Category: Financial Independence Dreams

Little Things for Which I am Thankful….wellll……

Terri

Yep, the “welll…..” says it all.  It’s been that kind of week.

Ok, first, a picture of my kitty cat, Bonkers, aka, the Bonk Man. He’s mentioned in number 6 below so having his picture here is not completely random. (And it occurs to me I may have used it before, but hey, he looks super cute in it, no?)

Don't you just love his ears???
Don’t you just love his ears???

Let’s start with the draft of a post I had started yesterday, but didn’t get a chance to finish due to my running from one job to the other:

“I’m feeling like I am in a bit of a funk this week, and I’m not sure why. This morning I started to try writing it out in my journal because sometimes that helps. But I’m just feeling, well…really, bleh. Meh. You know the feeling. You just don’t give a shit about much.

My apartment is a mess, and usually this would bother me enough to spur me into action. Today? Yeah, not so much. Was supposed to work out with my trainer this morning – my last of ten sessions. Decided I felt like crap and just couldn’t do it this morning, so I cancelled. Feeling exhausted, even though I went to bed last night around 8:30, and only got up around 4 a.m. this morning. That’s more sleep than I normally get during the week nights.  Been drinking more coffee during the daytime, and not liking the fact that I think I need it to make it through the day. Usually, I only drink it at home and then just toughen up during the daytime.”

  1. I am thankful today to not be in such a funk.  After I wrote that yesterday, I made myself kick my own ass into gear. It was hard, and definitely slow-moving, but I got moving nonetheless.
  2. A family member of mine ended a relationship this week. Without going into details, let’s just say if I ever come upon this other (now-ex) person in real life, they are going to get a good ass-kicking, because no one makes a sibling of mine feel the way my sibling did, NO ONE!! (Seriously, people, there is a reason some people refer to me as the Tasmanian Devil. Don’t get me pissed off!) (Just kidding…welllll…..) LOL (Really, I am very protective of my younger sibling, so when someone puts that sibling down, I get really upset.)
  3. It is finally Friday. I seem to be including that a lot in my lists lately….hmmmm
  4. I’ve felt really adrift lately, not exactly sure where I want to be next fall, but just knowing, not here. Been getting really down thinking of what the workamping salaries might be like. But I realized this morning, I can make it work, I just have to work really hard at also getting some sort of online thing going to create a bit of a buffer zone, financially speaking.
  5. The scooter – oh…the scooter…those of you who are friends with me on facebook know already – I just don’t feel comfortable riding it. In fact, I’m downright scared. Yes, after getting the motorcycle license and everything. I just get this feeling in my gut when I’m on it, that I shouldn’t be. So, now I’m trying to sell it, either via craigslist, or even possibly to a dealer.  Only thing I am grateful for is well, at least now I know what I DON’T LIKE, and what I DO LIKE.  For me, that’s the simplicity of my electric bike. ❤
  6. This morning, my Bonkers, my white cat with the funky ears that make him look like a teddy bear, came up to me and sat on my lap. Although he loves for me to pet him, and he purrs a lot, he’s never done that before. He got all snuggly this morning too. I hope it’s a forecast of more snuggles to come with him.

So anyway, there you have it, folks. I hope your week has been better than mine. But I do know that overall, I’ve got it good. I really can’t complain. Sometimes, the tired part of your brain just takes over and makes you whine. Which is annoying.

So anyway, if you have liked this post, please hit like or subscribe, or drop me a line below. I especially appreciate the comments, as I really want to establish or help grow a community on here. I love talking with and (hopefully eventually) meeting with people that I feel like I really connect to.

Have a great weekend!

 

 

 

 

 

Ah, that consumer lifestyle…

Terri
This makes an appearance at the reservoir every year. Is it a dredger?
This makes an appearance at the reservoir every year. Is it a dredger?

Or, the way I used to be, but no more!!

