Community Events--Great FREE Entertainment

Yesterday the hubby and I went to the Seattle Pride Parade. This was a really fun event that also happened to be free! One of the best ways to save money on entertainment is to go to free community events which are generally hosted throughout the summer where we live. Besides getting lots of pictures at the parade, we also netted lots of handouts that the parade participants were giving to the crowd including: a Macy's scarf, a half dozen strings of beads, a handful of stickers, a bottle of Vitamin water, candy, a bunch of condoms (it was the Gay Pride Parade...safe sex and stuff you know...), a T shirt, and coupons. Overall a good haul and amusing entertainment!

Money Saving Tips I Gave a Friend (Which May Help You Too)

I met up with a friend yesterday and in the process of our conversation I gave him some tips to help him save money which I then figured could probably help others as well. My friend is a great guy, unfortunately he has had a pretty messed up life (drugs, alcohol, in a biker gang...yikes). Fortunately over the past five or six years, he has really pulled himself together. Now he is sober, sincere, employed in a legitimate job, bought a house...just an amazing succession of events that a decade ago, no one, least of all him, would have thought possible. To say I am so proud of him is an understatement. He did this literally one step at a time...join AA, get sober, ditch the old "friends", get new friends, start out at a pretty lousy job but do your best anyway, get a better job, bank his income, save for a down payment...basically all of the things that one is supposed to do to succeed but which people, especially those with drug and alcohol problems, don't do which leads them to a life of chaos and usually jail. So anyway, while everything is coming along pretty good for him, he does still have some minor financial issues and like everyone else, could use some extra money in his pocket at the end of the week. These were my suggestions:

• His house is financed at 6%+ with more than 25 years left to pay. I suggested he refinance his house (interest rates are around 4.5% now) and chop the term down to 20 or even 15 years. Even though he shortens up the term of the loan, the payments shouldn't be too much more than he is paying now because of the drop in interest rate and because he would be cutting off years of interest payments.
• His employer will pay for a metro transit pass for him each month. Currently he drives to work, and pays for insurance, parking, and gas. Since he lives on the bus line, I explained that taking the bus can be a much better option than driving. The pass would be free, he could save parking fees, possibly lower his insurance, and could possibly even get rid of one of the family cars. Even though he would have to get up a bit earlier to ride the bus, this would give him a bit of exercise when walking to the bus stop, he read or play with his smart phone on the way to work, and the bus would drop him off practically at the doorstep of his office.
• He added that he was waiting for his girlfriend to get off of work so they could go out to dinner since it was her payday. I can totally understand wanting to reward yourself for a couple of weeks of hard work, but the restaurant they were going to go to is expensive! I suggested that they keep up their every other week date night but that they choose a cheaper alternative. The hubby and I used to eat out every day, for nearly every meal. Now we eat out maybe once every two weeks or so and we usually end up splitting a $5 subway or going to Wendy's for a baked potato and chili ($4 for the two of us). I know from experience that cutting back on eating out has saved us a ton of money.
• He still has debt. IRS debt, legal debt, and some old credit debt. Currently he is paying the minimum on these debts and feeling overwhelmed. Making the minimum payments on debt can make you feel overwhelmed and make your efforts feel futile because often the minimum payment barely covers the interest charge. I told him we have been able to pay off quite a bit of debt over the last couple of years by picking the smallest debt and hammering away at it. We have had garage sales, sold gold, sold furniture...basically anything we could do to get extra money to throw at our debts (smallest to largest). This has helped us pay off debts much faster than we ever thought possible.
• Since he has turned his life around, he has been free of the legal system for more than five years. I can't begin to figure out how much money this has saved him. Even minor legal problems usually end up with court costs, attorney fees, fines, etc. He told me how one year, when he first started getting his life back together, he didn't have any way to pay his fines so the judge let him work off all of his court fees...to the tune of over 900 hours in community service. Wow. For quite a few months his full time job was community service and his part time job paid his minimal living expenses. Avoiding legal problems all together is a much better option and saves quite a bit of money.
• My friend has goals. When I first met him, he had a low wage job that barely paid his bills. At the time, he had a goal to get a job with a major employer in our area. I didn't even think it was possible because of his comprehensive and lengthy police record but he kept his goal in mind while he worked towards the things he needed...good references in the community, a couple of years of good work history, no police problems, etc...and before you know it he had an entry level job with this company. Now after about three years he has got raises and better jobs within the company at a startling pace. Amazing.

