Hopefully the following story will be somewhat inspiring to someone out there:
I am having a good day. For those who have been following along, you know that I have embarked on an uber-aggressive debt-killing plan. I calculated, to the day, how long it would take me to be free from owing anyone any money. Well over the last 3 months, I've been sitcking to the plan and then some -- my friends think I'm a cheapskate, I rarely eat out, have a fairly welfare-esque lifestyle, and I spend a lot of time playing video games (they are the best form of entertainment in terms of money -- $50 for a 30-hour game beats $9 for a 2-hour movie anyday).
In addition, I cut a few things out of my life that weren't costing me much from day to day -- but when added up over the course of a year -- well think about it:
Daily cup of coffee + tip: $2.00
In a week: $14.00
In a year: $730.00
Seven hundred thirty bucks a year -- for coffee in the morning.
So I bought a grinder: $20
And a french press: $30
Free coffee beans from work: FREE
Lots of money saved
Also, I sold my car for $100. While a hundred bucks may not seem like much, the real advantage is that I now save $50 each month on parking.
Or in a year: $600
I make approxamately $15 in pennies each month.
Or in a year: $180
I stopped changing my razor blade each week. Now I change it every six weeks. It's a bit painful toward the end -- but no major lacerations yet. Cost of an 8-pack of Mach 3 Turbo blades: $20. So I WAS spending $130 a year on razor blades. Now I spend just under $22.
Money saved on razor blades in a year: $108
Food from work: FREE
Safeway deal -- 2-pack of Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Peanut Butter Toast Crunch with a half gallon of milk: $3.99
Cup o' Noodles: 3/$1
Mileena's Pepperoni Pizza Each Friday(I know you guys are sick of me hawking this one, but c'mon -- It's so cheap!) $6
Total Weekly Grocery bill: about $13
I have a friend that works in the UVillage -- she is going to get me a 4-month bus pass for $20. Total annual cost: $60
Right now I pay: $1.25 times 5 days/week times 52 weeks/year = $325
Money that I'll be saving on bus fare annually: $265
I decided to pick up a coupla math students. I meet with them for an hour apiece once a week.
2 times $28/hour times 18 weeks until summer = $1008 cash monneeey!!!!!
Tax refund: $498
***
So today I decided to recalculate my debt -- you know, to see if I was on track or not. Keep in mind that, with the exceptions of the coffee and the car, I didn't take any of the above things into account, since naturally things CAN go wrong. But even with my somewhat conservative estimates for the future, I realized that I've made enough progress in three months to be able to do the following:
*** 470 days remain ***
becomes.....
*** 358 DAYS REMAIN ***
No tricks, no red tape, just some serious committment and creatvity. Debt sucks big time -- and the sooner I'm out, the better. That's when I can start thinking about what I really want out of life. You can do the same, I bet.
Edited to add:
couch pee = zot
I am having a good day. For those who have been following along, you know that I have embarked on an uber-aggressive debt-killing plan. I calculated, to the day, how long it would take me to be free from owing anyone any money. Well over the last 3 months, I've been sitcking to the plan and then some -- my friends think I'm a cheapskate, I rarely eat out, have a fairly welfare-esque lifestyle, and I spend a lot of time playing video games (they are the best form of entertainment in terms of money -- $50 for a 30-hour game beats $9 for a 2-hour movie anyday).
In addition, I cut a few things out of my life that weren't costing me much from day to day -- but when added up over the course of a year -- well think about it:
Daily cup of coffee + tip: $2.00
In a week: $14.00
In a year: $730.00
Seven hundred thirty bucks a year -- for coffee in the morning.
So I bought a grinder: $20
And a french press: $30
Free coffee beans from work: FREE
Lots of money saved
Also, I sold my car for $100. While a hundred bucks may not seem like much, the real advantage is that I now save $50 each month on parking.
Or in a year: $600
I make approxamately $15 in pennies each month.
Or in a year: $180
I stopped changing my razor blade each week. Now I change it every six weeks. It's a bit painful toward the end -- but no major lacerations yet. Cost of an 8-pack of Mach 3 Turbo blades: $20. So I WAS spending $130 a year on razor blades. Now I spend just under $22.
Money saved on razor blades in a year: $108
Food from work: FREE
Safeway deal -- 2-pack of Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Peanut Butter Toast Crunch with a half gallon of milk: $3.99
Cup o' Noodles: 3/$1
Mileena's Pepperoni Pizza Each Friday(I know you guys are sick of me hawking this one, but c'mon -- It's so cheap!) $6
Total Weekly Grocery bill: about $13
I have a friend that works in the UVillage -- she is going to get me a 4-month bus pass for $20. Total annual cost: $60
Right now I pay: $1.25 times 5 days/week times 52 weeks/year = $325
Money that I'll be saving on bus fare annually: $265
I decided to pick up a coupla math students. I meet with them for an hour apiece once a week.
2 times $28/hour times 18 weeks until summer = $1008 cash monneeey!!!!!
Tax refund: $498
***
So today I decided to recalculate my debt -- you know, to see if I was on track or not. Keep in mind that, with the exceptions of the coffee and the car, I didn't take any of the above things into account, since naturally things CAN go wrong. But even with my somewhat conservative estimates for the future, I realized that I've made enough progress in three months to be able to do the following:
*** 470 days remain ***
becomes.....
*** 358 DAYS REMAIN ***
No tricks, no red tape, just some serious committment and creatvity. Debt sucks big time -- and the sooner I'm out, the better. That's when I can start thinking about what I really want out of life. You can do the same, I bet.
Edited to add:
couch pee = zot
VIEW 21 of 21 COMMENTS
The people on Crown Hill are cool, though. Especially once they realize you're smarter than the frat boys and white trash that go through there.