Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Did I Just Categorize Running as FUN???

I'm telling you, I hardly recognize myself these days.

Last week on Thanksgiving I did the Turkey Trot here in Long Beach. It's a super cool 5k on the beach, where people dress up. Very family friendly and fun vibe. I ran it with my friend Elaine, and set a new personal record of 32:21 for 5k. :) That beats my old time by 3:26, which made me very happy! (I'll post pictures when I get my camera back from my mom's house, I left it there on accident.)

I have NEVER been a runner. I literally did not think it was possible for me to run three miles. One of my earliest school memories is running in Kindergarten and coming in last place. But I've completed two 5k's now, and it definitely makes me feel good about myself. It's a challenge everytime, but the feeling of finishing the race without stopping to walk AND beating my old time made me want to keep signing up.

So, on Sunday I signed up for two more races. One is called Fast and Furious. It's a super cheap one in Long Beach on December 17th. Only $15! No medals or t-shirts, but I'm fine with that. I just want a reason to keep training and a chance to best my former time. I also signed up for the Long Beach Pajama 5k on February 11th. I'm doing that one with a friend from college who just had a baby. I think it will be fun, and again it gives me a reason to keep training. That one is $35.

I decided to fit both races into my November budget. One of them came out of my "cushion" that I set aside for unexpected expenses. The other came out of my fun budget.

Fun. As in, I sacrificed a dinner out or some new clothes to pay for a 5k.

Who am I, you guys?

But, I really am starting to enjoy running. It doesn't mean all my workouts are pretty, or that I always feel like going running after work. But I'm sort of hooked on the feeling I get after I do something I didn't know I had in me.

That feeling is similar to how I first felt when I successfully stuck to a budget. It's how I felt when I managed to go a whole year without shopping and get my credit card paid off for good.

A while back, BF said that if I can be as disciplined as I am with my finances, he knew I could take up running. I told him that was ridiculous, and that they were totally unrelated. And in some ways, they are. But I think the satisfaction of accomplishment translates. My competitive nature helps me succeed in both. The runner's high is similar to the budgeter's high. Or the debt-payer-offer's high. They both take a lot of work, and aren't inherently fun. But when you get to the payoff, they have their own appeal.

So, I encourage you, dear readers. Try something challenging that you're not sure if you can do. Believe that you can. Get through those first crappy weeks, where you hate it and you feel like it will never get better. Because it will. And the payoff is totally worth it.

Monday, November 28, 2011

No Spend November Update: Week 4

I did pretty awesome with no spends this week...I'll do a final post to see if I pulled off my eleven days...it will be incredibly close, but possible. Anyway, here's the info:

Tuesday: Bought stuff at Target, stuff for Thanksgiving, and two new long-sleeved workout shirts. Definitely not a no spend, but a good night for shopping.
Wednesday: NO SPEND! Came home after work and watched West Wing with the BF.
Thursday: Stopped and bought flowers and picked up some last minute Thanksgiving items for my mom.
Friday: NO SPEND! I gave blood in the morning, then hung out with BF's dad who took us out to dinner. BF bought me coffee on the way home.
Saturday: NO SPEND! Lazed around, then brought Thanksgiving leftovers to a party, along with a bottle of vodka I had in the freezer.
Sunday: Big time spending. Gas, pharmacy, car wash, groceries, out to dinner with friend, brought BF coffee at work. I also paid for two more 5k's.
Monday: NO SPEND! BF made quiche for breakfast, I made a pot roast in the crock pot for dinner. Went on a run and then watched more West Wing after dinner.

Because I was able to pull off FOUR no spend days this week, I am up to ten! YES! I have two more days left in the month, so as long as one of them is No Spend (which is totally do-able), then I will make my goal! I'll give an update after the 30th and make my new No Spend goal for December.

Anyone else manage some No Spend Days? Or did Black Friday get you? :)

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Dabbling in Stocks

I saw that ING Direct was offering a $100 bonus through Sharebuilder if you opened an account this weekend and made two trades by the end of January. I know very, very little about stocks, but I decided to take the plunge and try to earn $100 (and maybe more if my stocks do well).

