Somebody Stop Me . . . .

One would think my money troubles wouldn't find me at the beach . . . oh, but they have! Okay, so it's not really money trouble, but my NEED for a purchase! So it is actually a need - I need a pair of shoes to wear to my best friend's reception. The bridesmaids are getting off pretty easily, as we get to go barefoot during the ceremony. And although we can just wear "flip-flops" to the reception, the dress will look a lot better on me if I wear heels. So I've been doing a bit of searching this afternoon while basking in the sun (must have tan for wedding too)! Please recall a past post of the $185 J. Crew shoes that I wanted. I'm actually over those, and have found a pair less than half that price. But does that make it okay to buy a $70 pair of shoes for an one-hour occassion??? Side note: I'm secretly hoping that someone will tell me it's okay. The Captain's told me he would spring for them because he likes them and technically he does have the right to his opinion on this as he will be accompanying me. But I really need to pay for these shoes on my own - maybe if I decide to blow that $$$ on these, next time I will have learned my lesson????

Fourth Credit Card PAID OFF!!!

Okay, so I am NOT ABSOLUTELY SURE it is COMPLETELY paid off, but it is damn near close! I got paid today, so I paid off the balance of $198.13 on this card. The shitty thing is, the earliest I could apply the payment is September 4th - the due date was August 31st. But since I have made 5 payments on the card this month, I couldn't schedule another - hello, just a struggling girl trying to pay off her account! Oh well, I guess it might be a few dollars in interest I have to pay as soon as my new billing cycle starts - and I will pay that ASAP and be done with this 29.99% stupid card!

I have one more 29.99% card that I will be working on next. I THINK I MIGHT be able to get it paid off by the end of September! We shall see.

I just wanted to thank everyone for your support - I love reading new comments each day! It's made my debt journey a bit more "fun."

I'm off to the beach for Labor Day weekend and I will be living it up - thanks to the Captain for footing the bill! It's a much needed mini-vacation! I wasn't quite sure I was going to make it to this afternoon (a word of warning, non-profit is a bitch, steer clear)!

$5 richer!

So have I mentioned how much I LOVE Associated Content???

I got my fourth piece published:

Why I Chose the "Snowball" Method to Pay Off My Credit Card Debt

I'll admit, it's pretty generic, but hey, like I said, I'm $5 richer!

I've Been Published: Part II

I just confirmation that my third article has been published on Associated Content! I am a firm believer in this now! I have like four more pieces of work I am waiting on to see if they get published.

I know some of you had questions about Associated Content. If you have any specific questions that I haven't answered, please leave me a comment and I will help you out all that I can.

I'm in the process of transferring the money from Associated Content (from my PayPal account) to my savings account. Hopefully all goes well with that - it will take a few business days (but hey, I won't be tempted to spend it).

Wiener Dog Races

Okay, so this might have been the craziest thing I've been to in a while! It was SO MUCH FUN though! And let me just tell ya, I suck at betting on wieners as much as I suck at betting on horses! The Captain wasn't even able to help me out on this one (and he raises thoroughbreds)! So, yeah, I lost some $$$$. But it all went to charity, and it was less than 20 bucks, so I'm not really upset with myself about it - still cheaper than going to a bar for the night! On a side note (that comment just reminded me of something) - I used to compare how much "other activities" cost to how much it cost for a night out at the bar. That's bad. In college, I rarely went to the movies - unless on a date or to the $1 movies - because I could go to the bars and spend that much. Luckily I've changed my ways - I just let guys buy my drinks :) haha.

Back to the races. They were way too cute. I've decided I want a wiener dog now. I've been thinking about what kind of dog I want when I get my own place. And I think that's it - if I get an apartment. Of course, if I get a house, I will get a big dog. I don't want a stereotypical "single girl" dog, like a chihuahua or yorkie (no offense to anyone who owns either, they're just not for me). I know, I know, I need to wait until I get my debt in control before I take on the responsibility of a dog. Trust me, I know, there's a lot of research I need to do, and I want awhile to figure out how in the heck to housetrain a dog (I've onlyhad outside dogs before)!

So anyone out there with a dachshund, let me know what you think and gimm the inside scoop!

August Update!

