Updates

The e-fund bar has been updated to reflect my 2009 savings goal.

A raise of 4% is right around the corner somewhere.

I am silently praying that Uncle Sam and his bastard child NY State have mercy on me next year.

Paying in cash feels good, walking around with change doesn't.

I am tired of hearing about the Black Friday 2 phenomenon, a.k.a the day after Christmas sale. I have no money to spend anyways, so it does not matter. ( Is it really a phenomenon if it is just made up media hype?)

Gas is now $1.84 per gallon in my area.

Looking around my apartment I realize that I started to accumulate 'stuff'. I will now have to really assess each purchase.

Money Saving Tip

Ladies please take inventory of all beauty products before heading out to the store. You will be surprised to find that you are not running low on supplies as you thought.

Tonight I was bored and decided to take inventory. There are too many half done bottles of products to count. Bath and Body Works will not be getting my money in the after Christmas sale like I planned.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all

2009 Goals

There are only 2 goals for 2009.

1. Add $3,000 to the e-fund bringing the balance to $5,000.

2. Pay off the final balance on my credit card debt.

If I can accomplish these goals within the first half of the year, the rest of the year will be smooth sailing.

I am ending 2008 with over $2,000 in the bank and a few thousand dollars less in credit card debt. Not too shabby.

Now time to look forward to the tax man.

Secret Millionaire on Fox

Did anyone else catch this show? What are your thoughts?

The show is basically millionaires who are sent to live for one week with regular struggling people. At the end of the week they decide who to give away $100,000 to.

Savings Update Side Bar

The savings bar has been updated. I've finally reached and surpassed my $2,000 mark.

Yipeeeee!!!

Gas is $2.29 per gallon in my area

Green Cleaning Products

In an effort to be green, I've started using cleaning products with less chemicals. Starting with my bathroom I am trying out J.R. Watkins Natural Home Care line. It is available at Target. The cleaners are plant based, and the price is comparable to the other cleaners I've bought in the past.

Lay Off Plan

In the unfortunate even that I am laid off in the future, here are a few things I plan on doing to survive:

Ditch the car. It will be sold to the buyer with the best offer.
This eliminates the car and insurance payments.

Break my lease and stay with a family member. This plan has been talked about with said family member, and I have 6 months rent FREE.

After 6 months and nothings happens, I would have to suck it up and move to Florida to be with mom and dad. (This plan is a last resort, I will be homeless with absolutely no income plan.)

Increase hours at the part-time gig. I would have more time to work extra hours.

Downgrade cellphone to the most basic plan AT&T has.

Place student loans in the back burner until a full time job is in hand.

All of the above will be done while pounding the pavement everyday looking for work.

New York City Mayor announces layoffs

Mayor Bloomberg this week announced layoffs as part of the plan to balance the budget. I am a tad bit nervous. From what I know it does not affect me, at least not yet. Time to buckle down even more.

I am coming up with a layoff plan.

Anyone has a back up plan in case they are laid off?

Cable TV and High Speed Internet ..Gone!!

I called the cable company and disconnected. I thought these were items I could not live without. However, with working two jobs I spend so much time outside as it is. The resulting savings is almost $100 per month. This is nothing to sneeze at.

I am still looking at 'fixed' expenses to see what else I can eliminate or lower.

The Grinch that stole Christmas???

The economy.

There will be alot less gift giving this year.

Food Prices Still High

The price of groceries supposedly went up because of the increased gas prices, so now what?
I went grocery shopping today. Hello food people, the prices are still sky high. A gallon of gas in my area has gone down tremendously in the past few weeks. It is now $2.85 per gallon.

When does the price of food come down?

Holiday Jobs

For those looking to get out of debt, now is the time to look at holiday jobs. Hiring will not be as robust as previous years, however the extra income will go a long way to getting rid of debt.
Look at your favorite retailers (but don't spend your check as soon as you get it) and online sites such as hotjobs, and monster. Also, look in your local papers for ads for seasonal hiring.

Kiddie Spa! $20 pedicure

Apparently the economy is not all that bad.

Click here for the article on a Brooklyn kiddie spa that charges $20 for a pedicure.

Suze Orman on Oprah today

'Stop living a lie'.

Powerful words.

College Students turning to food banks for help

Click here to read the story.

This is new to me. I thought all broke college students survived on ramen noodles, stale pizza and hot dogs. I know I did.

Things at the part-time gig are bad. Sales are down considerably. The hours are less and hence my paychecks are less. In spite of all this I am not worried. Why? I have a small savings cushion. It gives me peace of mind. I am even more aggressively paying off debt, revising my goals and forging ahead.

My Wamu taken over by Chase

As of September 25th I am now a Chase customer. Now is the right time to close my wamu account and stick with the credit union and ING only. I've had the wamu account for so long, that I just kept it open. Now they have been acquired by Chase it is only a matter of time before the free checking and all that is gone. Chase does not do free without strings attached.