I transfered $50 from my ING Savings into a Sharebuilder account. I signed up for a free trial of their premium service so that I could make investments for only $1 (gotta remember to cancel is before January 1st!). I took a survey indicating that I was conservative about investing (more afraid of losing money than excited about earning it), and it suggested two investments. I set it up to make the trades on Tuesday. Since it's two investments, I'm hoping that counts for my two trades. I'll have to double check on that though.

The way I figure is that even if I lose all $50 (which is doubtful), I will still end up $50 ahead thanks to the bonus. I'm honestly planning on closing the account once the bonus posts to my account, since the whole stocks thing makes me nervous. Maybe I'll keep dabbling and let that $50 investment ride, but we'll see how it goes.

Anyone else done Sharebuilder before? I'd love some insight or advice on how to make it work for me!

Saturday, November 26, 2011

My Financial Bucket List

Krystal at Give Me Back My Five Bucks is doing a giveaway on her blog for $500, thanks to Life Insurance Finder. I liked that blogging about this giveaway had a fun topic, so I'm actually doing this one in hopes of winning that $500. The topic: What's on your financial bucket list?

1. Pay off my student loans, which would make me debt free!
2. Get my six month E-fund fully funded (I'm more than halfway there!)
3. Get in the habit of fully-funding my Roth IRA (this starts in January)
4. Pay for a wedding without raiding my E-fund. No, I'm not engaged, but if we're talking bucket list, this is on there for sure.
5. Buy a home.
6. I want a pair of Uggs, but I can never bring myself to spend the money on them. Maybe this will be my 2012 reward if I meet all my goals.
7. Another trip to Europe, to see some of the countries I've yet to travel to.
8. Travel to every state in the US, and visit every Major League Baseball Stadium (okay, this is BF's bucket list item, but I've adopted it).
9. Buy something really nice for my mom (can't say what, she reads this. And it won't be tomorrow, but someday...)
10. Get BF out of debt...but this be my territory until after we combine our finances...for now gentle encouragement will have to do.

And if I win the $500, I'll be that much closer to my goals. :)

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Target Victory!

Today I am pleased with my expenditures at Target...so impressed that I have decided to blog about it.

I had to return a conditioner that I bought because I remembered that I tried that brand and didn't like it. I also decided to return a foundation, because I am thinking of switching to Bare Minerals/Everyday Minerals again after my liquid foundation runs out. I got $19.55 back.

Also, a coworker paid me $20 for the fridge I bought for our academy several months ago. She was out on maternity leave, so I didn't expect to get it. I'm counting this as extra money, since it was extra from my budget.

So, I started out with a credit of $39.55. Here's how I got everything I needed, with three bucks to spare.

The shampoo and conditioner I planned to get were buy three, get a $5 gift card. So, I picked up an extra bottle of shampoo. I did this as one transaction and spent $15.19 and got a gift card back. In my next transaction I got my student teacher a $20 gift card as a going away gift. I also got stuffing mix for 89 cents, butter for $2.99, and cottage cheese for $2.69 (all ingredients for Thanksgiving meals). I used the $5 gift card, and spent a total of $21.57.

Then, I decided to swing by Marshalls and use my gift card...I was on a roll.

I need a couple of long sleeved shirts for running, so I got two of them at Marshalls. One is white and comes down over my hands with a slot for my thumbs. Which is fun. The other is bright pink and has a hood. They're both very visible at night and warm, which is good since most of my running is on the beach at night. I spent $11 out of my pocket for the two shirts, which I'm happy with.

So, last night was not a No Spend one, but I only spent eight bucks net, and stuck with necessities. Shopping Success!

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Blue Light Special

This weekend I went to Ralph's, and as usual when I got to the meat department, I scanned to aisle for any packages marked down as "Manager's Special." That yellow and orange sticker makes my day! I bought some ribs, marked down to $3.48 (they were six something), chicken marked down to $4.44 (also originally six something). The beef roasts were on sale (50% off!) so I snagged a pot roast and some stew meat at a discount as well. SCORE!

I made the ribs in the crock pot last night, and they were great (Just threw them in with onion, BBQ sauce, salt and pepper). I made the chicken tonight and made corn tortilla quesadillas and beans. I think I'll wait for after Thanksgiving for the pot roast, since I don't want to go into the holiday with leftovers.