$2314.62 PAID OFF! Woo Hoo! That number seems soooo HUGE - too bad it's only like 17% of my balance! I'm really not complaining, just still a bit in shock that I let my credit card balance get so astronomical! Craziness, I tell ya! Technically, it's more like $3000 paid off, but I only update once ALL of my billing cycles end, so that I don't have to figure out interest.

So, I've paid off two credit cards, and when I get paid this week, I will be paying off a third (and hopefully a few hundred dollars off of another one). I think after I pay off a fourth credit card, I will try getting my APRs lowered again. Does anyone know if it is recorded on your credit report when you call and ask for lower APRs??? I mean, I don't know why that would look bad - it's just trying to be smart! Although I can't really call myself "smart" at this point in the game. When I consider myself a financial guru, I'll let you all know ;-P

Just Got Paid

So it actually works! I just checked my Paypal account, and my $$$ from Associated Content is there! Sweet! Definitely will be publishing more now! I'll keep everyone updated!

My Stupid Mistake

Thinking I was being soooo responsible .... I ended up making a mistake being too gung ho to pay my bills - of all things! I've NEVER been gung ho (I don't know why I am using that word so much!) to pay my bills, and the first time I am, I make a mistake!

I suppose it's not a bad mistake, just some extra cash to my creditors, but I have about$90 less to pay toward my whopping APR card this month. Or figure out how to live on $90 less on my next paycheck. I guess I need to be happy that the money still went to paying down my debt.

Here's the deal .... being so GUNG HO ...... I sent all my credit card payments in last week, right after I got paid. Well, two of my billing cycles had not closed at that time. So basically they were just applied as payments, but now I still have minimum payments due. So I guess next time I will have to wait, or see if I can chose the pay day (I probably can do that, I just didn't pay enough attention the first time)!

Live and learn, I suppose!

Just Because Something Fits Into Your Mouth Doesn't Mean It Belongs There

Okay, I couldn't pass this one up ..... it's just way too funny!

Check out Pretty in the City's hilarious blog from last week. I just found it today, but it had me rolling. I just wanted to share the wealth - hope you all got a huge laugh out of it as I did!

Wise Fatherly Advice

I have to agree with Karyn, if only we had been warned when we were younger . . . .

I've Been Published!

Okay, like I mentioned yesterday, I've been giving this Associated Content thing a whirl. So I got an e-mail today that my two pieces have been published!

I've decided that I am going to put the money into my EF instead of applying it to debts right now. I'm in the process of working on some more pieces, and I'll let everyone know if those get published.

So if you get a chance, please check out my published work :)

The Best Tasting DIET Soft Drinks

An Early Bird's Guide to Destin Dinners

She Works Hard For The Money

Alrighty, so this weekend was utterly exhausting, but I made killer money - and I am way excited about that! Was it worth being so worn out? Yeah, I guess so. I mean, it wasn't hard work - babysitting isn't too hard but man, kids wake up waaaay to early! I had wonderful company, so that was definitely a plus, and the kids were good, so no REAL complaints out of me!

I can't believe how excited I was to make a $200 payment to my credit card today - I used to dread that kind of stuff! A little secret .... I kept $100 for myself (for pampering at the salon this week, but hey, I really feel I earned it)! I even made an extra $32 I hadn't budgeted for - so I am probably going to put that in my EF.

I also cooked lunch for our monthly board meeting today, so I will be getting about $115 from that (hopefully tomorrow) - that will go straight to my credit card. Lunch was awesome today (because I made it) and we had birthday cake - can't beat a free lunch like that!

So, all in all, it has been a very profitable 4 or 5 days for me - basically reducing my debt by around $300! I mean, I couldn't have asked for a better money-making weekend - unless I wanted to strip or something - and that's not happening any time soon (sorry fellas).

I'm kind of getting addicted to making $$$. Is this a bad thing? Oh, I almost forgot, two of my pieces for Associated Content were accepted too - so I should be getting around $14 in my PayPal account in the next few days (I'll let you know when they are posted)!

So if any of you have new ideas for making money - please share! Besides working full-time and babysitting on the side, I'm toying with various things on the web - surveys, "writing" for Associated Content, etc. I'm even giving Google Adsense a whirl - as you probably can tell with all the ads you see on my blog! I have to admit, I'm not so sure about it - it doesn't look like I'm making much from it. It seems to pay for the number of clicks per ad (hint, hint, nudge, nudge). If any of you are actually MAKING MONEY with AdSense, please share your optimization techniques!

