A Girl & Her Pocket Book

Moving.

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:18:00 +0000

To Wordpress.

Here is the new link.

Enjoy.

Spending Diary: 10.16.08

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 15:07:00 +0000

Day Two, Week One

Yesterday was a pretty mild day of the spending front. I didn't really spend any money on things that I didn't already budget for with my known expenses and envelopes. But here is what I spent yesterday: Side Note: I did forget to include a utilities expense on this post - so revisions have been made - which I marked in red:

1/2 of rent: $335.00 - I set it aside so I cannot touch it.
Chase CC: $39.00 - paid today.
Wells Fargo CC: $15.00 - paid today
B of A CC: $15.00Best Buy CC: 59.95 - final payment to zero out card [woot!] - paid today
Cable/Internet: $137.14 - boyfriend to write a check for half - paid today
Cell Phones: $132.47 - boyfriend to write a check for half - paid today
Water/Trash/Sewage: $34.02 - paid today.

Total Expenses: $733.56 [$767.58]
Income: $975.00
Remainder: $241.44 [$207.42]- not a lot but it will do.

Now for my envelopes for this pay period:
Groceries:$75.00 - spent $75.00
Fuel: $40.00 - spent $10.00 on debit card - adjusted envelope to $30.00
Household Items: $15.00
Dining Out: $40.00 [minus the $9.41 from today] = $30.59 - adjusted to $40.00
Entertainment: $40.00 - adjusted to $35.00 since I didn't withdraw enough money... go figure.
Clothing: $0.00

Total Budgeted for Envelopes: $200.59 [$195.00] - remaining: $120.00
Ending Balance: $40.85 [$12.42]

Things can sure change in a day. I don't know how I managed to not withdraw enough money for my envelopes, but I am kinda glad I did because of the utility bill I forgot. But, yeah. The boyfriend and I bought enough groceries to last us until the next pay period [hopefully] and I still have to make our household items run - which I will be going to Sam's Club for. I am going to have to wait a little bit for the boyfriend to cut me a check for the utilities - his mom waited to tell him about his car insurance payment until it was like pay it right now or it's cancelled. He was so pissed because he was being so good about money, then this came up - but live and learn right? Well, I am off to do my favorite free form of entertainment - roaming the blogosphere!

Have a great day all!

Here Goes Nothin' - Spending Diary: 10.15.08

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:16:00 +0000

Day One, Week 1:

Today is payday. Woot! A cool $975.00. Since I stupidly forgot my lunch today, I went over to Subway and bought a meal = $9.41. Ugh. I won't even start how frustrated I am with that - anyways! With this paycheck, I need to allocate funds for the following expenses:

1/2 of rent: $335.00 - setting aside for the 1st.

Chase CC: $39.00
Wells Fargo CC: $15.00
B of A CC: $15.00
Best Buy CC: 59.95 - final payment to zero out card [woot!]
Cable/Internet: $137.14 - boyfriend to write a check for half
Cell Phones: $132.47 - boyfriend to write a check for half

Total Expenses: $733.56
Income: $975.00
Remainder: $241.44 - not a lot but it will do.

Now for my envelopes for this pay period:
Groceries:$75.00
Fuel: $40.00
Household Items: $15.00
Dining Out: $40.00 [minus the $9.41 from today] = $30.59
Entertainment: $40.00
Clothing: $0.00

Total Budgeted for Envelopes: $200.59

Ending Balance: $40.85

Wow. That is a little scary, right? I mean, yeah. I have already put $50.00 into my emergency fund this month and the check that the boyfriend will write for his half the cable/Internet and cell bills will go into that fund as well - so, I will be fine, right? It does feel good to pay off one of the credit cards though. Really, really good. I can't wait until they are all gone. Now to finish work and go home - no more spending money!

I Swear, I Am Doomed.

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:21:00 +0000

I am not a morning person - let me get that out of the way first. I have always had to get up early because I have always worked; however, I hit the snooze on my alarm probably 6 times every morning. I just can't get out of my warm bed at 6:30am - it doesn't happen. Plus, I am not a coffee drinker. I would rather be in bed. But once I do roll out of bed, I generally give myself 20 minutes to pee, do my hair, and get dressed - and 9 times out of 10, I am at work early. No harm no foul.

But this path has led me to the situation I am in now - I hardly ever make myself a lunch; which leads to me spending money at lunch time, which is no bueno. And now that I am trying to turn things around, I decided to cook dinner last night with today's lunch in mind. We had plenty of left overs for both Peter and I to have lunches today.

So, I did my normal routine this morning, even pulled my lunch out of the refrigerator and put it by my purse. I brushed my teeth, kissed Peter goodbye, and hit the road - COMPLETELY FORGETTING MY LUNCH!!! I seriously couldn't believe it. I got half way to work before I realized it - so there was no turning back. And now, since I am on a budget, I either starve or cough up some dough for a quick lunch. I am just so frustrated with my forgetfulness. That is going to have to be the next stage in my financial turn around - being less forgetful.