It's nice to stock up on meat when it's on sale. I know some people are squeamish about the manager's special thing...it's meat that's about to go bad. But I put it in the freezer as soon as I get home, and I've never had a problem with it. I find that I definitely cook at home more often if I have meat on hand. I can usually improvise some side dishes from the pantry (I don't have a pantry. I have random cupboards that overflow. But you know what I mean), which means I am more likely to cook without making another grocery store trip.

I also get salads that are on clearance-as long as I eat them within a day or two, they are fine also. This saves money and makes me try things I might no otherwise buy. I've gotten loaves of bread for 99 cents for the past three weeks as well. I keep my bread in the fridge, so I don't notice a difference after I toast it.

Do you buy items on Manager's Special? How do you get bargains at the grocery store?

Monday, November 21, 2011

No Spend November Week 3

Here's the recap on how many No Spend Days I had last week...

Tuesday: Michael's for craft supplies for Christmas presents. Spent around $40.
Wednesday: Book club, bought Panera for dinner. Spent around ten bucks.
Thursday: No spend! I had parent conferences, so this was a crazy long day at work. BF made dinner, and I didn't really have time to spend anyway.
Friday: Dinner out with BF, $29
Saturday: Grocery store-spent $90, but meat and soda were on sale, so I stocked up. BF paid for the drive-in since I drove.
Sunday: $20 worth of gas in my car. $20 for tickets to the LA Auto Show. BF loves going. I also paid $4 for parking.
Monday: No spend!

So, once again I only came up with two No Spend Days. This brings my grand total for the month up to six. :/ I need to come up with five more days in the next nine days. Eek! Tomorrow's out as I need to get a gift for my student teacher whose last day is Wednesday. But I think I can pull off a no spend Wednesday and Thursday, and I'm pretty determined to make the other three happen. I do think I saved money this month, since I held off on lots of little things to make the no spends happen. I only stopped for breakfast on the way to work once this month, which is a vast improvement from last month's laziness.

Anyone else doing No Spend goals? How are they going?

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Drumroll Please...

As of this morning, I am officially a National Board Certified Teacher!

Boo-ya!

This process took me three tries (and this overachiever is NOT used to failing), involved four portfolios including videos and student work, six assessments, and some tears. It's an accomplishment I'm proud of, and it comes with a few perks.

I will get an automatic 7.5% raise, starting in the next month or two. If I am able to complete 92 more hours of professional development (as in running it, not going to it), I also get a lump sum of another 7.5% during the summer.

This means good things for my budget, but I've yet to sit down and plan it out. I'll post about it when I see what my check looks like when the money's actually there. For now, I am celebrating my hard work and daydreaming about the massage I plan to get with the money for this first month.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Free Samples

I've come to the conclusion that free samples really can add up to save you money. At the end of October I ran out of both shampoo and conditioner. I feel like now that I have longer hair, I'm definitely going through them faster, so I wasn't quite ready to spend money on my expensive brand (close to $20 each).

I went through my sample stash and found some of the same brand in sample size from my hair dresser. I used those first. Then I went on to my Aveda samples. Now I'm breaking into some samples I got from a Target giveaway. I'm user Tresamme, which advertises that it has "less sulfates" so I'm okay with that for now. I think I have enough sample stuff stashed away that I can get through November without buying more shampoo and conditioner.

Yes, I'll have to buy it eventually. And in the grand scheme of things going one month without buying shampoo and conditioner isn't going to make or break me. But, I do think that if you take advantage of samples whenever you can, it really does add up over time. I find most of my samples from The Freebie Blogger, which I check about once a week to see if there's anything worth requesting.

Where do you get your free samples?

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Thanks, ING!

I checked my ING account today, and noticed that my $50 bonus for opening a checking account with them had posted. Hurrah!

I pretty much just use my ING account as a house down payment fund. That is pretty much not getting funded at all right now, so it was fun to see a boost in there, especially since it was free money! I now have $116 in my house fund. Things are getting crazy over there!

Just kidding.

But I am all about the free money. And I like ING, so I'm glad to have an account with them. I moved the money from the checking to my savings, so it can earn at least some interest while it sits there. And sit it will, until my six month E-fund is fully funded.

Have you ever gotten a bonus like that? What did you use it for?

