Kiki's Financial Blabbing

I sat down to figure out what my expenses would be if I had no cc debt.

If I don’t count my student loan payments of $250 a month my living expenses (rent 465, utilities~150, cell as no home phone~60, gas~175, rental unit 10, groceries 250, car and house insurance ~135, car repairs savings account 100, parking 80, Netflix 15, car payment 100) could be a very manageable $1410 a month without saving anything extra each month. (There is one small savings account for car repairs included in that total and no entertainment included other than my Netflix account). If I added in entertainment $200 which is what I allow myself currently it would be $1635. Add in my student loans of $250 it raises to $1855. That means (depending upon the length of the month) I have 60 to 62 dollars a day toward my expenses/spending. That seems a little high to me. I will work to cut that by 10% in the coming months.

My goal when I pay off my cc’s next year (and depending upon the real estate market here in Northern California as I want to buy a house) is to put away $1000 into my 401k and $500 into my 457 plans at work plus the amount I am required to put away (5.6%). This would still leave me more than $800 than I need each month to save for other things.

My retirement savings is no where close to where I think it should be and even if I can only sustain that for a year before I buy a house that would still mean I put away $21364 in one year. My goal is to be able to do this starting March 2009 and continue for a year getting some of the tax breaks in both years.

What kills me is that if I was to put away 1500 a month for the next 30 years (assuming 8% return with 3% inflation) and retire at 63 the total would be $2.3 not including my Roth IRA and other retirement benefits. It is only a pipe dream to sustain it for that long though as I want to buy a house and that is going to take a lot eat into it a lot. If I can sustain 500 a month for 30+ years I would have around 900k in savings toward retirement with the same assumptions.

And all of this is based on the salary I have now, not the 5% raises I’ll get for the next three years before I top out and can move into a new classification at work.

I plan to update the numbers on the side tonight or tomorrow. Tomorrow is pay day and i am planning to pay off a card and i would like it to reflect my new goals.

I completed a focus group tonight and earned 100. I was quite pleased with the topic, enjoyed the other women in the group and got paid. Not bad for a quick evening chat.

Had lunch out with a colleague but ended up having for free when it took a long time to bring. We ordered an appetizer and a bowl of soup. 35 minutes later, no food. Asked waiter, said it would be right up. 10 minutes later no food. Asked to see the manager. When he arrived, he asked for the ticket of our lunch. I said, what lunch? We have had no food yet. 10 minutes later we have food to go to get to a meeting and did not have to pay. Equaled a no spend day for me and I got paid. Pretty nice!

Thanks to monkey mama who shared the focus group idea! Worked well!

I have friends who have everything. There is nothing that I could uy for them that they can’t or haven’t already have bought for themselves. A few years ago during coffee with a friend I mentioned how hard it was to come up with a list of things I want for Christmas for my family because I can buy what I need and wants I save for. We chatted about this for a while and later I suggested that we forgo gifts and make a donation some place. We chose Heifer International because we wanted to see it go someplace and know what it was used for. Now our huge circle of friends all participate.

We pool our money and every year we buy a series of things from Heifer international. I get the little card in the mail (we all contribute by thanksgiving) and then send it out in the Christmas cards in a beautiful little frame thing (that costs about 8 cents in bulk) that way we have something to remember and look at throughout the year. I put mine on the fridge with a magnet. At the Christmas party we throw each year we talk about the donation and toast to a good year for the families that received the animals.

My dream is one day to be able for us to purchase the ark gift set which is 5k and goes to 12 places nationally and internationally. I love doing this each year. I just got the latest catalog and we are selecting what to do this year. My niece saw it and now she wants to put some money in too. I told her any money she adds into the kitty I will match. Darn if she didn’t put all the money she made babysitting Saturday night ($30) into the pot so now I have to put another $30 in too. I am very proud of her and wanting to help!

We are busy planning our cookie decorating contest, our carling party and of course the visit from Santa Klaus in early December.

What kinds of traditions does your family celebrate?

I’ve been thinking a lot the past couple weeks (since I realized how quickly I can pull myself out of consumer debt) how I got here in the first place (and how much interest I will have paid at the end).

I am not sure how much I have shared about how it was when I was growing up but my mom was a single parent raising four kids on $600 a month child support in California from 1975. We are all grown and on our own now but when I was growing up it was really rough. We never had any money to do anything except maybe a matinee movie. I remember walking to the Newsstand and picking up a candy for ten cents to take into the movie because we could not afford to purchase an candy at the theater across the street.

