credit cards off I would probably not be able to buy anything until I'm in my 40's so I will give myself a realistic goal of 3 months.  Since it's already May 26th, I will just round to June and say that this will end August 31st, the day after my birthday.

Rules:  I can spend money on food (conservatively) and any necessities.  In addition, I can spend money on any gifts that I need to since I have a few friends' birthdays that fall within this 3 month time frame, including Dan's birthday.

I encourage anyone else to join me in my dieting!  We can commiserate together over some window shopping.

treat yo' self!

I had some money left over from my budget after the end of last week. Yippeeee! I was super excited and was able to get a little gift for myself for being so good :)

Matt and I are going to Colorado Sunday morning for a few days.  I can't wait to get out of the city and hike, breathe the fresh air, and hang out with some super wonderful friends.