Monday, November 14, 2011

No Spend Days in November: Week 2

I only had one No Spend Day last week. :/ Not amazing, but I have high hopes for this week! Here's the recap-

Tuesday: Stopped at store to get dinner stuff, had friends over to eat and craft.
Wednesday: This would have been no spend, except the $20 I had to spend at the dentist. Stupid dentist.
Thursday: Happy hour to celebrate three day weekend. Holla! I also bought a coffee from 7-11 that morning. $1.89, and I could have just had free coffee at work. I'm lame.
Friday: Lunch with sister and then more craft supplies at Michael's.
Saturday: Paid $25 to watch my cousin cheer and be on Homecoming Court at Cal State Long Beach's basketball game. Then went out to dinner with my family, spending another $25. Expensive, but I'm glad I went.
Sunday: Finally, a no spend! Watched BF run half marathon, came home and ate soup for lunch. I'm sick, so BF actually brought it to me on a tray in bed...after he ran a half marathon. I'm lucky, people. Then we went to Jamba where I used a gift card and then to dinner at his family's house. Hurray for FINALLY getting a No Spend in there!
Monday: Stopped at grocery store to pick up spaghetti sauce and milk, $48 later, I left the store. But I got stuff we'll eat, and lots of lunch stuff so I won't be tempted to spend throughout the week.

Yes, only one day. This brings me up to four days total for the month. Not quite on pace, but I plan to have at least two days this week, which would put me back on pace.

Again, I find that I'm less likely to go for little splurges...I only had one last week, and I regretted it as soon as it passed. So hopefully that will stay with me, and I'll be more diligent about my spending.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Getting Crafty

I am not historically known as being good at crafts. I remember doing art projects in elementary school and getting super frustrated. I would imagine an amazing picture, and then start to work. My actual picture would look very little like what I had in my mind. I would get super upset that it wasn't perfect/good, and either cry or just quit. 

It's called gifted child syndrome. If I can't make it perfect, I won't do it at all.

This extended to crafts in high school, college, and beyond. If the example looked a certain way, mine had to look that way too. It's a character flaw of mine. I am a terrible learner if I don't catch on right away. This also applies to all athletic endeavors.

Last weekend, my friends Alyssa and Shelby invited me to a crafts fair. I went to go check things out, knowing I wouldn't buy anything. Alyssa and I got to talking, and I mentioned I knew how to make one of the simple crafts (which is now a Christmas present for my family, so I can't disclose what it is.) She got excited, so off we went to Michael's to buy the supplies. We made the craft, and as we worked I apologized for the little mistakes I made. Her response: "It doesn't have to be perfect, that's part of the fun of making it yourself. People will know it's homemade."

Duh. It doesn't have to be perfect. I actually had fun making a craft. The end product was pretty decent, and they came out good enough that it inspired me to try another project this weekend. This one was also pretty simple, but I am finding it satisfying to make something myself. I am choosing simple enough ideas that I can't get too frustrated, but I'm also okay with a little imperfection. 

I'm growing here, people. And I've decided to make my family's gifts for Christmas (four women). Depending on who I get for bloggy Secret Santa, they may get something homemade as well. It's a new step for me, I think they'll actually like what I make, and it's pretty frugal as well. :) I am taking lots of pictures, so after Christmas I can post my creations.

Do you do crafts? Have you ever had a DIY Christmas?

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Can't Pull the Trigger

I just went to my various accounts, trying to make myself transfer the money from my savings into my checking so that I could make a $2,500 payment to my student loan. I had both screens pulled up and ready to go.

I couldn't pull the trigger.

Maybe because I've flip-flopped on what to do. Maybe because seeing over $6,000 in my savings is so satisfying I don't want to move it. Maybe because my student loan has never bothered me all that much.

I just can't do it.

Here's a crazy idea. What if I just leave that money in my savings and build my E-fund now. As in, six month E-fund goal? Check! I have it now. I could pay my $300 payment to my loan to accelerate it a little, but put the rest of my money toward my savings. Once it's funded, I can start my house fund. Yes, I'd still have a student loan. A low-interest loan, which right now is an $81 per month commitment. Even if I got laid off, I could make that amount with unemployment benefits.

This does confirm that I need to set up my Roth payment to be automatic, or I won't want to send it all at once. That's for sure. I emailed my financial manager guy about how to do that.

So right now, that's the new plan. On a scale of 1 to 10, how annoying is my flip-flopping? Actually, don't answer that. I don't want to know.