Overall my friend is doing really well and I am really proud of him. With a few more tweeks to his already pretty good life, he should find his way out of debt and he should end up with more money than he ever dreamed possible.

10 Tips for Saving Money on Tech Stuff

Since I am squeezing every last penny out of my dollars these days, and since I love technology--the newer the better--I have had to come up with a bunch of ways to get my tech fix on the cheap. Here's some tips...

1. Software can be expensive. Fortunately, there is a lot of good (cheap/free) software available online. For good deals on software, check out OpenOffice (a free and pretty good alternative to MS Office) and Download (all kinds of software; check out their top 25 downloads list first. This is where I get my AdAware pop-up blocker and AVG anti virus software for free). Of course, scoring free apps from the iTunes store is also a good thing (I love the free Soduko app I recently downloaded).
2. The new Apple iPhone 4 is all the rage now. Unfortunately, my tight budget won't cover a new iPhone ($300+) and the monthly service contract that goes with it ($100+). So my cheaper alternative is to have a T Mobile phone (with an old contract, it is $49 for two lines each month) and an iTouch which I can use online where ever there is free wi-fi. My cell phone does allow me to access the internet in a pinch but it is really slow and doesn't have very much of a web browser but for the cost savings, my two-piece system will need to work until I get out of debt. Depending on what we do in the future, we may switch to a pre-paid plan like the $25 per month plan from Virgin Mobile which gives you a few hundred minutes plus unlimited text and internet.
3. Phone service options have really exploded in the past decade. You used to have a hard wired phone in your home and that was your only option. These days you can cancel the home phone all together and just use your cell phone and/or use a VoIP service like Skype to make free or really cheap calls to anywhere in the world. I have phone service bundled with my internet for a really low price and since I use this for my business phone I am pretty happy with it but if I didn't call much (and lived in a place where my cell phone got better reception) I would just use a cell phone for all of my calls.
4. International communication options. I have a lot of friends spread all over the world but paying for phone cards to call them can get spendy. What I do now is use Chikka to text message my friends in Asia (for free) to their cell phones. Email is a given, of course, and I also use email to text to my friend's international cell phones as well. Yahoo chat is a great (free) option and, of course Skype works great for calling overseas and is cheap too.
5. Do you need a website? I do need a handful of websites which I pay for each month (Webhero is my choice and although it isn't super cheap, their tech help is super awesome). The best news in websites these days is that there are so many free platforms for setting up your own sites (which by the way, you can usually add Google Adsense to and make some money from your efforts!). My favorites are Blogger and Tumblr, however FaceBook and MySpace are popular options too.
6. Tech hardware like computers and big screen TVs are nice to have but can be real budget breakers. We generally opt to go with the cheapest item that will meet our needs. Because technology changes so fast, it just doesn't make sense to pay top dollar for an item that will be obsolete within a few years. That's why my laptop cost $499 (I don't do heavy-duty gaming or number crunching so this average system works great for me) and my 46" TV cost under $400 (on sale of course). Yes, some people want high end tech because it is supposed to be so much better but in a couple of years you could still be paying off your expensive TV and it won't even be worth what the cheapest TV in the store is worth.
7. I always look for bargains. I was thrilled to learn my non profit could get excellent software (MS Office, a full Photoshop suite) for pennies on the dollar through TechSoup. I never buy stuff like computers, TVs, or my most recent prize, an iTouch unless it is on sale. A really good sale. In the case of the iTouch, I know they never come on sale but a local store had a 10% off any item in the store coupon which I used to get the iTouch. Finding online bargains for tech items at places such as CraigsList, eBay, or just Googling the item and getting a list of prices are other ways to get great deals on your tech stuff.
8. We have a GPS device for our car...but it hasn't been updated in a few years. We originally got a GPS device when it was on a close out table (about $75). Since it was already a year out of date, we got a good price on it. The catch with these things, however, is that the company usually offers a yearly update which includes new maps...for a price of about $89. Needless to say, we will just buy another close out GPS when the maps get so out of date that the device becomes unusable; fortunately roads pretty much remain the same from year to year unless you are trying to find a new housing development. This has happened a couple of times, but not so often that we feel the need to upgrade. Plus, this has saved us the cost of our annual AAA membership which we used to have mostly for their wonderful maps when we drove long distances.
9. We always wait for technology to come down to a price we want to pay. Hubby did once pay nearly $1000(!) for a VCR when they first came on the market, but since then, we don't need anything that bad that we can't wait for the price to drop. As camcorders got smaller, the prices didn't automatically get cheaper. On a few vacations, we had the bigger, clunkier camcorder when our friends had the super streamlined (yet still $500+) camcorders. Now that the little "Webbie" camcorders can be had for around $100 on sale, I am happy to report that our camcorder can now be hauled around in a pocket.
10. We have moved past the point of keeping up with everyone else. Right now, for example, nearly everyone I work with raves about the Kindle. I just can't see paying that much for an item that can only do one thing (plus you have to pay for the books too). I have, however, been able to download some free ebooks onto my iTouch and I just found Project Gutenberg which should allow me to download even more free books. The same goes for stereo equipment, new appliances, new cars...basically anything the Joneses have, I am going to think twice about getting (and if I do decide to get it, it will be for a rock bottom price).

