I’m trying to get a handle on my finances. I fucking had a concentration in Finance in b-school, but I can’t seem to get my own personal finances in order. I always over-spend, blow the budget, blah, blah, blah.
These are the few things I have going for me: 1) I max out my 401K, 2) I always pay my credit cards in full, and 3) I don’t rent, I own. And when I say ‘I own,’ I actually have some equity in my tiny little condo instead of those American homeowners out there who are on the brink of foreclosure. I guess the point is…I’m just not saving enough–or at least, not as much as I want to.
So today I went through my statements and tried to figure out what is going on. I flagged anything over $100.
$230 for towing (not including the extra $60 for the ticket)
$250 for Hillary
$330 for my dentist who sealed gaps in my mouth with bonding glue due to receding gums (that’s what I had to pay out of pocket even though my insurance covered 85% of it!)
$105 for the ballet
$250 for patent leather heels with the patented Nike Air technology built in (I only have one other pair of work shoes.)
$185 for new glasses (even subtracting out $200 my insurance covers for a new pair)
$100 at Anthropologie (I love that store.)
$150 at the Calvin Tran boutique (I wear the blouse once a week; it’s cute!)
The above expenses are over the course of two billing cycles, but still. I lead an expensive lifestyle!
I whined to Marc tonight, “God, I spend so much money. I mean, seriously, $330 at the dentist when I have insurance? That’s ridiculous.”
He sympathized. “I just spent $600 for a mouth guard and $500 for new brakes on my car.”
“Marc, we make good money. Like really good money.” I looked at him, eyes wide.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he laughed, reading my mind. “How do other people do it? Catchy, they’re sitting at home with their five kids and their fat spouse, eating Hamburger Helper. We’re at Bacar drinking $15 glasses of wine, and we’re drinking 3-4 glasses a night. And it’s a fucking Monday night. It ain’t even the weekend, honey.”
But I’m on a rampage to cut costs. So during this Holy Week, I’ll be reassessing my finances and making changes. Let me know if you have any tips. I gotta stop the drinking. I’d be so rich.
don’t you put money into a health spending account? that could be used towards your prescriptions, almost all over the counter drugs, doctors fees, possibly even your glasses, etc. Its tax free money to spend on money you’d probably spend anyways.
ahh, good point!!! i will have to do that this year during open enrollment.