Monday, November 7, 2011

No Spend Days in November: Week 1

Here's the update on no spend days for my first week of November.

Tuesday, November 1: No spend!
Wednesday, November 2: Met BF for a quick dinner since we hadn't seen each other all week. He closed a bunch of days in a row, so we had sushi during his half hour dinner break and we each paid for half. Spent $13
Thursday, November 3: Dinner and $5 parking at King's game. BF paid for tickets so I got dinner for both of us.
Friday, November 4: No spend! Went to happy hour, but BF paid. :) Then I came home and went to bed at 7:45. I kid you not.
Saturday, November 5: Ha! Gas ($48), groceries ($43), night out at our favorite dive bar ($46).
Sunday, November 6: Almost no spend. I made cider at home to take to an outdoor craft festival and resisted buying anything there. But then my friend and I got inspired and we went to Michael's to get craft stuff. I spent $18, but that should make a bunch of Christmas presents, so I'm okay with it. I did eat all my meals at home though!
Monday, November 7: No spend! Ate BF's pumpkin cake for breakfast, threw together a sandwich for work, BF made chili in the crock pot for dinner. Yay!

For those of you keeping score at home, that's three days so far. My goal is eleven days, so I'm on track. I definitely think this will help me save money. It stops me from spending on the little things, which is great. And even on days like yesterday, where I ended up spending, I saved money by eating at home and making my own apple cider to keep me warm at the craft fair, instead of stopping at Starbucks.

I'm also realizing that this is definitely a team effort with BF. He doesn't know about the goal...I think he won't get it and will think I'm being weird and cheap. Which sometimes I am. But, part of why I'm successful is because he cooks too. On days when I come home and don't feel like cooking, it's AWESOME to have something ready to go. He also makes a killer breakfast. I appreciate him. Even if he does want to use the heater when I think we should both just use two blankets, wear hooded sweatshirts, thick socks, and drink hot beverages (hence, he thinks I'm weird and cheap).

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Crunching the Numbers

When I posted my WWDRD? post, If I Were A Wealthy Girl commented, challenging me to figure out what my payoff/savings goal dates would be if I actually applied Dave's baby steps to the letter. Meaning no extra retirement until my E-fund is taken care of, paying my student debts first, etc. I realized I didn't know. So I thought I'd do some calculating.

One caveat: I have $3,000 of loan forgiveness coming my way at the end of this school year. So if I went gazelle intense, I could pay off my student loan before that, but obviously I don't want to. So, I need to leave enough that my regular payments go through and I still have $3,000 that I owe.

Plan 1: Dave's Way

I wouldn't put the money I have set aside into my Roth or 3 month E-fund, I'd apply that to my student loan. Then, because of my loan forgiveness I would switch to E-fun until the $3,000 posts. Whenever it posts, I'd pull the money out of my 3 month E-fund to pay the balance off.
Loan Payoff: Approximately June 2012
3 Month E-fund: March 2012
6 Month E-fund: August 2012
House Fund: January 2015

Pros: I am debt-free sooner in this plan. I also have my fully-funded E-fund by the end of the school year, in case I get laid off. This is definitely the fastest plan.
Cons: No Roth contribution for 2011, or for the first half of 2012. Wipes out savings over $1,000, so if a bigger emergency comes up, that's it.

Scenario 2: My Plan

Pay $300 extra toward student loan per month. Put tax return (up to $2,300) toward student loan. Save $400 per month, with $300 going toward E-fund and $100 going toward house fund. Put $420 per month toward my Roth, starting in January. Put current savings toward 2011 Roth to max that out as well.

Student Loan: Paid off October 2012 (just in time for my 30th birthday)
3 Month E-fund: October 2012
6 Month E-fund: June 2013
House: March 2016

Pros: I invest in my Roth starting this year, and it's funded fully for 2012 as well. I get to see something going on in my house down payment fund now rather than later.
Cons: WAY Later house fund (is that even correct?!). Later on pretty much everything.

Scenario 2: My plan modified...

I don't do the 2011 Roth Contribution. I split that money between my student loan and my E-fund. I still pay $300 per month toward my loan. I save my tax return for the beginning of a wedding fund. I save $400 per month in my E-fund, until loan is paid off. When that's done put $800 toward E-fund, and when that's funded switch the money to a house down payment.

