Okay, this might not come as a shocker to most, but to a big-boy like me, who likes to eat junk, I realized today that “real” food can be very, very expensive. Wow. Fresh fruits and veggies can cost more than frozen or packaged, and healthy breads cost 2 or 3 times more than plain white or wheat. And organic? Hmmm..
I will have to re-do my shopping list so that I actually TRACK the prices of some of these goods. I think I will also check into some online sites for healthy stuff to eat.
Well…
TODAY IS DAY ONE of the “diet”. I know, I know. I am not supposed to say “diet”. I am supposed to say, “way of life” or “way of eating”. Hush. It’s a diet, folks.
Today’s goals:
8 x 8 oz. water
Eat grilled chicken and veggies
Eat fresh fruit
exercise
That’s about it. We shall see how it goes.
Now, I wanted to do this post now as well, so this shall be a two-parter. Hope you read this far, personal finance warriors.
This is my FAVORITE trick for having more money at Christmas. Now, I know that it does not work out for all of you “keep my money in savings, earning interest, until the very last moment” folks, but it works GREAT for anyone who loves to give gifts and always seems to charge up things on their credit cards for others at Christmas time:
Here is the simple trick: There are 12 months in the year, right? Well, what if you only had to make 11 payments, and could “skip” December. Well, you can, and here is how. Let’s assume a monthly cable bill of 50 bucks.
- Multiply 50 x 12 = 600
- Divide 600 / 11 = 54.54
- Pay 54.54 each MONTH instead of 50
- You will not have a bill for December.
Now, I KNOW that this does not create “extra” money, but it is cool not to get a bill in December. And look, this only “cost” me 4.54 a month. I spend that on junk food at the 7-11 almost everyday. (Well, I used too, anyways) I use this technique, and though the affect is merely psychological, I “feel” like I have more cash available to buy things for folks at Christmas. I use this with 5 different “fixed” bills, and I love it. By the way, if you use DISH NETWORK service, you can pre-pay your bill for a year, and they knock of 1 months service cost (you pre-pay the base price for your plan).