$100 Bonus!

I found a really cool deal from Poorer Than You. It's a $100 bonus for opening a Citibank Ultimate Savings Account! No minimum deposit and the account earns 4.75% interest. The $100 bonus offer is valid through 08/31/07. Yes, I'll admit, I am a bit skeptical - but hey, I just put $5 into a savings account earning 4.75% interest, so it's not like it will be a waste of money if I don't get the bonus (but I really hope I do)! The terms say to allow up to 90 days to see the money posted to your account. I suppose I could use this account for my Christmas spending money, so that 100 bucks would help a lot if it showed up by November!

I definitely will keep you guys posted!

Update: Family Planning

So if you've read my posts the past few days, you know I have been thinking about the how/when/if I will know about starting a family - financially, emotional, etc.

Well, that was shot to hell this morning. I KNOW I'm not ready now! I'm so not ready to devote early AMs to kids :) Since I set my own schedule @ work, I am not used to the 5:30 and 6:00 wake-up times. It's only been two days .... and they're about to kill me!

I thought for sure we would be sleeping in this morning, until at least 6:30 or so. Since last night was the first night I've been comfortable enough to sleep well, it was a nice feeling. Ruined this morning @ 6:05 with the sounds of the bedroom door knob jiggling. Groaning, I got up to unlock the door and let little man in. He didn't get to bed last night until 10 pm, I mean that's crazy - what was he doing up at 6 am?? I understand now why the sex life of new parents is pretty much non-existent for the first three years after a child is born! Definitely want to enjoy marriage for at least a few years without the pitter-patter of little feet.

We tried to get little man to chill in bed with us, to "go back to sleep." It worked for all of maybe 10 minutes. We were encouraged with phrases like, "it's morning time," "time to eat waffles." Knowing it was a lost cause, I gave the Captain the mission of keeping little man occupied with watching"Diego" while I took a shower. Sounds simple enough, right? Five minutes into the shower, little man comes into the bathroom to go "pee pee." What is it with men - of all ages - having to come in the bathroom while a female is showering?? That is one for the nurture vs. nature debate. I mean, I only needed the bathroom to myself for 10 minutes!

So now we've been up and running since 6:15 this morning, with no naps in sight :(

Must remind myself of how much money this weekend is worth . . . . . . .

New Jeans Update

Thanks for the kudos on my great jeans deal - I'm glad to know that others think I did a good job on this one!

As sad as it is to admit, I am on a first name basis with all of the sales associates at this particular store. Today, "Ashley" told me that the BOGO sale goes on through the 26th. Well, upon checking out, I had a full "Take Ten" card punched - so I can use it to take $10 off of my next purchase. So this has me thinking . . . . Do I go ahead and buy two more pairs of jeans to get them for $35? Or Do I want to purchase two "replacement" pairs of jeans and return the ones I purchased today, ultimately saving an extra $5?

Decisions, Decisions .... what's a girl to do?

There Should be an FDA Warning on Swedish Fish:

Will cause hyper activity in small children!

This really doesn't have anything to do with my debt, except that I should have put the $2 I spent on the package of Swedish Fish into my Emergency Fund instead of supporting the sugar habit of a three-year-old!

Slim Hips

So a weird thing is happening .... it seems the more debt I pay off, the further my jeans and skirts slip down my hips. It's not like I am living off of Ramen or anything, I've just curbed my fast food habits (even though I am eating Wendy's as I type). It's typically a good thing when your clothes fit looser, but in the past, I would have looked at it as a reason to purchase a new wardrobe. Obviously, I'm not going to do that, I've worked too hard the last two months making major leeway in my credit card balances. I must fess up though, while out running errands, I did stop at the mall and purchased two new pairs of jeans. Before I get flambasted, I got a really good deal - and it's one I've actually been "shopping around" for. And autumn is just around the corner - so technically jeans are a necessity. My favorite jeans store occasionally runs "Buy One Get One 50% Off" sales. I had a $5 off coupon that expires Sunday, but I've been waiting to use it until they were running a sale. Realizing I needed to do something about covering my shrinking hips, I decided to check for a sale today. And lucky me, today was the day! So I got two pair of jeans for 40 bucks total - tax and everything! Now really, can you beat $20 per pair!? I don't think so. So I actually don't feel guilty about my purchase. It feels good knowing that I waited to make this purchase and waited until I could get the best deal for something I needed! Who knows, I may become a savvy shopper just yet!