Four years ago, I paid out about $3K per month and that was before I had eaten. How, you ask? Well, $1250 for rent, $900 for my half of a mortgage payment, and $900 in student loan payments. Yep, that’s a whole lot of cash going out the door. It left me with about $500 for the month, and that was to cover food, utilities (I mean, CABLE was a must!!), car repairs, etc. Not to mention that I was also fighting through the stages of unmedicated clinical depression, and add in the turmoil of a marital split after 11 years together, and you don’t get a frugal person. You get someone who doesn’t want to sit home because then that forces you to sit with your thoughts. And who wants to do that when all you feel is guilt, a heavy heart and lots and lots of self doubt? No, you want to go out and shop. Read more →

Getting Rid of my Debt (What # am I up to now?)

Terri
Shhh...the baby is sleeping....
Shhh…the baby is sleeping….

I seriously have lost count. I know I have not been talking about the Debt Killing much lately and that’s because it has slowed down,while my savings has really ramped up. Now that I know I definitely want to move to WA state by September of next year (and possibly as early as August if I get accepted to the Outdoor School I mentioned in my last post), I have figured out how much I need to save to feel comfortable when making the move. I want to have at least 4-6 months living expenses saved up, a scooter (which I estimate will cost me about 2K), and have planned on saving up about $3K for the move. I figure the motor home will cost me probably about $1200 for gas alone, and I’m thinking right now my budget for the motor home purchase will probably be around 10K. I’m not expecting to get the latest model but want something dependable, and I don’t mind putting in some sweat equity to make it my “home” Ii.e. my goal is to make it feel “beachy” by probably painting the walls, and possibly the cabinets depending on what color they are to start with.) Read more →

Getting out of my Debt, Part Umpteen!!

Terri

I don’t even know what number I am up to by now….

Well, folks, I have hit a few milestones. I’m happy to say that FINALLY my private LAL loan has fallen below $16K. The balance on it is now 15,921.62.  That means I have paid off about 25% of the loan since September, because it was over $20,900 at that time!

So here is what the numbers used to be like:

Sept. 2013:

Personal loan: $4,211.42
LAL loan: $20,939.94
Simmons Loan: $23,620.04
Big Daddy (federal) loan: $75,390.94

TOTAL BALANCE: $124,162.34

Here are what the numbers look like now:

June 2014:

Personal loan: GONEEEEEEEEE FINITO, NON-EXISTENT!!!!
LAL loan: $15,921.62
Simmons Loan: $23,620.04
Big Daddy (federal) loan: $75,390.94

TOTAL BALANCE: $114,942.60

DIFFERENCE: $9,219.74 REDUCTION in DEBT!!!!!!!!

In addition to that, I guess I can say it now – I’ve reached the halfway $ mark for my tiny home/motorhome/land fund (whatever it ends up being.)   I admit, sometimes I am tempted to take that balance and throw it all at the LAL loan just so I can see the balance go below 10K sooner than scheduled, but I just need to keep plugging away.

To keep myself inspired this morning, I read through a couple blog posts of people who have really gotten themselves out of debt:

http://www.givemebackmyfivebucks.com/debt-payoff/ (How I wish my amount was as low as hers to start with! It’s all relative, folks…)

Fairy Tales, or How I Paid $200,000 in Student Loan Debt Loan Off in 5 Years

If you haven’t read this guy’s book or blog yet, check out No More Harvard Debt.  Pretty inspiring.

Oh, and another friend sent me this link over the weekend – I love how this guy has been helping very elderly senior citizens get stronger! This is definitely an untapped market in the fitness industry.   The post was called A Chiseled Body Builder, Frail Clients, and A Fitness Story for the Ages.

And in case you  like reading these kind of stories in bulk: People Who Got out of Debt.

What do you do to give yourself a pick me up when you need it? Whether it’s about debt or something else?

If you have liked this post, please hit like or subscribe, and again, if you’re at all familiar with living/traveling through Washington state, please drop me a line below.  (I’ve been looking at personal training programs out there because I just don’t feel like I have enough practical experience to do a good job training people.) Thank you!