Well, today is payday and the day I start my envelope budgeting system. I am kind of excited. I feel like it is a true step in controlling my spending. There is a great post [here] at Simple Mom that really explains how it works: but it is simply this - pay cash for your everyday expenses (i.e. groceries, household items, dining out, entertainment, fuel/transportation, etc). Each category has it's own envelope and a set budget, and when the envelope is empty, it is empty until the next budgeting cycle. Pretty straight forward and pretty hard to overspend when everything is accounted for in cash.

Wish me luck - and that I do not starve today.

Photo courtesy of Jesse the Juggler.

Pointing Out Weaknesses.

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 17:36:00 +0000

When forming my budget and reviewing my spending, I had to decide what my true weaknesses are - what I will always spend money on without even blinking. I did this because those are the areas where I wanted to do the most reigning in. I made 2 lists:

The first consisted of what I thought we my soft spots and how much I thought was spending each month on these items - i.e. restaurants, clothing, craft supplies.

The second, based on my spending history (found on my bank statements and whatnot) what were I was actually spending money on and the exact amounts.

I was both shocked and pleased by what I found out. I was shocked because I spend a shit ton - way more then I need or should. Period. The second wave of shock came when I saw how different my numbers were from the actual amount I was spending. Having your head in the sand is no bueno. But, I was pleased that I wasn't technically spending more then I earn - at least last month and this month (so far). That means I am getting closer to living within my means - and will become even closer to that since I have implemented a budget.

Thanks to Ramit at I Will Teach You To Be Rich, on Monday (or maybe tomorrow since it is payday), I am going to start doing a spending diary. Again, I think this is a good have it all out there so I can't hide from it anymore. Maybe this will force me to be less God damn lazy and start making lunches for myself.

I also read at My Money Blog that Quicken Online is free. So, I cancelled my PearBudget (it was 3 bucks a month after the free trial) and uploaded all my shit into Quicken Online. I like it. So far, it seems easy enough to manage both my transactions and categories. I will let you know how it works out - and the whole budget thing too. It is already hard to cut back on the things that I love - but I have to. I hate not having money, so yeah. I am going to grin and bear it.

*insert toothy-grin face here!*

The Dreaded Budget.

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 21:57:00 +0000

Budgeting is the hardest things I have ever done. Last week was the first time I have ever done a hardcore budget and it is proving more difficult to stick to then I thought. However, in my never ending research, I have found that there are several different avenues [depending on your will power] that one can go down when deciding what kind of budget is needed to turn things around. I realized that I am going to have to combine a couple of these strategies at first.

Over at Getting Rich Slowly, there was a great post on the different types of budgets on can chose from. Me, being the tech savvy [yeah right, but I can dream, right?] girl that I am, I tend to gravitate towards spreadsheets and web browser friendly frameworks. The entire post can be found here (highly suggest reading), but here are the pieces that I have chosen so far:

3 Web-Based Budget Tools
Naturally, there are web-based tools for budgeting, too. Here are three
excellent choices:
The afore-mentioned PearBudget comes in a web version that receives rave reviews.
NeoBudget is an online budget manager that uses the envelope method to help you track your spending habits and stick to a budget.
Finally, You Need a Budget offers a robust feature set, and is probably most appropriate for advanced budgeters.

I actually went the PearBudget route, however, after re-reading the article, I might give NeoBudget a try since envelope budgeting might be the next step in my personal finance turn around. PearBudget is a great tool though. It is very user friendly and makes budgeting very simple. They only problem I am having with it is splitting receipts. Once you have a budget in place, you will see what I mean. A good example is if you are at the grocery story and you buy groceries and gossip magazines. Gossip mags are not food - obviously - so they are not a grocery item, but it falls into the entertainment part of the budget [at least for me]. So, instead of splitting one receipt with one total at the end (much like Quicken or QuickBooks), you have to add each category separately.

Another great part of this article is the tips his "Few Words of Advice". Never having done a budget before, his advice really helped:

Know why you are budgeting. Don’t do it just because you think you should — do it to help yourself spend less than you earn.
Have a specific, concrete long-term goal in mind. Remember: the road to wealth is paved with goals.
Know how much you actually make.
Have accurate data for both your monthly spending and your irregular spending. You can get this data by learning to track your spending.
Choose checking and savings accounts that include useful budgeting tools by default. ING Direct, for example, makes it easy to open multiple accounts.
Use a simple budgeting tool that you’re able to understand. “Start with pencil and paper if you have to,” Trent says. (Any of the tools I listed above would be a good choice.)
Be realistic. Don’t start by promising yourself to be a super saver. Take small steps, and work up from there.
Get support from at least one other person.
Set some short-term goals that will be easy to achieve if you stay on budget. These will give you a psychological boost so that you’re more likely to stick to the program.
Don’t be afraid to adjust your budget (even radically). Be flexible. Your goal is to find a system that works for you.