Prayers for the Utah Miners and Rescuers

I've been toying with the idea to write about this for awhile now, but I feel compelled to tonight as I am watching "Breaking News" on CNN. As I was watching my local news, they reported that ambulances and helicopters were at the Crandall Canyon mine. My first thought was hope, thinking that if ambulances were dispatched, that meant they must have survivors. Little did I know there may have been another collapse. Immediately flipping to CNN, I learned what is now going on.

HUNTINGTON, Utah (CNN) -- At least nine workers were hurt in Utah's Crandall Canyon mine Thursday evening where rescuers have been trying to reach six men trapped deep under ground.

Two helicopters seem a bit severe, but all I can do is pray for the injured rescuers, the trapped miners and the healthy rescuers who are still digging, drilling and searching.

I had decided not to write about this in my blog, feeling it had nothing to do with debt or finances or the like. But in all honesty, it does. No, it doesn't affect my debt personally, but for any of you who are miners, are married to miners or know any, you know that coal mining is a way of life. It is a way of life because it provides a good living. Yes, there is camaraderie between the miners and they become one another's second family, but they are mining to provide financially for their families at home.

Like many reporters have said over the past 11 days, it takes a special breed to become a coal miner. My community is composed of this special breed of men, but I am honestly thankful that my dad chose not to go into this profession. Kentucky may be known for horse-racing and bourbon, but the money - the old money - is from coal mining. I realize that any one of these tragedies could have struck close to home, and actually did last week with the mining accident in Indiana. I have uncles, cousins and friends' husbands in the mines as I type. I'm not even sure how Kentucky has been spared one of these tragedies of the past few years. Searching the internet just now, I've learned that Kentucky is only behind Wyoming and West Virginia in coal production.

I'm not sure why I decided to come on here and write about this tonight. I guess just asking for prayers for all of the miners in Huntington, Utah, but also pray that we find the technology to make mining safer and find a way to expedite the rescues when these tragedies happen.

Why do I really even care that I'm debt?!

UPDATE: I found a related link! Thanks to The DC Centurion's Shield - I found it on The Drudge Report.

Pentagon Paid $998,798 to Ship Two 19-Cent Washers

Aug. 16 (Bloomberg) -- A small South Carolina parts supplier collected about $20.5 million over six years from the Pentagon for fraudulent shipping costs, including $998,798 for sending two 19-cent washers to an Army base in Texas, U.S. officials said.

Okay -- so even worse! How in the world can it cost $1 million to ship washers from South Carolina to Texas??? My first image was like these huge pieces of heavy metal, then I realized, "no way, they wouldn't have cost 19-cents then!" I don't get it, I just don't get it . . . .

Sometimes I think that I should have worked for the government. Oh wait, I really don't like spending other people's money - just my own. I didn't want to get into politics on my blog, I try to stay as much out of politics as possible in fact. But this one really got me going.

The Nightly News mentioned an update on government waste. I rarely watch the Nightly News, it was just on while I was cooking dinner, and I couldn't help but overhear. For my readers, please correct me if I am wrong on this, I haven't been able to find a link anywhere. Brian Williams reported that we spent over one million dollars to "express ship" two 19 cent washers to Iraq??? Like I said, I missed the exact details - except how much shipping was and how much the items were. I mean seriously? Who makes these decisions? Can you really not feel guilty if you are the one authorizing to spend a million dollars to ship something? I just don't get it. So I'm just going to shut up about it, because I don't want to get in to whether I am for or against the war. My debt, as well as most other's out there, pale in comparison to what our soldiers and their families are going through.

