Week 8

Just finished up a yoga session, and it’s amazing how much my practice has been impacted by the mindset I’ve been in lately. When my head isn’t in the right space I find it much harder to keep balanced (both literally and figuratively), and I end up toppling over on many of the poses. Because of this, I cut my session short and decided to pick it up again next week in the hopes that I’ll have less stress going on in my life over the next seven days.

It’s been a rough week, to say the least, which includes a major snafu in my financial plan. To start, I ended up with a 3-day stomach flu resulting in loss of work on Monday and having to cancel seven patients. This majorly hampers my income for this week and I wasn’t pleased to have to call these folks to reschedule. On top of this, I found out that I owe a significant amount of money for taxes from 2017, as well as seeing an increase in my quarterly estimates and payroll taxes for 2018. This means I had to deplete my savings as well as rely on my credit card to ensure that it got paid. I could have possibly set up a payment plan, but the amount of the increase would have meant playing “catch up” for over a year and everything would have ended up being late. Although it sickened me to have to do it, knowing that the taxes will all be paid in full and on time is such a relief to my mind. With the new plan I have drawn up to get the cards paid off, it doesn’t look like the tax situation is going to set me back too far - a little extra a month on one, plus two months additional payments on another, won’t be too much of a burden overall.

March as a whole has had its ups and downs in regards to this challenge as well as daily life overall. I feel like I haven’t been in a very good headspace for some reason, and I opted out of both the Anthem 5k and Rodes City Run 10k this month – two of the three races of the Triple Crown. I’ve done these races every year for more than a decade now, so to back out of both of them in the same year is unlike me. Despite increasing my meditation and social time this month – things that typically improve my mood, I haven’t seen a change in my apathetic (and sometimes downright blue) mood. Maybe it’s the unpredictable weather? Maybe it’s not been that bad overall and the events of this past week are foreshadowing all the good? Whatever it is, I’m ready for it to be over so that I can get back to feeling content and on-track with my goals.

Next week marks the end of month 2 of the GIVE IT UP challenge, and I’ll be recapping the numbers from all of my goals. Some were met, others were not. Some I went above and beyond and blew out of the water. Which ones were they, you ask? Well – with another six days remaining in the month we’ll both just have to wait to find out.

Week 6: Social Media

One of the things that I wanted to “Give up,” when I started this project was how much time, and in what ways, I use social media. For the month of February, I was to stay off all social media altogether. However, Facebook in particular has served a purpose in that I have been able to get questions answered and get referrals from other clinicians on some of the professional groups that I am a part of, so this goal was to be a challenge so say the least. I was still taking on new clients at that time, and trying to build up to a specific number, so I didn’t want to stay off social media 100%, however, I needed to find a way to make my use of Facebook more productive and healthier for me mentally.

What I mean by this, is that I tended to spend a lot of down time looking through Facebook posts and it was seriously taking a toll on my mental health. If I was at a red light, I’d whip out the phone and open the app. If I was in a doctor’s office, same. At home alone and feeling bored – I’d pull out the phone or Ipad and spend an immeasurable amount of time looking at others’ updates and “oh so glamorous,” lives. I use that phrase not to be condescending, but to keep it real as to the way I was seeing things from my perspective.

In 2007, before I joined Facebook, I would catch up with friends a few times a month and use that time to learn all about the things that had gone on in their lives. If there was any comparing I was doing between my life and theirs, it was few and far between because I was seeing maybe one or two people, groups, or couples a month. Now, instead of hearing about what a great time the Carrico’s had on their vacation last month, I’m seeing the 50 other couples who are celebrating their date nights, anniversaries, another kiddo and any number of other milestones in their world. Logging onto Facebook forced me to see friend after friend going out on a Friday or Saturday night, living it up while I spent that time cuddled up with a few four-legged friends and some Netflix. And it wasn’t that I wasn’t (am not) happy to see my friends happy, but whether I wanted to or not I was constantly comparing my life with theirs.

Don’t get me wrong, I have a pretty spectacular life and rarely have those woe-is-me moments, but when it looks like EVERYONE is having such a great week, time and time again, it tends to do a number on my psyche. Now, with this constant access, I wasn’t seeing one or two people having a great time, I was seeing ALL THE PEOPLE having a great time. And yes, I know that Facebook and other forms of social media are the highlight reel that we tend to show the world. No one is posting the completely mundane times that they’re being total sloths, or that day or two they were super down in the dumps and didn’t shower for 48 hours - I know this on a conscious level. However, subconsciously, I couldn’t keep from comparing myself to others and allowing it to bring me down at times.