The bottom line is that there are always alternatives for the things you want and need. A little research and a little creativity can stretch your budget further than you thought possible.

p.s. My "blogger butt" was getting out of control so that picture you see above is my new solution to this problem. I heard that standing burns more calories than sitting all day so I put the chair away and raised up my computer (on a stack of books from my bookshelf...a nice free option). I'll let you know how this works out...

10 Things You Will Find Useful (And That May Save You Money)

It's been a busy news week and I have learned quite a few things that I want to share with you, my readers:

1. The new iPhone/iTouch operating system came out yesterday. It's a free upgrade. Here's a couple of articles about it here and here.
2. Google Voice is now free to everyone (you used to have to receive an invitation in order to use this free service).
3. Is it cheaper to rent or buy? This infographic explains both options.
4. Cool article...How to Become a Millionaire in Three Years.
5. 50 Healthy Foods for Under $1 a Pound.
6. Who knew there was a consumerist organization for funerals? From this site I learned that you can order a casket online and act as your own funeral director. Interesting.
7. I'm a big fan of LifeRemix...lots of useful financial and lifehack info.
8. An interesting way to bust a grifter.
9. I just got a new iTouch. My favorite apps to date: Skype, a Free WiFi finder, Sudoku, free e-books (I'm reading the Mysterious Case of Benjamin Button), and free TV shows (I downloaded an episode of Hawthorne and Criminal Minds).
10. You only have a few more days to post your video on YouTube for America's Got Talent (you could win a million dollars!).

The True Cost of Material Goods

I have been so focused on paying off debt over the past few months that I haven't really bought anything but necessities such as food and gas. Fast forward to yesterday when I got a new iTouch. A client usually gives me a nice bonus each year of my choosing. Past items have included laptops, netbooks, and other cool stuff (thank you client!). So this year the boss lady is all happy about getting an iPhone and suggested I would like one too. In fact, she said this would be my bonus for this year if I wanted one. After some deliberation, I asked for an iTouch instead due to the fact that I didn't want to be stuck paying the monthly phone service fee. An iTouch is a "buy it one time and you don't have monthly fees" item so I was really happy with my decision. Today, while I am super pleased with my new toy (I was surfing the web at Barnes and Noble this afternoon at lightening speed!), I also realized that most material goods, even free ones, aren't really free. Here's why:

• After I got my iTouch, I bought one for hubby. I figured we could both use these, especially when we travel, and like most of our stuff, we each use the same items at the same time so we tend to have duplicates of everything (laptops, netbooks, cameras, etc). This also happens in families where you buy one kid an item and then you end up buying the same item for all of the kids. This can get expensive.
• There's so much packaging. Since we haven't bought much lately, I have noticed that we have lots less garbage. We even dropped down to garbage service every other week instead of weekly. Buying stuff means you have to throw out a lot of packaging, wrapping, etc.
• There are related items that you often end up buying to support/care for/add to said item. In this case, I needed to get us cases for the iTouches and new headphones for me (I hate things stuffed in my ears). The costs are starting to add up...
• Then there are the additional "subscription-type" things that go with many of today's electronics. In this case, it is the iTunes app store. Even though I have only loaded free apps, you can't even sign into the app store without giving them your credit card number or buying an iTunes gift card. I bought us each a $15 gift card because that was the lowest domination they had so that is another big expense.
• Then there is upkeep. While I declined the extended warranty, I am guessing that others pay this fee.
• Then there is the need to protect your new item. I certainly don't want to drop this fragile-looking $300 toy. There is also the risk of having it stolen too.
• Finally, each new item you get can take up something just as important as your money and that is your time. So far I have spent hours programming, syncing, and checking out apps for the iTouch. Then I needed to teach hubby how everything works since he is less than technologically savvy. So I guess time also needs to be a consideration when adding new material good to my life.

I can totally understand why people "go minimalist." It is a lot less work, a lot less expense, and a lot less stuff to worry about. Even though I am a huge fan of technology and before I used to shop like I was practicing for an Olympic event, these days I am pretty content to have less. Less stuff to pay for, less stuff to clean/program/upgrade/maintain, and less stuff that takes up my time.

An Update and Some Links

Way back when, I posted this financial goal list. Here's the update:

• I am a few hundred dollars away from paying off Target. This will be done in the next couple of weeks.
• I called the IRS and made them a deal to pay off my 2008 and 2009 taxes within the next ten months. $1000 a month. Ouch. Although with some bonuses I hope to pay this debt off within five months.
• I wrote to the collection agency about the car and asked to make a settlement offer. They counter with a high offer, I counter with a low offer and so we go back and forth (at least four sets of letters in the past). So I am still waiting on this.
• We had hoped to sell our house and pay off all of this list but the value of our house dropped almost $20,000 in only the last couple of months due to the high number of repos on the market so we pulled our house off the market and will just keep the house, do some renovations, and hopefully be able to put it back on the market next spring if property values have come up by then.
• Because we weren't able to sell our house, our travel will be curtailed through the end of the year but we will still go to Japan, the Philippines, and Hong Kong in the fall.

And here's some interesting links from around the web:

• How to Afford Anything
• The Ultimate Simple Living Guide
• 15 Most Hated Fees
• What's the Sickest Thing You've Ever Done to Save Money?
• Eating Well on $1 a Day (With Coupons)
• How I Created My First Six Figure Business for $119.40

10 Things to Do Now...In Case Your Husband Leaves You

It's been a sad few months for a couple of friends who are in the middle of getting divorced. Besides being emotionally devastated, they are basically financially devastated as well. Here's some stuff I learned from them as well as from a handful of women I know whose husbands died suddenly, ended up in a coma/in the trauma center for months, lost their jobs (when the husband was the sole breadwinner), and otherwise went off the rails leaving the women to basically fend for themselves.

p.s. Obviously these tips work just as much for men as for women, I just thought the title was catchy.

1. Have your own emergency fund with a minimum of $2000 in it. Not your family emergency fund, not the "my husband has plenty of money" emergency fund, not the "I have plenty of credit cards" emergency fund. You want $2000 CASH in a secure bank account that you can easily access.


2. Have all of your important documents in a secure place where you can easily access them. These documents include drivers license, passport, birth certificate, marriage certificate, divorce decree, death certificate, mortgage deed of trust, car titles...basically all of the official documents available for your immediate family.


3. Have an education. There are quite a few women that will get a high school diploma and stop their education. They will ensure their husbands get through college, they will focus all of their attention on their children's education, but they put off completing their own education and then when they end up on their own and could really use these credentials, they don't have them. Get at least a bachelor's degree even if it means you take one class per quarter for ten year. Of course, you will want to cash-flow your education and not take out student loans.


4. Have some money-earning skills. Whether you dabble in website design or resell stuff on Craigslist, having the ability to earn money is vital to your continued well being whether or not your income is needed to support the family.