In A Family Way

No, I'm not preggers (breathe now, Captain). But thinking a lot about if I'm ready for a family. How far in advance should I think about this? Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I am spending the next 4 days with my favorite kids in the world. I've been taking care of both of them by myself the past two nights, and I'm grateful I will have help over the weekend. But it's led me to think about how hard single mothers have to work to make ends meet, and how can you ever feel financially stable when you are the sole parent of a family? I don't have much experience with that - split families. Growing up, I had both of my parents supporting me and still do. And most of my friends lived the same lifestyle. I definitely don't think there is any shame in raising a family by yourself, but thinking about it has made me realize that I want to be financially prepared for such. The more I learn about how much it costs to raise a child for 18 years, the more I understand why my parents only had me (that, and the fact that I was perfect, hehe).

Obviously, there are certain qualities I want to have before I consider starting a family. I feel like I have the motherly instinct thing down pat. But everything else, I'm not so sure. Definitely, marriage is a good requirement. I'm not interested in going at it alone, but I also don't want to FEEL like I have to rely on anyone else (although I do prefer someone who wants to take care of me).

So these recollections lead me to believe that I need to be financially stable before I consider parenthood. I'm starting to get the hang of this - being a grown up - paying bills on time, fully thinking through my purchases (still working with that one), having a retirement plan, building up an emergency fund. Granted, I still have a long way to go. But if someone had told me three months ago that I would be blogging about how I'm paying off my debt, I would have thought they were crazy. But it suits me now. I like to work hard, and feel like I am getting something out of my efforts. It's finally started to feel really good to pay off my debt - which is ABSOLUTELY HUGE for me!

The J Crew Shoes I can't have

For the past two months I have been throwing away all catalogs I receive in the mail - Victoria's Secret, J. Crew, etc. What possessed me to browse through my neighbor's J. Crew catalog yesterday afternoon, I do not know. I should not have done it! I've been on the look out for a pair of heels to match my chocolate bridesmaid dress for my best friend's wedding on the beach. No, I don't plan to actually wear heels on the beach, or even shoes for that matter - but I still need them for the reception! Scratch that, I forgot we aren't allowed to call it a wedding. I shall refer to it as "The Party." Any who, on the first page of the catalog I was glancing through, I saw the cutest shoes! http://www.jcrew.com/catalog/product.jhtml?id=prod86769301&catId=cat210208 (the winsor blue ones) So cute, in fact, that I even flipped to the page J. Crew told me to find the product info and see how much they were. $185! Good God, I wouldn't buy those even if I weren't in debt! But now, every pair of shoes I look at, I will compare them to these shoes, and I don't think any others can measure :(

Online Bill Pay Day!

So today's pay day, and since it is my second paycheck of the month - that means it's time to pay bills! Fun stuff, I know.

I don't think I've mentioned my plan, but it is to use my "middle of the month" paycheck to pay all of my bills, and apply all of my other one to my debt. It's been working well for me the past couple of months, so I think I'll stick with it.

So today was the day. I shelled out $470 in "minimum" payments to my creditors, and the crazy thing is, it really wasn't too painful. My little system is working, and I'm happy about it. I'm not late on payments anymore and I really don't miss the money - by going ahead and applying it to my debt, I don't have time to stew over what I want to buy with it. It's wild that a material girl like myself has become frugal (okay, maybe "frugal" is a bit harsh)!

One of the best things I've found is online banking. I know I will sound like a Bank of America commercial, but it literally took me less than 10 minutes to send payments out to all 10 of my accounts! It's great not having to run to the post office to pick up stamps or wait to pay a bill because you ran out. Heck, it's even a savings of over $4 a month - that's 50 bucks a year in stamps - who knew!

Victoria's Secret Update

I got so flustered this morning that I forgot to post my whole reasoning behind checking my VS account!

I posted all of my current balances yesterday, but VS wasn't updated. So now, instead of $2153.89, my current balance is $2066.89!

Really Pissed

Okay, I just got off the phone with Victoria's Secret. They so are not my favorite store anymore! I think I mentioned in my post yesterday that I got my APR lowered - from 22.80% to 9.90% - so I thought that would make several dollars difference in the minimum payment. Last month my minimum was $105, so I was still expecting to pay $105 this month, hoping that I would pay down my balance a little bit since the interest rate was more than cut by half.

