Money, Money, Money

There are certain things I do not like to do. These things include getting the oil changed in my car, paying the bills, filling the car up with gas, cooking for one, purchasing auto insurance, taking the garbage out, changing the air filter in my car, investing money and the list goes on. Maybe I don't know enough about some of the things, or maybe I feel it's more a man's job or should I say a man's better at it (can a feminist say that?) or maybe I just don't care.
Regardless, you know I've taken this new job (and yes you're still new at six weeks), with that I've decided to be a little more rigid with my budget. For the last 3 years, I never paid a dime in rent, utilities, laundry and very little on food, so having all that change, my budget neeeded to change with it. For the last six weeks I've been educating myself in the ways of money, or at least trying to and developed a working budget. With that budget there were some things I just KNEW I was paying too much for and when you really want to buy a new pair of pants or shoes you'll see what you can do to adjust funds to allocate other places. In addition, I'm getting out of debt. I guess I figured if I get out of debt then I don't have to pay bills, which will make my life easier! And since my aunt and uncle have been gracious enough to let me stay with them, I'd be stupid not to take this opportunity to pay off debt and save money! However, in doing so, you end up being weird and it has been a drastic change from how I was living! Going out to eat is a luxury and the value of money has gone up quite a bit! Creating the budget was easy, sticking with it takes discipline! I'm not complaining though it's slowly becoming a part of me, instead of something I took for granted
First stop, auto insurance. I have a clean driving record. I've never gotten a ticket (although pulled over a few times), never been in an accident (except for hitting that parked car in high school), and I've never missed a payment. So, in my mind I feel I shouldn't be paying a king's salary for insurance. To keep a long boring story, short. I did some investigating and found a really friendly agent who was able to bring my premimum down $200! Just think about how many pairs of pants I could buy with that!
Second stop, cell phone bill. Ugh. I've been with the same carrier for the last 7 years. Each month my bill seemed to increase and increase and finally it was time to suck it up, pay the early termination fee and reduce my monthly payment in half. I'll more than make it back in a short period of time. It wasn't hard to identify which carrier I was going to switch to, and the guys at the store were super nice. I'll be saving at least $60 a month! I was able to switch my number over last week on a lunch break, no problem. HOWEVER, my old carrier had locked my phone, so for the last week I've been battling with customer service for the unlock code (since it was MY phone, and I'd paid the early termination fee I felt I should be able to use it) so I wouldn't need to buy a new phone. The guys with the new carrier were SO nice they let me keep a phone for the last week until I figured out how to get it unlock. Today, I can proudly say that I got it unlocked and I am the WOman. Determined is one way to describe it or possessed, but I was NOT going to get off the phone with customer service until I had an unlock code. I spoke with 4 different people and finally, finally the last guy had nothing left to say after my persistence then a series of number, being the unlock code. Did I mention I'm the WOman?
Third stop, Ebay! I have a lot of stuff, most of which is still boxed up in the garage. That should communicate to one that it's not really needed and just taking up space. So this week, I sold my first item on ebay! It was quite exciting to see something I don't use could be utlized by someone else! You do have to pay a minimal fee, but it is well worth it.
Lastly, I'm tossing around the idea of a part time job. It would have to be something really flexible, but I have talents so I am going to be very intentional about what I select!