But I thought it would be fun to share a “nice to have” wish list. These are smaller, though not small, things I daydream about that I won’t necessarily buy (some of them I might). I’d love to have all of them if my resources were unlimited.

1. My own washer and dryer. Seriously. 14 years of pay-as-you-shrink-everything will drive you nuts.
2. A new racing bike. I’d get a tri bike. Mine is a hand-me-down road bike that I got for free. It’s fine but it’s a little small for me. I’d like a brand new one that’s sized for me.
• And while we’re on it, I’d also like pedals with the clips and clip-in shoes for my bike.
3. A wetsuit. For swimming in races and Lake Michigan. I have borrowed one for free in the past, and will probably rent one for my race in June. Too hard to store one in my place, though.
4. An iPad. I’ve been entering every drawing for one that I can, but all I get is more junk email. Darn. Can’t quite commit to another gadget right now, but I think this would vastly simplify my commuting life.
5.  A dog. A big one. One that will be my running buddy. Again, space issue. But so is my work life with this one.
6. A TempurPedic mattress. My brother has one. It’s the bomb. I’m sure it would make my hips happy.
7. New glasses. The last time I saw my eye doc, I got new lenses in an old pair to save money. I’m ready for new ones at my next appointment.
8. A new iPod. I forgot about this in my excitement about the iPad. My iPod is completely broken, nothing shows up on the screen anymore. I’ve been running to Pandora on Blackberry but the service cuts out way too often.
9. A new suit. Mine are getting pretty old.
10. Ear plugs. As I am typing this, a woman on the level below mine on the train is yelling so loud into her phone that it’s hard for me to think. I always forget these at the store, but am reminded of their use nearly every day!

So that’s my selfish little list. What’s on yours?

The post A Selfish Little Wish List appeared first on The Budgeting Babe.

• I’m glad I learned how to manage a budget. When I was broke in college, I didn’t follow a budget. I just spent what I earned, and paid no mind to savings or my loans. My minuscule income was spent as it came in, sometimes for critical items like ramen noodles and soap, and other times on frivolous items like cheap new shoes and make-up for an upcoming date party. It didn’t matter where these items came from or who sold them, it just mattered that I could get them cheaply when it mattered. I ended up with a bunch of crap I didn’t need, and when I graduated I had no savings and a ton of debt. Learning how to manage my budget changed my life for the better. 

Friends let friends talk finances through life stages.

• I’m glad I learned that keeping up with my friends doesn’t matter. Different people value different things. Some people value cars and homes, some value family, some value experiences. There is no right or wrong answer, and there are plenty of different perspectives to go around. After college, my best friends and former roommates splintered into many different directions. At first I would find myself jealous at each new home purchase, new job offer, new anything. But it only took a few of these major life changes for me to realize I’m on a different tract, I value different things, and it’s stupid to try to compete. The only person I need to make happy is me. And once I’m happy, my relationships are just fine.
• I’m glad I learned how to pay myself first. My savings funds and retirement investments are doing better than I could have expected because of it, and it’s so easy to increase my savings because at 1 percent changes every now and again, it’s hard to notice a difference.
• I’m glad I started with small steps. Big ones would have just overwhelmed me.
• I’m glad I have people I can relate to and talk with about finances. My brother and I are about as close as siblings come. We talk a lot about our finances, especially since we started in the same place and face some similar challenges. Likewise, although I know less about the exact status of their finances, I’m glad my best girlfriends and I can talk about money with each other and not always feel bad about it. We’re pretty open and can respect when people are trying to save and discuss our challenges with each other. Our advice may not always be spot on, but it’s nice to know I have support when I need it.

Those are just a few lessons I’ve learned over the last eight years since getting my finances in order. What are you glad you learned?

The post Things I’m Glad I Learned on My Budgeting Journey appeared first on The Budgeting Babe.

Enjoy.

(If you can’t see the video above, you might need to download a new Flash player. Or you can just go to Hulu here.)

The post Zooey Gets Quirky – Or Just Budget Savvy? appeared first on The Budgeting Babe.