5. Have a network of friends. Many times women get so focused on their husbands and kids that they let their friendships lapse because they don't have the time or energy to sustain them. When all Hell breaks loose, you will be thankful for the support of your good friends.


6. Be debt free. If you end up on your own, you don't want to also be bogged down by a pile of debts that need to be paid each month. Your monthly bills should be minimal (cell phone, utilities, etc) and your consumer debt should be zero.


7. Insist that your spouse if debt free as well. If something happens to your spouse, you could be left with all of his debts (this happened to one of my friends. When her husband died suddenly, instead of having time to grieve his death, she was immediately barraged by debt collectors). This is also important if you get divorced--your spouse can be given the debts by the court but that doesn't mean he will pay them and the debt collectors will come after YOU.


8. Live in a reasonably-sized house. You don't need a McMansion to have a nice home. Having a house that one income can easily support is really important in the event that YOUR income ends up being the one paying for your home and utilities.


9. Know how much your spouse makes, how much the monthly bills are, how the family money is invested, the information for all bank accounts, what kinds of insurance policies your family has, know what each line of your last tax return means, what pensions/retirement plans your husband has, what kind of health insurance you have, and, most importantly, have all of this information written down somewhere in case you end up paying the bills if a spouse suddenly dies or your divorce attorney needs a place to start looking for assets.


10. Learn how to do everything your husband does even if it seems confusing, boring, or icky. Your husband may not always be around to fix the plumbing, mow the yard, do your annual taxes, or DVR your favorite shows. The more you know how to do, the better off you will be in the end.

Hopefully your marriage lasts forever and you are able to grow old with a loving spouse but that doesn't always happen. More often than not, when a marriage ends either by divorce of death, the spouse that is left behind ends up grieving the end of the relationship while at the same time trying to deal with creditors, messed up plumbing, paying bills, raising the kids, and the multitude of other things that before took two people to accomplish.

10 Financial Tips for New High School Grads

Although I don't know anyone who is graduating from high school this year (a few people I know graduated last year and a couple of friend's kids will be graduating next year), I nonetheless want to share these ten financial tips that I wish someone would have shared with me when I was graduating from high school.

1. Do not get a credit card! If you need to use plastic, put money into your bank account and use your bank-issued ATM card which has a Visa or Mastercard logo on it in order to swipe your purchases. This tip alone would have saved me many thousands of dollars over the years.


2. Do not go to college unless you can pay for it without loans. Most people think this is impossible but it isn't and if you graduate with a degree and zero debt you will be one happy grad. Apply for every scholarship possible, go to your local community college for your first two years and work to pay for college as you go, then switch to a state school or online degree program with a reputable university and PAY AS YOU GO.


3. If you want a car, save the money and pay cash for it. Better yet, use public transportation or ride your bike and save the expense and hassle of owning a car.


4. Stay as far away from any debt, especially contract debt, as possible. A pre-paid cell plan will keep you from getting a huge surprise bill some day. Renting a room from a friend is better than tying yourself down to an expensive apartment lease. Payday lender loans are just stupid. The only time you should acquire debt is to buy a house (and only then with a 25% down payment).


5. Save 10% of every dime you earn for your old age. This is in addition to other money you are saving for different things like cars, houses, etc.


6. Work through high school, save your money, and travel the world after you graduate. There is no better time to travel and expand your horizons than right after high school. You become independent, your open mind is opened even wider by world travel, and you will not be tied down by a spouse/kids/mortgage/serious job/etc. that you will have when you are older.


7. Stay away from financial entanglements. This includes but is not limited to: co-signing loans for anyone, loaning people money, gambling, "get rich quick schemes", etc.


8. Stay away from social entanglements that could land you in financial (and other) trouble. This includes but is not limited to: having babies (18 is too young!), getting married (if you are really in love, why not wait a couple of years?), DUIs (plain stupid and really expensive), other illegal stuff (like drug use, assaults, etc).


9. About work...everyone has crappy jobs when they are young. You don't want to take your job SO seriously but you do want to have a good attitude and work ethic and use each job as an opportunity to learn new skills and work on new projects. However, don't let your job stop you from exploring other places, traveling, taking another job that may be more interesting, etc.