Not only was it the comparison to others causing a negative impact, but it was also the sheer time spent on this apparatus. I felt like a slave to my phone – almost as if it was a compulsion to pick up and eavesdrop on others’ lives whenever I had a spare moment. It was keeping me from being mindful of the things around me, and just taking a moment to breath. It honestly got to the point that I was being affected by the time and mental effort spent on this time-suck.

All of this being said, I wanted to find a way to be more productive with my time on Facebook without having to give it up altogether. As I stated before, keeping up professional contacts, getting information about the AT (Appalachian Trail), putting my name out there in the hopes of a referral are all very good ways that FB can be used – I was just using it in those ways and THEN some… a little too often.

My solution to this problem was this: I ended up unfollowing (not to be confused with de-friending) all 233 of my “friends,” and deleting myself from groups that no longer served a purpose in my life. I didn’t do this to shun anyone, and it’s not that I didn’t want to see what was going on in my friends lives – but I wanted to get updates on my own terms. If I was curious as to any goings on with a particular person, I would go to their page and peruse the posts. Instead of seeing 50 people’s awesome lives, I was seeing one person’s awesome life. The perks of doing things this way was two-fold – 1: I was less apt to do that whole comparison thing I spoke about earlier, and 2: I was able to keep the “catching up,” with folks to the old fashion way of having an actual, live conversation when we got together. No longer did I want to meet up with someone for dinner once a month and them relay some great news about their lives, only to comment, “Oh yeah, I saw that on Facebook!” I mean, that’s the way it was done pre-2007. What was wrong with going back to the old primitive ways again?

Along with this change, I also began posting less, and differently, than what I had before. You know the Timehop feature that comes up on a regular basis? Or the ol’ “On this day,” option that you can click on to the left of your page? What I noticed about my own past postings is they mostly fell into three categories: mundane, negative or humble brags. Think about that. The three things I was sharing most on the platform that was to represent me and my life were either boring, pessimistic or self-serving. I don’t want to be known as that person and I’d like to think that’s not who I am. And if it is, and I want to change it, I certainly don’t want an electronic diary of the unhealthy ways in which I used to put myself out there for the world to see. So… I decided to post less, and to be more mindful about what I do post. If I had to take a guess, I would say the majority of what I have posted over the past 6 weeks has been either pictures or videos of my cat and/or dog, links to this blog for those who are following, or questions that I wanted answered. Yes, sometimes I’d have to catch myself from typing up some nasty rebuttal about a Trump comment or the fact that we’ve seen more snow in the month of March than all winter, but the fact is I DIDN’T post those things. I kept it light, and I kept it positive.

The wonderful thing about this change is that I have noticed a decrease in my woe-is-me moments and overall negativity. I haven’t been sitting at home on a Friday night feeling sorry for myself and asking the Universe when it was MY TURN to meet a romantic partner, or why I couldn’t be out whopping it up with a group of friends, because those things just weren’t popping up in my head anymore. I’ve heard people use the phrase, “Facebook is the Devil.” I would have to disagree. Facebook is not the Devil. It is the way that we utilize Facebook that determines how it impacts our lives. If you’re someone who uses the statement, “I hate drama,” on the regular, maybe don’t comment on posts that you know are going to stir the pot. If you are unhappy in your relationship and are thinking about leaving – maybe pull the trigger and leave that relationship rather than messaging ex-girlfriends and making decisions that go against your values. And if you find yourself being adversely affected mentally and emotionally by what you see and read, maybe take that variable out of the equation and log on less.

Week 5

Five down, 47 to go. I will say that March has been easier (?) now that I’ve gotten the hang of how to balance things a bit better. I’m crushing my OTF, Yoga, Meditation and Strength Training goals so far – things that I failed to achieve in February. Making time, not giving it too much thought and just doing it have helped. For instance, not that I typically have a lot of down time, but last Friday I got home from work around 5:00 p.m. and had nothing planned the rest of the day. It was a day that I was scheduled to do some Strength Training, and although I wasn’t feeling it, I had a pep talk with myself: I could either spend 30 minutes on this and feel good that I accomplished the goal, or spend 5 hours sitting on the couch reading, watching TV and perusing the internet while essentially waiting to go to bed. I went with the former and I am now 75% done with my Strength Training goals for the month – and it’s only the 10th!