TO DO LIST FOR THE REST OF THIS WEEK THROUGH SUNDAY

- Get in four workouts, including A) Run 5 miles either Thurs. or Fri., and B) Run 9 miles on Sat. or Sun. EEK!  [Allow generous post-run time for extreme icing and foam rolling.] HOLY COW! I managed to wake up at 5:45 a.m. on Thursday and get an hour run in. I’m usually a 9 p.m. runner. I can.not.believe I woke up that early today. I have astounded myself.
– Pay my American Express bill
– Pay my Comcast bill [because the auto-pay feature REFUSES to work for me. jerks.]
- Buy something religious for Godson, whose christening is on Sunday [Have found a GodStore! Now just need to get there!] Return the one religious thing I bought to the christian bookstore. Go to the Irish store and get a cool Celtic cross instead of the chintzy metal one I bought from the god store.
– Buy savings bond for Godson before christening on Sunday. Research where to buy this. [Ended up just writing a check because I'm not sure where his parents are investing for him.]
– Buy beer for christening party.
- Figure out what to wear to become a Godmother. [Realized I left all my fancy shoes at work. This will be a problem. I don't think flip-flops or gym shoes are Godmother appropriate.]
- Clean bathroom before tub takes on scary life of its own
– Do laundry. This may involve getting more quarters.
– Send back “Tyson” to Netflix. [WHY IS THIS STILL ON THE LIST!? SERIOUSLY? HOW HARD IS THIS?]
– Go to running store to price and try on new shoes. Search for better price online. [Uh, ended up buying two new pairs of running shoes. I wanted to support my local running store. I love them.]
- Grocery shop and meal plan on Sunday.
– See PJ20 on Thursday night with man-friend at the Gene Siskel theater (bought tix before we knew it was coming out on PBS so soon)
– Respond to cousin about dates to have our once-in-a-lifetime dinner at Girl and the Goat.
- Post to blog. Tweet. Facebook. Google. Get social.
- Look up case studies for teaching on 10/18 and update presentation.

Thankfully, man-friend is handling much of the cooking, kitchen cleaning, and pet caring (ie. cleaning of poop) in our household. That at least should free me up enough time this week to get my God-gifts. I hope. This is a lot to do between now and Sunday given that I work and commute on two of the days. Wait, is today only Wednesday?

(checks calendar)

Oh thank goodness. Now I at least have an extra evening to do some of these things. Sheesh.

The post Busy Girl’s To-Do List appeared first on The Budgeting Babe.

Office Manager: Jack, I’m taking your table.

Jack: Why?

O.M.: Because I’m preparing for the merger. There’s a new vice president coming in who’s getting the corner office and he needs a table.

Jack: Isn’t there already a table in that office?

O.M.: Yes, but the boss (who used to occupy the office) is taking that table to her new office, leaving the corner office with no table. I’m taking yours.

Ten minutes later, O.M. and her goon removed the table in question from Jack’s office.

Ten minutes after that, Jack had three lonely chairs sitting in his office, surrounding a giant sheet of paper on his floor reading “INSERT TABLE HERE.”

(In another corner of the world, a small man with a green lampshade says “Cha-ching!”)

*******************

Also today, my boyfriend, Brian, sent me a note that he won a prize for contributing to the required charity at his office. He, thinking it must be a nice gift certificate to a pricey restaurant or a shiney new iPod, spent all day wondering what his raffle prize would be. Later that day his manager handed him, in fact, a shiney new…coffee mug…complete with corporate logo. “Congratulations, Brian!” he said, “Thanks for participating.” Brian promised to poke a blind man and steal his mug on the way home to recoup his losses.

********************

In the above situtations, a non-budgeting employer might have just ordered a new table or purchased a $50 gift certificate to boost employee morale rather than causing both men to go home feeling crushed and downtrodden for yet another day. But in this crazy, budget-conscious world, we all have to suck it up and take our losses, individuals and employers alike.

*Not his real name

The post Everybody’s doin’ it appeared first on The Budgeting Babe.