Finally Frugal's weekly roundup. . .

This week, I tried to read blog posts that were a little outside my usual 'comfort zone' themes of frugality, simple living, and debt repayment. Here are some of the ones I enjoyed (and hope you do too!):

Cash Money Life wrote a brilliant post about how to save money on your home insurance. This is one area that I have neglected. My home insurance is held by AAA, which (in my opinion) is one of the more expensive companies. Since half of my wiring is knob and tube (I think that's what it's called) instead of circuit breaker, finding home insurance was kind of a struggle. This is something that I can work on this year.

Meanwhile, Frugal Dad writes about people with massive credit card debt, and the odds that they would be able to 'itemize' their debt. In other words, he wonders whether someone with a $10,000 credit card balance (as I've had in the past) could figure out where all that money went! This would be an interesting exercise---I know that in my credit-card driven past, I wouldn't have been able to recall even half of what I had purchased with credit.

I love, love, LOVE this post by J.D. at Get Rich Slowly, about making your own luck. J.D. read an article in Newsweek about "how to survive" (anything, from a plane crash to an accidental knitting needle through the heart), which posits that some people are lucky, and some just aren't. J.D.'s argument (based on the research of a British professor) is that only about 10% of our lives can be attributed to luck. The other 90% is all about our attitude and the choices we make.

I've Paid for This Twice Already writes a moving post about the recent death of her father, and the financial aftermath following the death of a loved one. It's hard to remember that along with all of the emotional upheaval after a 'breadwinner' dies, there are financial details to sort out. Paid Twice lists some very helpful tips that can help the remaining spouse deal with the details more easily while grieving a loss.

No More Spending published a post entitled "Using a Spending Diary" that discusses the benefits of tracking expenditures, whether on paper in a journal or online (as I do) using Excel. I have to say, keeping track of where my money is going has been the absolute key to decreasing spending and increasing savings and debt repayment!

Finally, Cheap Healthy Good has a scrumptious looking recipe for Autumn Apple Salad on her website, that looks to-die-for (and cheap-ish, too). I know it's not autumn anymore, but I might need to buy a bag of organic apples this weekend and create this little jewel of a salad for myself.

And that's it for me, folks! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Finally Frugal one year anniversary!

One year ago today, I published my first blog post! My financial life was pretty different at that point. Although I had decided in November, 2007 that I needed to begin living within my means, it was a slow process. Not using my credit card was painful, and in January 2008 I still owed about $4,500 to various credit companies. I still craved new shoes and clothes every day (I continue to struggle with this), and paid little attention to the money that was leaving my life in dribs and drabs each day.

In that first blog post, I discussed the book that changed my attitude---Your Money or Your Life, by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin. I purchased that book in late 2007, and in 2008 I ended up purchasing a CD (used, on Ebay) that featured a workshop given by Joe before his death in 1997, to help jumpstart my motivation. A year later, I still believe that this book (as well as Dave Ramsey's The Total Money Makeover) has been instrumental in helping me begin getting my financial life in order. If any of you are struggling with your finances, either of these books make great investments.

After reading many, many books about debt, financial independence, and rampant consumerism during those first months of 2008, I eventually began taking a close look at all of my 'variable' expenses, such as cable, cell phone, gym membership, and auto insurance, and either made money-saving changes or canceled those services altogether. I began tracking each penny that left my life, and started using the zero-based budget, which I still use to this day.

All of you regular readers will know that I have a long way to go. I owe over $56,000 in student loans, and I don't yet have a plan to begin repayment of this. I own a house with two mortgages, and the combined monthly mortgage payments equal about 40% of my gross monthly income--not a great percentage for someone who also wants to increase savings and investments. I work two jobs, at 50 hours a week on average, just to keep my head above water. I also go to school on a part time basis, and I am contemplating, with some trepidation, the 2009/2010 academic year in which I'll be obligated to work less than full time in order to make time for a required internship.

Many challenges and seeming obstacles lie in my way on the road to financial independence. In reading other personal finance blogs, the one thing that I keep reminding myself is that the path to meeting my financial goals is a long one---I can't expect success overnight, as much as I might wish it.

In spite of the challenges, I also remind myself of my small successes over the past year: I've paid off my credit cards; I've learned about my spending habits by keeping an eye on each expenditure; I've begun the process of getting a handle on my bad spending 'vices', such as clothing and shoes; I've learned that I'm actually a pretty good cook, and that I can be satisfied with a .10 cent cup of home brewed coffee instead of craving a daily $3.40 mocha.

Most importantly, I've 'met' so many other people who are also on their own, similar but unique financial journeys. Just knowing that there are others out there in the blogosphere who are either just beginning, are well on their way, or have met with success, helps me to stay on track and believe that I, too, can find my way to financial independence.

A frugal meal. . . .

This month, I'm giving myself a total of $100 for grocery purchases; next month, I hope to decrease that to $85. With only $15 left in my grocery budget for the month of January, I've been casing my cupboards looking for items that can be combined into wonderful meals. Added bonus for meals that create leftovers that I can take to work and school.

Looking for inspiration, I delved into my trusty Tightwad Gazette
(written by the Queen of Frugal, Amy Dacyczyn), and found this gem:

Mix and Match Seafood Casserole (makes six servings)

4 to 5 ounces of pasta
1/2 cup dry white wine or milk
1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
1 cup American cheese, shredded (I used cheddar)
1 can condensed cream of celery, shrimp, or mushroom soup
1/2 tsp dill
6 to 8 ounce can of seafood (tuna, salmon, crab, etc)
Topping (stir two tbsp melted butter into one cup of soft bread crumbs. Can also try one cup of crushed corn chips, chow mein noodles, or french-fried onions, or 1/2 cup sliced almonds).

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the pasta, drain, and set it aside. Mix the white wine with the mayonnaise, add the cheese, soup, and dill. Gently combine the noodles and the seafood with the moist ingredients. Pour the mixture into a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish, cover and bake for 30 mins. Remove the cover, top with Topping, and bake for an additional five minutes. Serve hot.

Since I had all of these ingredients (although I used buttermilk in place of the milk), I decided to try it out. This ended up being a cheap, tasty meal. It was quite rich, but definitely a useful 'filler' when one doesn't want to go to the grocery store. Of course, the best thing was the two or three days of leftovers I had, meaning that I didn't have to purchase anything at work or before school.

In my opinion, this isn't the most healthy meal I could have made--however, I've been eating beans and rice, spaghetti, and stir fry regularly, so I think my body can stand some added cholesterol. Plus, this warm, rich dish is perfect on a cold January day.