I’m also on-target to reach all other goals as well, but have had to make a few adjustments to the financial goals I set for myself. I got the opportunity to go on a 10-day European trip in May 2019 for the commemoration of D-Day. What a lot of people don’t know about me is that I have a fairly substantial interest in all things WWII, and this was an opportunity that I didn’t want to pass up. Considering it was so far away, the financial burden wouldn’t be too incredible as I had enough time to break up payments over a 14-month period. Now…. I know what you’re thinking – “But Connie, wasn’t the whole point of this Give It Up challenge to stop making purchases and pay off debts?” Why, yes it was/is. However…. Because another part of this challenge was also to get in the habit of being more mindful of my spending, and to allocate more money to experiences rather than things, I thought I’d give myself a mulligan on this one. Plus, I’m still on target to pay off my debts right around the time this trip happens, regardless of the extra money I’m having to spend on the trip itself. Yes, I am having to put in a few more hours at work than what I originally allotted, however, I’m lucky in that, within reason, I am able to work (and make) as much or as little as I want. To me, the extra time spent in the office was worth this trip.

Another tweak I’ve been thinking about making to my initial plan is the leniency on what I am allowed to spend my “Spending Money.” Currently, I give myself $80 a week to spend – and that goes to any extras from a pack of gum at the store to expenses not fully covered by what’s in my savings account (i.e. $14 of a recent race fee was paid from my Spending Money allotment as I only had $25 in my Race Fee savings at the time). Because the money is an allowance, I’m not sure I want to restrain WHAT this gets spent on; as long as I don’t go over the amount given, does it really matter where it goes?

It’s amazing, however, how quickly this money gets eaten up. Although I technically have it set up to take this $80 out in cash every Friday, if there was something I had paid for with my ATM card, I deduct that amount from what I take out in cash so that I’m sure not to overspend. I also keep track of ALL spending on a spreadsheet so, at the end of the month, I know exactly where the money went. I must say – it’s a good thing I love my dog as much as I do because those treats are EXPENSIVE! Luckily, in the 5 weeks I’ve been doing this I haven’t broken the budget. Here’s hoping I don’t blow a tire or the clothes dryer goes on the fritz!

Next week I’d like to share the changes that I’ve made to the way I’ve been using social media. My goal for February was to get off all social media for the month, but that wasn’t quite the way things worked out - but for good reason.

One Down, 11 To Go

Month 1:

The following are the numbers/statistics regarding how I did during the first month of my Give It Up experiment:

% of Income spent
Credit Card repayments: 30%
Mortgage: 14%
Taxes: 12%
Insurance: (life, medical, dental,
car, homeowners) 7%
Work Expenses: 6%
Various Savings Accounts: 6%
Student Loans: 6%
Home Living Expenses (phone,
electric bill, condo maintenance
fees, internet, Netflix,) 6%
Car payment 4%
Monthly pet fees (daycare,
insurance) 2%
Retirement 2%
Medical bills/Health
Savings Acct 2%
CPA fees 2%
Self-care (Gym, Float) 1.5%
Bank Fees .25%
Investments (additional) .25%

Grocery Budget: $200/month – Spent $168.87
Spending Money Budget: $320/month – Spent $315

Other expenses:
I took money out of my “Fun/Vacation” savings to pay for Hall and Oates concert tickets as well as to renew my yoga package. Additionally, I took money from my “Race Fee” savings to pay for the majority of a new triathlon suit, with the remainder being paid from my allotted spending money. I did not include these expenses in my breakdown above, as these savings plans are specifically for such spending.

Measurable “Add On” Goals:

(Number of times I achieved vs. planned)
Orange Theory workout (OTF) 6/12
Meditation 8/12
Outdoor activity 5/8
Strength Training 1/4
Yoga 4/4
Acts of Kindness 4/4
Social Activity 2/2
Massage 1/1
Float Therapy 1/1

Measurable “Give it Up” Goals:
Take-out tea 2/2
Eating out 5/5

Additional Goals:
• I was able to stick to my goal of no spending whatsoever on clothing, home goods, electronics, itunes music, high-end skin care.
• My goal of no pastries or donuts was missed when I did succumb to a tasty cheese danish at Starbucks on morning. Other than this, I
have not gone back on this goal.
• My goal of no snacks at the movies was missed only once when I bought nachos and a coke on a cinema gift card. I’m giving myself half
a win on this – the winning half going to the fact that I didn’t spend any money on said snacks, although the calories were still
there.
• I achieved my goal of drinking only water when eating out, to save on money and calories.
• Although there’s no easy way to measure, I feel like my road rage, cursing, self-deprecating talk and unnecessary apologies have
decreased as well.