 

 

Getting Rid of My Debt, Part 18 (A look back and forward)

Terri
our beautiful view from last night's walk
our beautiful view from last night’s walk

I listen to Dave Ramsey’s radio show a lot and he usually has several people during each show do what they call their “Debt Free Scream!” Sometimes the people travel to Nashville to be able to talk to him and do it in person, and sometimes the people do it via phone. He always talks to them about what was their household income while paying it down, how much was their income, etc. He also always asks the people “what was the hardest thing you had to do during this process?” He also asks them “which bill was it that when you paid off, it felt the best?”

“What was the hardest thing you had to do during this process?”  Usually, the people say one of a few common answers – saying no to going out with friends because the amount had not been figured into The Budget.  Sometimes they answer that the hardest thing was to just keep going when it felt like the debt fight was never going to end.  Now, I don’t do a ton so the first answer isn’t that hard for me. And when my friends and I do get together, well, none of us are made of money so we try to keep cost down. So, it’s not a problem.  But I do understand (completely and more than I would like to) that feeling that the debt fight might never end.

So, this is how I have learned to combat those feelings or at least quiet them momentarily. I look back to my situation a few years ago and compare it to today.

1.  About three years ago, I had roughly $8,000 in credit card debt.  Today, that number is ZERO.

2. About two years ago, I bought a brand new car. With the added warranties and gap insurance, that put me roughly another $20,000 in the hole. Today, that number is ZERO.

3. About last September, my private student loan was almost 21,000. About two or three years ago, it was around $23K. Today, it’s $16,171.82. (My account info on line only goes back about a year so I’m guestimating on this.)

4.  About three and a half years ago, I sat at home over the week between Christmas and New Year’s. I remember that my credit cards were maxed, my checking account had oh, about $20-30 in it, and my grand total of savings was probably about $500.  I remember thinking “this has to be the lowest I can go.” Today, I have more than I had in savings (at our highest point) when married. And that took us a long time to get to our milestone amount as well.

When I add it all up, I figure that I have probably gotten rid of about $32K in debt over the past few years when I add in the brand new car I had taken on and since sold. I used to have a negative net worth. Today, that number is solidly in the positive zone. It’s not a huge number, but it’s something. I’m worth more alive than dead!!!! When I look at the figures like that, I feel better.

Two years ago, I didn’t feel completely fulfilled in my current job but I also didn’t know what I could do instead. Since then, I’ve gotten certified as a personal trainer, and taken and passed a few specialization tests, and am solidly working toward getting a second certification. And the best part? I owe nothing for having taken those exams. They’re all paid off.  A few years ago, I would only have known to bankroll those by using credit cards.

A few years ago, I talked the good talk – about wanting to get out of debt, but still solidly digging myself in more and more month after month.  Now, I actually walk the walk. The credit cards (other than the CareCredit one I have for pet health emergencies) are gone. And, the Care Credit is only used until money can be transferred from my online savings account into my checking to pay it off.

It’s funny how things work out. When I had figured out my bills and savings amounts a few months ago, I knew the only way I could cut expenses any further was to cut my housing costs. And then, I got a roomie, and even though it’s temporary, it’s taught me a few things. One, it’s been nice to have someone else around some times. She’s decided she’s set on getting her GED, so when I see her studying, it makes me want to be a good role model for her.  So, even if I don’t necessarily feel like it, I’ll get out the laptop and start studying or trying to do some freelance work. (And if that fails, yes, I can watch an episode of something, but she knows I’ve worked hard all day, so I’ve still set a good example.) And, while my food costs have gone up with her being there, I will still be able to save a bit more per month than I could before with the additional rent income. So, while it’s been a bit of a transition to get used to having another person in the apartment, it’s not been as big of a change as I expected. We get along pretty well, and we’re both vegetarians, wanting to better our lives. We respect each other’s space and different habits, plus both of us have been sleeping like rocks lately, which is great, since I’m a morning person and she’s a night owl.

Some days/nights, you just feel like things have come together the way they are supposed to. When I saw my little dog Osito basically running because she was so happy to be outside in the crisp air, I just knew last night was one of those times. You don’t question when things are going well, I have learned. Just accept it and go with it!