My mom went back to work (at minimum wage $3.35 per hour) when I was nine. It is amazing to me that I thought we were getting rich with an extra $350 or so a month (after taxes). All of a sudden we could afford clothes from Mervyns and Kmart.

I think I got myself in to so much debt because growing up there was nothing new. I had hand me downs until I was 16. When you have three sisters everything is kept and passed along to someone else. I actually remember getting my first new coat when I was 12 that was not a hand me down. I kept that coat until I was 24 (through college!) and even then I did not want to part with it. I remember my second new coat I received at Christmas when I was 18. I just pulled it out of the winter boxes today and washed it. Monday I’ll take it and have it sprayed for weather proofing for the winter.

Every year at Christmas my mom would sit us down and say something like Santa has had a hard year and has many kids around the world to take care of so it might be a small Christmas and every year it was an amazing holiday. Mom worked at a church and everyone knew she had four kids and it seemed we were always getting a food basket with goodies or presents or something. And there were the years when we needed a new roof that money came in the mail. Cash, no note or anything but it helped tremendously to fix the leaking roof that was slowly devouring the wall between the dining room and the garage.

I remember Bob and his wife Mary, a retired couple from church, who loved me like a granddaughter. They would watch me crawl around the church at daily mass when I was a year old. When I was older Bob would slip money into my hand and tell me to do something nice for my mom. It was usually a 10 or maybe a twenty but occassionally it was a fifty or hundred dollar bill. Thinking back those usually came toward the end of the month. Growing up that little amount of money passed along to my mom (never kept) would mean that we had something other than hot dogs and macaroni toward the end of the month or my mom had gas for the car. Sometime after I turned 18 when I would return from college, the money became a “put this toward a school expense” gift. I would be ashamed to show them how I am living now, being so much in debt after all they did for us.

I have always dreamed about having a "slush fund" for sending some money to people who really need it. Like when I read an article in the news paper about a local family burnt out of their home, etc. I know American Red Cross will help for 3 days maybe 4 but how nice would it be to pay for something they need: groceries, a motel room, clothes and toys for the kids.

Question for the readers: What are the financial memories you carry with you from childhood and how do they affect you now?

I paid off a cc this month! Well since I deposited my pay check yesterday the account will be zero on Wednesday. I wanted to give the paycheck time to deposit into my account. Only 5 more cards to go! I will have 4 of them paid off by end of September 2008. The other one will have 10k more to pay off but that should be done by March 2009. I could probably speed the whole process of paying of cc debt 3 or 4 months faster if I put nothing into savings but I don’t feel comfortable right now with the cash on hand and saving $500 a month means that I can build the 911 fund back up to 10K or more. That is really where I feel comfortable. It is earmarked for various things (see goals to left) but truly it would be used in an emergency should one arise.

Guess I set some really long term goals for myself but I really want to make it so I only have my student loans outstanding. I think I can run serious numbers for a house if those are the only numbers I owe or am I dreaming? Anyone care to weigh in on that thought?

On another non financial piece, can someone walk through how to change the colors on our blogs? I have wanted to do it since they changed the formats but whenever I try nothing seems to stick. I can’t type a color nor can I just select a color and have it enter into the box by the blog section names. Am I missing a driver on my computer or something? Please help if you can!

Have a wonderful weekend. I won’t have much to update financial wise until Novembers’ pay check. But I do read every day at lunch and reading about some of you guys really keep me on track!

Somehow I have $40 extra from my gas fund this month to put toward the savings account for my car repairs. It would have been more but I raided it twice for dinner with friends (not a lot, about $25). So I am happy to have a little extra. I think the not driving 30 miles twice a week for French class is helping to have less gas expenses. I am taking Mandarin and the course is only about 8 miles from home and kind of on the way from work. If I avoid the freeway I can drive through my favorite neighborhood and see the homes I dream about. Wide porches, established trees, 40 year old neighborhood it's just what I want. It is just so perfect and I get to drive through it twice a week! Lucky me!

Pay Day is tomorrow. I can't wait because I am going to pay off the National credit card. I am hoping they give me another 0% interest rate so that I can transfer my last one balance that has a higher interest rate and pay it off quickly. It is not that much and it is already added to the pay off plan I have to be debt free by January 2009!!. I am just so excited to pay off that card tomorrow. I am also going to be able to pay off another card by January. I am so excited!!

I broke down and bought a lap top. It feels nice to have a computer again after not having one for almost 4 years. I ought a DELL and like it so far except I do not like the touch pad and will try to find my old mouse. I think it is in a box someplace.

