New Blog Idea
I'm thinking about starting a new blog--a personal finance blog to help me learn some new tricks. I've been reading from a list of the top 100 finance blogs and I must say, some of them are pretty darned dry, so I'd like to start my own Sensationally Red savvy blog to add a little spice to the mix. I few of my favorites that I perused were Bitter Wallet, Stop Buying So Much Crap, and Poorer Than You. These were very edgy and didn't take an overly consumerist focus. I'm not giving up the running blog, but it's time to move on to a new obsession. I've completely assimilated running into my life--I don't worry that I'll stop running. I started blogging, initially, to keep me motivated and help me learn things as I figured out the mysteries to becoming a life long runner. I've also been a life long tight wad--I'm genetically wired for cheapness, it's steeped in my bones, just like my running, but since I'm sitting at the cusp of ending a 21 year marriage, I figure I need to step up my game a bit, hunker down, for single living and learn to live richly on a meager salary. I know I have had the longest, most drawn out, amicable divorce in the history of mankind. We did that for several reasons, but one of them was financial--I've been paying as I go.
It'll be wrapped up in February.
I am a person that believes that it doesn't matter how much money you make, it's the money that you don't spend, or save, that ultimately matters. I believe that richness is a state of mind that comes from healthy, simplistic living, good relationships, and a de-emphasis on the materialistic. There are as many types of savers as there are spenders. I don't live like a snake, squirreling away my money under a rock with the intention of, years later, waking up rich and ready to live like a queen. We've all heard about the millionaire next door stories--the latest I heard was some Italian immigrant that never made more than $10 an hour, recently died with millions. He had no intention of changing his lifestyle once he got to a certain age or accumulated a certain amount of wealth. His lifestyle was ingrained, he made a habit of living on less than he earned, he invested, and died leaving a million to charity. Hard to believe that he managed to live on just $10 an hour, but I don't think he had children--the ultimate money suckers.
I save money mostly as security--to be able to handle what life throws at me. I try to not want many things, but if I really want something, I've got the money for it. I have a weakness for technology; I'm more likely to covet your Smart Phone or your Blackberry than your clothes or furniture. I value travel, good food and friends more than I do a wide screen T.V., favoring "experiential" spending to hard core materialistic spending, which means I'm more likely favor a special night out with a friend than buying new duds. I figure, on my death bed, in the last moments of my life, I'm going to think of the people in my life and the things I did with them, rather than my stuff. Yet we have to have some stuff, so balance is crucial. Money is meant to be spent--wisely. We all know how fast money can slip through our fingers, yet, you know the same concept works in the opposite positive accruing direction as well; small amounts can add up over time. My soon to be ex could not get this simple concept through his head, so for years and years, my efforts to save were like struggling sickly salmon swimming upstream to spawn. Well...the eggs have hatched. Hallelujah!
Many personal finance bloggers attack thrift from an overly consumerist angle. You've all heard of the moms that spend hours on end, reviewing circulars, clipping coupons and driving all over the county bargain shopping. This is all fine and good, but often these misguided bargain hunters end up avalanched with a household of crap they don't need, so now they are devoting time to organizing their crap that they got fabulous prices on! My philosophy is to not buy the crap in the first place, yet this is difficult to do, brainwashed Americans that we are. When I moved into my apartment; I looked at all my books stuffed in a small two shelf bookcase and thought, "I need a bigger bookcase to fit all my books!" So, while looking on Overstock.com and Craigslist for something adequate and affordable, I had an ephiphany. Why don't I just get rid of the books I don't want to keep and stick with the small shelf? There are some that I treasure and will keep forever, but most of the excess were running books I bought at the height of my running obsession and wouldn't likely call upon again. I called a used book dealer. He gave me $10 to take them off my back. I knew he was going to turn around and sell them on E-Bay, but I didn't want the hassle. I felt lighter. I keep my life physically uncluttered so that my ADHD mind can focus.
Clutter-hounds and spend-thrifts drive me nut. I was married to one for 21 years. I just saw today, a piece on MSN.com about the fatal attraction of these opposites in marriage. Most people claim their ideal mate is someone with similar money management philosophies, yet they end up marrying the opposite and after 20 years of money marital strife, head to divorce court. There were a few times when our different money philosophies balanced out, where he got me to relax a bit about money, but overall--he made me nuts. It was a constant fight and now, free to manage my own meager stash, I'm as happy as a poor clam. As they say, couples either fight about money or sex.
So, my personal finance blog will incorporate my core values for health, simplicity, non-materialism, and oh yeah...lots of spiciness. The best things in life, you know, are free. Now that we're steeped in recession, more people are less likely to think personal finance bloggers are freaks. Any ideas for a blog name?