Overall, it looks like I did well during this first month. As you can see, a huge portion of my income went to credit card debt as this is one of the main goals of this whole experiment. It’s interesting that I’m spending nearly the same amount on my mortgage as I am on taxes, but maybe not when you think about how much taxes actually cost us. I don’t like that I’m only putting 2% of my income back for retirement at this point but, again, the whole goal of this is to get unnecessary expenses paid off so that I can begin padding those accounts to the max – hopefully this is what I will be able to focus on in 2019.

OTF, Meditation, Outdoor Activities and Strength Training were the only areas I lacked in achieving my measurable goals – which is interesting since these are typically some of my favorite things. I can’t think of any good excuse as to why this is other than “life got in the way.” At the very least this gives me an idea of where I need to step it up for March and beyond.

As for additional spending, I've discovered it’s a good thing I do put additional money back into specific savings accounts for things that come up. As of today, I have separate savings accounts for:

Quarterly and Annual taxes, including CPA fees
Race Fees and gear
Emergency Living Expenses (this doesn’t get touched)
Vacation/Fun Fund
Practice (work) Expenses

If it hadn’t been for these accounts I couldn’t have paid for the Hall & Oates tickets (on my approved spending list, by the way), my yoga package and my tri suit.

The only thing that I’m tweaking for March is the amount of time I’m allotting for OTF, due to tri training starting soon as well as cutting back on monthly expenses, and trading out the “No Sweets” goal for the “No Television,” goal. Unfortunately, I went a little sugar-crazy at my last grocery visit and have some Little Debbie’s and Breyers ice cream left in the condo that are sure to be consumed for the simple fact that they’re there. By April, all of the on-hand sweets will have been eaten so there will be less temptation. To say the least, that will be an interesting month.

Week 4

Along with getting older, being less physically active, genetics and all the other reasons that explain why we tend to gain weight as adults, I’m going to share with you a theory of mine. Remember when you were a kid and what you ate was under the complete and total control of your parents? I can remember looking through the refrigerator and cabinets full of food and yet proclaiming to my mom, “there’s nothing to eat!” Her response was typically to tell me to eat a sandwich or make some soup. Before the age of 17 when a job and a car came along (see: Freedom), all of my meals were determined by what we had at the house, or what my mom chose to do for meals that day. Once given the choice and opportunity, however, you bet I was cruising through the local drive thru giving into any pallet-craving foods that struck. And while I wouldn’t consider myself overweight or unhealthy, my choices can certainly fall into the category of the latter more often that I’d like.

I’ve now completed week 4 of 52 of this challenge, and for the most part I’ve stayed on-track. One area in which I’ve been able to keep to my goal has been decreasing the amount of times I’m eating out or picking up take-out tea (I’m not a coffee drinker). My goal was to eat out no more than 5 times in a month. This includes getting dinner with friends, convenience meals on the way home from work, or succumbing to cravings. Not only has this decreased the amount of money I’ve spent on eating out, but also the additional calories as well. Out of the five times that I did eat out, three were convenience meals (things I picked up after or before work when I didn’t feel like cooking or eating what was at home), one was lunch during an all-day conference, and the fifth was when I accepted an invitation for a dinner out with a friend.

Although I wasn’t keeping track of how much I was eating out before, or how much I was spending on said meals, I spent a total of $60.18 this month on food not purchased at the grocery. Two meals were at what I call “sit-down,” restaurants, where you are waited on by a server. Two were take-out meals that I ordered ahead of time and picked up on the way home from work (these meals tend to cost slightly more than fast-food, but are definitely better tasting and better quality). I’m not proud to say that the last meal I chose to eat out this month was from McDonald’s. This was after a night of horrible sleep (4 hours) and when I had five patients back-to-back the following day. I knew my butt would be dragging if I didn’t get some sort of sustenance in me, but I also needed something I could nosh on between clients since I wouldn’t have time for a lunch. This meant my order of an Egg McMuffin (to eat right away), a large Coke (to sip on throughout the day and give me that caffeine kick) and a sausage biscuit (that would hold up long-term and be easy to nibble on between sessions) cost me almost my entire daily allowance of calories for the day – Yikes!!