I will share the wireless with a roommate who already has it. She was very nice about it and didn't really want any money but if it is cheap entertainment for me then I am happy to help. It should average about 15 a month so to me that is not bad.

It is nice to be able to sit and type out an email or something to friends without saving it for my lunch break.

I have extra money this month and i will put that toward the cc I want to pay off or into the bank into my car care account. I will decide once I get me paycheck on Thursday. I really hope they have the deductions done so I can figure out how upping my 401k deductions will affect my take home. I think that after 3 months of working for this position it will be setup correctly. Ugh it drives me crazy not knowing the break downs but with this position I don't pay SS taxes and State disability but i put more away into the mandatory retirement so there is a difference and i hope it is corrected.

I am closer to paying off national card by October 1 then waiting to end of year! Yeah! the i adjusted the others based on completing this one.

I updated my goals (to the left) today. Paid off AMerican Express Blue card. It is nice to see some progress on the items I have to pay off and very SMART objectives with very clear steps and goals through September 2008.

I paid my bills, put money into savings, sent off payments I needed to for September etc. since I got paid yesterday.

I have also paid off ($13.00) a bill for which I was fighting the insurance company. The doctor’s office and I were using it as a way to press my insurance to pay the full amount for bills from offices who have not signed on with the insurance company. The issue in CA is when a doctors office signs up with a particular insurance the prices are negotiated ahead of time. The negotiated prices are usually below the usual and customary charges (U&C) that a doctor’s office can charge if not signed on with an insurance company. In 2005 I was knocked off my bike and had x-rays completed to check my elbow. The doctor’s office requested me not to pay so they could fight this particular insurance company’s practices of paying the lowest possible to doctors, even less than the U&C charges. Basically this insurance company pays this office what contracted doctors get paid instead. Anyway I changed insurance with my new job and I just want o move on and not get a bill each month from the doctor’s office so I paid it. I just want it done.

Work is a nightmare as usual. The head boss can’t make a decision about anything then asks me why a project isn’t completed. I reply you have not replied to my requests or information so I could complete it. She says, ok I will. She never does then she comes to me again to know why thins aren’t done. Oh and the fact that I am doing two jobs right now because she refuses to hire for someone who left 4 months ago, never mind that the job is coordinating a state wide exercise. Yeah, go jump in the lake Ms. Boss, please make a decision and do your job so we can ours!

Well this week has already been an interesting one. I found out that my position is not eligible for ot/standby time after I had already completed the duty officer thing for a week. I should have earned 40 hours of straight time pay but earned nothing. All because personnel has not got their act together enough to actually know where I fit! It is really frustrating. Now they are going to ask me to do this more often but since this was going to take the place of a part time job, I am going to say no, I have to work this weekend.

I outlined some new goals for the next 6 months, but these are based on my old salary and with the new one not being corrected until probably October it means that the time lines could be shortened or lengthened based upon what happens.

I have been house sitting a lot in the last couple of weeks I would have had one more this week but the owners’ son lost his job so I mentioned maybe he would want to earn the money. Stupid for my wallet but if it helps this young man out then I felt good about it. Besides this couple retires in less than a year and then they will spend more than a month in Mexico each time they go to visit. It is someone I work with and she likes and trusts me. They have 20 beautiful horses that I would need to keep an eye on but the neighbors do the bulk of the work. I would only have to make sure horses have water (natural springs etc.) so it would not be to bad to house sit for them on a semi permanent basis. I am still looking at turning this into a part time job to get out of debt and help my mom with the hospital bills she has accrued since her stay in June.

To that end I signed up with a house sitting agency online and already had one sit through them. This one though has the belief that you should not have to pay house sitters. Um, maybe if it was a long term sit like a month or something and the people are visiting the area, but for someone to stay in your home for a week or whatever and take care of the house while you go on vacation, please, give me a break. It is not like this area is a vacation destination, who in their right minds are going to come here and house sit for you? I am going to look at some other sites and do some marketing here in the city. I just want a few clients that I can sit for and use mostly word of mouth, but first I need to get the word out there.

I have been thinking about how to start a small business in house sitting when people go on vacation. There are several people I do this for pretty regularly and I enjoy it. Since I currently live in a home with 2 house mates, it feels like a mini vacation for me.

I provide services from pet and house sitting, watering plants inside and out, and obviously returning the house to the same condition (or in some cases better) as it was left.