I'm thinking about starting a new blog--a personal finance blog to help me learn some new tricks. I've been reading from a list of the top 100 finance blogs and I must say, some of them are pretty darned dry, so I'd like to start my own Sensationally Red savvy blog to add a little spice to the mix. I few of my favorites that I perused were Bitter Wallet, Stop Buying So Much Crap, and Poorer Than You. These were very edgy and didn't take an overly consumerist focus. I'm not giving up the running blog, but it's time to move on to a new obsession. I've completely assimilated running into my life--I don't worry that I'll stop running. I started blogging, initially, to keep me motivated and help me learn things as I figured out the mysteries to becoming a life long runner. I've also been a life long tight wad--I'm genetically wired for cheapness, it's steeped in my bones, just like my running, but since I'm sitting at the cusp of ending a 21 year marriage, I figure I need to step up my game a bit, hunker down, for single living and learn to live richly on a meager salary. I know I have had the longest, most drawn out, amicable divorce in the history of mankind. We did that for several reasons, but one of them was financial--I've been paying as I go.
It'll be wrapped up in February.
I am a person that believes that it doesn't matter how much money you make, it's the money that you don't spend, or save, that ultimately matters. I believe that richness is a state of mind that comes from healthy, simplistic living, good relationships, and a de-emphasis on the materialistic. There are as many types of savers as there are spenders. I don't live like a snake, squirreling away my money under a rock with the intention of, years later, waking up rich and ready to live like a queen. We've all heard about the millionaire next door stories--the latest I heard was some Italian immigrant that never made more than $10 an hour, recently died with millions. He had no intention of changing his lifestyle once he got to a certain age or accumulated a certain amount of wealth. His lifestyle was ingrained, he made a habit of living on less than he earned, he invested, and died leaving a million to charity. Hard to believe that he managed to live on just $10 an hour, but I don't think he had children--the ultimate money suckers.
I save money mostly as security--to be able to handle what life throws at me. I try to not want many things, but if I really want something, I've got the money for it. I have a weakness for technology; I'm more likely to covet your Smart Phone or your Blackberry than your clothes or furniture. I value travel, good food and friends more than I do a wide screen T.V., favoring "experiential" spending to hard core materialistic spending, which means I'm more likely favor a special night out with a friend than buying new duds. I figure, on my death bed, in the last moments of my life, I'm going to think of the people in my life and the things I did with them, rather than my stuff. Yet we have to have some stuff, so balance is crucial. Money is meant to be spent--wisely. We all know how fast money can slip through our fingers, yet, you know the same concept works in the opposite positive accruing direction as well; small amounts can add up over time. My soon to be ex could not get this simple concept through his head, so for years and years, my efforts to save were like struggling sickly salmon swimming upstream to spawn. Well...the eggs have hatched. Hallelujah!
Many personal finance bloggers attack thrift from an overly consumerist angle. You've all heard of the moms that spend hours on end, reviewing circulars, clipping coupons and driving all over the county bargain shopping. This is all fine and good, but often these misguided bargain hunters end up avalanched with a household of crap they don't need, so now they are devoting time to organizing their crap that they got fabulous prices on! My philosophy is to not buy the crap in the first place, yet this is difficult to do, brainwashed Americans that we are. When I moved into my apartment; I looked at all my books stuffed in a small two shelf bookcase and thought, "I need a bigger bookcase to fit all my books!" So, while looking on Overstock.com and Craigslist for something adequate and affordable, I had an ephiphany. Why don't I just get rid of the books I don't want to keep and stick with the small shelf? There are some that I treasure and will keep forever, but most of the excess were running books I bought at the height of my running obsession and wouldn't likely call upon again. I called a used book dealer. He gave me $10 to take them off my back. I knew he was going to turn around and sell them on E-Bay, but I didn't want the hassle. I felt lighter. I keep my life physically uncluttered so that my ADHD mind can focus.
Clutter-hounds and spend-thrifts drive me nut. I was married to one for 21 years. I just saw today, a piece on MSN.com about the fatal attraction of these opposites in marriage. Most people claim their ideal mate is someone with similar money management philosophies, yet they end up marrying the opposite and after 20 years of money marital strife, head to divorce court. There were a few times when our different money philosophies balanced out, where he got me to relax a bit about money, but overall--he made me nuts. It was a constant fight and now, free to manage my own meager stash, I'm as happy as a poor clam. As they say, couples either fight about money or sex.
So, my personal finance blog will incorporate my core values for health, simplicity, non-materialism, and oh yeah...lots of spiciness. The best things in life, you know, are free. Now that we're steeped in recession, more people are less likely to think personal finance bloggers are freaks. Any ideas for a blog name?