And that’s what I’m going to do.

If you have liked this post, please leave me a comment below, hit like or subscribe! Thank you!

 

 

 

 

Getting Rid of My Debt, Part 17 (Some Decisions Made)

Terri
Another cute pet photo - HoneyBun and Osito. HoneyBun has recently discovered the softness of Osito's bed. :-)
Another cute pet photo – HoneyBun and Osito. HoneyBun has recently discovered the softness of Osito’s bed. 🙂

Have I mentioned in the past that sometimes I am decision impaired? Well, if not, lol, I am. It can be on something so simple as travel arrangements (will a cheaper flight come around right after I reserve my seats? Is this the right thing to spend my money on? etc., etc.) I’m getting better, though.

The other day, I sat down and figured out that based on my LAL loan balance, which is now, (Drum Roll, Please . . .) $16,721.40, that if I wanted to have it paid off by June 2015, it would cost me roughly $1,306 per month.  I’d been planning on paying $720 on it each month so that’s a big difference in funds. So, this is what I have done to make up for the shortfall.

First decision:

I’ve decreased $ going into my savings accounts from a total of $480/paycheck to $230. There’s a $250 difference per paycheck. Yes, this means that the amount going into my tiny house/land fund each month from my full-time job goes from $400 to $100. But here’s the good news…I just picked up an additional regular shift at the gym, every week. It will bring in about $140ish more to the tiny home/land fund as that is where all the money I earn from that job goes.  (That amount is what I estimate after taxes are taken out.) I literally never see it in my regular checking account. This helps me in a couple ways. (1) I don’t even get the opportunity to spend it elsewhere. (2) If I ever feel tired, I just remind myself where that money is going — i.e. to my future tiny home, or more likely, motorhome, and that’s all the motivation I need to get moving.

Second decision:

I know others may not agree with me on this, but I cut my contributions to my TDA (tax deferred account – in the academic world, it’s known as a 403(b) rather than 401(k)), in half. I was putting $200 in per paycheck and I’ve cut that amount to $100.

I think these two reductions come up to about the $600 dollar difference I needed (I had previously budgeted to pay a total of $720/month on the LAL loan.) So, if all goes well, I will now be paying $1320 on my LAL loan every month in addition to $558 to my federal loans (and yes, folks, that $558 figure is ALL INTEREST.)

While I know this means the tiny house/motorhome fund grows at a slower pace, there is still some freelance work to be done this summer. I don’t know the exact amount yet (still waiting on another chapter), but I know it’s out there. And it’s gonna be FUN! (I say that in all seriousness, because yes, I am a giant dork. That and I already know the topic of the chapter…)

Also, I will have another three paycheck month this year – I believe it falls in November. That will be another month where I put a ton onto the loan balance, if needed. OR, it goes to the tiny home/motorhome fund!

Scheduling Payments/Budgeting:

I have begun tracking my expenses with a free version of the app called DollarBird. (I have an iphone 4S, but it looks like it is also available on Android phones.)  I’ve done the tracking deal in the past but not with so much concentration. And yes, this month has already included some “fun” expenses such as my friend’s 30th birthday celebration. So I’m trying to get a realistic sense of my $ and where it’s going, even more than I already do.

I’m going with Dave Ramsey’s advice as best as I can – writing down before the month starts, how much from my paycheck goes to allotted categories.  His saying is “Every dollar has a name.”  Trying to account for every $ but sometimes it’s hard to estimate things like “how much will I spend that day out with my friend?”

Here’s what I can do though – schedule those extra principal payments to my LAL loan at the beginning of the month. I’ve already scheduled a payment for May 16th, for $400. It feels good to know it’s taken care of before the funds even arrive.  That extra principal payment is just like another bill to me. I don’t question it’s going to be paid.

What do you do to try to get yourself out of debt?