One family I sit for has two dogs, I stay there and I watch the house providing companionship for the animals and security for the house. They pay 30 per night. Most agencies in this area seem to charge about the same and most do not have someone in the house, just stopping by once or twice a day to feed and water animals and make sure that the house is secure.

I am wondering is anyone has started a small business and can give me information and advice? I would like to earn some extra money and this is a nice and simple way that I enjoy.

I have always wanted a vespa and i am looking and admiring them. does anyone own one or know anything about them? could recommend a model to try?

Does anyone know what happened to her blog? I miss reading it! it is in my top 10.

I helped a friend move today into a duplex she and her husband have bought. For the amount they paid (280K) they could have bought a house in an area just the same and had their own building. It is amazing that someone would buy something so small when they have to grey hounds and want to have a child in the next couple of years. It is nice but needs some remodeling and new flooring (carpet is brown and to me gross). I want a house but I have my dream of working for the foreign service. What do i do?

I spent less than 6 dollars today, spent 2 hours on the phone with my friend V. She used to work with me, we became good friends and I miss her so much at work since she left two weeks ago. She returned to TX to be with family while she looks for another job. It is hard to see her go but she could not deal with the games and politics and favorites that happen in her section.

I am watering the yard as we speak. I love to water the yard even though I hate to garden in large quantities. I want a yard done that all I have to do is water. I remember watering my grandmothers yard, just under an acre. Always beautiful, always fun to talk to her and I remember how much fun it was. She had been gone almost 6 years and I miss her as much as if it was yesterday.

Sunday are loose plans until I have to hit a scrap booking party and dinner with a couple of friends. It will be an early night as I hit the gym Monday morning at 5:30 am.

I know it has been several months since I last wrote and so much has happened I am not sure where to begin.

I spent two weeks with my sister and her family in Holland in May. I took my mom for the visit and we had a fantastic time. It is probably my last trip to the Netherlands (number 8) and I can say that I have seen just about it all. I love it but it is time to move on to another place.

I am looking at shanghai in 2008, or morocco, or Italy with a friend (time share she and her husband owns, he is to ill to travel long distances but keep telling us to go.) Shanghai is to visit a couple of visiting fellows that I have been working with for six months. They were a lot of fun and desperate to learn about emergency management and California processes. It was a fun project that I took on myself. It was just a hoot to work with them, and maybe a new job from them in January 2008. I could move to china for a year or so. I am planning to study mandarin this next fall in school just for fun.

Four days after returning from Europe my mom was entered into the hospital with what they thought was a heart attack. We not, turns out her heart is pumping at about 35-40% of normal (cardiomyopathy). No wonder she gets so tired so quickly. She had an angiogram and an angioplasty before they figured out that was the problem. She is in cardiac therapy for a while and they are hoping to get her back to 50 % if they can. She is facing congestive heart failure for the end. She is only 65 and I am really not ready to loose her yet. My sister and her family are moving here this summer and her kids deserve a chance to be around grandma full time. This makes me second guess the working toward my dream job but she gets so excited to hear about it and planning to come and visit me but it is scary not knowing what is going to happen. I am really not ready to lose my mom and facing that now is very difficult.

I applied for, interviewed and got my job at work. I had been on a list for a long time and it is doing what I already do. I interviewed with the office director and my current supervisor but pretended I had never met them and gave really strong answers with lots of samples and examples of work I had done in the past. The office director was surprised (because I’ve been working her for two years already) to learn everything I had done and it was nice to remind my supervisor what I have done in the past. They will not pay for another grad program but she will wrote me an agency support letter for a different masters program offered through the federal government. I am desperately trying to put together the strongest application ever. I have already asked for letter of recommendation and begun working on my essays and such. It would be nice to do this program and make a name for myself outside of the one office and agency. We will see what happens.

I have figured out what to do with my final paycheck from the old job, and where to put my vacation hours pay out. Should pay off just about 2 credit cards which will feel nice!

I have missed not being able to read things for a while but works has been nuts with several things not the least of which is the South Lake Tahoe fire situation.

I have applied for a couple part time position that should pay about 750 a month more. After buying a bed and a computer it goes all to debt. I could cut the debt by almost half if this comes.

I hope to write more, a goal is once a week or more when I can.

Thanks for visiting!

when reading certain blogs that are pretty long, to finish them you have to go to the comments page?? Why is that happening?

for me i noticed it in Baselle and other blogs.

Little spending for the past few days. Back in school for a few more weeks. I will be ready to have a summer off to do anything I want. I am looking at a Russian and nutrition courses for nest fall. Two nights a week for language class and computer based for the other. Just enough to keep me busy and keep my mind engaged.