10. About boyfriends/girlfriends...when you are young (and to us old people, 18 is young), people tend to think their boyfriend/girlfriend is the be all and end all. Because of their relationships they will do all kinds of stuff that can negatively impact them both financially and otherwise. Never let your relationship stop you from achieving your goals. At this point in your life, YOU are the most important person in your life (which will change when you have kids). This means that you do take opportunities that come along (a great full ride scholarship at a school across the country), and you don't make yourself responsible for the other person (if I had a quarter for every girl I knew who supported their boyfriend, gave their boyfriend a cell phone/clothes/money, didn't take an opportunity because of their boyfriend, co-signed for their boyfriends loan and got stuck with it, bailed their boyfriend out of jail...you get the idea...I would be RICH!).

How do I know all of this stuff? Simple, I made ALL of these mistakes. By the time I graduated from high school I had a wallet full of credit cards (most on their way to being maxed out), student loans, and an expensive car (with payments of course), other debts (apartment lease). I would spend every penny I made and save nothing, took my first jobs way too seriously, was engaged to my boyfriend, loaned people money/bailed them out of jail/co-signed for people...basically if there was a stupid money mistake to be made, I made it. Needless to say, starting out in sinkhole of debt (and the continued money mistakes) took years to fix (I'm still fixing my mistakes but making good progress).

Graduating from high school is literally the beginning of the whole rest of your life. Take this opportunity to make good choices, start off on a good financial footing, and give yourself the gift of a solid foundation for your later years. And congrats for graduating high school!

20 Ways I am "Living Like No One Else..."

One of Dave Ramsey's catch phrases is that you need to "live like no one else so that later you can live like no one else" meaning that if you want to be debt free, successful, and eventually rich, you can't be living like all of the "regular" people who are often broke and up to their eyeballs in debt. If you really cut back and make a concerted effort to be debt free, pretty soon you will be living the high life because you will have actual CASH to buy the things you want. Here's 20 ways I am "living like no one else":

