My eyes are terrible. Now granted I can still drive without glasses (even according to the DMV test you take when you renew your license.) But I rarely do. And forget seeing anything on my phone, a book, or my computer screen. I literally went into a panic when my glasses broke earlier this year and I had no money. With all our prescriptions well past expiration, and my recent panic moment about my glasses. I knew that getting an eye exam was a priority for me. And it turns out it was for both my daughters as well. Yes, we all NEED glasses, but only I need, need them. They can function without ..read more

Some of you will remember last fall when I was trying out different sites to earn cash. Doing surveys and various other online tasks to see which legitimately paid. In most all cases, I determined that they are not worth my time. However, one of my finds did stick during that journey. Stash <-not an affiliate link touts itself as an Investing App for Beginners. So you know that is perfect for me. I signed up last fall and began invest $5 a week. It truly was a decision driven by the opportunity to earn $75 for trying it out. (And yes, I did get paid that amount after my first 30 days.) As o ..read more

“Elevated” business casual is the description my boss gave me this week when he spoke to me about my clothes since the weather has turned warmer. (Via a text message.) And I had to agree that my “summer” wardrobe for work is lacking. The colder months were fine as I have a good 4-5 sweaters that I just rotate through. And I have 4 pairs of the same pair of slacks that I rotate through. But shirts…well, I’ve lived in tank tops the last several years. And tank tops are not acceptable, which I concur, in a fast food restaurant. I’ve been on the hunt for a short sleeve shawl of some sort so that I ..read more

Today I thought I’d share how my somatic therapy experience is affecting my approach to finances. First, I just want to say how much I enjoyed Ashley’s latest post, which has inspired this reflection I’m writing! Although I haven’t watched the documentary she mentioned yet, I think her summary touched on a lot of the economic uncertainties that have given me financial anxiety over the years. There is a lot in the finance world that can’t be guaranteed. I just watched a great talk by Denise Hearn in which she mentioned that economics is one of the most imprecise and complex sciences. The lack ..read more

I am sure you are tired of hearing me complain about yard work. Frankly, I am tired of it too. And I haven’t even started. So I decided to start making my lawn, less of a lawn. Lower maintenance. More edible. And that’s started… I’ve imagined up and drawn out a backyard design that includes lots of plants native to Georgia, multiple areas with standing garden beds and pathways with pavers. Why Native Plants Native plants do not require fertilizers. Native plants require fewer pesticides than lawns. Native plants require less water than lawns. Native plants help reduce air pollution by eli ..read more

books on wooden deck tabletop It’s funny that my last post was about investing. Today’s post is almost the antithesis of that! One of my relatives (extended family) is inheriting a large sum of money. A larger sum than I’ve ever seen in my life! It got my husband and I talking about what we would ever do if we were to inherit substantial wealth. For the record, I am not planning on receiving any substantial inheritance from either side of our families. This was more a fun thought experiment, like if you were to daydream about winning the lottery. A friend was there for this part of our conve ..read more

Previously, I indicated that I had no plans to travel again until November. And then I’m planning to drive to Texas with one if not both of my daughters for Thanksgiving. Well, I lied. Or rather, this wasn’t my idea. And I’m not paying for it (just so we are clear from the beginning.) Last weekend, a friend and I drive to Charlotte (just under 3 hour drive from me) for a Tiny House Exhibition at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. It was super cool. There were a couple of dozen of conversion vans, skoolies, and tiny houses to explore. It definitely got my mind a-whirling with ideas. It was sooo ..read more

Lessons I learned the last two months as I’ve started receiving income again: Paying everything at the beginning of the month can leave you struggling at the end of the month. Even with money coming in regularly, it feels much better to have a buffer in your checking account and at least a small emergency fund. After a year in “starvation” mode, even a little splurge right now feels too much. Overall, April has been a great month financially. (You can see last month’s debt update here.) Debt Description October, 2023 Total Interest Rate Minimum Payment Current Total Payoff Date (Est ..read more

Recently my partner and I have been in spring cleaning and home maintenance mode. We’ve had some nicer weather the past few weeks and the black flies haven’t come out yet, so we’ve been doing lots of yard maintenance. We finally managed to mulch the flower garden in front of our house, which we planned to do last year but never got around to. We had the mulch and the time, but we just couldn’t get our butts in gear! Motivation used to be a problem for us, especially when it came to house projects. So I’m pretty proud we’ve managed to get the house in such good shape even though we’ve been rea ..read more

A few months ago, a friend sent me some money they owed me via CashApp. I had to download the app specifically to receive the money, because it’s the only cash-sending app my friend had (I already had Zelle and Venmo but my friend didn’t have either of those). Then a funny thing happened. The money just sat there. I never took the time to hook up CashApp to my bank, so there was no way to “cash out” the funds. It wasn’t a huge sum of money, and I didn’t immediately need it, so it just continued to sit in CashApp, untouched. Investment Options with CashApp Until just about a week ago… I logged ..read more