Tangent Alert: I am LOVING training for a marathon again. Granted, I’m in the beginning stages so my mileage is not too high – 20.75 miles total last week and only 16 scheduled for this week, but I started doing some fartlek/speed work yesterday and felt strong and confident. Just keeping the faith that my body can hold out and the exercises I’ve been taught for my back and SI Joint keep working.  Plus, there’s always ice packs! 🙂

If you have liked this post, please drop me a line below, or hit like or subscribe! Seriously, I love comments and interacting with people that way!

Getting Rid of My Debt, Part 16 (Been Thinking)

Terri

So, after my extremely depressing post of yesterday, I got to thinking last night. Whenever I get down in the dumps about my debt, I start to put pen/pencil to paper with my calculator and start doing some figuring of numbers. Yes, I literally mean, pencil to paper. Call me old school or old-fashioned, but it helps to relax me. I like seeing the numbers literally down in black and white in front of me. It’s like they’re more concrete that way, you know?

To make up for the depressingness of yesterday’s post, here’s a cute pet photo of Osito. She sleeps smack dab next to me every night until she wakes up in the middle of the night to empty her tiny bladder. (Hey, she’s 5 pounds soaking wet, so how large can it be??)

I like how she is sticking out her tongue.
I like how she is sticking out her tongue.

 

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Sigh…..

Terri

I know I sounded upbeat yesterday and I really felt it. I even felt upbeat this morning as I thought about how I could really kill my debt. I know….I will take money out of my 403(b) account, and even if I end up paying penalties and taxes, it’ll be worth it to beat that Big Daddy loan to debt! Right!! Right??! Right? (This last one was said with a questioning tone.)

I called Vanguard who handles my 403(b) account, and nope, what I want to do – take out my own money, to pay off my own debt, is not allowed by the plan. I understand the reasons why, but what a way to take the wind out of my sails…

Yes, I was willing to take such desperate measures. As anyone knows who has ever tried to get out of debt, of whatever source, at times, it feels hopeless. Like it’s never going to end. I think to myself, “I’m 41, I’m working 2 jobs plus a freelance job and I still feel like this debt will ALWAYS be hanging over my head. ALWAYS.” If I were to add up all the payments I have made over the years, I would get really depressed. Probably to the point of being catatonic. When you have a loan that was $71K in 2001, and after paying about $500-760 a month on it for years and years and years, and still seeing that it now has a balance of (and I mean, NOW), over $75K, well it gets a bit freaking depressing.

One person has said to me, “well, we all signed the promissory notes and didn’t have guns to our heads.”  Yes, this is true. I just wish I hadn’t been such a moron back then. Or that I would have liked the career enough, on which I spent all that money, to stay in it so I would actually (hopefully) be making a bigger salary that would have allowed me to pay off the loans faster. But you can’t force yourself to love a job which makes you miserable. And you can’t force an employer to pay you more money for a job that requires you to have more degrees than just a lawyer, because it requires less hours. So it’s a tradeoff. I make less money than the big hotshot lawyers, but I have a life. Or at least, I try to. In between working three jobs, that is.

And, I have learned, you can realize you don’t have to do what everyone else does in life just because it’s what you are supposed to do. But you do have to pay back those damn blasted  loans, because guess what? They are the ONLY type of debt you can’t get rid of in bankruptcy. (Thank you, Congress. And thank you, President Obama, for trying to put a cap of $57,000 on the amount of student loans that can be forgiven because of working in a public service position. That’s like a drop in the bucket to most students graduating from school these days. And yes, the jury is still out on whether or not my loans qualify for forgiveness, even after ten years, which wouldn’t be until 2017 anyway.)

Ok, my ranting is done. I know I usually try to be more positive than this. But it’s been a very gray and dreary day out, and the weather forecast is looking like it is much more of the same for the rest of the week. The grayness and cold are just getting old.

Thanks for reading, folks, if you have gotten this far.

Getting Rid of My Debt, Part 15

Terri
Sebastian and Osito. As soon as I picked her up, he moved right over into her space. :-)
Sebastian and Osito. As soon as I picked her up, he moved right over into her space. 🙂

 

Of course this post had to begin with a cute pet photo! I’ve never seen these two be so close to each other!