Student Loan: August 2012
3 Month E-fund: May 2012
6 Month E-fund: November 2012
House Fund: October 2015

Pros: Still get to do Roth for 2012, get three month E-fund done by the end of this school year. House fund is earlier than my original plan. I have some savings now, and can use my tax returns as the need arises.
Cons: No Roth for 2011. Later house fund than Dave's plan, but sooner than my original.

I think I'm going to go with Scenario 3. It allows for meeting some goals faster and doesn't depend on my tax return to meet my debt payoff goal. Considering BF told me, "Just get me a small Christmas present and put the money towards a wedding" (!!!) I have a feeling I'll be needing a wedding fund sooner rather than later. I also want to get my Roth going for 2012, and this plan allows for that. But, I think I'm going to sleep on it before I move any money around.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Halloween!

Every year I come up with two Halloween costumes. One for a party I go to at my friend's house, and another for work. So, without further ado, here is Halloween 2011!

For the party, I went as Marcia Brady when she got hit in the nose with a football. Freddie went as Alice, the maid. I found both our dresses at the thrift store for $5 each. I borrowed my football and used eyeshadow to make my bruised nose. I also spend $5 on nylons, since the party was outside and I didn't want to freeze in my dress. Freddie's wig was the most expensive part of his costume, but overall we got out a lot cheaper than if we had bought the pre-made costume online.



At school, I was Minnie Mouse. Freddie got me the ears and apron for my birthday at Disneyland, I bought the red shirt for $6 at Target, and I bought black face makeup to do my nose. Everything else I already had, so that was easy. The kids loved it, and it was fun to wear. This picture is at the end of the day when my nose paint had worn off, but you still get the idea.


What did you do for Halloween?

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

WWDRD?

That's "What Would Dave Ramsey Do?"

No, I do not follow Dave's advice to the letter. I slowly built my $1,000 emergency fund while paying off my credit card debt. I have upped my retirement and savings goals while I still have student loan debt. His definition of "gazelle-like" probably does not include getting his hair done every 8 weeks.

But I do generally follow his "Baby Steps"philosophy. And I've run into a problem.

There's no, "Save for a down payment on a house and then get a mortgage" baby step. When is that supposed to happen? Most of his stuff seems to assume people already have mortgages, and are paying them off vigourously. And I know the Davester isn't a fan of any debt, so maybe he thinks I should save for a house and pay it in cash?

Not. Going. To. Happen.

I will be debt free by this October. I'll be maxing out my Roth IRA by putting $419ish per month aside. And that should leave me with about $300 per month to put into my savings.

So, do I put all of that towards Baby Step Three: 3-6 month emergency fund? Or should some of it go toward a house down payment fund? I know it wouldn't be smart to buy a house without a fully-funded emergency fund, but I also don't want to put off buying a house until I'm a million years old.

Here's my tentative plan: with my $300 per month that I am planning to save, I am going to put $200 toward my e-fund and $100 toward my house down payment fund. Even though I'll probably leave all of it in my Summer Saver to earn interest money. But, I am going to start a spreadsheet to note what the amount in there should be split towards. That way when it dumps into my checking account in August of 2012 the decisions on what to do with it will be made.

Any other Dave Ramsey fans run into this question? Does he have an official answer on this?

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

November No Spend Challenge

No, I am not doing a No Spend November. That's just not happening. BUT, I am going to set a goal to have some no spend days this month.

I've always thought no spend days were a little silly. It doesn't matter when you spend the money, so your overall budget is more important. However, I noticed that I spend money on little things a lot.

A coffee from McDonalds here.

Breakfast in the school cafeteria instead of making toast and bringing yogurt.

Grabbing little supplies for my classroom here and there (folders and more pencils just last week).

It all adds up. And if I were trying to have no spend days, then I would be much more likely to forgo these little items, which in the end would add up to some savings.

So, since I am not accustomed to doing the no spend thing, I've decided to pick an arbitrary number and go with it as a goal. Because everyone knows goals should be random and meaningless.

Since November is the eleventh month, I'm going for eleven no spend days in November! I'll keep track of them on the blog, and hopefully this will help me be more disciplined in my discretionary money, and come in under budget in that category.

Anyone want to join me?