Friday, 22 December 2017

5 Weeks Without A Phone, and I Survived

So, my phone died on the 13th of November, and I waited until last night to replace it; yet, somehow I survived. But according to the “last login,” it was 43 days ago.

I was able to do what I needed to do on my computer or laptop, but finally it came to the point that I just needed to break down and buy a phone.

So, I bought my usual brand “El Cheapo!” as in the cheapest unlocked phone that I could get my hands on. 

I was able to get one for less than $200.00 down at the “Buy More.”

So far it seems to be a better quality phone that I had imagined, and I will see how things go with it. 

After all, all I expect it to do is to make phone calls and text messages. Anything more than that is gravy. 

I am excited to be going to the mountains for my Christmas Break and it was good to get all of my running around done last night (hence the phone).

I do look forward to a more prosperous new year with a focus on saving rather than spending. 

Here’s wishing you all a Merry Christmas / Wonderful Winter Solstice or simply all the best in 2018.

Remember, you don’t have to wait until new years to make a change in your life, any old day will do, to begin anew.

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive, and keep moving forward!

Thursday, 21 December 2017

The Pre-Dash Rush

It is Thursday, exactly one day until I dash away to the mountains for my Christmas Break. 

I know that there will be more than a few other people trying to get out of town tomorrow afternoon. 

So, with this in mind I will want to dash to the mountains as soon as I can . . . as early in the day as I can. 

Yet, I still have some running around to do, what about that? You know: groceries to buy, mail to check, all that fun stuff. 

In order to get on the road as soon as possible, I have found that the evening before the big trip is the best time to do all this running around. 

Now, I still have to deposit my paycheque tomorrow, so I have to stop at the bank. After that I will be able to get on the road, and hopefully avoid the rush.

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive and keep moving forward!

Wednesday, 20 December 2017

Okay, So It Snowed

It snowed last night, or rather, yesterday: afternoon, evening and night.


So what am I to do about it?

When there is an impending snowstorm, I stay put where I am parked and just make do.

I have found that the best thing for me to do during these times is to not drive anywhere.

There have been a few times where I stay at my sleeping spot and walk to work (that 1km trek going uphill both ways).

There have also been times where I have stayed at my work spot (such as last night)


I know that things will die down in a day and driving after work today (that 1km trek going uphill both ways) to my sleeping spot will be much easier than driving last night.

I can’t stay in one spot too long, because not only is it rude to be hogging one spot too long, but also it attracts the attention of official types, with ticket books (and not the ones to Tahiti, either).

Yet, because I take my house with me wherever I go, I have the option to sleep wherever I can find a place to park.

This gives me the option to stay put and ride out a storm. For trudging through the snow is a whole lot easier than trying to drive through the snow.

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive, and keep moving forward!

Tuesday, 19 December 2017

The Paydrop

It happens every year, so I know that I have to get used to it, but it still hits me in the gut, every January. The time where my paycheque drops suddenly, due to taxes.

Again, as I have said before, at the beginning of the year, more taxes are taken off of my paycheque than at the end of the year, significantly more.

This is due to the fact that the government wants their money sooner rather than later (go figure).

This also means that as I near the end of the year, as in the last quarter, my paycheques get steadily larger, even though my gross pay has not increased.

Woo hoo,

Yet, January comes and wham I am back to the highest amount of taxes taken off each year. This hits me hard and I have to suddenly go back to my frugal and miserly budgeting ways.

The only difference is that this year, I have significantly lower expenses than last year. So, if I have to cut back significantly, I am only cutting back on my savings targets.

While this is a bad thing, this is nowhere near as bad as not paying a bill or even a loan of some kind.

So, sure I am in a better position, but I am still worried about things moving forward and how that will go.

After all, I did not go through all this, just so I can survive on a lower income, I did this to leverage my current income and get myself ahead.

I intend to save as much as I can, or at least make my savings targets each and every payday. I will treat this as a debt, for it is a debt, it is a debt that I owe to myself, and my future family.

Yet still the payday drop is gonna hurt.

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive, and keep moving forward!

Monday, 18 December 2017

Respect The Past, Accept The Present, Embrace The Future

It is a lesson that I keep need to learn, as it is something I still struggle with. There are times, particularly on the high holidays, when my thoughts turn to my life and my choices therein.

This is not an activity that I recommend by any stretch of the imagination, yet it is something that I do engage in, from time to time. 

I am getting my life back on track, starting with my finances, and working on from there. 

I try to not dwell on my failures of the past and more importantly not to blame them on others. I am trying to accept that has happened is what has happened.

There are things that I would like to have done, yet I must accept that if I did go back in time and make different choices, I would be a different person. 

I am who I am, for better or worse, because of my choices, and my past. I must just accept my life as it is and continually work to make my life better from here.

For that is all that I can do, try to come to some sort of peace with my past, to respect it for what it was, for how it shaped me. 

I must also come to terms with and just accept that my current condition is what it is. My life is in a holding pattern, and I am on my way to making my life better. 

It is to the future that I must turn my focus and hopes. For, while my past and present may shape me, I can shape my future. 

It has been said “The future is not set, there is no destiny but what we make for ourselves.” 

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive and keep moving forward!

Friday, 15 December 2017

One Week to Vacation!

This year is winding down, and I am looking forward to getting into the New Year! There are a number of moving pieces and things to do before this year is out.

Yet I am still committed, and excited to get into the savings phase of my life. This is really the building for my future. 

That, and I am looking forward to the one week vacation in the mountains. 

I am still trying to live as frugally as possible and I am remaining committed to my savings plan. Yet there are a number of expenses that are coming up next year.

All in all, I am excited for not only this weekend, but next weekend . . . and beyond!

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive, and keep moving forward!

Thursday, 14 December 2017

Counting on the Flop

When it comes to the dance and balance between estimating what my paycheque will be and budgeting what to do with it, it is important to remember the flop.

What is the flop?

Well, since I am not as retentive to look up payroll deduction tables to get a more accurate estimation of what my paycheque will look like, I use a Percentage Deduction method. 

Basically what I do is take a guess, (usually by comparing my previous estimate with the actual deduction amount) of what percentage to lop off the top of my paycheque.

This varies throughout the year. More is taken off in the beginning and slowly less and less as the year rolls on. 

So I will start out the year taking off 27.5% and end the year taking off 21%. Again each percentage point makes a huge difference

This is why I keep tweaking my numbers to get as close an estimation as I can. I also remember to stay a bit on the aggressive side. 

I do this so my estimated paycheque comes in a bit lower than what my paycheque will actually be. 

So the Flop is that little bit of extra money, as in I am standing where my estimation says my paycheque will be but flop forward to "move" that extra bit forward (financially speaking).

I do this because it is much more fun trying to determine what to do with that little bit of extra money than having to cut in order to balance your budget.

This time around, I am actually counting on that flop to balance my budget, but one way or another I will make this budget work. 

For I am determined.

As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive and keep moving forward!