So imagine my surprise just now when I checked my updated account online to find my minimum was $135! What the hell??? You better believe I was on the phone to them ASAP. Come to find out I was on a "low-payment plan." What the hell that is, I still don't know. It's nothing I ever asked to be put on. I suppose it might be that I had a large balance with a high APR and they wanted to make as much money off of me as possible??? Sounds about right for a credit card! Now I am on the "normal" payment plan - I guess for "regular" people - I haven't decided if I am offended by that or not yet.

In the long run, this will benefit me - I am paying more with a lower APR. But I was still very shocked by this. So I'm slowly getting over it. And it's not like I have a problem paying that, it's $30 I hadn't exactly budgeted for, but oh well.

Wow, two vents in a row, not exactly the best of mornings so far! I'm not exactly sure what the moral of this story is. There wasn't any fine print on my letter stating I was receiving a lower APR. I guess I will wait and see if it's stated on my new statement when it comes - I'll keep y'all updated.

Material Girl

It's really no wonder debt is just a large problem in today's society. This morning, on my way to work, I had so many guys check me out. Don't get me wrong, I don't necessarily mind when guys check me out, unless that make inappropriate comments. Today, however, it was a different story. It was only because I was driving a car that is like worth more than my life! "It's not my car!" I want to scream at them, but now I've decided to count how many glances I get over the next few days. They don't even look to see the car seats in the back! Oh well, I just needed to vent. I'll let you know what the outcome of my little experiment is.

You think it would be fun driving a cool car for a few days, but it just makes me nervous! Last week at work, my car was a victim of a "hit and run." So this morning I was thinking, "crap, where I am going to park a $50,000 car???" My co-worker just purchased a new car back in the winter and she always parks in the last spot in our lot. For some reason today she parked one spot over, so I pulled in next to her. So if there are any gray scratches - I'll know it's her :)

So the moral to my story is that we are too materialistic! I'm one of them - I'm not trying to say I'm not. That's why I am trying to change my ways and not be so obsessed with money and "things." In fact, one of the reasons I am trying to get out of debt is so I can purchase a new car - but trust me, it won't be a Lexus!

The Damage

I thought I would lay it all on the line - below is my debt progress (don't laugh -OR- feel sorry for me):

June 2007 Debt: $13,642.54

July 2007 Debt: $12,583.36

August 2007 Debt: COMING 08.28.2007


My debt as it stands today:

CC #1 - $678.13
CC #2 - $951.80
CC #3 - $698.63
CC #4 - $539.97
CC #5 - $969.53
CC #6 - $1580.68
CC #7 - $2248.14
CC #8 - $775.90
CC #9 - $937.92
CC #10 - $2153.89

CC #11 - $785.42 PAID OFF 08/01
CC #12 - $285.00 PAID OFF 07/03

So my TOTAL debt as it stands today is $11,534.59. WOW, so I've paid off $2107.95 in less than two months! Actually, a bit more, but I only post updates once I receive my statements (I don't know how to figure interest!).

CC#10, I hope, will be updated tomorrow. That is my evil Victoria's Secret card (okay, it's not evil, and I really loved it for many years actually). My cards are listed from highest APR to lowest, and that is the order in which I will pay them off. I feel good about this, and that's why I decided to start blogging about my journey. Right now I try not to think anymore about how I got this far in debt, but I just focus on getting out. No sense in crying over spilled milk.

Another victory for me in the past two months has been getting four of my APRs lowered. My number one piece of advice for anyone with credit cards - especially when carrying balances - DO NOT CLOSE THE ACCOUNT. That is the number one reason I am carrying balances on like 5 or 6 cards with 20% to 30% interest rates. It's crazy! But it's the excuse that they give me, "unfortunately, we are unable to lower your interest rate at this time because your account is closed." When closing the accounts, I thought I was doing a good thing, I wouldn't be able to use the card if the account was closed. Because lets face it, obviously the temptation was to great for me if the account was active - I tried freezing the cards in a block of ice (run hot water over it and the card was good to go in less than 5 minutes), I tried cutting them up (memorized the VS account number - it's all you need when ordering online). But everything I've read about credit scores is that you actually want your accounts open, and try to keep your debt to credit limit ration low. So I've actually got one account re-opened and a $300 increase on another, hoping to boost my credit score. But back to the lower APRs, I was able to lower them by a total of approximately 35 percentage points. I haven't figured out how much difference this will make in actually dollars. I'm still going to continue to pay my previous minimums (so that those extra dollars will go toward paying down the balance). Don't worry, I'm not just paying the minimums on my cards - I'm using the "snowball method" - so I am paying the "minimums" on all the cards but the one with the highest APR - on that one I am paying all I can afford. I will continue using this method until am debt free!

