Thursday, July 13, 2006
Money
I'm not good with money. I'm the first to admit that. The funniest part of being a not-good-with-money-person is that I don't really have a lot of "stuff." I mean, sure, I have stuff. My house is full of stuff, but when I compare myself to my friends, I'm living fairly lean. I don't have a DVD collection numbering in the thousands, 5 million CD's of every different music genre, and I own exactly three pieces of furniture that I purchased from a store. Everything in my house is a hand-me-down of some sort; from the dishes in my cabinets to the 15 year old glasses, broken desks, sunken-in mattress and table with the peeling paint, everything once lived somewhere else. For the most part, I'm okay with having "used" stuff--I even kind of like it. The point is, I'm not quite sure how I turned into the near financial disaster that I have by not accumulating a lot of material possessions. I guess you could say I'm more of an experiences person. I'm the one who's always going somewhere or doing something. I'm the one who sees every show she desires as many times as she desires. I'm the one who'd rather take a trip than pay her rent---and has.
My mom tells me that part of the reason I struggle financially is because I put too much pressure on myself. That I see people at work who have nice houses full of Pottery Barn furniture and Crate and Barrel window decorations (and I do). These are the kind of people who take week-long cruises to Alaska and the Caribbean, who pay for their families to come for Christmas and Easter and who are seen at every major benefit gala and premiere event in the city. I think I have to have the same, do the same, be the same, but the simple fact is that I've only been gainfully employed for four years; I need to cut myself some slack and give myself some time to catch up to everyone around me. Perhaps she's right, but it's still tough to deal with at times.
The one thing I own, which is also the biggest liability, is my car. I'm fickle when it comes to cars. I tire of them quickly and always want a shiny, bright, new-car-smell kind of a car. I've had my current vehicle for about four years and it's about all I've been able to do lately to convince myself that getting a different car is not the smartest thing I could do. Sure, my payment is high, but it's nearly paid off. Should I not just keep it and drive a car with a $0 monthly obligation? I say, "yes" and that's why I think I've successfully convinced myself to hold off for awhile.
The point of all this is that I've spent the last three-ish hours analyzing my credit reports from the three big bureaus by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com. Colorado residents are legally entitled to a free report annually from each bureau, which I've rarely taken advantage of. I decided it was high time I whip myself into some financial shape and used these reports to get to know myself a little better. I've transferred balances from credit cards with obscenely high rates to ones with lower ones. I've paid bills to date and looked into refinancing my car to get a lower monthly payment. For the first time in years I feel motivated and positive about my financial future. I'm not sure where all this came from, why it suddenly bubbled to the surface, but it has and I'm ready to face the problem head-on and find solutions that make sense and cents.
My mom tells me that part of the reason I struggle financially is because I put too much pressure on myself. That I see people at work who have nice houses full of Pottery Barn furniture and Crate and Barrel window decorations (and I do). These are the kind of people who take week-long cruises to Alaska and the Caribbean, who pay for their families to come for Christmas and Easter and who are seen at every major benefit gala and premiere event in the city. I think I have to have the same, do the same, be the same, but the simple fact is that I've only been gainfully employed for four years; I need to cut myself some slack and give myself some time to catch up to everyone around me. Perhaps she's right, but it's still tough to deal with at times.
The one thing I own, which is also the biggest liability, is my car. I'm fickle when it comes to cars. I tire of them quickly and always want a shiny, bright, new-car-smell kind of a car. I've had my current vehicle for about four years and it's about all I've been able to do lately to convince myself that getting a different car is not the smartest thing I could do. Sure, my payment is high, but it's nearly paid off. Should I not just keep it and drive a car with a $0 monthly obligation? I say, "yes" and that's why I think I've successfully convinced myself to hold off for awhile.
The point of all this is that I've spent the last three-ish hours analyzing my credit reports from the three big bureaus by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com. Colorado residents are legally entitled to a free report annually from each bureau, which I've rarely taken advantage of. I decided it was high time I whip myself into some financial shape and used these reports to get to know myself a little better. I've transferred balances from credit cards with obscenely high rates to ones with lower ones. I've paid bills to date and looked into refinancing my car to get a lower monthly payment. For the first time in years I feel motivated and positive about my financial future. I'm not sure where all this came from, why it suddenly bubbled to the surface, but it has and I'm ready to face the problem head-on and find solutions that make sense and cents.
# posted by Molly @ 9:28 PM 
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