Very little progress on my balances so far, since I haven't been paid since I started this blog, but I wanted to shoot out an update on adjustments I'm making and actions I'm taking.
So far, I have done a pretty good job of not spending over my lunch budget of $10 per day. Some days I brought lunch or had lunch at home, but I have to admit I went a few cents over $10 twice: once on build-your-own nachos day, and another day for a sushi roll and cotton candy grapes. And if you haven't heard of cotton candy grapes yet, just know... they're real, and they're spectacular!
This past weekend, I began my clothing purge. I processed all the hanging items in the closet. I still have to process the shelving unit, the "catch-all" basket, the long shelf at the top of the closet, my coats downstairs, and my accessories and shoes. This felt like an overwhelming task at first, but once I split it into several small tasks, it was a cinch! Here is my process, if anyone needs ideas for a starting point.
Clothing Purge Process:
1. Organize everything into segments
a. New-ish, don't like, doesn't fit, sellable
b. Definitely keeping
c. Need to try on (here I split them by strapped or strapless, since underclothes matter!)
d. Worn, trashable
2. Toss or donate pile D.
3. Try everything on in pile C and relegate to piles A & B accordingly.
4. Put away pile B.
5. Pack pile A into containers for transport to sell or donate.
On the plus side, now that I'm about to be 30, my car insurance decreased by almost $20/month! Also, I discovered this week that I have been paying an extra $4 per month on car insurance, needlessly! I use Geico, who by and large have the best rates for my specific situation, however I have been spending $4 a month on a "processing fee" by charging the automatic payments to my bank card as opposed to my bank account. If you are making automatic payments on anything, I strongly suggest checking for these types of fees on cards vs. EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer.) You may be paying too much!
As far as credit card maintenance, I have a few irons in the fire. First, I have asked for and received a $500 increase on my American Express card. I won't be utilizing it, but since I am using a very high percentage of my credit limit, I asked for them to raise my limit which would therefore decrease my percentage of usage. I have linked my American Express Points to my Amazon account so I have a few extra dollars for my next Amazon purchase (which, let's face it, there will always be one.) I also use Bing Rewards for websurfing, and have linked my reward points to Amazon gift cards. Granted, I am letting SkyNet stalk me with permission, but from these two things alone, so far I have $16.78 to use at Amazon next time I shop! I am planning to get the next Danganronpa game in September, after all...
I'm also attempting a little experiment with my Discover card. Discover IT has an amazing cashback program, and so far I have reduced my bill by about $8 with the cashback I have received. Since there is cashback on every dollar spent, and extra cashback on certain categories at certain times, I will be utilizing the card for those categories, and to pay all of my bills where applicable (and where processing fees don't apply!) Obviously, this comes with the caveat of calculating the amount spent + the minimum payment, and making these payments biweekly as opposed to the minimum biweekly. Since it is the same amount of money, this shouldn't really affect anything other than the timing of when my bank account is debited. Then of course, I will use the cashback I've earned towards making my payments.
I will let you all know how it goes!
M
So far, I have done a pretty good job of not spending over my lunch budget of $10 per day. Some days I brought lunch or had lunch at home, but I have to admit I went a few cents over $10 twice: once on build-your-own nachos day, and another day for a sushi roll and cotton candy grapes. And if you haven't heard of cotton candy grapes yet, just know... they're real, and they're spectacular!
This past weekend, I began my clothing purge. I processed all the hanging items in the closet. I still have to process the shelving unit, the "catch-all" basket, the long shelf at the top of the closet, my coats downstairs, and my accessories and shoes. This felt like an overwhelming task at first, but once I split it into several small tasks, it was a cinch! Here is my process, if anyone needs ideas for a starting point.
Clothing Purge Process:
1. Organize everything into segments
a. New-ish, don't like, doesn't fit, sellable
b. Definitely keeping
c. Need to try on (here I split them by strapped or strapless, since underclothes matter!)
d. Worn, trashable
2. Toss or donate pile D.
3. Try everything on in pile C and relegate to piles A & B accordingly.
4. Put away pile B.
5. Pack pile A into containers for transport to sell or donate.
On the plus side, now that I'm about to be 30, my car insurance decreased by almost $20/month! Also, I discovered this week that I have been paying an extra $4 per month on car insurance, needlessly! I use Geico, who by and large have the best rates for my specific situation, however I have been spending $4 a month on a "processing fee" by charging the automatic payments to my bank card as opposed to my bank account. If you are making automatic payments on anything, I strongly suggest checking for these types of fees on cards vs. EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer.) You may be paying too much!
As far as credit card maintenance, I have a few irons in the fire. First, I have asked for and received a $500 increase on my American Express card. I won't be utilizing it, but since I am using a very high percentage of my credit limit, I asked for them to raise my limit which would therefore decrease my percentage of usage. I have linked my American Express Points to my Amazon account so I have a few extra dollars for my next Amazon purchase (which, let's face it, there will always be one.) I also use Bing Rewards for websurfing, and have linked my reward points to Amazon gift cards. Granted, I am letting SkyNet stalk me with permission, but from these two things alone, so far I have $16.78 to use at Amazon next time I shop! I am planning to get the next Danganronpa game in September, after all...
I'm also attempting a little experiment with my Discover card. Discover IT has an amazing cashback program, and so far I have reduced my bill by about $8 with the cashback I have received. Since there is cashback on every dollar spent, and extra cashback on certain categories at certain times, I will be utilizing the card for those categories, and to pay all of my bills where applicable (and where processing fees don't apply!) Obviously, this comes with the caveat of calculating the amount spent + the minimum payment, and making these payments biweekly as opposed to the minimum biweekly. Since it is the same amount of money, this shouldn't really affect anything other than the timing of when my bank account is debited. Then of course, I will use the cashback I've earned towards making my payments.
I will let you all know how it goes!
M
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