Monthly Archives: October 2011

2 2589

Does this look like an enemy combatant?Well, it was the thriftiest month since May but it’s still way to freakin’ high…

$922.22 : Day Care
$873.00 : Homeowners Insurance
$498.72 : Mortgage
$450.00 : USCIS
$337.00 : Gas
$360.12 : Business Expenses
$225.95 : Auto Insurance
$196.20 : Finance Charges
$180.00 : Cash
$179.54 : Hockey Jersey
$176.65 : Electricity
$130.00 : Framed Photo
$128.07 : Cable/Internet
$41.92 : Natural Gas
$21.27 : Cell Phone
$6.25 : Airport Parking

Put it all together and that’s $4726.91.

Again, unusual expenses (those in red) killed me this month. Though the fact that I said “again” kinda means they’re not as unusual as I think they are.

Sigh.

The homeowners insurance is a once per year thing. And I knew it was a budget buster. The good news is that I paid the bill in full in September when it isn’t actually due until mid-November.

Spend now instead of later.

For those not in the know — and I’d hardly expect you to be — USCIS is the abbreviation for the US Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.

I’ve mentioned a few times on here that I’m not a US Citizen though you’d hardly know it if you ever met me.

Anyway, since all of us immigrants are now supposed enemy combatants or something, the federal government forces us to check in every so often and submit ourselves to an FBI background check while writing them a big fat check to “renew” something that clearly states that it’s “permanent” right up top in CAPITAL letters.

Since I’d rather not be sent to a secret prison in eastern Europe and tortured, that’s all I have to say about that.

But outside of those two big chunky expenses, I think I did a pretty decent job.

Sure, there were still a few purchases that weren’t exactly necessary and the business expenses crept a little high but, all in all, it was a good month.

1 2073

Yes, I know I’m 3 weeks late with this…

What can I say? I’m in a funk. A $10k loss will do that to ya…

But really, things are going pretty well financially.

Sure, money’s tight, but this latest round of debt elimination is moving right along. I see the end of the tunnel already and I’ll be right back where I was the last time I was debt free.

Seven or eight more months is my guess…

Here’s the breakdown:

Cash:
It’s tight. I’ve been sending $300 per week (on an autopayment) towards debt and whatever’s left at the end of the month.

Savings:
This is essentially an account where I’m tossing $135 in per week to cover my property tax bill (due next in December) and anything else unexpected.

Gov’t Bonds:
This is my emergency back-up.

401k:
Ouch. Things are so volatile lately. One day I’m up $2k and the next I’m down $4k. This number totally depends on what the last day of the month looks like. I think the top and bottom value for this month were over $17k apart so, yeah, it’s all over the place…

Home:
Yep, I live here.

Auto 1, Auto 2, and Auto 3:
Evidently this wasn’t a good time to own a car in Connecticut.

Credit Cards:
Now we’re getting down to business. The HUGE drop last month probably won’t happen again anytime soon as I don’t really have anywhere else to pay it down in $10k chunks.

This pace is more like what I’d expect it to be from here on out and I’d expect that by the end of this month, the total balance will be under $10k.

Auto Loans and Other Loans:
Nothing to report.

Mortgage
Just another minimum payment.

0 2410

Mixed in among all of the inserts that always come with my Citi statement and bill was this nifty little flyer.

Talk about spin… I mean, they’re trying to imply that they’re meeting my “borrowing needs” better than ever before by raising the minimum monthly payment.

Say what?

This reminds me of how owners of Sony Trinitron televisions and monitors in the 1990’s would brag about how they’re screens were actually better than anything else on the market when, clearly, they weren’t. They had a MAJOR flaw. A visible one?!

I fell victim to it.

Anyway, none of this really matters since I don’t carry a balance with Citi.

I just thought it was hilarious that they tried to spin a rate increase as a feature for the consumer.

Can You Dig It?

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