Speaking of food, I’m not crazy about grocery shopping. I don’t know what it is – whether I’m impatient with slower shoppers or I just like having what I need there at the house, I don’t know. Regardless, I have began shopping weekly rather than once every 3-4 weeks as I’m also attempting to keep from wasting food or cluttering up my cabinets with things that never get eaten. My grocery allowance is $50 per week ($200/month) and I spent $168.87 for the month of February. Additionally, although I didn’t give myself a monetary allowance, my take-out tea spending was to be limited to twice monthly and the cost came out of my weekly allowance of spending money; I spent $12.21 this month on that expense.

The only goal that I missed regarding food and food costs for the month was my giving in and ordering a cheese danish at Starbucks one afternoon. This was one of what I called my “hard goals,” for this year, as I wasn’t allowing myself any pastries or donuts for 2018. In my defense, I did do a 60-minute OTF workout followed by a 80-minute yoga session beforehand so….. ya know…. any excuse, right? Wrong.
If I start making excuses during this first month as to why I can go back on my goals, I’ll continue to do so in ALL areas. Don’t feel like working out this week? Skip it. See an awesome area rug I just HAVE to have for the condo? Sure, buy it! This is how I accumulated so much stuff, debt, weight, etc in the first place. If I’m going to do this, I’m going to do it right. And so far I’m off to a pretty good start!

Week 3

Someone recently asked me how it is that I am the only one in my immediate family who is health and exercise conscious. I couldn’t answer when or why it started, but I do recall always being super active as a kid. I would ride my bike for miles up to the mall to see a movie with my best friend (side note: this was in the mid-80’s when it was perfectly acceptable to allow your 10 y/o daughter to ride 5 miles from home with no one other than her 11 y/o companion). Playing kick-ball in our neighborhood court, tag, freeze, jail-break was the norm throughout my childhood years. I was also lucky enough to have female babysitters who were also active and kept us busy by showing us cheer-leading routines or how to catch a softball. Additionally, I vaguely recall doing some exercises with my mom in the living room of our first house to a cheesy audio recording of some routine or another, although the only clear memory is one of the songs being “Just the Way You Are,” by Billy Joel. Looking back, how ironic that tune would be chosen for an exercise tape encouraging one to lose weight.

In 5th grade I received a sweet set of “Get in Shape Girl” audio cassettes that were geared towards keeping young girls active. I would spend hours in the basement doing push-ups, sit-ups and running laps around that 600 square foot cave. That is, until I hit middle school and graduated to Sweating to the Oldies with Richard Simmons. And while I’m sure my mom had every intention of making this guilty pleasure a part of her routine, it was I who kept it going well into my late teens.

Despite all of this activity, it was rarely done on a regular basis. Although I was thin (by genetics more than anything), I wasn’t exactly strong or had more stamina than the average bear. When I was 19 I bought a hybrid bike and was honestly surprised to find myself out of breath with wobbly legs a half mile down the road. I hated running, and couldn’t run a full mile (in my defense I was probably doing what most people do, and went balls-to-the-wall from the onset: bad idea).

I kept up these periods of working out, then not working out, for years. Again, because I was thin I thought I could get away with those slacking months without much consequence. Even after I got into running on a regular basis, after beginning to date a man who ran marathons, I would only really run/workout during the training for our races and do little in between. It wasn’t until spring 2014, and the introduction of Orange Theory Fitness, that I began to work out on a regular basis. Here was a place I could come and get a quality workout without having to think about it. They planned the routines for me, which included both strength and cardio, and all I had to do was show up for 60 minutes at a time and give it as all, or as little, as I wanted. Since then, I have been a regular and have attended anywhere from 2-5 times a week.
I share all of this because my “Give it up, Add it on,” goals include hitting OTF, yoga and doing strength training at home a certain number of times per month. Three weeks into this challenge, I’m beginning to see that I may have set my sights a little high, and devoting 6 days a week to physical activity may not be achievable.

For the months of March and April, I have changed my OTF membership from Unlimited to Premiere – meaning I can attend 8 sessions per month for one standard price, with the option to add on more if needed for an additional fee. I feel I must also add that with the Unlimited option there is a $12 penalty if you cancel within 8 hours of a scheduled class, and so far I’ve accrued $24 in cancellation fees this month (ouch)! My yoga goals continue to pan out as I’ve been going once a month on Sunday mornings, and the only thing that would hamper those plans would be if I were out of town or have a race that day. The strength training at home though – ugh. That hasn’t happened at all. I don’t want to give myself an excuse, but after working 10-hour days the last thing I want to do is come home and lift some weights. For this reason, I’m going to change my goal from 12 times a month to 4 times a month. I figure I’d set the bar low enough that it’s more achievable, and if I end up doing more – great! There’s just something that happens mentally where if I believe that 12 isn’t fully obtainable, then why bother to do any at all? Darn psychology!

