<< Back to all Blogs
Login or Create your own free blog
Layout:
Home > Feel like a cat in a bathtub

Feel like a cat in a bathtub

March 12th, 2018 at 07:44 pm

All over the place and trying not to drown. That is how I feel. I thought that over the weekend I could come up with some brilliant plans and globs of money, but I didn't. We are not ready to cut our Satellite yet, but I did get it reduced by $20 and we are probably going to cut Netflix. We are in a contract with Dish, so I would have to pay $190 to terminate early. I saved another $20 on our phone bill. Not including the other 10% I can save by taking my employer's information in. But I still need $500 by the end of the month to keep my account from going negative. And I still need $250 by 03/21 to pay my ticket. (My sister gave me $40 to go towards my ticket.) I did sell some jam, so I have $15. I'm guessing it should just go towards my account.

I also did some meal planning and food inventory. I can do 10 dinners without buying anything additional. So that seems pretty good. And we will have leftovers for lunches.

Hoping things will start to get better.

Posted in Budgeting, Personal Finance | 9 Comments »

9 Responses to “Feel like a cat in a bathtub”

  1. creditcardfree Says:
    March 12th, 2018 at 08:30 pm 1520886656
    1520886656

    When you don't have $190 to cancel that make sense. But down the road $101 each month adds up to $606 in six months or $1212 per year.

    Great job on meal planning for the next 10 days out of your pantry.

    Is there any income coming in before 3/21? Any other big ticket type items you could sell?

  2. Rose. Says:
    March 12th, 2018 at 08:53 pm 1520888029
    1520888029

    Unfortunately my estimated total at the end of the month is included. That is after bills and does not include any grocery budget at all. Frown I am trying to find things to sell, but I really just don't have anything. We sold a lot at our last garage sale. I considered selling some collectible dolls that my great grandmother gave me, but the thought kills me. They are really special to me.

    And I would consider canceling Dish except they would automatically draft it out of my account since we are set up on auto pay and apparently we agreed to that in our contract. I know if would save us money but if I am already close to being negative I can't afford another $190 to come out.

    I do work at my second job 2 days this week, so I am hoping to get a few tips.

  3. Out of the Dark Says:
    March 12th, 2018 at 09:30 pm 1520890238
    1520890238

    Rose, please know you are in my thoughts and prayers. This dark time will pass. Stay focused, stay intent on reducing expenses, selling unwanted items, plowing all monies towards debt.

    Finally, I would highly suggest engaging with Dave Ramsey. Youtube, Google, etc. Although I have not had to utilize his methods, I read nothing but great things and believe he would be a great online type of mentor. God bless and keep your chin held high!

  4. Cassie66 Says:
    March 12th, 2018 at 09:40 pm 1520890808
    1520890808

    Some jurisdictions will allow you to make payments on your fine or do community service in lieu of payment. You may have to show financial hardship but it would keep you in the good graces of the court and give you some breathing room. Contact the Superior Court or do an online search for your county. Good luck.

  5. Bluebird Says:
    March 12th, 2018 at 11:03 pm 1520895790
    1520895790

    You've done an awesome job with meal planning and reducing expenses! You'll get through this tough time, I know it's not easy. I would cancel everything I could that doesn't result in a fee.

  6. crazyliblady Says:
    March 13th, 2018 at 12:06 am 1520899581
    1520899581

    Can you move any of your credit card debt onto the lowest interest card you have to save anything on interest? What about refinancing your mortgage? How about checking with your insurance company for any discounts (safe driver, college graduate, etc.)?

  7. LuckyRobin Says:
    March 13th, 2018 at 01:37 am 1520905056
    1520905056

    As someone who was once so far in debt I didn't feel I could breathe, I understand what you are going through. You really have to be prepared to make every sacrifice you can. I think the one that will make the biggest impact on your current finances will be selling that car you cannot afford. I understand that you do not want to, but I think you absolutely have to if you are going to get your financial footing back. Unfortunately, I don't think selling the car is something that would happen in time to do you any good with your ticket situation or your account balance issue.

    So what bills are due between now and when you need the money? Utilities, if you have been in good standing with them, will often let you work out a payment plan if you are desperate enough to have to miss a month, IF you call them before you miss the payment. My power company has something called the Warm Home Fund that people can donate to that helps people when they get into bad situations and can't pay. Maybe yours has a similar fund you can tap. Some cities and towns have a one time emergency gift they give out, usually around $500 for people in temporarily bad situations. I'd check and see if your city, town, or county is one of them.

    Can you claim unemployment at all for the lost jobs or do you make too much still? You may be able to collect at least partial benefits. It is worth checking into.

    Can your parents or other family members float you a temporary loan to take care of the immediate problem? I saw about the $40 from your sister, but that's not enough.

    Can you hold a garage sale this weekend? Can you take anything to a pawn shop? Think musical instruments, cameras, jewelry, game machines, video games, etc. Can you sell your books to a used book store? Can you sell your couch or recliners on craigslist?

    What is your spouse doing to bring in more money? Does he have more than one job? Can he pick up something on weekends until you are above water again? Or overtime? Can he get a paycheck advance from his work? Can you? It's rarer these days, but some companies do that.

    Are either of your vehicles paid for? If one is, you can drop full coverage and only carry uninsured motorist and liability for a significant savings.

    Hang in there. Sometimes it can get dark for a while, but you are asking for help, which means you want it, even if you aren't quite ready to accept all of the things you may have to do just yet.

  8. PatientSaver Says:
    March 13th, 2018 at 12:00 pm 1520942418
    1520942418

    I don't know what part of the country you live in, but when I needed money I had pretty good success selling perennials from my garden. I advertised on Craigs List or Facebook with photos and made them cheap enough that they'd be a bargain compared to what you'd pay at Home Depot. I would tell people to bring their own containers and I'd dig them up for them.

    People who like to garden are very eager to get started first thing in spring.

  9. PatientSaver Says:
    March 13th, 2018 at 12:01 pm 1520942506
    1520942506

    When there were storms that brought trees down, I'd cut them up, stack the wood in my driveway and sell that, too. It wasn't a full cord of wood, but I discounted it deeply to make it worth someone's while to come over with their pick-up, and they did.

Leave a Reply

(Note: If you were logged in, we could automatically fill in these fields for you.)
*
Will not be published.
   

* Please spell out the number 4.  [ Why? ]

vB Code: You can use these tags: [b] [i] [u] [url] [email]