Got my interview notice for the part time job I applied for through a park and rec office. I think I would be good but really I am just looking for a part time job that will be flexible around my other work schedule and be able to make an extra 1000 a month or so to pay off debt faster. When I work that much I spend little money because I just don’t have the time. So I end up saving even more.

Went to a toast master class yesterday during my lunch hour, anyone here a member? It was the first time I had ever gone, but I am hoping that the skills would help my training skills and my goals for one day working for the Foreign Service. They asked me to participate in a table topic speech. The theme was quality: of life etc. they asked me a question regarding what bring joy into my life and I spoke of my nieces and nephews. I went against a long time member and had no idea that they award prizes at the end after people vote for the best speaker for the table topic. I won! Got a little award and every thing! They gave me good comments and made me feel a little better about being a guest to the group. I think I will join. The benefits to ward my job are numerous and if it helps me get to the foreign service thing faster, yeah me!

called about using the ticket and my sister is very excited about the possible visit. I need to think of some gifts to take to holland for the kiddies.

Spending:
Monday
23 groceries
5 reusable cloth bags made from recycled plastic bags for grocery shopping

Tuesday:
6.02 dinner
8 parking

Wednesday
8 parking
(theater arts test tonight)

When i go to the main page to change my colors, i get an error on page message,
how did everyone change their colors?

Weekend was rather quiet and very low spend. Beauty appointment on Saturday ($18 including tip) then had lunch with a friend ($12) before we spent the afternoon roaming the Land Park, East Sac area looking at open houses. Loved it! Only a little bit of gas and we spent hours together! So much fun! (small all fruit 190 calorie Jamba Juice on a gift card, borrowed .30 from friend)

Saturday night went to have dinner with friends at another friends house. Bought dessert and a magazine (10.75)

Sunday Easter, dinner at sis mom in law house. Dessert (ice cream $6.60 and gas for the week: $20)

Relatively cheap weekend and tons of fun!

Monday 16.20 for groceries for the week at work.

My sister and her family are moving back from Europe this summer. I went to visit them in November and December for a little over 2 weeks. I would like to go back one more time before they move but did not think I could afford it.

I just found out that the ticket I have from a friend is on an airline that flies internationally. I thought they only covered the West Coast (Alaska Airlines).
I might get to go and see them one last time in may for 10 days before they come home. I am so excited!! The ticket might only get me to NYC or Chicago, but from there the intl flights are much less and would still save me money. I am going to sit and think about this over the weekend and do some preplanning on this issue.

I have an airline ticket that I need to use and I am considering going someplace in Seattle/British Columbia. For some reason I am drawn there and I can get a few days off work to fly up.

Has anyone traveled in the area? I have never been to either Seattle or BC before and it just seems nice to take a few days in the end of May to go before the ticket expires.

Any and all recommendation welcome for things to do, see and places to stay. I of course am looking for the cheapest places to stay, but with comfortable beds.

Thursday:
8 parking
8.75 for dinner. had skipped lunch and picked up something on my way home. laundry done and new audio book almost finished.

I know it has been awhile since I last wrote. Work and classes have been a little crazy recently. While I might not get to post as much as I would like, I at least read the journals every day on my lunch.

Spending this month so far:

Monday:
8 Parking
45 groceries for the week @ Safeway

Tuesday
8 parking
4.97 Italian bread and rose plant @ TJ’s

Wednesday
8 parking
9.10 for lunch out with co worker and his wife

Thursday
8 parking and not expecting anything else.

Staying with in budget!!

The job scope has gone to HR to review and ask sister agency if we can borrow the classification. I am hoping that it will work out before the list expires in July. That leaves me with 11 weeks or so. I would like to stay a contractor until my contract ends then start the new job this fall. It might take that long for the personnel dept to get me hired on. It is scary because I like the benefits of being a contractor better but I just can't do anything long term financially with this position.

I am on spring break for school but still have to work my full 40 hours. I am ready for summer to be here so that I can not have to go to school. I think I need a break for a while.

I have not done much other than work this week because I am trying to straighten and organize my room. It is not an easy task as I have lots of crap I am trying to sort through and toss.

I am making some progress but not as much as I was hoping. I am going to do laundry tonight so that I can have some fun this weekend and not have to worry about that task, other than sheets and towels on Saturday morning.

I only have a minute because I have been working a lot to finish an urgent project. But I read this in Self March 2007 this week and I thought it was apropos to this site:

43% of people surveyed value their online communities as much as their real world ones, according to Digital Future Report.