So, there’s the scoop on the physical portion of my GIUAIO challenge. Don’t be surprised if there are some other changed that take place after May when my Half Ironman training begins. I already plan to cut back OTF to the Basic plan of 4 times a month, but am optimistic that my weekly yoga can continue as usual.

Next week, I’ll be giving an update on how the eating out/Heine Bros. portion of the challenge is going. Spoiler alert – I’m on track so far but it’s not been without its difficulties.

Week 2

Do you remember your first time? I sure do. I was at Circuit City after having just purchased a new, not-needed automobile after trading in a gifted vehicle that ran just fine. However, said gift was not a Boysenberry Blue Ford Probe and this 19 y/o wanted a brand-new Boysenberry Blue Ford Probe. But, I digress.

I was standing in Circuit City perusing the car electronics and checking out the sweet 10-Disc CD changer with cordless remote (this was 1997 mind you), as well as a radar detector (I like to drive fast). I couldn’t tell you the price of these items, and it didn’t much matter to me as I remembered receiving SOMETHING in the mail not long after my new car purchase that I THOUGHT was a credit card. Hmmmmm. So, I drove 45 minutes back home to retrieve said envelope, returned to Circuit City shortly thereafter, and asked the salesman I had been working with if what I possessed was, in fact, a credit card. “Yes, yes it is,” was his smirked reply, knowing good and well that he was about to bank some sweet commission off of this young, naïve kid standing in front of him. And that, ladies and gentleman, was the first time I ever used a credit card.

I don’t know about you but my parents never taught me much about money. Nada, zip, zilch about credit cards and debt and budgeting. The only thing I heard time and time again is that “credit cards are the devil,” and that I should never get one – but I never knew why. The mixed messages came when this was followed up by Mom telling us that if we wanted to go shopping for school clothes we had to do it at Bacon’s since this is the store where she had a credit card herself. Talk about confusion, right? Hence began my own journey into credit card debt as a young adult.

I can’t count the number of times I’ve paid off all of my debt, only to find myself in the same boat shortly thereafter. Even though I understand now how debt and credit cards work, I find myself getting too impatient to save and wait for the things that I want. Notice I didn’t say need. This is how I ended up giving away or selling a large amount of my belongings recently, because they were things that I never really needed. I should also point out that I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to my surroundings. My space (whether it’s work area, condo, house or car) has to be perfect. Everything has to look just so - knick knacks and wall art and furniture placement has to look flawless. Everything has it’s place. This mindset doesn’t mesh well when I’m trying to get, and stay, out of debt because before you know it I start to notice that the curtains aren’t exactly the shade of gray they need to be. Or the shower curtain doesn’t quite match the rug. Or that framed poster that I spent so much money on no longer looks good in that particular room. The list goes on and on.

I say all this to point out that it’s not just been a matter of not spending these last 11 days. I’ve had to accept and appreciate the things that I already have and learn to live with those things. I can already name at least three instances of having to reel myself back in when I thought that I needed to purchase yet another household item in order to make my condo immaculate. And that’s just been in the last week and half! Can you imagine the money I must’ve been sinking into these things by buying on impulse or after convincing myself I just HAD to have it rather than accepting what was around me? The odd thing is, it’s not really been that difficult not to buy the items. After a day or two passes I find out a way to figure it out (cleaned out the oil diffuser that wasn’t working properly, re-arranged the curtains I had told myself I just didn’t like). And low and behold, everything has turned out fine and I didn’t spend one dime – imagine that!

Oh… one last thing. Even though I have found myself in debt multiple times I’d like to add that I have always paid my bills on time. I’ve been lucky enough to make the kind of money needed to keep up with my monthly expenses, even if that sometimes meant paying only the minimum payments on debts. However, because so much money was going to these debts instead of into savings, retirement, etc., I found myself unable to put money towards things that I really wanted to do like travel and experiences. Throughout this process that’s just another perk that I hope to achieve after all of this – to be able to spend my hard earned cash on things that are priceless, and not just things.