1. We don't eat at restaurants unless we are traveling or it is a very special occasion. Before, we would eat out two or three times a day. Everyday. Yikes.
2. I can count the number of clothing items I bought in the last couple of months on one hand. I used to think I needed a new outfit nearly every day of the week (and I have the massive amount of credit card receipts to prove it!).
3. We haven't been to the movies in...I can't remember how long. Ditto with video rentals. With hundreds of stations on TV, I can be patient until movies come out on cable.
4. No more subscriptions! I used to subscribe to magazines, newspapers, the gym...having a steady amount of money being pulled out of my account monthly for things I may or may not even use was a waste of money.
5. I don't own a car! This simple change in my life made the biggest positive financial impact on my life ever. I wish I would have known about this 25 years ago--I would probably be a millionaire by now!
6. I don't have/use credit cards any more. Again, if I would have known how much money I could have saved over the years by spending cash only I would have been a millionaire (again!).
7. I don't take all of the travel opportunities that come along, unfortunately. I love to travel but since I am using cash only and we are paying down debts, I have to control myself and decline all of the great vacations that family and friends invite us to (Las Vegas and Hawaii this month). Unfortunately I will be sitting at home paying off our debts...
8. No more designer purses and shoes. This is sad and I love designer purses and shoes but I just can't see spending $500 on ONE ITEM that I will use for a while then sell on eBay for a fraction of the price I paid for it.
9. No smart phone. I am also sad about this because EVERYONE has a smart phone that provides internet, music, games, and lots of fun stuff at their fingertips but I just can not justify spending twice the rate for a smart phone plan compared to the basic plan for my regular cell phone (not to mention the cost of the new smart phone itself).
10. We haven't been dancing in ages. From the age of 21 (actually 16 if I could get in without being carded) until about 38, we were in nightclubs nearly five days a WEEK! I love to dance but the cost of clothes, food, drinks (soda for the hubby and I since we don't drink so this wasn't a major cost for us) gas to get to the club, etc. was just huge when I look back and calculate how much we spent on this expensive hobby over the years.
11. Random shopping. Many of my friends still shop a lot. Every time we go to a store, gift shop, or anywhere else that has a retail section, they feel like they need to buy something...anything. I am now just the opposite. I simply don't buy stuff on the spur of the moment anymore. If the item I am looking to buy hasn't been on my "need to buy" list for a while, I don't buy it. Trinkets are never on my "need to buy" list.
12. We look at every bill and figure ways to cut it down. Cable=number of stations reduced. Garbage=reduced to twice a month collection. Auto insurance=reduced to liability only. You get the idea.
13. No daily Starbucks runs. Actually I haven't had caffeine in quite a while but I do occasionally treat myself to a green tea frap but this isn't the daily/twice daily occurrence that it used to be.
14. I take public transportation. It is much cheaper and pretty convenient and allows me to get a bit of exercise walking to/from the bus.
15. I don't give people money any more. Friends and family used to hit me up for cash for everything from covering a cell bill to making a car payment just before their car gets repoed. The thing I learned, however, is that giving people money (or "loaning" it to them and never getting paid back) didn't actually help them. Two months later, they would be asking for money again for the very same thing!
16. No more services for our home. We used to have a housekeeper and a gardener which I felt we "deserved" because we worked so hard (plus all of our friends had housekeepers and gardeners and we didn't want to be "different"). These days hubby and I share the house cleaning and lawn mowing chores.
17. Gifts have been ratcheted WAY back. I used to buy gifts for all occasions for all friends and family (like a hundred people--we have a big family). Not only was this a big expense, but sometimes people wouldn't even say "thank you".
18. Technology is nice but we don't need/want "the best". During the high-rolling '90s, I had to have every new technological item nearly the day it came on the market. These days I will wait and let both the bugs be worked out and the price to drop low enough that I can justify buying it.
19. We don't fall for things designed to separate us from our money. Multi-level marketing programs, time shares, boats, etc. If something has a price attached, we almost always decline because we are so much more aware of our money and simply won't let one dollar get out of our grasp because we realize there may be no opportunity to "pay for it later" and the social pressure to buy to "be like...and be liked...by everyone else" is now non existent. If people don't like me the way I am...I DON'T CARE. I care about my financial stability and financial future.
20. Overall our concept of money has changed drastically. We no longer spend like maniacs, charge stuff we can't afford, or think that budget is a bad word. Now, like Dave says, each dollar we earn has a name and a purpose before we even get our paychecks.

I can't wait until the day I can "live like everyone else". Of course I will blog about it here too!

The Magic of the Debt Snowball

When I first started paying off my debts, I did as Dave Ramsey suggested and figured I would attack them with the debt snowball. I listed my debts smallest to largest then proceeded to pay off the smallest debt with any extra money I could get ahold of. Meanwhile, I was making the payments on all of my other debts too. At first I thought this method would take FOREVER. I mean, it took months of adding an extra $100 to my smallest $500 balance credit card--five months just to be able to pay off one credit card--which seemed at the time to be the slow and depressing way to pay off debt.
Fast forward to today when we only have a couple of hubby's credit cards to pay off before becoming completely debt free except for the house. Since all of the smaller debts have been paid off using the debt snowball, ALL extra money can be put towards one of his two remaining credit credit cards while we continue to make the minimum payment on the last card. Because we don't have a dozen debts to pay on each month like we had in the beginning we can literally make monthly payments of $1,500 to $2,000, and sometimes even more, on the second to last card while still paying the minimum on the last credit card. I walked into the bank a week ago to make a payment on the second to last card, handing the teller a check for $2000. She asked if it was a deposit into our checking account and I said no, it was for the credit card. She did a double take at the amount but didn't say anything else. Guess they know now we are serious about getting out of debt!
So the message to everyone just starting out with the debt snowball is that yes, when you first start with this process, it will seem slow, but as you knock out each debt and add the money you would have used to pay on the last credit card to the next one on your list, you will be able to make larger and larger payments. Pretty soon, instead of adding an extra $50 or $100 to your debt payment, you will be about to add an extra $500 to $1000 or more and get yourself out of debt forever (just remember to cancel each card as you pay it off)!