October Goals

As this is my first month with this blog, and with my newfound sense of stick-to-it-ness regarding paying down debt, I have only two goals this month (they're pretty big ones though):

1.  Track spending...that is, any and all spending.
2.  Stick to my budget. 

I use my debit card almost exclusively and don't carry cash, so hopefully tracking spending won't be terribly difficult.  Sticking to my budget could be more difficult, but I think I can do it.  :)

Each week I'll update on spending and no-spend days.  At the end of each two week pay cycle, I will update my budget to get an idea of how well I'm sticking to it.  And finally, at the end of the month, I'll do a quick overview and update my debt numbers.  Hopefully, as I get more comfortable with all this blogging, budgeting and paying down debt, I can add other fun little goals to keep me going!!

I got paid today, but I'll start these goals tomorrow, October 1st (I like starting things on Mondays or at the beginning of a month.  Maybe that's just me).  Wish me luck! 

The Basics

So...budgeting.  I receive a paycheck every two weeks, about $1,280 after taxes, health insurance, and the state's retirement plan.  Two months out of the year, I receive three paychecks.  But basically, I budget my bills for every two weeks.  I have some side income but that is very sporadic and I don't like to depend on it in my budgeting - any extra will just have to go towards debt.  I do share living expenses with my BF - but here is an idea of what the budget is for my portion of bills in a month:

Paycheck #1
Rent  $418
Student Loan #1 $50
Credit card #2   $100
Student Loan #2   $130.11
Savings  $10
Groceries  $100
Water  $35 est.
Carpool  $100 est.
Natural Gas  $20 est.
Credit card #1  $150 est.
Misc. Living Expenses  $80
Phone $78  (I forgot to include this expense the first time around, however, it's always been in my budget!)

Paycheck #2
Credit card #3   $50
Insurance (Car, renters)  $60
Credit card #4  $320 est.
Electricity  $35 est.
Cable/Internet  $40 est.
Student Loan #3  $216.61
Student Loan #2  $130.11
Savings  $10
Gym  $21.77
Groceries  $100
Credit card #1  $215 est.
Misc. Living Expenses  $80

I know it's probably really confusing with all the student loans and credit cards but this has worked for me for quite a while.  But here are some explanations anyway...
Student Loans:
One of my student loans is large enough that I have to break it up between the paychecks.  It just changed to a higher amount because its calculated using the amount of my income, and since my income increased when I got my permanent job, so did my student loan payment.  However, if I make that payment amount for ten years (seems like forever), the government will forgive the remainder of my loan because I work in a public service field.
Misc. Living Expenses
This amount is very small, but sadly it will have to cover gas for my car, and any entertainment or eating out. 
But...if I take my carpool as much as possible and bring my lunch as much as possible, it should work.  Speaking of my carpool, it's a van that goes from my town to the next town over and I pay a monthly fee, depending on the gas prices, the amount of miles it ran that month and however many permanent riders we happen to have that month to split the cost.  It's very cost-effective...if you use it - otherwise, you're paying for the van AND paying gas for your car and tolls on the highway.  Then...transporation expenses are out of control.
Estimations
Some of my budgeted amounts are just estimations, and any extra I have leftover will go towards debt (or fun, depending on how burnt out I'm getting).
And finally, in the next couple of weeks, I'll have some extra money coming in from the BF for his half of purchases we made for our new dog (a stray we just couldn't leave all by himself), and that money will be applied towards debt since I made those purchases on my dang credit card before I decided to stop using my card.  (Oopsies!)
So there you have it, my budget.  I think I've made the explanation way more complicated that it needed to be..haha!. :)

Introductions are in order...

Here I am...I've been a long time creeper on other personal finance blogs, but never had the courage to create one for myself.  I've struggled with my debt, having good months, weeks, days and bad ones.  But it seems I don't make any progress.  I hear over and over again about how having a blog holds you accountable to yourself and others in the PF community, and gives you the incentive to stick to your budget, pay down debt and make actual, honest-to-God progress.  Yes!  Sign me up!

Here I am...I'm thirty-two, and in a whole heap of debt.  I went to law school a bit later in life, so I'm still new in my legal career, working in a public service field.  Translation:  I don't make a lot of money.  The good news is I went into the law school completely debt-free.  No credit cards, no car loan, no student loans from my undergrad degree. I had minimal savings at that point, but I figured, heck, that's what student loans are for!  And oh my, did I rack up student loans....and credit card debt.  I should've been smarter.  I should've lived within my measly student means.  But I didn't.

Next came graduation, and the bar exam, and no job right off the bat.  Then came a crappy job that paid very little.  When I finally got a decently paying (for my field), steady job that I loved, my credit card debt was crazy.   I would pay some down and then Bam!  Something would come up that would cause me to say, "What the heck, I'll just put it on my credit card." 

Well....that stops NOW.  My debt is so out of control, I think I've developed a bit of debt madness....kinda like "cabin fever," but more like the absolutely frustrating feeling you get when you're working really hard but not making ANY progress. 

Here I am...this blog will be dedicated to breaking free of those (debt) shackles and doing what I want with my money...not sending it all to those stupid credit cards.