Been a little bit since I’ve been able to give an update, but I promise this one has been worth waiting for!!

May is the month I’ve been waiting for all year!! Yeah, baby….it’s the first 3 paycheck month of the year! And I have a plan for those extra dollars – they are going to go straight to my private student loan.

Here’s how the debt is looking as of now:

LAL Loan: $17,401.24
Simmons Loan: $23,620.04
Big Daddy (federal) loan: $75,390.94

Total balance: $116.412.22

My last payment on the LAL loan was made on April 16th, for 167.11. That’s my regular monthly payment now. Of that, $151.56 went to principal with just $15.55 going to interest. Before that, I had made a payment of $433 of which $410.31 went to principal and $22.69 went to interest. I remember the days when that loan was nearing 8% and when most of my payment went to interest rather than the other way around.

So what’s my plan? Well, here it is:

Paycheck of 5/2/14: $1133 EXTRA to LAL loan (this includes the usual $433 extra that I pay on the loan, plus $700)

Paycheck of 5/16/14: $130 EXTRA to LAL loan, plus the usual regular payment of $167.11, for a total payment of 297.11 – ok, now that I look at it, I need to make it an even $300, or that’s gonna drive me crazy!

Paycheck of 5/30/14: Let’s say an EXTRA $100 to the student loan.

I want to try to pay more at the end of May, but I know with that paycheck, I’ll be attending a conference in Providence for four days that is held by Perform Better. I need to leave myself money and time to take either the commuter rail or a rental car. It’s looking possible to do, however, with the commuter rail, which will save me a TON of $ over taking a rental car there. It’ll be some long days but that’s ok. It’ll be worth it.

So, that comes to a grand total of $1533 to be paid on the loan this upcoming month of May. WOW. I sure hope I can turn that into a reality. That would definitely bring my loan down into the $15K range – woohoo! Not bad considering it was almost $21K back in September, and in the meantime, I’ve really increased my savings and also paid off a personal loan of about $4200.  (See the numbers below.)

Sept. 2013:

Personal loan: $4,211.42
LAL loan: $20,939.94
Simmons Loan: $23,620.04
Big Daddy (federal) loan: $75,390.94

TOTAL BALANCE: $124,162.34

Just think – it might be  more than $10,000 of debt I’ll have paid off in about 9 months if I can do this!! And saved more than I have ever saved before. The work is paying off. I’m proud to say that as of now, I have more saved than I ever had saved before, even when I was married. 🙂 [Of course, some of it is being saved for next year’s taxes for my freelance work, but hey, let me revel in this goal, ok?!)

Wow. I just reread this post and thought about it. I have spent more in the past month than normal, due to my friend being in town for the marathon, and having bought some new sneakers (the beautiful Hoka One Ones Bondi model), plus I have bought some sports nutrition products through a company called Vega. The products are all plant-based, so I’ll let you know how they work out. Just part of the marathon training program.

I’ll give everyone an update once these payments hit the loan account and I can see how  much goes to principal vs. interest, etc.

DIE, LAL Loan, DIE!!!  (Picture me saying this while brandishing a sledgehammer!!)

Anyway, if you have liked this post, please hit “like” below or subscribe, and thanks for reading!

 

 

 

Getting Rid of My Debt, Part 15 (Gaining Some Perspective on Looking Forward by Looking Back)

Terri

Yesterday, I had a few good talks with people whose opinion I trust. One is a friend who has known me for about 10 years now, and she’s always been one to tell me straight on things. She doesn’t sugar coat things, and that’s one thing I really like about her. I asked her if I was thinking about things in the wrong order – looking online at RVs and tiny houses, trying to figure out where to live, etc., without finding a job in those locations first. She thinks I’m narrowing my options down too early and also, most importantly, that she didn’t want me to give up on my dreams of a tiny house, or as she put it “half ass my goals.” And I respect her for that. She fears that RVs just are not meant for longevity, living-wise.

Then I talked to my financial adviser tonight.  I really looked forward to this meeting – what a change from a few years ago when I used to be depressed at my situation.

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