Money-Making Gigs

So I have a debt-pay down plan, and it's a pretty good one, if I do say so myself. I want to be debt-free within 9 months, but as I am not a patient person, I want to do everything I can to get out faster!

I've been reading online about all these "get rich quick" gimmicks. I've decided to try a few, and I will keep you all updated.

First are the paid surveys. Sounds too good to be true, right? I've been using Inbox Dollars and Send Earnings. My advice to anyone who tries these, create a junk e-mail account. Also, you have to give them a phone number, I gave my cell number - now I wish I would have given my work fax number - but I just ignore the call when I see it is an unfamiliar long-distance number. Basically you "get paid" to read e-mails and take surveys. It's a bit tedious, but it's something you can do during lunch or in the evenings, or like me, when you are bored at work. You have to accumulate at least $30 in your account before you can request a payment. I have $18 and some change in one an $19 and some change in another (after about 2 weeks of reading e-mails and taking surveys). I will let you know when I am finally able to request payment, but definitely if I ever receive it!

The other thing I have found is Associated Content. Basically you get paid to submit original pieces of work -articles, videos, slide shows. I just ran across this the other day. I submitted my first piece of work this morning: An Early Bird's Guide to Destin Dinners. I will let you all know if it gets published. I don't claim myself to be much of a writer, and I'm not ready to do anything very personal, but we'll see what happens. Who knows, I may love giving my opinion on everything :)

I also created an Adsense account through Google yesterday. Supposedly you can make money through blogging (you may notice a couple of ads on here), I'm not holding my breath on that though. But like all the others, I'll keep you posted on its money-making potential.

Other than that, I'm paying off my debt the old-fashioned way - working full-time. Blah. It doesn't help much working in non-profit - you definitely aren't paid what you are worth! Once I pay off my debt though (and maybe before), I plan to go back into advertising :) I am money-oriented, whether I am spending it or making it, but in no-profit, you do neither! I also do some small jobs on the side (every thing's legal, I promise).

I'll be back to post my debt stats later, so you call can see the progress I make!

How did I end up over $13,000 in debt?

It was easy enough, let me tell ya! I wish I had a story to tell about some catastrophe that happened to me (okay, not really), or that I owed $70,000 in student loans, or had a $100,000 mortgage. But that's not the case. I've just been living beyond my means for the past six years. Too many bikinis, numerous orders from Victoria's Secret, cute shoes I had to have, "to-die-for" purses, running up bar tabs from Lexington, Nashville and St. Louis, and obviously SO MUCH MORE!

I recall the day I opened my first credit card - October 2001 - all I wanted was a the neat UK glass they were giving away at the basketball opener! I still have that glass - it's packed away somewhere in my college boxes. If I ever run across it again, I'm going to through it up side the wall! During my two remaining years of college, I used my credit cards like gift cards. Didn't think through my purchases, I had to have my purchases RIGHT THEN (might be the only child in me, although I never thought my parents spoiled me). And I guess that is how I ended up $13,000 in debt. Throughout college, however, I just knew I was going to have a "good-paying" job as soon as I graduated and I would take care of my debt ASAP. Graduation came and went, yet I was still working part time on campus, unable to find a full-time job - let alone anything in my field. I blamed the economy (and still do), as I graduated when the job market sucked. Since then I've realized that I doubt I would have changed my ways even if I had that "good-paying" job then. I would have continued living beyond my means.

Yeah, it was fun while it lastes, but the shit's hit the fan, and now I'm ready to tackle this one my own. A part of me wishes that I could just win the lottery or take up the offers that I've had. But I know this is a learning experience for me. And I've learned a TON in the past two months.

So here I am today, working as a Non-Profit Professional (not the "good-paying" job I was expecting), digging my way out of this sea of debt. Things are going well so far, and I feel good about what I'm doing. I've given myself a goal to be debt-free by next summer. My other goal is to get out of the non-profit world and back into my love of all things fun!