Does that not sound like this site? I know I don’t post very often and have not been to the forums in a while because of business needs, but I think it is true. I read the blogs every day when I eat breakfast and when I take lunch and eat at my desk.

Here’s to all of you, around the world!

My tax refunds: 950 federal and 240 state. Just a little under last year and i am glad that i am getting money back and not having to pay at all. It is not much. talked with tax guy about adjusting my with holding but he thinks if i did it i would end up having to pay a little next year because of the raises. so i will keep it the way it is right now.

Looking and comparing mortgages today. what is the difference between Rate and APR??

Not sure what has happened but I have gone off my little spending plan just a bit. This month hit me hard with some car repairs and I guess I just didn’t move things around well enough in my budget. I need to get back to grocery shopping and setting a weekly menu but for some reason I am just so tired that I can’t even think straight some days and it is hard enough to get to work and stay all day. I feel like I am going to sleep early enough (except wed when I have a later class, but he has been letting us out early). I need to really tramp down on the spending this next month. Thank god it is a short month.

My interview with the state dept has been moved to later in the month, right after the presidents day weekend. Means I have to spend the night in San Francisco the 19th but it will make it feel like a mini vacation and I should get a great nights sleep at the hotel there.

So the past week has been a little busy but not much spending. Saturday was about 6 dollars for a hot cocoa and two scones at Panera. Sunday was nothing. Monday was lunch 5 dollars and daiquiri mix for my book club, 5. Tuesday was burger at McDonalds, the second time I have eaten fast food this year. i have a little over 100 for the rest of the month but no real plans except for a movie this weeked. i need to spend a good portion of the weekend on my foreign service application and essay. My oral assessment in the 2nd of February.

I sent an email to a friend and former colleague on Monday asking her to join us for drinks on Friday. She replied to me that her husband has passed away suddenly with no reason last Tuesday. It is quite a shock. He was only 43. They have 5 kids between the ages of 16 and 24. it is such a loss to this community and to her family. The services are Friday morning and I and another colleague are going. How can you not to pay your respects and support the family.

Classes started last week and I can already tell it is going to be a long semester. I take these classes for fun, French and intro to theater. It will be fun but it will be a long 18 weeks.

I need to decide what I am going to do about going back to school next fall for another degree. I have been accepted to an MPH program but I really don’t want to take out more money in school loans. I am hoping that by April when I have to give my deadline yes or no it will be know if this S job will come through and if they are going to pay for it. I am also thinking of contacting the program to see if I can defer for a ear due to financial reasons. I mean we had to wait a whole year to start because of program issues, why can’t I now defer for a year?

$ 81,953.12

That it the total amount of my debt: student loans (about 55k here), credit cards, loan from mom for car. That is the total amount of money I owe.

$6000 the total amount (approximately) I have in the bank right now.

Goal 1: build Emergency Fund back to 10K
(That is where I feel comfortable and is about 4 months living expenses for me)
Goal 2: Pay off CC1, Bank of America ($2900)
Goal 3: Pay off CC2, El Dorado ($14,200, medical bills from ankle issue 2001, *Please don't think badly of me. I came home from working over seas with a broken ankle and foot and am fighting the US labor department about paying my hospital bills, it is a workmen’s comp case for 5 years!)
Goal 4-6: CC 4, 5, 6: ~~$5000
Goal 7: pay off mom

The good news: I love my job and am working with my agency to make it non contract and a "real" job. This will help me be able to sleep at night and be able to pay off a load of debt quickly. The good news, with my current personal “pay off plan” I should be with out CC and Car loan in about 2 years. The student loans, once I finish the second masters program (with out student loans) will be paid back in about 4-5 years. I am not worried about that it is interest free while I am in school and is only 1.9 % if I am not. (Consolidation 5 years ago was god send and I love my lender: VSAC!)

Here is the real truth: I feel like I have been living a lie to all of you for over a year. I knew to the penny what I owed and was working on it (quickly). I am not frustrated about the student loans (an evil necessity and allows me to make great money and love my job) or the miniscule cc debt that is not medical related. It is the medical stuff that frustrates me. Hopefully by the end of 2007 that will be rectified in court and paid off. Here is to a profitable year 2007!

with a masters degree in intl mgmt i do know about financial things, i swear!

Can someone tell me how to set up sub accounts within the ING website? Can you have one account where all your money is and categorize it based upon sub accounts?

Thanks,
Kristina