I think once you figure out why you are budgeting, life becomes a whole lot simpler. My reason is this: I want what money I am making now to work for me. I know exactly how much I make and exactly how much needs to go out every month... it is the excess that I need to reign in - and the only way to do that is to budget properly.

You can visit Get Rich Slowly here.

Reality.

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:03:00 +0000

Facing the facts is hard to do when your head has been in the sand for so long. When I was 18, I opened my first credit card for a Europe trip I was going on. While I had a steady part time job (I was a full time student at the time), I was going to be gone for 3 months. No one explained the ramifications of living on credit, let alone in Europe, and what it would do to my financial well-being when I got back to real life - not even my parents.

Needless to say I racked up quite a bit of debt for an 18 year old fresh out of high school.

Knowing I had to somehow pay off the debt, I asked for more hours at work. While this was enough at cover just the credit card, it wasn't enough for my other expenses - car insurance, cell phone, etc. And naive as I was, I got another credit card. Bad idea. So, I went from living on credit in Europe, to living on credit back at home.

Financially, everything came to a head when I was living in my very first place. I was late on all my bills (utilities, cable, cell phone, rent, car insurance) and was still paying off what now turned into 4 credit cards. I was 21 and had a breakdown.

I went to my Dad - the one and only person who I knew was somewhat good with money (well, at least saving). He said I needed to take all of my bills, lay them out in from of me, and see how much I actually owe - an actual, accurate account of what my debts, expenses, and income was. So I did - and I was floored.

I had nearly $9,000.00 dollars in credit card debt - all past due (I think the interest rates were between 19-24% depending on the card). My cell phone and car insurance were all at final notices - and rent was late. I was my lowest low when it comes to my finances. I had a full time job - but it paid beans - and it was obviously not enough. This is where my Dad said you need to make a decision: move home, get another job, live frugally, and work through it OR file bankruptcy. At 21, bankruptcy was not an option.

I ended up moving back home and getting my act together - sorta. I did reduce my dept to about $3,500.00 within the next two years, and was able to move back out again and live less frugally. But, I never really, truly reigned in my spending. I love dining out, having good wine, taking trips, having cute clothes - and those all remain my weaknesses to this day.

Now, back to this year - I have since move in with my boyfriend and we came to this agreement prior to living together - he would pay rent and I would pay all the household expenses. It worked out perfectly. I was still able to slowly pay off my credit cards and we were able to live how we wanted - which was comfortable. Granted, this only worked because we had a roommate - and she was AWFUL - but that is for another day.

But after an awful, awful (did I say awful?) roommate experience, we decided that we were going to move into our own place instead of renewing our lease with her. So, I had to do the "Dad's Financial Layout" all over again because we were going to split everything right down the middle this time. And these are my findings:

* I currently have less than $1800 in debt.
* Nothing is past due, nothing is late, everything is hunky-dorey.
* If I adhere to a budget, then I could make rent and pay all of my bills (credit cards, utilities, expenses, etc.) and SAVE a little each month without worry.

So, now I am hell bent of turning things around. I don't want to live pay check to pay check anymore. I want to have comfortable life for myself and my future family - and boy, have I been researching and putting some nice little tricks into play in the last week.

But first things first: when getting started in the process of turning around your finances, I think it is important to lay it all out. My Dad's idea of laying it all out and getting an accurate account of what is going on was probably some of the best financial advice I have gotten to date.

A Nutshell.

noreply@blogger.com (Knockout Niki) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 18:11:00 +0000

My name is Nicole - aka: Knockout Niki. I am an office manager/accounting student by day and a crafter/photographer/fashion freak by night. My blog for the latter is here. This blog, however, is kinda, sorta for the former. I have recently decided that I need to stop living from pay check to pay check - that I need to reduce what is left of my debt and start saving for the future. I am 24 years old, have barely anything in savings, have a limited income, and a growing number of expenses (comes along with the growing responsibilities), and I feel like I am getting a late start ofnreally planning for my future.

So, I am writing this blog for 2 reasons:

First, for myself. I want to track how much I spend and see what I can cut back on. Being able to see my spending habits it out there for everyone to see can be humbling but by getting advice from people who have been where I am and learning is what the blogging community is all about!

Secondly, for people like me. I think the best way to learn is from other people and their experiences. I cannot tell you how many friends I have that are in the same financial boat as me. Support is the best way to overcome anything - including financial woes. By learning the tips and tools in turning finances around, maybe I could help someone else turn their lives around too.

Wish me luck and keep for fingers crossed!